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From: mahar@weitek.UUCP (Mike Mahar)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle,sci.space
Subject: Re: Things aint so bad
Message-ID: <376@attila.weitek.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-Sep-87 13:58:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: attila.376
Posted: Wed Sep 16 13:58:49 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 19-Sep-87 02:32:54 EDT
References: <13312@amdahl.amdahl.com> <7973@think.UUCP> <8561@utzoo.UUCP> <474@eplrx7.UUCP> <632@its63b.ed.ac.uk>
Reply-To: mahar@attila.UUCP (Mike Mahar)
Organization: WEITEK Corporation, Sunnyvale, CA
Lines: 29
Summary: What we got, vs What they got
Xref: mnetor sci.space.shuttle:322 sci.space:2913


There has been a lot of discussion lately on the wonderful Soviet space
program verses our nonexistant space program. When we have a failure, we put
our whole program on hold for 2 years. When they have a failure, they sweep
up the mess and get back to business. Sometimes, in a matter of days. Why
is this?

Americans don't seem willing to accept the risks of spaceflight.  We want
space travel to be as safe as a bus ride downtown.  The Soviets have accepted
the risk and are willing to live with it.  When the Shuttle blew up, it was
only a matter of hours until the specific cause was known.  NASA could have
changed the launch criteria to require warmer weather and continued launching
in a few weeks.  This, they did not do and I don't think they should have 
either.  We can't tell what the Soviet would have done in a similar situation.
We have three shuttles now.  We could use them if we had to.

I don't think the Soviet hardware is any better than ours. It is not much
worse either.  The Soviets have a space station and we don't. Many people
in our space science community think we don't need one.  I have a question.
How does the Mir compare with Skylab, besides the obvious fact that we no
longer have Skylab.

-- 

	Mike Mahar
	UUCP: {turtlevax, cae780}!weitek!mahar

	Disclaimer: The above opinions are, in fact, not opinions.
	They are facts.