January 5 News Items

China-Russia Mars Mission Set for Takeoff (Source: UPI)
The first joint Chinese-Russian mission to Mars is set to take off in October and reach the red planet in August 2010, an exploration project designer said. A Russian Zenit rocket will launch a Chinese Yinghuo-1 satellite and a Russian Phobos-Grunt unmanned lander, according to Chen Changya, chief designer of the China-Russia Mars exploration project. (1/5)

Editorial: Adopting Strict Safety Rules at NASA Can Save Lives (Source: Miami Herald)
The new report from NASA on the Columbia disaster has produced 30 recommendations to keep astronauts safer in space. It also reveals in poignant detail how the seven astronauts aboard the spaceship died. Since NASA may extend shuttle flights past their 2010 retirement date, the report's recommendations should be taken seriously. They may save lives in future shuttle missions. The new report found that the astronauts' helmets weren't well designed for protection. Seat restraints were too weak to contain astronauts in extreme turbulence. Improving these features are among the report's recommendations. Making these changes can save lives during future shuttle flights. They should be adopted. (1/5)

Getting Into Space by Broomstick (Source: BBC)
The prospects for the space elevator have been shaken up with a simple prototype using a broomstick. A European Space Agency engineer demonstrated the device at a space elevator conference in December. A long-standing critical issue is how to power the "climber" that would ascend the cable into space. Prevailing ideas include delivering microwave or laser power to the climber beamed from the Earth's surface, or even from orbiting solar power collectors.

The ESA engineer proposed sending power mechanically - effectively by providing a carefully timed jerk of the cable at its base. To demonstrate, he employed a broomstick to represent the cable held in tension, and an electric sander to provide a rhythmic vibration to the bottom of the stick. Click here to view the article. (1/5)

Report: Obama May Merge NASA, Pentagon Space Programs (Source: Fox)
President-elect Barack Obama will probably remove barriers between the U.S. civilian and military space programs once he takes office, according to one report. Obama has already publicly pledged to revive the National Aeronautics and Space Council, a White House office which coordinated military and space policy from the Eisenhower through the Nixon administrations, and then again during the administration of President George H.W. Bush. The move is being spurred by fear that China, which is making great strides in space, could challenge the U.S. for orbital dominance in the near future. (1/5)

Marshall Workers' Average Age Drops (Source: Huntsville Times)
As 2009 dawns, the average Marshall Space Flight Center worker is getting younger - by one year. Marshall's 2,550 federal workers now average 46 years old, dropping down this year from 47, said Marshall Director Dave King. Huntsville residents' median age is 36.7. The secret to dropping the average? "Over the past year, we were fortunate to hire 150 younger people," King said, "and we hope to hire more next (year)." Averages for Marshall's 7,000 contract workers are about the same, according to aerospace industry studies.

According to a recent study by the Aerospace Industry Association, retirement may be a problem across the industry. Of the almost 655,000 aerospace workers - 110,000 are engineers - 26 percent are over 50. A National Science Board's Science and Engineering Indicators report shows that by age 62 half of bachelor's-degree holders have left full-time employment. Doctoral-degree holders work slightly longer with half leaving full-time employment by age 66. (1/5)

The Problems With "The Future of Human Spaceflight" (Source: Space Review)
Last month an MIT group released a report with its recommendations for the future of NASA's human spaceflight efforts. James Oberg points out some flaws he finds in their reasoning. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1278/1 to view the article. (1/5)

COTS: The Next Generation (Source: Space Review)
As NASA's initial efforts to stimulate development of commercial ISS resupply services result in contracts, what should be the next step for the space agency in stimulating commercial services? Taylor Dinerman examines the possibilities and the obstacles. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1277/1 to view the article. (1/5)