In terms of manned space exploration, we stopped being a proper country when the shuttle was introduced.
The space shuttle was championed by the Nixon administration primarily because they thought it would be cheaper than our existing programs.
Not only did the shuttle program end up costing way more...
Not only did the shuttle program imprison us in Low Earth Orbit for decades...
But the shuttle remains far and away the deadliest spacecraft in history.
It's sad that people elevate the shuttle program like they do. It was a boondoggle that led to decades of lost time and progress. (Fortunately our unmanned space program was incredibly successful, at the same time.)
For more information on why it was a boondoggle but also a jobs program and a way to continually fund space related industries, I highly recommend this YouTube video:
https://youtu.be/u-qUrV6Odrw
Yeah, I don't know about Russian satellite, but I know it brought home US satellite. Imagine how valuable that was for engineers on the ground to get them back. They repaired Hubble, and that's not something you could do with a SpaceX rocket. You could fit a fucking school bus in the payload area. The shuttle was awesome.
Even after they decided to retire it, they couldn't until they'd built the ISS. And, for the point about it being dangerous, every flaw that took down a shuttle was known about in advance, and not dealt with by NASA.
Was it expensive? Yes. Was it awesome, in the truest sense of the word? Also yes.
Based on revelations that have been made about space travel beyond earth in the last decade.
Its a good thing we haven't been sending people beyond low earth orbit tbh. Even in low earth orbit the earth's Magento sphere is still providing astronauts with a lot of protection. And from data theyve collected, even extended moon trips would be problematic on the human body.
The likely hood that we send humans far away from earth and them coming back alive with the established tech is abysmal. We have to start procuring materials in space and developing ship components outside our atmosphere if we want to build space faring vessels that would actually be safe enough to use for a long voyage beyond earth. And we need breakthroughs in radiation protection
The amount of shielding from radiation will need to be far greater than originally thought 20 or more years ago. Its actually a very significant problem.
I understand that a certain company and some others have hyped up building colonies on mars as soon as the 2030's. But its not realistically in the cards unless we are fine with sending many humans to an inevitable death and a bunch of ships to their demise at the cost of trillions of dollars
All of the mars crap has been nothing but hype to get people interested and invested in space travel so they can afford to deploy more satellites of different varieties. Nasa has religiously pulled back many of their original aspirations because of the cold reality of traveling through deep space.
We need a whole revolution in space tech before people can comfortably go back and forth between high earth orbits, let alone extended moon voyages or even trips to the moon.
Even when we originally sent astronauts to the moon, it was highly believed that more people would die in the attempt despite all of the planning and stages of development. Apollo 10 practically had almost everything needed to be the first to land on the moon, but nasa held back, they deemed it more important to bring people and data back in tact than take the risk early.
Sci fi media has presented to many inaccuracies about space travel and seeded the ideas into peoples minds. Even nasa has done too much hyping about it.
We need moon bases. We need to build up the capability to aquire and refine resources in space. Continuing to do everything by launching it into orbit from earth is a drain on our resources and planetary ecology.
With many of the proposals that have been made about even more things like star-link and data centers in space. We will end up achieving Kessler syndrome sooner than thought if better regulation isnt achieved in the next couple decades. Which wouldnt just harm space travel, but dramatically hurt plenty of things we have here on the surface of earth that we rely so much upon.
There is truly nothing out there that is within our grasp the way some people have claimed. We are still in the infancy of space travel. There is no planet b
The Shuttle was a failure that killed more people in space than any other vehicle before or after, but it was also an incredible machine that put more people into space than any other spacecraft before or after. You can't mention one without the other.
I went to go see this in person I think on the first day. They got stuck at a red light for about 3 hours. They had to do like 100 point turn so to not remove the streetlight they were at. It was such a surreal experience
Man, it was such a mission finding where it was on the street because it was behind schedule. But we found it and it was awesome! Truly one of the best days in LA history. Everyone was riding HIGH.
That truck is parked in the parking structure outside the Science Center and Shuttle Endevour exhibit where visitors can lift it using a fulcrum. I yeet it into the air every time I go to a LAFC / ACFC game.
