Rumor/Possibility: NASA-Pentagon merge in the future?

[SamanosukeShiva]

Obama Moves to Counter China With Pentagon-NASA Link - Yahoo! News


.......... wat?

[Hellfury]

an. 2 (Bloomberg) -- President-elect Barack Obama will probably tear down long-standing barriers between the U.S.’s civilian and military space programs to speed up a mission to the moon amid the prospect of a new space race with China. Obama’s transition team is considering a collaboration between the Defense Department and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration because military rockets may be cheaper and ready sooner than the space agency’s planned launch vehicle, which isn’t slated to fly until 2015, according to people who’ve discussed the idea with the Obama team.

Whilst there's certainly reason to keep it in the back of your head, it's a bit early to cry wolf on a superspacewaragency yet, collaboration is a fair step away from merger.

[Obev]

superspacewaragency

Well how else are you going to defend against Martian terrorists?

[Kael]

Or intigrate Orbital Bombardments into our war strategies!

[Kuya]

Hmmm. Twice the incompetence.

[Obev]

Hmmm. Twice the incompetence.

Afghanistan never happened. It was filmed on a sound-stage in Arizona.

[TheShadyMan]

Three words: Orbital Laser Defense

[Shuemue]

Richmond Huxley will pick up the pieces.

[Bingbong]

Lasers on the space shuttle? I'm in... as long as the merger comes with a condensed budget as well.

[Tristam]

I'm having a pretty tough time reconciling the development of space technology with anything other than defense, seriously has anyone actually done anything worthwhile on the space station yet?

[Demosthenes11]

they play with frogs

'nuf said

[ZarakiKujata]

Man, its like right out of the pages of Little Green Men by Chris Buckley.

[Charla]

Three words: Orbital Laser Defense

In before someone mentions Bubblegum Crisis, Akira, and/or Spirits Within. Also, it is apparently quite hard to find a picture of Cynthia.

[Hellfury]

I'm having a pretty tough time reconciling the development of space technology with anything other than defense, seriously has anyone actually done anything worthwhile on the space station yet?

I'll risk the woosh

the direct knowledge about living in low g environments on humans over extended periods of time (yes, I know there was a fair bit of that from previous flights.)

going from memory, they're doing tonnes of research on bio-med/tech, physics, astronomy and some other stuff I probably can't remember off the top of my head.

A lot of it is long term research that might not carry immediate direct application, but nonetheless valuable. There's a name for it, but I don't know the english translation.

[Jer]

There is also the long list of items/technologies that have came about as a by-product of space-related tech. And yes, I mean more than freeze-dried ice-cream.

[alt]

This must be tied in, or is the replacement for the space shuttles, which are supposed to be replaced by 2014 from what i've read on the news.

[Hellfury]

I rather enjoy that the space station is alive and kicking, and if they can learn more from it, preferably (but unlikely) without massive military application, good.
I rather like the idea that there is a chance, however remote, that "normal" people will be able to visit space before I kick the bucket.

[Tristam]

I'll risk the woosh

the direct knowledge about living in low g environments on humans over extended periods of time (yes, I know there was a fair bit of that from previous flights.)

going from memory, they're doing tonnes of research on bio-med/tech, physics, astronomy and some other stuff I probably can't remember off the top of my head.

A lot of it is long term research that might not carry immediate direct application, but nonetheless valuable. There's a name for it, but I don't know the english translation.

Unfortunately, you're talking mostly about planned ventures. The truth of the matter is this is an insanely expensive project that is valuable to relatively few researchers. The most exciting/interesting potential application (for me at least) could be advances in protein crystallography, which for the moment haven't been forthcoming due to the technical difficulties and cost of operating on a space station. Two years ago NASA published a "space station highlights" list, while it did include a tech brief about elastic polymers, it also included driving a golf ball during a spacewalk captured on film. I'm all for advancing science for the sake of science and promoting big projects, but when labs on earth are losing funding and staffing for a project of this magnitude, I think we need to hold that project to a much higher standard. Maybe it'll get done, another few billion dollars later.

Columbus did just get set up only recently, so perhaps it's a bit unfair to be quick to judge.
Maybe I'm being too critical of an insanely complicated project, and I hold out hope that eventually the economic climate will allow for more advanced projects, but all I hear about lately involving the space station is funding cuts and cancelled projects.

EDIT: more to the point of the OP, due to the funding, NASA has been trying to open doors to outside funding for a long time now, I doubt they would refuse pentagon money.

[Hellfury]

nah, you're probably right and I'm being a bit naive.
I blame too much Star Trek :D

[Furtwangler]

That was the best resolution to a minor opinion conflict I've seen in all my days. I applaud you two.