January 13 News Items

Strong Demand Prompts Arianespace To Look For More Launchers (Source: Aviation Week)
In a bid to keep up with strong commercial satellite demand and an improving outlook for government business, Arianespace is looking at further launcher purchases and accelerating production ramp-up plans. The Paris-based launch provider is planning to raise capacity by buying 10-15 more Soyuz rockets, and might also purchase additional Ariane 5 vehicles. The Ariane 5 ES model can perform multiple in-orbit restarts, a capability that’s needed for Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) and Galileo satellite navigation system.

The company already has eight Soyuz rockets on order, including four acquired in June, along with 35 Ariane 5 ECA heavy-lifters and five Vega light boosters in final negotiation. But this may now be insufficient, Le Gall says. The current inventory of 20 Ariane 5s is due to run out in 2010. Arianespace also is accelerating plans to ramp up the launch rate for the workhorse Ariane 5. The company had initially intended to boost the Ariane 5’s dual-satellite launch rate to seven this year and eight in 2009, up from six in 2007 and five in 2006. Le Gall says planners now believe it’s possible to complete eight missions as early as 2008.

Feb. 7 Tentative Date for Shuttle Launch (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Shuttle managers have set February 7 as the tentative date for the launch of the shuttle Atlantis, assuming repairs to the shuttle's external tank are completed as planned. NASA had previously announced a launch date of no earlier than January 24th, but admitted at the time that everything had to go perfectly to allow a launch on that date. The new launch date is dependent on completing repairs to electrical connectors that caused erroneous readings from engine cutoff sensors when the tank was filled with liquid hydrogen during two launch attempts and a tanking test in December. NASA must also discuss launch plans with the Russians, who have planned to launch a Progress cargo spacecraft to the ISS at the same time. If the date is confirmed, it would be almost exactly two months after the original date for the launch of mission STS-122, which is carrying a European lab module to the ISS.

Editorial: Refueling NASA (Source: Houston Chronicle)
Despite Congress' rejection of a billion-dollar funding increase for NASA next year, Texas lawmakers haven't given up the fight to increase the agency's budget. In a tour of the development lab for the Orion crew exploration vehicle at the Johnson Space Center, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, and U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson, a Democrat, called for an additional $2 billion to speed up construction of the Orion and the Ares rocket system to launch it into space. The NASA budget approved by Congress is just over $17.3 billion. The added funding is needed to shorten a dangerous 5-year gap between the decommissioning of the three aging space shuttles in 2010 and the first scheduled flight of Orion in 2015. During that time, the United States would have to pay Russia to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station using disposable Soyuz space capsules.

Rockets Will Return to Alaska's Poker Flat Research Station (Source: Fairbanks News Miner)
The skies will be quiet over Poker Flat Research Range this winter; there are no rockets scheduled to launch. But anticipated funding increases to the NASA sounding rocket program should keep the range busy and the skies north of Fairbanks alight with rockets in the coming years. Last year, NASA launched 10 rockets from the range. The University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, which operates the range, has worked closely with NASA on rocket research projects since 1979. However, recent federal budget constraints had some officials, both here and at NASA, worried that the rockets would be grounded.

Arizona's Title as Capital of Astronomy is Eroding (Source: Arizona Daily Star)
A supergroup of Arizona science leaders is calling for immediate action to protect and expand the $250 million-plus it says the state's economy gets each year from non-commercial astronomy and space and planetary science research. The group recommends expanding Arizona's public- and private-sector strengths in astronomy and space sciences by having the state's congressional delegation go after federal funding, further reducing light pollution in the face of rapid population growth, and creating a more welcoming atmosphere for observatories.

JPL Background Checks Continue Through Courts (Source: Pasadena Star-News)
A federal judge Friday barred NASA from requiring background checks for any of its low-security Jet Propulsion Laboratory employees until the courts resolve whether the checks constitute an invasion of privacy. U.S. District Judge Otis Wright's decision followed hours after a panel of three Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals judges ordered him to revisit the case filed by 28 JPL employees against the federal government and Caltech. In October, Wright denied the employees' request for a preliminary injunction, writing that they had "not shown either a likelihood of success on the merits or irreparable injury."

Wright's ruling Friday ensures that the injunction will apply to all of JPL's nearly 5,000 low-security employees, not just those who filed the lawsuit. The JPL scientists and engineers had argued that the background checks, which include questions about drug use and treatment and an open-ended waiver releasing personal information to investigators, collected more information than needed for the purported goal of creating a secure identification badge.

ISS Orbit Raised to Host Spacecraft (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russian Mission Control said on Saturday it had successfully adjusted the International Space Station's orbit in preparation for the docking of a Russian cargo spacecraft and a U.S. space shuttle. Corrections to the space station's orbit are conducted periodically before launches of Russian cargo ships and U.S. shuttles to compensate for Earth's gravity and to ensure successful dockings. The orbit was raised 5.25 kilometers (3.26 miles), bringing the space station to an altitude of around 340 kilometers (about 211 miles) over the Earth's surface.

