Trick or Treating in Germany is a little different than in the States. Tonight, we are going to a big community parking lot to “trunk or treat” around the cars. This is the first year that they have done this. But, it definitely seems better than going along the street to tables placed outside of people stairwell.
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For the next three weeks, we will be living with Government issued furniture, in an empty house, while our Household Goods move to Virginia. The shipment will take two months, but we will start travelling near the beginning of next month.
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The Ares test launch was successful this week. The Ares rocket is the first stage to returning men to the moon. Technology has come so far since the early 1970s it would be amazing to see what can be discovered with a return visit to the moon. It would also be interesting to watch it live in HD—it would be absolutely amazing.
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In 2006, I was introduced to the fun and the madness of Black Friday. We started our day at 0400 and were already at the end of a long line. I found out that the PX was the most fun—Wal-Mart would probably be fun as well. There is a website that monitors all of the deals that one can expect to see on the day after Thanksgiving. The site has all of the latest plans.
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It’s Halloween and my son went as a Power Ranger—the Red one.
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concerned_soldier says
My Father warned me about things like this, “Never Argue with Baptist Ministers or Rocket Scientists” He would say..
All great points, and I agree with all of them, I will not get into the Gov’t intervention debate..
My question is: Where will we find the money? Are we just going to print more?
Can’t we do this cheaper, what about unmanned flights? UAS/UAV have become a force multiplier for the DOD, why can’t NASA adopt it? And yes I know they have to certain extent.
Can’t we do some of the same research here on earth cheaper?? Why does it have to be for a trip to the moon? Be more innovative!! Find innovation here on Earth, Cheaper!!
Try saving the taxpayer’s money, now that is innovation!!
I still like the idea of going to MARs!!
V/R
C_S
Stephanie says
I’m a NASA employee. We regularly hear people complain about all the money we’re spending in space. No one here has actually talked about any details of the NASA budget except to posit that we’re spending “trillions.” So let me share some data for you to consider:
NASA’s annual budget is approximately $18 billion (not trillions). That works out to slightly more than half a percent of the federal budget. For that amount, you get the majority of the world’s Earth observation capabilities; all the satellites, probes, orbiters, rovers, telescopes and other spacecraft that are helping us understand how our universe works and our place in it; the human spaceflight program, which includes six humans living and working in space year-round, conducting research on things like Salmonella; and a whole suite of aeronautics research. Just to get you started, you can read about more than 80 current missions at http://www.nasa.gov/missions/current. Most of these missions are identified by the science community (through their decadal surveys) as the missions that may answer the most compelling scientific questions we face today.
And we haven’t yet talked about the technologies from the space program that make our daily lives possible. You can check those out at http://www.nasa.gov/offices/ipp/success.
If you need some perspective about relative expenditures of federal budgets, consider that the 2009 budget for Health and Human Services is $776 billion. The budget for HHS discretionary programs is about 4 times NASA’s budget. (http://www.hhs.gov/asrt/ob/docbudget/2010budgetinbriefa.html)
Personally, as someone who wasn’t alive for the moon landings, I’d like to see us go back. We went to the moon six times for a couple days each time — 40 years ago. The moon has a surface size about the same as North and South America combined. If you picked six locations in those two continents and visited for just a couple days, would you think you had seen and known everything there was to know about the continents? The moon is special because it is our closest planetary neighbor and it has no atmosphere, which means it has no erosion, which means we can learn about the earliest days of the solar system by studying it.
As always, you can learn more about NASA at http://www.nasa.gov. And if you use Twitter, you can follow us at http://www.twitter.com/nasa
T.C. Judd says
Gents, let me jump in–as both a Guard chaplain coming to the aid of a brother chaplain (grin) and NASA engineer–and add my two cents, if I may.
Reasons to go back to the moon? In my opinion, there is definitely an appeal to the spirit of exploration but the primary reason is science. Sure, we went to the moon in the late 60’s/early 70’s but the only substantive science took place on Apollo 17–in fact, it was the only Apollo flight to fly a scientist. As one working a bit with the new Constellation efforts to return to and explore the moon, I was surprised to find out just how little we know about the moon…its environment, its makeup, etc. The Apollo program was the culmination of the Space Race, and that’s exactly what it was, a race. We were all out against the Soviets to get there first, and we did, but we did so with very little science to show for it and with so little margin in performance, technology, etc. it’s a wonder to me that we didn’t have some serious accidents along the way. Many folks are completely unaware how totally on the fringes of engineering, safety, etc. we were. Just because we made it once doesn’t mean it was easy or shouldn’t be repeated–this time, I trust, with the goal of accomplishing serious science, something we all will doubtless reap the benefit of…as we have from many other aspects of human spaceflight. To aim for Mars first would be homicidal for many reasons. In my opinion, NASA should be on the very leading edge of technology, making discoveries, doing R&D, etc. and then passing that information on to private industry (for free) that we might all reap the benefits of our tax dollars. If that doesn’t happen, then I’m not behind government-funded exploration, research, etc.
