Space Sermon By Mike Pence
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Remarks by Vice President Pence on the Administration’s Space Policy Priorities Houston, TX
“And finally, to those of you who will guide this mission, on a personal level, I just — I want to assure you that millions of Americans will carry you in their prayers. And they have faith and hope you have confidence that, as you go, you do not go alone. That millions of Americans will claim that ancient promise that if you “rise on the wings of the dawn”, if you “go up to the heavens,” “even there His hand will guide you,” and “His right hand will hold us fast.” Our heroes will go with the prayers of the American people.”
Keith’s note: Once upon a time everyone lamented that the occupants of the White House (pick one – any one) did not care about space. And if they did, there was no money to back up whatever they wanted NASA to do. Now we have a Vice President who clearly does care about space – and then some. No argument there. Alas, there was no news from Johnson Space Center today. The Vice President was in Texas to do a fundraiser for Rep. John Culberson and stopped by JSC give a space sermon with a short introduction from NASA Administrator Bridenstine. As for the sermon-esque aspects of Pence’s presentation – that’s how he rolls. I did find one reference Pence made to resonates with things I have ranted about (before) on NASA Watch from the film “Interstellar”:
Pence quotes Cooper's speech from the film "Interstellar' – -"We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars, now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt." @VP Pence replies "American will lead mankind to the stars once again" pic.twitter.com/0zlT7Nss5c
— NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) August 23, 2018
Lots of talk as in years past from various administrations.
Nothing to see here, move along.
Considering that it was a political speech by a politician, it was better than typical for this kind of thing, with some clearly stated items of substance that paint a generally encouraging picture of current policy thinking and priority at the national level.
A few items of note (among others):
-Expanding human space flight beyond LEO does not mean abandoning human LEO operations. However ISS closes out, maintaining a permanent human presence in space, including LEO, remains a national priority now and beyond ISS, for multiple scientific and industrial purposes, including renewed focus on the research capabilities unique to space flight. Particularly notable, in contrast to other policy statements in recent years, there was no mention of the notion that enduring LEO operations will simply be left to the hope that they will be sustained by some fantasy business case space tourism industry independent of government action.
-Recognition that the loss of LEO transportation capability with the termination of shuttle was a failed transition that resulted from broad policy and leadership failures and that national priority on sustained LEO operations will be cognizant of the inevitable end of ISS and must plan accordingly now to avoid a similar transition failure.
-Acknowledgement that while international cooperation is desirable, it is not acceptable to completely outsource critical functions such as human launch and recovery capability to foreign providers.
-The leadership level lunar phobia of recent years is fully gone and the next human space flight goal is human presence on the moon, with emphasis on sustainable and permanent operations, with clarity that this is not seen as merely a future planning exercise but a priority activity for the present.
-Clear statements that strong space policy and action is a priority of the administration and Congress, including emphasis on a strong role for the VP in leading the reconstituted National Space Council as during the Apollo years, with strong interest from this VP in doing so.
Just words of course and as always what matters will be what action does or does not come to back up those words, but in general some good points and good words to work from.
And I also particularly liked the Interstellar quote.
I am less enamoured with the Pence words than Mr. LA Paz. I am guessing that Pence had to go to JSC and spend X hours there in order t o get his trip paid for by taxpayers rather than by Republican campaign funds. I suspect Pence’s allusion to not abandoning LEO had more to do with establishing a military space force than to do with utilization. The people, and one particular person especially who was responsible for he premature termination of Shuttle and loss of US human transport capability remains firmly in charge. NASA ‘leadership’ is just crossing their fingers that Boeing and Space X have done the job and will be able to offer replacement capabilities within a couple years. NASA and the nation have no other options. It is more than just human launch that NASA has sold out to its international partners on. They also sold out indigenous US capability to develop and manufacture space modules; they did that on ISS and the same continues and in fact is the main reason, maybe the only reason the IPs continue to engage on the farcical Gateway. That lunar phobia is now gone; I don’t think so. The only way they can justify Gateway is in the context of a planetary (Mars) mission testbed, so Mars is still in NASAs sights. If NASA wants to go back to the Moon they need an architecture focused on going back to t he Moon and particularly on landing on the Moon, operating on the Moon, and returning from the Moon, all without throwing away expensive infrastructure. That is not Orion or SLS. There is no lander or surface systems in development. The sole focus is on a mystical Gateway that I have yet to hear a cogent explanation of how it helps a lunar return.
I don’t disagree with you about Gateway and Orion. If your goal is to beat the Soviets to the moon, plant a flag, then call it quits, direct ascent and return architectures make some sense. But they are not credible answers to the goal of permanent and sustainable lunar operations. While some manner of habitable, permanent station in lunar vicinity might logically be a piece of such an infrastructure, so far Gateway and Orion just seem like the accidental leftovers of Griffin’s failed answer to the sustainability goal of the Bush administration’s VSE churned through the leaderless chaos of the post Constellation years and now being force fit as the solution to this administration’s revamp of the VSE goals. That doesn’t mean the goals expressed in Pence’s speech are wrong, but I do agree that his words won’t matter if the current administration becomes as forgiving as the Bush administration of failure by their appointees’ to implement those goals.
I wholeheartedly agree with you that selling out “indigenous US capability to develop and manufacture space modules” was just as inexcusable as the failure to maintain launch capability. It will be critical to see how this administration does or does not redress that failure, but Pence’s words at least express the right intention.
While it is encouraging that his remarks included some substantive and well founded points and that the general theme was enthusiastic and engaged, you have no disagreement from me that he is a politician and as always, what matters is how well he and his people follow through on his words with actions.
Has the administration talked about how they are going to pay for this?
You all can fall for the okie doke if you want to….