@telotawa
JWST still cost less than digging a hole under Boston.
@STR82DVD
It always amazes me how little is spent on our collective future.
@inf3243
I remember reading a while ago that NASA's yearly budget is less than the US Army paid for air conditioning for one year in Afghanistan.
@Spaceopticsguy2010
A lot of people who worked on these types of projects have either retired or passed away. Very few people are aware of the degree of experience and skill required to make precision optics. CNC work and AI is filling in some of the gaps, but the field still requires capable human workers in most cases. It is literally an art form and can take decades to master. The craftsmen and master opticians who did this work rarely were given time to train their replacements because of schedule constraints, and over time, because of changes in the industry and offshoring, fewer people saw the field as attractive, so the pool of trainees steadily grew smaller. I was a master optician who worked on projects for most of the large earth based astronomical telescopes operating globally, as well as some NASA components. I retired a year and a half ago after a long career. On my retirement, sadly, it appeared that I had a career during a golden age that has since passed. Administrators and the scientific community had better realize that the technical workforce capable of completing these projects is an endangered species at this point and should take action to preserve their fields and the skillsets needed to complete this kind of work. It is absolutely disappearing as you read this.
@Riftwalker84
We've forgotten who we are. We used to look up in the sky and wonder at our place in the stars... Now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt -Interstellar
@birbeyboop
Keep in mind that US government spending is not limited by the amount of money brought in through taxation every year, the only thing stopping Congress from spending more on NASA is a complete negligent lack of priorities. This lack of priorities is, obviously, most likely inspired by personal financial gain.
@_D3adB0y_
Your first mistake was thinking the people in Congress wanted anything other than money in their own pockets.
@drhxa
I reached out to my local reps (House and Senate) via email to save Chandra and a couple did respond after a week or so. This was ~1 mo ago and took me 2 min to send via email. It's worth it guys and it really matters.
@4077Disc
I used to work manufacturing new types of heat shields for NASA (specifically the Earth Entry Vehicle for the Mars Sample Return) at work. Now I am working on a new manufacturing technique to allow for the "mass production" of hypersonic glide body missiles. Kinda sums up the vibe of this video nicely... big sad...
@canister6344
Increasing NASA's budget never hurt the people on earth, but the opposite.
@DominatorHDX
Wish we lived in a world without war, hunger, poverty etc. and the comon long term goal of all the people and countries in the world would be exploring the universe.
@Sinsaysgo
I don't remember who did the analysis, but i recall a figure of ROI to be 1$ invested in nasa during the Apollo era returned something like $6-$7 in gdp growth. Why dont our politicians see it in that light?
@vikrantpulipati1451
I dont mean to get political, but maybe we should stop voting for politicians who support gutting science?
@myleswillis
Microsoft should step up with the cash to save Chandra. They could rename it Chandra Bing.
@TheOneStoneAngell
Sir, I worked on the refurbishment of the O&C building back in 08/09. I don’t think people realize how much NASA spends on infrastructure, building that were constructed 50 or 60 years ago. Also I think NASA has lost its way, they have top engineers, but very poor managers making day to day decisions.
@Maphisto86
In our socioeconomic reality, only the ultrawealthy are meant to dream and play. The rest of us do the day to day work and are told to be grateful we have just that.
@sadderwhiskeymann
I live in Greece and although my country has many bad things to say about America, I've always respected and admired your country BECAUSE of NASA. I really hope NASA will keep thriving and lead my dreams ❤
@catchphase
Cordless power tools are a prime example of why we should be investing in space travel and astronomy. Astronauts needed to be able to use power tools, but, obviously, power outlets aren't very common in the vacuum of space. Someone (Black and Decker) came up with the idea for a battery operated tool, so that workers could use tools without needing a 20m long power cord reaching from the kitchen up to the roof. NASA invested in the tech, and they were able to use cordless power tools There are so many other examples, like memory foam, vacuum cleaners, portable cameras, wireless headphones... even the Jaws of Life that will sav your life if you get stuck in a vehicle accident, were all invented (or workshopped/developed/invested in) because of the need for those tools in space and/or astronomy. It's crazy to think that the US government puts more stock in redundant fighter jets than doubling the budget of an organisation that is responsible for so many quality of life improvements, AND will some day play a major role in getting us off this space rock, or saving this space rock from a cosmic disaster. I am just an outsider (Australian), but with the US being such a big part of global politics and economics, I hate seeing some of the things that the government is doing to the country. Invest in science, not war (when you already have the strongest military in the world). P.S. Please stop shilling your nuclear submarines to Australia, we don't have enough money, but our government just wants more toys and is willing to throw us into billions of dollars of debt and/or start hyperinflation just so we can get them. Thank you.
@christopherleubner6633
I rememer getting a bunch of KN 22 krytrons at the liquidation of a laser maker and selling one on ebay. The buyer wanted a pair if possible and the addres was for NASA, particularly the JPL. I asked what they used them for and it was for a double pulse holography laser vibrometer for examining the vibrations of rocket engines and such under test. The last laser was out of commission for 16 months with out funding to buy a new laser, and the KN22's were not even being made anymore. The new cost of one of these lasers was over 20 million dollars. Lets just say they were very happy that i had 16 more of these little tubes and got them at a good price. Thus fixed the other two double pulse lasers as well with lots of spare tubes left over. ❤
@AndDiracisHisProphet