Word: nasa
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...contest. Nearly 1.2 million votes were made in this online contest, over 230,000 of which voted for the name “Colbert.” The name Serenity came in second place with 190,000 votes. Several students said they thought it was unjustified that NASA did not choose the first-placed moniker. “This is absolutely outrageous, its totally undemocratic,” said Dylan R. Matthews ’12, an avid Colbert Report viewer. “I am morally outraged,” added Brendan C. Quinn...
...NASA had such a dismal track record since the Apollo program? Reduced funding tells part of the story. The space program received around $40 billion a year (adjusted for inflation) in the mid-1960s, which was at least four percent of the federal budget. But, back then, Americans also had a much greater tolerance for risk: The first successful Apollo mission was launched just eight months after the three astronauts in Apollo 1 died during testing. NASA’s tighter leash today means that riskier programs like nuclear-powered spacecraft don’t make it off the drawing...
...However, a new struggle against communism won’t save NASA. The red menace is hardly what it was, and, besides, we already won the race to the moon 40 years ago. Going back proves nothing, and there may be little to no scientific value to a permanent moon settlement. Mars is hardly realistic, because the lengthy cruise to get there would severely disfigure our astronauts. Prolonged habitation in zero-gravity environments might permanently cost astronauts a quarter of their skeleton due to osteoporosis. While many Americans view China’s space program as a threat, there...
...Perhaps diverting funds from Constellation into unmanned missions makes more sense, as robotic exploration accounts for most of the important science being done by NASA today. The conventional counterargument asserts that the manned space program justifies its expense and its danger because it attracts the most attention, not just to NASA, but to science in general. But, even if that’s true, NASA severely underestimates the appeal of robots. Tiny Mars rovers launched five years ago for nearly half the cost of a single shuttle mission continue to receive nearly constant coverage, even for minor milestones...
...NASA stated in the rules for its poll that the agency would reserve the right to pick the final name for the new module. Rumors suggest NASA may still use the name Colbert for a mission-critical component—the toilet. If nothing else, they’ve got a sense of humor...