Categories
Quick Analysis

NASA Manned Spaceflight Endangered

The President’s proposed 2017 budget does little to change the disappointing fact that America’s returned to crewed space flight in a NASA vehicle won’t take place  until 2023.  In contrast, private companies are moving steadily ahead to finally restore a means to launch astronauts from U.S. soil.

The President’s $19,025,000,000 2017 NASA budget proposal represents a 1.3%, $300 million reduction from the prior year.

There is much controversy in the continuing diversion of funding within the space agency from its traditional mission of manned space flight while dramatically, to the tune of $2 billion, increasing Earth Science research by 70% over the years, mostly to advance Mr. Obama’s climate change agenda.

Of the total funds requested for NASA, less than half, $8,413,000,000, is designated for human space flight. Within the proposed NASA general science funding request for $5,601,000,000, the lion’s share is designated for Earth Science, $2,032,000,000, an increase of 5.8%, $111 million over the FY 2016 enacted budget.

House space subcommittee chair Steven Palazzo (R-Miss.) previously noted:

“It is no secret that this Committee is concerned that the support within NASA for the [Space Launch System] and Orion (a manned spacecraft) is not matched by the Administration. While this lack of commitment is somewhat puzzling, it is not at all surprising. The President has made clear that he does not believe space exploration is a priority for the nation and has allowed political appointees within the administration to manipulate the course of our human space flight program. These decisions should be made by the scientists, engineers, and program managers that have decades of experience in human space flight…The Administration has consistently requested large reductions for these programs despite the insistence of Congress that they be priorities.”

The New York Analysis of Policy & Government noted in December that “President Obama prematurely cancelled the Space Shuttle program, then defunded what had been planned to be its immediate manned spacecraft replacement, the Constellation system. The Orion system is the next on the list, if funding for that effort continues at the current pace.”

Clomid stimulates the ovaries viagra free pill to produce mature eggs. The money bug has hit everyone therefore, no matter how much progress technology and science does, what is its use if it can’t serve the common man? regencygrandenursing.com cialis soft 20mg is one such drug that has managed to make place in the market not by its name but by its effects is levitra. Progesterone is prescribed to viagra sample canada cause the uterine lining to thicken in preparation for conception. Regular exercise opens up the vessels, stretches muscles, improves mood, increases confidence, enhances blood circulation, brings more activeness and offers overall wellbeing to do the best during the sexual performance. female viagra pill The latest update, reported by Spacenews, is that work has halted on the initial upper stage of the Space Launch System due to budgetary shortfalls.

NASA’s Spaceflight.com states that “NASA officials have admitted the interim Upper Stage for the Space Launch System is at the top of their ‘worry list’, as the Agency’s key advisory group insists NASA should make a decision about bringing the more powerful Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) online sooner. The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) fears NASA is at risk of wasting $150 million on an Upper Stage they intend to ‘toss away’.

NASA sources note that this has been presenting the space agency with a headache for some time, although it took the recent ASAP meeting to finally confirm those concerns to the public.

“The next big event is test flight Exploration Mission (EM)-1, on track for 2018 – a 24-day, unscrewed cis-lunar voyage that will inject a lot of energy into the Program. The following flight, EM-2 that will have a crew, brings up an issue that deserves attention,” noted the minutes from the meeting.

“Presently, the Program does not have the upper stage that it needs because of lack of funding. A new upper stage, called the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), will be developed for future crewed flights.

“As a fall back, NASA is planning to use the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion System (ICPS) that will get the job done through the test flight, but it is not what NASA will be using eventually.”

A NASA committee was told it will cost “at least $150 million” to human-rate the ICPS, something the panel believe “will be wasted because this design will be ‘tossed’ in the near future.