NASA's Aquarius Launched To Help Map the Oceans' Salt

oxide7 writes "NASA launched a satellite featuring an brand-new instrument which will be able to measure the saltiness of Earth's oceans. Data from the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft will help scientists understand better the processes that drive ocean circulation and the movement of freshwater around the planet."

Comments

Re:How much did this cost?

[hairyfeet]

Or use a satellite launched while we are bankrupt that can measure an entire ocean all at once via spectroscopy and map it in real time with computers. FTFY.

This would be all well and good if it was 1955, or if it was launched by the Chinese, but the simple fact is we're broke and the right would rather risk us defaulting than raise taxes to even 1990 levels. So spending on this kind of shit really needs to stop, at least until we can quit blowing cash like shit through a goose on three wars, new aircraft carriers and superplanes, and at least get taxes on the 1%ers up to 1990s level, although I'd say 1950s levels would be better, after all isn't that the time the right wishes we'd go back to?

But we just don't have the money to afford this shit right now, hell we can't even afford a replacement for the shuttle.