The ISS has been the primary mechanism for NASA's international collaboration, and there was a lot of questions over what comes next. Brian Weeden More Quotes by Brian Weeden More Quotes From Brian Weeden However, I'm not sure if that will be enough. Brian Weeden science Pretty much everything theyre doing are things the U.S. already has done in the past, china is still catching up. Brian Weeden science If the goal is to land people on the moon by 2024, that doesnt leave a lot of time to do test flights, whether or not its too risky is above my pay grade. This is a huge debate. Brian Weeden science The question has always been politics. Brian Weeden science There’s a reason why the military is doing this, a big part of that is they are worried about not only debris collisions with military satellites, but potential adversaries using small space objects to try and attack satellites. Brian Weeden science We know through some scientific work, that there’s roughly half a million pieces of space debris larger than let’s say half an inch, but smaller than four inches, that’s there but we can’t track it right now. Brian Weeden science The decision itself was interesting in that it was wrapped up in the whole sequestration discussion. That was the rationale that the Air Force Space Command gave. Brian Weeden science