UK Astronaughts?

[NaptownKnight]

I heard there was discussion going on about having UK astronauts, what do you guys think? I was actually surprised to learn the UK didn't already have astronauts, the UK always seems to be on top of technology and science.

[Syron]

It's too little too late and yet another sign of a total lack of vision. The story of much of the UK's space efforts really.

We had one of the most promising satellite launchers, and it was canceled, just before the telecoms boom.

The UK's attitude towards science and technology funding is a joke. This is merely a "me to" excercise that will not go anywhere.

It will not be seriously funded and after a few hiccups will likely be canceled if it ever comes to pass in the first place. The government has little staying power with regards to large scale projects.

[Ummagumma]

It's too little too late and yet another sign of a total lack of vision.

Yet engineers and scientists from the UK are everywhere - just behind the scenes and funded by other countries......

[Syron]

Yet engineers and scientists from the UK are everywhere - just behind the scenes and funded by other countries......

Yes, i know, because they have no other choice!!

[NaptownKnight]

Well, we Americans certainly don't mind paying British scientist to help us! Hell, Germans built our space program.

[Gary88]

why the **** are we doing this when we have an 80 million shortfall in science funding...pulling out of gemini and others.


oh sure but lets go in to space.

[Ummagumma]

why the **** are we doing this when we have an 80 million shortfall in science funding...pulling out of gemini and others.


oh sure but lets go in to space.

Because most people don't really care about it. It just gives some nice distracting news stories for a week and will be quietly brushed under the carpet within a few months...


Am I too cynical?

[danzig]

Because most people don't really care about it. It just gives some nice distracting news stories for a week and will be quietly brushed under the carpet within a few months...


Am I too cynical?

Thats sad then honestly I follow NASA programs quite a bit hell years later and I still check the rover websites for new pics and updates atleast every other week. Hard to believe a nation that produced/produces so much great fantasy/scifi material wouldnt be excited enough to care about something like space.

[Syron]

Thats sad then honestly I follow NASA programs quite a bit hell years later and I still check the rover websites for new pics and updates atleast every other week. Hard to believe a nation that produced/produces so much great fantasy/scifi material wouldnt be excited enough to care about something like space.

Britain has become a country of those with lack of imagination and low ambition. It's not really surprising. The only thing that matters to most of these folk, though they'll vehemently claim they hate it, is reality tv and how much beer their benefits will buy them.

Here's An article on a related theme,

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles...ce-agency.html

Comment - UK wastes role in space agency

Anomaly is how European Space Agency director general Jean-Jacques Dordain describes the UK's position in ESA one of the richest member states is only the sixth largest contributor to the agency's budget.

Sadly, this lack of ambition is reflected in the new "2008 to 2012 and beyond" strategy of the British National Space Centre (BNSC), the UK government's civil space co-ordinating body, which will have major elements under review until the end of the year or even early 2009.

Questions over UK participation in major projects such as manned exploration, ESA's Global Monitoring of Environment and Security, the Galileo satellite navigation system, bilateral Earth and Moon robotic missions, future science instrument investment, a new ESA facility in England and no clear budget for the UK's new national space technology programme, do not bode well for an industrial base that continues to have a static government space budget and is being superseded by developing countries' own capabilities.

An example is the short-lived 2007 celebration over EADS's UK subsidiary getting development work for ESA's ExoMars rover. Under ESA's geographical return policy, the UK's large participation should have seen EADS engage a local supply chain, but the limited industrial capability meant subcontractors couldn't be found and non-UK companies received what was originally UK taxpayers' cash. ESA officials tell Flight International they have also found it hard to find UK companies with which to place contracts.

UK industry trade associations may hail the BNSC strategy, but in the past they have said that while software had been seen as a UK strength, it is an area in which Greece is now a tough competitor. The Labour government makes great claims, but with an unchanging, non-inflation-adjusted £200 million ($390 million) annual spend, the worsening situation cannot improve. Without a clear and above-inflation increase year-on-year in UK space spending, there can be no "agenda of ambition", as called for by the UK science community last year in the wake of collapsing science and engineering student numbers.

If you have ambition to do something, don't come to Britain.

[Syron]

why the **** are we doing this when we have an 80 million shortfall in science funding...pulling out of gemini and others.


oh sure but lets go in to space.

Space is a very important area of the hi-tech economy and one that is set to grow, it makes sense to invest.

The question should not be why we are not able to fund one or the other but why science and technology funding is so pitifully small in the UK when we have so much potential.

[The Super Pope]

We can't afford it and why bother when we are part of the EU space program. Unless we are rebuilding our space empire and are constructing a new Death Star...

[King Edward III]

We can't afford it and why bother when we are part of the EU space program. Unless we are rebuilding our space empire and are constructing a new Death Star...

****. Guys his found out!

[VALIS]

What a complete waste of money. What will it accomplish? Bragging rights to other countries? That's all it'll achieve, and it seems pretty redundant after Russia first did it back in the early 50's.

It won't achieve anything scientifically or economically, infact I take that back. If it will achieve anything, it will be economically, it'll achieve taking a giant sum of fecking money from our economy for more useful things!
If we want British people in space hitch a ride with NASA, the Russians or Chinese. No point in wasting billions,

[Syron]

We can't afford it and why bother when we are part of the EU space program.

The EU doesn't have a space program. ESA does though. And surprise surprise the UK only funds it well below GDP with respect to most other partners.

Secondly the plan would be to spend money training UK astronauts within the eurocorps (the ESA astronaut group).




@ Duke

If it weren't for the Russians "doing space" too the ISS would have had to be deorbited.

Also what other more important things were you thinking about, the £13 billion on ID cards?

[VALIS]

If it weren't for the Russians "doing space" too the ISS would have had to be deorbited.

Ummm.....Ok. And your point is?

Also what other more important things were you thinking about, the £13 billion on ID cards?

Hmm......I really couldn't say....thats a toughie. Oh wait, yeah I know about this, why not spend it on the NHS, the Military, Stopping crime? That would be good. How about that!

[William the Bastard]

AFAIK there is no hot and spicy food to be gained in space and no people to give land back to after we have finished with it. Meh it would be cool if we could do something awesome like get to Mars before the Americans but I just don't see it happening as we don't have the readies. We could take out a massive loan and all of us could move there before we have to pay it back? Bugger Spain! Let's all be Ex Pats on Mars!

[Syron]

Please read the proposals.

1) This isn't about some sort of race to "beat x to mars", It's about British astronauts in a European based program.

2) There is a UK space program, it just doesn't include manned flight.

Ummm.....Ok. And your point is?

You said we should just leave it to those already there, the thing is the more nations that do it the more progress is made.

Hmm......I really couldn't say....thats a toughie. Oh wait, yeah I know about this, why not spend it on the NHS, the Military, Stopping crime? That would be good. How about that!

But you know that will never happen!! Besides, none of those need more money, just for the money they are given to be better spent!

edit: well except maybe the military, but that's not gonna happen anytime soon.

[LoZz]

I heard there was discussion going on about having UK astronauts, what do you guys think? I was actually surprised to learn the UK didn't already have astronauts, the UK always seems to be on top of technology and science.

there already are uk astronaughts, just not a uk space program (our astronaughts go to nasa to train and fly with them). having our own space program is pointless. and costs way to much

[Ojf]

Would be a waste of money which the NHS needs

[rathelios]

Why should we spend money on space kudos when we could be spending it on better things? Like the twice the yearly defence budget we are spending on preventing a bankrupt Newcastle based mortgage lender from actually going bankrupt. Come on people, it's not rocket science you know.