/sci/ - Science & Math

[Anonymous No.4364562]

Hey Sci, Guess what, NASA's budget is getting cut again.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/02/13/white-house-asks-for-brutal-planetary-nasa
-budget-cuts/

Why does NASAs budget keep getting cut? Space and Related spin off technology has made the world awesome.

Continued in next post.

[Anonymous No.4364571]

>Why does NASAs budget keep getting cut?
>The US government is broke

[Anonymous No.4364569]

My opinion hasn't really changed in years. NASA is a tiny, tiny part of the federal budget, far less than 1%. There are other places where money can be found, other places where cuts make more sense.

I've made this analogy before: if you have a hard drive full of 4 Gb movie files, you don't make room by deleting 100kB text files! You go after the big targets, which is far more efficient. Reducing NASA's budget for Mars exploration frees up 0.01% of the federal budget. That's it. One ten-thousandth of what we spend overall, a hundredth of a penny for every dollar.

What does that mean in more understandable terms? Over the past few years, the rate of money spent in Afghanistan and Iraq is about 20 million dollars per hour. In other words, the amount of money being cut from Mars exploration is equal to what we were spending on the War on Terror in just 15 hours.

You might want to read that again. For the cost of less than a single day on the War on Terror, we could have a robust and far-reaching program to explore Mars, look for signs of life on another planet, increase our overall science knowledge, and inspire a future generation of kids.

[Anonymous No.4364576]

Its because the majority of the US thinks that politicians are the best at consolidating and interpreting scientific data!

After all, global warming is a hoax because a politician with vastly superior knowledge then all of us said so... and the world was creating 6000 years ago!

[Anonymous No.4364580]

The US has spent more money on the war on terror in our last two wars, then NASA has spent in it's entire history, the apollo program included.

Think were we could be now if people thought martians were brown, not green, and had oil.

[Anonymous No.4364581]

For the last 40 years NASA has done very little to justify its own existence. The only thing I think NASA has done well has been exploring Mars and the next step, visiting Mars, is way over budget and in some ways beyond our technological level and provides nothing but giving our scientists an erection.

Civil defense technology has done more than NASA and has something to show for it.

Space exploration is fine but it's got to do something other than exploration for its own sake. Asteroid mining maybe, but nobody's looking in to asteroid mining. All they want is exploration, which is garbage.

[Anonymous No.4364582]

Since 1991, NASA budget was reduced from 1.05 % to 0.48 % of federal budget.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget_of_NASA

[Anonymous No.4364586]

>>4364581

said the man in his mud hut, we don't need to see whats over that next hill. We need more spears, possibly shields.

[Anonymous No.4364589]

i guess most americans in power at the moment just dont realise the true value of science. same can be said for politicians all over the world though

[Anonymous No.4364599]

> Space and Related spin off technology has made the world awesome.

The problem with NASA is it thinks it can sit on its laurels. Yes, it improved computer technology - 40 years ago. What technology has it developed that has improved the lives of taxpayers within the Obama administration?

My God, we don't even have a working space vehicle anymore.

If NASA wants to keep its funding intact, it should show real results, other than a bunch of toasters crawling around Mars. Otherwise, roll it up into the Air Force and militarize its applications.

When its mission is to kill brown people, it will get all the funding it needs.

[Anonymous No.4364608]

http://www.irna.ir/News/General/President-urges-Iranian-scientists-to-take-major-steps-in-aerospace/
30808726

>“Try to reach the two objectives of sending human to space and launching satellites higher into orbit until the solar year of 1400 (2022 Christian year),” President Ahmadinejad told Iranian scientists.

>President Ahmadinejad also said that his government would support every efforts to this end.

Iran strong!

[Anonymous No.4364612]

>roll it up into the Air Force and militarize its applications.

yeah because the one thing the US does not spent enough on is military.

[Anonymous No.4364615]

Solution: begin talking about how close the chinks are to getting their own space station, and landing on the moon again.

I for one hope they get there soon, America needs to be taken down a peg or two.

[Anonymous No.4364620]

>white-house-asks-for-brutal-planetary-nasa
-budget-cuts/
>brutal budget cuts

[Anonymous No.4364622]

>>4364586
Nasa provides nothing, get over it.

Things that NASA could DO to justify their existence.

Asteroid mining/lunar mining, solar/microwave station in orbit, orbital hydroponics.

I don't mind you doing your exploration bit, just have something to SHOW for it. Fucking hell the reason Columbus went west to India was for trade, the reason the Spanish colonized America was for Gold.

Give me SOMETHING other than this exploration for its own sake bullshit and I'll give you the money you need.

[Anonymous No.4364624]

>>4364599
>other than a bunch of toasters crawling around Mars
Good God, the ignorance...

[Anonymous No.4364630]

>>4364599

> Otherwise, roll it up into the Air Force and militarize its applications. When its mission is to kill brown people, it will get all the funding it needs.

Spot on, DoD is swimming in money. Which is why the best case scenario would be to cancel all NASA rocket development and simply use what DoD does (Delta, Atlas and in the future, Falcon). DoD will always provide steady cash flow to keep its launch capabilities ready and up to date, and they are being chronically underused anyway. NASA should parasite on this capability instead of wasting its own precious money on yet another rocket.

[Anonymous No.4364669]

>>4364620
lol

[Anonymous No.4364744]

>>4364562
> Why does NASAs budget keep getting cut?

Because it's useless spending. Totally useless. We obviously will never move out into space as a culture or race. So there's no point at all in "exploring" places that you will never go... that NOBODY will ever go.

