Canada Eyeing Development of Robotic Arm for Orion (Source: Space News)
The Canadian Space Agency has given MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates seed money to examine the development of a new-generation robotic arm that could ultimately be used for NASA's Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle. The as-yet unbuilt arm could be offered to the U.S. space agency in exchange for flying a Canadian astronaut on an Orion mission, according to officials with MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) of Richmond, British Columbia. (2/28)
ISDC Conference Offers "Affiliate Organization" Program (Source: NSSFL)
ISDC has a long tradition as a cooperative effort! Interested organizations, institutions, social clubs, schools, and other groups can join the ISDC team by becoming an "Affiliate Organization". Benefits to Affiliate Organizations and Institutions include 'Member' registration rates, one free registration for Affiliate staff, recognition in conference publications and website, affirmation of the Affiliate’s role in supporting space activities. Visit http://www.isdc2009.org/affiliates for information. (2/27)
Iridium Plans for New System Unchanged by Collision (Source: Space News)
Iridium Satellite LLC expects its second-generation constellation of low-orbiting satellites — to be ordered by June, will be placed into the same orbit as its current spacecraft— having concluded that the orbit is only marginally more risky following the Feb. 10 collision of an Iridium satellite with a retired Russian spacecraft, Iridium Chief Executive Matt Desch said. (2/28)
Iran Sets its Sights Higher Following Omid Launch (Source: Space News)
Iran intends to use the successful Feb. 2 launch of its Omid store-and-forward communications satellite to spur development of larger spacecraft and higher-capacity versions of the Iranian-built Safir-2 rocket that placed it into orbit, an official with the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) said. In a Feb. 12 address in Vienna to the U.N. Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), Reaza Taghipour Anvari of ISA said Omid's development is viewed by the Iranian government as a way to encourage interest in high technology. (2/28)
Steve Isakowitz Leads the Pack for NASA Administrator Job (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
According to administration insiders, the list of candidates to be Barack Obama’s new NASA Administrator now stands at four: Retired Air Force Gen. Lester L. Lyles; retired Air Force Gen. Scott Gration; former NASA astronaut and retired Marine Corps general, Charles Bolden; and Steve Isakowitz, the Chief Financial Officer of the Department of Energy and a former top NASA official. The administration has given no indication when the president will nominate his selection for the top job at NASA, but there are suggestions that it could be coming soon. All candidates are undergoing careful White House vetting and scrutiny. The eventual nominee will have to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. (2/27)
Russia Sends Military Satellite Into Space (Source: Xinhua)
Russia launched a Proton-K rocket on Saturday to send a military satellite into orbit. It blasted off from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan. The three-stage heavy-class rocket, produced by the Khrunichev space scientific and production center, is widely used in delivering Russian and foreign satellites to orbits. The launchweight of a Proton-K is about 700 tons. (2/28)
CSA's Space Week Planned in Washington on Apr. 20-24 (Source: CSA)
It's time to travel to Washington, D.C., to educate federal officials regarding vital space policy issues. We will meet with Congressional members and staff as well as executive branch officials from the White House, Department of Defense, NASA, Department of Labor, Department of Commerce, and the Department of State to discuss issues related to civil space, national security space, education and workforce, and export controls. Visit http://www.californiaspaceauthority.org/spaceweekdc2009/registration.html for information. (2/27)
CSA's Space Day Planned in Sacramento on May 12 (Source: CSA)
Save the date. Last year, over 45 individuals representing a very diverse space enterprise community convened at the State Capitol for a day of legislative visits, known as California Space Day Sacramento. Participants were divided into 9 teams and met with over 50 legislative offices. Visit http://www.californiaspaceauthority.org/spacedaysacto2008/registration.html for information. (2/27)
Wyle to Expand Bay Area Operations to Support Space Tourism (Sources: Bay Area Citizen News, Parabolic Arc)
The company that watches out for the health and well-being of astronauts on the space shuttle, the Space Station, and soon, in the Constellation program, is growing and expanding its expertise into other markets, as well. Wyle Industries’ Integrated Science and Engineering Group, based in the Bay Area, employs scientists, engineers, physicians and Mission Control operators who team up to oversee every aspect of technologies that help astronauts stay healthy while they’re in outer space.
The group is taking its expertise to other markets, such as the growing commercial human spaceflight industry. Wyle has a contract with Virgin Galactic, which will send paying customers up on suborbital flights, to provide a chief medical officer and other related services to the company’s “Founders Group,” the first 100 customers to buy tickets. Wyle employees will ensure that each customer is screened properly and prepared for flight, and that they understand the risk involved, McDonald said. (2/6)
February 27 News Items
NASA Awards Contract for Constellation Spacesuit for the Moon (Source: NASA)
NASA has awarded an interim letter contract to Oceaneering International Inc. of Houston to begin work on the design, development and production of a new spacesuit system for the Constellation Program. The system will protect astronauts during voyages to the International Space Station and exploration of the moon's surface. The letter contract requires Oceaneering International to begin work on the basic period of performance while NASA and the company negotiate the contract's final terms. The current award amount for the performance of the letter contract is limited to $9.6 million. (2/27)
Goddard's "Science On a Sphere" Movie to Open Nationwide (Source: CSA)
Starting with a brief historical look back at the legacy of human achievement in lunar exploration, the movie presses audiences to take stock in their own relationship to the moon. Then it takes them on a journey. Traveling along with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, viewers will discover some of the essential scientific subjects that scientists plan to study. There are two California locations: Lawrence Hall of Science at Berkeley and The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose. Click here for information. (2/27)
Delta 4 Rocket Rolls Out for the Launcher's 10th Mission (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
The Delta 4 rocket to launch an advanced U.S. weather satellite was rolled out to the pad at Cape Canaveral's Complex 37 this week. Liftoff of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite O, or GOES O, is scheduled for April 28. The spacecraft is the second in an updated series of weather observatories with sharper vision and extended life. The GOES program has a long history of providing the weather imagery seen daily during news broadcasts. (2/27)
U.S. Satellite Shootdown Debris Said Gone From Space (Source: Reuters)
No debris remains in space from the U.S. destruction a year ago of an errant spy satellite loaded with toxic hydrazine fuel, the head of the Pentagon's Strategic Command said. By contrast, some of the debris caused when China used a ground-based ballistic missile to destroy one of its defunct weather satellites will stay in orbit for another 80 or 90 years, said Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton, the command's chief. "Every bit of debris created by that (U.S.) intercept has de-orbited," Chilton told a symposium on air warfare hosted by the U.S. Air Force Association in Orlando, Florida. (2/27)
Extra Ares Flight-Test Possible (Source: Aviation Week)
Managers at NASA are pulling together options for spending the roughly $400 million in extra funds that have become available for human exploration under the economic stimulus package, and have not ruled out an extra flight-test to hasten development of the Ares I crew launch vehicle. Also on the table is advancing development work on Ares I and the Orion crew exploration vehicle that has slipped beyond fiscal 2010. That would reduce risk and increase efficiency by avoiding potential delays arising from parallel development of components that must work together, according to Doug Cooke, associate administrator for exploration systems. (2/27)
Kepler Launch Moved to Next Friday (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's planet-hunting Kepler telescope will fly at least a day later than planned because of this week's failed rocket launch from California. The spacecraft is now scheduled to blast off no earlier than next Friday from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport's Launch Complex 17-B, aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. Two launch windows run from 10:49 p.m. to 10:52 p.m., and from 11:13 p.m. to 11:16 p.m. (2/27)
Space Dust More Pervasive Than Thought (Source: Space.com)
The vast spaces between galaxies might seem pretty empty. But they are actually littered with clouds of cosmic dust that were likely ejected from the galaxies themselves. And the dust scatters farther into intergalactic space than astronomers expected, a new study finds. The discovery was made by watching subtle shifts in the light emanating from quasars that sit at the hearts of far-away galaxies. On its way to Earth, the light from quasars passes by and through intervening galaxies. Dust grains in the galaxies block the light from the blue end of the spectrum more effectively than red light, causing a quasar to appear redder to viewers on Earth. This same phenomenon can be seen on Earth during a sunset: "Light rays pass through a thicker layer of the atmosphere, absorbing more and more blue light, causing the sun to appear reddened," said Ryan Scranton of the University of California, Davis, who was part of the team that made the dust discovery. (2/27)
Slower Defense Growth Highlights Obama's First Budget (Source: AIA)
President Barack Obama is seeking to boost the Pentagon's 2010 budget -- including war spending -- by a modest 1.4%, signaling a pullback from the big-spending Bush years. Though the budget outline released on Thursday did not include specifics on acquisitions, the president did stipulate that he expects the Pentagon to exercise greater oversight on weapons spending. Analysts said the stern language indicates an emphasis on more affordable contracts and proven technologies. Aerospace Industries Association Vice President Cord Sterling said contractors and the Pentagon would have to work together to meet the president's goals. (2/27)
NextGen Gets $800 Million Funding in Obama Budget (Source: AIA)
President Barack Obama's 2010 budget outline includes $800 million in funding for the satellite-based Next Generation air traffic control system. The money will help build a nationwide network of 794 satellite ground stations due for completion in 2013. (2/27)
U.S. Prepared to Shoot Down Korean Missile If Obama Gives OK (Source: ABC)
Adm. Timothy Keating, head of the U.S. Pacific Commands, said that the military is prepared to shoot down any North Korean ballistic missile -- if President Obama should give the order. "If a missile leaves the launch pad we'll be prepared to respond upon direction of the president," Keating told ABC News. "There's equipment moving [in North Korea] would indicate the preliminary stages of preparation for a launch...Should it look like it's not a satellite launch -- that it's something other than a satellite launch -- we'll be ready to respond."
