"Plymouth Rock"

President Obama's proposal to send humans to an asteroid by 2025 seems to be gaining momentum. It has even acquired an unofficial project name-- Plymouth Rock. The idea has appeal on many levels. Getting humans beyond low Earth orbit is important to many space advocates. Using the Orion spacecraft originally designed for the lunar missions of the Constellation program might save some aerospace jobs, use the work already done on Orion, and mollify some in Congress. Such a mission would produce some good science and fulfill President Obama's commitment to a robust manned spaceflight program.

The question is what will get through Congress. Some members are still trying to save as much of Constellation as they can-- some for policy reaons, some out of political calculations grounded in the state or House district they represent. Some other members would like to cut back on NASA's budget entirely in this time of huge Federal deficits, even though cuts to NASA would be purely symbolic, doing nothing at all to grapple with the real problems driving the budget deficits. Much remains to be hashed out, but a manned mission to a near-Earth asteroid may well come out a winner.