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Commercialization

Commercial Space: Hot Air Vs Real Hardware

By Keith Cowing
NASA Watch
January 29, 2010
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Keith’s note: A paradigm shift is in the making – a shift from government-operated to private sector operated human and cargo transportation systems. Of course, everyone wants to get a word in about this. How two groups express their support points to a shift in how this will happen. It is one thing to wave your arms around about what is broken and offer semantic solutions. It is quite another to quietly build vehicles to make this actually come to pass. Witness the attitude difference between two pro-space commercialization organizations – one old (and tired) one new and fresh.
First there is the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (formed by a group of companies actually building space vehicles) who sees the opportunity to take a shift in direction and make things work better. And then there is the Space Frontier Foundation (fast becoming a noisy “me too” fringe group) who gleefully celebrates the cancellation of a program that has consumed $8 billion by issuing a press release that points fingers and makes absolutely sure that we all know that they told you so …
I’ll take CSF’s forward-looking approach any day.
Commercial Spaceflight Federation Statement on NASA’s Anticipated Announcement of a $6 Billion Commercial Crew Program and NASA Budget Increase
“At a time when job creation is the top priority for our nation, a commercial crew program will create more jobs per dollar because it leverages millions in private investment and taps the potential of systems that serve both government and private customers. We have a tremendous opportunity here to jump-start private activity in low-Earth orbit that will further lower the cost of access to space and unleash the economic potential of space long promised.”
Space Frontier Foundation Praises Death Sentence for Ares
“The Space Frontier Foundation has been fighting to kill Ares I for years. We predicted this disaster in 2006 , put out press releases, op-eds and worked with our many friends inside NASA, Congress, and both large and small NewSpace companies. … Our Mind the Space Gap campaign emphasized that Ares was a boondoggle that guaranteed sending more taxpayer money to Russia to pay for Astronaut visits to a space station we mostly paid for,” continued Werb. “Now the NewSpace industry must step up and fill the Gap, creating jobs and innovation here in America.”

NASA Watch founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.