In "Back to the Final Frontier" (page 52), famed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended doubling NASA's budget to counter China and other emerging countries that are threatening to overtake American dominance in space. Tyson hit the nail on the head. The greatest strength of manned launch capabilities is not in the widgets and gizmos, but in the people who design and build them and the vision their work inspires. The engineers who built the Saturn V rocket are in their 80s or . deceased. The builders of the space shuttle are in their 60s or retired. Who will replace them? We should retake the lead, develop the technology and the skills, and regain the vision.
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