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The Space Shuttle is the most advanced and capable flying machine ever created by humans — it’s just too expensive and overqualified to send up to the ISS for r
by iamthirsty 8y ago
The Space Shuttle is the most advanced and capable flying machine ever created by humans — it’s just too expensive and overqualified to send up to the ISS for routine missions, compared to what service the Russians can provide for relatively cheap.
- sbradford26 8y agoOne of the comments on the article actually covered that the space shuttle was not qualified to shuttle crew to the ISS. It ran off of fuel cells that could not be fully shut off. So the shuttle had a maximum mission length even if connected to the space station of 17 days. Whereas the soyuz capsule is qualified for 200 days. Which means that even if the shuttle took a crew member up, they had to have a spot on a soyuz capsule to get back.
- acqq 8y ago> it’s just too expensive It never reached the point in being worth using it, compared to the alternatives. At least in the use scenarios publicly known.
- deelowe 8y ago> At least in the use scenarios publicly known This is key. The shuttle was a military project. It's usefulness and congress' appetite for continuing to fund it ended once alternatives[1] were put into service. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_X-37 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_X-37