Kirtland to Host Responsive Space Office (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Defense Department will establish a new program office for responsive space efforts at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., in May, according to a senior Pentagon official.
NASA Money Included in Iraq Supplemental Spending Bill (Source: Space News)
Additional money for NASA was included in a $124.2 billion emergency spending bill for 2007 that U.S. President George W. Bush has threatened to veto because it sets an April 2008 deadline for withdrawing American combat troops from Iraq.
Rocket Scientists Prepare for Sheboygan Blast Off (Source: Sheboygan Press)
46 teams are ready to launch for Rockets for Schools, Sheboygan's annual suborbital launch event. Mike Saeger, a 16-year-old sophomore at Riverview Academy, has vivid memories of the Rockets for Schools launch last year. "It's kind of adrenaline pumping," Saeger said. "You're in front of everybody, you get to see all of the other rockets go up, and it's just a lot of fun. I liked it." Rockets for Schools is a yearly event where teams from throughout Wisconsin, Illinois and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan come together to launch a high-powered rocket they built. When launched, rockets reach heights of a mile in the sky. This year's event is scheduled for Friday and Saturday. Besides designing the rocket, teams also design a payload for the rocket to conduct a scientific experiment during the launch. Teams compete against each other and are judged on rocket construction, a rocketry worksheet, payload design and a presentation.
Malaysian Airport Proposed For Space Tourism (Source: Bernama.com)
A group of space tourism consultants haw proposed to the Perak government to turn the Sultan Azlan Shah Airport (LTSAS) in Ipoh into a "space-bound airport". For the plan to become a reality, however, it should start as a ground for test flights. LTSAS was chosen for the project because of its low airline traffic unlike the KL International Airport in Sepang. It was also strategically located at the centre of Peninsular Malaysia and supported by a good transportation network. The initial cost was estimated at RM100 million and this included the plan to conduct 100 test flights using a spacecraft called the Ascender which could carry space tourists, astronauts and facilitate scientific experiments at 100km from earth. The suborbital spaceplane, developed by Bristol Spaceplanes Limited of Britain, can take off and land horizontally and also climb vertically.
Italian Group Breaks Record With Elderly Passenger (Source: SpaceLand)
Italy's SpaceLand group returned to Florida for a microgravity research flight aboard ZERO-G's G-Force One aircraft on Saturday, this one including a 93-year-old test subject, believed to be the oldest person to fly in microgravity. In 2006, SpaceLand flew the first fully disabled test subject aboard G-Force One. The organization hopes to conduct annual microgravity missions from Florida.
Will Rich Spacemen Come to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport? (Source: Virginian-Pilot)
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport has what real estate agents say makes a hot listing - location, location, location. The spaceport touts itself as an ideal destination for a range of space ventures - from resupplying the space station to sending well-heeled customers on rides into space. But as in many ventures, a shoestring budget sometimes trips up big dreams. A few years ago, a wealthy businessman came fishing for a base to launch rockets. He met with Billie Reed, the spaceport's director, in the facility's one-room cement and stucco office. The furniture, including a beat-up oak table where they talked business, was cobbled together from excess NASA property. The spaceport didn't make the cut.
"He sat here, and he wasn't impressed," Reed said, seated at the old table during an interview this month. "We just think we weren't sexy enough." That rejection lingers even as the spaceport celebrates its first two launches. Reed said Virginia needs to ramp up its support or risk getting left behind. The Virginia spaceport's current annual operating budget is about $580,000 - $100,000 from Virginia, $150,000 from Maryland and the rest from customers. One of those customers is the military, sponsor of the two recent Minotaur launches. "The Department of Defense is telling us they like us, so we expect them to come back," said NASA's Wallops Island director.
Perhaps the brightest prospect stems from resupplying the space station after retirement of the space shuttle in 2010. NASA plans to farm out the work to companies like SpaceX. CEO Elon Musk considers Wallops Island "arguably the best launch site in the country" for space station missions. "Wallops is better suited to service the space station than Cape Canaveral," he said. "I think Wallops is really a contender." Congress thinks so, too, and approved $500,000 for a study, due later this year, on turning NASA Wallops into a "next generation" spaceport to supply the station or send cargo to serve future missions to the moon and Mars. Musk estimates the spaceport would need to spend around $30 million to upgrade its facilities for larger rockets. State Sen. Nick Rerras, whose district covers the Eastern Shore, said: "We put resources into our seaports and our airports, and in the same way, we need to put more money into our spaceport."
April 29 News Items
Rocket Fuel Chemical Found in Food, Water Supply (Source: ABC News)
A study from the Centers for Disease Control last year tested almost 3,000 people who are representative of the U.S. population. They found perchlorate in every single person," said Dr. Anila Jacob of the Environmental Working Group. So how did something used to launch rockets find its way into our homes? A government report revealed that at sites in more than 25 states, perchlorate had leaked into the drinking water and soil. About 65 percent of that contamination was attributed to the Department of Defense and to NASA.
Ashes of NASA's Cooper and Star Trek's Scotty Fly to Space (Source: AP)
The cremated remains of actor James Doohan, who portrayed engineer "Scotty" on "Star Trek," and of Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper soared into suborbital space Saturday aboard a rocket. It was the first successful launch from Spaceport America, a commercial spaceport being developed in the southern New Mexico desert. "Go baby, go baby," said Eric Knight of the commercial launch company, UP Aerospace Inc. of Farmington, Conn. Since it was a suborbital flight, the rocket soon parachuted back to Earth, coming down at the White Sands Missile Range. "We nailed it. We stuck the landing," said Knight.
Europe Considering All-Public Galileo Financing (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Discouraged by continued delays in negotiating a public-private partnership, European officials are considering going ahead with the development of its Galileo satellite navigation system using entirely public funding. Galileo was originally planned to be financed by a mix of public money and private investment, with the company running the satellite system recouping its investment through service fees. However, negotiations between the EU and Galileo Industries regarding the partnership agreement have stalled. Galileo's constellation of 30 satellites was once planned to be in orbit by late this decade, but will likely not be completely deployed until the early 2010s.
Russia's GLONASS Satellite Navigation System Runs Into Problems (Source: RIA Novosti)
The Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) is a radio-based satellite navigation system developed by the Soviet Union and now operated for the Russian government by the national Space Force. Unfortunately, the GLONASS project faces major problems. The Russian mission control center said only 12 out of the 19 GLONASS satellites now in orbit are currently operating. Four more satellites now orbiting the Earth may be commissioned in the future, enlarging the GLONASS cluster to 16 spacecraft. However, only seven of these are revamped Uragan-M satellites, whereas the rest are obsolete spacecraft, whose service life has either expired or will expire soon. Quite possibly, all old spacecraft may stop functioning by late 2008. In this case Russia will have to launch 17 new satellites by the end of 2009. And working out the required launch schedule would be a mind-boggling task.
Boeing Considering Commercial Delta 4 Apart from ULA (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Boeing is considering returning the Delta 4 launch vehicle to the commercial market to help make up for weak government launch schedules. While government Delta 4 launches are now run by the United Launch Alliance, commercial launches of the Delta 4 would be managed by Boeing Launch Services. Boeing withdrew the Delta 4 from the commercial market in mid-2003, citing weak launch demand. A company official said at a 2005 conference that Boeing was planning to return the Delta 4 to the commercial market that year, but the company quickly backed away from those claims.
Griffin Defends Tapes' Demise (Source: Florida Today)
Congressional investigators questioned NASA's top attorney behind closed doors Friday about his role in destroying copies of a recorded meeting between the NASA administrator and the agency's watchdog office. The recordings were of an April 10 meeting called to discuss an integrity report. NASA Administrator Michael Griffin did not want the gathering recorded because he wanted employees to feel free to talk. When it was learned that the gathering had been recorded anyway, tapes were sent to NASA General Counsel Michael Wholley's office for his guidance. "The determination was made that this was not an official NASA record, so copies were disposed of," said a NASA spokesman.
A study from the Centers for Disease Control last year tested almost 3,000 people who are representative of the U.S. population. They found perchlorate in every single person," said Dr. Anila Jacob of the Environmental Working Group. So how did something used to launch rockets find its way into our homes? A government report revealed that at sites in more than 25 states, perchlorate had leaked into the drinking water and soil. About 65 percent of that contamination was attributed to the Department of Defense and to NASA.
Ashes of NASA's Cooper and Star Trek's Scotty Fly to Space (Source: AP)
The cremated remains of actor James Doohan, who portrayed engineer "Scotty" on "Star Trek," and of Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper soared into suborbital space Saturday aboard a rocket. It was the first successful launch from Spaceport America, a commercial spaceport being developed in the southern New Mexico desert. "Go baby, go baby," said Eric Knight of the commercial launch company, UP Aerospace Inc. of Farmington, Conn. Since it was a suborbital flight, the rocket soon parachuted back to Earth, coming down at the White Sands Missile Range. "We nailed it. We stuck the landing," said Knight.
Europe Considering All-Public Galileo Financing (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Discouraged by continued delays in negotiating a public-private partnership, European officials are considering going ahead with the development of its Galileo satellite navigation system using entirely public funding. Galileo was originally planned to be financed by a mix of public money and private investment, with the company running the satellite system recouping its investment through service fees. However, negotiations between the EU and Galileo Industries regarding the partnership agreement have stalled. Galileo's constellation of 30 satellites was once planned to be in orbit by late this decade, but will likely not be completely deployed until the early 2010s.
Russia's GLONASS Satellite Navigation System Runs Into Problems (Source: RIA Novosti)
The Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) is a radio-based satellite navigation system developed by the Soviet Union and now operated for the Russian government by the national Space Force. Unfortunately, the GLONASS project faces major problems. The Russian mission control center said only 12 out of the 19 GLONASS satellites now in orbit are currently operating. Four more satellites now orbiting the Earth may be commissioned in the future, enlarging the GLONASS cluster to 16 spacecraft. However, only seven of these are revamped Uragan-M satellites, whereas the rest are obsolete spacecraft, whose service life has either expired or will expire soon. Quite possibly, all old spacecraft may stop functioning by late 2008. In this case Russia will have to launch 17 new satellites by the end of 2009. And working out the required launch schedule would be a mind-boggling task.
Boeing Considering Commercial Delta 4 Apart from ULA (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Boeing is considering returning the Delta 4 launch vehicle to the commercial market to help make up for weak government launch schedules. While government Delta 4 launches are now run by the United Launch Alliance, commercial launches of the Delta 4 would be managed by Boeing Launch Services. Boeing withdrew the Delta 4 from the commercial market in mid-2003, citing weak launch demand. A company official said at a 2005 conference that Boeing was planning to return the Delta 4 to the commercial market that year, but the company quickly backed away from those claims.
Griffin Defends Tapes' Demise (Source: Florida Today)
Congressional investigators questioned NASA's top attorney behind closed doors Friday about his role in destroying copies of a recorded meeting between the NASA administrator and the agency's watchdog office. The recordings were of an April 10 meeting called to discuss an integrity report. NASA Administrator Michael Griffin did not want the gathering recorded because he wanted employees to feel free to talk. When it was learned that the gathering had been recorded anyway, tapes were sent to NASA General Counsel Michael Wholley's office for his guidance. "The determination was made that this was not an official NASA record, so copies were disposed of," said a NASA spokesman.
April 28 News Items
Indian Rocket Gets Customers, Israeli Satellite Next (Source: Domain-B)
The 'core-alone' configuration of ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) seems to have attracted immediate international attention, with an Israeli observation satellite, Polaris, heading for an early launch in August this year. The satellite, weighing 300 kg, can take pictures of the earth through cloud and rain, 24 hours of the day. On Monday, the core-alone configured PSLV-C8 lifted off successfully from Sriharikota to put an Italian satellite, Agile, into orbit. In its normal set up, the PSLV has six strap-on booster motors around the first stage.
Meanwhile, ISRO has also bagged another contract from Israel. An Israeli ultra-violet astronomy telescope will travel on board the indigenously developed GSLV (Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) from Sriharikota in 2008. The GSLV launch is slated to carry the Indian GSAT-4 satellite. The Israeli ultra-violet astronomy telescope is called TAUVEX (Tel Aviv University Ultra-violet Experiment.)
A Taste of Space Could Boost Tourism (Source: Miami Herald)
Astrophysicist Stephen Hawking's zero-gravity flight was meant to send a message to the public at large: It could happen to you, too. "The allure is to do something that throughout history only very, very, very few people have been able to do," said former astronaut Winston Scott, a South Florida native. "Something that is exciting, something that is beyond the realm of imagination for most people."
"I want to demonstrate to the public that anybody can participate in this type of weightless experience," Hawking, 65, who suffers from the debilitating illness ALS, said during a news conference. Well, anyone can participate after paying $3,675 (including tax) for a flight like Hawking's aboard a plane operated by Zero Gravity Corp., which has offices in Fort Lauderdale, Cape Canaveral and Las Vegas. Or $200,000 for an eventual hop along the edge of space. Or $25 million for a 13-day visit to the International Space Station.
Boeing's Delta IV May Get New Wings (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Nearly four years after Boeing took its Delta IV rocket off the commercial market, the company and the Air Force are looking to revive such contracts to help fill gaps among future government launches, according to Pentagon and industry officials. While no final decisions have been made, these officials said some Air Force program managers are prodding Boeing to resume limited commercial Delta IV launches in order to temper anticipated weak government launch schedules, particularly in 2009. In July 2003, when Boeing said commercial Delta IV launches weren't producing profits, so they decided to focus solely on meeting government launch needs.
The 'core-alone' configuration of ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) seems to have attracted immediate international attention, with an Israeli observation satellite, Polaris, heading for an early launch in August this year. The satellite, weighing 300 kg, can take pictures of the earth through cloud and rain, 24 hours of the day. On Monday, the core-alone configured PSLV-C8 lifted off successfully from Sriharikota to put an Italian satellite, Agile, into orbit. In its normal set up, the PSLV has six strap-on booster motors around the first stage.
Meanwhile, ISRO has also bagged another contract from Israel. An Israeli ultra-violet astronomy telescope will travel on board the indigenously developed GSLV (Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) from Sriharikota in 2008. The GSLV launch is slated to carry the Indian GSAT-4 satellite. The Israeli ultra-violet astronomy telescope is called TAUVEX (Tel Aviv University Ultra-violet Experiment.)
A Taste of Space Could Boost Tourism (Source: Miami Herald)
Astrophysicist Stephen Hawking's zero-gravity flight was meant to send a message to the public at large: It could happen to you, too. "The allure is to do something that throughout history only very, very, very few people have been able to do," said former astronaut Winston Scott, a South Florida native. "Something that is exciting, something that is beyond the realm of imagination for most people."
"I want to demonstrate to the public that anybody can participate in this type of weightless experience," Hawking, 65, who suffers from the debilitating illness ALS, said during a news conference. Well, anyone can participate after paying $3,675 (including tax) for a flight like Hawking's aboard a plane operated by Zero Gravity Corp., which has offices in Fort Lauderdale, Cape Canaveral and Las Vegas. Or $200,000 for an eventual hop along the edge of space. Or $25 million for a 13-day visit to the International Space Station.
Boeing's Delta IV May Get New Wings (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Nearly four years after Boeing took its Delta IV rocket off the commercial market, the company and the Air Force are looking to revive such contracts to help fill gaps among future government launches, according to Pentagon and industry officials. While no final decisions have been made, these officials said some Air Force program managers are prodding Boeing to resume limited commercial Delta IV launches in order to temper anticipated weak government launch schedules, particularly in 2009. In July 2003, when Boeing said commercial Delta IV launches weren't producing profits, so they decided to focus solely on meeting government launch needs.
April 27 News Items
Space Florida Welcomes SpaceX (Source: Space Florida)
Space Florida welcomed the decision by the Air Force to provide a license to SpaceX to utilize Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. SpaceX plans to operate its fleet of Falcon space launchers at the spaceport, a development that is anticipated to bring new jobs to the state. Space Florida was instrumental in bringing SpaceX to Florida, providing technical and liaison assistance to facilitate their use of the Eastern Range. According to Steve Kohler, president of Space Florida, "This is yet another important milestone in our effort to promote and develop Florida's space industry. SpaceX will have a positive impact on the state's economy."
Florida Delegation Pulls Together to Support SpaceX Request (Source: ERAU)
Florida’s four primary supporters of space issues in Congress played an active role in working with SpaceX and encouraging the Air Force’s assignment of LC-40 for the company’s use. Senators Bill Nelson and Mel Martinez, and Representatives Dave Weldon and Tom Feeney understood the importance of SpaceX’s commercial launch initiative and conveyed their support to the Air Force for accommodating the program at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.
NASA Yields to Shelby’s Pressure (Source: NASA Watch)
After NASA halted (at least temporarily) plans to shut down a Marshall lunar robotics office due to pressure from members of Alabama’s Congressional Delegation…”Word has it that they are celebrating at MSFC...When Congress (i.e. Sen. Shelby) starts to micromanage NASA to this extent, they totally compromise their credibility when they question why NASA manages other programs the way it does.”
Lawmaker Accuses NASA Chief of Destroying Meeting Tapes (Source: Florida Today)
NASA Administrator Michael Griffin is being accused of improperly destroying tapes of a meeting he held with the agency’s inspector general. Griffin held the April 10 meeting with members of the inspector general’s office as well as its chief, Robert Cobb, a controversial figure because of his management style and criticism over how he has performed his duties. If true, the actions appear "on its face to be nothing less than the destruction of evidence,” wrote Congressman Brad Miller (D-NC), chairman of the Science and Technology subcommittee on investigations and oversight. According to Miller, five compact discs containing video of the meeting were delivered to the office of NASA’s general counsel with orders to be destroyed. Miller said he believes there may still be a recording of the event somewhere and he ordered that such contents be handed over to his panel.
Hawking Leaves Wheelchair Behind (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
One of the world's foremost scientists slipped free from his wheelchair Thursday to float in zero gravity in the skies above the Atlantic Ocean. Stephen Hawking, a renowned British astrophysicist who is stricken with Lou Gehrig's disease, experienced about four minutes of simulated weightlessness aboard a modified Boeing 727 jet operated by the Zero Gravity Corp. The flight -- part philanthropy, part space tourism, part publicity stunt -- departed from Kennedy Space Center's shuttle runway while a throng of international media looked on.
Hawking told reporters at a news conference before takeoff that he wanted to demonstrate that anyone could take part in the experience. Unable to move his limbs or speak, he communicated with a computer-synthesized voice controlled by a headset that measures small facial movements. "I think the human race has no future if it doesn't go into space," Hawking said. "I have long wanted to go into space, and the zero-gravity flight is a first step toward space travel."
