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Hubble Upgraded; NASA's Future Not So Bright

Posted by michael on from the one-hundred-seventy-two-million-cheap dept.

jokrswild writes: "After 5 space walks and 172 million dollars, Hubble has been successfully redeployed. Hopefully it will be able to amaze us yet again in its abilities to capture the unimaginable." And Captn Pepe writes: "Space.com has a couple of articles regarding what the Congressional Research Service and what NASA's new chief administrator have to say about the space agency's future plans and prospects. The short version is, don't hold your breath for a Mars mission."

5 of 238 comments (clear)

  1. Pop Quiz by cybermage · · Score: 5, Informative

    Ok, let's say you're an elected member of congress. How would your constituents like you to prioritize the following:

    A. Fight Terrorists
    B. Fix Economy
    C. Teach Our Children
    D. Fight Crime
    E. Cut Taxes
    F. Reduce deficit/Debt Reduction
    G. Explore Mars

    Assuming you don't have enough money for everything, what do you leave out?

    If you want NASA to go to Mars, I'd suggest you help the Chinese do it: The only thing that might sway congressional self-interest is competition. Nothing took the wind out of NASA's sails like the collapse of the Soviet Union.

    --
    Some people have a way with words, and some people, um, thingy.
    1. Re:Pop Quiz by Dr_EddieB · · Score: 5, Funny

      There was a story floating around recently about a member of NSYNC paying to go into space as a 'entertainment trip' sort of thing. This could be used to pay for a mission to Mars without tax money. Many people, myself included, would be willing to kick in money to send the entire band of NSYNC into space, with the stipulation that they do not return.

  2. Talk About A Low Budget! by GeekLife.com · · Score: 5, Funny

    They must really be cutting back if they're recommending people holding their breath on the Mars mission.

  3. Let's have a nasa rider by bmetz · · Score: 5, Interesting

    You know those stupid "would you like to give $5 to the so-and-so party?" lines at the bottom of the 1040? Well, why not have a "would you like to give $5 to the send-a-man-to-mars fund?" I'll pretty much die before I give a dollar to a politician so he can put my name on a "sucker to call when I need more money" telemarketing list but I'll gladly give money to a cause that means something on a historical scale like this.

    --
    What did you eat today? http://www.atetoday.com/
  4. A manned mission to Mars by NetSerf2000 · · Score: 5, Funny
    Honestly, I think that we should load all the terrorists and all the dumb ass politicians from around the world who are a bunch of low-brow rednecks and send them off to mar's so that they can settle their differences up there and leave the rest of the human race in peace...

    Maybe just to make it interesting for the rest of us, send up about 50 camera's as well and a limited supply of oxygen and they have to fight for the right to be the last person breathing up there... and possibly get a free ride home...

    That way, everyone left back here gets the best of all worlds...

    Mars gets a manned mission,
    We stop the fight against terrorism,

    AND *shudder* for the reality tv freaks out there, they get the ultimate reality show of all time...

    Ohhh... and as a side benefit, we also get rid of all those useless politicians who are just screwing up everything for everyone else...



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    *** I had a .sig, but then I got a life ***