Random thoughts on politics, current events, popular culture, and whatever else interests me.
Wednesday, June 29, 2022
Tuesday, June 28, 2022
Monday, June 27, 2022
Sunday, June 26, 2022
It’s time for NASA to cancel the Lunar Gateway
"A recently leaked NASA document shows there is bad news and some good news for the Artemis return to the moon program, according to a recent article in Ars Technica. The bad news is, largely because of costs associated with building the Lunar Gateway, the pace of Artemis missions to the moon slows to an unsustainable crawl, with years between flights and the establishment of a lunar base pushed off to the 2030s. The good news is that many of these problems might be solved by canceling the Lunar Gateway."
Saturday, June 25, 2022
Friday, June 24, 2022
How Ellen’s Presidency Impacts For All Mankind Season 3
"The real-life Clinton administration did not prioritize America's space program during its tenure from 1993-2001. Despite his public support for "a continued, aggressive exploration of space in ways that are high quality, cost-effective and that will benefit us here on Earth," Clinton actually reduced NASA's budget. Still, he emphasized the importance of global collaboration in space through the International Space Station. It goes without saying that For All Mankind's Ellen Wilson champions space exploration more than her opponent. During a debate, Clinton argues that the money dedicated to launching NASA's Mars mission two years earlier could be better serviced toward putting food on the table for Americans. Thus, Ellen's victorious presidential campaign in For All Mankind season 3 illustrates how the prolonged space race shifted the public's valuation of off-Earth affairs."
Thursday, June 23, 2022
Wednesday, June 22, 2022
Former NASA deputy head details toxic culture, internal feuds over space policy during Obama administration
Some of the stuff that Lori Garver describes is pretty horrific, including at least one threat of sexual assault that should have gotten the perpetrator arrested and charged. I would be interested to hear from other women at NASA if they had similer experiences and how they delt with it. As for being yelled at by politicians, Jim Bridenstine has had similer experiences.
‘Get your boy Elon in line’: NASA tell-all recounts turmoil over private space race
"Garver, who joined NASA in 1996 and held a series of increasingly senior posts, accuses her former boss, Charles Bolden, the first Black NASA administrator, of multiple leadership failures — from presiding over declining diversity in the astronaut corps to doing the bidding of entrenched interests and their backers in Congress."
Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Monday, June 20, 2022
Sunday, June 19, 2022
China’s space-based solar power project could be a clean energy game-changer
The China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) plans to begin experiments in space-based solar power technology be a clean energy game-changer, according to Space News. It could also prove to be a potent tool for China’s effort to spread its power and influence throughout the world.
Saturday, June 18, 2022
Friday, June 17, 2022
Thursday, June 16, 2022
Wednesday, June 15, 2022
Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Monday, June 13, 2022
The FAA has issued an evironmental approval for orbital launches from Boca Chica. The future can now begin at last.
Sunday, June 12, 2022
I just watched the first episode of the third season of For All Mankind. Some thoughts follow with some minor spoilers.
We have mining colonies on the moon, space hotels, flat screen TVs and computers, electric cars, and fusion power in 1992 and yet people are still listening to music on LPs. What’s up with that?
Gary Hart serves two terms as president. Then. Bill Clinton is running for president against – a closeted lesbian Republican senator from Texas. This could be fun.
Will space suits delay NASA’s return to the moon until 2026?
The news that NASA has contracted two companies, Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace, to provide spacesuit services was quite welcome. The planned Artemis Program return to the moon would be pointless unless astronauts are able to get outside their spacecraft and walk around, doing useful work. Even if America were not leading much of the world to go back to the moon, new extra-vehicular activity (EVA) suits are long overdue.
Saturday, June 11, 2022
Elon Musk Has Become the Villain Liberals Always Imagined Him to Be or How the Left Lost Elon Musk
Not mentioned in the Politico article, but surely a factor: Bernie Sanders goes after Elon Musk for wanting to explore space
Friday, June 10, 2022
Thursday, June 09, 2022
Wednesday, June 08, 2022
Season 3 of For All Mankind draws nigh and Vanity Fair has an advanced review of the Mars-centric story arc. I am fascinated by the idea that global warming has been solved, not by a bunch of Green New Deal socialists, but by the sort of high tech billionaire they despise who develops commercial lunar helium 3 fueled fusion energy. Mind. I don't think the transition would happen so quickly that hordes of oil and gas workers are thrown into the unemployment line. However, the take on the issue is good enough to be subversive.
Tuesday, June 07, 2022
France to sign U.S.-led moon exploration agreement -sources
Vive La France! Vive l'Alliance Artemis!
Monday, June 06, 2022
Sunday, June 05, 2022
Will SpaceX and NASA make 2022 the year of the heavy-lift rocket?
If the stars align right, SpaceX and NASA may make 2022 the year of the heavy-lift rocket. The Starship/Superheavy and the Space Launch System (SLS) are two different launch vehicles, the first pushing the envelope of rocket design, the latter hearkening back to the past. Both are designed to, at long last, open the moon, then Mars, then beyond, to human exploration.
Saturday, June 04, 2022
‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Is America’s Cry for Help in which the author stumbles upon the remarkable insight that after being told how rotten we are for years by the cultural elite, we Americans would prefer to feel good about ourselves.
Friday, June 03, 2022
Biden to Elon Musk "Lots of luck on his trip to the moon."
Slow Joe doesn't realize that it's NASA's trip to the moon called Project Artemis.
"Still, advocates for space exploration shouldn’t fool themselves. They have made great progress in shifting public opinion over the years, but they will continue to have their work cut out for them for the foreseeable future."
Do Americans Care About Space?
Going back to the moon for science