Come on why!?

[F22RaptorDude]

Shuttle program is over and people are being laid off! What happens to the Shuttles, scrapping any of them would be a crime! This is so sad! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a061mtauxA0&feature=feedu

[Penguin]

Well, it's off to Russia, then.

-Penguin

[grizz441]

1. Cost
2. Service life up
3. Better alternatives

Sucks about jobs being lost but what can you do.

[F22RaptorDude]

1. Cost
2. Service life up
3. Better alternatives

Sucks about jobs being lost but what can you do.

As a single person nothing unfortunately, but I can't be the only one who's disappointed it ended can I?

[grizz441]

The shuttles were cool but they aren't the most economical way to get into space anymore.  The existing shuttles are old and would need to be replaced, but there are better options now so there's no sense in building a new fleet.

[F22RaptorDude]

The shuttles were cool but they aren't the most economical way to get into space anymore.  The existing shuttles are old and would need to be replaced, but there are better options now so there's no sense in building a new fleet.

Better options? and Does it have to do with Russia? I know they have their own space program but are their methods more economical?

[grizz441]

Apparently for the time being it is much cheaper to buy trips into space from russia than do it ourselves.  But apart from that, there are more modern techs to get into space at a much cheaper cost than the shuttles.

[Flipperk]

The shuttles were cool but they aren't the most economical way to get into space anymore.  The existing shuttles are old and would need to be replaced, but there are better options now so there's no sense in building a new fleet.

The shuttles are the ONLY spacecraft in existence today that can take a heavy payload and an entire crew and support them with a re-entry capability.

[F22RaptorDude]

They tried to keep costs down, everything was reusable except the main tank which burns up in the atmosphere. Its more econmic than anything else we used like the Saturn's which non of it was reusable

Edit: anything we used in the US

[saggs]

I'm not so much saddened by the shuttles retirement, though I do think they are really cool.  They have far exceed their designed service life, and are ridiculously expensive to operate, they should have really been retired 10 years ago.

What saddens me is the cancellation of the Constellation program (supposed to replace the shuttle), it would have been much cheaper, much safer, and lift more then the shuttle.  Also the last administrations program to return to the moon.  It hits home to me, I know many people who have been laid off from ATK Thiokol (built the shuttle's SRBs), not to mention some folks at ATK spent years working on designs for the Constellation program, only to have the President say "Sorry, we changed our minds."     I know the political line is that the private sector will step up and take over, but realistically the private sector is 30 years behind NASA.  Branson and Scaled Composites, have just barely got the private SpaceShip one into suborbital space.  Besides NASA, while being tax payer funded, has created hundreds of thousands of private sector jobs, NASA pulls it all together , but most of the components, and much of the research IS done by private firms.  

I have lots to say on this topic, but most of it would get *see rule #14*

[saggs]

They tried to keep costs down, everything was reusable except the main tank which burns up in the atmosphere. Its more econmic than anything else we used like the Saturn's which non of it was reusable

Edit: anything we used in the US

You're just wrong, sorry.  The shuttle costs near $500,000,000 per mission.

Just as one example, they didn't realize when they designed the shuttle that the ENTIRE heat shield would have to be replaced after each mission, to the tune of tens of millions of $$.  

The Constellation program was based off the Apollo designs, with several different sized rockets for different payloads, and a small one for the crew.  Sent up the heavy stuff, and let the crew rendezvous in orbit.  Much more economical then the shuttle, much much safer to.  If an o-ring fails like Challenger the crew capsule just parachutes back down.   And with the crew capsule on the very top, no risk of debris strikes from the rocket damaging the heat shield like Columbia.

[Penguin]

I am.  Ever since I was little, I had worked to become an astronaut.  Now I don't know what I'll do.  I guess I'll have to find a job in the private space industry.  I hope that the manned space program will return soon.

-Penguin

[saggs]

When I was little I told my dad I wanted to be an Astronaut.


He told me I was halfway there, I just needed to work on the tronaut part. 

[Penguin]

No, I'm serious.  I know, it sounds like I'll never make it, but if I shoot for the moon, even if I miss, I'll land among the stars.  If I never try, I'll never make it.  I love science and even if I don't become an astronaut, I'll still be doing something that I love.  Fortune favors the bold.

-Penguin

[F22RaptorDude]

You're just wrong, sorry.  The shuttle costs near $500,000,000 per mission.

Just as one example, they didn't realize when they designed the shuttle that the ENTIRE heat shield would have to be replaced after each mission, to the tune of tens of millions of $$.  

The Constellation program was based off the Apollo designs, with several different sized rockets for different payloads, and a small one for the crew.  Sent up the heavy stuff, and let the crew rendezvous in orbit.  Much more economical then the shuttle, much much safer to.  If an o-ring fails like Challenger the crew capsule just parachutes back down.   And with the crew capsule on the very top, no risk of debris strikes from the rocket damaging the heat shield like Columbia.

Sorry I figured the price wouldn't be as high if none of the boosters were reused. but dang I had no idea! and I see how that works, but the parts blast away and burn up right? So none of it would be reusable or am I wrong?

No, I'm serious.  I know, it sounds like I'll never make it, but if I shoot for the moon, even if I miss, I'll land among the stars.  If I never try, I'll never make it.  I love science and even if I don't become an astronaut, I'll still be doing something that I love.  Fortune favors the bold.

-Penguin

To get to the closest star would take billions of years, the moon a few days. Not very likely.