Elon Musk Talks About The SpaceX Revolution (Source: Aero News)
After bearing the pouring rain that "blessed" the ground-breaking of a new launch facility headquartered in the shadow of historic Space Launch Complex 40, Aero-TV's Jim Campbell got some rare one-on-one time with SpaceX honcho, Elon Musk. The new facility, which will someday launch Falcon 9 rockets for Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) was dedicated early in November, during the World Space Expo. Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) is situated on the historic Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, and will start serving as the primary launch site for SpaceX's upcoming Falcon 9 launch vehicle, beginning in late 2008.

Located on the Florida coast, just south of NASA's launch site for all Apollo moon missions and Space Shuttle flights, SLC-40 is capable of supporting both the Falcon 9 and future Falcon 9 Heavy missions. "Initiating activities at the Cape in Florida is a major milestone in our mission to decrease the cost of reliable access to space," said Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX, at the ceremony. "This is truly the beginning of a new era in commercial space in Florida and we are thrilled to help bring SpaceX to Florida" commented Space Florida CEO Steve Kohler, who also participated in the ceremony.

Arianespace Leads Campaign in U.S. To Stifle Chinese Launch Competition (Source: Space News)
For the past eight months the global space industry has witnessed an apparently unprecedented campaign by one French company, the Arianespace commercial launch consortium, to enlist the U.S. government to prevent another French company, satellite builder Thales Alenia Space, from bidding for satellite manufacturing contracts that include launching the satellite aboard one of China's Long March vehicles.

Griffin Reiterates Support for COTS (Source: Space News)
NASA Administrator Mike Griffin told a Houston audience Jan. 10 he hopes to make a new award to demonstrate space station logistics services "in the coming weeks ahead once we clear all legal challenges."

Canadian Space Agency Gets 3rd New President in Less than a Year (Source: Space News)
The Canadian Space Agency is under new leadership for the third time in less than a year. Guy Bujold, an assistant deputy minister at Industry Canada, stepped in Jan. 1 as interim president, replacing Laurier Boisvert who announced his resignation around Christmas.

NASA's Porter Picked To Lead New Intelligence Community Research Center (Source: Space News)
The U.S. intelligence community's new Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, which is modeled on the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, will be led by Lisa Porter, currently NASA's associate administrator for the aeronautics research mission directorate. Porter will be IARPA's first director.

About Face: Obama Weighs In on Space (Source: Florida Today)
In what amounts to a political about face, Democrat presidential hopeful Barack Obama says he will support the development of NASA's planned Ares 1 rocket and Orion spacecraft to limit the nation's dependence on foreign countries "to the minimum possible time period." The policy represents a turnaround for Obama at a time when presidential candidates are preparing for the Florida presidential primaries later this month. Considered a swing state, Florida has 27 important electoral votes and both the Republican and Democrat parties will hold primaries on Jan. 29. Obama previously had said he planned to pay for his early education program by delaying NASA's Constellation program for five years. Visit http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=26647 for information.

Rocket Racing Group Breaking Ground (Source: Las Cruces Sun-News)
The Rocket Racing League plans to break ground Monday on a portion of its Las Cruces facility, signaling a move forward for the fledgling league. We're going to be breaking ground on two of our first hangars," RRL CEO Granger Whitelaw said. The hangars will be at Las Cruces International Airport and are part of a 20-year lease agreement -- with a potential to extend the lease to 30 years -- between the city and RRL for six 100,000-square-foot parcels at the airport. The hangars are the first part of a larger development that will one day house the league's world headquarters.

Also planned is the development of about 170 acres at the West Mesa Industrial Park adjacent to the airport. In 2006 the league, which is billed as a form of NASCAR in the sky, agreed to buy the land from the city but has yet to complete the $2.3 million purchase. It has until April to do so. Visit http://www.lcsun-news.com/ci_7938954 to view the article.

Google Spaces Out (Source: Silicon Republic)
The sky is the limit for users of online virtual-globe program Google Earth as its star-gazing section, Sky, gets new features to turn it into a suitable academic tool for students, amateur astronomers and even scientists. Google Sky is now using ultra detailed X-ray, infrared and ultraviolet images from NASA observatory satellites, as well as a microwave map of the sky by the Wilkinson Microwave Anistropy Probe (WMAP). With guided tours and detailed catalogues of the planets, stars, constellations and galaxies, Sky now makes it possible for the beginner astronomer to become knowledgeable and find their way around the night sky from their backyard. A popular feature of Google Earth is Historical Sky Maps, with maps of how the stars looked and how they were illustrated from as far back as 1792.

