April 4 News Items

India Plans 70 Space Missions in Five Years (Source: The Hindu)
India plans to undertake 70 space missions in five years, a nearly three-fold jump from the previous half-decade, as it seeks to address requirements and develop new technologies to meet future needs. The proposed missions have a "good mix" of both INSAT class satellites as well as remote sensing ones. Nair, also Secretary in the Department of Space, indicated that the aim is to address requirements of the area of communication transponders and work in the fields of microwave remote sensing, hyper spectral and other new technologies of the future. (4/4)

India Readies for Manned Mission by 2014 (Source: India PR Wire)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has finalized its project report for a manned mission by 2014-15. "The report is being submitted to the government for approval and budgetary allocation. The Space Commission, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will meet next week or so to review the report and take a decision. We plan to launch a manned mission in the next seven-eight years," ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair said. The space agency's report has assessed technologies and infrastructure facilities required to undertake the first such and ambitious mission, which is estimated to cost about Rs.100 billion. (4/4)

Giant Robots Could Carry Lunar Bases on Their Backs (Source: New Scientist)
NASA engineers are testing out a giant, six-legged robot that could pick up and move a future Moon base thousands of kilometres across the lunar surface, allowing astronauts to explore much more than just the area around their landing site. In a 2005 report about its exploration plans, NASA said it wanted to set up a base at a fixed location on the Moon after initially returning humans there in 2020. But a gargantuan robotic vehicle called ATHLETE (All-Terrain Hex-Legged Extra-Terrestrial Explorer) could change that. Measuring about 7.5 metres wide, with legs more than 6 meters long, the robot could act essentially like a turtle, carrying the astronauts' living quarters around on its back. It was designed by engineers at JPL in California, who are now testing two small-scale prototypes of the robot. (4/4)

Hibernation Method Tested for Space Travel (Source: Discovery)
No matter how much you like your crewmates, a three-year mission to Mars would test the even the best of relationships. And that's not even the primary reason why future long-duration space travelers may spend part of the journey in suspended animation. There's the tremendous expense of carrying food, oxygen and carbon dioxide scrubbers to keep astronauts alive, not to mention the hassle of processing their urine and feces. "Wouldn't it be neat if you could just put them out?" said Warren Zapol, the head of anesthesiology at Harvard University's Massachusetts General Hospital.

One option would be to cool the crew cabin into a big chill. But body temperatures below 30 Celsius (86 degrees F) can disturb the heart's rhythm. Another possibility would be to have the astronauts breathe swamp gas. Zapol and colleagues report in this month's Anesthesiology journal about how hydrogen sulfide -- the same stuff produced by rotten eggs and swamp gas -- slows mouse metabolism without cutting blood flow to the brain. (4/4)

California Space Authority Plans Space Day on May 13 (Source: CSA)
CSA's twelfth annual Space Day in Sacramento is planned on May 13. A morning orientation will be followed by meetings throughout the Capitol with various legislative leaders. A lunch is also planned with members of the Governor's Administration and with leaders from NASA Headquarters. The afternoon will be spent in meetings with more legislators, followed by a reception in the Governor's Counsel Chambers. Visit http://www.californiaspaceauthority.org/spacedaysacto2008/registration.html for information (4/4)

NASA's Pre-College Education Programs Critiqued (Source: SpaceRef.com)
The federal role in precollege science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education is receiving increasing attention in light of the need to support public understanding of science and to develop a strong scientific and technical workforce in a competitive global economy. Agencies like NASA are being looked to as a resource for enhancing precollege STEM education and bringing more young people to scientific and technical careers. The space agency faces an aerospace workforce skewed toward those close to retirement. In addition, public support for the agency's missions stems in part from public understanding of the importance of the agency's contributions in science, engineering, and space exploration. Visit http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12081 to view the report. (4/4)

