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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!we13!ihnp4!astrovax!elt
From: elt@astrovax.UUCP (Ed Turner)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: Solar Max Mission Failure/Success
Message-ID: <301@astrovax.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 20-Apr-84 11:36:23 EST
Article-I.D.: astrovax.301
Posted: Fri Apr 20 11:36:23 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 21-Apr-84 01:47:17 EST
References: <3754@utzoo.UUCP> <211@ames-lm.UUCP>
Organization: Princeton Univ. Astrophysics
Lines: 14

With an operation as large the Shuttle program and with the complexity
and arbitrary nature of modern accounting systems, it is almost
impossible to say what the "true" cost of a Shuttle mission is in any
meaningful sense.  You can bet it is a hell of a lot more than they
claim when they're trying to make it sound like a good deal though.  They
even admit that they are not amortizing the development costs which
could well far exceed the other expenses at this point.

From a scientific point of view, the Shuttle could probably repair every
scientific satellite in the sky for free, and it would not make up for
the damage its cost over runs did to scientific programs during the 70's.

Ed
astrovax!elt