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A bridge linking the Kennedy Space Center to the mainland needs replacement:
In fast-track fashion, traffic engineers hope to finish design work on a future replacement State Road 405 bridge across the Indian River by January 2021.
The aging bridge serves as a critical corridor linking the mainland with Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station — and the bridge must shoulder heavyweight spacecraft payloads and similar freight.
But by 2021, the drawbridge could prove unsafe for spacecraft and other heavy cargo, a NASA engineering study determined. Bridge replacement could cost $140 million — and no construction funding has been earmarked yet, said Bob Kamm, Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization executive director.
Traffic in and around the Kennedy Space Center has increased massively in recent years.
Congressmen want more money to upgrade the facilities at Kennedy Space Center, as well as to provide for the Space Launch System and Orion projects:
A letter sent last month by U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, the Rockledge Republican who sits on the House Space Subcommittee, and co-signed by 10 other members of Florida's delegation, urges $557 million for the exploration ground systems improvements in the 2019 federal budget, and another $17 million for other construction. It also calls for $150 million in 2019 to build a new mobile launcher that could support the SLS rocket for 40 years, a recent NASA policy direction change from plans now seen as problematic to retrofit the current mobile launcher. The letter also calls for another $2.15 billion for the SLS rocket development, and $1.35 billion for the final Orion crew vehicle development.
(Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Monday April 16 2018, @01:15AM (1 child)
NASA is not responsible for SLS. Congress is. Even if there are SLS proponents at NASA, it's hard to tell if they are genuine or just spouting the party line. Furthermore, Congress approves more money for SLS+Orion than they ask for and has mandated certain missions.
NASA isn't really building SLS, a dream team of the usual Beltway bandits are. So it doesn't make sense to blame them for it. Something like JWST's ballooned budget is more their fault, but at least that item will be incredibly useful for mankind.
Killing SLS will require a lot of luck (SLS delays) and grit from SpaceX and possibly Blue Origin. Despite Falcon Heavy being fairly competitive with the SLS Block 1, excuses have been made and they are sticking to them. BFR on the other hand can't be shrugged off and is a total SLS killer, and is intended to fly astronauts instead of Falcon Heavy. New Glenn adds another heavy lifter to the mix that could be launching before BFR. Blue Origin's rocket engines could also be featured in ULA's cheaper Vulcan rocket.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 5, Funny) by mhajicek on Monday April 16 2018, @02:20AM
So, "Fire everyone involved in SLS" largely means "Fire Congress." Good idea.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek