The next to previous space shuttle launch is due in days. The next to previous mission on the space shuttle launch schedule could be the liftoff of the space shuttle Discovery on Wed, Nov. 3 from Cape Canaveral. The mission seems almost an ignominious end. The shuttle Discovery will blast into space, and conduct operations with the International Space Station. It can be the previous flight for Discovery. After the mission, the shuttle will likely be mothballed and placed in the Smithsonian to replace the shuttle Enterprise.
The space shuttle launch for Discovery could be its last
MSNBC reports that on Wed, Nov 3, at 3:52 p.m., Discovery will launch its final space shuttle. The space shuttle Discovery and the six astronauts aboard will rendezvous with the International Space Station. It is not the last shuttle mission, however it is the last mission for Discovery, probably the most used shuttle in all of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration fleet. Once this launch is wrapped up, there can be only one more National Aeronautics and Space Administration launch of a space shuttle. The government has not announced a replacement for the shuttle program, however it is presumed to be looking into solutions from the private sector to discover a “space taxi” of sorts to ferry astronauts into orbit.
Now we see the era ends
The end of the space shuttle program was ushered in by the tragedy of the Space Shuttle Columbia. The Columbia had a hard time entering Earth's atmosphere in 2003. This is why the program was canceled by George W. Bush. The meant replacement was the Constellation program, which would reintroduce Apollo-style rockets and capsules, however it was canceled by the Obama administration. There was a reason that program was cut. This was because it was just revisiting the Apollo program and wasn't any kind of new ideas. Then there is the Hundred Year Starship which is in design stage nevertheless.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s next move
Currently, NASA is coordinating with various corporations and contractors to discover suitable transportation. One of the contenders is the Falcon series rockets from Space X, a company founded by Internet entrepreneur Elon Musk.
Articles cited
MSNBC
msnbc.msn.com/id/39948971/ns/technology_and_science-space/
ABC News
abcnews.go.com/Technology/florida-unemployment-acute-space-coast-jobs-threatened-end/story?id=12019380&page=1
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