Intelligence reports suggest that North Korea is preparing a long-range missile test. Earlier this week, North Korea announced its plans to send a satellite into orbit as part of its space program. However, many in the international community assert that North Korea's satellite test is simply a means of concealing a long-range missile test -- a move that would flare existing tension in the region. (2/27)
Obama Backs Bush Plan to Retire Shuttle in 2010 (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
President Barack Obama dashed the hopes of thousands of Kennedy Space Center workers Thursday when he agreed to continue a Bush plan to retire the space shuttle in 2010. That would leave at least 3,500 KSC workers in line to lose their jobs by the end of next year — although there could be thousands more, as the center primarily is responsible for launching NASA spacecraft. Obama reiterated the 2010 end date as part of his first budget proposal, and KSC backers are still going to try to influence the decision during budget negotiations but are privately pessimistic about their chances for success.
Obama's spending plan calls for NASA to get $18.7 billion next year, a slight increase over Bush administration levels. Some of that money, if approved by Congress, could go toward one additional shuttle flight — but only if the mission could be completed "safely and affordably" by the 2010 deadline, according to budget documents. The boost adds to the $1 billion that NASA already has received under Obama's stimulus plan. Combined, these two increases represent slightly better days for NASA officials and space enthusiasts, who have complained for years that NASA doesn't receive the funding it needs.
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, a fellow Democrat, was not pleased with the shuttle retirement plan. "We cannot fly the shuttle forever, but conducting shuttle launches on an arbitrary deadline is unsafe and unnecessary," said Kosmas, a New Smyrna Beach lawmaker who represents KSC. The Obama plan also puts pressure on NASA to finish its remaining nine shuttle missions by 2010 — not including the additional flight — and complete construction of the space station. Shuttle launches frequently are delayed; the latest by Discovery has been postponed four times. (2/27)
ATK to Lay Off 300 by End of March (Source: Deseret News)
ATK Launch Systems has put its employees on alert, saying it plans to lay off 300 employees from the company's three Utah locations by the end of March. George Torres, vice president of communications for ATK Space Systems, said letters were sent to all ATK employees last week confirming rumors of impending layoffs. One major factor is the pending completion of ATK's Minuteman III contract with the Air Force. ATK was contracted to build 600 missiles, and it is now working on the final 50 pieces. The contract may end outright, or at best, production could slow from 12 per month to six to 12 per year, just for testing or replacement purposes. The most uncertain factors affecting layoffs are pending funds — or the lack thereof — for the space shuttle program and its soon-to-be replacement, the Ares. (2/27)
Wealthier Nations Bid for Branson's Galactic (Source: The Australian)
Australia appears to have been beaten to the punch as a potential base for a space tourism industry by wealthy interests in other countries. Virgin Galactic chairman Richard Branson was touting Australia as a site for a Galactic spaceport as recently as last year. But Sir Richard said that several countries were now bidding for the spaceports as the project moves closer to reality -- and Australia was not among them. "I think we're going to prioritize one or two of the countries that are paying quite considerable sums of money for us to go there first," Branson said. (2/27)
Officials Will Look for Ways to Create Jobs in Shuttle Void (Source: Florida Today)
Though President Barack Obama's budget is generous to NASA, thousands of jobs likely will be lost at KSC after 2010 -- just as the nation is predicted to emerge from the present recession. Additionally, the budget does not close the five-year gap between the end of the shuttle program and the next space vehicle, which will require an estimated 3,500 fewer workers. "There is a jobs gap in there as well as the flight gap," said Dale Ketcham, director of the University of Central Florida's Spaceport Research & Technology Institute at KSC.
Ketcham said Obama delivered the funding he promised -- a total increase of $2.4 billion over the 2008 level -- but Obama called for shuttle flights to end in 2010, rather than be extended simply to preserve jobs. "Given the colossal budget constraints they're under, from an agency perspective, we still have to declare victory," Ketcham said. The timing of the massive layoffs could affect voters' choices in the U.S. Senate and Florida governor races, he added.
As the shuttle program ends, Brevard County officials plan new efforts to mitigate job losses. "That's where the money's targeted, and we're going to ask what can we do to help leverage or exploit it to opportunities that can take place in Florida," said Lynda Weatherman, president and chief executive of the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast. The EDC will look at possible technical programs within the federal government and private industry to bring jobs to Brevard. "We're going to go beyond just NASA," Weatherman said. (2/27)
NASA has awarded an interim letter contract to Oceaneering International Inc. of Houston to begin work on the design, development and production of a new spacesuit system for the Constellation Program. The system will protect astronauts during voyages to the International Space Station and exploration of the moon's surface. The letter contract requires Oceaneering International to begin work on the basic period of performance while NASA and the company negotiate the contract's final terms. The current award amount for the performance of the letter contract is limited to $9.6 million. (2/27)
Goddard's "Science On a Sphere" Movie to Open Nationwide (Source: CSA)
Starting with a brief historical look back at the legacy of human achievement in lunar exploration, the movie presses audiences to take stock in their own relationship to the moon. Then it takes them on a journey. Traveling along with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, viewers will discover some of the essential scientific subjects that scientists plan to study. There are two California locations: Lawrence Hall of Science at Berkeley and The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose. Click here for information. (2/27)
Delta 4 Rocket Rolls Out for the Launcher's 10th Mission (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
The Delta 4 rocket to launch an advanced U.S. weather satellite was rolled out to the pad at Cape Canaveral's Complex 37 this week. Liftoff of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite O, or GOES O, is scheduled for April 28. The spacecraft is the second in an updated series of weather observatories with sharper vision and extended life. The GOES program has a long history of providing the weather imagery seen daily during news broadcasts. (2/27)
U.S. Satellite Shootdown Debris Said Gone From Space (Source: Reuters)
No debris remains in space from the U.S. destruction a year ago of an errant spy satellite loaded with toxic hydrazine fuel, the head of the Pentagon's Strategic Command said. By contrast, some of the debris caused when China used a ground-based ballistic missile to destroy one of its defunct weather satellites will stay in orbit for another 80 or 90 years, said Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton, the command's chief. "Every bit of debris created by that (U.S.) intercept has de-orbited," Chilton told a symposium on air warfare hosted by the U.S. Air Force Association in Orlando, Florida. (2/27)
Extra Ares Flight-Test Possible (Source: Aviation Week)
Managers at NASA are pulling together options for spending the roughly $400 million in extra funds that have become available for human exploration under the economic stimulus package, and have not ruled out an extra flight-test to hasten development of the Ares I crew launch vehicle. Also on the table is advancing development work on Ares I and the Orion crew exploration vehicle that has slipped beyond fiscal 2010. That would reduce risk and increase efficiency by avoiding potential delays arising from parallel development of components that must work together, according to Doug Cooke, associate administrator for exploration systems. (2/27)
Kepler Launch Moved to Next Friday (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's planet-hunting Kepler telescope will fly at least a day later than planned because of this week's failed rocket launch from California. The spacecraft is now scheduled to blast off no earlier than next Friday from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport's Launch Complex 17-B, aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. Two launch windows run from 10:49 p.m. to 10:52 p.m., and from 11:13 p.m. to 11:16 p.m. (2/27)
Space Dust More Pervasive Than Thought (Source: Space.com)
The vast spaces between galaxies might seem pretty empty. But they are actually littered with clouds of cosmic dust that were likely ejected from the galaxies themselves. And the dust scatters farther into intergalactic space than astronomers expected, a new study finds. The discovery was made by watching subtle shifts in the light emanating from quasars that sit at the hearts of far-away galaxies. On its way to Earth, the light from quasars passes by and through intervening galaxies. Dust grains in the galaxies block the light from the blue end of the spectrum more effectively than red light, causing a quasar to appear redder to viewers on Earth. This same phenomenon can be seen on Earth during a sunset: "Light rays pass through a thicker layer of the atmosphere, absorbing more and more blue light, causing the sun to appear reddened," said Ryan Scranton of the University of California, Davis, who was part of the team that made the dust discovery. (2/27)
Slower Defense Growth Highlights Obama's First Budget (Source: AIA)
President Barack Obama is seeking to boost the Pentagon's 2010 budget -- including war spending -- by a modest 1.4%, signaling a pullback from the big-spending Bush years. Though the budget outline released on Thursday did not include specifics on acquisitions, the president did stipulate that he expects the Pentagon to exercise greater oversight on weapons spending. Analysts said the stern language indicates an emphasis on more affordable contracts and proven technologies. Aerospace Industries Association Vice President Cord Sterling said contractors and the Pentagon would have to work together to meet the president's goals. (2/27)
NextGen Gets $800 Million Funding in Obama Budget (Source: AIA)
President Barack Obama's 2010 budget outline includes $800 million in funding for the satellite-based Next Generation air traffic control system. The money will help build a nationwide network of 794 satellite ground stations due for completion in 2013. (2/27)
U.S. Prepared to Shoot Down Korean Missile If Obama Gives OK (Source: ABC)
Adm. Timothy Keating, head of the U.S. Pacific Commands, said that the military is prepared to shoot down any North Korean ballistic missile -- if President Obama should give the order. "If a missile leaves the launch pad we'll be prepared to respond upon direction of the president," Keating told ABC News. "There's equipment moving [in North Korea] would indicate the preliminary stages of preparation for a launch...Should it look like it's not a satellite launch -- that it's something other than a satellite launch -- we'll be ready to respond."
