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Last NASA Spacewalk Marks End of Era

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the put-on-a-hat-it's-cold-out-there dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Astronauts embarked on the final space walk of the U.S. shuttle era at the International Space Station, where Atlantis is docked on the final mission of the 30-year U.S. program. Atlantis carries a year's worth of supplies — more than 3,600 kilograms — for the International Space Station. It will also bring up a system that will be used by Canada's Dextre robot to test a system for refuelling and repairing spacecraft and satellites in space."

12 of 80 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Last shuttle defecation coming up by rbrausse · · Score: 2

    no flushing - the thing is air flow driven :)

  2. Re:It's our fault the program is over by PFactor · · Score: 2

    That's pretty much my point. I doubt many Americans WANT a huge department of justice/prison-filling-machine but many Americans continue to go with the status quo instead of demanding change. I'm of the opinion that our democracy is failing principally because the people won't get (and stay) engaged on matters of substance.

    --
    Don't believe anything I say. I crash test crack pipes for a living.
  3. just to be clear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    i think that headline might be misleading. just want to be clear: this is not the last ISS spacewalk. The ISS has an airlock and can perform spacewalks with not shuttle support. (In fact, this spacewalk was actually carried out by ISS crewmembers and not shuttle crewmembers). This is, however, the last spacewalk while the shuttle is docked. Others will not have the extra shuttle assets to lean on.

  4. Re:Last shuttle defecation coming up by Bill_the_Engineer · · Score: 2

    Brings a whole new meaning to Whooosh. ;)

    --
    These comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of my employer or colleagues...
  5. More than the end of the shuttle program. by wcrowe · · Score: 2, Interesting

    End of an era? Yes. But the era that has ended is not just the shuttle program. It is the end of the U.S. Space program. The United States will never be prominent in space again.

    --
    Proverbs 21:19
    1. Re:More than the end of the shuttle program. by couchslug · · Score: 2

      The sky is falling. We must continue legacy systems so we can be trapped by them. The Soviet Union never sleeps. If it doesn't put humans in space it isn't science. If the US doesn't fund most space efforts humanity won't benefit from them.

      Did I miss anything?

      --
      "This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."
    2. Re:More than the end of the shuttle program. by bkmoore · · Score: 2, Informative

      Robert Goddard independently invented liquid-fueled rockets before Werner von Braun. The problem for Dr. Goddard was that the U.S. in the 1930s was in the middle of a great depression and wasn't ruled over by a maniacal dictator bent on ruling half the world. Dr. Goddard had to finance his research from private donations. Werner von Braun on the other hand, had the backing of the Nazi government and the German Army. It's no wonder that von Braun built bigger, better rockets than Dr. Goddard.

      To say that the Americans were just a bunch of idiots who needed German help to get anything off the ground is just plain wrong. In 1945, the Germans were further along than the Americans. The German scientists who came over to America helped speed up the space program, but they weren't the only ones who made contributions. The same can be said about the Russian space program. The Russians had some German engineers and some V-2 rockets, but the R-7 rocket which launched Sputnik was developed by Russian engineers.

  6. Re:Agreed by rnaiguy · · Score: 2

    Actually, until they get off on the ground. Shit happens...

  7. Re:Last shuttle defecation coming up by Eevee · · Score: 2

    Okay then, it will be the last time the shit hits the fan on the shuttle...

  8. Re:It's our fault the program is over by hairyfeet · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Ya know, that takes some mega sized brass balls to say that when Obama is the pres. How's that Hope & Change thing working out? Oh yeah he Hopes you don't notice the only Change is from an R to a D on the door. I mean this administration actually has the gall to claim the president has the right to assassinate Americans on American soil with NO oversight or trial, and this is irrevocable under "war powers". Dubya didn't have the balls to do that, even Nixon didn't have balls that large!

    Sadly my friend the late great Bill Hicks nailed it more than 20 years ago "Well I believe the puppet on the left shares MY beliefs, well i think the puppet on the right has my interests at heart...hey wait a minute there is one guy controlling both puppets!". Time and time again We, The People have made ourselves heard only to be ignored. We want our borders fixed, we want the wars to end, we want Medicaid/care and aid to the poor left alone, we want taxes to increase on the top 5% and we want companies to stop being rewarded with taxpayer money to close factories and send them overseas like GE did recently. But all you get is two sides to the same coin, and thanks to Citizens United this will only get worse. If you believe either side gives a shit about the American people I have a nice bridge to offer, it goes to nowhere so there is no wear and tear!

    As for TFA I hate to be the one to say it, but good riddance to the shuttle, it is only sad we don't have a replacement that should have been built in 1995. The shuttle was a failure from the start, its original mission statement was for a "space truck" that would allow both the military and NASA to share expenses, to allow cheaper and larger loads into space, and to allow fast turnaround. It failed to live up to that statement which is why the military has been using the Delta V.

    I would argue the only reason it has hung on this long is Sen Porkus and Congressman Kickbackus were using it to "bring jobs to the area!" which is why there was nearly 20 states working on shuttle parts and why congress pushed for reusing shuttle parts when it made no sense on Orion. Both sides of the aisle have long since quit giving a shit if they hurt this nation as long as it suits their personal goals and spreading the shuttle parts like a shotgun blast across the country helped them show they were bringing home that bacon.

    So goodbye shuttle, you did much good work despite failing your original goals and I'm only sorry you weren't put out to pasture years ago and something more practical brought up in your place. maybe we'll have the Delta Vs man rated, hell maybe we should just buy some Soyuz off of Russia. Either way the shuttle should have been in a museum years ago and I hope the astronauts get down safely for this their final ride.

    --
    ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  9. Re:It's our fault the program is over by blueturffan · · Score: 3, Funny

    Delta-v has always been an important part of space travel.

  10. Re:It's our fault the program is over by blueturffan · · Score: 2

    Please try reading before responding next time. And to whoever modded this guy up, the same goes for you.

    To paraphrase Robert J. Hanlon, "Never ascribe to ignorance that which is adequately explained by tomfoolery".

    In the words of that noted philosopher Foghorn Leghorn, "That's a joke, son. A flag waver. You're built too low. The fast ones go over your head. Ya got a hole in your glove. I keep pitchin' 'em and you keep missin' 'em. Ya gotta keep your eye on the ball. Eye. Ball. I almost had a gag, son. Joke, that is."