Gary
En-Route
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2005
- Messages
- 3,263
- Location
- Harleysville, PA
- Display Name
- Gary
- Home Airfield
- Quakertown PA (UKT)
Decent read on the emerging private space industry. Traces the beginnings and current developments of some companies such as Scaled Composites (including a good account of the SpaceShip 1 launch), Virgin Galactic, SpaceX, and Bigelow Aerospace. I didn't realize the number of small startups that are now in the business of getting a payload into space. Good discussion on why NASA really hasn't been able to advance manned spaceflight - political intervention, held to a higher standard, risk adverse and the infamous military-industrial protectionism. Not up to "The Right Stuff", one of my favorite books, but still good airport reading. I'd give it a 6 out of 10.
Gary
Gary