This is the earth here...

[Bucky]

This is the earth here...

and this is the moon
way over here...

So why does it take the astronauts three days to get there? Are they slow pokes? Are they just typically lazy government workers? I'll bet if we turned the space program over to the private sector, they'd get there at half the price and in one third of the time.

[LynneSin]

1. Because unlike your graph, the two objects are in perpetual movement

and not necessary in a straight line

[Bucky]

4. Well the moon's movements are pretty predictable, you liberal!

Seems to me like they could--assuming any of these lazy government scientists even understand calculus with their ratty liberal public school educations--figure out where the moon is gonna be and go there. You seem to be telling me that they go straight at the moon and then chase it around in circles until they can catch up with it. Isn't it just like an elitist, naive, terrorist-coddling, soft-on-spotted-owls liberal do gooder to think they can outrace the moon and not even think of taking the direct route. Go hug a tree, you pinko! Maybe you want to waste government money, but us real Americans believe our founding fathers liked the free enterprise system best, which is why we have great American inventers on our past like Eli Whitney, who never needed a hand out from the government to make his millions! God bless America!! :patriot:

[MrCoffee]

2. 2 words - Virgin Galactic

http://www.virgingalactic.com/

[LSK]

3. not only would they get there faster

But there would be a few richer millionaires in the world! And thats whats most important!

[BigMcLargehuge]

5. you should read/watch "Destination Moon"

It's private investors who finance the first moon shot. They use a Woody Woodpecker cartoon to convince the investors.

The science was good too, for 1954!