New baseline for Heavier, Taller Ares V (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
A new optimized form of the huge Ares V Cargo Launch Vehicle (CaLV) has been revealed in an updated graphic and data baseline. The Ares V is a vital component of NASA's 1.5-launch architecture that will return NASA astronauts to the moon at the end of the next decade, and is the largest vehicle the agency will construct since the Saturn V. Compared to the August 2006 baseline, the vehicle is now 6,150 lbs heavier and some 6.6ft taller. Insertion altitude is up from 78nmi to 122nmi - and the final orbit in now 120nmi circular instead of 30x160nmi. Payload using the 1.5 launch scenario has changed from 65.4mt to 63.4mt, and gross LSAM (Lunar Surface Access Module) mass from 45.4mt to 43.2mt. The core stage carries 9,782 lbs more propellant, while the EDS (Earth Departure Stage) carries 8,259 lbs (3745 kg) less. The EDS is six feet longer, but carries less propellant.
By far the most important change is the reduction of loiter time in LEO (Low Earth Orbit) from 90 days to just 14. However, the plan is to launch the crew the day after the LSAM/EDS stack. A window opens every four days after that, so there will be three chances before the propellant in the EDS 'boils off.' The changes are part of an early - ongoing - process, which is receiving only a small amount of work, as NASA concentrates its limited Constellation budget on the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV), which is required primarily for US manned access to the International Space Station (ISS), before becoming the manned vehicle that will return NASA astronauts to the moon. Meanwhile, Ares I is continuing to undergo large scale evaluations through its design cycles, which is next due for a design/program review which will take place on May 23. This will be followed by a two week program-wide stand-down.
Alien Stowaways are Potentially Disastrous (Source: New Scientist)
When the Genesis space capsule began its re-entry into Earth's atmosphere in 2004, mission controllers at NASA got ready to celebrate. Genesis had spent three years in deep space collecting particles from the solar wind and was on course for a soft landing. Unfortunately, the capsule's parachutes failed to deploy, and it smashed into the Utah desert floor. The impact shattered Genesis's casing, exposing its delicate cargo of solar dust to terrestrial contamination. As it turned out, a fair proportion of the probe's samples remained usable. Nevertheless the rupturing of the Genesis probe is now paraded as an awful warning by those opposed to the idea of bringing samples back from Mars or beyond.
Kennedy Space Center Internships Available Under Florida Partnership (Source: Space Florida)
A partnership between NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Space Florida and the Florida Space Grant Consortium will provide summer internship opportunities for 15 Florida undergraduate students. The 10-week internship will involve real-world research and on-the-job training during the summer of 2007. The students will intern at companies at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Visit http://www.spaceflorida.gov/internship.html for information.
Space Florida Microgravity Center Named for Stephen Hawking (Source: Space Florida)
On the day of Dr. Stephen Hawking's historic weightless flight. Space Florida announced the renaming of a planned microgravity education and research center to honor the acclaimed cosmologist and theoretical physicist. The Stephen Hawking Microgravity Education and Research Center will facilitate Florida education and microgravity research projects aboard ZERO-G's G-Force One aircraft.
EU Demands Progress on Galileo Satellites (Source: Business Week)
The European Parliament has pressured a consortium that is building and running the EU's new satellite navigation system to make progress, saying delays would raise the overall cost. The Galileo project -- Europe's rival to the U.S. Global Positioning System, or GPS -- has already seen major delays because the eight companies in the consortium are arguing over how to divide the workload. The satellite system is supposed to be launched and operational in orbit by 2011, beaming radio signals to Earth so users can pinpoint their exact locations. The EU gave the consortium the go-ahead in 2005 to construct Galileo, on condition they sign an operations agreement to split the work across EU nations.
Space Florida welcomed the decision by the Air Force to provide a license to SpaceX to utilize Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. SpaceX plans to operate its fleet of Falcon space launchers at the spaceport, a development that is anticipated to bring new jobs to the state. Space Florida was instrumental in bringing SpaceX to Florida, providing technical and liaison assistance to facilitate their use of the Eastern Range. According to Steve Kohler, president of Space Florida, "This is yet another important milestone in our effort to promote and develop Florida's space industry. SpaceX will have a positive impact on the state's economy."
Florida Delegation Pulls Together to Support SpaceX Request (Source: ERAU)
Florida’s four primary supporters of space issues in Congress played an active role in working with SpaceX and encouraging the Air Force’s assignment of LC-40 for the company’s use. Senators Bill Nelson and Mel Martinez, and Representatives Dave Weldon and Tom Feeney understood the importance of SpaceX’s commercial launch initiative and conveyed their support to the Air Force for accommodating the program at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.
NASA Yields to Shelby’s Pressure (Source: NASA Watch)
After NASA halted (at least temporarily) plans to shut down a Marshall lunar robotics office due to pressure from members of Alabama’s Congressional Delegation…”Word has it that they are celebrating at MSFC...When Congress (i.e. Sen. Shelby) starts to micromanage NASA to this extent, they totally compromise their credibility when they question why NASA manages other programs the way it does.”
Lawmaker Accuses NASA Chief of Destroying Meeting Tapes (Source: Florida Today)
NASA Administrator Michael Griffin is being accused of improperly destroying tapes of a meeting he held with the agency’s inspector general. Griffin held the April 10 meeting with members of the inspector general’s office as well as its chief, Robert Cobb, a controversial figure because of his management style and criticism over how he has performed his duties. If true, the actions appear "on its face to be nothing less than the destruction of evidence,” wrote Congressman Brad Miller (D-NC), chairman of the Science and Technology subcommittee on investigations and oversight. According to Miller, five compact discs containing video of the meeting were delivered to the office of NASA’s general counsel with orders to be destroyed. Miller said he believes there may still be a recording of the event somewhere and he ordered that such contents be handed over to his panel.
Hawking Leaves Wheelchair Behind (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
One of the world's foremost scientists slipped free from his wheelchair Thursday to float in zero gravity in the skies above the Atlantic Ocean. Stephen Hawking, a renowned British astrophysicist who is stricken with Lou Gehrig's disease, experienced about four minutes of simulated weightlessness aboard a modified Boeing 727 jet operated by the Zero Gravity Corp. The flight -- part philanthropy, part space tourism, part publicity stunt -- departed from Kennedy Space Center's shuttle runway while a throng of international media looked on.
Hawking told reporters at a news conference before takeoff that he wanted to demonstrate that anyone could take part in the experience. Unable to move his limbs or speak, he communicated with a computer-synthesized voice controlled by a headset that measures small facial movements. "I think the human race has no future if it doesn't go into space," Hawking said. "I have long wanted to go into space, and the zero-gravity flight is a first step toward space travel."
New baseline for Heavier, Taller Ares V (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
A new optimized form of the huge Ares V Cargo Launch Vehicle (CaLV) has been revealed in an updated graphic and data baseline. The Ares V is a vital component of NASA's 1.5-launch architecture that will return NASA astronauts to the moon at the end of the next decade, and is the largest vehicle the agency will construct since the Saturn V. Compared to the August 2006 baseline, the vehicle is now 6,150 lbs heavier and some 6.6ft taller. Insertion altitude is up from 78nmi to 122nmi - and the final orbit in now 120nmi circular instead of 30x160nmi. Payload using the 1.5 launch scenario has changed from 65.4mt to 63.4mt, and gross LSAM (Lunar Surface Access Module) mass from 45.4mt to 43.2mt. The core stage carries 9,782 lbs more propellant, while the EDS (Earth Departure Stage) carries 8,259 lbs (3745 kg) less. The EDS is six feet longer, but carries less propellant.
By far the most important change is the reduction of loiter time in LEO (Low Earth Orbit) from 90 days to just 14. However, the plan is to launch the crew the day after the LSAM/EDS stack. A window opens every four days after that, so there will be three chances before the propellant in the EDS 'boils off.' The changes are part of an early - ongoing - process, which is receiving only a small amount of work, as NASA concentrates its limited Constellation budget on the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV), which is required primarily for US manned access to the International Space Station (ISS), before becoming the manned vehicle that will return NASA astronauts to the moon. Meanwhile, Ares I is continuing to undergo large scale evaluations through its design cycles, which is next due for a design/program review which will take place on May 23. This will be followed by a two week program-wide stand-down.
Alien Stowaways are Potentially Disastrous (Source: New Scientist)
When the Genesis space capsule began its re-entry into Earth's atmosphere in 2004, mission controllers at NASA got ready to celebrate. Genesis had spent three years in deep space collecting particles from the solar wind and was on course for a soft landing. Unfortunately, the capsule's parachutes failed to deploy, and it smashed into the Utah desert floor. The impact shattered Genesis's casing, exposing its delicate cargo of solar dust to terrestrial contamination. As it turned out, a fair proportion of the probe's samples remained usable. Nevertheless the rupturing of the Genesis probe is now paraded as an awful warning by those opposed to the idea of bringing samples back from Mars or beyond.
Kennedy Space Center Internships Available Under Florida Partnership (Source: Space Florida)
A partnership between NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Space Florida and the Florida Space Grant Consortium will provide summer internship opportunities for 15 Florida undergraduate students. The 10-week internship will involve real-world research and on-the-job training during the summer of 2007. The students will intern at companies at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Visit http://www.spaceflorida.gov/internship.html for information.
Space Florida Microgravity Center Named for Stephen Hawking (Source: Space Florida)
On the day of Dr. Stephen Hawking's historic weightless flight. Space Florida announced the renaming of a planned microgravity education and research center to honor the acclaimed cosmologist and theoretical physicist. The Stephen Hawking Microgravity Education and Research Center will facilitate Florida education and microgravity research projects aboard ZERO-G's G-Force One aircraft.
EU Demands Progress on Galileo Satellites (Source: Business Week)
The European Parliament has pressured a consortium that is building and running the EU's new satellite navigation system to make progress, saying delays would raise the overall cost. The Galileo project -- Europe's rival to the U.S. Global Positioning System, or GPS -- has already seen major delays because the eight companies in the consortium are arguing over how to divide the workload. The satellite system is supposed to be launched and operational in orbit by 2011, beaming radio signals to Earth so users can pinpoint their exact locations. The EU gave the consortium the go-ahead in 2005 to construct Galileo, on condition they sign an operations agreement to split the work across EU nations.
April 26 News Items
Pegasus Launches NASA Earth Science Spacecraft (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Pegasus rocket successfully launched a small satellite designed to study clouds in the Earth's upper atmosphere. The Pegasus XL was deployed from its L-1011 carrier aircraft off the coast from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and placed the 200-kilogram Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft into polar orbit. AIM is designed to study high-altitude noctilucent clouds, usually only seen in polar regions at night but increasingly found at lower latitudes. The launch was the first this year for the Pegasus, a small launcher developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation.
XM 1Q Loss Narrows, Subscriptions Rise (Source: AP)
XM Satellite Radio, which is seeking regulatory approval to be acquired by its biggest rival, said its first-quarter loss narrowed as subscription revenue rose sharply. XM, which in February agreed to a buyout offer from Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., reported a loss of $122.4 million, versus a loss of $151.4 million in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 27 percent to $264.1 million from $208 million last year.
ILS Signs Contract for Proton Launch of Canada's Nimiq 5 (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
International Launch Services (ILS) will launch its sixth satellite for Telesat Canada on a Proton Breeze M vehicle, following the signing of contracts for the 2009 launch of Nimiq 5 communications satellite. The 2009 launch will be from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, adding to the 2008 launch of Telesat's Nimiq 4. ILS have already signed three new satellite launch contracts in 2007.
A Step Closer to a European Space Policy (Source: ESA)
Space is a strategic asset which Europe must exploit more effectively. Europe cannot afford to lose out when it comes to securing the economic and societal benefits of space for its citizens. The European Space Policy will soon give Europe a comprehensive tool with which to widen its dimension vis-à-vis space activities. The College of European Commissioners in Brussels adopted a document on the European Space Policy which has been jointly drafted by the European Commission and the European Space Agency’s Director General. Over the past two years, the two organizations have been working on establishing a comprehensive political framework for the development and exploitation of space technologies and systems. The policy will be presented by ESA’s Director General as a proposal at the next delegate-level meeting of ESA’s ruling Council on 9 May.
New UF Research Center Expected to Improve Powerful Computers (Source: UF)
A new national NSF-sponsored research center led by the University of Florida will explore technologies that could revolutionize high-performance computing, a field crucial in areas of science ranging from space exploration to weather forecasting to medicine. The Center for High-Performance Reconfigurable Computing will seek solutions to the increasingly urgent problems confronting today’s powerful computers underlying science and business. The center’s goal is to develop new methods whereby next-generation computers can “morph” or adapt their internal hardware structure so as to best achieve the task at hand. That would make them faster, more energy-efficient, more compact and more versatile.
Raytheon, General Dynamics Report Higher Net Profits (Source: AIA)
Continued growth in DOD spending pushed up first-quarter profits at Raytheon and General Dynamics. General Dynamics' profit rose 16% to $434 million, while Raytheon's earnings climbed 21% to $346 million.
New Mexico Spaceport Launch, Take Two (Source: Las Cruces Sun-News)
When UP Aerospace launched its SpaceLoft XL rocket from Spaceport America last September, a cheer went out over the loud speakers. Seconds passed and a monotone voice announced the rocket had encountered an anomaly, later blamed for the rocket failing to reach space and crashing west of White Sands Missile Range. On Wednesday, UP and state officials were back at the spaceport site with renewed optimism and putting the finishing touches — checking equipment and weather balloons, going through launch procedures and conducting "dry runs" — on the company's second launch attempt, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Saturday. UP President Jerry Larson said the rocket was assembled Tuesday and is now on the launch rail. Everything seems to be lining up for a successful launch, he said.
Brevard County Student Plays Body Double for Hawking Test Flight (Source: ERAU)
Stone Middle School student Ted Straight flew aboard ZERO-G's G-Force One aircraft the day before Stephen Hawking's historic flight. Accompanied by Hawking's physicians, Straight supported a practice-run to develop the procedures required to ensure Hawking's comfort and safety during the next day's flight. Straight was nominated for the opportunity by Brevard County School Board member Larry Hughes. Straight and Hawking met after the test flight during a Hawking lecture and reception, sponsored by Space Florida in Orlando.
SpaceX Cleared for Cape Launches (Source: Florida Today)
A new rocket could be flying out of Cape Canaveral. Air Force Space Command announced it has given its blessing for SpaceX to operate Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. That's the old Titan 4 complex on the northern end of the Cape. "The SpaceX license agreement is a good news story for the Air Force and Nation," said Gen. Kevin P. Chilton, commander of Air Force Space Command. "These types of agreements encourage entrepreneurial space achievement which can benefit both the DoD and commercial space industries.
A Pegasus rocket successfully launched a small satellite designed to study clouds in the Earth's upper atmosphere. The Pegasus XL was deployed from its L-1011 carrier aircraft off the coast from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and placed the 200-kilogram Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft into polar orbit. AIM is designed to study high-altitude noctilucent clouds, usually only seen in polar regions at night but increasingly found at lower latitudes. The launch was the first this year for the Pegasus, a small launcher developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation.
XM 1Q Loss Narrows, Subscriptions Rise (Source: AP)
XM Satellite Radio, which is seeking regulatory approval to be acquired by its biggest rival, said its first-quarter loss narrowed as subscription revenue rose sharply. XM, which in February agreed to a buyout offer from Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., reported a loss of $122.4 million, versus a loss of $151.4 million in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 27 percent to $264.1 million from $208 million last year.
ILS Signs Contract for Proton Launch of Canada's Nimiq 5 (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
International Launch Services (ILS) will launch its sixth satellite for Telesat Canada on a Proton Breeze M vehicle, following the signing of contracts for the 2009 launch of Nimiq 5 communications satellite. The 2009 launch will be from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, adding to the 2008 launch of Telesat's Nimiq 4. ILS have already signed three new satellite launch contracts in 2007.
A Step Closer to a European Space Policy (Source: ESA)
Space is a strategic asset which Europe must exploit more effectively. Europe cannot afford to lose out when it comes to securing the economic and societal benefits of space for its citizens. The European Space Policy will soon give Europe a comprehensive tool with which to widen its dimension vis-à-vis space activities. The College of European Commissioners in Brussels adopted a document on the European Space Policy which has been jointly drafted by the European Commission and the European Space Agency’s Director General. Over the past two years, the two organizations have been working on establishing a comprehensive political framework for the development and exploitation of space technologies and systems. The policy will be presented by ESA’s Director General as a proposal at the next delegate-level meeting of ESA’s ruling Council on 9 May.
New UF Research Center Expected to Improve Powerful Computers (Source: UF)
A new national NSF-sponsored research center led by the University of Florida will explore technologies that could revolutionize high-performance computing, a field crucial in areas of science ranging from space exploration to weather forecasting to medicine. The Center for High-Performance Reconfigurable Computing will seek solutions to the increasingly urgent problems confronting today’s powerful computers underlying science and business. The center’s goal is to develop new methods whereby next-generation computers can “morph” or adapt their internal hardware structure so as to best achieve the task at hand. That would make them faster, more energy-efficient, more compact and more versatile.
Raytheon, General Dynamics Report Higher Net Profits (Source: AIA)
Continued growth in DOD spending pushed up first-quarter profits at Raytheon and General Dynamics. General Dynamics' profit rose 16% to $434 million, while Raytheon's earnings climbed 21% to $346 million.
New Mexico Spaceport Launch, Take Two (Source: Las Cruces Sun-News)
When UP Aerospace launched its SpaceLoft XL rocket from Spaceport America last September, a cheer went out over the loud speakers. Seconds passed and a monotone voice announced the rocket had encountered an anomaly, later blamed for the rocket failing to reach space and crashing west of White Sands Missile Range. On Wednesday, UP and state officials were back at the spaceport site with renewed optimism and putting the finishing touches — checking equipment and weather balloons, going through launch procedures and conducting "dry runs" — on the company's second launch attempt, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Saturday. UP President Jerry Larson said the rocket was assembled Tuesday and is now on the launch rail. Everything seems to be lining up for a successful launch, he said.
Brevard County Student Plays Body Double for Hawking Test Flight (Source: ERAU)
Stone Middle School student Ted Straight flew aboard ZERO-G's G-Force One aircraft the day before Stephen Hawking's historic flight. Accompanied by Hawking's physicians, Straight supported a practice-run to develop the procedures required to ensure Hawking's comfort and safety during the next day's flight. Straight was nominated for the opportunity by Brevard County School Board member Larry Hughes. Straight and Hawking met after the test flight during a Hawking lecture and reception, sponsored by Space Florida in Orlando.
SpaceX Cleared for Cape Launches (Source: Florida Today)
A new rocket could be flying out of Cape Canaveral. Air Force Space Command announced it has given its blessing for SpaceX to operate Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. That's the old Titan 4 complex on the northern end of the Cape. "The SpaceX license agreement is a good news story for the Air Force and Nation," said Gen. Kevin P. Chilton, commander of Air Force Space Command. "These types of agreements encourage entrepreneurial space achievement which can benefit both the DoD and commercial space industries.
April 25 News Items
Alabama Congressman Worries NASA Work at Risk (Source: Huntsville Times)
Lack of money could put NASA's future moon missions and Marshall Space Flight Center rocket development on the chopping block. Alabama Congressman Robert Aderholt is asking members of Congress to restore money to the NASA budget or risk delaying key work aimed at returning astronauts to the moon. Aderholt said he is concerned if the programs are behind schedule then money will not be made available in the future for catch-up work - a position that could threaten long-term programs. Aderholt is pushing for an extra $500 million in the fiscal 2008 budget to keep lunar exploration missions on track. The budget shortfalls caused senior NASA managers to consider shutting down a 32-member Marshall lunar robotics office.
The office has been the source of a continuing argument between Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, who wants it to stay open and at Marshall, and NASA Administrator Mike Griffin. "This situation is a disaster," said George Whitesides, executive director of the National Space Society in Washington, D.C. "Griffin has been forced to cut a whole range of very valuable efforts. It's not the NASA administrator's fault. Griffin is just working with what he has been given." Whitesides and other space experts fear that lack of money will mean future lunar exploration missions will take place over a few years, and not create a transportation network of rockets and bases that would allow continued trips to the moon.
Group Pushes Reno Space Education Center (Source: Reno Gazette-Journal)
Reno is poised to enter the space age, complete with missions to Mars and an orbiting space station. All it will take is $1.5 million to build the only Challenger Learning Center in Nevada, and a local group already has planned its first fundraiser to launch the effort. The center would house simulations of NASA's Mission Control in Houston and of the International Space Station used to teach students about math, science and other skills.
Northrop Grumman Profit Rises (Source: Reuters)
Northrop Grumman's first-quarter profit rose less than expected, as higher sales of its military equipment was offset slightly by the costs of a strike at one of its shipyards. The No. 3 U.S. defense contractor, which makes warships, nuclear submarines, unmanned surveillance planes and a range of military electronics, kept its full-year earnings forecast unchanged. Northrop, the third-largest Pentagon contractor behind Lockheed Martin and Boeing, reported quarterly net profit of $387 million, compared with $358 million in the year-ago quarter.
Arianespace and Japan Strengthening Relationship (Source: Arianespace)
Japan continues its role as a key partner for Arianespace - with a growing number of new Japanese commercial payloads to be orbited and launch services cooperation being developed. To date, 23 out of Japan's 32 commercial launch contracts have been entrusted to Arianespace. In the next 12 months, Arianespace will launch three payloads for Japanese satellite operators: BSAT-3A for B-SAT Corporation, Horizons-2 for JSAT Corporation, and Superbird-7 for Space Communications corporation. Arianespace announced an agreement with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) to combine their satellite launch offerings for Ariane 5 and Japan's H-IIA to better serve customers worldwide. As a result, Arianespace and MHI will be able to jointly propose launch services with the flexibility of orbiting a customer's satellite on either of these two vehicles.
Lack of money could put NASA's future moon missions and Marshall Space Flight Center rocket development on the chopping block. Alabama Congressman Robert Aderholt is asking members of Congress to restore money to the NASA budget or risk delaying key work aimed at returning astronauts to the moon. Aderholt said he is concerned if the programs are behind schedule then money will not be made available in the future for catch-up work - a position that could threaten long-term programs. Aderholt is pushing for an extra $500 million in the fiscal 2008 budget to keep lunar exploration missions on track. The budget shortfalls caused senior NASA managers to consider shutting down a 32-member Marshall lunar robotics office.
The office has been the source of a continuing argument between Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, who wants it to stay open and at Marshall, and NASA Administrator Mike Griffin. "This situation is a disaster," said George Whitesides, executive director of the National Space Society in Washington, D.C. "Griffin has been forced to cut a whole range of very valuable efforts. It's not the NASA administrator's fault. Griffin is just working with what he has been given." Whitesides and other space experts fear that lack of money will mean future lunar exploration missions will take place over a few years, and not create a transportation network of rockets and bases that would allow continued trips to the moon.
Group Pushes Reno Space Education Center (Source: Reno Gazette-Journal)
Reno is poised to enter the space age, complete with missions to Mars and an orbiting space station. All it will take is $1.5 million to build the only Challenger Learning Center in Nevada, and a local group already has planned its first fundraiser to launch the effort. The center would house simulations of NASA's Mission Control in Houston and of the International Space Station used to teach students about math, science and other skills.
Northrop Grumman Profit Rises (Source: Reuters)
Northrop Grumman's first-quarter profit rose less than expected, as higher sales of its military equipment was offset slightly by the costs of a strike at one of its shipyards. The No. 3 U.S. defense contractor, which makes warships, nuclear submarines, unmanned surveillance planes and a range of military electronics, kept its full-year earnings forecast unchanged. Northrop, the third-largest Pentagon contractor behind Lockheed Martin and Boeing, reported quarterly net profit of $387 million, compared with $358 million in the year-ago quarter.
Arianespace and Japan Strengthening Relationship (Source: Arianespace)
Japan continues its role as a key partner for Arianespace - with a growing number of new Japanese commercial payloads to be orbited and launch services cooperation being developed. To date, 23 out of Japan's 32 commercial launch contracts have been entrusted to Arianespace. In the next 12 months, Arianespace will launch three payloads for Japanese satellite operators: BSAT-3A for B-SAT Corporation, Horizons-2 for JSAT Corporation, and Superbird-7 for Space Communications corporation. Arianespace announced an agreement with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) to combine their satellite launch offerings for Ariane 5 and Japan's H-IIA to better serve customers worldwide. As a result, Arianespace and MHI will be able to jointly propose launch services with the flexibility of orbiting a customer's satellite on either of these two vehicles.
April 24 News Items
Lockheed Posts 17% Jump in Q1 Profit, Boosts 2007 Outlook (Source: AIA)
Lockheed Martin said Tuesday its first-quarter profit climbed to $690 million from $591 billion a year earlier. Gains from a land sale, an income tax benefit and a reversal of legal reserves helped results. The company also boosted its outlook for 2007 and now expects to earn between $6.20 and $6.36 a share.
First Habitable Earth Like Planet Outside Solar System Discovered (Source: Malaysia Sun)
An international team of astronomers from Switzerland, France and Portugal have discovered the most Earth-like planet outside our Solar System to date. The planet has a radius only 50 percent larger than Earth and is very likely to contain liquid water on its surface. The research team used the European Southern Observatory's (ESO's) 3.6-m telescope to discover the super-Earth, which has a mass about five times that of the Earth and orbits a red dwarf star. Unlike our Earth, this planet takes only 13 days to complete one orbit round its star. It is also 14 times closer to its star than the Earth is from the Sun. However, since its host star, the red dwarf Gliese 581, is smaller and colder than the Sun - and thus less luminous - the planet lies in the habitable zone, the region around a star where water could be liquid.
L-3 Posts Q1 Profit, Announces Acquisitions (Source: AIA)
Growth in four business segments helped L-3 Communications post a 17% jump in first-quarter net income. The company says it has purchased Geneva Aerospace, which provides technology for unmanned aerial vehicles. L-3 also agreed to acquire Global Communications Solutions, a satellite communications equipment and products provider.
DayJet Plans to Launch Service in June (Source: AIA)
DayJet plans to launch on-demand, per seat air taxi service in June, The New York Times' Joe Sharkey writes. The company will start operating in Florida, and, by the fall, will fly among 10 secondary airports. The service is expected to draw business travelers who now drive on business trips in the 300-mile range and those wanting to avoid detours to hubs.
Minotaur Launches From Virginia Spaceport (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Minotaur rocket successfully launched an experimental missile warning satellite early Monday from Virginia. The Minotaur 1 lifted off from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops Island, Virginia and placed the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) satellite into low Earth orbit. The launch had been scheduled for Monday but was delayed because of problems with ground support equipment. The launch is the second in four months from the Virginia spaceport, after another Minotaur launched the TacSat-2 and GeneSat-1 spacecraft from the spaceport in December. Another Minotaur launch is scheduled to take place from the spaceport late this year.
"Out of This World" Weightless Flights by Zero Gravity Corp. Lift Off From Las Vegas (Source: ZERO-G)
To Sin City and Beyond! Raising the bar yet higher in the Entertainment Capital of the World, Zero Gravity Corp. has officially launched regular service from Las Vegas' McCarran International Airport. This, combined with the recently announced relationship with Sharper Image to sell ZERO-G flights in its stores throughout the nation, truly brings an incredible adventure -- previously only available to astronauts -- directly to the general public.
To blast off the attraction, ZERO-G hosted a private VIP flight with notables including Apollo-11 astronaut, Buzz Aldrin. Key Las Vegas casino executives and Vegas entertainers also participated in the flight to experience weightlessness for the first time, flying like Superman, flipping like Olympic gymnasts and enjoying 10-times more hang-time than the world's best basketball player.
UP Aerospace Readies Rocket for April 28th Space Launch (Source: UP Aerospace)
UP Aerospace is geared up for a multi-faceted space launch on April 28th. The mission, named "SL-2", will fly a wide range of educational experiments and commercial payloads into space. UP's vehicle offers a 110-pound payload capacity and 10,500-cubic-inches of payload volume, allowing payloads of up to 10 inches in diameter and 7 feet long. The vehicle offers flight profiles up to 140 miles altitude with a wide range of micro-gravity options. Visit http://www.upaerospace.com/SL-2-flight-manifest.html for a complete roster of customers and payloads for the SL-2 mission.
SpaceX Waits for USAF (Source: Flight International)
SpaceX is expecting a decision from the US Air Force about its possible use of Cape Canaveral, Florida as a launch site before the end of this month. The Cape launch complex would be used for commercial flights of the company's heavylift Falcon 9, designed to place 8,700kg (19,100lb) in low-Earth orbit. The planned Falcon 9 will be used for three demonstration flights under SpaceX's involvement in NASA's COTS program. The company has six flights booked for the Falcon 9 from next year to 2010, with the first, carrying a US government payload, expected in 2008. Commercial launches will either be from the Cape or SpaceX's current launch site on the Kwajalein Atoll island of Omelek in the Pacific Ocean. The company has applied for environmental approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration for both the Cape and Omelek launches of the Falcon 9.
NASA Chief expects Space station to Live On (Source: Flight International)
NASA administrator Michael Griffin expects his agency to change its International Space Station policy and extend its use of the orbital complex beyond 2016. In 2004, the agency revealed plans to stop funding the ISS in 2017 and divert the money to Moon missions. Internal NASA documents say flights of the planned Orion crew exploration vehicle to the ISS will end in 2016, even though its maiden flight is not expected before March 2015.
But now discussions with other space agencies on a global exploration strategy are expected to lead to an extension of the US involvement in the ISS, to 2020 at least. "[The ISS partners] have all been working for a decade and half to put in place these four laboratories," says Griffin, referring to the US, Russian, European and Japanese science modules. "I don't think [political] leaders [in 2016] will end their involvement. Assets like [the ISS] live a lot longer than anticipated. I doubt it will turn into a pumpkin in 2016."
Lockheed Martin said Tuesday its first-quarter profit climbed to $690 million from $591 billion a year earlier. Gains from a land sale, an income tax benefit and a reversal of legal reserves helped results. The company also boosted its outlook for 2007 and now expects to earn between $6.20 and $6.36 a share.
First Habitable Earth Like Planet Outside Solar System Discovered (Source: Malaysia Sun)
An international team of astronomers from Switzerland, France and Portugal have discovered the most Earth-like planet outside our Solar System to date. The planet has a radius only 50 percent larger than Earth and is very likely to contain liquid water on its surface. The research team used the European Southern Observatory's (ESO's) 3.6-m telescope to discover the super-Earth, which has a mass about five times that of the Earth and orbits a red dwarf star. Unlike our Earth, this planet takes only 13 days to complete one orbit round its star. It is also 14 times closer to its star than the Earth is from the Sun. However, since its host star, the red dwarf Gliese 581, is smaller and colder than the Sun - and thus less luminous - the planet lies in the habitable zone, the region around a star where water could be liquid.
L-3 Posts Q1 Profit, Announces Acquisitions (Source: AIA)
Growth in four business segments helped L-3 Communications post a 17% jump in first-quarter net income. The company says it has purchased Geneva Aerospace, which provides technology for unmanned aerial vehicles. L-3 also agreed to acquire Global Communications Solutions, a satellite communications equipment and products provider.
DayJet Plans to Launch Service in June (Source: AIA)
DayJet plans to launch on-demand, per seat air taxi service in June, The New York Times' Joe Sharkey writes. The company will start operating in Florida, and, by the fall, will fly among 10 secondary airports. The service is expected to draw business travelers who now drive on business trips in the 300-mile range and those wanting to avoid detours to hubs.
Minotaur Launches From Virginia Spaceport (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Minotaur rocket successfully launched an experimental missile warning satellite early Monday from Virginia. The Minotaur 1 lifted off from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops Island, Virginia and placed the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) satellite into low Earth orbit. The launch had been scheduled for Monday but was delayed because of problems with ground support equipment. The launch is the second in four months from the Virginia spaceport, after another Minotaur launched the TacSat-2 and GeneSat-1 spacecraft from the spaceport in December. Another Minotaur launch is scheduled to take place from the spaceport late this year.
"Out of This World" Weightless Flights by Zero Gravity Corp. Lift Off From Las Vegas (Source: ZERO-G)
To Sin City and Beyond! Raising the bar yet higher in the Entertainment Capital of the World, Zero Gravity Corp. has officially launched regular service from Las Vegas' McCarran International Airport. This, combined with the recently announced relationship with Sharper Image to sell ZERO-G flights in its stores throughout the nation, truly brings an incredible adventure -- previously only available to astronauts -- directly to the general public.
To blast off the attraction, ZERO-G hosted a private VIP flight with notables including Apollo-11 astronaut, Buzz Aldrin. Key Las Vegas casino executives and Vegas entertainers also participated in the flight to experience weightlessness for the first time, flying like Superman, flipping like Olympic gymnasts and enjoying 10-times more hang-time than the world's best basketball player.
UP Aerospace Readies Rocket for April 28th Space Launch (Source: UP Aerospace)
UP Aerospace is geared up for a multi-faceted space launch on April 28th. The mission, named "SL-2", will fly a wide range of educational experiments and commercial payloads into space. UP's vehicle offers a 110-pound payload capacity and 10,500-cubic-inches of payload volume, allowing payloads of up to 10 inches in diameter and 7 feet long. The vehicle offers flight profiles up to 140 miles altitude with a wide range of micro-gravity options. Visit http://www.upaerospace.com/SL-2-flight-manifest.html for a complete roster of customers and payloads for the SL-2 mission.
SpaceX Waits for USAF (Source: Flight International)
SpaceX is expecting a decision from the US Air Force about its possible use of Cape Canaveral, Florida as a launch site before the end of this month. The Cape launch complex would be used for commercial flights of the company's heavylift Falcon 9, designed to place 8,700kg (19,100lb) in low-Earth orbit. The planned Falcon 9 will be used for three demonstration flights under SpaceX's involvement in NASA's COTS program. The company has six flights booked for the Falcon 9 from next year to 2010, with the first, carrying a US government payload, expected in 2008. Commercial launches will either be from the Cape or SpaceX's current launch site on the Kwajalein Atoll island of Omelek in the Pacific Ocean. The company has applied for environmental approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration for both the Cape and Omelek launches of the Falcon 9.
NASA Chief expects Space station to Live On (Source: Flight International)
NASA administrator Michael Griffin expects his agency to change its International Space Station policy and extend its use of the orbital complex beyond 2016. In 2004, the agency revealed plans to stop funding the ISS in 2017 and divert the money to Moon missions. Internal NASA documents say flights of the planned Orion crew exploration vehicle to the ISS will end in 2016, even though its maiden flight is not expected before March 2015.
But now discussions with other space agencies on a global exploration strategy are expected to lead to an extension of the US involvement in the ISS, to 2020 at least. "[The ISS partners] have all been working for a decade and half to put in place these four laboratories," says Griffin, referring to the US, Russian, European and Japanese science modules. "I don't think [political] leaders [in 2016] will end their involvement. Assets like [the ISS] live a lot longer than anticipated. I doubt it will turn into a pumpkin in 2016."
April 23 News Items
India Conducts First Commercial Launch (Source: The Hindu)
An Indian PSLV-C8 rocket blasted into space carrying an Italian astronomical satellite, AGILE, from ISRO's Satish Dhawan spaceport, marking India's first fully commercial launch. Scientists cheered and loud applause was heard as the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its 11th flight, soared into the clear sky. Besides the 352 kg AGILE, the PSLV is also carrying ISRO's Advanced Avionics Module, weighing 185 kg, to flight-test advanced avionics such as mission computers, navigation and telemetry systems for use in future launch vehicles. This is also the first time the PSLV is flying without the six strap-AMM and is only about 540 kg.
Space Visions Congress Planned for This Weekend in Cocoa (Source: CCTS)
The Canaveral Council of Technical Societies (CCTS) is sponsoring the Space Visions Congress this week as a forum for discussion and dissemination of information on space exploration and technology programs. The April 26-28 event will be held at UCF's Florida Solar Energy Center at the Cocoa Campus of Brevard Community College. The event is co-sponsored by the Orbital Commerce Project, Inc., and Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS). One goal of the event is to gauge interest in a larger conference tentatively planned for next year, followed by a full blown Space Congress the year after. Visit http://www.spacevisionscongress.com for information and registration.
Black Holes May Fill The Universe With the Seeds of Life (Source: SpaceRef.com)
New research shows that black holes are not the ultimate destroyers that are often portrayed in popular culture. Instead, warm gas escaping from the clutches of enormous black holes could be one source of the chemical elements that make life possible.
Another Factory Mishap Damages NOAA Satellite (Source: Space News)
A multi-million dollar U.S. weather satellite in development for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has been damaged for a second time in a factory accident, contractor and government officials said. The incident occurred April 14 when Lockheed Martin engineers and technicians were rotating the 4.27-meter NOAA N-Prime spacecraft into a horizontal position inside a clean room at the company’s Sunnyvale, Calif. One of the spacecraft’s antennas broke loose from its nylon restraining cords and struck an atmospheric-measuring instrument known as an Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU), a NASA official. NASA is managing development of N Prime for NOAA said.
Economic Development the Focus of Next Space Club Luncheon (Source: NSC)
The National Space Club's Florida Committee will sponsor its next monthly luncheon meeting on May at at the DoubleTree hotel in Cocoa Beach. This month's featured speaker will be Lynda Weatherman, president and CEO of the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast. She will provide an overview of how the space industry affects residents of the Space Coast and what how NASA’s future will impact the area. Contact LaDonna Neterer at mailto:ladonna.j.neterer@boeing.com for information or to RSVP by May 3.
Italy’s New Space Agency Chief Embraces Strong National Effort (Source: Space News)
The new president of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) said this month’s launch of an Italian astronomy satellite aboard an Indian rocket and a scheduled June flight of a civil-military radar observation spacecraft on a Boeing Delta vehicle should serve to highlight Italy’s determination to develop a strong national space program in addition to its role inside the 17-nation European Space Agency (ESA). In an April 18 interview, Bignami agreed that Europe’s third-biggest space power after France and Germany needs to be given a clear direction. He has been given a four-year term to accomplish that.
