I first want to apologize for any discomfort these thoughts might cause in relation to the private space industry catastrophes this week. There is no word that expresses the cruelty of our world in the year 2014. But, the cultural preference is to strike while the wounds are still fresh, so who I am to be different?
There were two KNOWN private space industry tragedies and as of today one death and another hanging in the balance.
"Democratizing Space." I hadn't heard that before and it is the most bizarre and self-righteous expression of the Super Rich I have ever heard before. There is no democratizing space. Space travel relies on expensive fittings such as a pressurized suit and all the contraptions that go along with it only to ride in a billion dollar vehicle. So there is no space democracy. There is absolutely no way everyone in the world could become a part of that democracy. It doesn't exist except in the minds of those that justify it.
I know, I know; these are the first baby steps of the private space industry that will live in infamy for the beginnings of the real life "George Jetson." I don't think so.
The rocket that blew up was carrying supplies to the ISS. There is a lot of research and information being recorded within that international PEACE project. The ISS was always intended to bring together GOVERNMENTS in a single effort to promote cooperation and common cause. So, from the beginning the ISS was never intended to be a part of any private commercial industry the USA has decided as worthy. Quite frankly, I still can't believe the ISS partners are putting up with the USA in that aspect of this project, but, when supplies are needed the USA mostly has every other ISS partner by the balls. Again, this is the year of 2014 where there is no word to describe cruelty and it is best to strike while the wounds are still fresh.
The project vehicle that was destroyed at a launch pad in Virginia, which is the very first time I ever heard of a launch pad in Virginia. Virginia has to be just about the worst place to put a space launch pad, but, that in a minute.
The rocket didn't perform to standard.
When rockets don't perform to standard they are now worthless. Why would that be? I mean the darn thing got straightened out and kept going into the sky so what's the big deal?
"T minus 30 minutes and counting."
"We are on hold at T minus 30 minutes for the misreading of a fuel tank temperature. When that is corrected we will restart the count down."
When a rocket ship is designed and built and is assembled with it's anticipated cargo, in the instance it is a rocket program the USA was conducting that was frequently human cargo, there was a launch sequence started that was to provide a SCRIPT to follow with all the I's dotted and all the T's crossed. When the countdown was stopped it would be in suspended animation until all the 'stray' problems/readings were resolved and then the 'path' to liftoff was restarted.
Stopping a count down is not a minor thing nor was it ever. So when the rocket was ignited to lift off it was suppose to follow not just a specific lift off countdown but a specific trajectory.
There were two KNOWN private space industry tragedies and as of today one death and another hanging in the balance.
"Democratizing Space." I hadn't heard that before and it is the most bizarre and self-righteous expression of the Super Rich I have ever heard before. There is no democratizing space. Space travel relies on expensive fittings such as a pressurized suit and all the contraptions that go along with it only to ride in a billion dollar vehicle. So there is no space democracy. There is absolutely no way everyone in the world could become a part of that democracy. It doesn't exist except in the minds of those that justify it.
I know, I know; these are the first baby steps of the private space industry that will live in infamy for the beginnings of the real life "George Jetson." I don't think so.
The rocket that blew up was carrying supplies to the ISS. There is a lot of research and information being recorded within that international PEACE project. The ISS was always intended to bring together GOVERNMENTS in a single effort to promote cooperation and common cause. So, from the beginning the ISS was never intended to be a part of any private commercial industry the USA has decided as worthy. Quite frankly, I still can't believe the ISS partners are putting up with the USA in that aspect of this project, but, when supplies are needed the USA mostly has every other ISS partner by the balls. Again, this is the year of 2014 where there is no word to describe cruelty and it is best to strike while the wounds are still fresh.
The project vehicle that was destroyed at a launch pad in Virginia, which is the very first time I ever heard of a launch pad in Virginia. Virginia has to be just about the worst place to put a space launch pad, but, that in a minute.
The rocket didn't perform to standard.
When rockets don't perform to standard they are now worthless. Why would that be? I mean the darn thing got straightened out and kept going into the sky so what's the big deal?
"T minus 30 minutes and counting."
"We are on hold at T minus 30 minutes for the misreading of a fuel tank temperature. When that is corrected we will restart the count down."
When a rocket ship is designed and built and is assembled with it's anticipated cargo, in the instance it is a rocket program the USA was conducting that was frequently human cargo, there was a launch sequence started that was to provide a SCRIPT to follow with all the I's dotted and all the T's crossed. When the countdown was stopped it would be in suspended animation until all the 'stray' problems/readings were resolved and then the 'path' to liftoff was restarted.
Stopping a count down is not a minor thing nor was it ever. So when the rocket was ignited to lift off it was suppose to follow not just a specific lift off countdown but a specific trajectory.
The count down was fine and the ignition was good, the gantry fell away,
however, at about .54 or .55 minutes, the rocket paused in it's upward movement. It seemed to not only pause, but, bobble a bit. Of course I am not the monitors of the rocket watching a computer with the rocket's ACTUAL trajectory as opposed to it's planned trajectory, but, a bobble is a big deal.
Trajectory is a heavily scienced (I don't think that is a word.) capacity of rocketry. For a rocket that a young scientist in a high school class might build and demonstrate to the Rocketry Club, the joy of having liftoff into the sky is a magnificent moment, however, when that rocket is heavily laden with fuel and all sorts of cargo of unknown content the public has to be considered.
