ESSAY
"The Ups and Downs of Money and Manned Flight"
Categories
Excerpt (first and last two sentences)
"The tragedy of Columbia’s break up over Texas on
February 1st
will no doubt slow down the already retarded progress
of manned space flight, but will most likely not stall the program as occurred
following the loss of Challenger. The reasons easiest to examine all revolve
around funding, however the upcoming congressional review, Bush’s funding
initiative, the future of the ISS, and the military’s Assured Access program are
the important facets....
...Gone are the days of Apollo, when competitive ambition drove exploration.
Today the future of manned space flight rests haphazardly in the hands of global
politics and the clutched fist of US finances, a shadow of Kennedy’s dream
carried on by those that need it rather than those that believe in it."