Orbital Sciences Eyes Investment in Large Rocket (Source: Space News)
Orbital Sciences Corp., which has built its success on providing small satellites and launch vehicles to commercial and government customers, is considering an expansion of its rocket business to be able to carry much larger satellites into orbit, Orbital Chief Executive David W. Thompson said. Such a move — like Orbital Sciences’ decision to invest in small commercial telecommunications satellites several years ago — would buck conventional industry wisdom, especially among publicly traded companies. In both the United States and Europe, satellite launching is viewed as a low-margin business at best and investment in new vehicles can be justified only by substantial guaranteed government backing, the presence of a rich entrepreneur — or both.
Analysts: Commercial Spaceflight Industry Ripe for Investment (Source: Space News)
Would-be space investors have a slim window to delve into the field of commercial spaceflight, industry analysts said. With the current push by several private firms to develop commercial launch services for the international space station (ISS) and NASA’s coming gap between the 2010 retirement of its space shuttle fleet and their eventual Orion successor, the time is especially ripe for space savvy investors. “Right now is a very interesting window where there are people who are trying very hard, including [people] within the government, to bring down the very high barriers of entry,” said a consultant at a space investment meeting in New York.
‘Crossing the Valley of Death’ To Get New Technology Into Space (Source: Space News)
Inadequate funding, fear of failure, red tape and high launch costs conspire to make it difficult to take promising new technologies from the laboratory to orbit, officials with some of the leading U.S. space-development institutions said. But these officials also said they have, or are developing, means to counter these roadblocks. Eugene Tattini, deputy director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), admitted that his organization has the unusual luxury of “not having to arduously justify a return on investment for every dollar we expend in the technology arena.” JPL engineers are freer to experiment as they shepherd technologies across the “valley of death” to flight readiness, he said.
The NASA-funded lab’s free-wheeling culture also helps: “The facts of the matter are that if you want to wear your flip flops to work as people do for 37 years at JPL, that’s extremely great. I will keep the labs well stocked, we will keep the people well paid, and in some cases we’ll keep them out of the public’s eye,” Tattini said.
Air Force GPS Payload Intended to Preserve Spectrum (Source: Space News)
Seeking to preserve a radio-spectrum reservation in the event of more delays to its GPS 2F navigation satellites, the U.S. Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin Space Systems a $6 million contract to add a third civilian "L5" signal to one of the previous-generation GPS 2RM satellites. L5, is part of the baseline design for the GPS 2F satellites, which are under construction by Boeing and well behind schedule. The first GPS 2F launch, originally expected in 2002, now is scheduled for 2009. The Air Force’s reservation with the International Telecommunication Union for L5 radio spectrum requires that the signal begin operating by August 2009. Putting the signal on a Lockheed Martin-built GPS 2RM spacecraft will ensure that the service maintains its reservation until the GPS 2F satellites come on line.
Missile Defense Agency Mulls Interim Satellite Buy (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is weighing the idea of buying a missile tracking satellite that would bridge the gap between a pair of experimental spacecraft slated to launch this year and an operational constellation whose deployment has been delayed. The Space Tracking and Surveillance System (STSS) will consist of satellites equipped with sensors that can track missiles during the mid-course portion of flight.
Virginia NFIRE Launch Postponed (Source: SpaceToday.net)
The launch of an experimental military satellite was scrubbed early Monday. A Minotaur 1 was scheduled to lift off in the early morning hours Monday, carrying the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) spacecraft. However, the launch was scrubbed at around 3 am, a half-hour before the scheduled liftoff time at the Mid Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Virginia, because of an issue with ground support equipment.
With Congressional Intervention, Marshall Robotics Office Still Open For Now (Source: Huntsville Times)
A lunar robotics office will remain open at Marshall Space Flight Center while NASA's operating plan to move it to Washington is under review, a NASA spokesman said Sunday. The 32-employee Lunar Precursor and Robotics Program office had been scheduled to be moved because of federal budget shortfalls. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Al, worked with Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and U.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W. Va., this month to write a letter directing NASA to restore $20 million for the robotics office. Mikulski and Mollohan chair subcommittees that oversee NASA's budget.
An Indian PSLV-C8 rocket blasted into space carrying an Italian astronomical satellite, AGILE, from ISRO's Satish Dhawan spaceport, marking India's first fully commercial launch. Scientists cheered and loud applause was heard as the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its 11th flight, soared into the clear sky. Besides the 352 kg AGILE, the PSLV is also carrying ISRO's Advanced Avionics Module, weighing 185 kg, to flight-test advanced avionics such as mission computers, navigation and telemetry systems for use in future launch vehicles. This is also the first time the PSLV is flying without the six strap-AMM and is only about 540 kg.
Space Visions Congress Planned for This Weekend in Cocoa (Source: CCTS)
The Canaveral Council of Technical Societies (CCTS) is sponsoring the Space Visions Congress this week as a forum for discussion and dissemination of information on space exploration and technology programs. The April 26-28 event will be held at UCF's Florida Solar Energy Center at the Cocoa Campus of Brevard Community College. The event is co-sponsored by the Orbital Commerce Project, Inc., and Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS). One goal of the event is to gauge interest in a larger conference tentatively planned for next year, followed by a full blown Space Congress the year after. Visit http://www.spacevisionscongress.com for information and registration.
Black Holes May Fill The Universe With the Seeds of Life (Source: SpaceRef.com)
New research shows that black holes are not the ultimate destroyers that are often portrayed in popular culture. Instead, warm gas escaping from the clutches of enormous black holes could be one source of the chemical elements that make life possible.
Another Factory Mishap Damages NOAA Satellite (Source: Space News)
A multi-million dollar U.S. weather satellite in development for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has been damaged for a second time in a factory accident, contractor and government officials said. The incident occurred April 14 when Lockheed Martin engineers and technicians were rotating the 4.27-meter NOAA N-Prime spacecraft into a horizontal position inside a clean room at the company’s Sunnyvale, Calif. One of the spacecraft’s antennas broke loose from its nylon restraining cords and struck an atmospheric-measuring instrument known as an Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU), a NASA official. NASA is managing development of N Prime for NOAA said.
Economic Development the Focus of Next Space Club Luncheon (Source: NSC)
The National Space Club's Florida Committee will sponsor its next monthly luncheon meeting on May at at the DoubleTree hotel in Cocoa Beach. This month's featured speaker will be Lynda Weatherman, president and CEO of the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast. She will provide an overview of how the space industry affects residents of the Space Coast and what how NASA’s future will impact the area. Contact LaDonna Neterer at mailto:ladonna.j.neterer@boeing.com for information or to RSVP by May 3.
Italy’s New Space Agency Chief Embraces Strong National Effort (Source: Space News)
The new president of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) said this month’s launch of an Italian astronomy satellite aboard an Indian rocket and a scheduled June flight of a civil-military radar observation spacecraft on a Boeing Delta vehicle should serve to highlight Italy’s determination to develop a strong national space program in addition to its role inside the 17-nation European Space Agency (ESA). In an April 18 interview, Bignami agreed that Europe’s third-biggest space power after France and Germany needs to be given a clear direction. He has been given a four-year term to accomplish that.
Orbital Sciences Eyes Investment in Large Rocket (Source: Space News)
Orbital Sciences Corp., which has built its success on providing small satellites and launch vehicles to commercial and government customers, is considering an expansion of its rocket business to be able to carry much larger satellites into orbit, Orbital Chief Executive David W. Thompson said. Such a move — like Orbital Sciences’ decision to invest in small commercial telecommunications satellites several years ago — would buck conventional industry wisdom, especially among publicly traded companies. In both the United States and Europe, satellite launching is viewed as a low-margin business at best and investment in new vehicles can be justified only by substantial guaranteed government backing, the presence of a rich entrepreneur — or both.
Analysts: Commercial Spaceflight Industry Ripe for Investment (Source: Space News)
Would-be space investors have a slim window to delve into the field of commercial spaceflight, industry analysts said. With the current push by several private firms to develop commercial launch services for the international space station (ISS) and NASA’s coming gap between the 2010 retirement of its space shuttle fleet and their eventual Orion successor, the time is especially ripe for space savvy investors. “Right now is a very interesting window where there are people who are trying very hard, including [people] within the government, to bring down the very high barriers of entry,” said a consultant at a space investment meeting in New York.
‘Crossing the Valley of Death’ To Get New Technology Into Space (Source: Space News)
Inadequate funding, fear of failure, red tape and high launch costs conspire to make it difficult to take promising new technologies from the laboratory to orbit, officials with some of the leading U.S. space-development institutions said. But these officials also said they have, or are developing, means to counter these roadblocks. Eugene Tattini, deputy director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), admitted that his organization has the unusual luxury of “not having to arduously justify a return on investment for every dollar we expend in the technology arena.” JPL engineers are freer to experiment as they shepherd technologies across the “valley of death” to flight readiness, he said.
The NASA-funded lab’s free-wheeling culture also helps: “The facts of the matter are that if you want to wear your flip flops to work as people do for 37 years at JPL, that’s extremely great. I will keep the labs well stocked, we will keep the people well paid, and in some cases we’ll keep them out of the public’s eye,” Tattini said.
Air Force GPS Payload Intended to Preserve Spectrum (Source: Space News)
Seeking to preserve a radio-spectrum reservation in the event of more delays to its GPS 2F navigation satellites, the U.S. Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin Space Systems a $6 million contract to add a third civilian "L5" signal to one of the previous-generation GPS 2RM satellites. L5, is part of the baseline design for the GPS 2F satellites, which are under construction by Boeing and well behind schedule. The first GPS 2F launch, originally expected in 2002, now is scheduled for 2009. The Air Force’s reservation with the International Telecommunication Union for L5 radio spectrum requires that the signal begin operating by August 2009. Putting the signal on a Lockheed Martin-built GPS 2RM spacecraft will ensure that the service maintains its reservation until the GPS 2F satellites come on line.
Missile Defense Agency Mulls Interim Satellite Buy (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is weighing the idea of buying a missile tracking satellite that would bridge the gap between a pair of experimental spacecraft slated to launch this year and an operational constellation whose deployment has been delayed. The Space Tracking and Surveillance System (STSS) will consist of satellites equipped with sensors that can track missiles during the mid-course portion of flight.
Virginia NFIRE Launch Postponed (Source: SpaceToday.net)
The launch of an experimental military satellite was scrubbed early Monday. A Minotaur 1 was scheduled to lift off in the early morning hours Monday, carrying the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) spacecraft. However, the launch was scrubbed at around 3 am, a half-hour before the scheduled liftoff time at the Mid Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Virginia, because of an issue with ground support equipment.
With Congressional Intervention, Marshall Robotics Office Still Open For Now (Source: Huntsville Times)
A lunar robotics office will remain open at Marshall Space Flight Center while NASA's operating plan to move it to Washington is under review, a NASA spokesman said Sunday. The 32-employee Lunar Precursor and Robotics Program office had been scheduled to be moved because of federal budget shortfalls. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Al, worked with Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and U.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W. Va., this month to write a letter directing NASA to restore $20 million for the robotics office. Mikulski and Mollohan chair subcommittees that oversee NASA's budget.
April 22 News Items
Homans May Seek U.S. House or Senate Seat (Source: Spaceport blog)
Homans has been rumored to be a possible Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Pete V. Domenici or the U.S. House seat now held by Heather Wilson. How long Homans will hold the Spaceport Authority post is unclear.
Applications Made for Over 200 Suborbital Flights - Space Adventures (Source: Interfax)
Space Adventures space tourism company, U.S., continues preparations for sub-orbital flights, the company's Vice President Chris Faranetta told the press. The company has received about 200 applications, he said. Faranetta also said that the Myasishchev firm remains the company's Russian partner. Under a joint project, suborbital spaceships will be launched from Myasishchev M-55 high-altitude planes. Each spaceship will carry a crew of eight-ten members. A flight will tentatively cost some $100,000. The crew will remain in zero-gravity conditions for about 15 minutes, after which the spaceship will start a descent. Airfields for receiving suborbital spaceships are expected to be built in Indonesia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, Faranetta said.
Space Adventures Preparing for Commercial Flights to Moon (Source: Interfax)
Space Adventures has been developing a project to fly two private citizens to the Moon and has received the first applications. The mission is priced at $100 million. If the project is approved and funded in 2007, the first tourists will fly to the Moon in five years. But exactly when the first investment is made depends on the Russian space agency and Energia space corporation, since Space Adventures does not make the spaceships. Two options are being considered for flights to the Moon. One is for the crew to be launched on a Soyuz vehicle, which will dock with a transfer stage in orbit and travel to the Moon. The second option would be to assemble a lunar vehicle on the International Space Station. The second option is a lot more interesting, said Space Adventures' vice president.
NASA Throttles Up for Change as End of Shuttle Era Nears (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
With only three years remaining before the space-shuttle fleet's planned retirement, NASA managers have begun tackling the thorny issues that will dictate the program's end. Critical facilities must be overhauled to support planned human missions to the moon. Billions of dollars' worth of obsolete shuttle hardware must be disposed of. And, most difficult of all, thousands of jobs must be shifted or eliminated as the shuttle era ends and the new Constellation project takes off. Nowhere will the changes be felt more keenly than at Kennedy Space Center, which will see a transformation of its work force, facilities and operations.
Today, there are about 13,000 full-time workers at KSC, consisting of roughly 11,000 contractors and 2,000 government employees. Most of them work on the shuttle. One of NASA's biggest challenges is to avoid an early exodus of critically skilled employees as the program winds down. "We have a real challenge to make sure that the people who work so hard at KSC and at the support centers around KSC stay all the way until the end," said a NASA official. Another challenge will be moving workers from shuttle operations to the Constellation program. Many workers were displaced and their skills were lost between the final Apollo flight in 1975 and the first shuttle mission in 1981. NASA wants to avoid a repeat.
NASA hopes to keep workers busy during the gap with ground and flight tests of the new Orion capsule and Ares rocket systems. As the shuttle nears retirement, the number of civil-servant astronauts is projected to drop from 99 in 2009 to 74 in 2011 -- a cut of about one-fourth. The majority would be assigned to the space-station program, with about two dozen working in the Constellation project. Click here to view the article.
Muslim Satellites On Orbit (Source: Islam Online)
With the dawn of the space age, Muslim nations have joined the international community in their interest to put artificial satellites into orbit to serve an increasing range of applications for the benefit of humankind. On April 17, a new milestone for some Muslim nations has been made, as seven Muslim-owned satellites went into orbit. A Dnepr rocket, a retired soviet-era intercontinental ballistic missile modified to carry commercial cargo to space, launched with the satellites from Kazakhstan. Two of these, Egypt-owned MisrSat-1 and Saudi-owned SaudiSat-3, are remote sensing micro-satellites used to photograph Earth, while the remaining five owned by Saudi Arabia, SaudiComSat-3,4,5,6,7, are communication satellites. Seven other CubSat nano-satellites were also onboard the Dnepr rocket that belong to University projects in the United States and Columbia.
Cyclone-4 to be Launched from Brazil's Alcantara Spaceport (Source: Spaceport blog)
Ukraine and Brazil will begin building a Tsyklon-4/Cyclone-4 space rocket complex at Brazil's Alcantara cosmodrome in the fall of 2007, a Ukrainian National Space Agency official said April 19. Ukraine designed the Tsyklon-4 to launch satellites into near-Earth orbits, and it will be able to carry a 12,100-pound load. It reportedly might carry a Chinese-Brazilian observation satellite. Brazil is very much interested in commercial launches from Alcantara, using both home- and foreign-built vehicles and promising good business for the parties involved, Ukraine and Russia included. The center's geographic location is better than those of other countries in higher latitudes. Alcantara's proximity to the equator, where the Earth rotates more quickly, allows the weight of payloads sent aloft to be increased by 30% to 40%. The Kourou spaceport in French Guiana, which will soon launch a Russian Soyuz-2 vehicle, could become Alcantara's rival in near-equatorial regions in the next few years.
Russian Space Agency Ready to Send Abramovich Around Moon (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia's Space Agency is ready to send Russia's richest man, London-based Roman Abramovich, on a flight around the Moon for $300 million after 2010. Some press reports have said Roman Abramovich has submitted his candidacy for flying around the Moon for $300 million," Anatoly Perminov, head of the agency, said. "The figure is attractive, and ... we will consider the proposal after 2010." Perminov said until 2009 all space tourist flights had been signed up.
Homans has been rumored to be a possible Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Pete V. Domenici or the U.S. House seat now held by Heather Wilson. How long Homans will hold the Spaceport Authority post is unclear.
Applications Made for Over 200 Suborbital Flights - Space Adventures (Source: Interfax)
Space Adventures space tourism company, U.S., continues preparations for sub-orbital flights, the company's Vice President Chris Faranetta told the press. The company has received about 200 applications, he said. Faranetta also said that the Myasishchev firm remains the company's Russian partner. Under a joint project, suborbital spaceships will be launched from Myasishchev M-55 high-altitude planes. Each spaceship will carry a crew of eight-ten members. A flight will tentatively cost some $100,000. The crew will remain in zero-gravity conditions for about 15 minutes, after which the spaceship will start a descent. Airfields for receiving suborbital spaceships are expected to be built in Indonesia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, Faranetta said.
Space Adventures Preparing for Commercial Flights to Moon (Source: Interfax)
Space Adventures has been developing a project to fly two private citizens to the Moon and has received the first applications. The mission is priced at $100 million. If the project is approved and funded in 2007, the first tourists will fly to the Moon in five years. But exactly when the first investment is made depends on the Russian space agency and Energia space corporation, since Space Adventures does not make the spaceships. Two options are being considered for flights to the Moon. One is for the crew to be launched on a Soyuz vehicle, which will dock with a transfer stage in orbit and travel to the Moon. The second option would be to assemble a lunar vehicle on the International Space Station. The second option is a lot more interesting, said Space Adventures' vice president.
NASA Throttles Up for Change as End of Shuttle Era Nears (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
With only three years remaining before the space-shuttle fleet's planned retirement, NASA managers have begun tackling the thorny issues that will dictate the program's end. Critical facilities must be overhauled to support planned human missions to the moon. Billions of dollars' worth of obsolete shuttle hardware must be disposed of. And, most difficult of all, thousands of jobs must be shifted or eliminated as the shuttle era ends and the new Constellation project takes off. Nowhere will the changes be felt more keenly than at Kennedy Space Center, which will see a transformation of its work force, facilities and operations.
Today, there are about 13,000 full-time workers at KSC, consisting of roughly 11,000 contractors and 2,000 government employees. Most of them work on the shuttle. One of NASA's biggest challenges is to avoid an early exodus of critically skilled employees as the program winds down. "We have a real challenge to make sure that the people who work so hard at KSC and at the support centers around KSC stay all the way until the end," said a NASA official. Another challenge will be moving workers from shuttle operations to the Constellation program. Many workers were displaced and their skills were lost between the final Apollo flight in 1975 and the first shuttle mission in 1981. NASA wants to avoid a repeat.
