Aero-News: Quote of the Day

ANN's Quote of the Day usually derives from current news, though we reserve the right to pick quotes out of history that have a bearing on the day's events and issues.

Sometimes, you'll find them timely and in keeping with the content of the day's news... and sometimes, they'll just be thought-provoking.

Reader suggestions and comments are welcome... and if particularly intriguing, timely, or poignant, may themselves become future Quotes of the Day.

Let us hear from you, folks!

Aero-News Quote of the Day

"The board is working to confirm this proximate cause to determine why this error happened, why it was not caught by the test program and an extensive system of in-process and after-the-fact reviews of the Genesis system."

Source: Michael G. Ryschkewitsch, chairman of the Genesis Mishap Investigation Board, commenting on the fact that his investigation had turned up an improperly installed gravity switch, responsible for deploying the two chutes on the Genesis spacecraft, and for which contractor Lockheed Martin appears to be responsible. The last time something like this happened at Lockheed, Mars Climate Orbiter is believed to have made a similar hole in Martian soil due to a programming error.

FMI: http://genesismission.jpl.nasa.gov