[amsat-bb] A dumb question...

[Greg D]

In hindsight, sure, it could have been an interesting launch to be part
of (ignoring for the moment JoAnne's notes about ITAR, et al).  The car
is now heading towards the Asteroid Belt, with Sir Isaac Newton in a
space suit sitting in the driver's seat, and the passenger's seat
unoccupied.  But that wasn't the most likely outcome.  Elon himself said
he had visions of  the whole thing blowing up on the pad, with one of
the Roadster's wheels bouncing down the road, and its "T" hood emblem
implanted in the concrete. 

How much risk is AMSAT-DL willing to take in launching the P3E
satellite?  It's of little use to the community sitting on the shelf,
but it's even less than that if sitting in pieces among scorched fuel
tanks and smoldering bits of a once-cherry red iconic car.

Greg  KO6TH


Pete Parisetti wrote:
> ...that many people might be asking now.
>
> Rather than taking ballast - for that, besides marketing, is basically
> what a car is - couldn't one one the next test flights carry the P3E
> satellite that AMSAT-DL has had on the shelf for quite some time now?
> 140 Kg wouldn't make a hair of a difference for a thing capable of
> lifting 60 tons.
>
> Is anybody talking to them?
>
> Always hopeful, even after so many years...
>
> Pete MM0TWX
>
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