Kryten

You'd want a flight spare regardless of whether it's strictly required; if you don't have a sat available for launch, and there isn't enough time to arrange for someone else's to be substituted, most providers will launch a mass simulator and charge you anyway.

Try physically removing the X key.

It should probably be pointed out that the guys responsible for deploying sats from the ISS ask that you contact them before starting any kickstarter.

You haven't given any indication that you're aware there are any other agencies. Attitude of the american guy on the street and perceived status of the US agency=no hope for humanity, regardless of anybody else. It's nationalistic tosh.

That there is no good reason is a good enough. It would hardly be free. Cancelled due to monetary concerns. That hardly would apply in your fantasy scenario of NASA having enough money for a Moon base. EDITT: I couldn't care less. You do realise there are nations other than the US, don't you? I live in one, as hard as you may find that to believe.

I'm sorry, we're talking past each other. I'm trying to talk about the real NASA; you're talking about the NASA in your head. They don't seem to bear much resemblance to each other.

I think you both might want to look up the definition of 'progress'. Doing a moon landing wouldn't require any improvements in engineering, technology, or industrial techniques; after all, it was done 40 years ago. What it would require would be a ton of money that could be better used for real R&D projects.

You didn't live through Apollo, and you seem to have more than enough blind fanaticism for space travel without it. The exact same people that 'lived through apollo' are the ones that kept us 'stuck orbiting this cruddy mudball for fourty five long years', have you considered that? Most people that lived through Apollo weren't given epiphanies; they saw it as a waste of money.

You didn't say anything about 'establishing an outpost'. You said you'd support a moon landing regardless of purpose.

It's already happened. Why would it produce any more 'progress' now than it did then?

Why would some people, planting a flag, and leaving aid the 'progress of the human race'?

Yup, the SM is an official ESA contribution to the Orion, the same way ATV is their official contribution to the ISS program. It's funded by ESA.

Except you still need the specialised range-safety and telemetry infrastructure. Hence Pegausus only using the existing ranges at Vandenburg and Kwalajein.

You might be only slightly higher, but you'd be starting at 1/3 atmospheric pressure, which'd take a big chunk off of losses to drag. Nowhere near enough to justify lugging a rocket up a mountain, but it's what make airlaunch potentially viable.

It might be worth noting Russian statements have blamed Ukraine as 'it's their airspace' or because they're 'responsible for the unrest'. Only separatists groups have accused Ukraine of actually downing the plane.

Obama is now reporting that plane was definitely brought down by missile fired from separatist-held areas.

Nope. Again, the Khazaks aren't allowing the russians to close off new stage drop zones in Khazakstan. That means they have no choice but wait a decade or so for Vostochny or use Plesetsk. Proton could have flown from Plesetsk just as well, with investment into a new launchpad. Angara 3; development cancelled. Angara 1.1; development cancelled. Angara 7; development never actually started. That only leaves 1.2 and 5; take a look through a Russian launch manifest, and see what the proportion of Proton to Dnepr/Rockot launches is. There's a reason they tested an A5 without boosters instead of the actual orbit-capable 1.2 config. A5 is the one that's actually equivelant to Proton. That another model about the fifth of the size of Proton may be cheaper per-launch is irrelevant. One is 3 tons to LEO, the other 4 tons to LEO. That's hardly enough to put them in completely different classes. But we have had 82 Proton-M launches, more than enough to give a picture of quality control at Krunichev. And it's not a terribly pleasant picture. Is that not an advantage?

Proton could push cargo from Plesetsk as well, with the approiate launchpad; Angara just needs to be at Plesetsk because Vostochny is going nowhere and the Khazaks won't allow any new drop zones out of Baikonur. Most flights will still use the Hydrazine-powered Briz stage, actually. Almost all demand is for the A5 version, and A5 is going to be roughly twice as expensive as Proton. Similarly, A1 is unlikely to be any cheaper than the mostly tried-and-tested Soyuz 2.1V. The Zenit replacement version (A3) is not funded and likely will never fly. Kosmos has already been retired, and Sozuz 2.1V is already flying for less in that size class. Think about that for a second; Proton was a lot more reliable five years ago than it is today. Was it any more 'post-soviet' back then? Or is it due to the same crumbling quality control structure that now has to work on Angara as well? [quote name='Sky_walker;1279664 [*]Changzheng 5 isn't ready yet and it's Chinese rocket' date=' Russians want something on their own. It's like saying that Antares rockets are pointless cause CZ-5 is larger and more powerful. lol [/quote'] Did you even read the post I responded to? He was saying Angara gave them an advantage over other nations; if other nations have comparable developments, that obviously isn't true. [quote=Sky_walker;1279664 [*]Angara will be more powerful. At least in heavier versions.

Angara isn't really anything special. It's no larger or more powerful than the CZ-5 family the chinese will have within a couple of years, and it's barely even a step up from what the russians already have.

It'd be marginal, but a passenger jet is hardly going to be pulling evasive maneuvers.

That's within range of newer marks of the Igla shoulder-launched missile; and we know already know they've been supplied those due to the two shootdown incidents on Ukrainian transport aircraft.

I'm afraid it's complete gibberish.

You simply got ripped off. That's an entirely separate issue.

The GPS on a phone will stop working if it detects altitude and/or movement speeds outside of a certain range.

Some people in China want it (particularly aerospace contractors like CAST), but the Chinese government isn't willing to fund it.