News Summaries for February 7

White House Proposes Boosting Space Budget 3.1% (Source: AIA)
The president's budget proposal includes a 3.1% increase in funding for NASA. The $17.31 billion space budget includes $3 billion to develop the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle that will replace the space shuttle fleet.

Globalstar Warns of Satellite Problems (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Mobile satellite telephony company Globalstar warned investors late Monday that a problem with its satellite fleet could cause service outages as soon as next year. In a filing with the SEC, the company said that the degradation of the amplifiers in the S-band antennas on its spacecraft, a problem the company had been monitoring for some time, has accelerated. The company now believes that, without a fix, the problem will create service outages and other problems by some point next year. The company is already planning to launch eight replacement satellites this year, and announced a contract last year with Alcatel Alenia Space to begin work on a new generation of spacecraft, but those spacecraft are not expected to be ready for service until late 2009.

China Picks Site for Spaceport (Source: AP)
China has chosen the site for a new satellite launching center, the country's fourth, on Hainan island in the South China Sea. The site will be at Wenchang, about 38 miles southeast of the provincial capital Haikou. The Wenchang Satellite Launching Center will also include a space theme scientific park, a rocket-assembling plant and a command center. Wenchang will likely be the launch site for next-generation rockets due to be put into use in 2010.

NASA To Review Screening Process Amid Love-Triangle Case (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
NASA officials on Wednesday said they were to launch a review of psychological screening procedures for astronauts in the wake of a bizarre love-triangle case. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was to "initiate a review of existing psychological screening for admittance into the astronaut corps," NASA deputy administrator Shana Dale told a news conference at the space agency's headquarters in Washington.

NASA Soap Opera: Do They Need More Space? (Source: US News & World Report)
This incredible, stranger-than-fiction story of a bitter romantic struggle among astronauts does inevitably lead to the question: What is the psychological toll of zero gravity? A 1998 report by NASA cites a long-standing concern in the agency over the compatibility of crew members and its importance to the success of a mission. The letter cites a similar report by Russia's space agency that reads: "The absence of total compatibility (among crewmembers) can lead to disruption of interpersonal relations, the development of conflicts, neurotic states, and undesirable psychosomatic symptoms."

The U.S. report specifically recommends that NASA implement both preflight and post-flight psychological evaluations for longer missions, such as visits to the International Space Stations. In a recent blog, the chair of a 1988 working group on psychological standards for astronaut selection wrote: "NASA goes to a great deal of trouble to convince the American public that the astronauts–each and every one of them–are superior people; and many actually do have a history of superior accomplishment. But the notion that they possess some elusive "right stuff" that makes them special simply by virtue of being selected as astronauts–or even by flying in space, ignores the reality of the human experience."

Astronaut Charged with Attempted Murder of Florida Woman (Source: AP)
Astronaut Lisa Nowak was arrested in Orlando and charged with attempted first-degree murder, in addition to attempted kidnapping and three other crimes stemming from what police described as a love triangle involving a fellow astronaut. She was released on bail but ordered to stay away from the other woman (a Cape Canaveral Air Force officer) and to wear a monitoring device.

Jon Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon who lost his wife, astronaut Laurel Clark, in the Columbia disaster in 2003, said NASA needs to have a stronger psychological and behavioral health support system for shuttle astronauts. "They don't have to have any evaluation before or after a mission, and it is only when something catastrophic happens does this ever even come to light," he said.

X PRIZE Opens Registration for Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge (Source: X-Prize)
X PRIZE today announced registration dates and rules changes for the $2 million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge, which will require a vehicle to simulate trips between the moon's surface and lunar orbit. Last year, teams had to fly the entire mission essentially without any repairs, but we recognize that even in actual spaceflight there is enormous value in planning for and solving for potential problems. When you are running a mission that cannot fail, preparing for mishaps is critical NASA.

Early bird registration for the 2007 competition lasts until Feb. 28. Regular registration ends March 31, and the final day for late registration is April 30. To register a team for the Lunar Lander Challenge please contact:
William Pomerantz at mailto:Will@xprize.orgor 310-587-3355.

Boeing, Arianespace Battle To Launch Italian Satellites (Source: Defense News)
As Italy prepares to choose a launcher for its next Cosmo-Skymed civil-military radar satellite, Arianespace is playing the buy-European card. “European taxpayers’ money should give work to European companies,” said Jean-Yves Le Gall, chief executive of Arianespace. In December, Boeing won a contract to launch the first two of four planned Cosmo-Skymeds.

The decision on who will launch the third will be made this month. A decision also will be made on who will launch Sicral 1B, the follow-up to Italy’s military Sicral 1 communications satellite, which was launched by Arianespace in 2001.

Russia Opposes Militarizing Space (Source: UPI)
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov Tuesday issued a new warning against the militarization of space. Ivanov was speaking following China's announcement that it had carried out its first successful anti-satellite weapons test last month. But he said Beijing was not primarily responsible for the militarization of space, in what appeared to be an indirect criticism of U.S. space policy. "It is not China that opened up Pandora's box," he said.

