🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <ewright.726254273@convex.convex.com> ewright@convex.com (Edward V. Wright) writes:
>In <1993Jan5.031431.14514@cerberus.ulaval.ca> yergeau@phy.ulaval.ca (Francois Yergeau) writes:
>>Ditto, mutatis mutandis.  Likewise, when NASA flies Spacelab, TSS or a
>>TDRS on the shuttle, the latter is used to support NASA's research
>>activities, pursuant to its charter.  
>
>So, if your lab bought its own Airbus, hired its own flight crew,
>sold flights to paying customer, 
 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

It is my understanding that since the post-Challenger return to flight,
NASA has been forbidden to fly commercial stuff on the shuttle. Am I
wrong?

>constructed its own communications facilities and rented those to
>commercial customers,
 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Is NASA doing that?  On any scale bigger than small, occasional excess
capacity?  If so, I agree it's playing games with its charter.

>all of that would be research and development?

As for NASA hiring its own flight crew, constructing its own
communications facilities and in general operating the shuttle system
on its own instead of contracting out the whole works, I don't see any
inherent problem with that.  Just like I don't hire Tektronix to
operate my oscilloscope in the lab.  Of course, it might prove
advantageous, dollar-wise, for NASA to contract out shuttle operations,
but that's another story.

>>It is my understanding that this thread originated when someone 
>>claimed that NASA was not respecting its charter by operating the 
>>shuttle, which is admittedly not an experimental craft anymore.  I 
>>disagree, as long as the shuttle manifest contains only genuine R&D.
>
>Which hasn't been the case for many years now.

Well that was not my impression, but if you wish to post specifics,
I'll stand corrected.  BTW, I assume we're talking about the
post-Challenger era.  Before that, it's clear that the shuttle manifest
contained a lot of commercial stuff, and that this led to the current
ban on commercial operations.

Since we're discussing NASA's charter, would it be possible for some
kind soul to post pieces of it?  I think it would be interesting to
know just how much elbow room NASA has in carrying out its main R&D
mission.

-- 
Francois Yergeau (yergeau@phy.ulaval.ca) |  De gustibus et coloribus
Centre d'Optique, Photonique et Laser    |  non disputandum
Departement de Physique                  |          -proverbe scolastique
Universite Laval, Ste-Foy, QC, Canada    |