This is pretty forward thinking. It would be nice if Congress would get the memo.
3 thoughts on “The OSTP On Space”
Agencies should prioritize demonstrations and flight tests to ensure an industrial base for commercial activity in space and on celestial bodies.
Not sure if this is the context but in the context of the COTS approach to future NASA programs, this statement is encouraging. Having competitors demonstrate their technology is good for NASA and there is the potential that companies that don’t win primary contracts will still have a product they can market to other customers. The risk is that there are no other customers.
One area of potential scientific and commercial importance is microgravity-related research that has the potential for near-term breakthroughs in biopharmaceuticals and materials science.
But not how microgravity research for living in space 🙁
James Muncey’s comment is right on though. What is said is less important than what is done.
A bit off topic, but the local radio news in Houston was promoting a story that NASA needs to update its spacesuits. They had comments from Eileen Collins and Keith Cowing.
Now, personally, I have friends that work on this project, so I’m not against them getting paid. But as a person who has been in the field, it was obvious this news article was directed at Congress to get funding for this.
I find it pathetic, as the claim is the suits are unchanged since Apollo. Accepting the argument as true, why now pay to upgrade them? We have had 3 major programs (SSP, ISS, and CEV) that could have supported development of a new suit. And the idea that this hasn’t been studied is absurd. JSC has a multi-million dollar rover they drive around with new suits attached to the back, and this has been reviewed by television documentaries around the world to include Top Gear.
Come on NASA, quit begging for money to build things that go only, literally, around the block here on earth. There won’t be a need for a new spacesuit for six to seven years, just based on your current flight schedules. I’m sure if SpaceX needs a new suit, they’ll build one.
I’m sure if SpaceXBigelow needs a new suit, they’ll build one.
Not sure if NASA needs new suits for space walks but partnering with commercial space station providers would be better than going alone and the same is true for lunar suits. The drawback is that NASA could slow walk everything like they are doing with commercial crew.
Agencies should prioritize demonstrations and flight tests to ensure an industrial base for commercial activity in space and on celestial bodies.
Not sure if this is the context but in the context of the COTS approach to future NASA programs, this statement is encouraging. Having competitors demonstrate their technology is good for NASA and there is the potential that companies that don’t win primary contracts will still have a product they can market to other customers. The risk is that there are no other customers.
One area of potential scientific and commercial importance is microgravity-related research that has the potential for near-term breakthroughs in biopharmaceuticals and materials science.
But not how microgravity research for living in space 🙁
James Muncey’s comment is right on though. What is said is less important than what is done.
A bit off topic, but the local radio news in Houston was promoting a story that NASA needs to update its spacesuits. They had comments from Eileen Collins and Keith Cowing.
Now, personally, I have friends that work on this project, so I’m not against them getting paid. But as a person who has been in the field, it was obvious this news article was directed at Congress to get funding for this.
I find it pathetic, as the claim is the suits are unchanged since Apollo. Accepting the argument as true, why now pay to upgrade them? We have had 3 major programs (SSP, ISS, and CEV) that could have supported development of a new suit. And the idea that this hasn’t been studied is absurd. JSC has a multi-million dollar rover they drive around with new suits attached to the back, and this has been reviewed by television documentaries around the world to include Top Gear.
Come on NASA, quit begging for money to build things that go only, literally, around the block here on earth. There won’t be a need for a new spacesuit for six to seven years, just based on your current flight schedules. I’m sure if SpaceX needs a new suit, they’ll build one.
I’m sure if
SpaceXBigelow needs a new suit, they’ll build one.Not sure if NASA needs new suits for space walks but partnering with commercial space station providers would be better than going alone and the same is true for lunar suits. The drawback is that NASA could slow walk everything like they are doing with commercial crew.