[Anonymous No.4364756]

>>4364744
You probably think art funding is useless too.

[Anonymous No.4364757]

>>4364744
>We obviously will never move out into space as a culture or race

Are you literally retarded? Also what the hell is wrong with these people who think there needs to be a 'justification' for exploration beyond improving knowledge and technology. Backward, luddite scum.

[Anonymous No.4364759]

NASA needs its budget quintupled. Hell all science funding needs its budget doubled minimum.

[Anonymous No.4364774]

>>4364757
NASA's funding should be redirected into other projects akin to DARPA in fields like nanotechnology, materials science, alternative energies, synthetic biology, stem cells, etc.

Space will probably never be explored or inhabited by biological beings. It's far better for machines to do that anyway.

[Anonymous No.4364783]

>>4364774
>Space will probably never be explored or inhabited by biological beings.

Why do you keep claiming something that is simply objectively false? the technology exists and many people would choose to live in space or on a Lunar/Martian colony.

[Anonymous No.4365026]

>>4364757

Oh look, it's Mr Butthurt.

When the ISS comes burning back into the stratosphere, I'm gonna be posting here, laughing my fucking ass off.

You see, the FACTS support my views, and they do NOT support yours. Eat a bowl of dicks.

[Anonymous No.4365032]

>>4365026
>FACTS

What FACTS? The fact people want to live in space, the fact many industries will benefit from being in space and the fact space travel is going to get cheaper?

Also what does the ISS have to do with anything? all space stations have a limited life span.

[Anonymous No.4365034]

>>4364774
> It's far better for machines to do that anyway.

No, it's not, since if people won't go there, THERE'S NO POINT IN EXPLORING.

Was the North American continent explored and conquered by robots, you anus?

NASA's useless. It only served a "purpose" in the Cold War, and that purpose was never established to create a space-faring civilization.

[Anonymous No.4365046]

>Hey guys we're not going to explore other planets, we're going to spend your money on nigger shooting instead

[Anonymous No.4365050]

>>4365032
> The fact people want to live in space, the fact many industries will benefit from being in space and the fact space travel is going to get cheaper?

The people who want to live in space are the pasty-white nerds who don't have the many tens to hundreds of billions of dollars needed to make such a thing reality. SO THEY CAN BE RATIONALLY DISREGARDED.

Space travel never gets cheaper. It's been about $10000 per kilogram for a long time. NASA in fact works to SUPPRESS attempts to make it cheaper. Delta Clipper, asswipe? WHERE THE FUCK IS YOUR MEMORY? Too many Cheetos, I suppose.

> Also what does the ISS have to do with anything? all space stations have a limited life span.

They have a limited lifespan since they are parked in VERY low orbits much exposed to decay from the atmosphere. So, why are they in such low orbits? TO MAKE IT CHEAP TO GET THERE WITH EXPENSIVE LAUNCH SYSTEMS.

When you keep putting up expensive hardware at $10000/kg launch costs, and then let it all get destroyed, YOU'RE NOT BUILDING ANYTHING. All you're doing is supporting your aerospace contractors, but allowing them to eat as much caviar as they like.

[Anonymous No.4365068]

>>4365026
5 start post, nigga.

>>4365032
Go in space using your own money. Ah wait, it's too expensive and u want the public to fund your butthurt "dreams".

[CapitalistBastard !!l4dbpZTi+Kq No.4365070]

>Hey Sci, Guess what, NASA's budget is getting cut again.

That's what you get for voting democrat.

But at least your insurance premiums are going up so that every slut in the country can get free birth control.

[Anonymous No.4365073]

>>4365050
All of this is why I'm more interested in the private newspace firms like SpaceX. They are trying hard to reduce launch costs by using cheaper engineering solutions, automated manufacturing, vertical integration, and doing reusability research.

[Anonymous No.4365080]

>>4364562

NASA BUDGET IS NOT GETTING CUT!!

"Provides $17.7 billion, a decrease of 0.3 percent, or $59 million, below the 2012 enacted level."

http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2012/02/nasa-outline-fy13-budget-amid-warnings-political-battles/

Only the money in NASA budget is getting rearanged, decreasing Mars probes, Orion and SLS spending, and increasing commercial providers (think SpaceX) spending.

THIS IS A GOOD NEWS!

[Anonymous No.4365082]

NO GUYS THIS IS BAD WE'RE TOTALLY GOING TO LIVE IN SPACE JUST LIKE ON TEEVEE I SAW IT AND IT'S GOING TO BE AWESOME AND I'M GONNA BE WHOOSHING TO THE STARS AT LIGHT SPEED JUST YOU WAIT PHYSICS IS WRONG IT'S GONNA HAPPEN ANY DAY NOW EXPLORATION FOR EXPLORATIONS SAKE IS THE ONLY REASON TO DO STUFF WHAT IS THIS NONSENSE ABOUT MAKING MONEY AND BEING PROFITABLE WE HAVE TO DO IT BECAUSE I WANNA BE IN SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE


I'd actually support NASA funding if it'd mean we get to shoot people like that off into the infinite void.

[CapitalistBastard !!l4dbpZTi+Kq No.4365086]

>>4365080
>NASA BUDGET IS NOT GETTING CUT!!

>"Provides $17.7 billion, a decrease of 0.3 percent, or $59 million, below the 2012 enacted level."

That's a cut dumbshit. And a big one if it is being done in absolute dollars.

Because the federal budget baseline increases by 3% every year in every program.

To see a cut in absolute dollars is crushing.

Want more science funding? Vote republican.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7Q8UvJ1wvk