If things go according to schedule, NASA’s shuttle fleet will retire in 2010. According to this article, two of the three remaining shuttles will be up for sale. One of the shuttles is going to end up at the National Air and Space Museum in D.C. However, the other two could be yours, with just a few stipulations:
1. A climate controlled place to house the shuttle
2. Be willing to part with $42 million
3. Main engines not included
Now, if I were independently wealthy, I would sign up to buy one in a heartbeat. However, I’m not. So, I’ll just have to make do with seeing one at the Air and Space Museum.
I’m a big believer in the Space Program and I do feel that more money should go in support of NASA. The organization has been the recipient of cutbacks for years. Many inventions that are a part of our daily lives have come from NASA, such as the personal computer, CAT scans, and TANG… okay, TANG’s not a good example, but still.
So, with the continuation of the Space Program, I can keep hoping that at some point the Astronaut Core will be so desperate for people that one day I’ll have a chance in hell of getting a phone call. (There’s not much of a need for Poly-Sci. Majors.) Until then, I’ll stick to my day job and hope that somehow I’ll become independently wealthy in order to own a used shuttle.
Filed under: Droppings Tagged: | NASA, National Air and Space Museum, Space Shuttle
How much is an engine going to run you?
I am a child of the 60′s and my fondest memories are of watching the Gemini launches. The counting down was the best part. We have lost that kind of magic in this country. Hopefully, Obama will put the seriousness back into science and make that same magic happen again.
Tang! hahaha
I forgot to say- we have a nasa channel on satellite right now, and I zoned out one night to a video feed of the ISS while our last group was there… Earth is so breathtaking from space. The ISS is rather inelegant looking, compared to the shuttles. The running patter telling you what was going on was quite entertaining. Plus they had the astronaut audio feed playing back.
Mari-
The engines go between $400,000 and $800,000. Shipping and handling not included.
Maybe we’ll start a fund, or go through the garbage at Alliant Tech Systems (it’s in utah). See here: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=6a0_1194049251
Oh and my bed! Dude, if they didn’t come up with space foam mattresses I would be in so much pain!