Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-mpd!Mike.McManus From: Mike.McManus@FtCollins.NCR.com (Mike McManus) Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle Subject: Re: best of all worlds Message-ID: Date: 10 Oct 90 12:22:25 GMT References: <10265.2708917a@pbs.org> Sender: uucp@ncr-mpd.FtCollins Organization: NCR Microelectronic Products, Ft. Collins, CO Lines: 28 In-reply-to: pstinson@pbs.org's message of 2 Oct 90 17:09:14 GMT In article <10265.2708917a@pbs.org> pstinson@pbs.org writes: > We could design the next generation Apollo as a lunar taxi that would fit > inside a Shuttle. ... > For safety reasons it would be carried into orbit without fuel. The fuel and > propulsion module would be launched by a Titan IV. Assembly would take place > at a modest Space Operations Center (SOC) as once outlined before space > station Freedom was choosen. Not to cut down this idea (I'm not sure if I think it's good or bad, yet) but just to play the devil's advocate... If we spend $X to build this taxi, $Y for the shuttle launch, $Z for the Titan launch, and $Q to either build this SOC or outfit Fred to serve the purpose, I'd have to think that X+Y+Z+Q is getting pretty big! Surely we could redesign and operate a dedicated, Saturn-type earth-to-moon system for less. OK, tell me why not... -- Disclaimer: All spelling and/or grammar in this document are guaranteed to be correct; any exseptions is the is wurk uv intter-net deemuns,. Mike McManus Mike.McManus@FtCollins.NCR.COM, or NCR Microelectronics ncr-mpd!mikemc@ncr-sd.sandiego.ncr.com, or 2001 Danfield Ct. uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-mpd!garage!mikemc Ft. Collins, Colorado (303) 223-5100 Ext. 378