President Obama continues to receive harsh criticism, with NASA preparing for four manned shuttle launches
Amid
continued criticism and uncertainty, NASA is moving ahead with four
remaining manned shuttle missions aimed at completing the
International Space Station (ISS).
Manned shuttle launches are
expected to take place in April and May, along with scheduled
launches this July and September. The Government
Accountability Office (GAO) report indicates the shuttle cost to
finish the ISS will total upwards of $48.5 billion.
The
current fleet of space shuttles should have transitioned into
retirement by now, but must make several additional flights now that
the U.S. space agency doesn't know when it will have a
next-generation rocket system.
At its current standards,
NASA spends
upwards of $200 million per month to keep the fleet
running. The next manned shuttle launch will take place on
April 5, when space shuttle Discovery heads to the ISS.
The
next-generation Constellation program is to be scrapped entirely,
which could leave NASA at the mercy of the Russian space program even
longer. After construction on the ISS is complete, the United
States will purchase trips into space aboard the Russian Soyuz
craft.
Constellation was expected to lift off in 2015, but
that's obviously unlikely to be met with a new shuttle program.
The agency is trying to end
Constellation extremely carefully, but is finding even that to be
difficult.
Furthermore, former President George W. Bush
outlined his desire to return to the moon by 2020 -- a
goal that will not happen, though the Chinese, Russia, India and
other space nations are
looking to make the trek to the moon's surface.
Obama
decided to offer more money to private contractors to help
shuttle astronauts and supplies into low-Earth orbit (LEO).
"Let's face it, we're not changing the world. We're building a product that helps people buy more crap - and watch porn." -- Seagate CEO Bill Watkins
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