NASA hopes to keep workers busy during the gap with ground and flight tests of the new Orion capsule and Ares rocket systems. As the shuttle nears retirement, the number of civil-servant astronauts is projected to drop from 99 in 2009 to 74 in 2011 -- a cut of about one-fourth. The majority would be assigned to the space-station program, with about two dozen working in the Constellation project. Click here to view the article.
Muslim Satellites On Orbit (Source: Islam Online)
With the dawn of the space age, Muslim nations have joined the international community in their interest to put artificial satellites into orbit to serve an increasing range of applications for the benefit of humankind. On April 17, a new milestone for some Muslim nations has been made, as seven Muslim-owned satellites went into orbit. A Dnepr rocket, a retired soviet-era intercontinental ballistic missile modified to carry commercial cargo to space, launched with the satellites from Kazakhstan. Two of these, Egypt-owned MisrSat-1 and Saudi-owned SaudiSat-3, are remote sensing micro-satellites used to photograph Earth, while the remaining five owned by Saudi Arabia, SaudiComSat-3,4,5,6,7, are communication satellites. Seven other CubSat nano-satellites were also onboard the Dnepr rocket that belong to University projects in the United States and Columbia.
Cyclone-4 to be Launched from Brazil's Alcantara Spaceport (Source: Spaceport blog)
Ukraine and Brazil will begin building a Tsyklon-4/Cyclone-4 space rocket complex at Brazil's Alcantara cosmodrome in the fall of 2007, a Ukrainian National Space Agency official said April 19. Ukraine designed the Tsyklon-4 to launch satellites into near-Earth orbits, and it will be able to carry a 12,100-pound load. It reportedly might carry a Chinese-Brazilian observation satellite. Brazil is very much interested in commercial launches from Alcantara, using both home- and foreign-built vehicles and promising good business for the parties involved, Ukraine and Russia included. The center's geographic location is better than those of other countries in higher latitudes. Alcantara's proximity to the equator, where the Earth rotates more quickly, allows the weight of payloads sent aloft to be increased by 30% to 40%. The Kourou spaceport in French Guiana, which will soon launch a Russian Soyuz-2 vehicle, could become Alcantara's rival in near-equatorial regions in the next few years.
Russian Space Agency Ready to Send Abramovich Around Moon (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia's Space Agency is ready to send Russia's richest man, London-based Roman Abramovich, on a flight around the Moon for $300 million after 2010. Some press reports have said Roman Abramovich has submitted his candidacy for flying around the Moon for $300 million," Anatoly Perminov, head of the agency, said. "The figure is attractive, and ... we will consider the proposal after 2010." Perminov said until 2009 all space tourist flights had been signed up.
April 21 News Items
Wallops Rocket Launch Set for April 23 (Source: NASA)
The Missile Defense Agency, in partnership with NASA and the U.S. Air Force, plans to conduct a rocket launch between 3 and 3:30 a.m., April 23, 2007, from the NASA Wallops Island Facility, Virginia. Called the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE), the mission involves launching a four-stage Minotaur I rocket carrying a satellite to collect scientific data that will be used to help with the development of future missile defense technology efforts.
Soyuz Returns to Earth (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Soyuz spacecraft carrying two ISS crew members and a space tourist landed safely on the steppes of Kazakhstan on Saturday. On board the Soyuz were NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin, who has spent over six months on the ISS. The third passenger on the Soyuz was space tourist Charles Simonyi, who spent just under two weeks in space as the fifth commercial passenger to visit the ISS. The landing was delayed a day, and the landing site shifted, because of flooding at the original site.
NASA Awards California Aircraft Support Contract to Boeing (Source: NASA)
NASA has awarded a contract to Boeing for engineering and technical support of several specialized research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center. The sole-source, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract may be worth up to $28 million during its five-year performance period now through April 2012. Boeing will provide engineering and technical support for four heavily modified high-performance aircraft: two F-15s and two F/A-18s. The aircraft have been modified to conduct a variety of flight research missions in support of NASA and other government agencies and private industry.
Space Tourist, Astronauts Grieve for Virginia Tech Shooting Victims (Source: Space.com)
Five professional astronauts and an American visitor to the International Space Station (ISS) expressed grief Thursday for those killed and wounded during a student gunman’s attack at Virginia Tech. “We may be many miles away physically but our hearts are with the students, their families and university communities everywhere," said U.S. space tourist Charles Simonyi. Among those injured was student Kristina Heeger, daughter of Space Adventures CEO Eric Anderson, who underwent surgery for multiple injuries and was reportedly doing well. Space Adventures sponsored Simonyi's visit to the Space Station.
NASA Modifies Orion Contract - Delivery Delayed, Tests Added, Cargo Vehicle Dropped (Source: NASA Watch)
NASA is making a significant modification to the Orion development contract with Lockheed Martin. The $385 million change in the contract will add two test flights of Orion's launch abort system, halt production of a pressurized cargo version of Orion, and most significantly, add two years to the design phase of Orion development - thus slipping the initial delivery of flight hardware. The change in delivery date is something NASA says that it had planned to do for some time and is not directly related to recent budget issues. Nor is it tied, according to NASA, to any developmental difficulties in the Orion program itself. Rather, the issue is one of getting the best phasing of all of the elements - spacecraft and launch vehicle.
In addition to better phasing of the overall Orion and Ares programs, this is also a lesson learned from the space station program wherein a lot of hardware was delivered early - often years early - and has been waiting in specialized storage facilities for its chance to fly. There is a significant cost associated with the workforce [at Kennedy Space Center] needed to assure that the hardware remains in perfect condition until it does fly. Delaying Orion delivery would reduce that cost significantly.
NASA has also deleted development of an unmanned, pressurized version of Orion, which would have been used for cargo deliveries to the International Space Station. The pressurized cargo version is no longer needed by NASA by virtue of the COTS contracts awarded to SpaceX and RpK for their own commercial ISS supply vehicles. However, design work will continue on the NASA cargo vehicle so as to have this capability in the agency's back pocket - just in case it is needed.
Space Florida Hosts Pre-Flight Event with Stephen Hawking (Source: Space Florida)
Final preparations are underway for renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking's zero gravity flight on April 26 from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. But before his flight, the preeminent expert on cosmology and cosmic gravity will deliver a lecture during a pre-flight dinner at the JW Marriott hotel in Orlando. The event is being sponsored by Space Florida, the economic development organization responsible for sustaining and strengthening Florida's global position as the leader in space exploration, research, investment and commerce.
Two Dead in JSC Hostage Standoff (Sources: Houston Chronicle, Reuters)
A gunman and one hostage, both men, are dead after a violent incident at Johnson Space Center on Friday. The shooter was William Arthur Phillips, an employee with Jacobs Engineering. His victim, David Beverly, was a JSC employee. Phillips reportedly killed himself with a gunshot about three hours after taking Beverly's life. A female hostage, Francelia Crenshaw, had been bound with duct tape but was otherwise unharmed. According to Reuters, a mediocre job review led Phillips to buy a gun, then kill Beverly, whom he blamed for the appraisal.
The Missile Defense Agency, in partnership with NASA and the U.S. Air Force, plans to conduct a rocket launch between 3 and 3:30 a.m., April 23, 2007, from the NASA Wallops Island Facility, Virginia. Called the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE), the mission involves launching a four-stage Minotaur I rocket carrying a satellite to collect scientific data that will be used to help with the development of future missile defense technology efforts.
Soyuz Returns to Earth (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Soyuz spacecraft carrying two ISS crew members and a space tourist landed safely on the steppes of Kazakhstan on Saturday. On board the Soyuz were NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin, who has spent over six months on the ISS. The third passenger on the Soyuz was space tourist Charles Simonyi, who spent just under two weeks in space as the fifth commercial passenger to visit the ISS. The landing was delayed a day, and the landing site shifted, because of flooding at the original site.
NASA Awards California Aircraft Support Contract to Boeing (Source: NASA)
NASA has awarded a contract to Boeing for engineering and technical support of several specialized research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center. The sole-source, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract may be worth up to $28 million during its five-year performance period now through April 2012. Boeing will provide engineering and technical support for four heavily modified high-performance aircraft: two F-15s and two F/A-18s. The aircraft have been modified to conduct a variety of flight research missions in support of NASA and other government agencies and private industry.
Space Tourist, Astronauts Grieve for Virginia Tech Shooting Victims (Source: Space.com)
Five professional astronauts and an American visitor to the International Space Station (ISS) expressed grief Thursday for those killed and wounded during a student gunman’s attack at Virginia Tech. “We may be many miles away physically but our hearts are with the students, their families and university communities everywhere," said U.S. space tourist Charles Simonyi. Among those injured was student Kristina Heeger, daughter of Space Adventures CEO Eric Anderson, who underwent surgery for multiple injuries and was reportedly doing well. Space Adventures sponsored Simonyi's visit to the Space Station.
NASA Modifies Orion Contract - Delivery Delayed, Tests Added, Cargo Vehicle Dropped (Source: NASA Watch)
NASA is making a significant modification to the Orion development contract with Lockheed Martin. The $385 million change in the contract will add two test flights of Orion's launch abort system, halt production of a pressurized cargo version of Orion, and most significantly, add two years to the design phase of Orion development - thus slipping the initial delivery of flight hardware. The change in delivery date is something NASA says that it had planned to do for some time and is not directly related to recent budget issues. Nor is it tied, according to NASA, to any developmental difficulties in the Orion program itself. Rather, the issue is one of getting the best phasing of all of the elements - spacecraft and launch vehicle.
In addition to better phasing of the overall Orion and Ares programs, this is also a lesson learned from the space station program wherein a lot of hardware was delivered early - often years early - and has been waiting in specialized storage facilities for its chance to fly. There is a significant cost associated with the workforce [at Kennedy Space Center] needed to assure that the hardware remains in perfect condition until it does fly. Delaying Orion delivery would reduce that cost significantly.
NASA has also deleted development of an unmanned, pressurized version of Orion, which would have been used for cargo deliveries to the International Space Station. The pressurized cargo version is no longer needed by NASA by virtue of the COTS contracts awarded to SpaceX and RpK for their own commercial ISS supply vehicles. However, design work will continue on the NASA cargo vehicle so as to have this capability in the agency's back pocket - just in case it is needed.
Space Florida Hosts Pre-Flight Event with Stephen Hawking (Source: Space Florida)
Final preparations are underway for renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking's zero gravity flight on April 26 from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. But before his flight, the preeminent expert on cosmology and cosmic gravity will deliver a lecture during a pre-flight dinner at the JW Marriott hotel in Orlando. The event is being sponsored by Space Florida, the economic development organization responsible for sustaining and strengthening Florida's global position as the leader in space exploration, research, investment and commerce.
Two Dead in JSC Hostage Standoff (Sources: Houston Chronicle, Reuters)
A gunman and one hostage, both men, are dead after a violent incident at Johnson Space Center on Friday. The shooter was William Arthur Phillips, an employee with Jacobs Engineering. His victim, David Beverly, was a JSC employee. Phillips reportedly killed himself with a gunshot about three hours after taking Beverly's life. A female hostage, Francelia Crenshaw, had been bound with duct tape but was otherwise unharmed. According to Reuters, a mediocre job review led Phillips to buy a gun, then kill Beverly, whom he blamed for the appraisal.
April 20 News Items
Weldon Joins Call for Summit to Discuss Space Program Future (Source: NASA Watch)
U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) yesterday joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers in calling for a meeting with President Bush to discuss the future of our nation's space program. The move comes just weeks after Congress approved a 2007 budget resolution that raided NASA's budget and gutted the manned-space initiative. Weldon, who represents thousands of NASA and industry workers employed at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, expressed disbelief that some lawmakers calling for the space summit voted for the very budget that cut NASA funding.
"Holding a space summit with the President is worthwhile," said Weldon. "But, it seems a little disingenuous to write a letter expressing concern about NASA's lack of resources, when you're voting for budgets that cut NASA funding. What good will a space summit do if those calling for it aren't willing to stand up and be counted when it matters most?" Weldon has repeatedly voted against budgets that have denied NASA the necessary funding. He said the proof will be whether the Democratic leaders will restore NASA's budget.
GAO: USAF Workforce Issues May Pose Next Problems for Space Programs (Source: Defense News)
Now that Air Force Space Command has a plan to head off technical and financial problems, it may be the human side of acquisition that could continue to cause problems for its major programs, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report warns that the Air Force might not have sufficient personnel to keep key space programs on track. The Transformational Satellite Communications System program (TSAT), for example, is financially back on track after years of cost overruns and recertifications, but shortages of staff with science, engineering, program management and cost estimation backgrounds could put the program at risk again.
Senators and Pentagon brass cited failed acquisition reform efforts of the late 1990s as the major source of current personnel problems. Unable to see a future in space acquisition at that time, many people who today would be midlevel officers with years of experience under their belts left the service for industry, said Gen. Kevin Chilton, commander of Air Force Space Command.
Deep Space Travel Will Require New Gadgets to Keep Astronauts Healthy (Source: AIA)
Travel into deep space is expected to require new gadgetry and medications along with careful screening to select the healthiest astronauts. NASA may equip a spacecraft bound for Mars with a centrifuge, a device that would help astronauts avoid bone loss. "The history of humanity is that we go wherever we can. We have spread all across this planet, and it doesn't surprise me that we are going into space for longer periods and in larger numbers," says David Dinges, a University of Pennsylvania psychologist who leads research on behavioral issues for the NASA-funded National Space Biomedical Research Institute.
Florida Governor Weighs In On NASA Budget (Source: EOG)
Florida Governor Charlie Crist, in a letter to Congressional leaders in Washington, advocated full funding for NASA in FY-2008: "Any decline in NASA funding will have a crippling affect on the scientific and aeronautical proficiency of NASA's workforce, and will curtail the economic and commercial prosperity of the Florida Space Coast. A robust NASA budget, especially as preparations are made to transition from the Space Shuttle program to the new Orion human spaceflight vehicle, is imperative for continued U.S. leadership in space exploration."
US and UK Pledge to Work on New Space Exploration Initiative (Source: NASA Watch)
NASA and the British National Space Centre (BNSC) have signed a historic agreement to jointly study how the two space agencies might work together on future planetary explorations to the Moon and beyond. A joint team is to be established to conduct a study into specific areas of US-UK potential collaboration involving lunar science and exploration.
NASA Building at Johnson Space Center Evacuated After Reports of Gunman (Source: AP)
A building at the Johnson Space Center was evacuated Friday after reports of a gunman inside, police said. Space center security officers and Houston police, including a SWAT team, were dispatched to the building, which houses communications equipment and a laboratory. NASA spokesman James Hartsfield said the building was one of the smaller structures on the space center campus, where Mission Control is based. He declined to speculate on how an armed person might have slipped past NASA security.
Sirius CEO Faces Skeptics in Senate (Source: Space News)
A Senate committee chairman said Tuesday Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. has “a steep hill to climb” in showing that its proposed purchase of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. will not hurt competition in the audio entertainment market.
Orbital Express Conducts First Autonomous Spacecraft-to-Spacecraft Fluid and Component Transfer (Source: Boeing)
In its first on-orbit demonstration 300 miles above the Earth, Boeing's Orbital Express system autonomously transferred propellant fuel and a battery from one spacecraft to another, marking industry firsts for the revolutionary system. During the fuel transfer demonstration, the Boeing Autonomous Space Transport Robotic Operations (ASTRO) servicing spacecraft successfully transferred hydrazine propellant with Ball Aerospace's NextSat, a prototypical modular next-generation serviceable client spacecraft.
China Cancels Space Waste Meeting (Source: Financial Times)
China has abruptly scrapped plans for an international governmental meeting next week on how to deal with hazardous space waste, just three months after an anti-satellite weapon test that prompted international fears of an arms race in space. China's move appears to reflect concern that the conference might become a forum for criticism of its recent destruction of an old weather satellite with a missile-launched “kinetic kill vehicle”, which scattered more than 1,500 pieces of debris.
Homans to Take NM Spaceport Post (Source: New Mexico Business Weekly)
Gov. Bill Richardson has appointed Rick Homans to be executive director of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority. Homans will leave his post as secretary of economic development at the end of April to oversee construction of Spaceport America. Homans' three immediate tasks, according to a news release from the governor's office, will be to oversee final design, engineering and preparation of construction bid documents for the spaceport, usher Spaceport America through licensing by the Federal Aviation Administration and lead a national search for a permanent executive director for the facility.
Boeing Pico-Satellite Mission to Advance Miniature Satellite Technology (Source: Boeing)
A pico-satellite developed by Boeing to evaluate miniature spacecraft technologies was successfully launched to orbit on April 17 by a Dnepr rocket from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan. Initial system checks indicate that the CubeSat TestBed 1 (CSTB1) spacecraft is operational and ready for a series of on-orbit demonstrations that will help Boeing further develop nano-satellites weighing less than 22 pounds. "Our pico- and nano-satellite activities are part of a broader Boeing effort to enable a more operationally responsive space," said Alex Lopez, vice president of Boeing Advanced Network and Space Systems.
U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) yesterday joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers in calling for a meeting with President Bush to discuss the future of our nation's space program. The move comes just weeks after Congress approved a 2007 budget resolution that raided NASA's budget and gutted the manned-space initiative. Weldon, who represents thousands of NASA and industry workers employed at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, expressed disbelief that some lawmakers calling for the space summit voted for the very budget that cut NASA funding.
"Holding a space summit with the President is worthwhile," said Weldon. "But, it seems a little disingenuous to write a letter expressing concern about NASA's lack of resources, when you're voting for budgets that cut NASA funding. What good will a space summit do if those calling for it aren't willing to stand up and be counted when it matters most?" Weldon has repeatedly voted against budgets that have denied NASA the necessary funding. He said the proof will be whether the Democratic leaders will restore NASA's budget.
GAO: USAF Workforce Issues May Pose Next Problems for Space Programs (Source: Defense News)
Now that Air Force Space Command has a plan to head off technical and financial problems, it may be the human side of acquisition that could continue to cause problems for its major programs, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report warns that the Air Force might not have sufficient personnel to keep key space programs on track. The Transformational Satellite Communications System program (TSAT), for example, is financially back on track after years of cost overruns and recertifications, but shortages of staff with science, engineering, program management and cost estimation backgrounds could put the program at risk again.
Senators and Pentagon brass cited failed acquisition reform efforts of the late 1990s as the major source of current personnel problems. Unable to see a future in space acquisition at that time, many people who today would be midlevel officers with years of experience under their belts left the service for industry, said Gen. Kevin Chilton, commander of Air Force Space Command.
Deep Space Travel Will Require New Gadgets to Keep Astronauts Healthy (Source: AIA)
Travel into deep space is expected to require new gadgetry and medications along with careful screening to select the healthiest astronauts. NASA may equip a spacecraft bound for Mars with a centrifuge, a device that would help astronauts avoid bone loss. "The history of humanity is that we go wherever we can. We have spread all across this planet, and it doesn't surprise me that we are going into space for longer periods and in larger numbers," says David Dinges, a University of Pennsylvania psychologist who leads research on behavioral issues for the NASA-funded National Space Biomedical Research Institute.
