[AR] Re: Nuclear Hydrogen Thruster
- From: Craig Fink <webegood@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: arocket@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 10 Jun 2018 06:19:49 -0500
On Sat, Jun 9, 2018 at 5:11 PM Henry Spencer <hspencer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On Sat, 9 Jun 2018, Craig Fink wrote:
New Horizon Probe propulsion design was driven by History...
Agreed in general, but it was also driven by a tight cost cap and the need
to build something well-understood that would work -- and work reliably
for many years -- for a unique mission opportunity that wouldn't recur.
And bear in mind that it *didn't* require particularly high performance.
This combination of requirements and non-requirements definitely favored
straightforward old technology available off the shelf.
Some folks I know *did* try to sell NASA on using piston pumps rather than
pressure feed for the propulsion system, to reduce tank mass. Those were
nearly off-the-shelf hardware, from work done at LLNL a few years earlier.
They got nowhere -- not needed, not wanted, forget it.
Yep, I can imagine the reception they got trying to change something that
was designed by History. End of an era you say in another thread, it
actually ended some time ago. I can also imagine the response you would get
if you asked NASA (head of) to talk with the "Rocket Scientist" in charge
of their current manned space program. Confused questioning looks, eyes
downward cast, searching for an answer, some stammering about teams,
possibly some attempt to correct your wording to Engineer or a question in
return, "How about an Astronaut, would you like to talk to an Astronaut?"
Back in 1999 while I was still working for a NASA subcontractor, the
SLS/Orion program had just begun. It was funny, the very first thing that
happened was a lot of scurrying about to answer the question, "Well, what
did we do last time?" Lots of trips to the JSC library.... And since there
was not one "Rocket Scientist" left at NASA, that question became the plan.
History designed the next 50 years of the NASA's manned space program.
To be fair, there are "Rocket Scientist" at NASA, they just have little or
no influence on the Future. The Right Stuff, "No bucks, no Buck Rogers.",
as that Astronaut put the Rocket Scientist in his place. The Bus Drivers
have taken over.
--
Craig Fink
WeBeGood@xxxxxxxxx
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