A good examination of the politics, flip-flopping and otherwise convoluted message NASA has generated over its Mars ambitions. Personally, looking over the past 7 years NASA appears to have given more interest in Power Point presentations than actual missions.
In this week’s Space News magazine, Associate Administrator Robert Lightfoot submitted an editorial that for the newer followers of space policy, strategy and exploration, one could see it as an exciting report on the things going on at NASA and for the progress toward the plan set in motion years earlier to Mars. However, for those that have followed this closely, either professionally like myself, or as a volunteer advocate like others I know, reading this editorial was more annoying than informative. Why? Because this is nothing but a revisionist view of the current NASA administration talking points on space exploration and not a true “consensus” on the plan going forward as Lightfoot puts it.
This thought process derives from the evolution of the Obama Administration/NASA position or “plan” for space exploration post-Shuttle (since Feb 2010) one cannot help but be confused. Editorials like this one by Mr. Lightfoot indicate what appears…
View original post 982 more words
Space Thoughts 