"Missed it by that much!"

~ M. Smart

The voyage of a cargo boat that carries space rocket components to Florida's coast for NASA and the Air Force has stalled in a western Kentucky river after it slammed into an aging traffic bridge.

Looks like we first need to put money into updating and fixing our aging infrastructure here on Earth before building another space rocket to the Moon.

The ship ran under the wrong part of the bridge. I don't think it's cargo or the age of the bridge has much to do with the actual event.

Looks like we first need to put money into updating and fixing our aging infrastructure here on Earth before building another space rocket to the Moon.

#2 | Posted by CalifChris

True--if some private companies want to go for it--be our guest.

I don't like the entire NASA program ending. They could build another Shuttle--use private funding.

I totally agree with you on NASA, Murphy.

I don't think the space program should end either, whether they get the money from half-federal/half-private sources -- or whatever.

Space exploration is still in its infancy and the U.S. should be taking the lead.

The Shuttle program ended, not the whole of NASA.

#5 or whatever = or wherever

Curious, Redial, what percentage of the entire NASA program was devoted to the space shuttle? Just a minor portion?

I have no idea.

What percentage was devoted to Apollo? Gemini? Mercury?

Having looked it up, 30% in 2005.

Trivia I had no idea about:

Total cost of Project Apollo: $136 Billion in 2007 dollars.

Total cost of STS program: $196 Billion in 2010 dollars.

How will Noot build Moon Base now?

#2 | POSTED BY CALIFCHRIS AT 2012-01-27 11:44 PM

I am sure this bridge was on the "shovel ready" list.

LNFAO

Being a life long boater, I have always studied boating accidents in order to learn what command decisions were made...and then what went wrong.

The number one reason men drown at sea? They go to take a piss and never come back.
Most fatalities occur when one boat hits another.
The second most common form of death? Hitting bridges and losing their heads.

I must say this baffled me for a long time. Someone finally explained it to me. They go out when the tide is down, and come back (under throttle) when the tide has risen. Poof...off with their heads!

What happened here? I doubt alcohol was involved. Some piss poor planning by the boating company and the captain? Should be an interesting investigation!!

Oh come on now who hasn't inadvertently taken out a bridge?

Hate to be Capt. Obvious...but somebody fucked up

"All of a sudden I see the road's gone and I hit the brakes," said Parker, who lives in Cadiz. "It got close."
Parker said he stopped his pickup within five feet of the missing section.

That'll get yer heart started.

At least nobody was hurt or killed in this accident.

Article is surpisingly light on details as to the reason for the crash although DtW's Tides theory certainly might be accurate.

Be Well.

If I were the captain, I'd change the manifest to show that I was actually delivering the bridge.

Looks like we first need to put money into updating and fixing our aging infrastructure here on Earth before building another space rocket to the Moon.
#2 | POSTED BY CALIFCHRIS AT 2012-01-27 11:44 PM | REPLY | FLAG:

Please observe here the mind of a leftist.... Follow me now....

A perfectly good bridge is run into by a boat.....

It then comes crashing down as one would expect....

And lefty here somehow, some way makes a connection between "aging infrastructure" " here"!!!

The mind of the left comes up with the conclusion first!!! and then looks for any shread of evidence to support that conclusion time and time again. Unfucking believable really???

"Article is surpisingly light on details as to the reason for the crash although DtW's Tides theory certainly might be accurate."

The accident took place on the Tennessee River in Kentucky...hard to imagine tides having an effect that far inland.

.

The company that owns and runs this ship should pay the total cost of damages, not taxpayers. American "exceptional-ism" at its basis is about accountability and about either rewarding those who succeed, or putting the cost of failure on those who cause the damages, and not about billing taxpayers for private sector failure.

I'm thinking the captain thought the ships bridge needed a remodel and he saw an opportunity to get it done while underway.

I can't believe the tides caused this accident, just saying!

I would think perhaps currents and winds blew them off course and/or they went under the wrong span of the bridge.

The accident took place on the Tennessee River in Kentucky...hard to imagine tides having an effect that far inland.

Agreed.

/Geography, not a strong suit here.

Weirdest thing about this is nobody appears to want to even speculate as to cause yet in every story out there atm.

Apparently, the ship had made this trip before and there are photos of this exact ship under the same bridge out there.

Therefore, either the river was high for reasons other than tides or the ship didn't have the appropriate ballast set up or both.

Or there was some kinda bridge raising/ turning mechanism that failed but ya'd think that would be mentioned already if it were the case.

Needs more updates.

Waiting fer reports from the Coast Guard, et al.

Be Well.

"Apparently, the ship had made this trip before and there are photos of this exact ship under the same bridge out there"

Looks to me like it wasn't under the highest span of the bridge. Report should be interesting.

Strange how all the news focus is on the rocket parts and the age of the bridge.

Oh come on now who hasn't inadvertently driven off a bridge?

~~~ Ted kennedy

The company that owns and runs this ship should pay the total cost of damages, not taxpayers.

#21 | Posted by Robson

And THAT is a fact!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!

The company that owns and runs this ship should pay the total cost of damages, not taxpayers.

"The company that owns and runs this ship should pay the total cost of damages, not taxpayers."

Hopefully, they have insurance. My bet is that the insurance won't even pay for the paperwork necessary to rebuild the bridge.