The White House's Office of Management and Budget is grappling with how to transport Space Shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian Museum in Virginia to Space Center Houston. How would you do it?
Certain individuals have held a grudge for years over the omission of Houston, Texas, when the remaining Space Shuttles were handed out at the end of the program. Los Angeles got one, Florida got one, but Houston, where the missions were managed, was left off the list.
The grumbling has continued for more than a decade, and US president Donald Trump's recent spending bill, which is still being argued over, included $85 million to relocate a space vehicle that has flown a crew. This was widely interpreted as an order to move Space Shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia to Space Center Houston in Texas.
Without delving into the whys and whys nots, including the question of who even owns Discovery, there has been very little detail regarding how exactly the move could be accomplished. A trip by road and barge appears the most likely option. However, the two sides of the argument have come up with wildly differing costs for the exercise and the impact such a move would have on the orbiter.
The only way to resolve the discussion is surely via the sensible and knowledgeable Register readership, who doubtless have many thoughts on how this task could be accomplished. Our - admittedly not very serious - ideas are below.
Let us know in the comments if you'd go with 1, 2, 3, or 4. If you don't yet have an account, you can sign up here.
Or perhaps you have a better idea? Please share your wisdom. The story of the Space Shuttle torn between two houses seems set to run for a while yet. ®
Source: The register