New Mars Forums

Save yourself some trouble.  NONE of the democratic hopefuls will act on any human Moon or Mars mission.   Best case scenario they may support the CEV as a replacement for the shuttle only to the stage of development to rotate crews on the ISS.  Forget any advanced modules (if it does in fact turn out to be modular) such as alternate propulsion, small nuclear power modules, lunar or martian landing modules, etc.  Put a democrat in the white house and at best you'll get a capsule that can dock with the ISS.  Write off the rest for another 4 or 8 years and tack those years onto the moon and mars timeline.  Clinton supposedly had this wonderful economy and you see exactly how far space exploration changed in those 8 years with a huge budget surplus which coule have paid for a shuttle replacement easily.  Worst case, he'll get in the white house and decide to recertify the shuttle in 2010 and drop the new CEV just like all the other failed shuttle replacements.  If you care anything about space exploration forget the democrats exist for about the next 30 years.  If they ever get in control again and pass universal health care we'll be lucky to be launching Estes model rockets as a nation.

There's a new one going up in 2011 - 2012 range which I would cancel as well.  I say save the money for Bush's new space policy and let Hubble die.  Too many other uncertain things as it is.  We're looking at 20? 25? missions already to finish that flying piece of junk space station as it is.  Imagine another Space Shuttle loss, another year or two delay in resuming flights again, and now you're looking at having to do recertification on the shuttle just to finish the station.  Add it up in terms of reality and tack 5 more years on getting on with Bush's plan.  I'll be holding my breath enough as it is just praying we make it through the remaining flights without any more accidents.