Intelligence reports suggest that North Korea is preparing a long-range missile test. Earlier this week, North Korea announced its plans to send a satellite into orbit as part of its space program. However, many in the international community assert that North Korea's satellite test is simply a means of concealing a long-range missile test -- a move that would flare existing tension in the region. (2/27)
Obama Backs Bush Plan to Retire Shuttle in 2010 (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
President Barack Obama dashed the hopes of thousands of Kennedy Space Center workers Thursday when he agreed to continue a Bush plan to retire the space shuttle in 2010. That would leave at least 3,500 KSC workers in line to lose their jobs by the end of next year — although there could be thousands more, as the center primarily is responsible for launching NASA spacecraft. Obama reiterated the 2010 end date as part of his first budget proposal, and KSC backers are still going to try to influence the decision during budget negotiations but are privately pessimistic about their chances for success.
Obama's spending plan calls for NASA to get $18.7 billion next year, a slight increase over Bush administration levels. Some of that money, if approved by Congress, could go toward one additional shuttle flight — but only if the mission could be completed "safely and affordably" by the 2010 deadline, according to budget documents. The boost adds to the $1 billion that NASA already has received under Obama's stimulus plan. Combined, these two increases represent slightly better days for NASA officials and space enthusiasts, who have complained for years that NASA doesn't receive the funding it needs.
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, a fellow Democrat, was not pleased with the shuttle retirement plan. "We cannot fly the shuttle forever, but conducting shuttle launches on an arbitrary deadline is unsafe and unnecessary," said Kosmas, a New Smyrna Beach lawmaker who represents KSC. The Obama plan also puts pressure on NASA to finish its remaining nine shuttle missions by 2010 — not including the additional flight — and complete construction of the space station. Shuttle launches frequently are delayed; the latest by Discovery has been postponed four times. (2/27)
ATK to Lay Off 300 by End of March (Source: Deseret News)
ATK Launch Systems has put its employees on alert, saying it plans to lay off 300 employees from the company's three Utah locations by the end of March. George Torres, vice president of communications for ATK Space Systems, said letters were sent to all ATK employees last week confirming rumors of impending layoffs. One major factor is the pending completion of ATK's Minuteman III contract with the Air Force. ATK was contracted to build 600 missiles, and it is now working on the final 50 pieces. The contract may end outright, or at best, production could slow from 12 per month to six to 12 per year, just for testing or replacement purposes. The most uncertain factors affecting layoffs are pending funds — or the lack thereof — for the space shuttle program and its soon-to-be replacement, the Ares. (2/27)
Wealthier Nations Bid for Branson's Galactic (Source: The Australian)
Australia appears to have been beaten to the punch as a potential base for a space tourism industry by wealthy interests in other countries. Virgin Galactic chairman Richard Branson was touting Australia as a site for a Galactic spaceport as recently as last year. But Sir Richard said that several countries were now bidding for the spaceports as the project moves closer to reality -- and Australia was not among them. "I think we're going to prioritize one or two of the countries that are paying quite considerable sums of money for us to go there first," Branson said. (2/27)
Officials Will Look for Ways to Create Jobs in Shuttle Void (Source: Florida Today)
Though President Barack Obama's budget is generous to NASA, thousands of jobs likely will be lost at KSC after 2010 -- just as the nation is predicted to emerge from the present recession. Additionally, the budget does not close the five-year gap between the end of the shuttle program and the next space vehicle, which will require an estimated 3,500 fewer workers. "There is a jobs gap in there as well as the flight gap," said Dale Ketcham, director of the University of Central Florida's Spaceport Research & Technology Institute at KSC.
Ketcham said Obama delivered the funding he promised -- a total increase of $2.4 billion over the 2008 level -- but Obama called for shuttle flights to end in 2010, rather than be extended simply to preserve jobs. "Given the colossal budget constraints they're under, from an agency perspective, we still have to declare victory," Ketcham said. The timing of the massive layoffs could affect voters' choices in the U.S. Senate and Florida governor races, he added.
As the shuttle program ends, Brevard County officials plan new efforts to mitigate job losses. "That's where the money's targeted, and we're going to ask what can we do to help leverage or exploit it to opportunities that can take place in Florida," said Lynda Weatherman, president and chief executive of the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast. The EDC will look at possible technical programs within the federal government and private industry to bring jobs to Brevard. "We're going to go beyond just NASA," Weatherman said. (2/27)
February 26 News Items
Iridium Satellite's Profit Down 83% (Source: Washington Business Journal)
Despite higher sales, earnings at Iridium Satellite LLC, which provides mobile satellite communications services, plummeted 83 percent to $1.5 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with the same quarter in 2007. The Bethesda-based company’s revenue increased 14 percent to $76.8 million from $67.3 million in the comparable quarter. The decline in earnings, executives said, was due to increased expenses for developing Iridium NEXT, the company’s new group of satellites expected to launch in 2014, and other one-time costs. (2/26)
Commercial Zenit Rocket Launches with New Telstar (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
A Zenit rocket blasted off from Kazakhstan today to begin a nearly six-hour mission delivering a Canadian communications satellite to an oval-shaped orbit high above Earth. The Zenit 3SLB booster launched from pad 45 at the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, beginning the second mission of a Sea Launch spinoff program aimed at serving the market for medium-class communications satellites. Propelled by a four-nozzle RD-171 engine, the 192-foot-tall launcher darted into the night sky and flew to an altitude of 52 miles before jettisoning the first stage about two-and-a-half minutes after liftoff. (2/26)
North Korean Space Launch a "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
An armada of air, sea and space intelligence assets are being deployed above and around North Korea in anticipation of the imminent test of a 105 ft. Taepo-Dong-2 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile disguised as a satellite launch vehicle. The timing of the test is unknown, but expected soon. Key North Korean support hardware has been spotted moving into place around the launch site and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il visited the launch facility Feb. 25.
Iranian hardware, including possible satellite components, are part of the North Korean test. Many of the same flight test objectives for demonstrating ICBM flight and guidance can be duplicated with a space launch, where the velocity of the upper stage is allowed to reach 17,500 mph. Obama adminstration officials say any kind of test will immediately result in strong new sanctions against the North. (2/26)
Russian Proton to Launch AsiaSat 5 in Summer (Source: Aviation Week)
An International Launch Services Proton will boost AsiaSat 5 into orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan this summer. The satellite is under construction by Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) in Palo Alto, Calif., based on the company's 1300 series spacecraft bus. It is to replace AsiaSat-2 at 105-deg. East and offer C- and Ku-band footprints over East Asia and South Asia and an in-orbit maneuverable Ku-beam. AsiaSat CEO Peter Jackson said a change in launch plans by another, unidentified customer allowed AsiaSat to gain access to the Proton and slip onto the manifest for a third-quarter launch. SS/L is expected to ship the satellite to Baikonur early this summer. (2/26)
Why China Will Launch More of the World's Satellites (Source: TIME)
News this week that China has secured its first launch contract with a major Western satellite operator in more than a decade comes as a major boost for Beijing, which wants a bigger chunk of the world's bustling satellite launch business. The last Western company to launch a satellite in China was U.S. firm Lockheed Martin way back in 1998. Since then, the U.S. has tightened its regulations on the exports of arms, defense technologies, and even on technologies that can be adapted to military ends. That prevents American companies from using China's launch capabilities. The regulations even apply to U.S. trading partners that build satellites with U.S.-made components. Beijing has therefore had to do with launches for smaller companies from Asia, Africa, and South America.
