On July 29, 1958, President Dwight Eisenhower created NASA by signing the National Aeronautics and Space Act. Operations began in October. There is plenty of debate over whether NASA funding — roughly $19 billion a year right now, 1/3 for unmanned programs and 2/3 for manned programs — is appropriate and/or worth it. But all agree that NASA faces a crossroads as the Shuttle program nears its end. The final Shuttle flight will take place in May, 2010. President Bush supports NASA’s continuation through a renewed mission to the moon and then on to Mars.
There is one thing about which I have no doubt. The original group of men who willingly strapped themselves onto a rocket — men who accepted the incredible risk and in fact relished the opportunity — were men I greatly admire. Many were test pilots. My favorite is Gus Grissom, who served in World War II and Korea. He was tough, fearless, and didn’t take you-know-what from anybody. When he was falsely accused of panicking and blowing the hatch of Liberty Bell 7, he fought back. Sadly, Gus was killed in the Apollo 1 fire in 1967.
So on this day, as you think about NASA’s past and its future, it is appropriate to debate the cost and focus of the massive federal program. I want to see a much larger role for private partnerships. But don’t forget men like Gus Grissom. I fear their place in history is being forgotten.
