On 07/21/2014 05:36 PM, Clayton Coleman wrote: > It's very easy to be a pessimist or a cynic. Very little risk is > involved. It doesn't take any cojones to sit in a comfy chair and > email snarky comments. If you are optimistic about a project and it > fails, your peers may see your actions as a fool.
I absolutely agree, but I must ask you about something you said earlier: > I am pleased that AMSAT-NA is going to move forward with a LEO > CubeSat, single channel, analog FM transponder. If successful, it > will be immensely popular worldwide. My hope is that it will help > usher in a new, improved series of satellites with more advanced > payloads. I'm confused. My understanding of the idiomatic expression "usher in" is that something new and presumably revolutionary is being introduced, e.g., to "usher in a new era". What, exactly, will a new LEO, single channel, analog FM transponder satellite "usher in" that none of the previous LEO, single channel, analog FM satellites managed to usher in? Will the tiny cubesat form factor (to which we've been relegated by the intense competition for launches from the small satellite revolution we pioneered) make the difference this time? If not, what will? The most common argument I've seen for launching more analog FM LEO satellites is that they are needed to replace existing analog FM LEO satellites that are now failing. Is that "ushering in" something new? --Phil _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
