NASA, Other

Ares politics gets local

Members of Alabama’s Congressional delegation have spoken out in recent weeks in favor of continuing the current Constellation program, including the Ares 1 launch vehicle; now that message is reaching down to local politics as well. As the Huntsville Times reported Friday, Huntsville, Alabama, mayor Tommy Battle says the city needs to support continued development of the Ares 1:

Speaking to a sellout crowd of 1,300 people at the Von Braun Center’s North Hall, Battle said the Rocket City has to find a way to keep the Marshall Space Flight Center-managed program alive. Last month, the White House’s Augustine Commission recommended that NASA scrap the Ares I and focus instead on the Ares V large cargo rocket.

Battle drew loud applause when he said Huntsville needs to “convince Congress, convince the White House that we have the finest pool of intelligence and technologically advanced people that have ever been on earth in the business of space.

“If you ever let that pool disperse,” he said, “you’ll never get it back.”

Of course, the “Augustine Commission” might be surprised that it recommended that the Ares 1 be scrapped, since the report included no recommendations and did feature options that use the Ares 1. And while some members of the committee might prefer other options, we know that at least one member, Lester Lyles, supports the “program of record” and said he personally wanted to see the development of Ares 1 continued.

5 comments to Ares politics gets local

  • Robert G. Oler

    As Rich Kolker would say (and has in an op ed) “save our jobs” and I would add “we love our pork” …but we are all god fearing Republicans.

    Robert G. Oler

  • sc220

    Conservatism for Republicans only pertains to what you do to the “other” guy. At the local level, all politicians are socialists.

  • CharlesHouston

    As a long time Spacelab guy, who supported a Spacelab mission from the MSFC ops center, I have great sympathy for the MSFC folks. They have been handed a scorpion when they asked for an egg, but it is time to get the government out of one more part of the space business. The government did let go of the notion of the Shuttle launching every payload. The government did let go of the Delta and Atlas (well, sort of – it is in progress) and allowed commercial companies to sell launches. Now it is time for the government to buy Atlas or Delta boosters to get Orion into space, and MSFC has to adapt. Many of them can move to Decatur and do similar rocket work there.
    They do have a fine pool of intelligence, but that pool is now needed on Delta or Atlas.
    One of these days the government will let go of the crewed capsule or whatever, and commercial companies will do that, too. So JSC will have their day.

  • Major Tom

    “Of course, the “Augustine Commission” might be surprised that it recommended that the Ares 1 be scrapped, since the report included no recommendations and did feature options that use the Ares 1.”

    While true, the only two options that included Ares I were the Program of Record (Constrained) and the Program of Record (Baseline). Of the former, the report stated that it “offers little or no apparent value”. Of the latter, the report stated that it “delivers Ares I/Orion in the mid–to-late 2010s, and flights to low-Earth orbit, but with no specific destination
    as yet definable” because of ISS “retirement in 2015″. The report is pretty clear that the options that incorporate Ares I are not desirable options.

    FWIW…

  • David Davenport

    Now it is time for the government to buy Atlas or Delta boosters to get Orion into space, and MSFC has to adapt. Many of them can move to Decatur and do similar rocket work there.

    No need to move. Decatur is within reasonable commuting distance from H-ville. Cancelling Ares and switching to EELV’s would not be a loss for Alabama.

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