But, Concerned Soldier brings up some valid points regarding our problems here on earth…
Medical research? Being done on the Intl Space Station by the US and our other partners. Lots of breakthroughs to show for our experiments in low earth orbit (LEO) and no doubt many more waiting for us as we go beyond LEO.
Fixing poverty? Housing the homeless? Ending hunger? As guys who all work for the federal govt in some capacity (I’ve seen both active duty, the Guard, and civil service), I think we’d all agree that for efficiency’s sake, if nothing else, the further the federal government stays out of these things, the better off they will be (insert point about the only of the Big 3 to post a recent profit being the one who didn’t take govt ‘aid’).
Going beyond efficiency, I don’t see how the government has any business in these areas anyway. These are the responsibility and glorious burden of the church and/or non-sectarian humanitarian organizations. They definitely need to be addressed, and if they aren’t being adequately addressed (which I agree they are NOT), the last answer I’d suggest would be to get the Feds involved.
concerned_soldier says
Okay here we go,
I agree, we cannot afford not to, but we can still do this, in different ways that are too many to list. And Still, “pumps trillions of dollars back into the US economy–thus helping the economy, reducing the unemployment rate, and, consequently, helping reduce poverty.”
WAR creates better and more innovative medical technologies, but we don’t run out and cause more of them because of it.
“Yes, we have been to the moon. But, we have not return in 30 or so years. Technology has exploded since the first mission–some as a direct result of the missions themselves.”
Chaplain, this is flawed argument, we haven’t dropped the Atomic bomb in almost 65 years, you don’t see anyone in a rush to do that again. But hey, you can’t argue with results right??
I will find the middle ground here by agreeing with you about MARs, it would be a better target, no point in covering old ground with the moon!
Took about 20 minutes.
V/R
C_S
Chaplain Andrews says
Thank you sir for your questions and the are very good questions with relatively simple answers.
First, what price can we afford not to explore–to not find new technologies, to lag behind in the development of energy consumption techniques and recycling methods, or to stay on the ground when there is a universe of opportunity to explore?
Second, space exploration pumps trillions of dollars back into the US economy–thus helping the economy, reducing the unemployment rate, and, consequently, helping reduce poverty. Not all of these people are rocket scientists–most of the raw materials are built in manufacturing facilities around the country.
Third, “one of the very important by-products of space exploration has been the adaptation and invention of medical equipment and technologies which are making individual lives better and in many cases saving them.” (CNN, July 17, 2009).
Yes, we have been to the moon. But, we have not return in 30 or so years. Technology has exploded since the first mission–some as a direct result of the missions themselves. It is not about whether we have done something before, it is about what we can do in the future–go to Mars perhaps? The universe is literally the limit–or maybe it is our small minded sense of navel gazing that is holding this society from experiencing surprising growth in the economic, health care, and scientific sectors.
concerned_soldier says
I agree 100%, we should, “restore an explorer spirit to the American way of life” But at what price?
How about exploring our way out of poverty? Or curing a disease or two? How about ensuring every American has a bed to sleep in? Why don’t we try exploring our way to a reduced unemployment rate? What about solving our reliance on foreign oil?
We have already been to the moon, let’s work on something
we haven’t done??
Truth to power!!
Thank you Chaplain,
V/R
C_S
Chaplain Andrews says
Yes, you are my boss–but I disagree…with fear and trembling;
We must restore an explorer spirit to the American way of life. The benefits of going to the moon and expanding our scientific knowledge base are critical for being competitive in the future decades. This goes beyond healthcare. The investment of our resources to venture to the moon the first time greatly accelerated the computer age–after which we got more interested in the government controlling every portion of our society and doing things that the private citizen should be doing.
concerned_soldier says
Going to the moon, is a terrible waste of government funds!
I can’t believe we think this is a good idea? How are we going to pay for our new Health Care spending TRILLIONS going to the moon!!
C_S
PS,
Don’t you hate it when your boss posts comments to your blog!?!?!