Industry estimates place the total world satellite industry — from construction to transmission services — at $92 billion a year. Launch activity makes up just $3.2 billion of that. According to one expert, the price of launching a satellite in the U.S., Europe, or Russia runs around $80 million. China can put a satellite into orbit for around half that cost — and offers additional services such as ground transportation and handling, and some technological additions that clients usually pay extra for.
Since tighter [ITAR] rules were introduced in 1998, U.S. market share of satellite manufacturing has plunged from 80% to 41%. "If non-American groups are constructing those satellites for clients ready to turn to China for cheaper launches, China will be handling the same technology despite a U.S. ban...They'd be better off changing the rules to apply to only to truly sensitive military and defense technologies." Not everyone sees it that way. Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher stressed that any rule revisions must ensure "nations who proliferate weapons of mass destruction and rogue nations are barred from receiving our high tech systems." (2/26)
Obama Continues Bush Space Plan, Adds Money (Source: MSNBC)
President Barack Obama is proposing moderate increases in space spending. Obama emphasizes global warming research and continues plans to retire space shuttles next year while eventually returning astronauts to the moon. The $18.7 billion proposal for the budget year starting Oct. 1 is 6 percent more than President George W. Bush asked for last year. The Obama proposal essentially keeps the space agency on the course set by Bush. It would retire the shuttles in 2010, land people on the moon by 2020 and go five years relying on Russia for rides into orbit. The president wants to add one space shuttle flight next year. The spending highlight in Obama's plan is for tracking global warming from space, a major change from previous years. (2/26)
Florida Math & Science Day Features Space Exploration Theme, May 1 (Source: FDOE)
The Florida Department of Education "Florida Math and Science Day" is May 1, 2009 and this year's theme is Space Exploration! Florida K-12 teachers are invited to submit lesson plans related to the Space Exploration theme. The announcement, template for lesson submission, and scoring rubric are available at http://www.fldoestem.org/page582.aspx. (2/20)
Space Solar-Power Backers Hope Obama Will Become Powerful Ally (Source: AIA)
Researchers hoping that President Barack Obama will help resurrect the space solar-power program were encouraged when he appointed two solar-power advocates to senior positions at NASA. Space solar power, a technology that draws the sun's energy to Earth with microwave beams, has caught the attention of the U.S. military but has not received significant NASA funding since 2002, despite pleas from government and private industry volunteers. "I don't see how NASA or the space program can stand aloof from these [alternative energy] efforts," said a NASA official. (2/26)
Two Japanese Pilots Selected as Astronaut Candidates (Source: Mainichi)
Two Japanese pilots have been selected as astronaut candidates, hoping to go to space as early as 2013 and stay on the International Space Station (ISS). The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has selected Takuya Onishi, 33, an ANA copilot, and Kimiya Yui, 39, Lieutenant Colonel at the Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF), as astronaut candidates -- the first active pilots to be chosen. "We selected the two who received the highest evaluation for overall qualifications to become astronauts," said an official. (2/26)
Professor, Wife Accused of Defrauding NASA (Source: Fox News)
Iranian-born Samim Anghaie, 59, is the Director of the Innovative Nuclear Space Power and Propulsion Institute at the University of Florida. His wife, 55-year-old Sousan Anghaie, is president of New Era Technology Inc. (NETECH) in Gainesville, Fla. Authorities say Sousan Anghaie persuaded NASA to award her company "several fully funded contracts," including nearly $600,000 to develop and study a uranium-related technology. But, according to an affidavit unsealed today in federal court, the couple allegedly used most of that money to buy personal luxuries -- including their $480,000 home in Gainesville, a 2007 BMW and a 2005 Toyota Sienna sports van. They also used that money to buy a property for their son in Tampa, Fla., a property for their other son in Manchester, Conn., a 2008 Toyota Corolla for Sousan Anghaie's sister, and a 2007 Toyota Corolla for another family member. (2/26)
Shuttle Launch Set for March 12 (Source: Florida Today)
NASA on Wednesday set Mar. 12 as a tentative launch date for Discovery's launch, after putting in place a plan that should enable the agency to safely send the shuttle and seven astronauts to the International Space Station. The new target date provides time to replace suspect main propulsion system valves and complete ongoing testing and analyses aimed at making certain the shuttle is safe to fly. Liftoff time would be around 8:54 p.m. NASA is leaving open an option to move the launch up to March 11 if work goes well. (2/26)
Russia Set to Put U.S. Telecom Satellite Into Orbit (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia is planning to launch on Thursday a U.S. Telstar telecom satellite on a "Land Launch" Zenit rocket from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan. The Telstar 11N, built by Loral, will provide services from 39 high-power Ku-band transponders spread across four different geographic beams in each of North and Central America, Europe, Africa and the maritime Atlantic Ocean Region. The Zenit-3SLB is a modernized three-stage version of the Zenit-3SL, which was previously used at Sea Launch's floating platform in the Pacific Ocean. (2/26)
Witnesses Highlight Need to Reform Export Controls (Source: Science Committee)
In a hearing of the House Science and Technology Committee, a panel of expert witnesses unanimously agreed that the current system of U.S. export control policies, under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations, are outdated and must be reformed...“Industry and academia are shying away from bringing products and ideas into the international arena – or collaborating with our friends and allies. The result is less business and less engagement with leading researchers the world over. It is, in essence, a system that is designed to slowly erode our technological superiority.” Many of the export controls used today are from the Cold War era when Soviets sought access to U.S. technologies for potential military applications. In response, the U.S. instituted export control mechanisms largely directed by the Export Control Act of 1968 and the Export Administration Act of 1979. (2/26)
Despite higher sales, earnings at Iridium Satellite LLC, which provides mobile satellite communications services, plummeted 83 percent to $1.5 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with the same quarter in 2007. The Bethesda-based company’s revenue increased 14 percent to $76.8 million from $67.3 million in the comparable quarter. The decline in earnings, executives said, was due to increased expenses for developing Iridium NEXT, the company’s new group of satellites expected to launch in 2014, and other one-time costs. (2/26)
Commercial Zenit Rocket Launches with New Telstar (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
A Zenit rocket blasted off from Kazakhstan today to begin a nearly six-hour mission delivering a Canadian communications satellite to an oval-shaped orbit high above Earth. The Zenit 3SLB booster launched from pad 45 at the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, beginning the second mission of a Sea Launch spinoff program aimed at serving the market for medium-class communications satellites. Propelled by a four-nozzle RD-171 engine, the 192-foot-tall launcher darted into the night sky and flew to an altitude of 52 miles before jettisoning the first stage about two-and-a-half minutes after liftoff. (2/26)
North Korean Space Launch a "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
An armada of air, sea and space intelligence assets are being deployed above and around North Korea in anticipation of the imminent test of a 105 ft. Taepo-Dong-2 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile disguised as a satellite launch vehicle. The timing of the test is unknown, but expected soon. Key North Korean support hardware has been spotted moving into place around the launch site and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il visited the launch facility Feb. 25.
Iranian hardware, including possible satellite components, are part of the North Korean test. Many of the same flight test objectives for demonstrating ICBM flight and guidance can be duplicated with a space launch, where the velocity of the upper stage is allowed to reach 17,500 mph. Obama adminstration officials say any kind of test will immediately result in strong new sanctions against the North. (2/26)
Russian Proton to Launch AsiaSat 5 in Summer (Source: Aviation Week)
An International Launch Services Proton will boost AsiaSat 5 into orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan this summer. The satellite is under construction by Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) in Palo Alto, Calif., based on the company's 1300 series spacecraft bus. It is to replace AsiaSat-2 at 105-deg. East and offer C- and Ku-band footprints over East Asia and South Asia and an in-orbit maneuverable Ku-beam. AsiaSat CEO Peter Jackson said a change in launch plans by another, unidentified customer allowed AsiaSat to gain access to the Proton and slip onto the manifest for a third-quarter launch. SS/L is expected to ship the satellite to Baikonur early this summer. (2/26)
Why China Will Launch More of the World's Satellites (Source: TIME)
News this week that China has secured its first launch contract with a major Western satellite operator in more than a decade comes as a major boost for Beijing, which wants a bigger chunk of the world's bustling satellite launch business. The last Western company to launch a satellite in China was U.S. firm Lockheed Martin way back in 1998. Since then, the U.S. has tightened its regulations on the exports of arms, defense technologies, and even on technologies that can be adapted to military ends. That prevents American companies from using China's launch capabilities. The regulations even apply to U.S. trading partners that build satellites with U.S.-made components. Beijing has therefore had to do with launches for smaller companies from Asia, Africa, and South America.
