For the first time in more than 50 years young Americans have no reason to aspire to be an astronaut

[Stinky The Clown]

Shuttle Discovery made her final flight today, circling the Beltway, low and slow, and doing a US Capitol flyover, before landing at Dulles Airport. From there she will be towed over roads to the Smithsonian annex, to be just another static display, just another artifact, in an exhibit filled with historical artifacts.

First there was Yuri Gagarin, first in the world. Then Alan Shepard, first American. Then John Glenn., first in orbit.

And then all the rest.

Apollo 11

Lunar footprints. A golf drive.

Apollo 13

Tremors of fear followed by incredible relief as a nation held its breath for days. Guys in geeky clothes at Mission Control. Acting cool and calm. Slide rule guys.

Shuttle Challenger

Shuttle Columbia

Great loss yet greater promise. Man's need to explore.

America's finest.

Fifty years.

And now . . . . .

How many kids went on to some greatness or another, in one science field or another after being inspired, early on, to be an astronaut?

And now . . . . what?

Yeah. I'm feeling like an old coot reminiscing about this.

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air. . . .

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

— John Gillespie Magee, Jr,
— Written 9 September, 1941, Great Britain

[Kolesar]

1. The aerospace industry is going to have to get by on only $200,000,000,000/year now

The space program inspired me to go into engineering, so I can't discount its meaning and message. However, it was a Cold War program.

They can get inspired by peace now.

[Brickbat]

2. I find this very sad.

[NYC_SKP]

3. Also, first generation of Americans to have a shorter life expectancy, lower standard of living.

so it's all consistent, isn't it.

eom.

[Odin2005]

4. Sadly, there are plenty of technophobic misanthropes that are OK with that.

Look at all the posters here on DU that think NASA is a waste on money and compare humans colonizing space with a cancer.

[A HERETIC I AM]

5. She won't be "towed over roads" to get to the museum.

The 747 carrier aircraft will be able to taxi right up to the back door of the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazey Center at Dulles Airport.

Here's the Wikimapia shot of the center;

http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=38.9121185&lon=-77.445384&z=15&l=0&m=b

If you zoom out, you'll see the taxiway comes straight off runway 19 L.

The carrier aircraft will deliver Discovery and pick up Enterprise for transfer to the Intrepid Air and Space museum on the Hudson, Mid-town Manhattan.

She won't be towed over any roads either, but just as the Concord delivery before, landed at Kennedy and loaded on a barge for the trip to the USS Intrepid.

[bananas]

6. On the contrary - changes will be evident in about two years.

we still send astronauts using Soyuz instead of the shuttle.
we'll use commercial crew in a couple of years.
suborbital flights are coming soon with virgin galactic and others.
in 2017 three astronauts will fly around the moon on a Soyuz arranged by space Adventures.
in 2021 nasa's Orion craft will start carrying astronauts beyond the moon.

[EC]

7. Not so.

The space program isn't dead, it's just going into partnership with private enterprise. Building new shuttles and other carriers. Here's an article on it: http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20120412/OPINION04/304120035/Sens-Kay-Bailey-Hutchison-Bill-Nelson-Space-exploration-must-fly-forward