I know of two companies actively working on them, Blue Origin in hydrogen for the moon and SpaceX in methane for Mars. These are very wealthy men with missions.

I do believe SpaceX has a working prototype for the boosters and Blue Origin has actually flown a prototype to destruction and is soldiering on. They’ve even tested the engine. So I consider these activities more viable than a twenty billion dollar prototype that purposely self destructs after eight minutes of flight, with only the engines and boosters demonstrated thus far. Your kilometers per second may vary.

Like I said, read it and weep. You (or more specifically your elected representatives and your space agency) has exactly one more chance to save this thing from history.

Quickly now, thousand of jobs are at stake! Maybe even yours. Good luck, joe! It’s your vehicle, so it’s your mission and job to save it. It’s not as if you haven’t been notified of this mission with a self destructing recorded tape already.

“Note the response by “Guest” above”

I rarely agree with “Guest”, but at least he puts forth ideas and participates in discussion. The same cannot be said about you Joe.

And since this is a forum to discuss ideas and current events, “Guest” appears to be a better participant on Space Politics than you…

That is sad, as at the top level this website provides links to interesting information and their articles tend to present mild and basically neutral analysis. The comments section could be a place for discussion and exchange of information among actually knowledgeable people, but it continually gets hijacked by people like “Coastal Ron”. Which turns it into a dog-and-pony show.

Note the response by “Guest” above: “The DRMs are obsolete in the new world of chemical fuel abundant booster assisted fully reusable launch vehicles flying direct trajectories to the Moon and Mars. You need to get with the program because it has already left you and NASA in the dust, and the longer you wait the more money its going to cost you and the more obsolete technology and beliefs you are going to be stuck with. History remembers this stuff.”

Wow, “chemical fuel abundant booster assisted fully reusable launch vehicles flying direct trajectories to the Moon and Mars”, who knew such things already existed?

Like I said sad but unfortunately true.