[net.columbia] polar launches from Canaveral

henry (11/05/82)

Actually, it is not quite correct to say "...NASA at one time considered
polar shots from Canaveral...".  What happened was that the Office of
Mismanagement and Beancounting suggested that NASA should save money by
doing polar launches from Canaveral, thus eliminating the need for
Shuttle launch facilities at Vandenberg.  The polar launches would have
gone north, with the ET going into the Indian Ocean.  There were just
a few little problems:

	- Too much of the early path was over inhabited areas.
	- Some of said inhabited areas were in another country.
	- A space launch over the north pole follows a trajectory
		similar to some kinds of ICBM launch, and could get
		mistaken for one.  Considering who's on the other side
		of the pole, such launches are considered MOST UNWISE.
	- The USAF did not like the idea of a launch path passing over
		the Soviet Union.

Whatever moron at OMB suggested this wonderful notion was shouted down
by loud objections from NASA, the USAF, and just about everyone else.