In today’s edition, USA Today is reporting in End Of Shuttle Program Slams Space Coast Economy that the Space Coast will soon be facing some significant economic challenges.
- “Brevard County will adapt, as it did after the Apollo program ended.“
NASA likes to say that the end of the Shuttle era will be similar to the downturn after the Apollo program ended. But it won’t. In the 1970’s, NASA’s leadership was 110% behind the Shuttle program. Today, if what engineers are telling us is any indicator, the same cannot be said of NASA leadership’s support for the Space Launch System or the Orion MPCV spacecraft, a big contributor toward the current malaise at NASA.
But the people at NASA, like those of Central Florida, are a tough bunch. And they have a very long-term view of things. Things at NASA will in time change and with that change will come focus on getting back into the exploration business.