Florida Governor Weighs In On NASA Budget (Source: EOG)
Florida Governor Charlie Crist, in a letter to Congressional leaders in Washington, advocated full funding for NASA in FY-2008: "Any decline in NASA funding will have a crippling affect on the scientific and aeronautical proficiency of NASA's workforce, and will curtail the economic and commercial prosperity of the Florida Space Coast. A robust NASA budget, especially as preparations are made to transition from the Space Shuttle program to the new Orion human spaceflight vehicle, is imperative for continued U.S. leadership in space exploration."
US and UK Pledge to Work on New Space Exploration Initiative (Source: NASA Watch)
NASA and the British National Space Centre (BNSC) have signed a historic agreement to jointly study how the two space agencies might work together on future planetary explorations to the Moon and beyond. A joint team is to be established to conduct a study into specific areas of US-UK potential collaboration involving lunar science and exploration.
NASA Building at Johnson Space Center Evacuated After Reports of Gunman (Source: AP)
A building at the Johnson Space Center was evacuated Friday after reports of a gunman inside, police said. Space center security officers and Houston police, including a SWAT team, were dispatched to the building, which houses communications equipment and a laboratory. NASA spokesman James Hartsfield said the building was one of the smaller structures on the space center campus, where Mission Control is based. He declined to speculate on how an armed person might have slipped past NASA security.
Sirius CEO Faces Skeptics in Senate (Source: Space News)
A Senate committee chairman said Tuesday Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. has “a steep hill to climb” in showing that its proposed purchase of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. will not hurt competition in the audio entertainment market.
Orbital Express Conducts First Autonomous Spacecraft-to-Spacecraft Fluid and Component Transfer (Source: Boeing)
In its first on-orbit demonstration 300 miles above the Earth, Boeing's Orbital Express system autonomously transferred propellant fuel and a battery from one spacecraft to another, marking industry firsts for the revolutionary system. During the fuel transfer demonstration, the Boeing Autonomous Space Transport Robotic Operations (ASTRO) servicing spacecraft successfully transferred hydrazine propellant with Ball Aerospace's NextSat, a prototypical modular next-generation serviceable client spacecraft.
China Cancels Space Waste Meeting (Source: Financial Times)
China has abruptly scrapped plans for an international governmental meeting next week on how to deal with hazardous space waste, just three months after an anti-satellite weapon test that prompted international fears of an arms race in space. China's move appears to reflect concern that the conference might become a forum for criticism of its recent destruction of an old weather satellite with a missile-launched “kinetic kill vehicle”, which scattered more than 1,500 pieces of debris.
Homans to Take NM Spaceport Post (Source: New Mexico Business Weekly)
Gov. Bill Richardson has appointed Rick Homans to be executive director of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority. Homans will leave his post as secretary of economic development at the end of April to oversee construction of Spaceport America. Homans' three immediate tasks, according to a news release from the governor's office, will be to oversee final design, engineering and preparation of construction bid documents for the spaceport, usher Spaceport America through licensing by the Federal Aviation Administration and lead a national search for a permanent executive director for the facility.
Boeing Pico-Satellite Mission to Advance Miniature Satellite Technology (Source: Boeing)
A pico-satellite developed by Boeing to evaluate miniature spacecraft technologies was successfully launched to orbit on April 17 by a Dnepr rocket from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan. Initial system checks indicate that the CubeSat TestBed 1 (CSTB1) spacecraft is operational and ready for a series of on-orbit demonstrations that will help Boeing further develop nano-satellites weighing less than 22 pounds. "Our pico- and nano-satellite activities are part of a broader Boeing effort to enable a more operationally responsive space," said Alex Lopez, vice president of Boeing Advanced Network and Space Systems.
April 19 News Items
OMB Guidance on Earmarks (Source: NASA Watch)
According to minutes from a recent NASA Strategic Management Council meeting: "- OMB policy on earmarks: [Griffin] announced the new policy of OMB Director Rob Portman not to honor report language requiring congressionally mandated spending; the only earmarks that will be honored are those that are included in legislation. PA&E Strategic Investments Division Director Chris Shank warned members to expect special congressional requests to honor report language.
Lockheed Martin Receives $6 Million Contract to Add Signal to Modernized GPS Satellite (Source: Lockheed Martin)
The Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a $6 million contract to develop and integrate a demonstration payload that will temporarily transmit a third civil signal on a modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite. This new contract directs Lockheed Martin and its navigation payload supplier ITT in Clifton, N.J. to provide an on-orbit demonstration capability for the new civil signal. The Block IIR-M spacecraft with the demonstration payload is planned for launch in 2008.
Boeing and Argon Non-GPS Surface Navigation Effort Under Way (Source: Aviation Week)
Teams led by Boeing and Argon ST are embarking on a DARPA-sponsored effort to develop technology capable of determining one's position on the Earth based on available terrestrial signals when the Global Positioning System (GPS) is being jammed or blocked. The Robust Surface Navigation (RSN) program seeks to exploit "signals of opportunity" -- such as electronic waves emanating from satellites, cell phone towers or TV transmitters -- to provide precise location and navigation information to ground troops.
"If one could also get some sort of a time-sync signal from a television transmitter, and if you knew where the television transmitter was, then you can assess exactly how far away you are from that television transmitter, just like you do with GPS today," said Boeing's project manager. Comparisons between several such signals then could yield a fairly precise position. Boeing received $2.6 million and Argon ST $2.4 million for Phase 1A, which began in February. The ultimate vision for RSN is to develop an enhanced geo-location receiver no bulkier than today's receivers that can both receive GPS and other satellite-based positioning signals such as Galileo, as well as assess and exploit terrestrial signals. If no "signals of opportunity" are available, standalone beacons dropped by warfighters could be an option as well.
Orbital Reports First Quarter 2007 Financial Results (Source: Orbital Sciences Corp.)
Orbital Sciences Corp. announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2007. Orbital's first quarter revenues increased 19% to $228.2 million in 2007, compared to $192.2 million in 2006. The company's first quarter operating income rose 10% to $17.5 million in 2007, as compared to $16.0 million in 2006. First quarter net income increased 29% to $11.5 million in 2007, compared to $8.8 million in 2006.
Lockheed's Setbacks Raise Concerns (Source: AIA)
Lockheed Martin has faced criticism recently for its work on several defense contracts. Some experts say Lockheed executives are concerned that the recent problems may affect the company's ability to win new business. "These are significant setbacks for Lockheed that occur against a backdrop of remarkable success over the last five years," says Loren Thompson, a defense analyst at the Lexington Institute in Arlington, Va. "The real question is if that trend is going to continue."
KSC Test Flight Advances Concept for Horizontal Spaceport Operations (Source: Florida Today)
An F-104 jet owned by StarFighters blasted through the sky over the Cape Canaveral Spaceport on Tuesday, gathering test data about what kind of noise nuisance frequent space tourism flights from here may cause nearby residents. "I didn't hear a thing here at KSC, which is good news," said NASA's Jim Ball, the manager spearheading NASA's efforts to find alternate uses for the unique Shuttle Landing Facility and nearby supporting facilities. NASA, KSC and Florida officials hope that, perhaps before the end of this decade, private spacecraft are able to launch tourist flights into space from the three-mile-long runway where orbiters have landed for decades.
NASA made a deal with Starfighters to share the data from the flights in exchange for use of the shuttle runway and support facilities on Tuesday and for some future test flights. In some cases, if Starfighters is using the shuttle facilities to gather data for itself, the company will reimburse some of NASA's costs. The experiment in question is being run by Florida Institute of Technology researcher Sam Durrance, a former astronaut who has for years been closely involved in space-related economic development in the state. Durrance formerly headed the Florida Space Research Institute. Starfighters also hopes its planes could someday be used as part of the formal training program that tourists would go through before flying on a sub-orbital space mission.
According to minutes from a recent NASA Strategic Management Council meeting: "- OMB policy on earmarks: [Griffin] announced the new policy of OMB Director Rob Portman not to honor report language requiring congressionally mandated spending; the only earmarks that will be honored are those that are included in legislation. PA&E Strategic Investments Division Director Chris Shank warned members to expect special congressional requests to honor report language.
Lockheed Martin Receives $6 Million Contract to Add Signal to Modernized GPS Satellite (Source: Lockheed Martin)
The Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a $6 million contract to develop and integrate a demonstration payload that will temporarily transmit a third civil signal on a modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite. This new contract directs Lockheed Martin and its navigation payload supplier ITT in Clifton, N.J. to provide an on-orbit demonstration capability for the new civil signal. The Block IIR-M spacecraft with the demonstration payload is planned for launch in 2008.
Boeing and Argon Non-GPS Surface Navigation Effort Under Way (Source: Aviation Week)
Teams led by Boeing and Argon ST are embarking on a DARPA-sponsored effort to develop technology capable of determining one's position on the Earth based on available terrestrial signals when the Global Positioning System (GPS) is being jammed or blocked. The Robust Surface Navigation (RSN) program seeks to exploit "signals of opportunity" -- such as electronic waves emanating from satellites, cell phone towers or TV transmitters -- to provide precise location and navigation information to ground troops.
"If one could also get some sort of a time-sync signal from a television transmitter, and if you knew where the television transmitter was, then you can assess exactly how far away you are from that television transmitter, just like you do with GPS today," said Boeing's project manager. Comparisons between several such signals then could yield a fairly precise position. Boeing received $2.6 million and Argon ST $2.4 million for Phase 1A, which began in February. The ultimate vision for RSN is to develop an enhanced geo-location receiver no bulkier than today's receivers that can both receive GPS and other satellite-based positioning signals such as Galileo, as well as assess and exploit terrestrial signals. If no "signals of opportunity" are available, standalone beacons dropped by warfighters could be an option as well.
Orbital Reports First Quarter 2007 Financial Results (Source: Orbital Sciences Corp.)
Orbital Sciences Corp. announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2007. Orbital's first quarter revenues increased 19% to $228.2 million in 2007, compared to $192.2 million in 2006. The company's first quarter operating income rose 10% to $17.5 million in 2007, as compared to $16.0 million in 2006. First quarter net income increased 29% to $11.5 million in 2007, compared to $8.8 million in 2006.
Lockheed's Setbacks Raise Concerns (Source: AIA)
Lockheed Martin has faced criticism recently for its work on several defense contracts. Some experts say Lockheed executives are concerned that the recent problems may affect the company's ability to win new business. "These are significant setbacks for Lockheed that occur against a backdrop of remarkable success over the last five years," says Loren Thompson, a defense analyst at the Lexington Institute in Arlington, Va. "The real question is if that trend is going to continue."
KSC Test Flight Advances Concept for Horizontal Spaceport Operations (Source: Florida Today)
An F-104 jet owned by StarFighters blasted through the sky over the Cape Canaveral Spaceport on Tuesday, gathering test data about what kind of noise nuisance frequent space tourism flights from here may cause nearby residents. "I didn't hear a thing here at KSC, which is good news," said NASA's Jim Ball, the manager spearheading NASA's efforts to find alternate uses for the unique Shuttle Landing Facility and nearby supporting facilities. NASA, KSC and Florida officials hope that, perhaps before the end of this decade, private spacecraft are able to launch tourist flights into space from the three-mile-long runway where orbiters have landed for decades.
NASA made a deal with Starfighters to share the data from the flights in exchange for use of the shuttle runway and support facilities on Tuesday and for some future test flights. In some cases, if Starfighters is using the shuttle facilities to gather data for itself, the company will reimburse some of NASA's costs. The experiment in question is being run by Florida Institute of Technology researcher Sam Durrance, a former astronaut who has for years been closely involved in space-related economic development in the state. Durrance formerly headed the Florida Space Research Institute. Starfighters also hopes its planes could someday be used as part of the formal training program that tourists would go through before flying on a sub-orbital space mission.
April 18 News Items
Buzz Aldrin Plans Spaceflight Raffle (Source: Space.com)
Former Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin is drawing up plans for a lottery-like contest, with space experiences for prizes, in hopes of making orbital spaceflight available to more than just wealthy entrepreneurs. Billed as the ShareSpace Stakes, the contest is envisioned to function as part of Aldrin’s ShareSpace Foundation, a firm designed to promote interest in human spaceflight and science education. “It’s something akin to a sweepstakes or a raffle,” Aldrin said Tuesday during the Space Investment Summit here, adding that many details remain to be determined. “We have yet to set up the rules and regulations.”
Bruce Willis to Rock KSC (Source: Florida Today)
Bruce Willis and his band will be rocking the rocket garden at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 2. Tickets will be available to the public at a date to be announced later. About 5,000 people are expected to attend the show. The blues performance is part of the Netflix LIVE! On Location series of concerts and will be followed by an outdoor screening of Willis' flick "Armageddon," which features a space mission to save Earth from an asteroid. Parts of "Armageddon" were filmed at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.
Rocketplane Kistler Signs Transportation MoU with Japanese Company (Source: Flight International)
Rocketplane Kistler (RpK) could transport Japanese astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) under a memorandum of understanding it has signed with the Japanese Manned Space Systems corporation (JAMSS). RpK expects to have demonstrated a crew transportation system early in the next decade using its Kistler-1 launcher, which it is developing under the NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation Services demonstration program.
Space Tourism May Not Generate Excessive Noise in Central Florida (Source: Florida Today)
Tests to determine the amount of noise that space tourism may generate led to promising results Tuesday. Sonic booms created by tests of a F-104 fighter jet flying over the Atlantic Ocean could not be heard at Kennedy Space Center. Officials hope that private spacecraft are able to launch tourists into space from KSC before the end of this decade.
NASA Rethinks Plan to Close Robotics Office (Source: Birmingham News)
NASA is reconsidering plans to close a lunar robotics office in Huntsville, a decision announced Tuesday evening, a few hours after two members of Alabama's congressional delegation escalated their dispute with the space agency. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., in a morning speech said he was counting the days until NASA Administrator Michael Griffin lost his job. And Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville, in an afternoon interview questioned whether Griffin misled him about the future of the Lunar Precursor Robotics Program, based at Marshall Space Flight Center.
Lunar Mission Might Save Glenn (Source: Columbus Dispatch)
It's a little like the 1960s again at the NASA Glenn Research Center, where engineers are once more up to their eyeballs in manned space projects. And it's the moon once more that's driving the missions. NASA Glenn has key roles in developing hardware to deliver astronauts to the moon by 2020 and perhaps to Mars. Glenn's biggest coup is winning the job of designing the service module for the Orion crew exploration vehicle. But the center also has other jobs associated with the moon-Mars project, dubbed Constellation. The center could use all the help it can get. NASA Glenn has lost 200 of its 1,900 civil-service jobs and is expected to lose 300 more. It also has lost 500 of its 2,000 contractor jobs.
Second Rocket Launch at Wallops Delayed (Source: DelMarVaNow.com)
A rocket launch Saturday from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport — the second liftoff in a series — has been postponed until Monday, most likely because of strong winds in the area. Keith Koehler, a NASA-Wallops Flight Facility public affairs officer, said the postponement was announced Sunday. He said he didn’t know the official reason for the delay, but knew that a lot of testing could not be done until high winds from the weekend storm diminished.
EU to Target Satellite Observation in Space Race (Source: EU Observer)
Europe's plans to become a space power will see it install a fully-functioning global observation system consisting of 30 satellites by 2014. This system, known as Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES), will supply the EU with independent environment, climate change and security information reducing the bloc's dependence on outside sources for information. Once up and running, GMES will be able to detect information such as illegal clearing in rain forests or the exact number of people in need of aid in a refugee camp.
Thales Alenia Space Italy Wins GMES Contract (Source: Space News)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has selected Thales Alenia Space Italy to be the prime contractor for a C-band radar Earth observation satellite called Sentinel-1 to be launched in 2011 under a manufacturing contract valued at $309 million, according to European government and industry officials. Thales Alenia Space Italy bested a competing bid from Astrium Satellites’ German division for the contract, which will be the first spacecraft built for Europe’s Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program.
Former Astronaut's Trial Set for Early Fall (Source: Houston Chronicle)
The trial of a former astronaut accused of attacking a romantic rival has been set for early fall. Trial for Lisa Nowak, 43, will begin Sept. 24 in an Orlando courtroom with Judge Marc Lubert presiding. Nowak has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted kidnapping, burglary with assault and battery. She will have a status hearing June 29 and a pretrial conference July 17. Nowak's attorney, Donald Lykkebak, had requested more time to evaluate his client's mental health.
Former Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin is drawing up plans for a lottery-like contest, with space experiences for prizes, in hopes of making orbital spaceflight available to more than just wealthy entrepreneurs. Billed as the ShareSpace Stakes, the contest is envisioned to function as part of Aldrin’s ShareSpace Foundation, a firm designed to promote interest in human spaceflight and science education. “It’s something akin to a sweepstakes or a raffle,” Aldrin said Tuesday during the Space Investment Summit here, adding that many details remain to be determined. “We have yet to set up the rules and regulations.”
Bruce Willis to Rock KSC (Source: Florida Today)
Bruce Willis and his band will be rocking the rocket garden at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 2. Tickets will be available to the public at a date to be announced later. About 5,000 people are expected to attend the show. The blues performance is part of the Netflix LIVE! On Location series of concerts and will be followed by an outdoor screening of Willis' flick "Armageddon," which features a space mission to save Earth from an asteroid. Parts of "Armageddon" were filmed at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.
Rocketplane Kistler Signs Transportation MoU with Japanese Company (Source: Flight International)
Rocketplane Kistler (RpK) could transport Japanese astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) under a memorandum of understanding it has signed with the Japanese Manned Space Systems corporation (JAMSS). RpK expects to have demonstrated a crew transportation system early in the next decade using its Kistler-1 launcher, which it is developing under the NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation Services demonstration program.
Space Tourism May Not Generate Excessive Noise in Central Florida (Source: Florida Today)
Tests to determine the amount of noise that space tourism may generate led to promising results Tuesday. Sonic booms created by tests of a F-104 fighter jet flying over the Atlantic Ocean could not be heard at Kennedy Space Center. Officials hope that private spacecraft are able to launch tourists into space from KSC before the end of this decade.
NASA Rethinks Plan to Close Robotics Office (Source: Birmingham News)
NASA is reconsidering plans to close a lunar robotics office in Huntsville, a decision announced Tuesday evening, a few hours after two members of Alabama's congressional delegation escalated their dispute with the space agency. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., in a morning speech said he was counting the days until NASA Administrator Michael Griffin lost his job. And Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville, in an afternoon interview questioned whether Griffin misled him about the future of the Lunar Precursor Robotics Program, based at Marshall Space Flight Center.
Lunar Mission Might Save Glenn (Source: Columbus Dispatch)
It's a little like the 1960s again at the NASA Glenn Research Center, where engineers are once more up to their eyeballs in manned space projects. And it's the moon once more that's driving the missions. NASA Glenn has key roles in developing hardware to deliver astronauts to the moon by 2020 and perhaps to Mars. Glenn's biggest coup is winning the job of designing the service module for the Orion crew exploration vehicle. But the center also has other jobs associated with the moon-Mars project, dubbed Constellation. The center could use all the help it can get. NASA Glenn has lost 200 of its 1,900 civil-service jobs and is expected to lose 300 more. It also has lost 500 of its 2,000 contractor jobs.
