foxnews.com/politics/2010/01 … latestnews
What are the chances he gets away with this one?
I hope he does come through.
While I see the need for space related expenses for national defense needs, I just don’t see anything being gained by manned missions to the moon or Mars. We have the international space station for medicinal space experiments and I am sure it’s a lot less costly to send a person there then to the moon or Mars.
The bigger question comes, where will that money go to that was and have been “earmarked” for NASA. Will us common US citizens see one red cent? I doubt it.
Umm, I call BS. It’s from fox news and we all know what a GREAT source of news they are…
That money will disappear into outer space. Its probably the funds he needs to pay for health care.
If you don’t believe Fox News, try this: orlandosentinel.com/news/spa … 4253.story
But conspicuous by its absence was any mention of a commitment to develop a new government-owned and operated “heavy-lift” rocket capable of taking humans beyond the low Earth Orbit.
The news teleconference at which the officials and astronaut spoke was organized for reporters at two Florida newspapers in response to the Orlando Sentinel’s report on Tuesday, which said the White House budget next week would kill NASA’s plans to return astronauts to the moon and scrap the rockets being developed to take them there.
Yea, who needs to go to the moon? Hell, for that matter, why does mankind need to know more about space? For many years we were satisfied to know that the sun revolves around the earth.
Hey, folks, the space program has brought many benefits to us! Look around you! There are every day items you use that are a direct benefit of the NASA in general and the space program specifically.
techtran.msfc.nasa.gov/at_home.html
searchwarp.com/swa469614-The-Us- … nefits.htm
By the way, I’m listening to the State of the Blame the Previous President, er, Union address. What a maroon! I do have to admit - his use of “I”, “my”, and “mine” is down by about 4.3%. Don’t forget - it’s all about him.
I hope you are right. This means that the average John / Jill US citizen will get a direct benefit of expenditure re-allocation.
Absolutely agree, but space is as close as our nearest space station. I don’t think anything tangible we have benefited from space exploration as you bring up has been realized by bringing back moon rocks and dirt.
I am all for keeping the space station alive as long as we do get more discoveries for medicinal or practical everyday needs, but manned trips to the moon I just don’t see the cost justification.
You think health care is expensive now, wait till it’s FREE 
Amen to that brother!
You are right, and I don’t have an answer to this.
What would be your suggestion to fix this problem for the average citizen who makes 25K in a job without medical benefits?
What we have now is a person in a job without medical benefits who can’t afford medical care and the choice is put food on the table to eat or take a maintenance pill such as blood pressure medication. You can bet food will be first.
My blood pressure medication is over $200 per month before insurance kicks in. I can’t imagine what choices I would have if I didn’t have health insurance other then have a stroke literally and figuratively other then starve or sell my plane to take this medication. (my BP without meds run 220/170 - yes reported to the FAA) 
Fox, the new word for BS.
From the references I gave:
AT HOME…Cordless Power Tools and Appliances
Do you use a cordless drill or shrub trimmer? How about a Dustbuster?** Did you know that the technology that made these products possible came from NASA’s Apollo program?**
Astronauts needed a way to drill down beneath the moon’s surface, as much as 10 feet, to collect core samples. Like everything else that went to the moon, this drill had to be small, lightweight and battery-powered. To develop the drill, NASA chose a company that has since become well known for its cordless products: Black and Decker.
A key technological advance made the battery-powered drill possible – a computer program was used to design the drill’s motor to use as little power as possible. That computer program, along with the knowledge and experience gained in developing the drill, provided a strong technology base for developing battery powered tools and appliances.
Black and Decker now sells approximately 400 million dollars worth of cordless, rechargeable products per year.
AT THE STADIUM…Moonsuit Stadium
What does a spacesuit worn by NASA astronauts on the moon have in common with a roof?
Like a good roof, the moonsuit is lightweight, durable, and repels water. Roofs look stiff, but they are designed to be flexible so they can expand with heat and contract with cold. The moonsuit, made of a fabric, is very flexible. The moonsuit is even better than most roofs in that the moonsuit fabric won’t catch fire.
The fabric was developed by the Owens-Corning company, using a glass fiber yarn (Fiberglas). The Fiberglas fabric was covered with Teflon, a strong, slick coating. Pound-for-pound, the moonsuit fabric is stronger than steel.
The moonsuit fabric is now used as a permanent covering for shopping centers and sports stadiums. The stadium shown at left, in Vancouver, British Columbia has a roof made of 10 acres of moonsuit fabric. The moonsuit roof weighs only 1/30th as much as a conventional roof of the same size. That makes the stadium easier and cheaper to build. The fabric also lets in light and reflects heat, which reduces cooling and lighting costs.
Moonsuit fabric also covers the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, the Olympic Stadium in Rome, and the airport terminals in Denver Colorado and Hajjis, Saudi Arabia.
NASA’s budget is less than 1% of the total USA budget. I think we get quite a bit out of it.
Man has always had the need to explore. Space is just another extension of that exploration “gene.” It’s just as important to explore the universe as it is our own planet. I don’t consider it space exploration if all we do is go up a couple of hundred miles and do scientific experiments.
Exploring the moon and Mars and other planets helps us to learn about our own planet. The ISS (International Space Station) should be used not only for experiments that can’t be done on earth but also as a launching point for further space exploration.
There are failures - expensive ones - in the space program. There are also many programs that have given us back more data than we could ever have expected. Look at the two Mars rovers. These were both suppose to last 90 days. They are still operating six (6!) years after they started their exploration.
Another good example are the Voyager spacecraft. Launched in 1977, we are still gathering data from them.
Let’s not forget about the Hubble Space Telescope. After fixing its nearsightedness, we have discovered many new things about the universe and, in the process, have also gotten many beautiful pictures of it.
