April 25 News Items

Virginia Offers Spaceport Bonds (Source: Spaceports Blog)
The Virginia General Assembly adopted a multi-million dollar public bond package known as the 21st Century Capital Improvement Program which includes new funding for the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority to make significant infrastructure upgrades to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. The spaceport bond package enjoyed strong bi-partisan support from Governor Tim Kaine and the Legislature. The funding measure comes on the heels of the Virginia ZeroGravity-ZeroTax in 2008 and the Space Flight Liability and Immunity Act in 2007. (4/25)

State Aerospace Hearings May Benefit Dayton Area (Source: Dayton Business Journal)
State economic development organizations and federal organizations are planning an unprecedented meeting to promote aerospace industry growth in Ohio. The endgame is "to create momentum around the idea that we can create not only jobs, but good jobs to support our aerospace industry in the state," said Joe Renaud, the ODOD aerospace and defense advisor. Due to its concentration of aerospace research and expertise, the Dayton region, through the Dayton Development Coalition and the U.S. Air Force, is being considered as one of the key cogs of the effort, officials said.

On May 7, representatives from the organizations, as well as industry and academia, will participate in joint hearings on aerospace with state leadership, a roundtable discussion with Gov. Ted Strickland and individual meetings with other state leaders. Dubbed "Ohio Aerospace Day," the event is the result of collaboration efforts between the Ohio Aerospace Institute, Ohio Department of Development, the Dayton Development Coalition, the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and the Air Force Research Laboratory, near Dayton. (4/25)

Orbital Sciences Plans $50M Stock Buyback (Source: AP)
Orbital Sciences Corp. is planning the repurchase of up to $50 million in stock over the next year. Orbital Sciences has about 60.9 million shares outstanding. In afternoon trading, the stock rose 81 cents, or 3 percent, to $27.50 after hitting a 52-week high of $27.54. The stock traded at a year low of $19.19 a year ago. (4/25)

Chinese Data Relay Spacecraft Put Into Orbit (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
China launched a data relay satellite Friday to serve as a communications link between ground controllers and the country's next human space mission later this year. A Long March 3C rocket, boosted by a pair of liquid-fueled strap-on engines, lifted off from the Xichang spaceport in southwestern China. (4/25)

Congressman Advocates ITAR Changes (Source: Florida Today)
Congressman Tom Feeney participated on a recent roundtable talk about how to create policy on international space cooperation. He said the discussion drove home how crucial it will be for the United States to ease restrictions laid out in the International Traffic in Arms Regulations - or ITAR. Feeney said ITAR rules are among the biggest hurdles to cooperating with other countries on space science programs. (4/25)

Zenit Launch Planned for Monday (Source: RIA Novosti)
The launch of a modified Zenit rocket with an Israeli communications satellite from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan has been delayed until Monday. Russia started preparations for the first launch of a three-stage Zenit-3SLB rocket from a land-based launch site in October last year. (4/25)

How Clinton, Obama and McCain Could Change U.S. Space Policy (Source: Popular Mechanics)
With key constituencies in Florida, Texas and the Southwest, all three presidential contenders have now laid out official platforms on the next giant leap (or step back) for American space exploration—and none of them bode well for NASA’s existing plans toward the moon and beyond. Visit http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4260504.html for an analysis of the candidates' positions on space. (4/23)

Space Coast County Plans Space Workshop on April 28 (Source: Brevard County)
The Brevard County Board of County Commissioners has scheduled a full day Space workshop for Monday, April 28 beginning at 9:00 a.m. In the morning, speakers include Senator Nelson, Congressman Weldon, and the County’s federal lobbyist, Bob Walker. Congressman Feeney, will speak in the afternoon and there will be a taped message from Senator Martinez. The event will be held at the County Commission meeting room in Viera, Florida. (4/22)

Anxious Weekend Ahead for Galileo Backers (Source: EE Times)
Teams that have been developing and financing the Giove-B demonstrator and test satellite for Europe's fledgling satellite navigation project, Galileo, will have an anxious weekend as the bird is scheduled to be launched in the early hours of April 27th. The Soyuz launch vehicle with the satellite on board has already taken up its final launch position at Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan for putting Giove-B into its reserved path at 23,000 km. Developed and manufactured by Astrium, the satellite will carry Galileo's key technologies into space for the first time, and is a trailblazer for the overall system. (4/25)

Editorial: Keep Money on Earth Where it's Needed More (Source: Rochester Democrat & Chronicle)
Recently, the Senate added $1.1 billion to the NASA budget bill for 2008. The $17.3 billion package, up 7.3 percent over the current year, would pull ahead of inflation, something NASA Administrator Michael Griffin promised wouldn't happen. The economy is not in the best shape. Gas prices are astronomically high, nearing $4 per gallon in New York state. The need for government assistance is on the rise.

So it is not appropriate for the United States to be spending $17.3 billion on space exploration and research when there are American citizens living in poverty. In a time when the American dollar has dipped below Canadian currency in value, the U.S. government should be more focused on paying down the national debt and restoring America to its former status as an economic giant. I agree that space exploration is important and should be a high priority — but not a higher priority than the nation's economy. We need to take care of the here and now on Earth — rather than worry more about the future in space. Backed by a strong economy, manned space missions organized by NASA are a great, visionary idea. (4/25)