Next January will see the eighth anniversary of President George W. Bush's announcement of the Vision for Space Exploration (VSE), which set the nation on a renewed course to send Americans to explore beyond Earth orbit. Eight years — that's about how long it took from John Kennedy's lunar landing challenge in 1961 to the accomplishment of that goal in 1969. Yet, eight years after the 2004 VSE announcement by another, we are hardly closer to venturing beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) with humans than we were when these goals were first announced.The reasons for the lack of quicker progress are many, as are those who share the blame. But identifying either those reasons or their culprits isn't what is most important.
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