Top 10 space disapointments of 2006

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josh_simonson

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With the good comes the bad. Roll call for sad turns of events:<br /><br />We have:<br /><br />SpaceX Falcon 1 failure.<br />Armadillo's failure to clinch the lunar lander prize.<br />Aries 1 cost and schedule over-runs.<br />ISRO's GSLV failure last July.<br />ATV did not fly.<br />Anti-competitive ULA formed.<br />Russia's Dnepr failure last July. (Dnepr is cheapest in it's class)<br />DAWN mission cancellation.<br /><br /><br />
 
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holmec

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Armadillo did show resilience and reusability in trying by making four flights on the same day with the same craft.<br /><br />Dnepr I believe launched Genesis 1 and this was very successful.<br /><br />ATV is slated to fly in 2007.<br /><br />Spacex Falcon 1 is going to try again in 2007.<br /><br />So amidst the downers there are some good points. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#0000ff"><em>"SCE to AUX" - John Aaron, curiosity pays off</em></font></p> </div>
 
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JonClarke

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DAWN was reinstated and will fly in 2007. How is this a disapointment?<br /><br />Ares (NOT Aries) is still in a very early development stage. All figures are therefore rubbery. How is this a disapointment?<br /><br />Armadillo did not win the lunar lander prize? So what - there is always next year.<br /><br />Jon <br /><br />PS - I really find this sort of negativity disapointing but typical. So much was achieved in 2006 why should people focus on he few negative stories. Let's see.<br /><br />The Shuttle is up and running again.<br />ISS construction is proceeding<br />The ISS is back to three-man missions<br />The MERs are still running<br />MRO arrived at Mars<br />Virgin Galactic unveiled its space liner.<br />Orion is progressing<br />Ares 1 and V are progressing<br />Dawn is back on line.<br />New Horizons was launched<br />Hubble is going to be fixed.<br />Corots was launched.<br />Cassini continues to amaze us at Saturn.<br />Genesis successfully arrived at Venus<br />SMART-1 successfully completed its mission<br />The ExoMars prototype was successfully tested.<br />etc., etc. etc. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
 
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josh_simonson

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Everywhere else on the web are 10 best and 10 worst lists, including real estate, stocks, jobs, MP3 players... <br /><br />It's great when things go well, but things that go wrong are equally meaningful.<br /><br />I stand corrected WRT DAWN. Last I heard it was being mothballed.
 
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JonClarke

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The DAWN team were having real management problems. As I understand it, the "indefinite deferral" was a shot across their bows to make them get their act together. It worked, as the mission is scheduled for launch in July 2007.<br /><br />2007 is going to be a great year too. The launch not only of Dawn but Phoenix, Genesis 2, Chang'e, and Selene, ongoing MRO, Mars and Venus Express, Cassini, and MER operations, more ISS construction - including European & Japanese modules, and not forgetting Spaceship two tests.<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
 
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holmec

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>Everywhere else on the web are 10 best and 10 worst lists, including real estate, stocks, jobs, MP3 players...<br /><<br /><br /><br />But this is the rocket and space industry were talking about where most projects go wrong one way or another, and you have to applaud the things that go right. Or else it always seems bleak. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#0000ff"><em>"SCE to AUX" - John Aaron, curiosity pays off</em></font></p> </div>
 
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j05h

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<i>> Armadillo did not win the lunar lander prize? So what - there is always next year. </i><br /><br />Armadillo didn't win the prize, but succeeded in every other way. John Carmack and crew did an incredible job, flew more than anyone else at the X Prize Cup and showed what a dedicated team can put together in a few short months. I hope they win the cash next year, but that is secondary to how well Pixel and Texel flew. <br /><br />Josh <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div align="center"><em>We need a first generation of pioneers.</em><br /></div> </div>
 
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rocketman5000

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don't forget a shoestring budget. Yeah he has spent a lot of money, but nothing compared to what SpaceX or Bigelow has. If he keeps plugging away he will eventually be a very rich and successful man I believe
 
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erioladastra

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"ATV is slated to fly in 2007"<br /><br />No earlier than...very doubtful.
 
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elguapoguano

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I wonder if the ATV is ever going to fly. Wasn't it supposed to make it's first flight in 2003? Is a propulsion mod that hard to build for the Europeans? It's basically an MPLM with a Russian docking mech... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#ff0000"><u><em>Don't let your sig line incite a gay thread ;>)</em></u></font> </div>
 
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JonClarke

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Why don't you think ATV will fly in 2007? A considerable number of tests have been successfully completed in the past 6 months, including rendezvous and docking, temperature control.<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
 
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JonClarke

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Construction is very advanced and it is an essential piece of hardware. So why should it not fly? The ATV is a lot more than a MPLM with a Russian docking mechanism, it has its own propulsion module and power supply system.<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
 
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erioladastra

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"Why don't you think ATV will fly in 2007? A considerable number of tests have been successfully completed in the past 6 months, including rendezvous and docking, temperature control. "<br /><br />Software is not ready, ground systems are incomplete, Ariane cannot (at this time) lift anything that heavy, training not ready... If it doesn't go in Expeidtion 15, it probably won't go in 16 even if ready. There is a small chance it will go later in 2007, but the odds are very against it.
 
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erioladastra

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"It's basically an MPLM with a Russian docking mech... "<br /><br />NO! It is VERY different. Different solar array config, can transfer water and prop, and a new docking process. Comparing Columbus to an MPLM is far closer than an ATV.
 
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Testing

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Well said Jon. I want to see what an order of magnitude for HST's vision looks like. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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josh_simonson

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Yeah, ATV has been pushing it's schedule 9 days for every 10, like a snowplow, for years now. In 04 it was to launch in 05 and in 05 it was to launch in 06, now in 06 it's to launch in 07... We'll see. <br /><br />One has to wonder when ATV 2 will fly? 2011?
 
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erioladastra

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"It was mentioned at one of the STS-116 briefings, that the first ATV will spend FOURTEEN DAYS on its own, doing checkouts prior to the first docking attempt. "<br /><br />It is no less that 14 - it ma be as much as 28. They have to demonstrate auto rendezvous abd abort before it can dock.
 
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3488

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Hi all & all the best for 2007!!<br /><br />I agree with both Jon Clarke & alokmohan. <br /><br />They both correctly state that actually we have more to celebrate than to feel disappointed about. <br /><br />At the end of next month, we have the New Horizons Jupiter encounter, also Rosetta encounters Mars, just a few days earlier (we probably won't see or hear much for ages, as Rosetta is an ESA mission, given the pathetic coverage of Venus Express)!!!! DAWN will hopefully leave in August & Phoenix Mars Lander also launches soon.<br /><br />Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080">"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before".</font> <em><strong><font color="#000000">Linda Morabito </font></strong><font color="#800000">on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.</font></em></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://www.launchphotography.com/</font><br /><br /><font size="1" color="#000080">http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearth</font></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://web.me.com/meridianijournal</font></p> </div>
 
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