Vandenberg Helps Small Businesses Grow (Source: USAF)
The 30th Space Wing gave small businesses the opportunity to market their goods to the Air Force at the 'Grow Your Business' conference in the Pacific Coast Club March 19 and 20. The two-day conference gave business owners opportunities to meet and market with government purchase card holders and to network with federal agencies, prime contractors and other small businesses. During the event, speakers from both the government and major government prime contractors discussed business opportunities, vendor selection criteria, and provided insights on what it takes to be successful and how to avoid common mistakes. (3/24)

Lawmakers Own Nearly $200M in Defense Investments (Source: AIA)
A report by a nonpartisan research group found members of Congress have up to $196 million collectively invested in defense companies. The Center for Responsive Politics report noted that some of the companies are not typical defense firms. The study found that more Republicans than Democrats own defense stocks. (4/4)

Embry-Riddle Supports Aerospace Academy in Florida's Rural Polk County (Source: Lakeland Ledger)
Kathleen High School wants to become a talent pipeline for the aerospace industry. The Central Florida Aerospace Academy will open at Kathleen High this fall, joining a number of career academies being established across Polk County and Florida as part of a state education initiative. Public school officials say the program will admit up to 125 students, provide training in avionics and aerospace technologies at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, as well as work in concert with Sun 'n Fun and other area organizations. The Academy was developed by a consortium that includes the FAA, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and Gulf Coast Avionics. (4/4)

Yuri's Night Beach Party at Cocoa Beach Pier on April 12 (Source: NSS)
The Florida Space Coast chapter of the National Space Society (NSS) and the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) at the University of Central Florida are teaming up to host a Space Beach Party at the Cocoa Beach Pier on April 12 from 2:00pm to 11:00pm. The event is part of a worldwide annual celebration of the anniversary of manned spaceflight and is the only party registered in Florida. Purchase your VIP Access Pass now at the special online discount price of $10 (regularly $15) by visiting http://www.spacebeachparty.com/vip-reception. (4/4)

University of Virginia Official Urges Congress to Back Exploration (Source: UVA)
Kathryn Thornton, professor and associate dean at the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Virginia, told a congressional committee today that it is time for humans to go beyond low Earth orbit because "orbiting the earth, as thrilling as it is, is not exploring space." Thornton, who served for 12 years as an astronaut, was among four individuals invited to testify before the House Committee on Science and Technology's Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics. She was invited for the role she played in organizing and co-chairing an independent workshop, "Examining the Vision: Balancing Exploration and Science," held last February at Stanford University. (4/4)

Vietnam Delays Launch of First Satellite (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
The launch of Vietnam's first satellite has been delayed by a week. The Vinasat, originally scheduled for launch April 12, will now shuttle into space on April 19. Commercial services launcher Arianespace, which will send Vinasat from French Guiana, had warned that the launch could be delayed if conditions were not optimal. The project, which cost about $300 million, has been in the pipeline for more than 10 years. (4/4)

NASA Unfazed by Auditor's Findings (Source: Florida Today)
A NASA official told lawmakers Thursday that the space agency concurs with government auditors' findings about troubles with proposed new rockets and spaceships, and is working to fix them as soon as possible. Richard Gilbrech said NASA has made "great progress in better understanding the issue" surrounding excessive engine vibrations, identifying several ways to fix the problem. "It is a problem common of all rocket motors," the associate administrator of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate said. "To me that's nothing that's alarming. These are the types of things you run across when you start to develop new rockets and try to integrate them." Gilbrech said that for him, a bigger risk for the program is whether the nation elects a new president who will cut the space program. (4/4)

Speeding Up COTS Crew Option Studied (Aerospace Daily)
NASA has nearly finished a study on the feasibility of accelerating the crew transport portion of its Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, which for now remains focused exclusively on cargo. During testimony April 3, Richard Gilbrech, NASA's associate administrator for exploration, said the agency would be happy to share the results of the study with lawmakers as soon as it is completed. "We're in the final stages of vetting that," he said. SpaceX and Orbital Sciences have been funded under the COTS program to develop commercial options for transporting cargo - and eventually crew - to the Space Station. So far only SpaceX has said it also plans to develop crew transport capability for COTS. Some lawmakers have expressed the desire for NASA to speed that part of the effort to help narrow the expected post-Shuttle gap in U.S. human spaceflight capability. (4/3)