Editorial: Needed: strategy for Space Protection (Source: Washington Times)
A year ago this week, the People's Republic of China launched one of its ballistic missiles and destroyed a satellite orbiting overhead, creating a field of debris expected to stay in orbit for decades to come.It should have been a call to action, yet a year later, our policies and strategies do not reflect our increasing dependence on space.We need a comprehensive space protection strategy. Why should we care? Space has become essential to our way of life, even if its role is not fully understood. As we have come to depend on water, electricity — or even the Internet — Americans have increasingly taken for granted what we get from satellites. Every time we turn on the television, refuel our cars using a credit card or visit an ATM, we are using satellite technology. Visit http://washingtontimes.com/article/20080111/EDITORIAL/181956318/1013 to view the editorial.

Alliant Gets $50M NASA Solar-Array Contract (Source: St. Paul Business Journal)
Alliant Techsystems Inc. won a contract worth more than $50 million to build the solar components for NASA's Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle. The Edina-based company was selected by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., a division of Lockheed Martin Corp., to design and build solar arrays that will generate electricity for the spacecraft. Orion, NASA's newest endeavor in space travel, will be the primary vehicle for human space exploration. It will be used as a cargo and shuttle craft in completing the International Space Station and will be the capsule used for Earth re-entry in lunar and Mars expeditions. Its first lift-off is set for around 2014.

Probes at NASA Plummet Under its Current IG (Source: USA Today)
NASA's watchdog office has sharply reduced its criminal investigations under a leader accused of mismanagement by a presidential commission and members of Congress, the space agency's records show. The number of criminal probes opened by NASA's Office of Inspector General has fallen every year during Robert Cobb's tenure, a USA TODAY review of the agency's reports to Congress shows. Cobb's office opened 68 investigations of waste and fraud by agency employees and contractors during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, down from 508 in fiscal year 2002, when he took office, according to records. By comparison, inspectors general at four similarly-sized agencies each opened hundreds of investigations last year: Labor, 418; Justice, 421; Agriculture, 385; Interior, 414, their reports to Congress show.

How China Loses the Coming Space War (Source: WIRED)
High above Asia, as the bars and clubs of Beijing begin to fill up at the end of another work day, a US early warning satellite spots the tell-tale plume of a missile streaking out of the wastes of Western China. Warning bells sound all through the Pentagon. Tensions have been running high between China and the United States, as the two countries struggle to resolve the latest installment of the Taiwanese crisis. And China has had a run of unprecedented activity in space: the past two days have seen China launch four large missions into deep space, three within the last six hours..
Fortunately, a high-resolution American spy satellite will be over that second launch site within minutes, giving the US a unique ability to determine what is going on. But even though tasking orders are given to photograph the suspected launch site, none are returned. The satellite, code-named Crystal 3, no longer responds to commands. Within minutes, US Space Command reports that four NAVSTAR/GPS satellites—-used to guide American drones and precision bombs—-have stopped broadcasting. China’s space war against the United States has started. Visit http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/01/inside-the-chin.html#more to view the article.

Probe to Fly by Mercury for First Time in Decades (Source: New Scientist)
The first spacecraft to visit Mercury in more than three decades will get its first close-up look at its target on Monday, when it flies within 200 kilometres of the planet's Sun-baked surface. NASA's Messenger probe is set to become the first spacecraft ever to go into orbit around Mercury. Only one other spacecraft has visited the planet – the agency's Mariner 10 probe, which flew past the rocky world three times, most recently in March 1975. Messenger will make the first of three planned flybys of Mercury that will help it enter into orbit around the planet in March 2011. Since its launch in 2004, it has already flown by Earth once and Venus twice to put it on course to reach the innermost planet.

UF-Led Search for New Planets Part of Ambitious New Sky Survey (Source: UF)
A University of Florida-led sky survey that may double the number of known planets outside the solar system is part of a major new survey program. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey III, slated to begin mid-year and end in mid-2014, consists of four independent surveys operated by the survey’s consortium. One will probe the distant universe and seek to learn more about mysterious dark energy, while two of the surveys will map the Milky Way and examine origins of stars. The UF-led survey will seek to find giant planets orbiting nearby stars and uncover more about the conditions in which they form.

Apopka Company Replicates NASA Rockets, Equipment (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Just what exactly happens when a toilet flushes in outer space? The answer -- believe it or not -- can be found in Apopka. For nearly 25 years, Guard-Lee, a small Apopka company, has created or restored full-scale aerospace replicas and models of space shuttles, a Boeing 747 and, yes, even a model of a high-tech toilet used during space missions. The life-size models of space shuttles and other launch vehicles -- some more than 100 feet long -- can be seen at museums such as the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, and science exhibits as close as Cape Canaveral's Kennedy Space Center and as far away as Japan. Visit http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/space/orl-guardlee1008jan10,0,7564261.story to view the article.