Recent content by egribble

  1. E

    Mars Colonies are a Fantasy

    Elon is selling a dream to inspire people to get excited about space again. A few weeks ago he had an interview with Robert Zubrin. In it he stated that we will not be colonizing Mars in my lifetime unless we have an exponential increase in innovation. I believe Elon's fantasy does have reality...
  2. E

    Time and Universe

    There is something I cannot get my head around. People say the Universe started as a point of Space and Time around 13.8 billion years ago. They say that early stars formed about 500 million years later. What does not make sense to me is how we can place a time frame on this, time began with the...
  3. E

    Question Moon atmosphere

    Someone asked if it would be possible to terraform the moon (create an atmosphere by setting off a few nukes). My view is a suitable atmosphere could not be created and the resources on the moon would be better mined for rocket fuel etc. I think people are getting a bit carried away with this...
  4. E

    Mars Colonies are a Fantasy

    I personally believe Mars is a step too far at present (two and a bit year launch window, 4 month journey, deeper gravity well then moon, radiation concerns etc). However Elon believes he can do it. The moon has surface He3 and concentrated deposits of rare earth metals which may be profitable...
  5. E

    Mars Colonies are a Fantasy

    We should not forget the Gerald O'neill space colony concept as well. The view here was that it made less sense settling on a planetary surface than to build space colonies that negated the need to get out of a planetary gravity well. It was suggested resources from the moon and low gravity...
  6. E

    Question Moon atmosphere

    Terraforming moon, if even possible would involve nuking limited materials such as water ice at poles. These materials would, I suspect, be better used as a direct mined resource.
  7. E

    Artemus Manned Lander Funding

    I forgot to mention. "Falcon Heavy is more rocket than SpaceX can currently market". Falcon Heavy was a strategy to ensure SpaceX became one of the preferred launch contractors for the U.S. military. I believe that SpaceX hope to obtain military payloads for the system soon.
  8. E

    Artemus Manned Lander Funding

    Falcon Heavy cannot get the large Orion capsule to lunar orbit, only SLS can. However Falcon Heavy is powerful enough to get a crew dragon to lunar orbit and return. The issue is that crew dragon has no internal storm shelter and not suitable for long duration trips beyond low earth orbit...
  9. E

    Artemus Manned Lander Funding

    I agree with everything you have said. My replies have been more a criticism of past NASA decision making. Years ago perhaps NASA should have changed course re: SLS when it first became apparent that spaceX could successfully return boosters. If SLS lower stage were a large returnable booster...
  10. E

    Artemus Manned Lander Funding

    SLS is something we are stuck with. "As we advance slowly it is getting less expensive to do things". I agree to some extent. The biggest issue is that there is no need to advance slowly. Now that SpaceX and Blue Origin can propulsively land boosters, building the SLS is a bit like building a...
  11. E

    How the universe could possibly have more dimensions

    What you have explained is the nature of science. Scientists simply put forward hypothesis to explain what they observe. These hypothesis are testable and enable our technology. Scientists are fully aware that every theory put forward may be incorrect, however, how can society advance if we...
  12. E

    How To History of the Space Launch System

    The answer is that certain people believed that using existing stuff was the cheapest option. I understand NASA engineers themselves did not wish to go with solid fuel boosters (SRB's). With private sector reusability technology has caught up with the path NASA is taking.
  13. E

    Origins and Big Bang

    What we believe to be rational is the way our brain perceives things. Our brain evolved to survive on the two dimensional plains of Africa. We cannot conceive three dimensional curving. We cannot conceive the concept that time began with the big Bang. How can you have a place without time. Yet...