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Rules Set for $50 Million America's Space Prize

An anonymous reader wrote in to say that The rules have been set for Robert Bigelow's $50 million 'America's Space Prize'. The gist of it is that the winner needs to get a crew of five people up 400km, complete two orbits of the Earth, and then do it again within 60 days. I've got a gremlin and a huge rubber band... now if I only had 4 friends!

25 of 548 comments (clear)

  1. All I can say is.... by Exsam · · Score: 1, Funny

    Hell yea! Yet another step closer to comercial space flight, so I can get off this god forsaken rock.

    --
    "To face death, that's nothing much. But to feel really stupid when you die, well, that would be insufferable."
  2. The rules specify the 5 people... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...must be Bush, Rumsfeld, Rove, Ashcroft, and Oreilly. Successful reentry is not required to receive your prize.

    1. Re:The rules specify the 5 people... by Otter · · Score: 1, Funny

      And just how do you think technology is going to proceed without O'Reilly? The code running the next generation of space travel will be written by people who learned their trade from VB.net For Dummies In 24 Hours!

    2. Re:The rules specify the 5 people... by dfung · · Score: 2, Funny

      :-)

      Perhaps mixing Tim O'Reilly with the others was intended to cause a combustion to power the spacecraft. Why, just mixing Tim O'Reilly with Karl Rove alone would produce enough heat to light Sebastopol for 6 months.

    3. Re:The rules specify the 5 people... by JavaLord · · Score: 4, Funny

      ...must be Bush, Rumsfeld, Rove, Ashcroft, and Oreilly. Successful reentry is not required to receive your prize.

      Yes, but with those people in the Rocket, successful re-entry is likely since they are very succssful people. Now, if you are shooting for failure try putting in Kerry, Edwards, Gore, Nader and Sharpton

  3. Make an orbit by freeze128 · · Score: 4, Funny
    I've got a gremlin and a huge rubber band... now if I only had 4 friends!
    Your taun-taun will freeze before you reach the first marker!
  4. Learner Drivers... by RobertTaylor · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Bigelow Aerospace will be hiring astronauts, as well as conduct the training of "space novices""

    NASA does intense training; will these new spacecraft pilots have heat resistant learner plates?! ;)

  5. Re:80% reusable? by tepples · · Score: 5, Funny

    Then begin your rationalizing by claiming that the part that lifts off is the 20 percent, and the launch pad is the 80 percent.

  6. Re:80% reusable? by Zarniwoop_Editor · · Score: 5, Funny
    Can the crew be part of the expendable 20%?

    Might save on life support overhead for the two orbits. ;-)

    --
    - F1 NEWS
  7. Better Idea by Ancil · · Score: 3, Funny

    I've got a gremlin and a huge rubber band... now if I only had 4 friends!
    Wile E.Coyote once tried something similar.. For the first launch, I'd suggest five enemies instead.
  8. friends by Fr05t · · Score: 4, Funny

    Ok since noone has said it:

    Who wouldn't be able to find 4 friends when you have a gremlin and a huge rubber band!

  9. Re:Hah! by Peyna · · Score: 2, Funny

    They even have ads for Microsoft for cripes sake.

    It's like taking money from the enemy. MS can waste their money here all they want, I doubt it does them much good.

    --
    What?
  10. No way ! by Thomas+Miconi · · Score: 4, Funny

    ... Schröder, Chirac, Blair, Sharon and Berlusconi on the second trip?

    Schroder will attract hordes of angry east German protester who will block the launch, Blair will give the plans of the ship to the US government with offers of complimentary sexual gratification to any senior member of the administration, Sharon won't get in the ship because it will probably fly over a moslem country at some point, Chirac will ask for United Nations meetings, counter-meeting, commissions and detailed reports on the size and orientation of every single joint in the fuselage, and Berlusconi will just run away with the prize !

    Thomas-

  11. Re:Better Idea by mr_z_beeblebrox · · Score: 4, Funny

    Wish you were right on this. It should help, but poverty is caused more by government corruption and lawlessness than by lack of infrastructure. Given good government, Uganda would soon be more like Canada than Uganda. Unfortunately, no one knows how to ``give'' good government.

