New Horizons mission costs are minimal
p wrote:
But we get to the outer planets in the same old, same old way. Chemical rockets. Years in transit. Years that add big bucks to mission support costs.
Alex wrote:
An outdated argument. Again, since there seems to be some unfamiliarity with the specifics of the PKB flight profile, New Horizons incorporates hibernation mode for the vast majority of the flight, which reduces mission support costs and active DSN tracking to the absolute minimum. This, for what it's worth, was also a feature of the *more expensive* PKE mission design.
Alex R. Blackwell
University of Hawaii