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I guess in the Houston market, we got extended coverage since NASA is here. We watched him release the dinosaur into the zero-gravity sphere.
Not sure how much everyone else saw - but we had numerous camera shots from behind the astronauts operating the touch screens, to watching the booster descend back down into the atmosphere through the burn zone for 30 seconds, to watching each piece separate from on board cameras ... they had one view looking down the rocket while the boosters were firing away and you could see the trail of smoke back down towards the earth.... amazing.
It's the first private launch with people onboard in the US.
This was a NASA mission, and thus, financed by NASA (which is funded by taxpayers).
We've sent people to the space station before, but not for this cheap. A Falcon 9 launch costs $57 million. A space shuttle launch used to cost $450 million in 2011 ($513 million, adjusted for inflation). So SpaceX costs taxpayers nearly 90% less to send astronauts into space.
And you're completely wrong about the technology being there. We haven't had the technology to send people to space at such a low cost until now. The ability to reuse Falcon 9 is technology that no other country has (without contracting to SpaceX).
The purpose of going to space is science and medicine. People get excited about those things.
Of course the cost benefit should improve as we improve technology. That makes sense and happens on a much smaller scale with most technology.
Science and medicine? I do think in the 60's much of the innovation came out of the fact that private sector didn't do as much R & D with sophisticated technology ....bu those days are gone.
I guess I'm overly 'pracitcal' -- cost benefit analysis and all that. How much has come out of all that time spent at the space station. I'm sure some ofyou are better informed on this than I am.
We've been conducting all that science and research at the space station all along haven't we?
And just what part of this launch is it you imagine he should be credited with? Elon Musk founded SpaceX in
with the goal of reducing space transportation costs.
President Trump showed up for the launch in person and effectively ordered the continuation of this program by not intevening to stop or alter it, the way that Obama did to President Bush's crew launch program in 2009. President Trump supported NASA and SpaceX in their efforts to conduct of the launch. He should be credit for that, much like Obama should be credited for supporting the Navy Seals in their heroic mission to kill Osama bin Laden.
In both cases, the lion's share of the credit properly goes to the people who actually carried out the work and not the presidents who endorsed these important accomplishments.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
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Originally Posted by Spartacus713
President Trump showed up for the launch in person and effectively ordered the continuation of this program by not intevening to stop or alter it, the way that Obama did to President Bush's crew launch program in 2009. President Trump supported NASA and SpaceX in their efforts to conduct of the launch. He should be credit for that, much like Obama should be credited for supporting the Navy Seals in their heroic mission to kill Osama bin Laden.
In both cases, the lion's share of the credit properly goes to the people who actually carried out the work and not the presidents who endorsed these important accomplishments.
And the statement I responded to, "At least some of you are giving Trump credit for this launch", certainly makes no pretense of doing so, does it?
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
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Quote:
Originally Posted by elan
The live coverage was totally awesome. All the angles and seeing it from the astronaut's view. Simply amazing, got to me.
The docking should be pretty cool too!
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