If one remembers the countdown to the original liftoff of this very rocket, it was put on hold a short time before this mishap because of a sailing ship along it's trajectory path. Remember? This is Virginia where lovers gather to enjoy the beach and in this case sail a boat. What the American public does not expect in their day to day living is for a rocket to give up skyward movement and land in the ocean where they are sailing.
That is the genius of the Kennedy Space Center. Do we still call the launch pads in Florida by that same name? I just don't keep up with all the social ills that decide something needs to have a name change, like the US House does with Post Offices. To me, changing a name is disrespectful. So, I'll just assume the Florida Space Center is still named Kennedy after the very president that set the Americans on a path to space.
The genius of the Kennedy Space Center is that it is not near human activity. It is out in the middle of a swamp (Have you been there? Go. It is a great place to take the kids. We did. The boys were 5 and 7 and I had purchased outfits that looked exactly like space suits without the helmet. It was blast. Not literally, but, the pictures of the boys are priceless.) on the east coast of Florida, I think it is a peninsula (could be wrong about that) and the acreage is many. There are several launch sites and of course the assembly buildings and these enormous 'crawlers' that bring the vehicles to the launch pad. But, the greatest hurdle for Kennedy is the weather. ie: Challenger. ice and o-rings.
The Kennedy Space Center is owned and operated by the American people to further research and scientific knowledge of our Earth, it's solar system, universe and now with Voyager beyond the end of our galaxy we really are in real space (AKA void).
But, the launch of this rocket that was supposed to go to the ISI with supplies was destroyed because it's path became something other than prescribed. That may seem strange considering the sky is so big, but, it really isn't. The path for the cargo has to be precise and it can't end up falling out of the sky over the plains of Africa either.
I am trying to find the words that would explain how a minute inch would result in miles and even hundreds of miles off course.
How about the words "In Sight Ballistic Relationship."
Rockets to the moon or the ISS or to Mars are the same way. If the trajectory is the least bit off at the 'point of origin' the entire path of the vehicle will result in a missed opportunity at the very least. The best example I can think of. Let me see if it is on You Tube.
This rather dramatic scene from Apollo 13 clearly demonstrates the real life problem with trajectory and the tragedies that can result if it is not correct.
So that is my take on the explosion. Safety of the public and correct trajectory that would result in successful delivery of cargo. Luckily, Russia has planned a delivery of cargo to the ISS and it launched the day after this failure. I thank Russia for that.
Then there is the problem today.
I completely reject this extravagance for the Super Rich. The tickets are a quarter of a million to experience weightlessness. It is an amusement ride.
This is not the first step in democratizing space. Space is already democratized IN THE FACT the USA has a completely competent space program owned and operated by the American people. And who exactly 'rides' in the American vehicles?
Who rides? Americans. Who walked on the moon? A kid from Ohio. If that isn't democratized space, don't ask me what is.
The events of 2008 that began at least a year and a half before resulted in a dynamic that was written by the former CEO of Goldman Sachs acting as US Treasurer. The plan was rubber stamped by Mr. Bernanke. He had no choice, either the bank failures were going to come down the way Paulson saw it or it wasn't going to come down at all.
What followed was excoriation of any and all monies out of the global markets while bankrolled into the banks. It wasn't a one time payment, it occurred repeatedly and the value of Wall Street soared. The DISTRIBUTION of wealth became very focused on a smaller and smaller group of people which the New York Times called out as the 0.01 percent.
These folks are now the Super Rich and supposedly they are good for the economy. They are not. They hold onto far too much asset capital and it prevents growth in the global economy. President Obama was the most determined man ever witnessed in the Presidency to return function to the American people. And that was the American people. President Obama is more a magician than FDR. President Roosevelt entered into a war economy that drove growth, but, President Obama (as promised) was moving the economy into the everyday lives of Americans and out of a war economy. A 2001 war economy that never served to produce job growth either.
When one has a bank account, let's say a savings account, what happens to that money? Is it spent so it benefits the local economy or does it sit in a bank vault collecting anemic interest in the year 2014? For the average person it sits in the low interest bank account. It accumulates over time as more and more money is added for let's say a down payment on a home.
Okay, so is that much different for the Super Rich? The dynamics are different, but, the context is basically the same. The monies are invested for a return to it's depositor.
When the average home buyer pays a down payment and then interest on the debt of the mortgage of the house, do those monies provide growth? Yes, they do. Those monies are now at work.
When the Super Rich get bored and want to experience weightlessness and remove a quarter million from the investment account does that grow the economy?
No. The quarter million enters the bank accounts of Virgin Galactic or whoever the private contractor is for the space ride of a lifetime. So, a very large amount of money that could easily purchase a home in the USA or a hospital in Africa is now transferred to an huge corporation for what exactly? What is the private space contractor going to do with all that money. Six passengers = $1.5 million per ride.
It is uncertain what those monies will be used for. Building more space ships for the wealthy? Or simply an accumulation of assets to fund the company worry free for the next decade? Regardless, those monies that the Super Rich hold onto and play with are not benefiting anyone except their amusement and the jollies the average person might get of the posted You Tube videos of celebrities in space.
The nations of the world have a problem. Chairwoman Yellen is exactly correct. The global community, especially the USA, has to define income and wealth inequality.
I hope I have painted a picture for those that read it. It is an accurate picture. The current wealth distribution is not only toxic to economies, it is highly immoral and will lead to the impoverishment of people on Earth, quite possibly the loss of their sovereign country and chaos rather than quality of life and moral development of the Third World.
