• Sulfamide@jlai.luOP
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    1 year ago

    That’s a 35% difference! And again, of course the disposable income in Europe is more than adequate, but what about technology? Europe is lagging everywhere : computers, phones, space, IA, etc.

    • crispy_kilt@feddit.de
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      1 year ago

      Space? Europe recently landed on a comet, something no one else has done, something even NASA has never achieved.

      Rosetta was the first spacecraft to orbit a comet nucleus, and was the first spacecraft to fly alongside a comet as it headed towards the inner Solar System. It became the first spacecraft to examine at close proximity the activity of a frozen comet as it is warmed by the Sun. Shortly after its arrival at 67P, the Rosetta orbiter dispatched the Philae lander for the first controlled touchdown on a comet nucleus. The robotic lander’s instruments obtained the first images from a comet’s surface and made the first in situ analysis of its composition.

      https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosetta_(spacecraft)

      Furthermore, do you know who makes the machines that TSMC uses to create the chips that power the worlds smartphones and countless other devices? A European company. Yes Taiwan makes the CPUs, but we make the CPU makers.

      • luk3th3dud3@feddit.de
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        1 year ago

        I am a proud European, but do not kid yourself. The United States are light years ahead in space technology. The Ariane program is a complete clusterfuck as of now.

        • crispy_kilt@feddit.de
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          edit-2
          1 year ago

          Is US rocket supremacy why Союз rockets were bringing most of the US stuff into LEO the last 20 years or so?

          • luk3th3dud3@feddit.de
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            0
            ·
            1 year ago

            The Soyuz is not a bad rocket, neither is the Ariane. It is just that technology has advanced quite significantly in the last few years. And rockets are just a (very visible) part of space technology.

              • luk3th3dud3@feddit.de
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                0
                ·
                1 year ago

                Okay lets see. What I meant is: at its time, the Ariane 5 was a great program. Now is a different time. Now we have got SpaceX (and RocketLab etc.) and at the same time the Ariane 6 is already outdated before it is ever launched. At the same time, the Ariane 6 program has run into major delays, so it is not even clear when the first launch will be – probably 2024.

                Reusable rocket technology is where it’s at if we as Europeans want to stay relevant in the commercial launch sector.

                • crispy_kilt@feddit.de
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  0
                  ·
                  1 year ago

                  Honestly, I’m totally fine with whoever launching our stuff, because what I actually care about is the science and exploration part, not the rocket itself