Hey I heards there was some other secret stuff on the rocket by a company called Microgravity Enterprises. They're not even talking about it. Does anybody know what's going on?
Michelle
Actually, let me give you the rest of the story (sorry Paul)
I'm actually a big supporter of space commercialization but I'm very concerned about Rick Homans (Bill Richardson's appointment) being in the leadership position for the spaceport. He isn't technical but he is 100% political. Why does that matter? My friends at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) tell me that Jerry Larson, President of UP Aerospace, had developed an impressive flight profile for the launch on April 28th with a good landing point. Jerry had built into this launch a good amount of margin just in case the rocket went off course. The WSMR guys tell me they were very satisfied with the plans.
So what happens? At the last minute, Rick Homans decides that there isn't enough error margin and forces UP Aerospace to move their landing point 5 miles west. Jerry resists and is told to either move it or don't launch. The result is a rocket flight that goes exactly according to Jerry's plan but because Rick forced them to move the landing point it ends up in the mountains. As of today they still haven't recovered the payload. That is not a success even thought Rick is telling everybody it was a great success. If you are supposed to launch and recover stuff as part of your commercial operation then a failure to recover is a failure. Rick was interviewed by Kevin Robinson of the NM Biz Weekly and he admitted to moving the landing point but said "Safety is number one." I'm so tired of hearing that from politicians that want to hide their timidity and cowardice. Space flight is hard and it's dangerous but so is flying through the air. Rick now has a safe flight under his belt and all of the people who paid money to fly to space have got nothing to show for it but less money in their pocket - good job Rick. That's good for business???
You might think that the spaceport would be trying to make it up by helping UP find the payload - wrong. My friends at WSMR tell me that Jerry has been searching by himself with help from WSMR but nothing from the spaceport. Once again a great move to encourage business on the part of the state.
Here is the big question: What if Jerry is unable to find the payload? Do you agree that Rick Homans should commit to finding the payload even if it takes a couple of months? Or, should he just leave the remains in the mountains? Keep in mind, it is Rick's fault that they are lost in the first place.
Finally, a related point. Is the focus of the spaceport just on investing to build a playground for the rich. Originally I didn't think so but based on their "lack" of support for small companies like UP Aerospace, it seems that the state, in particular Rick and the Gov, are focused on ensuring that nothing jeopardizes the space port for Virgin Galactic and Sir Richard. The poor guys at UP have invested everything they have to get their company going (credit cards, 2nd and 3rd mortgages) and they are at best tolerated by the spaceport. I think if you look at the numbers, UP has invested more in the state than Virgin Galactic has. How ironic!
Slashdot Mirror
Hey I heards there was some other secret stuff on the rocket by a company called Microgravity Enterprises. They're not even talking about it. Does anybody know what's going on? Michelle
Actually, let me give you the rest of the story (sorry Paul) I'm actually a big supporter of space commercialization but I'm very concerned about Rick Homans (Bill Richardson's appointment) being in the leadership position for the spaceport. He isn't technical but he is 100% political. Why does that matter? My friends at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) tell me that Jerry Larson, President of UP Aerospace, had developed an impressive flight profile for the launch on April 28th with a good landing point. Jerry had built into this launch a good amount of margin just in case the rocket went off course. The WSMR guys tell me they were very satisfied with the plans. So what happens? At the last minute, Rick Homans decides that there isn't enough error margin and forces UP Aerospace to move their landing point 5 miles west. Jerry resists and is told to either move it or don't launch. The result is a rocket flight that goes exactly according to Jerry's plan but because Rick forced them to move the landing point it ends up in the mountains. As of today they still haven't recovered the payload. That is not a success even thought Rick is telling everybody it was a great success. If you are supposed to launch and recover stuff as part of your commercial operation then a failure to recover is a failure. Rick was interviewed by Kevin Robinson of the NM Biz Weekly and he admitted to moving the landing point but said "Safety is number one." I'm so tired of hearing that from politicians that want to hide their timidity and cowardice. Space flight is hard and it's dangerous but so is flying through the air. Rick now has a safe flight under his belt and all of the people who paid money to fly to space have got nothing to show for it but less money in their pocket - good job Rick. That's good for business??? You might think that the spaceport would be trying to make it up by helping UP find the payload - wrong. My friends at WSMR tell me that Jerry has been searching by himself with help from WSMR but nothing from the spaceport. Once again a great move to encourage business on the part of the state. Here is the big question: What if Jerry is unable to find the payload? Do you agree that Rick Homans should commit to finding the payload even if it takes a couple of months? Or, should he just leave the remains in the mountains? Keep in mind, it is Rick's fault that they are lost in the first place. Finally, a related point. Is the focus of the spaceport just on investing to build a playground for the rich. Originally I didn't think so but based on their "lack" of support for small companies like UP Aerospace, it seems that the state, in particular Rick and the Gov, are focused on ensuring that nothing jeopardizes the space port for Virgin Galactic and Sir Richard. The poor guys at UP have invested everything they have to get their company going (credit cards, 2nd and 3rd mortgages) and they are at best tolerated by the spaceport. I think if you look at the numbers, UP has invested more in the state than Virgin Galactic has. How ironic!