Ivanov acknowledged that the Untied States and Russia had both deployed space-based strategic assets. But he said strong distinction should be drawn between space-based systems that were used for defensive purposes and other weapons systems that served aggressive and threatening purposes.

NASA KSC Leads Investigation Over Ares Parachute Test Failure (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
An investigation team has been assembled at the Kennedy Space Center following a failure that occurred on the third Parachute Drop Test (PDT) at the Yuma Proving Grounds in Arizona. The incident, which destroyed the Drop Test Vehicle (DTV), happened during a drop test of the pilot parachute on top of the DTV, which impacted the ground at such a speed, special excavation equipment is required to recover the nose of the DTV - which is buried 30 feet below the surface.

Budget Shortfall Pinches NASA's Long-Term Plans, Workforce (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
President Bush on Monday proposed boosting NASA spending to $17.3 billion in 2008, but the money may not be enough to prevent delays in developing a new manned spacecraft. Those delays, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin warned, threaten plans to replace the space shuttle with a new vehicle by 2014, and could hasten the departure of skilled engineers and scientists from Kennedy Space Center and other sites.

Like many federal agencies, NASA finds itself in a quandary because Congress failed to approve its 2007 budget before adjourning last year, creating a ripple effect in the agency's plans for 2008. So while members of Congress begin studying the president's new 2008 budget outline for NASA, they are still wrangling over 2007 priorities. And last week, the House cut $545 million from the 2007 budget plan requested by Bush and NASA.

AF Space Budget Targets Missile Warning, Milsat (Source: Aviation Week)
Overall Air Force space costs would increase to about $11 billion in fiscal year 2008 from about $9.5 billion in fiscal 2007. About $8.4 billion of the fiscal 2008 budget is for research, development and procurement, compared to about $7 billion for like costs in fiscal 2007. Space modernization costs for fiscal 2008 would account to about a fifth of the Air Force total modernization costs.

Mikulski Disappointed with Lack of Presidential Leadership on NASA (Source: US Senate)
Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Chairman of the Senate Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee that funds NASA, released the following reaction to President Bush’s proposed FY-08 NASA budget:

In 2006, President Bush announced the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) to encourage American innovation and strengthen global competitiveness. His failure to include NASA in the initiative has meant a diminished Bush administration priority. Agencies included in the initiative, like the National Science Foundation (NSF), received an increase of 7 percent in the President’s 2008 budget compared to his 2007 budget, while NASA only saw a 3 percent increase compared to his 2007 budget.

Budget Silent on Fate of Shuttle Workforce (Source: Florida Today)
White House budget projections show shuttle spending declining from $3.6 billion in 2010 to $116.2 million in 2011. At the same time, spending is projected to increase from $3.7 billion in 2010 to $7.6 billion in 2011 on a new generation of spacecraft. The spending blueprint only hints at what the space agency might do with the shuttle workforce during the transition to the new Orion and Ares vehicles. The White House budget request indicates NASA will seek permission from Congress and the White House to take steps to ease the transition. Those steps could include leasing or outright selling shuttle-related equipment and facilities. NASA also may seek permission to increase voluntary separation pay for agency civil servants.

Space Foundation: FY08 Budget Inadequate to Assure U.S. Leadership in Space (Source: Space Foundation)
Space Foundation President and Chief Executive Officer Elliot G. Pulham said, "Given the many demands upon the U.S. federal budget, most notably for war costs, entitlement programs, and homeland security, it is admirable that the administration's proposed FY2008 budget preserves a modicum of funding for the nation's space programs – civil, commercial and national security. Unfortunately, as recent world events have shown, merely maintaining our current level of space capability is a flawed approach when placed in the context of emerging, competing, and even hostile space capabilities all over the world. The nation can, and must, do more to ensure that NASA and NOAA continue to lead the world in space science and exploration; to ensure that U.S. commercial space companies have the support of government agencies like the FAA and the FCC; and to ensure that we re-invest in national security space systems to assure space superiority for the intelligence, defense and homeland security agencies charged with protecting U.S. citizens in a dangerous world.

Rep: Gordon: FY08 Budget Lacks Priorities, Consistency to Ensure U.S. Competitiveness (Source: House Science Committee)
The almost $3 trillion overall FY08 budget request includes $142.6 billion for research and development. While the President’s budget includes some important funding increases, it lacks the priorities and consistency to ensure our competitiveness now and in the long run," said House Committee on Science and Technology Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN).

Residents Will Vote on Sales Tax for Spaceport (Source: Las Cruces Sun-News)
Doña Ana County residents will vote on a sales tax for a proposed spaceport because of a decision Monday by county commissioners. The commission in a 4-1 vote approved a measure that will place a one-quarter of 1 percent sales tax before voters April 3.

MDA Adjusts Program to Declining Budget (Source: Space News)
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) had to cancel its High Altitude Airship sensor program and make changes to several others due to a 2008 budget request that is some $500 million below what agency officials had hoped for, according to a senior MDA official.

U.S. Air Force Seeks $1.5 Billion Boost for Space (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Air Force is asking Congress for $11 billion for unclassified space programs in 2008, an increase of $1.5 billion over the current spending level, according to Pentagon budget documents.