New Mars Forums

Indeed, the devil is in the details. 

Has such a system, even to scale, ever been tested on Earth?

Interesting.

OK, here a question. Just how much "shuttle" does there have to be in a Shuttle-C?

Obviously, you need an engine that uses the fuel in the ET, and manuvers the cargo in orbit. Some guidence computers, and an outer shell that makes the whole thing aerodynamic, and you've got a cargo pod that really doesn't require anything that even resembles any part of the shuttle.

I suppose you could spice it up a bit by making the engine reuseable, but the money spent on it probably isn't worth it. In fact theres probably quite a bit that could be gutted from the current shuttle engine simply because it only needs to be used once.

The designs, and Russian expertise still exist, and it has capabilities far beyond anything we have or have proposed. Its also been tested.

It would require considerable investment in infrastructure, both here and in Russia (assuming we decide to use it for our forseeable heavy lift needs, which admittingly would require that NASA swallow its pride).

Also the boosters are still in use today on the SeaLift platform, so we've already got a head start.

It may take a couple generations. Hopefully the ones on Mars won't have to worry about the lawn mower. :;):

Yeah, and certain elements need the shuttles arm to put together and support the EVAs needed to hook them up.

A cradle could be developed to enable launch from existing launchers, including a second stage to get it to the ISS, could be developed for less than the cost of all those Shuttle launches.

Depending on how fast the launch sites could be reprepped, it could be finished in one extended mission.

The great thing about the outer moons is that they are so rich in mineral resources that we could eventually cover the entire surface in a pressurized dome containing whatever atmosphere we wanted.

There are exceptions of course. Io isn't the best canidate.

In fact I'd say that if the body doesn't have significant atmosphere to begin with, its probably not worth it.

Well, if it was in orbit, you could always unzip them, aim them towards the nearest solid bulkhead, and give them a gentile nudge. 

I found this. Minus the US HAB and X-38 nothing else seems to be missing.

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/62847main_ISS_c … 04.pdf]ISS Configuration

Maybe they can work something out with Bigelow so that there Nautilus prototype will be slumber party ready. 

How much would natural mutation be affected by the additional radiation?

Both the Moon and Mars will play a vital, though different, role in our future. We have to be on both.

Using the Moon as a dress rehersal site for eventual operations on Mars will give us the expertise we need, cause Houston can't help on Mars.

It will also advance our position on Luna.

So what exactly has changed?

The US habitation compartment and x-38 were both canseled months ago? Is that all thats gone?

That by itself does not mean the ISS will never reach its full crew, depending on how the development of the CEV, or Russian Kiliper goes.

Am I right in assuming that the only thing preventing a crew size in the 6-7 range is an escape pod? Can the ISS life support systems handle the load without the US compartment?

I understand the ATV will be pressurized. It can't be to far from supporting crews, at least on the way up.