7.28.2006
The NASA Whisperers
Along with those celebrating Evoloterra, another successful shuttle mission and a staff of hurricane heroes (thanks, Michoud), folks in government and the private space sector have been clearly and none too quietly communicating doubt and disagreement with regard to NASA's planning and accounting.But how well will the galaxy's leading space agency hear the recent rounds of criticism? For now, NASA will make a point of "nonconcurring."
For the SLP record . . .
- Government Accountability Office's (GAO) reports unfavorably, to say the least, on the CEV program - NASA: Long-Term Commitment to and Investment in Space Exploration Program Requires More Knowledge (GAO-06-817R, July 17, 2006) This document includes, as enclosure I, NASA deputy administrator Shana Dale's response, dated July 6, 2006)
- Congresspeople pile on.
- Space Frontier Foundation slams NASA with an 18-page white paper, Unaffordable and Unsustainable? Signs of Failure in NASA's Earth-to-orbit Transportation Strategy (July 25, 2006)
- Much blogspace commentary on all this (which I won't individually link here, except to note that Keith Cowing calls the negative reports a wakeup call).
Oh boy.
So what's next? Well, Congressional hearings, of course.