Shock Absorbers May Fix Rocket Shaking (Source: AP)
To fix a potentially fatal shaking problem on its snazzy new moon rocket, NASA is considering something that works for mud-stained pickup trucks: heavy-duty shock absorbers. For nearly half a year, NASA's No. 1 technical problem in designing its Ares I rocket has been a sound wave vibration problem from its solid rocket motors. The leading solution is to put weight on springs in parts of the bottom end of the rocket and underneath astronauts' seats to dampen the vibrations. (4/3)

Feeney Will Fight to Reduce NASA Cutbacks (Source: Orlando Business Journal)
Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Florida) has issued a statement saying he will fight to keep work flowing to the Kennedy Space Center in order to reduce the impact of impending NASA job cuts caused by the planned Space Shuttle retirement. The Kennedy Space Center is projected to lose more than 6,000 jobs when the Space Shuttle is retired in 2010. Feeney says NASA's forecast represents a "worst-case scenario" and he plans to work toward gaining more projects for the center, including those involving lunar exploration and space station supply. (4/3)

New Mexico Governor: NASA Chief Welcomes Commercial Space Programs (Source: KOAT.com)
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson said NASA Administrator Michael Griffin can't promote New Mexico's spaceport over competing efforts in Texas, California and Florida. But Richardson said Griffin supports commercial space facilities. Richardson also said Griffin is familiar with New Mexico's Spaceport America and the space assets New Mexico offers. Richardson and the director of New Mexico's spaceport, Steve Landeene, made the rounds in Washington this week, trying to secure federal help in New Mexico's space commercialization efforts. They did not land any immediate business or funding agreements. (4/3)

UF Researcher Studying Matter-Antimatter Split (Source: Scientific American)
Nature may have handed scientists a new clue in a longstanding mystery: how matter beat out antimatter for dominance of the universe. Early data from twin experiments at the Tevatron, the world's reigning particle accelerator at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Ill., suggest an unexpected chink in the hugely successful standard model of particle physics. The twist comes from odd behavior in a particle called the BS (pronounced "B-sub-S"), which flips back and forth between its matter and antimatter forms three trillions times per second. Researchers believe that such a breakdown, known as CP violation, is required to explain why matter is so abundant.

Researchers say the finding is well worth following up to make sure it is not a random clump in the data, as frequently happens in particle physics experiments. "This is exciting, definitely," says physicist Jacobo Konigsberg of the University of Florida in Gainesville, co-spokesperson for CDF, one of two detectors that may have glimpsed the effect. Antimatter is well-known to science fiction fans as the stuff that explodes on contact with regular particles such as protons and electrons, which have the same mass as their antiparticles but the opposite charge. The hot, early universe contained equal parts matter and antimatter. (4/3)

NASA Vision Not Getting Funded, Experts Find (Source: Reuters)
An ambitious vision to take people to the moon and Mars may fall apart before it even gets off the ground because of uncertain planning and inadequate funding, several experts said on Thursday. A GAO report said NASA's replacement for the space shuttle is in jeopardy, and members of Congress as well as at least one former astronaut agreed at a hearing on the issue. (4/3)

Public Invited to Discuss Clean-Up Plan for NASA Glenn Property (Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer)
The Ohio EPA is hosting a public meeting to air the cleanup plan for the NASA Glenn Research Center property in Brook Park. On April 14, officials will discuss the contamination in the west-central part of the 364-acre facility. After considering six alternatives, EPA is recommending that NASA removes contaminated soil and use the property for commercial or industrial purposes. (4/3)