The Orbital ATK effort to launch today was scrubbed and you have guessed it already ... a busted wire caused the scrub. (ABC: Bad Cable Delays Comeback Rocket Launch From Virginia)
There's no call for saying 'I told you so' as it's just an odd coincidence after having written on a Trial by Wire recently.
Here at the Rockhouse, we cheer each private enterprise effort to launch and a large part of the positivity is because it's not hamstrung by the stereotypical binary thinking it's got to be private or government. In the case of the advance into space, it's both. The advances in multiple directions since that time have been spectacular. Regrettably, Orbital ATK's last attempt a year ago resulted in a spectacular explosion but the vehicle was unmanned so it sucked but it wasn't tragic.
Something NASA has never accomplished is a soft landing of one its booster and SpaceX has done brilliantly with that.
Some of you know who Delos D Harriman was so do feel free to break off into a cheery reverie on this vibe.
Note: DD Harriman was "The Man Who Sold the Moon" and it was one of Heinlein's most poignant stories.
There are many who bemoan the expense and even the point of venturing into space but the cost of NASA relative to the military is trivial and I rarely hear any bitching about military costs in concert with any complaints about the cost of space exploration. The same people would likely have bitched about how much it cost to build the Pinta, the Nina, and the Santa Maria.
Note: that in no way indicates endorsement of Columbus but I'll leave that for another time.
There's no call for saying 'I told you so' as it's just an odd coincidence after having written on a Trial by Wire recently.
Here at the Rockhouse, we cheer each private enterprise effort to launch and a large part of the positivity is because it's not hamstrung by the stereotypical binary thinking it's got to be private or government. In the case of the advance into space, it's both. The advances in multiple directions since that time have been spectacular. Regrettably, Orbital ATK's last attempt a year ago resulted in a spectacular explosion but the vehicle was unmanned so it sucked but it wasn't tragic.
Something NASA has never accomplished is a soft landing of one its booster and SpaceX has done brilliantly with that.
Some of you know who Delos D Harriman was so do feel free to break off into a cheery reverie on this vibe.
Note: DD Harriman was "The Man Who Sold the Moon" and it was one of Heinlein's most poignant stories.
There are many who bemoan the expense and even the point of venturing into space but the cost of NASA relative to the military is trivial and I rarely hear any bitching about military costs in concert with any complaints about the cost of space exploration. The same people would likely have bitched about how much it cost to build the Pinta, the Nina, and the Santa Maria.
Note: that in no way indicates endorsement of Columbus but I'll leave that for another time.
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