Can We Turn Over America's Space Program to a “Space Cadet”?

[1776Forever]

Can We Turn Over America's Space Program to a “Space Cadet”?
By Peter Fenn - 08/20/10 11:30 AM ET
The Hill

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/technology/115147-can-we-turn-over-americas-space-program-to-a-space-cadet

I came across Elon Musk when I was working to encourage GM to push out the electric Chevy Volt.

He helped start Tesla Motors and put out the snazzy looking electric sports car. The problem has been that it costs over $100,000 and few want to buy it...

What concerns me is not all the bravado out of Musk, but rather, that we taxpayers may be paying for it and sacrificing solid, important research and development in the process.

Tesla, for example, has $465 million dollars of our money in the form of low interest loans that could go into default, if Musk doesn't hold 65 percent of the company. They say they are going public, but to be honest, and I am prejudiced here, I would bet on the major car companies, not someone who makes a $100,000-plus sports car.

But SpaceX may be even scarier — a venture that risks a major program. The New York Times describes a bunch of 20- and 30-somethings who are launching rockets while soaking up $1.6 billion from NASA. My work in this area makes me think that this is a risky gamble with someone like Musk, who promises the sky, the moon and the stars...

Somehow this does not seem like the right style for a company and a CEO that we should entrust with our space program and the effort to build the electric car. Certainly not such a large investment of our tax dollars — high-risk to be sure.

.........

You and me both Mr. Fenn - How much is this privatization risk really going to cost us? I still don't buy it.

[EmilyKent]

1. Toyota Tesla Deal

PALO ALTO, Calif. & TOKYO--TESLA MOTORS, INC. (Tesla) and TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) today announced that the two companies have signed an agreement to initiate the development of an electric version of the RAV4 as announced in May of this year by Elon Musk and Akio Toyoda. With an aim to market the EV in the United States in 2012, prototypes will be made combining the Toyota RAV4 model with a Tesla electric powertrain. Tesla plans to produce and deliver a fleet of prototypes to Toyota for evaluation within this year. The first prototype has already been built and is now undergoing testing.

http://www.teslamotors.com/about/press/releases/tesla-motors-and-toyota-motor-corporation-formalize-agreement-develop-rav4

[NoNothing]

2. That 1.6 G$ is over a long period

And frankly it is chicken shit compared to what NASA was getting ready to spend on Orion/Ares. It certainly doesn't "risk a major program." There's always Atlas/Delta if SpaceX can't deliver.