In technological terms, the Space Shuttle is ancient. It was designed with technology that is 25-30 years old. This, in addition to the fact that the system has endured substantial wear and tear over the years, has made every launch an event rather than business as usual. A crisis is on the horizon. When (not if), the next shuttle fails, we will be left without a launch platform.
The problem is that the system has squandered $3.2 billion a year in space funding. This money could have easily funded a replacement via a mechanism like the x prize. A smart approach would be to phase out the program in favor of funding a next generation X prize or the DARPA grand challenge. For a space entrepreneur, a system that rewards the first, second, and third place finishers with substantial prizes would zoom innovation. The only problem is that we need to start it now if we are going to get a next generation system in time for the crunch.
Here's a suggested roll-out.
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