[Art]

Our company group recently took a tour at the Goddard Space Flight Center near Columbia, Maryland.

We saw the sound room, a concrete enclosed room about 3 stories high with steel doors 25 feet tall and
over a foot thick. Huge speakers simulate the noise of a liftoff to test components for cracking, fatigue
etc., due to vibrations. The speakers are huge and powered by nitrogen gas. I could just about fit my SUV
inside of one of them!

We saw a 65 foot long centrifuge that can test various objects by whirling them around at 200 mph in a
circular room with walls of reinforced concrete 3 feet thick.

Clean rooms, parts of the silver-mylar covered Hubble telescope, etc.

Before leaving the guide brought out some decomissioned gloves that were actually worn by astronauts and
let a few of us try them on. Being a somewhat larger (taller) than normal individual, the glove was a pretty tight fit but they are hand made (no pun) custom for the particular individual. The gloves consist of 16 layers of different fabrics and large thimble like rubber finger tips. Difficult to do anything other than grasp and hold objects.

Pretty cool although when I asked, I was informed that the glove cost $40,000 USD.
I said that's a lot for a pair of gloves. He said, "No...that's for ONE GLOVE. It's $80,000 per pair!!

I've got to HAND it to our government...nothing but the best!

Where's Danny GLOVEr when you need him?!

PALMistry anyone?

[FuzzieDice]

That's the thing, people can sell a paperclip to the government for $5,000. Well, maybe not really but it's something like that. I have heard of rediculously overpriced things going to the government that wasn't any different that the dollar-stuff we use in everyday life.

But THEY don't have to pay for it. We do - with our taxes.  :undecided

[Maviarab]

Reminds me of Independence day...when Jeff Goldblums dad says...what you think they charge 5k for a toothbrush?? hehe

[Freddy]

Thats sounds like a great day Art, thanks for telling us about it.  I think your gov bought those speakers when Black Sabbath spilt with Ozzy, apparently the guys said they could have them on condition that Oz got shipped over to the US.