“I’ll let E.P. continue to worry about this problem, but since the Liberty has no customers and no business case, I can focus my attention on more likely space transportation systems.”

Gosh, gee, leaving it all up to me, CR? Remember all of the propaganda that ATK has managed to spread among the ignorant? Remember Ryan’s budget, which features cancelling everything else to restart Ares 1? Remember that $9 billion wasted on Ares1? Remember I’ve had a stroke? Remember all my typos, dropped words, ect?

And now I’m supposed to do the job of NASA Safety and NASA’s IG?
And you’re not sending along any money to do all of this?

I’m sorry, but I’ll have to decline your offer.

Progress although derived from it has only 7.6M cubed worth of volume because it only uses the foward section for dry cargo. Water and Propellant is in what would be the renentry module of Soyuz.

In short if you want to replace Dragon with Soyuz, you would first have to seriously modify Soyuz. Not to mention Dragon has a large hacth.

“Soyuz only has 100kg of downmass, or 220lbs, compared to the 1,995lbs of downmass on CRS-1.”

I should have stated “a Soyuz flight without crew devoted only to cargo”, but your example highlights the small amount of space that is available when the Soyuz is carrying three crew.

In any case, the Soyuz is not designed for cargo transport, so it’s not even an option at this point despite what DCSCA wishes.

If Russia were to dedicate one complete Soyuz mission to just cargo, they could probably bring back some of this.”

To be specific, a Soyuz could only bring back one-tenth of the CRS-1 mission’s downmass. Soyuz only has 100kg of downmass, or 220lbs, compared to the 1,995lbs of downmass on CRS-1.

http://www.spaceflight101.com/soyuz-spacecraft-information.html

In terms of downmass, NASA would have to buy ten Soyuz missions to do what one Dragon is doing on the CRS-1 mission.

“Soyuz has, can and does [bring back significant cargo].”

What an ignorant statement.

If the Soyuz is carrying it’s normal complement of three people, there is only room for small items to be stuffed in and around the cabin – haven’t you ever seen the inside of the Soyuz reentry module? It sure doesn’t sound like you have.

Just to refresh everyones memory, Dragon is scheduled to bring back a total of 1,995 lbs of cargo (plus packaging), and the manifest can be seen here (both up and down cargo).

If Russia were to dedicate one complete Soyuz mission to just cargo, they could probably bring back some of this, but they wouldn’t have the internal power for the freezers, and the trajectory the Soyuz reentry module takes is pretty brutal compared to what the Dragon offers.

All in all, the new generation is passing the old. Get used to it.

Cargo now. Crew next.

No worries. I realized as much. I just wanted to reiterate my evidence, which came from a NASA website (and concurs with your argument/evidence).

Except it will.

‘Progress doesn’t do that.’

Soyuz has, can and does. =eyeroll=

that would make you the loser of this debate.