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Why is Britain so out of the loop regarding space?


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I know that there have been British projects such as Beagle 2, and British companies do design and manufacture many satellites, but why so few astronauts?

 

without our own manned space program there isn't much need for astronauts

 

though there is an interesting space related project here

 

http://www.theregister.co.uk/Wrap/lohan/

 

---------- Post added 28-08-2013 at 19:53 ----------

 

Lets face it we suck at just about everything to do with space....even our beagle didn't want to speak to us when it (crash) landed. Lets concentrate on the things we are good at !

 

something like 50% of the probes and whatnots we've sent to mars haven't made it there in a state to do anything useful

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I didn't think we had owt to do with space since the Black Knight program which we launched from Australia.

 

I'd be surprised if Beagle 2 even made it onto the rocket, and not into nasa's bin out back.

 

I'm also disappointed more nutters in England arnt launching stuff into space from there back gardens.

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I'm British AND I have my own Space Programme! On November 3rd this year, exactly fifty six years after the Russians lobbed Laika the space dog into the back of beyond in Sputnik 2, I'm intending to put next door neighbour's poodle into a geostationary orbit 250 miles above the newsagent's on Crookes in a heavily modified black wheelie bin.

 

Just adjusting telemetric settings at the mo, so as to get the dog's muzzle(:D) velocity a bit more above (as yet) 3mph. :cool:

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I think it was because when the space program first kicked off (late 50's) we were still skint from WW2 so decided not to bother getting involved - and that's carried on to this day as far as I know.

 

---------- Post added 29-08-2013 at 00:39 ----------

 

Apart from Alcoblog's valiant attempts of course !! :)

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without our own manned space program there isn't much need for astronauts

 

I don't think there's that much need for astronauts generally.

 

The public tends to be more interested in a man on mars than a probe, although Curiosity can do pretty much the same things at lower cost.

 

 

 

something like 50% of the probes and whatnots we've sent to mars haven't made it there in a state to do anything useful

 

About average then.

 

 

Missions to Mars

 

Mars has historically been unfriendly to Earth’s attempts to visit it. More missions have been attempted to Mars than to any other place in the Solar System except the Moon, and about half of the attempts have failed.

 

LINK

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Lets face it we suck at just about everything to do with space....even our beagle didn't want to speak to us when it (crash) landed. Lets concentrate on the things we are good at !

 

On the contrary, we have a thriving space industry and behind a few of the biggest players we are one of the leading centres.

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/200-million-boost-for-uk-space-industry

 

and

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14128682

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I think it was because when the space program first kicked off (late 50's) we were still skint from WW2 so decided not to bother getting involved - and that's carried on to this day as far as I know.

 

---------- Post added 29-08-2013 at 00:39 ----------

 

Apart from Alcoblog's valiant attempts of course !! :)

 

It was also important to have our own nuclear deterrent; so the money went there, rather than to those who would have liked to set up a space program,

such as the British Interplanetary Society

http://www.bis-space.com/

 

I don't suppose Britain has any nukes of its own, nowadays

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