Industry estimates place the total world satellite industry — from construction to transmission services — at $92 billion a year. Launch activity makes up just $3.2 billion of that. According to one expert, the price of launching a satellite in the U.S., Europe, or Russia runs around $80 million. China can put a satellite into orbit for around half that cost — and offers additional services such as ground transportation and handling, and some technological additions that clients usually pay extra for.
Since tighter [ITAR] rules were introduced in 1998, U.S. market share of satellite manufacturing has plunged from 80% to 41%. "If non-American groups are constructing those satellites for clients ready to turn to China for cheaper launches, China will be handling the same technology despite a U.S. ban...They'd be better off changing the rules to apply to only to truly sensitive military and defense technologies." Not everyone sees it that way. Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher stressed that any rule revisions must ensure "nations who proliferate weapons of mass destruction and rogue nations are barred from receiving our high tech systems." (2/26)
Obama Continues Bush Space Plan, Adds Money (Source: MSNBC)
President Barack Obama is proposing moderate increases in space spending. Obama emphasizes global warming research and continues plans to retire space shuttles next year while eventually returning astronauts to the moon. The $18.7 billion proposal for the budget year starting Oct. 1 is 6 percent more than President George W. Bush asked for last year. The Obama proposal essentially keeps the space agency on the course set by Bush. It would retire the shuttles in 2010, land people on the moon by 2020 and go five years relying on Russia for rides into orbit. The president wants to add one space shuttle flight next year. The spending highlight in Obama's plan is for tracking global warming from space, a major change from previous years. (2/26)
Florida Math & Science Day Features Space Exploration Theme, May 1 (Source: FDOE)
The Florida Department of Education "Florida Math and Science Day" is May 1, 2009 and this year's theme is Space Exploration! Florida K-12 teachers are invited to submit lesson plans related to the Space Exploration theme. The announcement, template for lesson submission, and scoring rubric are available at http://www.fldoestem.org/page582.aspx. (2/20)
Space Solar-Power Backers Hope Obama Will Become Powerful Ally (Source: AIA)
Researchers hoping that President Barack Obama will help resurrect the space solar-power program were encouraged when he appointed two solar-power advocates to senior positions at NASA. Space solar power, a technology that draws the sun's energy to Earth with microwave beams, has caught the attention of the U.S. military but has not received significant NASA funding since 2002, despite pleas from government and private industry volunteers. "I don't see how NASA or the space program can stand aloof from these [alternative energy] efforts," said a NASA official. (2/26)
Two Japanese Pilots Selected as Astronaut Candidates (Source: Mainichi)
Two Japanese pilots have been selected as astronaut candidates, hoping to go to space as early as 2013 and stay on the International Space Station (ISS). The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has selected Takuya Onishi, 33, an ANA copilot, and Kimiya Yui, 39, Lieutenant Colonel at the Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF), as astronaut candidates -- the first active pilots to be chosen. "We selected the two who received the highest evaluation for overall qualifications to become astronauts," said an official. (2/26)
Professor, Wife Accused of Defrauding NASA (Source: Fox News)
Iranian-born Samim Anghaie, 59, is the Director of the Innovative Nuclear Space Power and Propulsion Institute at the University of Florida. His wife, 55-year-old Sousan Anghaie, is president of New Era Technology Inc. (NETECH) in Gainesville, Fla. Authorities say Sousan Anghaie persuaded NASA to award her company "several fully funded contracts," including nearly $600,000 to develop and study a uranium-related technology. But, according to an affidavit unsealed today in federal court, the couple allegedly used most of that money to buy personal luxuries -- including their $480,000 home in Gainesville, a 2007 BMW and a 2005 Toyota Sienna sports van. They also used that money to buy a property for their son in Tampa, Fla., a property for their other son in Manchester, Conn., a 2008 Toyota Corolla for Sousan Anghaie's sister, and a 2007 Toyota Corolla for another family member. (2/26)
Shuttle Launch Set for March 12 (Source: Florida Today)
NASA on Wednesday set Mar. 12 as a tentative launch date for Discovery's launch, after putting in place a plan that should enable the agency to safely send the shuttle and seven astronauts to the International Space Station. The new target date provides time to replace suspect main propulsion system valves and complete ongoing testing and analyses aimed at making certain the shuttle is safe to fly. Liftoff time would be around 8:54 p.m. NASA is leaving open an option to move the launch up to March 11 if work goes well. (2/26)
Russia Set to Put U.S. Telecom Satellite Into Orbit (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia is planning to launch on Thursday a U.S. Telstar telecom satellite on a "Land Launch" Zenit rocket from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan. The Telstar 11N, built by Loral, will provide services from 39 high-power Ku-band transponders spread across four different geographic beams in each of North and Central America, Europe, Africa and the maritime Atlantic Ocean Region. The Zenit-3SLB is a modernized three-stage version of the Zenit-3SL, which was previously used at Sea Launch's floating platform in the Pacific Ocean. (2/26)
Witnesses Highlight Need to Reform Export Controls (Source: Science Committee)
In a hearing of the House Science and Technology Committee, a panel of expert witnesses unanimously agreed that the current system of U.S. export control policies, under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations, are outdated and must be reformed...“Industry and academia are shying away from bringing products and ideas into the international arena – or collaborating with our friends and allies. The result is less business and less engagement with leading researchers the world over. It is, in essence, a system that is designed to slowly erode our technological superiority.” Many of the export controls used today are from the Cold War era when Soviets sought access to U.S. technologies for potential military applications. In response, the U.S. instituted export control mechanisms largely directed by the Export Control Act of 1968 and the Export Administration Act of 1979. (2/26)
February 25 News Items
Rohrabacher Condemns Use Of Chinese Rockets (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) issued the following remarks during today's Science and Technology Full Committee hearing on the "Impacts of U.S. Export Control Policies on Science and Technology Activities and Competitiveness." He specifically addressed his concerns regarding the recent announcement of an agreement between European satellite operator Eutelstat and the Peoples Republic of China to use Chinese rockets to launch private communications satellites. Since 1998, U.S. export controls have prohibited the use of Chinese rockets to launch satellites containing American made parts.
His remarks: "Everyone agrees ITAR reform needs to happen. We need to make sure that our hi tech exports aren't strangled by regulations. On the other hand, we need to remain vigilant that our advanced technology doesn't end up in the hands of nations who proliferate weapons of mass destruction. We know exactly who these nations are, and we must make absolutely sure that whatever changes we enact to ITAR and other export regulations, that these scofflaw and rogue nations are barred from receiving our high tech systems...Surely we can make sensible changes to ITAR and other export regulations, but we must not go so far as to make them at the expense of our national security." (2/25)
Launch Rescheduling Causes Another South Africa Satellite Delay (Source: Engineering News)
Russia has informed South Africa that the launch of this country's R26-million Sumbandila satellite has had to be postponed yet again. Instead of taking place on March 25, it will now occur in the period May 6 to May 10. However, the delay is not due to any technical, contractual, or political problem, but simply the result of a rescheduling of programmed launches by the Russian space agency Roscosmos. The agency has had to bring forward a manned mission to the International Space Station. (2/25)
The High-Flying Hopes of a Cosmodrome (Source: Spiegel)
Isolated in the steppes of Kazakhstan, Baikonur is the world's oldest and largest spaceport. Now, the former Soviet military facility is being transformed into a purely civilian satellite launch complex. The country hopes it will become a second Kennedy Space Center. Frank McKenna stands on the observation deck for a recent Proton launch with a Western delegation. Proton is the name of the rocket that is sluggishly pushing its way into the night sky from Launch Pad 39 carrying a tank filled with 500 tons of highly explosive fuel.
The normally affable American seems tense. In a sense, he is the commander of this spaceship. McKenna is the president of International Launch Services (ILS), which sells mission and launch services from his office outside Washington. His customer base is made up of 35 satellite operators from 15 countries, which purchase one-way tickets into orbit. Although this launch in Baikonur is nothing out of the ordinary, there's a lot on the line for McKenna. A series of problems have damaged his company's reputation. Since 2006, the company has lost one satellite a year during launches, and now the space center is having to fight to regain its customers' confidence.