Second Rocket Launch at Wallops Delayed (Source: DelMarVaNow.com)
A rocket launch Saturday from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport — the second liftoff in a series — has been postponed until Monday, most likely because of strong winds in the area. Keith Koehler, a NASA-Wallops Flight Facility public affairs officer, said the postponement was announced Sunday. He said he didn’t know the official reason for the delay, but knew that a lot of testing could not be done until high winds from the weekend storm diminished.
EU to Target Satellite Observation in Space Race (Source: EU Observer)
Europe's plans to become a space power will see it install a fully-functioning global observation system consisting of 30 satellites by 2014. This system, known as Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES), will supply the EU with independent environment, climate change and security information reducing the bloc's dependence on outside sources for information. Once up and running, GMES will be able to detect information such as illegal clearing in rain forests or the exact number of people in need of aid in a refugee camp.
Thales Alenia Space Italy Wins GMES Contract (Source: Space News)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has selected Thales Alenia Space Italy to be the prime contractor for a C-band radar Earth observation satellite called Sentinel-1 to be launched in 2011 under a manufacturing contract valued at $309 million, according to European government and industry officials. Thales Alenia Space Italy bested a competing bid from Astrium Satellites’ German division for the contract, which will be the first spacecraft built for Europe’s Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program.
Former Astronaut's Trial Set for Early Fall (Source: Houston Chronicle)
The trial of a former astronaut accused of attacking a romantic rival has been set for early fall. Trial for Lisa Nowak, 43, will begin Sept. 24 in an Orlando courtroom with Judge Marc Lubert presiding. Nowak has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted kidnapping, burglary with assault and battery. She will have a status hearing June 29 and a pretrial conference July 17. Nowak's attorney, Donald Lykkebak, had requested more time to evaluate his client's mental health.
April 17 News Items
NASA Sets New Shuttle Launch Targets for 2007 (Source: Space.com)
NASA aims to launch four space shuttle missions by the end of the year, some aboard different orbiters than originally planned, in order to continue assembly of the International Space Station (ISS). Under the new plan, set down during a Monday meeting of top NASA shuttle and ISS program managers, Atlantis’ STS-117 mission will be followed by the Endeavour orbiter’s STS-118 mission no earlier than Aug. 9. Next to fly will be STS-120 aboard Discovery -- rather than the initially planned Atlantis orbiter -- to launch the Harmony connector node to the space station on Oct. 20. NASA then hopes to close out 2007 with a Dec. 6 launch of Atlantis on the STS-122 mission to deliver the European Space Agency’s Columbus laboratory.
Contractors Beat Out Federal Employees in Most NASA Job Competitions (Source: Federal Times)
Since it was permitted by the administration four years ago to bypass A-76 rules when determining if new research work would go to its own employees or to contractors, NASA has used the authority in 38 competitions — and 89 percent of those were won by contractors, a new study says. Those results — from competitions held between 2003 and 2005 — contrast sharply with the results of federal jobs competitions conducted under traditional A-76 rules in which federal employees win 83 percent of jobs competed. A-76 refers to rules called Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76; they dictate rules for deciding via a competition if federal work is done by federal employees or by contractors. A-76 rules require that federal employees be given the work unless a competing contractor can do it for at least $10 million or 10 percent less.
Russian Rocket Launches 16 Small Satellites (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia has successfully launched a Dnepr rocket, the first since the failure in late July 2006, and put 16 foreign satellites into orbit. The rocket delivered an Egyptian EgyptSat spacecraft, six Saudi satellites (SaudiSat-3 and five SaudiComSat), and additional P-Pod and CubeSat micro-satellites into orbit. "Control over all satellites has been passed to the customers," a space agency spokesman said. Launches of Dnepr rockets from Baikonur were suspended following a crash shortly after liftoff on July 26, 2006, due to a first stage engine shutdown.
NASA Buys Abort Test Boosters for Orion Flight Tests (Source: NASA)
NASA has entered into an agreement with the Air Force to support abort flight test requirements for the Orion project. The Air Force has contracted with Orbital Sciences Corp. of Chandler, Ariz., to provide launch services for the flight tests. The agreement with the Air Force's Space Development and Test Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., provides for abort test boosters that will serve as launch vehicles for Orion ascent abort flight tests that are set to occur from 2009 through 2011 at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The first abort test is scheduled for 2008, but will not require a functional booster.
Moon, Mars Trips Will Pose Physical, Mental Health Risks (Source: Houston Chronicle)
As the Earth fades into the rearview mirror, the astronauts who set out on the missions that NASA proposes to the moon and Mars will face new challenges to stay mentally and physically fit. Confinement on spacecraft and isolation from friends and family create psychological stress. Bones weaken without gravity and there is solar and cosmic radiation exposure. "The risks to human health on long-duration missions beyond Earth orbit, if not solved, represent the greatest challenge to human exploration of deep space," concludes a study for the space agency by the National Academy of Sciences.
A round-trip voyage to Mars will send astronauts packing for 2 years. A tour of duty at a lunar outpost would last six months. The trip durations lead to another worry: How does a faraway astronaut receive treatment for a medical emergency? Also, the skeletal systems of astronauts who live aboard the space station adjust to weightlessness by losing 1 percent to 2 percent of their mass each month. So far, efforts to stop the losses with daily exercise using treadmills and resistance exercise have not been successful. Explorers could reach Mars at risk of broken bones as they hike and climb. The loss poses another painful problem; deposits of bone calcium that collect in the kidneys, where they can form painful stones.
Italian Group Returning to Florida for Record-Setting Microgravity Research Flight (Source: ERAU)
Researchers and test subjects from Italy's SpaceLand organization will arrive in Florida next week in preparation for a ZERO-G flight campaign on April 28th. Among the SpaceLand test subjects are a 93-year-old man supporting biomedical and bioengineering research (he will become the world's oldest man flying a zero-gravity mission). The SpaceLand campaign, led by Carlo Viberti, will also feature underwater training for the flight team within a specially-built SpaceLand submersible space habitat. Embry-Riddle is assisting the mission and support is also being provided by Space Florida.
NASA aims to launch four space shuttle missions by the end of the year, some aboard different orbiters than originally planned, in order to continue assembly of the International Space Station (ISS). Under the new plan, set down during a Monday meeting of top NASA shuttle and ISS program managers, Atlantis’ STS-117 mission will be followed by the Endeavour orbiter’s STS-118 mission no earlier than Aug. 9. Next to fly will be STS-120 aboard Discovery -- rather than the initially planned Atlantis orbiter -- to launch the Harmony connector node to the space station on Oct. 20. NASA then hopes to close out 2007 with a Dec. 6 launch of Atlantis on the STS-122 mission to deliver the European Space Agency’s Columbus laboratory.
Contractors Beat Out Federal Employees in Most NASA Job Competitions (Source: Federal Times)
Since it was permitted by the administration four years ago to bypass A-76 rules when determining if new research work would go to its own employees or to contractors, NASA has used the authority in 38 competitions — and 89 percent of those were won by contractors, a new study says. Those results — from competitions held between 2003 and 2005 — contrast sharply with the results of federal jobs competitions conducted under traditional A-76 rules in which federal employees win 83 percent of jobs competed. A-76 refers to rules called Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76; they dictate rules for deciding via a competition if federal work is done by federal employees or by contractors. A-76 rules require that federal employees be given the work unless a competing contractor can do it for at least $10 million or 10 percent less.
Russian Rocket Launches 16 Small Satellites (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia has successfully launched a Dnepr rocket, the first since the failure in late July 2006, and put 16 foreign satellites into orbit. The rocket delivered an Egyptian EgyptSat spacecraft, six Saudi satellites (SaudiSat-3 and five SaudiComSat), and additional P-Pod and CubeSat micro-satellites into orbit. "Control over all satellites has been passed to the customers," a space agency spokesman said. Launches of Dnepr rockets from Baikonur were suspended following a crash shortly after liftoff on July 26, 2006, due to a first stage engine shutdown.
NASA Buys Abort Test Boosters for Orion Flight Tests (Source: NASA)
NASA has entered into an agreement with the Air Force to support abort flight test requirements for the Orion project. The Air Force has contracted with Orbital Sciences Corp. of Chandler, Ariz., to provide launch services for the flight tests. The agreement with the Air Force's Space Development and Test Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., provides for abort test boosters that will serve as launch vehicles for Orion ascent abort flight tests that are set to occur from 2009 through 2011 at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The first abort test is scheduled for 2008, but will not require a functional booster.
Moon, Mars Trips Will Pose Physical, Mental Health Risks (Source: Houston Chronicle)
As the Earth fades into the rearview mirror, the astronauts who set out on the missions that NASA proposes to the moon and Mars will face new challenges to stay mentally and physically fit. Confinement on spacecraft and isolation from friends and family create psychological stress. Bones weaken without gravity and there is solar and cosmic radiation exposure. "The risks to human health on long-duration missions beyond Earth orbit, if not solved, represent the greatest challenge to human exploration of deep space," concludes a study for the space agency by the National Academy of Sciences.
A round-trip voyage to Mars will send astronauts packing for 2 years. A tour of duty at a lunar outpost would last six months. The trip durations lead to another worry: How does a faraway astronaut receive treatment for a medical emergency? Also, the skeletal systems of astronauts who live aboard the space station adjust to weightlessness by losing 1 percent to 2 percent of their mass each month. So far, efforts to stop the losses with daily exercise using treadmills and resistance exercise have not been successful. Explorers could reach Mars at risk of broken bones as they hike and climb. The loss poses another painful problem; deposits of bone calcium that collect in the kidneys, where they can form painful stones.
Italian Group Returning to Florida for Record-Setting Microgravity Research Flight (Source: ERAU)
Researchers and test subjects from Italy's SpaceLand organization will arrive in Florida next week in preparation for a ZERO-G flight campaign on April 28th. Among the SpaceLand test subjects are a 93-year-old man supporting biomedical and bioengineering research (he will become the world's oldest man flying a zero-gravity mission). The SpaceLand campaign, led by Carlo Viberti, will also feature underwater training for the flight team within a specially-built SpaceLand submersible space habitat. Embry-Riddle is assisting the mission and support is also being provided by Space Florida.
April 16 News Items
Space Adventures Hopes to Announce Cislunar Customers in 2007 (Source: Spaceports blog)
The space tourism firm Space Adventures is hoping to announce the first round-the-moon [cislunar] $100-million flight before year end 2007 to take place in 2011. Meanwhile, the space firm is developing two commercial spaceports in the Middle East and Asia where it is planning suborbital launches of space tourists above 63.5-miles altitude or the edge of space for 5-minutes of weightlessness.
Lockheed Wrestles with Orion Issues (Source: Flight International)
Weight constraints imposed by the Ares I crew launch vehicle, meeting safety and performance targets without significant cost growth, together with "the sheer integration of the job", are the major challenges Orion crew exploration vehicle prime contractor Lockheed Martin is wrestling with in developing NASA's first manned vehicle in 35 years. Lockheed Martin's John Karas says launch-vehicle performance is a major constraint on Orion weight growth. "The Ares I can only move so much. You've got to fit with that. It's about managing the [performance] requirements." He says the launch abort system also has a great bearing on Orion crew and service module mass. The final trade-off studies under way focus on meeting crew safety and vehicle performance targets, without incurring significant cost growth.
Americans See Space Program as Expendable (Source: Angus Reid Global Monitor)
Many adults in the United States think space exploration should be trimmed down in the event the federal government needs to reduce spending, according to a poll by Harris Interactive. 51 percent of respondents mention space as one of two programs that the cuts should come from. Welfare and defense are next on the list with 28 percent, followed by farm subsidies with 24 percent, environmental programs with 16 percent, homeland security with 12 percent, and transportation with 11 percent.
Russia-Brazil: A Space Partnership (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia and Brazil have always seen eye-to-eye on such issues as the importance of a multipolar world and the UN's role in modern society, and this mutual understanding is a key factor in relations between the two countries in other areas, too. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that "we can cooperate in many fields, and one of them is high technologies, above all the peaceful uses of outer space." When, in August 2003, a Brazilian VLS-1 rocket exploded on its launch pad, Russia was the first to send a team of experts to investigate. Their findings proved very helpful in pinpointing the causes of the blast and planning measures to help prevent a repeat.
Russia has signed an intergovernmental agreement with Brazil on space cooperation. The agreement includes the observance of the non-proliferation regime and covers all aspects of the transfer of intellectual property and rocket technology. Cooperation with such a leading space power as Russia lends credibility to Brazil's rocket and space efforts in the eyes of the international community.
Atlas-V Use Increasingly Considered for Commercial Missions (Source: Spaceports blog)
Utilization of the Atlas-V booster for space tourism and other commercial activity has been under intensive study the past year or so because of the level of reliability of the booster over a lengthy period of time. The capacity of existing commercial spaceports to provide launch infrastructure to the Atlas-V booster is a limited, however. Today Canaveral and Vandenberg are the launch options for the booster requiring commercial firms to compete with the launch traffic posed by the civil and military launch and range needs.
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia's Wallops Island (on the Virginia-Maryland stateline) is undertaking studies to be released in the fall of how it may more effectively be involved in the commercial space launch business to the ISS in the next decade. Whether or not the fledgling commercial suborbital and orbital spaceport could muster the financial withwithal to achieve heavy-lift infrastructure investment for COTS is yet to be seen without a significant federal role.
SpaceTEC Partners to Meet in Seattle (Source: ERAU)
College and university partners in the National Science Foundation-sponsored SpaceTEC program will meet in Seattle on May 7-10 to discuss progress and plans for the aerospace technology training/certification program. Officials from Brevard Community College provide leadership for the national effort. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is a partner and will attend the Seattle meeting along with colleges from eight states.
Huntsville Chamber Supports Space, Defense in DC (Source: Huntsville Times)
A group of nearly 200 people representing the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce met last week with NASA Administrator Mike Griffin. Griffin was the first speaker for the chamber's Washington, D.C., trip, an annual event that allows local business leaders to meet with political leaders and government officials. According to Mike Ward, the chamber's vice president of governmental affairs, this is the largest number of people to make the trip. "I can't stress enough how significant it is to have this many people to go on this trip" said Ward. In addition to meeting with Griffin there were panel discussions on BRAC and workforce development. There also was a session with a representative from the Department of Homeland Security.
The space tourism firm Space Adventures is hoping to announce the first round-the-moon [cislunar] $100-million flight before year end 2007 to take place in 2011. Meanwhile, the space firm is developing two commercial spaceports in the Middle East and Asia where it is planning suborbital launches of space tourists above 63.5-miles altitude or the edge of space for 5-minutes of weightlessness.
Lockheed Wrestles with Orion Issues (Source: Flight International)
Weight constraints imposed by the Ares I crew launch vehicle, meeting safety and performance targets without significant cost growth, together with "the sheer integration of the job", are the major challenges Orion crew exploration vehicle prime contractor Lockheed Martin is wrestling with in developing NASA's first manned vehicle in 35 years. Lockheed Martin's John Karas says launch-vehicle performance is a major constraint on Orion weight growth. "The Ares I can only move so much. You've got to fit with that. It's about managing the [performance] requirements." He says the launch abort system also has a great bearing on Orion crew and service module mass. The final trade-off studies under way focus on meeting crew safety and vehicle performance targets, without incurring significant cost growth.
Americans See Space Program as Expendable (Source: Angus Reid Global Monitor)
Many adults in the United States think space exploration should be trimmed down in the event the federal government needs to reduce spending, according to a poll by Harris Interactive. 51 percent of respondents mention space as one of two programs that the cuts should come from. Welfare and defense are next on the list with 28 percent, followed by farm subsidies with 24 percent, environmental programs with 16 percent, homeland security with 12 percent, and transportation with 11 percent.
Russia-Brazil: A Space Partnership (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia and Brazil have always seen eye-to-eye on such issues as the importance of a multipolar world and the UN's role in modern society, and this mutual understanding is a key factor in relations between the two countries in other areas, too. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that "we can cooperate in many fields, and one of them is high technologies, above all the peaceful uses of outer space." When, in August 2003, a Brazilian VLS-1 rocket exploded on its launch pad, Russia was the first to send a team of experts to investigate. Their findings proved very helpful in pinpointing the causes of the blast and planning measures to help prevent a repeat.
Russia has signed an intergovernmental agreement with Brazil on space cooperation. The agreement includes the observance of the non-proliferation regime and covers all aspects of the transfer of intellectual property and rocket technology. Cooperation with such a leading space power as Russia lends credibility to Brazil's rocket and space efforts in the eyes of the international community.
Atlas-V Use Increasingly Considered for Commercial Missions (Source: Spaceports blog)
Utilization of the Atlas-V booster for space tourism and other commercial activity has been under intensive study the past year or so because of the level of reliability of the booster over a lengthy period of time. The capacity of existing commercial spaceports to provide launch infrastructure to the Atlas-V booster is a limited, however. Today Canaveral and Vandenberg are the launch options for the booster requiring commercial firms to compete with the launch traffic posed by the civil and military launch and range needs.
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia's Wallops Island (on the Virginia-Maryland stateline) is undertaking studies to be released in the fall of how it may more effectively be involved in the commercial space launch business to the ISS in the next decade. Whether or not the fledgling commercial suborbital and orbital spaceport could muster the financial withwithal to achieve heavy-lift infrastructure investment for COTS is yet to be seen without a significant federal role.
SpaceTEC Partners to Meet in Seattle (Source: ERAU)
College and university partners in the National Science Foundation-sponsored SpaceTEC program will meet in Seattle on May 7-10 to discuss progress and plans for the aerospace technology training/certification program. Officials from Brevard Community College provide leadership for the national effort. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is a partner and will attend the Seattle meeting along with colleges from eight states.
Huntsville Chamber Supports Space, Defense in DC (Source: Huntsville Times)
A group of nearly 200 people representing the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce met last week with NASA Administrator Mike Griffin. Griffin was the first speaker for the chamber's Washington, D.C., trip, an annual event that allows local business leaders to meet with political leaders and government officials. According to Mike Ward, the chamber's vice president of governmental affairs, this is the largest number of people to make the trip. "I can't stress enough how significant it is to have this many people to go on this trip" said Ward. In addition to meeting with Griffin there were panel discussions on BRAC and workforce development. There also was a session with a representative from the Department of Homeland Security.
April 15 News Items
Heated Space Race Under Way in Asia (Sources: AP, ERAU)
Upstart China challenges the U.S. by blasting a satellite out of orbit. North Korea lobs a missile over Japan, prompting Tokyo to initiate a multibillion dollar spy satellite program. India is readying a lunar mission, while rival Pakistan makes headlines with a new, improved warhead. The most heated space race since the Cold War is under way in Asia, where countries are concluding that a space program is no longer just an expensive status symbol but a matter of national security. And they are scrambling to keep abreast. China, the only Asian country to put its own astronauts into orbit, is far ahead.
