Because of my long association in various contractual capacities with NASA, friends and neighbors often turn to me to opine about happenings with the agency. The most recent spate of questions began with the stand-down of the Space Transportation System, aka the Shuttle. Most have the perception that NASA is folding. Completely. I hasten to reassure them that NASA is …
Doing What’s Important
Today’s gleaning of the news brought with it an item in the Houston Chronicle that pointed up a terrific way of thinking about past glories, recognition, and future endeavors. Charles Bolden, the NASA Administrator, first chided the staff at Johnson Space Center and other citizens of Houston for their complaints about not having received one of the now-retired Space Shuttles, …
New Heavy-launch System: What Will We Use It For?
After too much time, effort, and political wrangling, Charles Bolden, the NASA administrator, has announced to the world the design for a new heavy-lift Space Launch System. Nominally designed to take over the Space Shuttle’s duties with respect to servicing the International Space Station, it is also being touted as our ride into the next chapters in the U.S.’s (and, …
Selling the Sizzle?
I’ve always been fascinated by spaceships–first, the science-fiction variety, with the then-requisite pointy nosecones, swept-back wings, and cockpit canopies, all of which made them look like super, super-fast fighter jets. As I got older (I’m not sure I can say “matured”) and began to work as a contractor in and around the NASA environment, I learned that such constructs were …
Leadership and the End of the Shuttle Era
The era of the Space Shuttle is over. Atlantis landed today, after a perfect trip to the International Space Station (ISS). Note that I referred to this voyage as a trip, despite NASA’s insistence on referring to such things as “missions”, or “expeditions”. I mean no disrespect–to the contrary! I’ve been a space cadet since before NASA existed. I cut …