To this end, McKenna has established a comprehensive quality assurance plan. With McKenna's help, Russia is currently attempting to expand Baikonur's central role in the satellite business. The Russian military is scheduled to have completely withdrawn from the complex by 2010. After that, the spaceport will be put to exclusively civilian use, which will make it possible to launch even more commercial satellites into space from Baikonur. Click here to view the article. (2/25)
NASA Launches Space Week in Texas (Source: NASA)
It's a space exploration celebration as big as the Lone Star State featuring out-of-this-world space exhibits, educational presentations for students, astronaut appearances, legislative proclamations and the chance to touch a 3-billion-year-old moon rock. Space Week Texas 2009 runs March 4-8 in Austin and March 9-12 in College Station. On March 5, NASA takes over the Texas Capitol for "Space Day at the Capitol." Space proclamations will be read in the Texas House of Representatives and Senate. The public is invited to view space exhibits in the Capitol rotunda and along Colorado Street from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Educational presentations for registered students are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Capitol lawn. Astronaut autograph sessions at the Capitol are set. A special lecture, titled "Why Space Matters to Texas," is planned at the Applied Computational Engineering and Sciences Building on the UT campus. (2/25)
NASA, Feds Investigating UF Professor (Source: Florida Today)
On behalf of NASA's inspector general, the FBI has raided the office of a University of Florida nuclear engineering professor who studies the application of nuclear power to space propulsion. The investigation targets Prof. Samim Anghaie, director of the university's Innovative Nuclear Space Power and Propulsion Institute, officials confirmed. "We're cooperating with their investigation," said Steve Orlando, director of the university's news office.
Investigators began their work before 8 a.m. at Anghaie's office in the Department of Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Orlando said, and the investigation is ongoing. Founded in 1985, the institute conducts "fundamental and applied research in areas related to application of nuclear power in space," according to its Web site. It is funded by government and private grants.
Anghaie's bio cites several papers or lectures given at NASA-sponsored workshops on the topic of nuclear space propulsion. A 2007 news report also identified him as one of hundreds of professors working on the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a $1.5-billion experiment that could be flown by the space shuttle to the International Space Station if an additional flight is added. (2/25)
Can SpaceX Win Bigelow's Prize? (Sources: Parabolic Arc, K2 Climb)
Bigelow's prototype Genesis modules have performed as advertised in orbit, but the Achille’s heel of the whole operation remains transportation for visiting astronauts. The only vehicles that could make the trip are the Space Shuttle, Soyuz, and China's Soyuz-derived Shenzhou. NASA plans to retire the shuttle, which is too expensive anyway. The Russian and Chinese vehicles are three seaters - too few to make a space station profitable even if they were available for commercial flights, which they are not.
Bigelow set up an American Space Prize some years ago, offering $50 million to the first American-built, privately funded rocket/spacecraft that can send five people into orbit, dock with a Bigelow Aerospace habitat and stay there for 6 months. The deadline for the Prize is set for Jan. 10, 2010. Elon Musk is pretty confident he is Bigelow’s man: “Falcon 9...is scheduled to carry a payload for Bigelow Aerospace in 2009 or 2010,” Elon said last year, “and Bigelow’s vision of a system of orbiting space habitats can serve as a promising destination for SpaceX’s Dragon crewed spacecraft.”
Musk’s company, SpaceX, must built a human-rated version of the Dragon, which neither he nor Bigelow seem to have enough money to fund on their own. Hence, Musk has been publicly lobbying for NASA to provide an additional $300 million under its COTS program, which has been helping to fund the development of the Dragon freighter and its Falcon 9 launch vehicle. And he would have to do that in less than a year. (2/25)
Support for Space Exploration Soars, Survey Says (Source: AIA)
A survey found the majority of Americans support space exploration despite its high cost. After respondents, who were surveyed twice -- a second time after hearing about NASA's economic impact and technology advancements -- heard about the 500,000 people employed by the industry and how it accounts for billions in sales, their support went from 88% to 96%. (2/25)
China Wins Commercial Launch for ITAR-Free Satellite (Source: SpaceToday.net)
China has won a contract to launch a European communications satellite. The unspecified Eutelsat spacecraft is reportedly a so-called "ITAR-free" spacecraft that does not contain US-built components and thus does not fall under US export control regulations, which prohibit the export of spacecraft or spacecraft components to China. The Chinese family of Long March vehicles have been largely shut out of the commercial launch market since US export control regulations were strengthened a decade ago, but have been slowly reentering the market through the launch of European ITAR-free spacecraft as well as domestically-built satellites. Eutelsat reportedly made the decision to launch on a Long March because of a need to get the spacecraft in orbit quickly after its W2M spacecraft failed last month. (2/25)
University of Colorado Announces Space-Science Initiative (Source: Denver Post)
A comprehensive space-science and engineering initiative announced by University of Colorado at Boulder administrators will bring together faculty and students working in a wide variety of space-related research. Known as the Aerospace Systems Science and Engineering Initiative, the effort will focus on combining climate and environmental research from Earth orbit with space weather research, planetary astronomy and astrophysics. CU officials said the initiative, which includes a planned $40 million Aerospace and Energy Systems Building, is expected to increase collaboration with agencies such as NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the state and national space industry. (2/25)
NASA Spacecraft Crashes with CSU Device to Measure CO2 (Source: Denver Post)
More than a decade of work and planning by two Colorado State University scientists plunged into Antarctic waters Tuesday when a $240 million satellite failed to get into orbit. "Sometimes, you forget how much risk there is in trying to get a delicate instrument into space by exploding a rocket off the Earth's surface," said Graeme Stephens, a CSU distinguished professor. Stephens and Denis O'Brien, a senior CSU researcher, were to lead an international team translating data from the satellite into the most detailed measurements ever made of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. They had been working on the concept since 1995, Stephens said. The satellite that launched Tuesday was eight years in development. (2/25)
Russia to Send Mission to Mars This Year, Moon in Three Years (Source: Russia Today)
The Russian Luna Glob mission to the Moon is set for 2012. The mission aims to collect lunar soil samples and will help to choose a landing site for future missions. "It will fly around the Moon, select a landing space for the rover and other engineering and research vehicles, and study the lunar nucleus with the use of special penetrators,” said an official involved in the project. Equipment of the Luna Globe project will be based on the Fobos Grunt platform, Yefanov said.
The next stage of the project is planned to be a Russo-Indian expedition, which will deliver a lunar reconnaissance vehicle to the site chosen by the Luna Glob. Russia prepares to produce the reconnaissance vehicle, while India will possibly develop the orbiter, he said. The vehicle will collect more samples of lunar soil, which will be stage three of the project. Stage four implies a manned expedition to the Moon and maintaining there a research station. At the same time Russian Federal Space Agency is holding talks with and European Space Agency and NASA on the possible level of Russia’s participation in the ExoMars European Martian mission. (2/25)
China Opens Bidding on Moon Probe Technology (Source: Reuters)
China will open competitive bidding so that domestic schools and institutions can help build crucial parts of the country's moon exploration craft. In October 2003, China became the third country to put a man in space with its own rocket. And the government has made expanding the nation's presence in space, and eventually reaching the moon, a cornerstone of its bid to rise as a technological power. But the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense has decided contributions from the country's universities, institutes and other "qualified" institutions are needed for crucial parts of the lunar effort, which aims to put an unmanned buggy on the moon by 2012, the Guangming Daily reported. (2/25)
2012 Target Set for Private Spaceflight (Source: Huntsville Times)
T-minus three years and counting. That's about how far off the inaugural launch is for a privately supported spaceflight that organizers hope will expand space access to universities. Officials are shooting for a Feb. 20, 2012, launch with two astronauts and a load of space science experiments aboard. The sponsoring organization, the nonprofit Americans in Orbit-50 Years, held a dinner program in Huntsville last week to boost awareness and introduce its astronauts.
The idea was launched in January 2008 with a goal of developing a non-government launch program for universities and research organizations. Cost estimates have ranged from $45 million to $60 million to buy a rocket and develop a two-seat capsule, launch it and manage the mission. Click here to view the article. (2/25)
$5.5B Boost for NASA Included in Spending Bill (Source: Huntsville Times)
A major spending bill making its way through Congress today would boost NASA funding for Marshall Space Flight Center-managed rockets and possibly extend contract options to fly the space shuttle. About $5.5 billion in NASA program money is included in the $429.8 billion spending bill, much of it for Marshall projects such as the continued development of the Ares I rocket, which is intended to replace the space shuttle. The money is for the current government spending year - 2009 - which began Oct. 1.
This money would be in addition to the economic stimulus spending bill, which passed Congress Feb. 13. In that bill, the first major spending bill of the Obama administration, there is about $1 billion for NASA. Before the end of the Bush administration, Congress did not pass a NASA annual spending bill that either party or the White House would agree on, and government agencies were operating under temporary funding resolutions. (2/25)
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) issued the following remarks during today's Science and Technology Full Committee hearing on the "Impacts of U.S. Export Control Policies on Science and Technology Activities and Competitiveness." He specifically addressed his concerns regarding the recent announcement of an agreement between European satellite operator Eutelstat and the Peoples Republic of China to use Chinese rockets to launch private communications satellites. Since 1998, U.S. export controls have prohibited the use of Chinese rockets to launch satellites containing American made parts.
