(June 13, 2014 at 9:51 am)Rhythm Wrote: No, we're not perfectly capable. We're busy reverse engineering our own old rockets so that we have a launch vehicle capable of making any such trip again. Some of our best stuff is currently attached to warheads...
This is what happens when you gut your space program......
The underlying dynamics have changed.
In late 1950s and 1960s, military missile technology and space launch technology were one and the same. Investing in space launch technology is nothing more invetsing strategic missile force by other means, without the money being seen to balloon the actual defence budget. Furthermore achieving superiority to space launch capability is prima facia evidence, understood by all, that one has achieved superiority in strategic missile technology.
By mid 1960s, missile technology have specialized and diverged away from civilian space launch technology. Investing in civilian space launch technology no longer brings nearly as much benefit to the pentagon, and pentagon spending on missiles no longer further space launch technology much.
This is one important reason why real funding for space launch technology fell dramatically after Saturn 5.
