posted 06-18-2012 12:10 PM               

But I get really upset when NASA's image of the day is something old. Today's, for instance, it's about Sally Ride's flight 29 (twenty nine!) years ago. How they can title this "Launching Into History" when a Chinese woman was launched into space two days ago is beyond belief.

I don't argue that Sally's spaceflight was an historic moment for NASA. But so was NACA's change into NASA in 1958, and I don't think NASA should be showing 54 year old buildings or logos on "Image of the Day".

If the best photos you have for your current marketing are decades old you need to widen your horizons. I think NASA should focus on important space events, no matter who initiated them, in their daily image posts.

posted 06-18-2012 12:25 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by garymilgrom:
But I get really upset when NASA's image of the day is something old.

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posted 06-18-2012 01:19 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by garymilgrom:
Today's, for instance, it's about Sally Ride's flight 29 (twenty nine!) years ago. How they can title this "Launching Into History" when a Chinese woman was launched into space two days ago is beyond belief.

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posted 06-18-2012 01:37 PM               

cspg - Surely we don't have to rub the noses of our competition in the ground every time they do something? That's not only un-American, it's just plain bad manners.

But if it is a competition to see who can do what and when, why doesn't anyone point out that Tereshkova was launched 20 years before Ride? And who wants to examine the chances of Anerica launching a woman into space tomorrow? Compared to the Russians or Chinese, we're not ahead at this point.

posted 06-18-2012 01:40 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by garymilgrom:
...what are the chances of America launching a woman into space tomorrow?

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posted 06-18-2012 01:52 PM               

But Yi did fly at the expense of her government as part of their astronaut corps. And so yes, South Korea does have a manned space program (KARI).

So, for that matter, does Malaysia (ANGKASA).

In that regard, they are no different than the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and the Canadian Space Agency, all of which have manned space programs.

posted 06-19-2012 07:31 AM               

quote:

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Originally posted by garymilgrom:
cspg - Surely we don't have to rub the noses of our competition in the ground every time they do something? That's not only un-American, it's just plain bad manners.

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posted 06-19-2012 08:53 AM               

We all have to remember that OUR space program did indeed start as a competition. In the beginning, it was just between the two superpowers of the Cold War, the US and the USSR. I'm quite sure that I don't have to describe the history. Everyone on here understands it already.

But, to claim that "rubbing their noses" in it isn't "American" I disagree with on the note that in the beginning it WAS all about "rubbing their noses" in it (albeit, Russian noses at the time). Fast forward to today and we can see that's not the proper way to advance space exploration as I'll agree that it should be a collaborative effort, in today's politcal climate. All I'm pointing out is that it all started as us against them, in a different time and a different environment. But the fact remains, in the beginning, it was all about beating and staying ahead of "them" in this grand game.

So I'm not trying to belittle ANY accomplishment in space. Space is such a foreign environment for human exploration that ANY accomplishment in that environment is a BIG accomplishment. So I'm happy for all that have accomplished their goals in space; be they contemporary or old, American, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Iranian, Korean, European, or whatever. It's still a big accomplishment for ANYONE.

posted 06-19-2012 05:28 PM               

That is not to dismiss her accomplishments outright as Valentina had to pass some strict physical and training accomplishments to do what she did. Being the first woman in space is a great accomplishment. But the Vostok she was in pretty much chugged along in orbit automatically with very little input from the person occupying the seat.

Sally Ride was the first of many. People remember her, but not as many remembered Judy Resnik (this was years before Challenger), Rhea Seddon, Shannon Lucid, Kathy Sullivan, Anna Fisher or the others who flew soon after. We didn't really think much about women astronauts until Eileen Collins flew first as a shuttle pilot, then a shuttle commander (and almost nobody remembers the second female shuttle pilot, Susan Kilrain, probably because she never flew as commander).

Of course, when NASA announced the first female astronaut candidates, the Russians decided to remind everyone that they were first by flying Svetlana Savitskaya on two missions. The first was a flight to Salyut 6 (done almost a year before Sally Ride's flight) and the second was an EVA on Salyut 7 (done mere months before Sullivan did the first EVA by an American woman).

After that the Soviets and later the Russians seemed to back off from flying any women cosmonauts, I would say partly due to the taboos involved with such things (Russian culture is like that, but so are many other cultures). But, conveniently they did fly Yelena Kondakova on a standard months long tour of duty to Mir and they did it a few months before Shannon Lucid flew (but Lucid got the last laugh by setting a spaceflight duration record for an American and a woman anyway on her Mir stint).

It does seem as though the Russians have backed off trying anymore "firsts" like that though.

Among the space flyers, American women will still be unique compared to the Russians since they continue to be an integral part of the job. Savitskaya and Kondakova I would say were just as well trained as the men (and Savitskaya could fly rings around a lot of men with her piloting prowess), but politics was a main factor in their flying when they did. Granted Ride's flight had some politics at play as well, but somebody had to do it first. After that, the flood gates opened.

Today, the Russian attitude towards women astronauts seems to have loosened a lot. Sure the old biases and superstitions rear their ugly heads once in awhile (such as after Soyuz TMA-11's ballistic reentry when an RKA official suggested that having two women on the Soyuz might have had something to do with it). But we've had plenty of women flying on shuttle and the ISS.

Sunita Williams will be accomplishing a lot when she flies as she will be only the second female ISS expedition commander behind Peggy Whitson (will the Russians give her a set of Kazakh riding whips as well though?). It was ground breaking when Peggy flew, I imagine this one will be considered more business as usual though.

Okay, so she won't be launching on an American spacecraft and that is sad. But that is a topic for another time with its own set of arguments.

I can't really speak to China's intentions for their female taikonauts, but I hope this current flight isn't a one time deal (I don't think it will be though). It has taken a long time for this to happen though.