His remarks: "Everyone agrees ITAR reform needs to happen. We need to make sure that our hi tech exports aren't strangled by regulations. On the other hand, we need to remain vigilant that our advanced technology doesn't end up in the hands of nations who proliferate weapons of mass destruction. We know exactly who these nations are, and we must make absolutely sure that whatever changes we enact to ITAR and other export regulations, that these scofflaw and rogue nations are barred from receiving our high tech systems...Surely we can make sensible changes to ITAR and other export regulations, but we must not go so far as to make them at the expense of our national security." (2/25)
Launch Rescheduling Causes Another South Africa Satellite Delay (Source: Engineering News)
Russia has informed South Africa that the launch of this country's R26-million Sumbandila satellite has had to be postponed yet again. Instead of taking place on March 25, it will now occur in the period May 6 to May 10. However, the delay is not due to any technical, contractual, or political problem, but simply the result of a rescheduling of programmed launches by the Russian space agency Roscosmos. The agency has had to bring forward a manned mission to the International Space Station. (2/25)
The High-Flying Hopes of a Cosmodrome (Source: Spiegel)
Isolated in the steppes of Kazakhstan, Baikonur is the world's oldest and largest spaceport. Now, the former Soviet military facility is being transformed into a purely civilian satellite launch complex. The country hopes it will become a second Kennedy Space Center. Frank McKenna stands on the observation deck for a recent Proton launch with a Western delegation. Proton is the name of the rocket that is sluggishly pushing its way into the night sky from Launch Pad 39 carrying a tank filled with 500 tons of highly explosive fuel.
The normally affable American seems tense. In a sense, he is the commander of this spaceship. McKenna is the president of International Launch Services (ILS), which sells mission and launch services from his office outside Washington. His customer base is made up of 35 satellite operators from 15 countries, which purchase one-way tickets into orbit. Although this launch in Baikonur is nothing out of the ordinary, there's a lot on the line for McKenna. A series of problems have damaged his company's reputation. Since 2006, the company has lost one satellite a year during launches, and now the space center is having to fight to regain its customers' confidence.
To this end, McKenna has established a comprehensive quality assurance plan. With McKenna's help, Russia is currently attempting to expand Baikonur's central role in the satellite business. The Russian military is scheduled to have completely withdrawn from the complex by 2010. After that, the spaceport will be put to exclusively civilian use, which will make it possible to launch even more commercial satellites into space from Baikonur. Click here to view the article. (2/25)
NASA Launches Space Week in Texas (Source: NASA)
It's a space exploration celebration as big as the Lone Star State featuring out-of-this-world space exhibits, educational presentations for students, astronaut appearances, legislative proclamations and the chance to touch a 3-billion-year-old moon rock. Space Week Texas 2009 runs March 4-8 in Austin and March 9-12 in College Station. On March 5, NASA takes over the Texas Capitol for "Space Day at the Capitol." Space proclamations will be read in the Texas House of Representatives and Senate. The public is invited to view space exhibits in the Capitol rotunda and along Colorado Street from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Educational presentations for registered students are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Capitol lawn. Astronaut autograph sessions at the Capitol are set. A special lecture, titled "Why Space Matters to Texas," is planned at the Applied Computational Engineering and Sciences Building on the UT campus. (2/25)
NASA, Feds Investigating UF Professor (Source: Florida Today)
On behalf of NASA's inspector general, the FBI has raided the office of a University of Florida nuclear engineering professor who studies the application of nuclear power to space propulsion. The investigation targets Prof. Samim Anghaie, director of the university's Innovative Nuclear Space Power and Propulsion Institute, officials confirmed. "We're cooperating with their investigation," said Steve Orlando, director of the university's news office.
Investigators began their work before 8 a.m. at Anghaie's office in the Department of Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Orlando said, and the investigation is ongoing. Founded in 1985, the institute conducts "fundamental and applied research in areas related to application of nuclear power in space," according to its Web site. It is funded by government and private grants.
Anghaie's bio cites several papers or lectures given at NASA-sponsored workshops on the topic of nuclear space propulsion. A 2007 news report also identified him as one of hundreds of professors working on the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a $1.5-billion experiment that could be flown by the space shuttle to the International Space Station if an additional flight is added. (2/25)
Can SpaceX Win Bigelow's Prize? (Sources: Parabolic Arc, K2 Climb)
Bigelow's prototype Genesis modules have performed as advertised in orbit, but the Achille’s heel of the whole operation remains transportation for visiting astronauts. The only vehicles that could make the trip are the Space Shuttle, Soyuz, and China's Soyuz-derived Shenzhou. NASA plans to retire the shuttle, which is too expensive anyway. The Russian and Chinese vehicles are three seaters - too few to make a space station profitable even if they were available for commercial flights, which they are not.
Bigelow set up an American Space Prize some years ago, offering $50 million to the first American-built, privately funded rocket/spacecraft that can send five people into orbit, dock with a Bigelow Aerospace habitat and stay there for 6 months. The deadline for the Prize is set for Jan. 10, 2010. Elon Musk is pretty confident he is Bigelow’s man: “Falcon 9...is scheduled to carry a payload for Bigelow Aerospace in 2009 or 2010,” Elon said last year, “and Bigelow’s vision of a system of orbiting space habitats can serve as a promising destination for SpaceX’s Dragon crewed spacecraft.”
Musk’s company, SpaceX, must built a human-rated version of the Dragon, which neither he nor Bigelow seem to have enough money to fund on their own. Hence, Musk has been publicly lobbying for NASA to provide an additional $300 million under its COTS program, which has been helping to fund the development of the Dragon freighter and its Falcon 9 launch vehicle. And he would have to do that in less than a year. (2/25)
Support for Space Exploration Soars, Survey Says (Source: AIA)
A survey found the majority of Americans support space exploration despite its high cost. After respondents, who were surveyed twice -- a second time after hearing about NASA's economic impact and technology advancements -- heard about the 500,000 people employed by the industry and how it accounts for billions in sales, their support went from 88% to 96%. (2/25)
China Wins Commercial Launch for ITAR-Free Satellite (Source: SpaceToday.net)
China has won a contract to launch a European communications satellite. The unspecified Eutelsat spacecraft is reportedly a so-called "ITAR-free" spacecraft that does not contain US-built components and thus does not fall under US export control regulations, which prohibit the export of spacecraft or spacecraft components to China. The Chinese family of Long March vehicles have been largely shut out of the commercial launch market since US export control regulations were strengthened a decade ago, but have been slowly reentering the market through the launch of European ITAR-free spacecraft as well as domestically-built satellites. Eutelsat reportedly made the decision to launch on a Long March because of a need to get the spacecraft in orbit quickly after its W2M spacecraft failed last month. (2/25)
University of Colorado Announces Space-Science Initiative (Source: Denver Post)
A comprehensive space-science and engineering initiative announced by University of Colorado at Boulder administrators will bring together faculty and students working in a wide variety of space-related research. Known as the Aerospace Systems Science and Engineering Initiative, the effort will focus on combining climate and environmental research from Earth orbit with space weather research, planetary astronomy and astrophysics. CU officials said the initiative, which includes a planned $40 million Aerospace and Energy Systems Building, is expected to increase collaboration with agencies such as NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the state and national space industry. (2/25)
NASA Spacecraft Crashes with CSU Device to Measure CO2 (Source: Denver Post)
More than a decade of work and planning by two Colorado State University scientists plunged into Antarctic waters Tuesday when a $240 million satellite failed to get into orbit. "Sometimes, you forget how much risk there is in trying to get a delicate instrument into space by exploding a rocket off the Earth's surface," said Graeme Stephens, a CSU distinguished professor. Stephens and Denis O'Brien, a senior CSU researcher, were to lead an international team translating data from the satellite into the most detailed measurements ever made of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. They had been working on the concept since 1995, Stephens said. The satellite that launched Tuesday was eight years in development. (2/25)
Russia to Send Mission to Mars This Year, Moon in Three Years (Source: Russia Today)
The Russian Luna Glob mission to the Moon is set for 2012. The mission aims to collect lunar soil samples and will help to choose a landing site for future missions. "It will fly around the Moon, select a landing space for the rover and other engineering and research vehicles, and study the lunar nucleus with the use of special penetrators,” said an official involved in the project. Equipment of the Luna Globe project will be based on the Fobos Grunt platform, Yefanov said.