But India, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan all have satellites in orbit. North Korea claims to have sent one up with its 1998 ballistic missile launch. Japan is closest to keeping pace with China. Tokyo now spends about $500 million a year on its spy satellite program. Japan, India and China currently have the capability to launch their own rockets into space, and Pakistan and North Korea have active missile programs. In 2000, South Korea broke ground on a $277 million rocket launch site. It plans, with Russian help, to put a small satellite in orbit next year. India's technological prowess and $700 million space budget remain well behind its ambitions. China spends at least $1.2 billion on space-related projects and the U.S. about $16 billion.
Jump In: There's Space for Everyone! (Source: Denver Post)
While government funding for space exploration withers, a new and exciting source of aerospace dollars is developing. Entrepreneurs who made their fortunes in other industries are stepping forward, including PayPal's Elon Musk, Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos, Microsoft's Paul Allen and Budget Suites of America's Robert Bigelow. They have started or are financing companies that build low-cost rockets, inflatable space stations and craft that can carry paying passengers into space. "Our customer isn't NASA or (the Department of Defense), and that creates a tremendous difference in philosophies," Bigelow said. Rather than relying on federal budgets that regularly shrink and expand, these businesses can support themselves by selling their products to foreign governments, private companies, individuals and federal agencies. That produces a net economic benefit while helping humankind, Bigelow said.
Russia-Australian Launch Pad Project Unfeasible (Source: Interfax)
The resumption of the program to turn Christmas Island (Indian Ocean, Australia) into a launch pad and to launch Russia's upgraded Soyuz vehicles from it is hardly possible, said an advisor with the Engineering Sciences Academy. "By all accounts, it would be unrealistic to get funding for making one more medium-class launch vehicle and for its launches from a fourth pad in addition to Plesetsk, Baikonur and Kourou (French Guiana,)" he said.
These comments come after reports claiming that the Asia Pacific Space Center is weighing plans to resume talks with Russia on building a launch pad on Christmas Island and on using Russian medium-class launch vehicles. A contract was signed in December 2001 whereby Russia was to provide the launch vehicles and Australia the launch pad, in which it planned to put $450 million. The first launch was to be carried out in the middle of 2004 with the use of the Aurora launch vehicle - an upgraded Soyuz with the Korvet upper stage. Four-five launches were to be carried out each year. But given the lack of financing the APSC froze the project.
Upstart China challenges the U.S. by blasting a satellite out of orbit. North Korea lobs a missile over Japan, prompting Tokyo to initiate a multibillion dollar spy satellite program. India is readying a lunar mission, while rival Pakistan makes headlines with a new, improved warhead. The most heated space race since the Cold War is under way in Asia, where countries are concluding that a space program is no longer just an expensive status symbol but a matter of national security. And they are scrambling to keep abreast. China, the only Asian country to put its own astronauts into orbit, is far ahead.
But India, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan all have satellites in orbit. North Korea claims to have sent one up with its 1998 ballistic missile launch. Japan is closest to keeping pace with China. Tokyo now spends about $500 million a year on its spy satellite program. Japan, India and China currently have the capability to launch their own rockets into space, and Pakistan and North Korea have active missile programs. In 2000, South Korea broke ground on a $277 million rocket launch site. It plans, with Russian help, to put a small satellite in orbit next year. India's technological prowess and $700 million space budget remain well behind its ambitions. China spends at least $1.2 billion on space-related projects and the U.S. about $16 billion.
Jump In: There's Space for Everyone! (Source: Denver Post)
While government funding for space exploration withers, a new and exciting source of aerospace dollars is developing. Entrepreneurs who made their fortunes in other industries are stepping forward, including PayPal's Elon Musk, Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos, Microsoft's Paul Allen and Budget Suites of America's Robert Bigelow. They have started or are financing companies that build low-cost rockets, inflatable space stations and craft that can carry paying passengers into space. "Our customer isn't NASA or (the Department of Defense), and that creates a tremendous difference in philosophies," Bigelow said. Rather than relying on federal budgets that regularly shrink and expand, these businesses can support themselves by selling their products to foreign governments, private companies, individuals and federal agencies. That produces a net economic benefit while helping humankind, Bigelow said.
Russia-Australian Launch Pad Project Unfeasible (Source: Interfax)
The resumption of the program to turn Christmas Island (Indian Ocean, Australia) into a launch pad and to launch Russia's upgraded Soyuz vehicles from it is hardly possible, said an advisor with the Engineering Sciences Academy. "By all accounts, it would be unrealistic to get funding for making one more medium-class launch vehicle and for its launches from a fourth pad in addition to Plesetsk, Baikonur and Kourou (French Guiana,)" he said.
These comments come after reports claiming that the Asia Pacific Space Center is weighing plans to resume talks with Russia on building a launch pad on Christmas Island and on using Russian medium-class launch vehicles. A contract was signed in December 2001 whereby Russia was to provide the launch vehicles and Australia the launch pad, in which it planned to put $450 million. The first launch was to be carried out in the middle of 2004 with the use of the Aurora launch vehicle - an upgraded Soyuz with the Korvet upper stage. Four-five launches were to be carried out each year. But given the lack of financing the APSC froze the project.
April 14 News Items
China Launches Navigation Satellite (Source: SpaceToday.net)
A Long March rocket launched a Chinese navigation satellite early Saturday, the second Chinese launch in less than a week. The Long March 3A rocket lifted off from the Xichang spaceport and placed its satellite into a medium Earth orbit with an altitude of 21,500 km. The spacecraft, whose specific name was not given in Chinese accounts of the launch, is said to be part of China's planned Compass navigation system. The system will eventually consist of 5 GEO satellites and 30 MEO satellites, although no timetable was given for the system's completion. China launched a GEO navigation satellite in February.
Deadline Approaching for Inclusion in Florida Aviation Directory (Source: FAAA)
Do not miss an opportunity to have your company appear in the Florida Aviation Products and Services Directory. The Florida Aviation Products & Services Directory is now being prepared for worldwide distribution. The directory is made possible through an international grant from Enterprise Florida to promote and increase export sales for Florida aerospace companies. This is a FREE service for Florida’s aviation industry. To have your company included in the directory, you may go on-line to http://www.worldtrade.org to complete and submit a brief questionnaire. The deadline for receipt of all information is April 30, 2007.
KSC Hosts Private Jet's Suborbital Pathfinder Flights (Source: NASA)
Media are invited to NASA's Kennedy Space Center on April 17 to view the flight of a privately operated F-104 jet aircraft on the first in a series of pathfinder test missions from the space shuttle runway. Starfighters Inc. of Clearwater, Fla., will perform the flights to help in assessing suborbital space launch trajectories from the Shuttle Landing Facility and paving the way for future commercial space tourism and research flights from the facility.
NASA Set To Welcome Japanese Space Station Component (Source: NASA)
NASA will officially welcome a new International Space Station component to the Kennedy Space Center on April 17. The Experiment Logistics Module Pressurized Section for the Japanese Experiment Module arrived at Kennedy March 12 to begin preparations for its future launch. The Japanese Experiment Module will be carried into space on three shuttle missions. Known as Kibo, which means "hope" in Japanese, it is Japan's primary contribution to the station. Kibo will serve as an on-orbit storage area for materials, tools and supplies. It can hold up to eight experiment racks and will attach to the top of another larger pressurized module. Kibo is targeted for launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-123.
Wisconsin Spaceport Education Complex Closer to Reality (Source: Sheboygan Press)
The push to convert the 65-year-old Sheboygan Armory into a $17 million, 52,000-square-foot aerospace complex took a firm step toward reality Friday as a team of engineers descended on the property to begin a detailed cost and logistics analysis. Developers hope to break ground by next summer, transforming the closed building into the one-of-a-kind Great Lakes Aerospace, Science and Education Center at Spaceport Sheboygan. The site survey Friday began a 10-week process after which developers will find out how their vision fits in the existing space and how much it will cost to put it there, said Gary Dulmes of Sheboygan Development Corp.
Congress Fights NASA Plan to Close Marshall Robotics Office (Source: Birmingham News)
NASA wants to close a lunar robotics office at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville but Congress has ordered the program kept alive with $20 million for the rest of the year. "The lunar precursor program and robotic missions are vital to the future of placing man on the moon and eventually Mars," Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said Friday. The chairmen of the subcommittee that oversees NASA funding wrote to Administrator Michael Griffin this week and directed the agency to continue planning the robotic missions through the rest of 2007. In the letter, provided by Shelby's office, Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland and Rep. Alan Mollohan of West Virginia said that President Bush originally called for a robotic mission to Mars before the manned missions, and Congress agreed.
So when NASA decided the missions were no longer necessary, especially in a tight budget, Congress reacted. "We must fund this program to fulfill our plan for lunar exploration and to ensure that that Marshall Space Flight Center continues to be a major component in space exploration, because it is much more than just a rocket center," said Shelby. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville, asked Griffin about the decision in a recent congressional hearing. Griffin testified the robotic missions were "nice to have" but not necessary because the information they need about the lunar surface can be obtained from orbit. Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville, said the cancellation "could adversely affect the space exploration plan." The office was moved to Marshall last year and employs about 30 people. Other work on the program is performed in California and Maryland.
KSC Plans Summit on Operations & Supply Chain Analysis, Modeling and Simulation (Source: ERAU)
Supply chain analysts at NASA KSC are sponsoring a meeting this week (April 18-19) in Florida to discuss supply chain requirements to ensure the success of current and future space operations. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University will participate at the summit.
Boeing Honors Six Businesses for Support on NASA Contract (Source: Florida Today)
Boeing gave six businesses that support it on a NASA contract an official pat on the back Friday. And Boeing executives hope NASA looks kindly at those relationships as Boeing competes for the Ares 1 upper-stage rocket contract, due to be awarded in August. NASA is mandating that at least 17.3 percent of the Ares 1 contract work goes to small businesses, and Boeing executives said Friday that requirement should be a breeze, because it already goes above and beyond the space agency guidelines in its contract work.
Last month, the Boeing-led Team Ares held a small-business seminar in Brevard County, trumpeting its efforts to include small business in its efforts. The contract could be worth more than $900 million. The Boeing team for Ares 1 includes Chickasaw Nation Industries; Hamilton Sundstrand, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp.; Moog Inc.; Northrop Grumman Corp.; Orion Propulsion Inc.; SUMMA Technology Inc.; United Launch Alliance; and United Space Alliance. At a luncheon in Cape Canaveral on Friday, Boeing honored six smaller companies in Brevard County, including BRPH, CNI/All Points Logistics Inc., Creative Management Technology Inc., InDyne Inc., Spherion Corp. and Yang Enterprises Inc.
Committee Welcomes Decision to Restore Ozone Sensor (House Science Committee)
Senior Members of the House Committee on Science and Technology welcomed a decision this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the NASA to move forward with the full-capability Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) sensor on the NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) mission. The NPP is a precursor for the National Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) weather satellites, and is intended to give NOAA actual experience with the new and more capable instruments that will one day fly aboard NPOESS.
Indian Manned Lunar Mission Being Planned (Source: The Hindu)
A proposal for an Indian manned mission to the Moon will be submitted this year-end, according to India's space agency, ISRO. "Once this is cleared, the mission could be undertaken within the next 8-10 years," said an official. The manned mission's orbit duration could be seven days, he said adding that the spacecraft can accommodate one or two astronauts, and will be placed at an orbit height of 400 km. Pre-proposal studies on equipment and life-support systems are underway.
Apollo Moon Documentary Shows at Sarasota Film Festival (Source: Bradenton Herald)
The sixth man to walk on the moon smiled at reporters and photographers who clamored for his attention Friday night at the Sarasota Film Festival opening. "In the Shadow of the Moon," a dazzling documentary of the Apollo space missions that put men on the moon, opened the 10-day festival, which runs until April 22. Dr. Edgar Mitchell, one of the NASA astronauts interviewed in the film, and David Sington, who directed, were among the guests on the red carpet at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. The film juxtaposes the historic photographs and film footage with new interviews of surviving astronauts. ThinkFilm will distribute the film in theaters this fall.
A Long March rocket launched a Chinese navigation satellite early Saturday, the second Chinese launch in less than a week. The Long March 3A rocket lifted off from the Xichang spaceport and placed its satellite into a medium Earth orbit with an altitude of 21,500 km. The spacecraft, whose specific name was not given in Chinese accounts of the launch, is said to be part of China's planned Compass navigation system. The system will eventually consist of 5 GEO satellites and 30 MEO satellites, although no timetable was given for the system's completion. China launched a GEO navigation satellite in February.
Deadline Approaching for Inclusion in Florida Aviation Directory (Source: FAAA)
Do not miss an opportunity to have your company appear in the Florida Aviation Products and Services Directory. The Florida Aviation Products & Services Directory is now being prepared for worldwide distribution. The directory is made possible through an international grant from Enterprise Florida to promote and increase export sales for Florida aerospace companies. This is a FREE service for Florida’s aviation industry. To have your company included in the directory, you may go on-line to http://www.worldtrade.org to complete and submit a brief questionnaire. The deadline for receipt of all information is April 30, 2007.
KSC Hosts Private Jet's Suborbital Pathfinder Flights (Source: NASA)
Media are invited to NASA's Kennedy Space Center on April 17 to view the flight of a privately operated F-104 jet aircraft on the first in a series of pathfinder test missions from the space shuttle runway. Starfighters Inc. of Clearwater, Fla., will perform the flights to help in assessing suborbital space launch trajectories from the Shuttle Landing Facility and paving the way for future commercial space tourism and research flights from the facility.
NASA Set To Welcome Japanese Space Station Component (Source: NASA)
NASA will officially welcome a new International Space Station component to the Kennedy Space Center on April 17. The Experiment Logistics Module Pressurized Section for the Japanese Experiment Module arrived at Kennedy March 12 to begin preparations for its future launch. The Japanese Experiment Module will be carried into space on three shuttle missions. Known as Kibo, which means "hope" in Japanese, it is Japan's primary contribution to the station. Kibo will serve as an on-orbit storage area for materials, tools and supplies. It can hold up to eight experiment racks and will attach to the top of another larger pressurized module. Kibo is targeted for launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-123.
Wisconsin Spaceport Education Complex Closer to Reality (Source: Sheboygan Press)
The push to convert the 65-year-old Sheboygan Armory into a $17 million, 52,000-square-foot aerospace complex took a firm step toward reality Friday as a team of engineers descended on the property to begin a detailed cost and logistics analysis. Developers hope to break ground by next summer, transforming the closed building into the one-of-a-kind Great Lakes Aerospace, Science and Education Center at Spaceport Sheboygan. The site survey Friday began a 10-week process after which developers will find out how their vision fits in the existing space and how much it will cost to put it there, said Gary Dulmes of Sheboygan Development Corp.
Congress Fights NASA Plan to Close Marshall Robotics Office (Source: Birmingham News)
NASA wants to close a lunar robotics office at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville but Congress has ordered the program kept alive with $20 million for the rest of the year. "The lunar precursor program and robotic missions are vital to the future of placing man on the moon and eventually Mars," Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said Friday. The chairmen of the subcommittee that oversees NASA funding wrote to Administrator Michael Griffin this week and directed the agency to continue planning the robotic missions through the rest of 2007. In the letter, provided by Shelby's office, Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland and Rep. Alan Mollohan of West Virginia said that President Bush originally called for a robotic mission to Mars before the manned missions, and Congress agreed.
So when NASA decided the missions were no longer necessary, especially in a tight budget, Congress reacted. "We must fund this program to fulfill our plan for lunar exploration and to ensure that that Marshall Space Flight Center continues to be a major component in space exploration, because it is much more than just a rocket center," said Shelby. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville, asked Griffin about the decision in a recent congressional hearing. Griffin testified the robotic missions were "nice to have" but not necessary because the information they need about the lunar surface can be obtained from orbit. Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville, said the cancellation "could adversely affect the space exploration plan." The office was moved to Marshall last year and employs about 30 people. Other work on the program is performed in California and Maryland.
KSC Plans Summit on Operations & Supply Chain Analysis, Modeling and Simulation (Source: ERAU)
Supply chain analysts at NASA KSC are sponsoring a meeting this week (April 18-19) in Florida to discuss supply chain requirements to ensure the success of current and future space operations. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University will participate at the summit.
Boeing Honors Six Businesses for Support on NASA Contract (Source: Florida Today)
Boeing gave six businesses that support it on a NASA contract an official pat on the back Friday. And Boeing executives hope NASA looks kindly at those relationships as Boeing competes for the Ares 1 upper-stage rocket contract, due to be awarded in August. NASA is mandating that at least 17.3 percent of the Ares 1 contract work goes to small businesses, and Boeing executives said Friday that requirement should be a breeze, because it already goes above and beyond the space agency guidelines in its contract work.
Last month, the Boeing-led Team Ares held a small-business seminar in Brevard County, trumpeting its efforts to include small business in its efforts. The contract could be worth more than $900 million. The Boeing team for Ares 1 includes Chickasaw Nation Industries; Hamilton Sundstrand, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp.; Moog Inc.; Northrop Grumman Corp.; Orion Propulsion Inc.; SUMMA Technology Inc.; United Launch Alliance; and United Space Alliance. At a luncheon in Cape Canaveral on Friday, Boeing honored six smaller companies in Brevard County, including BRPH, CNI/All Points Logistics Inc., Creative Management Technology Inc., InDyne Inc., Spherion Corp. and Yang Enterprises Inc.
Committee Welcomes Decision to Restore Ozone Sensor (House Science Committee)
Senior Members of the House Committee on Science and Technology welcomed a decision this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the NASA to move forward with the full-capability Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) sensor on the NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) mission. The NPP is a precursor for the National Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) weather satellites, and is intended to give NOAA actual experience with the new and more capable instruments that will one day fly aboard NPOESS.
Indian Manned Lunar Mission Being Planned (Source: The Hindu)
A proposal for an Indian manned mission to the Moon will be submitted this year-end, according to India's space agency, ISRO. "Once this is cleared, the mission could be undertaken within the next 8-10 years," said an official. The manned mission's orbit duration could be seven days, he said adding that the spacecraft can accommodate one or two astronauts, and will be placed at an orbit height of 400 km. Pre-proposal studies on equipment and life-support systems are underway.
Apollo Moon Documentary Shows at Sarasota Film Festival (Source: Bradenton Herald)
The sixth man to walk on the moon smiled at reporters and photographers who clamored for his attention Friday night at the Sarasota Film Festival opening. "In the Shadow of the Moon," a dazzling documentary of the Apollo space missions that put men on the moon, opened the 10-day festival, which runs until April 22. Dr. Edgar Mitchell, one of the NASA astronauts interviewed in the film, and David Sington, who directed, were among the guests on the red carpet at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. The film juxtaposes the historic photographs and film footage with new interviews of surviving astronauts. ThinkFilm will distribute the film in theaters this fall.
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