    Give them the Canadian government. Canadians are basically good people and would behave without their government.

  12. Re:Hah! by EvilTwinSkippy · · Score: 2, Funny
    Well, considering that both the Soviet and American space programs were built on the fundimental research done by the Nazis on ballistic missile technology...

    I declare Godwin's law.

    --
    "Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival."
    --Dr.W.Edwards Deming
  13. Orbital Gremlins by jshark · · Score: 5, Funny

    The aerodynamics of a Gremlin are such that the giant rubber band will give insufficient lift to attain orbital velocity. You'll be better off with a good strong plank and one of those weights from Acme that read 16 TONS on the side.

    The only drawback is that the sudden acceleration may cause your passengers to look like pancakes of mercury on the floormats, assuming they don't just flow through the rust holes in the floorboards.

    --
    If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough.
  14. Re:So entirely stupid reasons by tod_miller · · Score: 2, Funny

    So now I know why Buzz Aldrin was grinning, it was all that viagra he was poppin' before he went on there, his pupils were dilated and everything...

    I appreciate the nerd-boy comment, I really do!

    The best thing about 0g sex, is there are no arguments about who is on top.

    And you can pretend to be superman and louise lane... and erm... other things... :-)

    --
    #hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
  15. Re:Lighten up. by bmorris · · Score: 2, Funny
    Its really hard getting FCC certified for any kind of commercial flights.
    Yeah, I suspect it's _very_ difficult to get the Federal Communications Commission to certify any sort of flight, commercial or private. Perhaps it would be easier through the FAA?
  16. Re:Sounds like a recipe for disaster by mr_snarf · · Score: 2, Funny

    Don't go outside! Theres germs everywhere! Don't go for a walk, you could trip over and hurt yourself! Don't open your eyes, you might go blind! Don't ....

    Risk is part of life. Some people can deal with greater risks than other people. Nothing will get done if no one takes any risks.

    --
    printf("Goodbye cruel world!\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b");
  17. Fierce Competition by Maniacal · · Score: 2, Funny

    Someone better check these ships for rockets and/or lasers. For $50 million these guys are going to be trying to take eachother out should they pass in orbit.

    --
    MG
  18. Heinlein Ford Taurus by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I've got a gremlin

    I'd rather have a Ford Taurus with a fourth dimension shifter in the console and an A.I. radio named "DiDi."

    Twice in 60 days with that baby. Easy money.

  19. Re:Better Idea by lobsterGun · · Score: 3, Funny

    500!!! that's all???

    I could run over that many scientists on my way home. Just one of the buildings I'm in every week easily has that many scientists in it.

    If you could only come up with 500 that agree with your hypothesis, then you may be doing something wrong.

    Perhaps you need to phrase your questions in a different way.

  20. RTFA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny
    Jesus Christ, WTF is wrong with you moderators? This isn't an insightful question; it's an ignorant knee-jerk bash-the-American response.
    The contestant must have its principal place of business in the United States of America.

    Isn't this is very restrictive and unfair?
    No, you illiterate (or lazy) fool.

    Some American guy wants to get tourists up to a LEO inflatable space hotel his American company is going to build. He wants to deal with an American company - the article suggests that there are practical logistic reasons involved. It's just a guy investing domestically. There is nothing evil, arrogant, or ethnocentric about it.

    It's his $50 million. It's a business venture, and if he doesn't want to deal with foreign crybabies like you, more power to him.

    Don't like it? Make your own prize, then make your own rules.
  21. Re:You're right by Tackhead · · Score: 2, Funny
    > Bah, both are for woosies. REAL men strap scuba gear AND Satrurn IVs to their arses!

    Stop. Giving. The. Goatse. Guy. Ideas.

    That is all.

  22. Re:A lot harder than it looks by Tackhead · · Score: 2, Funny
    > Think of the early space walkers and how even the most simple tasks caused them to flail about and sweat buckets. You know, Newton's Laws, action and reaction, and how partners having sex will probably have to be tied down with Velcro or something similar.

    Wait a minute, I thought you were talking about bad things.