Bobby Braun: President Obama’s Policies Bringing Continued Progress To Space Exploration

Bobby Braun, former Chief Technologist of NASA and a Professor of Space Technology at the Georgia Institute of Technology released the following statement:

“This morning’s successful landing of the Curiosity rover has once again demonstrated the scientific and technological prowess of the United States of America. I congratulate the scientists and engineers across this country that have planned, developed, and begun executing this historic mission. The Mars Science Laboratory is the first planetary exploration vehicle with sufficient landing accuracy and terrain tolerance to target a small region beside a mountain within the walls of a crater. Traveling over 350 million miles in eight months, Curiosity landed just a few miles from its target. This is a destination we could only dream of exploring a few years ago. This mission provides the technological foundation for a vibrant planetary exploration future. The scientists and engineers who developed Curiosity are poised to deliver not only on the promise of this mission, but also on the next set of compelling planetary science challenges. Watching this team make history, I am reminded that there is nothing that this country can’t do.

“Last week’s commercial space flight announcement demonstrated continued progress in President Obama’s commitment to developing a vibrant U.S. space transportation capability that is safe, reliable, and cost effective. This morning’s successful Mars landing demonstrated a technological capability that has proven to be uniquely American. NASA is implementing a sustainable program of exploration and innovation that will create jobs and usher in a new era of space flight. The President’s plan for NASA also enables continuous manned operations of the International Space Station, development of the critical space transportation building blocks required for our deep space exploration future, and investment in a suite of innovative space technology research efforts to enable bold science and exploration missions in the future. Such a concerted effort of robotic and human exploration is essential to capture the spirit, imagination and creativity of the world, and will yield lasting economic, national security and societal benefits.”