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Faster, Better, Cheaper

Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program

Howard E. McCurdy

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In Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program, Howard E. McCurdy examines NASA's recent efforts to save money while improving mission frequency and performance. McCurdy details the sixteen missions undertaken during the 1990s—including an orbit of the moon, deployment of three space telescopes, four Earth-orbiting satellites, two rendezvous with comets and asteroids, and a test of an ion propulsion engine—which cost less than the sum traditionally spent on a single, conventionally planned planetary mission. He shows how these missions employed smaller spacecraft and...

In Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program, Howard E. McCurdy examines NASA's recent efforts to save money while improving mission frequency and performance. McCurdy details the sixteen missions undertaken during the 1990s—including an orbit of the moon, deployment of three space telescopes, four Earth-orbiting satellites, two rendezvous with comets and asteroids, and a test of an ion propulsion engine—which cost less than the sum traditionally spent on a single, conventionally planned planetary mission. He shows how these missions employed smaller spacecraft and cheaper technology to undertake less complex and more specific tasks in outer space. While the technological innovation and space exploration approach that McCurdy describes is still controversial, the historical perspective on its disappointments and triumphs points to ways of developing "faster, better, and cheaper" as a management manifesto.

Reviews

Reviews

This excellent summary of an important part of NASA's history is recommended for all readers.

Readers interested in either the management or economics of complex organizations will find a wealth of material in this well-written exposition. Fans of space travel, like the author himself, will also enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at NASA's operation.

An excellent overview of Goldin's initiative and of the scholarly literature that bears on the topic.

It is an engaging story, and the book itself is small enough for bedtime reading.

About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
5.5
x
8.5
Pages
192
ISBN
9780801877490
Table of Contents

List of Boxes
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. The Reform
Chapter 2. The Nature of the Challenge
Chapter 3. Cost Control
Chapter 4. The Philosophy
Chapter 5. Mars Pathfinder
Chapter 6. Organization
Chapter 7

List of Boxes
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. The Reform
Chapter 2. The Nature of the Challenge
Chapter 3. Cost Control
Chapter 4. The Philosophy
Chapter 5. Mars Pathfinder
Chapter 6. Organization
Chapter 7. Technology
Chapter 8. Risk and Reliability
Chapter 9. Future Implications
Notes
Index

Author Bio
Featured Contributor

Howard E. McCurdy

Howard E. McCurdy is a professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University and the author of Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program; Inside NASA: High Technology and Organizational Change in the U.S. Space Program; and the coauthor of Robots in Space: Technology, Evolution, and Interplanetary Travel, all published by Johns Hopkins.