Shuttle Endeavor just flew over Santa Cruz

[Cason 2]

It was amazing...few about 1000 feet over UCSC. F-15E in chase. Sorry about the poor mobile phone image.

[+Erik 1,816]

Very nice all due credit to your phone cam considering.

 

The Enterprise ended up in NYC and Endeavour in LA. Very disappointing to see this era of space flight come to an end. I guess now we have to follow SpaceX on their private venture of "going where no man has gone before."

[JediMaster 451]

You mean "going where about a hundred or so men and women have gone before."

 

Atlantis will stay here, taking a roll down the street instead of a flight cross country.

[+Erik 1,816]

No I meant going where no man has gone before. Privatizing space flight better have better results than a few round trips to the space station.

[fallenphoenix1986 603]

Only going to happen if something worth mining is discovered within economical reach.

 

Craig

[Nesher 628]

nice..!

[JediMaster 451]

Right now, going to the ISS is the only source of money. Branson, Bigelow, and others are trying the "if you build it..." method, but they've got a chicken and egg issue.

 

Spaceflight that takes you back to your destination is a novelty, a ride at the county fair. Going to somewhere is the holy grail. An orbital hotel ala 2001 would be a great first step. Another would be flights from one spot on the globe to another. If you could fly from LA to New Zealand in 1/4 the time PLUS be in space for part of the trip, wouldn't that be worth it?

[fallenphoenix1986 603]

Orbital hotels might not be that far off, was talk of using inflatable modules a few years ago, can't really remember who was planning it though. More of a financial hurdle than a technical one at this point. As for point to point flights I'll be stunned if it ever happens, the cost of going suborbital let alone orbital just isn't economically viable for civil puroses when compared with convetional airliners.

 

Craig

[JediMaster 451]

Orbital hotels might not be that far off, was talk of using inflatable modules a few years ago, can't really remember who was planning it though. More of a financial hurdle than a technical one at this point. As for point to point flights I'll be stunned if it ever happens, the cost of going suborbital let alone orbital just isn't economically viable for civil puroses when compared with convetional airliners.

 

Craig

 

That's Bigelow.

 

Concorde cost more, but had too many restrictions. Twice as fast in return for MORE than twice the price, tiny seats/limited passenger capacity, and limited routes to "cross Atlantic".

Build a Concorde II the size of a 787 that can cross the Pacific at M2.5 for less than 2x the cost of a regular plane ticket and it will work.

[Lexx_Luthor 57]

Only going to happen if something worth mining is discovered within economical reach.

 

Maybe not! Space travel should start as a rich man's toy, like airplanes started out in the 1900s, before the banks.gov funded WW1 with debt and destroyed private enterprise.

 

One of my fave movies ~> Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines (1965)

 

That's how you get started, space for the wealthy and risk takers (pilots), and then it spreads to more and more souls as experience is gained over time and business and profitable services follow into space.