Norm Augustine, chair of the U.S. Human Space Flight Committee.
Houston Chronicle science writer Eric Berger recently interviewed Norm Augustine, the chair of the U.S. Human Space Flight Committee. The Committee's October 2009 final report set in motion the cancellation of the Constellation program and an emphasis on Commercial Crew Development to build new vehicles for travel to the International Space Station.
Click here to read the interview.
Below is a video of October 22, 2009 press conference where the final report was released. It's a reminder of why Constellation was cancelled — Ares I was being built to transport astronauts to the ISS starting in 2017, but was funded by deorbiting the ISS in 2015! Ares I had nowhere to go — a cold fact conveniently overlooked by those who criticize the cancellation of Constellation.
Commercial Crew Development not only returns astronauts to U.S. spacecraft sooner than Ares I, but the savings also help extend funding for the ISS through at least 2020.
Click the arrow to watch.
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