WallyG3 Posted January 14, 2004 Share Posted January 14, 2004 Bush Outlines Plan for 2015 Moon Landing http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=1&u=/ap/20040114/ap_on_sc/bush_space By PAUL RECER, AP Science Writer WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) beckoned the nation "forward into the universe" on Wednesday, outlining a costly new effort to return Americans to the moon as early as 2015 and use it as a waystation to Mars and beyond. Bush said he envisioned "a new foothold on the moon...and new journeys to the world beyond our own," underscoring a renewed commitment to manned spaceflight less than a year after the loss of the space shuttle Columbia and a crew of seven. In a speech delivered at NASA (news - web sites) headquarters a few blocks from the White House, Bush unveiled a plan to withdraw the United States from the International Space Station (news - web sites) by 2010 and retire the aging space shuttle fleet at about the same time. In its place, he called for development of a new Crew Exploratory Vehicle, capable of carrying astronauts to the space station and the moon. Bush said early financing would total $12 billion for exploration over the next five years, only $1 billion of it in new funds. That meant that even if he wins a second term in office, his successors in the Oval Office would be responsible for finding the rest of the money for a program likely to run into the hundreds of billions of dollars. The space agency arranged a splashy, high-tech entrance for the president, who strode to the front of a giant video screen beaming an image of Michael Foale, aboard the space station 240 miles above the earth. "I know that I'm just one chapter in an ongoing story of discovery," said Foale, making his sixth trip into earth orbit. He said he was also "certain that NASA's journey is just beginning..." Bush said the same, delivering a vote of confidence in Sean O'Keefe, the agency's administrator at the time of the Columbia breakup and the months since. "It's time for America to take the next step" in space exploration, said Bush, who spoke 32 years after the American Apollo program last landed astronauts on the moon. He drew applause from NASA employees when he outlined a timetable that would put the first human trip to Mars well into the century. Robotic craft would be sent there first, he said, but exploration wouldn't end there. "We need to see and examine and touch for ourselves, and only human beings are capable of adapting to the inevitable uncertainties posed by space flight," the president said. "Mankind is drawn to the heavens for the same reason we were once drawn to unknown lands and across the open sea," Bush said "We choose to explore space because doing so improves our lives and lifts our national spirit. So let us continue the journey." The nation's manned space program drew its first impetus from Cold War competition with the former Soviet Union, and began with a challenge from President John F. Kennedy in 1961. Bush made no mention of Kennedy, but his remarks underscored the change in global politics. "The vision I outline today is a journey, not a race," he said. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
@DCGoldPants Posted January 14, 2004 Share Posted January 14, 2004 you wanna be bold? Let Bush assume that he'll be Prez till 08 and say "I want another man walking on the Moon before I leave office" That's bold. Kennedy wanted 10 years back in the 60's and they pulled it off. They can do 5 years now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinInsite Posted January 14, 2004 Share Posted January 14, 2004 How about fixing education, health care, and social security first? Oh i guess we can't waste money on those programs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DjTj Posted January 14, 2004 Share Posted January 14, 2004 Originally posted by WallyG3 Bush Outlines Plan for 2015 Moon Landing Bush said early financing would total $12 billion for exploration over the next five years, only $1 billion of it in new funds. That meant that even if he wins a second term in office, his successors in the Oval Office would be responsible for finding the rest of the money for a program likely to run into the hundreds of billions of dollars. $12 billion in funding - $1 billion in new funds means $11 billion will have to come out of some other part of the government. I think the proposal right now is to take that money away from other NASA programs, which is unfortunate. It would be nice if Bush actually committed to this, but we may have to wait for a better budget situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
endzone_dave Posted January 14, 2004 Share Posted January 14, 2004 I'm hoping GW actually consulted with some NASA people before coming up with his plan. The way the media is portraying this, he shows up to NASA and says, "Guess what boys, we're going to the moon again. EE-HAW!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Originally posted by Bufford Redux you wanna be bold? Let Bush assume that he'll be Prez till 08 and say "I want another man walking on the Moon before I leave office" That's bold. Kennedy wanted 10 years back in the 60's and they pulled it off. They can do 5 years now. I think our committments to the ISS is the main cause for delay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Yes, lets fix stuff at home first. Start with taking away every entitlement program out there. 15 bill for Aids in Africa? Gone. Billions for Hydro car? Gone. Foreign aid? Screw em all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Originally posted by SkinInsite How about fixing education, health care, and social security first? Oh i guess we can't waste money on those programs. You can use that rhetoric to build a case against pretty much any form of research. And it's an extremely short-sighted arguement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Did Ferdinand and Isabel worry about defecits when they sent Columbus? Exploration always leads to better things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinInsite Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Well not for the people who lived on the land Columbus discovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webnarc Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Originally posted by SkinInsite Well not for the people who lived on the land Columbus discovered. Wasn't that just a preemptive strike? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Originally posted by SkinInsite Well not for the people who lived on the land Columbus discovered. :doh: That's not the point. It was a great success for those that financed the exlporation. Are you now saying we should not explore space because you are afraid for the natives on the Moon and Mars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinInsite Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 I guess the people who are cold and hungry look up in to the sky and say wow i'm so glad we got a colony on the Moon. I'm not against the exploration, i'm just saying NASA seem to get along fine without all the new funding. Hell i remeber the fun i had in space camp, guess i was lucky to pick the right parents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 I'm all for exploring space... If we can hurry up before 2005, I can find out what happens to Anakin Skywalker early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 While discussing Bush's new Space Exploration plans, codeorama says to Anna Kournikova: "I'd love to explore Uranus". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Originally posted by SkinInsite I guess the people who are cold and hungry look up in to the sky and say wow i'm so glad we got a colony on the Moon. I'm not against the exploration, i'm just saying NASA seem to get along fine without all the new funding. Hell i remeber the fun i had in space camp, guess i was lucky to pick the right parents. NASA does not get along fine, we are using outdated shuttles and other out dated technology to save money. Look at the Columbia as an example. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Originally posted by SkinInsite Hell i remeber the fun i had in space camp, guess i was lucky to pick the right parents. Let this be a lesson to you then. Don't send your kids to camp. They should work in a soup kitchen until everyone, everywhere is no longer hungry. Then, and only then, should you spend any money on their education. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Henry, I think your on to something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Om Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Much as I'd like to think this thing has legs, I can't help but suspect it's at least as much election-year "vision thing" positioning as it is legitimate committment to the space program. Hard to imagine the White House really figures Congress will fork over the kind of funding we'd be looking at. But ... it's only January. Ask me again in a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Originally posted by Om Much as I'd like to think this thing has legs, I can't help but suspect it's at least as much election-year "vision thing" positioning as it is legitimate committment to the space program. Good point Om. Two things: 1) Bush's daddy was a big proponent of space exploration, which I suspect is a factor in Bush Jr's enthusiasm for it. 2) China. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Posted January 17, 2004 Share Posted January 17, 2004 Easy for Bush, he doesnt have to worry about the funding and the deficits of a program he proposes today and wont be implimented until he's 70. To him its another distraction his polsters came up with in the middle of the night. It the country left holding the bag for the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.