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The difference between NASA and SpaceX

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  • The difference between NASA and SpaceX

    From the Orlando Sentinel

    And by the way:
    SpaceX is on-track for another Falcon 9 launch in August. This time it's a fully flight-qualified Dragon and the mission will be 5 hours long: launch and separate from Falcon 9, orbit the Earth, transmit/receive telemetry, demonstrate orbital maneuvering and thermal control, re-enter the atmosphere and recover the Dragon off the California coast.

    >
    Let me explain the difference between SpaceX and the existing space program with this analogy.

    You hire NASA to build a whittling knife.

    NASA assembles its best and brightest. They add a screwdriver to the knife, and then a can opener and nose-hair trimmer. Soon they have a Swiss Army knife contraption with 67 attachments.

    It will cost $3,000 and take two years to build. The work is divided among three NASA centers and 67 contractors in 67 different congressional districts. Memos and e-mails fly. A bigger knife is needed for the blades and attachments. So they enlarge it and add a mascara brush.

    The knife now costs $15,000 and will take eight years to build. When completed, it is unwieldy and attachments keep breaking off, so you can only whittle once every two months at a cost of $250.

    Now, if you decide to hire SpaceX …

    It checks out what is best about other knives. It then designs one with a simple blade and handle, and builds it in-house for $20.

    SpaceX is a mini-version of what NASA was a long, long time ago, before it morphed into an aging, bloated bureaucracy. NASA is could-do, SpaceX is can-do.
    Last edited by Dr Mordrid; 13 June 2010, 21:07.
    Dr. Mordrid
    ----------------------------
    An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

    I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps
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