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Topic: Next Moon mission name, crew?
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Mark B
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posted 04-08-2008 06:35 PM
   
Q: When the next moon missions recommence if USA based will they continue with Apollo missions or is Apollo now defunct as a name for moon missions?A: ? Be terrific to see the name stay in some capacity but on the other hand the Apollo era was a momentous time in our history so perhaps the name should stay right there "in history"... Any feedback, ideas, comments most welcome. Cheers, M. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-08-2008 06:38 PM
The Apollo Program ended in 1975. The new Moon (Mars and Beyond) exploration effort is the Constellation Program. Under Constellation, Ares rockets will take Orion command modules and Altair lunar landers to the Moon. Originally, NASA documents suggested that Orion would take the place of Apollo as the common title for the Moon project, but that emphasis has changed over the past couple of years. |
Mark B
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posted 04-08-2008 06:42 PM
Robert thanks for that.Is there any NASA link for this that you know offhand so I can catch up on this relevant info in detail? I have looked but had no luck this morning. Cheers, M. |
Mark B
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posted 04-08-2008 06:44 PM
Found it! thanks... easy when I typed in Altair lunar lander... Cheers. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-08-2008 06:50 PM
As an aside, collectSPACE was the first to reveal the name of the Orion vehicle, the first to report that the landers were to be named Atlair, and the first to publicly show the logos for both projects. |
capoetc
Member Posts: 2337
From: McKinney TX (USA)
Registered: Aug 2005
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posted 04-08-2008 09:36 PM
A question: Do you think the next man or woman to walk on the moon is currently a NASA astronaut? Or will he/she be hired in a later astronaut class?Presumably, many of the current astronauts will move on to other things between the end of the shuttle program and the start of Constellation... ------------------
John Capobianco
Camden DE |
Mark B
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posted 04-09-2008 02:50 AM
Good question and one I thought about once or twice while chasing autographs for my collection.If the recent US government is anything to go by it's anyones guess if these future space programs will actually go full steam ahead and on schedule and to plan as is. Really depends on who is in power and what war monger wants to chase their tail fighting and spending billions of taxpayers dollars on something that is basically a useless task, war. Perhaps if world politicians spent less on wars on more on scientific endeavors such as these new projects in the last twenty years the world and it's people in particular would be a far better place today medically, work wise etc etc. "Budget cuts" all politicians favorite phrase. The spinoff from many of NASA"s projects previously has had a huge impact on many of us in our daily lives and most people don't even know it. Rambling on a bit... I'd say slim chance of too many current contenders would be amongst those to travel again into space, be nice to see a few though fulfill a lifelong dream. |
capoetc
Member Posts: 2337
From: McKinney TX (USA)
Registered: Aug 2005
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posted 04-09-2008 08:32 AM
I'd highly recommend we leave politics out of this discussion. I must admit, it takes incredible restraint on my part to not respond to the previous post...------------------
John Capobianco
Camden DE |
cddfspace
Member Posts: 629
From: Morris County, NJ, USA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 04-09-2008 09:51 AM
John, I could not agree with you more... |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-09-2008 10:01 AM
Well, moving beyond the politics and back to the theme of this thread, I believe there are several, if not quite a few, candidates for future moonwalkers among the current crop of shuttle astronauts. Several have told me during interviews that they plan to stay with the program through the "gap" to fly Orion. I can't imagine a better incentive to do so than a possible trip to the Moon. |
Delta7
Member Posts: 1733
From: Bluffton IN USA
Registered: Oct 2007
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posted 04-09-2008 11:08 AM
Being that there's no reason to believe an astronaut cannot remain on active duty until at least age 60, people like Bob Behnken, Tracy Caldwell, Chris Cassidy, Megan McArthur, Jim Dutton, Terry Virts, Karen Nyberg, and Randy Bresnick (to name a few) could easily be around for another 20 years (2028). I wouldn't be surprised if #13 to walk on the moon is on that list. |
Delta7
Member Posts: 1733
From: Bluffton IN USA
Registered: Oct 2007
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posted 04-09-2008 11:20 AM
Which brings up another question: how many of the current Astronauts do NOT plan on sticking around for Orion? Will there be a mass exodus as the Shuttle program winds down? Does NASA have any kind of projection for that?Of course, there are still ISS slots to be filled, and some might stay for a while to help get Orion up and running but leave before the first flight (much like some Astronauts did between ASTP and STS-1 ~ Ron Evans, Jerry Carr, Stu Roosa, Gene Cernan to name a few). |
Mercury7
Member Posts: 360
From: Greenville, SC, USA
Registered: Aug 2006
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posted 04-09-2008 11:25 AM
I know things are not the same today as they were back in the beginning, but I can not help to think of the great publicity the Constellation program would receive if NASA were to name the first group of Orion astronauts now... ie someone in this room will be the next to step on the moon — Instant American hero. |
jimsz
Member Posts: 644
From:
Registered: Aug 2006
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posted 04-09-2008 01:26 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Mercury7:
...if NASA were to name the first group of Orion astronauts now... ie someone in this room will be the next to step on the moon — Instant American hero.
I just watched that episode two days ago!My belief it is many years away from NASA naming any crew to a moon flight. Back then, NASA was well on it's way and moving forward with a plan. Right now it seems like NASA is still deciding on it's future. I hope now but the current astronauts will probably mostly be retired long before we return to the moon. |
Mercury7
Member Posts: 360
From: Greenville, SC, USA
Registered: Aug 2006
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posted 04-09-2008 01:36 PM
I think I am secretly hoping for a cascade of events such as this that will literally make the idea of not going sacrilege.  Creating a hero before he leaves the ground is just one step... Generally speaking, people are sheep, they want to be led and made to feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. It is the execution of the campaign that is critical and sometimes I feel like the head of NASA PR is the same guy that is in charge of NASA TV.  |
Hart Sastrowardoyo
Member Posts: 3466
From: Toms River, NJ
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 04-09-2008 03:44 PM
Politics aside, there are, IMHO, similarities between the end of Apollo and the end of Shuttle: the war in Vietnam vs the War on Terrorism consuming dollars; a multiyear gap between the end of the Apollo and the flight of Shuttle vs the end of Shuttle and the flight of Constellation.I also fear that the multiyear gap may also be detrimental to Constellation, that the general American public will get used to not having a manned space program. Sure, I believe we'll get to the moon, but am doubtful whether we'll get to Mars, and on both counts, whether it'll be a sustained program. The next person to walk on the moon a current NASA astronaut? That's extremely likely, unless 100+ people decide to leave all at once. But I do forsee that "some" astronauts will leave because of the wait on Constellation, and that "some more" will leave because of additional delays on the project, similar to the early days of Shuttle. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-09-2008 03:52 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Delta7:
Does NASA have any kind of projection for that?
I believe NASA does expect to lose part of their astronaut corps to retirement, which is why they are hiring a new class in 2009 to complement the class of 2004. |
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