This is from a story on the CNN website today.
"SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal, sent out the technical details of the successful launch, which he said performed its mission to deposit the Dragon mock-up into a 155-mile (250-km) orbit to near perfection."
Some, including "Nasa Administrator" Charles Bolden, recognize the transfer of the space program from the government to the private sector as landmark.
"'Space X's accomplishment is an important milestone in the commercial transportation effort and puts the company a step closer to providing cargo services to the International Space Station,' [Bolden] said."
Former astronaut Schweickart favors this transfer of responsibility as well.
"'I think it's safe to say that SpaceX and the other commercial developers embody the 21st century version of the Apollo frontier spirit. It's enormously gratifying to see them succeed today,' he said."
In an interview with CNN, Musk opined,
"It's time for NASA to hand that over to commercial industry who can then optimize the technology and make it more reliable, make it much lower cost and make it much more routine.'"
This in the wake of the BPs optimization of the technology, they who have made it more reliable.
I try to stay away from this stuff on this blog. It is not my purpose here. But this, I think, is entering into a new realm. It is like a movie, scripted, borrowing from the dialog of other movies, masking the irony with sincerity. Things will go wrong, the president of SpaceX admits, but it is all, he says, part of the learning process.
This is not metafiction. What is it? Meta-reality?
SpaceX. A subsidiary of PayPal. Power and profit. Keeping an eye out for your future.
Now THIS is scary!
ReplyDeleteI found a lovely clown costume for you today. I'm going to get it out next week.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you are even doing the Circus now -- where you ever? Did I make that up?
I can't read today's post. I've been out in the rain all morning doing old fashioned things, smelling peonies and picking through old things and want to keep myself there. Just wanted to tell you about the costume.
xo
R, Oh, it gets worse.
ReplyDeleteL, Yes, I've been collecting things to begin the circus series. It is difficult for me. I need a set designer and costumer. It is terribly difficult for me to admit it, but I have limited skills. I want to have total control, but it is disastrous sometimes. So I am VERY EXCITED about the clown costume (hoping it is more harlequin than clown, more subtle while knowing what I'm asking is too much as I've been looking and looking and looking).
I am finishing up the "Storyland" project. I must make myself so I can go on. I can't do two projects at once.
O.K. then, Circus Selavy.