THE SKY IS THE LIMIT – for all!

 

Countries that are unable to afford space- both the cost of development and the cost of the imminent failures, this week found they might be able to afford space after all. 

 

For those who would like to begin easy, less space and more Earth-orbit, a UN mission will be sending Sierra’s Nevada’s Dream Chaser to low Earth Orbit. However for countries who like a little more risk and a lot more unknowns SpaceX offers the Cargo Route to Mars – which takes hitchhikers on. This is a brand new day. Science in the countries that couldn’t afford all the development costs and all the requisite failures that occur along the way, don’t have to. Now they can do all sorts of things, test under conditions they can’t here on Earth, gain a true understanding of other planets or different atmospheres…In all truth, the sky is the limit, for all. 

 

First on deck is the UN mission in 2021. A deal signed between Sierra Nevada and the UN means that the intergovernmental organization will launch its first ever mission to space in the 30 foot long Dream Chaser spacecraft is still currently in its testing phase. It offers reusability, launches vertically, lands horizontally on a runway and because of its size can land on any runway that can handle the average commercial craft. Also, it boasts up to seven passengers per flight.

 

Not much is known about the actual mission other than its greatest piece – the offering to countries that can ill afford to go to space, a way to get there. While large portions of the expenses will be picked up by UN sponsors, countries that need to take advantage of the program will get pro-rated costs based on both the mission resources and their ability to pay.

 

AND THEN THERE’s SpaceX…Elon Musk has spoken of his plan to begin a regular cargo route to Mars that the Earths scientists can not only count on, taking off every two years, but can utilize in order to do something that few countries have been able to do, get to Mars. Suppose the country want to send a rover to Mars but the initial step of getting from point A to point M has thus far eluded them, not to worry – Elon Musk to the rescue! 

 

The cool part is that the entire world gets something they want and thanks to their wanting it, Elon Musk gets something he wants as does mankind, interplanetary travel on a regular basis. 

 

SpaceX aims to help establish a permanent, self-sustaining city on the Red Planet using the company's proposed Interplanetary Transport System (ITS), which will pair the most powerful rocket ever built with a big, crew-carrying spaceship, Musk said.

 

JUST ONE THING, as of today, the most powerful rocket ever built is the SLS brought to us by NASA. The title may end up short lived, but NASA deserves the credit!

 

In closing, remember this, all these combined, NASA’s Journey to Mars, Elon Musk’s cargo route, the UN’s LEO with the Dream Chaser all spells out the beginning of the space years. Think of it – space will not only save the human race, allow us to inhabit multi-planets, protect us from annihilation, but we’ll bring back cool things, develop new technologies as a result…just picture it!