I’m one who firmly believes in science. Studying the Solar System, the Milky Way galaxy, and the rest of space.
…We all get passionate for different things;well my craving is for space exploration. Our lack of progress in space exploration since the 1960’s is already a monumental travesty. The universe and exploration achieves more than we can possibly comprehend. I truly believe the answers to all of mankind’s oldest questions, including our purpose, are out there waiting to be discovered. Going farther in to space doesn’t need immediate satisfaction, reward or return on investment. It serves a bigger purpose, the advancement of humanity. This is our generation’s chance to be Christopher Columbus, to be a Magellan, etc. They discovered new land masses and waterways. We are living in an era that has the potential to discover new worlds, galaxies and understand science on an unprecedented level. It was a mistake to stop NASA’s progress back in the Apollo days; any further setbacks would be very depressing.
See bolded above Dami.
What has been realized by bringing back moon samples? What you bring up is what was designed on earth for the astronauts to take to the moon, not the other way around. It didn’t take the lack of gravity to create these items. Heck, those items could have been made for the space station and received the very same recognition because a need was there. It just so happened it be the moon was the excuse to invent these things.
I believe (more like I think) a lot of science discoveries have been made due to weightlessness especially along the medicinal lines so I am not against space exploration but nothing to my knowledge has been discovered for everyday use from a moon rock or dust. We don’t need to proceed any further distance then the space station is my point to get the benefits realized from a weightless environment.
I seriously doubt the next moon mission (or further) will do anything tangible for our generation or even the next generation other then a scientific exploration (water on the moon, composition of rocks and dirt). As you indicated, unmanned explorations such as Hubble, or the Spirit and Opportunity rovers that I follow at marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html have given a very high return in scientific discoveries.
Yes, you are right if your math is right with the 1 percent of the total federal budget is allocated to NASA, we have gotten quite a bit of value, but I sure could use some of that 1 percent budget re-allocated to me (if this entire story is true about Obama) rather then to an astronaut to bounce on the moon or drive a golf ball. I can do more airspace exploration of my own in the comforts of a Cirrus or equivalent if I got a taste of that re-allocated money. 8)
I just don’t see any return value of sending man back to the moon or beyond other then bragging rights we have returned.
With the shuttle program retiring this year, not sure if we can get set back any more then what we are. After the last shuttle lands the final time, we truly are at the whims of the Soviets. Contracts / agreements / handshakes are just that, and can be broken.
I agree with the rest of your post, but does it really take the expense of manned missions to accomplish what you ask? We are virtually there with the rovers on Mars.
I’d be first in line to volunteer a trip to Mars or the moon WITHOUT pay “to save on cost of exploration” but you and I know I won’t be selected.
As Dami pointed out, vast amount of information has been gained by unmanned missions.
There is Space X working on viable launch alternatives until Orion is ready. You are correct there will be some interim period with the Soyuz rocket doing the heavy lifting. Its a proven system. I am fine with that so long as we keep moving forward.
As you get in to deep space exploration there will need to be judgement calls, decisions made, etc. There is lag time back to earth for communication that may be impractical or costly to wait on. This is not an easy argument to make, but it just seems like the right thing to do. I am all for using probes and rovers to set the stage for manned missions.
You know with HD Tv’s as good as they are, why ever go to a baseball game or a football game.
Yes - the last 3 Apollo missions should have happened.
I know that unmanned missions can bring back a lot of science. However, there is still a need for manned missions. Having a human on another planet or the Moon can give us more flexibility. It can take many minutes to radio a command to an unmanned probe to get it out of trouble. With a person operating the probe, it doesn’t take that long.
We learned a lot by going to the moon. Our knowledge of the earth’s geological history was expanded. Our knowledge of the moon’s history was expanded.
As I mentioned, man was meant to explore. Exploring space with manned or unmanned vehicles is an extension of that need.
Reducing NASA’s budget will not only hurt space exploration but also exploration of the earth. Don’t forget the first “A” in NASA stands for aeronautics. It is partially through NASA’s work that we have had the great improvement in aircraft over the past 50 years.
Sometimes people just need to explore without thinking about an immediate dollar-and-cents return.
I agree 100%
DING DING DING Houston we have a winnner. Thus the whole purpose of this thread, the funding of space exploration. The money spent by our government on space exploration would be better served given to the people who are desperately trying to make ends meet then to a program that a very, VERY small percentage of the population benefits from. At least with the Soviets, they opened up a seat for a private citizen to contribute to the cost of space exploration / travel. Why can’t we do the same thing on a regular basis?
I think we all are in agreement that space exploration should continue. But at least Obama is recognizing that that the average US citizen isn’t getting their tax dollars worth out of NASA. At least this is how I perceive this. I know I am not getting my moneys worth when I know that a tool bag / kit worth 100K is floating in orbit (did that thing burn up yet?) Just what was the composition of that bag that cost more then some American homes??? I could just about buy the entire tool inventory of a small hardware store at that cost.
The cost of space exploration doesn’t have to be at the shoulders of Americans. We can admire the accomplishments of mankind via the Soviets or China just the same and at no cost to us.
And as long as NASA runs the space exploration you and I still will be sitting in the living room watching someone else walk on the moon or some other space object on HD or 3D TV. At least with Space X, you and I do have a snow balls chance in getting a chance to experience the space environment even if it’s at a sub orbital level.
ALLEN! The proper word is than…not then! 
C’mon man!..
Allen lives in MS…he’s starting to get the lingo down.
And I’m appalled!!! at you guys about foxnews! Fair and Balanced!!! Look at Bill O rielly…Hannity awesome reporting!!!
Now…before the spears daggers and flamethrowers head my way…
**I’m KIDDING!!! **I just wanted to get you guys a tad excited…and some BP rising…