Meanwhile, back in 1969...

[viva la]

CNN: On 4/26/2023, "A lunar lander likely plummeted 3 miles before smashing into the lunar surface after a historic attempt to make a soft touchdown on the moon, the Japanese company Ispace revealed Friday....
The Hakuto-R lunar lander was aiming to make history in late April in its attempt to become the first spacecraft — developed by a private company rather than a government space agency — to make a controlled landing on the moon."

Consider...On 7/20/1969, 54 years ago-- decades before the internet, with the computing power of your toddler's Speak and Spell-- two Americans not only landed safely on the moon's surface, they also walked around, got pictures, picked up rocks, got back into the landing craft, and shot back up into space to reconnect with their comrade in the orbiter. And all three men arrived home to earth a few days later.

Sometimes, really, governments do it better. And sooner.

[Marcus IM]

1. Government did not own the corporate manufacturers. It did oversee them.

And even that didn't always work out.



Deregulation is what's ruined things (in general).

[viva la]

2. Massive government effort--

I wonder if JFK actually had any belief when he said, "We'll be on the moon by the end of the decade."

[Goonch]

5. Ispace sees lunar orbit insertion as practice for deploying satellites around the Moon.

https://aviationweek.com/aerospace/commercial-space/ispace-hakuto-r-mission-1-lunar-lander-enters-moons-orbit

[Mr.Bill]

3. I can't remember which one,

but one of the first seven astronauts said the scariest part of the whole thing was sitting on the launch pad on top of the rocket knowing every part beneath you was built by the lowest bidder.

[viva la]

4. LOL-- at least there was prestige at stake

So maybe they were all inspired to cheap greatness.

[Boomerproud]

6. IIRC it was John Glenn who said that.

nt

[Mr.Bill]

7. I did some googling and you are correct.

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/that-famed-john-glenn-quote-about-a-rockets-2-million-lowest-bidder-parts-2016-12-11

[malthaussen]

8. Funny, I've always heard it was Grissom.

The Marketwatch story says the quote is "attributed" to John Glenn. Which means it's probably apocryphal.

-- Mal

[malthaussen]

9. Not that you're wrong, exactly...

... I happen to agree completely. But (there is a but), the budget for the program was considerably greater than private industry could provide. While this might be an argument in favor of government programs, it's also true that governments waste a hell of a lot more money accomplishing things than private industry (generally speaking).

-- Mal