Waiting for all the complaints about the trees that were removed for this (most of the removed trees needed to be removed anyways for various reasons, the science center replaced the trees and planted more than they took out (box trees not little saplings) and paid for all of it. So it was a net win for trees.
Its kinda funny how you imagined an argument that nobody is sharing in the comments and then proceeded to have a discussion about it with just yourself
That arguement was huge at the time though I remember people were all about the trees when they did their best to make the situation at least a net positive.
Yes and they replanted more trees than they took out. The replacement trees were 10ft+ tall not little seedlings, and they planted 1000 trees to replace the 400 they took out which is higher than city requirements. Millions (of private money) was spent on this and they covered maintenance for 5 years to make sure the trees would thrive. All in all it seems like this was handled right.
I mean, there's nothing wrong with a marketing deal. Toyota paid a ton of money to the museum for this advertising opportunity.
I just always find it funny when aircraft is used to show towing strength, like when strongman competitions have people pulling airplanes with their teeth. Aircraft and spacecraft use state-of-the art materials and design for the express purpose of making them as light as possible...
Yep across flat ground it’s really easy to move something on wheels. Also while the Space Shuttle is a true massive space craft it’s really not that big or heavy compared to the stuff that stays on the ground.
Ha. My dad was the head of the Sarens (guys in blue) operation and I also worked on the SPMTs that the Endeavor sat on. Still crazy to believe that this really happened
I attended a company holiday party that year at the California Science Center and we got to party where Endeavor was displayed. It was really cool to witness up close!
i met a guy that was like head of marketing at toyota when this happened. When they had the meeting every one was super excited that a tundra could pull it. except one engineer sitting in the back who was not at all excited. When they asked him what was wrong he asked "can we stop it?" apparently the room kind of went quiet after that. If i remember correctly they built a rig out in Michigan somewhere to see if they could.
And this is the reason why you want an engineer in the marketing meeting. Imagine the fallout if the Tundra couldn't stop it. And they had to bring in a Ram to handle the job....
All of the shuttle stuff was fun. The flyovers were cool. The spectacle of Endeavor being towed was incredible. The temporary setup at the California Science Center where it was parked and you finally got a true sense of scale was awe inspiring. (The new one might be even better but I haven't been yet.)
I was there that day. Really cool to see in person. I’m not looking forward to the new standup configuration I think it’ll be less powerful than walking around and under it but hopefully I’ll be wrong
I lived right off of Manchester and Airport for 20 years, moving to the Midwest just weeks before this event. I really wish I could have been there to see it 😕
I walked around with my space nerd friend trying to find the route but we were on the wrong blocks. I was just along for the ride but I think we were going by info from a tweet
feeling old. i remember we all went to the rooftop of the office. i have random blurry pictures of it when it arrived on the plane. also rent for a 1 bedroom in van nuys was $795 ☠️ from the picture i found on the same month.
Watching it make its way through the streets of my hometown was amazing. It was so much larger than I ever imagined. At one point, they stopped it in the parking lot of a Bed Bath & Beyond in Westchester…an only in LA moment if I ever saw one.
This, to me, is more southern California than anything having to do with the entertainment industry. My dad and grandfather both worked on stuff like this at plant 42. I miss them both. I miss the AV.
The day before it was dope to see the shuttle strapped to a 747 with bungee cords and ratchet tie downs as it circled our fair city. One of the few days where my tax dollars were worth it.
I lived like 3 blocks from the California Science Center when this happened and I had no idea until later when I saw the exhibit about the journey. To this day one of my biggest regrets. HOW DID I NOT KNOW???
sorry.. I respect the Japanese for their culture and their switch(return really) to quality of execution however I want to see a Ford there, and for reason's a Ford-guy will never adequately explain, not a Chevy
if I were to wax- poetic it was in the fostering of the irracible freedom of they everyman I appreciate in Henry Ford secretly enjoyed while paying for hsytorectomies on horny women
On Crenshaw, they actually moved it around many of the trees in the median, including ones that were cut down a few years later for construction of the Metro line.
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u/GrocerySolid7956 1d ago
That was such a great day in the city.
Also when it was first flown in.