/sci/ - Science & Math

Lori Garver:
>The mandate to lower the cost of space transportation set in 1970 by President Nixon was to reprioritize this “massive concentration” of energy given to NASA, in favor of developing “low cost, flexible, long-lived, highly reliable, operational space systems with a high degree of commonality and reusability.” Just imagine what could have been accomplished by now if NASA had accepted and successfully delivered on this mandate as it had its previous goal to beat the Russians to the Moon?
>Instead, NASA leadership designed the spacecraft they wanted to build, prioritizing internal interests and parochial constituencies instead of embracing the assigned national political mandate. In my view, we have been working the wrong end of the problem—putting the cart before the horse. Programs that require large amounts of taxpayer funding must be guided by established valuable purposes. The cart must follow the horse. Building a big rocket or going to a specific destination aren’t ends in themselves; they are means to an end.
Nixon INNOCENT
NASA GUILTY