Orbital poised to launch cargo ship to space station

[freshwest]

10. They only support government programs if their pals get the money.

A good deal of what was formerly government run space exploration is now in private hands. They are bypassing government and taking direct control. They GOP voted for NASA funding this year as I noted on this thread:

League City (TX) bans undocumented children

Congressman Randy Weber
Representing the 14th District of Texas

Weber Acts to Stopgap Illegal Entry to United States.

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Randy Weber (R-Friendswood) today introduced H.R. 5014, the Illegal Entry Accountability Act of 2014. The legislation would hold Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador accountable for illegal immigration by immediately suspending all U.S...

Bless his little heart.

Rep. Weber speaks on the House floor in favor of the NASA Reauthorization bill.

This is where we saw a local Tea Partier who worked at NASA cheering last year's federal government shutdown and calling for default. Because they know they won't be effected. In fact, they want more funding for themselves and don't care who dies. Nice bunch, a far cry from the people who worked for NASA back in the day of the moon landing.

U.S. Representative Randy Weber has been named as a recipient of the 2014 Thomas Jefferson Award by the International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA).

I'm sure Jefferson is barfing off a cloud somewhere at this alleged honor. Read more:

http://weber.house.gov/

The 14th is Ron Paul's old district:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas%27s_14th_congressional_district

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014842196#post7

America still surpasses all other nations combined funding space exploration at $17.3 billion.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outline_of_space_exploration#Space_agencies

The GOP votes to pay for increasingly private space exploration ventures that employ their voting block, most likely, like the guy who worked at NASA and wanted the shutdown and default last year. He knew that he would be paid by someone else if need be.

Examples:

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

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

Current NASA (USA) space programs include:

# Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (NASA)

# Mars Exploration Rover (NASA)

# MESSENGER – NASA probe to Mercury launched in 2004

# Mars Science Laboratory – NASA rover to Mars launched in November 2011

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outline_of_space_exploration#Active_space_missions

Russia has also privatized:


Soviet and Russian space station Mir

Russian achievements in the field of space technology and space exploration are traced back to Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, the father of theoretical astronautics.[214] His works had inspired leading Soviet rocket engineers, such as Sergey Korolyov, Valentin Glushko, and many others who contributed to the success of the Soviet space program on early stages of the Space Race and beyond.

In 1957 the first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched; in 1961 the first human trip into space was successfully made by Yury Gagarin. Many other Soviet and Russian space exploration records ensued, including the first spacewalk performed by Alexey Leonov, Luna 9 was the first spacecraft to land on the Moon, Venera 7 was the first to land on another planet (Venus), Mars 3 then the first to land on Mars, the first space exploration rover Lunokhod 1 and the first space station Salyut 1 and Mir.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, some government-funded space exploration programs, including the Buran space shuttle program, were cancelled or delayed, while participation of the Russian space industry in commercial activities and international cooperation intensified.

Nowadays Russia is the largest satellite launcher.[215] After the U.S. Space Shuttle program ended in 2011, Soyuz rockets became the only provider of transport for astronauts at the International Space Station.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia#Space_exploration

Space technology is now owned privately and that is why we are not being told about it, except in news blurbs for financial support. So while it's great stuff, it's not JFK's ideal:


Astronaut Dale A. Gardner holding a "For Sale" sign

Private spaceflight is flight beyond the Kármán line (above the nominal edge of space at 100 km (62 mi) Earth altitude) that is conducted and paid for by an entity other than a government agency.

In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology augmented by collaboration with affiliated design bureaus in the USSR and private companies in the US. The European Space Agency was formed in 1975, largely following the same model of space technology development.

Later on, large defense contractors began to develop and operate space launch systems, derived from government rockets and commercial satellites. Private spaceflight in Earth orbit includes communications satellites, satellite television, satellite radio, astronaut transport and sub-orbital and orbital space tourism.

Recently, entrepreneurs have begun designing and deploying competitive space systems to the national-monopoly governmental systems[1] of the early decades of the space age.[2] Successes to date include flying suborbital spaceplanes, launching orbital rockets, and flying a couple of orbital expandable test modules (Genesis I and II). Planned private spaceflights beyond Earth orbit include personal spaceflights around the Moon.[citation needed] Two private orbital habitat prototypes are already in Earth orbit, with larger versions to follow.[3] Planned private spaceflights beyond Earth orbit include solar sailing prototypes (LightSail-3).

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

Anyway, with the amount of pork the space program brings to southern states, such as Alabama and Texas, I think you might find that stuff interesting. My guess is the ultra wealthy have promised the pubbies a few special perks for their votes.

Just sayin'