I find it odd that in Fallout 3, there is much mention about the United States Space Administration, though when speaking to Vice President Byrd, he clearly informs you that NASA has been working on the US Space Program. So what is with this rather gaping inconsistency, and please don't tell me the old line of "oh that must be just an Enclave project"(as that seems to be the answer given for every Bethesda related mistake).

If anything the NASA explanation holds more water, due to the fact that NASA emerged from NACA in 1958.

Maybe... Maybe Not. The USSA seems to be more Military and an "Imperialist" organisation than NASA, which seems to fit the USA that existed in FO's universe better.

I suppose it could have also been a legal decision, like how in the new series of Doctor Who UNIT isnt the "United Nations Inteligence Taskforce" its the "Unified Inteligence Taskforce".

Another victim of political correctness, though actually that probably hits it right on the head. Actually, and you probably know better(being a UK Citizen), but I remember seeing a show on BBC America called "Red Cap"(about the British Army's Special Investigation Branch), where though there seemed to be some factual details, there were also quite a few liberties taken as it relates to some of the regiments mentioned etc.

The NASA reference in FO2 is just an offhand comment, and I don't mind the retcon myself, as it accentuates Fallout's divergent timeline. Fallout 2 has a lot of modern stuff that doesn't fit the setting anyway.

No, that was more of a trademark thing with UNIT. The UN werent comfortable with being represented the way that UNIT traditional was with Doctor Who, and asked them to stop... If I remember right in FO3 wasn't the Smithsonian not called the Smithsonian because of something similar?

In Fallout 3 it is more of a matter of underlining the timeline divergence.

I would consider this USSA-NASA thing propably being a minor canon screw up.

Maybe Bethesda oversaw that NASA was ever mentioned in Fo2 at all and so came up with their own USSA idea without knowing that this would create a contradiction.


Another possibility might be that Bethesda indeed decided to avoid using the names of real organisations or certain places for a reason we cant know.


Renaming Andrews AFB to Adams AFB might be just a matter of reflecting the Fallout universe's divergent timeline.
But if this is so, why did they also renamed Elmendorf AFB in Alaska to Elemendorf AFB ?

First i thought it was just a typo but you can read that Elemendorf thing on two different computers in Operation Anchorage. A repeated typo by someone of the devs who just got the name wrong ?
Or rather intentional ?

I find this very awkward.

Fallout 2, until it was patched had quite a few errors when it came to names/spelling, so for someone to make a mistake in regards to an AFB's proper name, does not surprise me. That might actually also explain Andrews AFB, being called Adams AFB.

I gave this one some thought and that was my conclusion as well. NASA may well have existed as a 'scientific and peaceful' organisation (as now) but the USSA was formed to ensure the space nukes got up there. NASA could have become a branch of the USSA (or vice-versa).

If you enjoy enough Sci-Fi you get used to plugging plot holes and inconsistencies.

Yeah USSA seems like the US military side of NASA...mabe a division of NASA? Who knows. NASA probably handled public space launches and what have you, while USSA handled the covert spy sattelites and B.O.M.B. facilities....

It could be that NASA became or was restructured as the USSA at some point during the pre-war timeline. :shrug:

I don't remember the exact line from F2 nor did I find a named reference for the US Space Program within the Fallout bible, so I haven't a clue if one agency is a mistake or somehow both fit in with canon.

F2 seems to have some problems with canon anyway given the whole modern weapons/references which are not in line with the world of Fallout and whatnot.

What if in the Fallout universe that NASA is a civil oriented agency linked to certain projects while the USSA is the military oriented space agency. They would work together in some ways and go their own ways with other projects.

For example NASA could be civil scientific and commerce directed while the USSA is more focused on such projects as military sattelites and possible use of the moon in future warfare.