The next stage of the project is planned to be a Russo-Indian expedition, which will deliver a lunar reconnaissance vehicle to the site chosen by the Luna Glob. Russia prepares to produce the reconnaissance vehicle, while India will possibly develop the orbiter, he said. The vehicle will collect more samples of lunar soil, which will be stage three of the project. Stage four implies a manned expedition to the Moon and maintaining there a research station. At the same time Russian Federal Space Agency is holding talks with and European Space Agency and NASA on the possible level of Russia’s participation in the ExoMars European Martian mission. (2/25)
China Opens Bidding on Moon Probe Technology (Source: Reuters)
China will open competitive bidding so that domestic schools and institutions can help build crucial parts of the country's moon exploration craft. In October 2003, China became the third country to put a man in space with its own rocket. And the government has made expanding the nation's presence in space, and eventually reaching the moon, a cornerstone of its bid to rise as a technological power. But the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense has decided contributions from the country's universities, institutes and other "qualified" institutions are needed for crucial parts of the lunar effort, which aims to put an unmanned buggy on the moon by 2012, the Guangming Daily reported. (2/25)
2012 Target Set for Private Spaceflight (Source: Huntsville Times)
T-minus three years and counting. That's about how far off the inaugural launch is for a privately supported spaceflight that organizers hope will expand space access to universities. Officials are shooting for a Feb. 20, 2012, launch with two astronauts and a load of space science experiments aboard. The sponsoring organization, the nonprofit Americans in Orbit-50 Years, held a dinner program in Huntsville last week to boost awareness and introduce its astronauts.
The idea was launched in January 2008 with a goal of developing a non-government launch program for universities and research organizations. Cost estimates have ranged from $45 million to $60 million to buy a rocket and develop a two-seat capsule, launch it and manage the mission. Click here to view the article. (2/25)
$5.5B Boost for NASA Included in Spending Bill (Source: Huntsville Times)
A major spending bill making its way through Congress today would boost NASA funding for Marshall Space Flight Center-managed rockets and possibly extend contract options to fly the space shuttle. About $5.5 billion in NASA program money is included in the $429.8 billion spending bill, much of it for Marshall projects such as the continued development of the Ares I rocket, which is intended to replace the space shuttle. The money is for the current government spending year - 2009 - which began Oct. 1.
This money would be in addition to the economic stimulus spending bill, which passed Congress Feb. 13. In that bill, the first major spending bill of the Obama administration, there is about $1 billion for NASA. Before the end of the Bush administration, Congress did not pass a NASA annual spending bill that either party or the White House would agree on, and government agencies were operating under temporary funding resolutions. (2/25)
February 24 News Items
Launch Failure! OCO Trapped in Shroud (Source: Florida Today)
A $273.4-million NASA mission to map a key greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere has failed to reach its intended orbit. The payload shroud surrounding the Orbiting Carbon Observatory spacecraft apparently failed to separate more than 12 minutes into a flight that began at 4:55 a.m. EST from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The shroud, also called the nose cone or fairing, should have separated like a clam shell. "It either did not separate or did not separate in the way that it should. But, at any rate, we are still trying to evaluate exactly what the status of the spacecraft is at this point and confirm the location and the orbit and the exact state the spacecraft is in." (2/24)
Launch Failure Upsets NASA Earth Science Program (Source: Times Online)
Today's crash jeopardizes NASA's flagship satellite constellation system, which aimed to coordinate the results of seven satellites, monitoring different aspects of the Earth's environment. The Obama Administration has signaled its desire for NASA to concentrate on such environmental monitoring and the launch failure comes at an embarrassing time for the agency as it awaits the White House’s appointment of a new head.
The agency already has five satellites in orbit, monitoring air and water temperatures, rainfall patterns and ozone levels. They were due to be joined by the OCO and another satellite named Glory later this year. The launch of the Glory satellite, scheduled for September, will not be sanctioned until the outcome of an internal investigation into today's OCO crash by the Mishap Investigation Board. Steve Cole, a spokesman for NASA, said: "Nobody is pushing the button on Glory [the next Earth science satellite] until we know exactly what happened." (2/24)
AsiaSat 5 Switched from Land Launch to Proton (Source: Space News)
Satellite fleet operator AsiaSat has scrapped a contract to launch its AsiaSat 5 spacecraft aboard Sea Launch Co.'s new Land Launch vehicle in favor of an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton launch in July or August, AsiaSat announced Feb. 24. The decision will cost Hong Kong-based AsiaSat some $35 million in extra launch fees but will put AsiaSat 5 in orbit a year earlier than currently scheduled. (2/24)
North Korea Preparing Rocket Launch (Source: Reuters)
North Korea said on Tuesday it was preparing to launch a satellite on one of its rockets, which analysts have said would actually be the test-firing of a long-range missile designed to strike U.S. territory. The announcement, which unsettled financial markets in South Korea, follows weeks of angry rhetoric from Pyongyang aimed at the conservative government in Seoul and warnings that the Korean peninsula was on the verge of war. Analysts said Pyongyang was using brinkmanship to put pressure on the new U.S. government and its main allies in the region, South Korea and Japan, to reverse tough policies against the North. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on a trip to Asia last week, warned North Korea against any provocative moves."The preparations for launching an experimental communications satellite ... are now making brisk headway," North Korea's KCNA news agency said. (2/24)
South Korea Warns North Satellite Launch Would Breach UN Order (Source: RIA Novosti)
The launch of even a non-military satellite by North Korea would be considered a breach of a UN Security Council resolution, South Korea's ambassador to Russia said. Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman from North Korea's Committee on Aerospace Technologies said preparations were underway on the eastern coast of the country to launch a telecommunications satellite, though no date was named. "Any rocket with a range of over 300 kilometers [185 miles] may be considered ballistic," Li Gyu Hyen said. "Therefore, if North Korea launches a carrier rocket with a satellite, it would be considered a breach of the UN Security Council resolution." Intelligence sources earlier said North Korea was probably preparing to fire a long-range Taepodong-2 missile from the newly constructed Musudan-ri launch pad on the country's northeast coast. (2/24)
A $273.4-million NASA mission to map a key greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere has failed to reach its intended orbit. The payload shroud surrounding the Orbiting Carbon Observatory spacecraft apparently failed to separate more than 12 minutes into a flight that began at 4:55 a.m. EST from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The shroud, also called the nose cone or fairing, should have separated like a clam shell. "It either did not separate or did not separate in the way that it should. But, at any rate, we are still trying to evaluate exactly what the status of the spacecraft is at this point and confirm the location and the orbit and the exact state the spacecraft is in." (2/24)
Launch Failure Upsets NASA Earth Science Program (Source: Times Online)
Today's crash jeopardizes NASA's flagship satellite constellation system, which aimed to coordinate the results of seven satellites, monitoring different aspects of the Earth's environment. The Obama Administration has signaled its desire for NASA to concentrate on such environmental monitoring and the launch failure comes at an embarrassing time for the agency as it awaits the White House’s appointment of a new head.
The agency already has five satellites in orbit, monitoring air and water temperatures, rainfall patterns and ozone levels. They were due to be joined by the OCO and another satellite named Glory later this year. The launch of the Glory satellite, scheduled for September, will not be sanctioned until the outcome of an internal investigation into today's OCO crash by the Mishap Investigation Board. Steve Cole, a spokesman for NASA, said: "Nobody is pushing the button on Glory [the next Earth science satellite] until we know exactly what happened." (2/24)
AsiaSat 5 Switched from Land Launch to Proton (Source: Space News)
Satellite fleet operator AsiaSat has scrapped a contract to launch its AsiaSat 5 spacecraft aboard Sea Launch Co.'s new Land Launch vehicle in favor of an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton launch in July or August, AsiaSat announced Feb. 24. The decision will cost Hong Kong-based AsiaSat some $35 million in extra launch fees but will put AsiaSat 5 in orbit a year earlier than currently scheduled. (2/24)
North Korea Preparing Rocket Launch (Source: Reuters)
North Korea said on Tuesday it was preparing to launch a satellite on one of its rockets, which analysts have said would actually be the test-firing of a long-range missile designed to strike U.S. territory. The announcement, which unsettled financial markets in South Korea, follows weeks of angry rhetoric from Pyongyang aimed at the conservative government in Seoul and warnings that the Korean peninsula was on the verge of war. Analysts said Pyongyang was using brinkmanship to put pressure on the new U.S. government and its main allies in the region, South Korea and Japan, to reverse tough policies against the North. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on a trip to Asia last week, warned North Korea against any provocative moves."The preparations for launching an experimental communications satellite ... are now making brisk headway," North Korea's KCNA news agency said. (2/24)
South Korea Warns North Satellite Launch Would Breach UN Order (Source: RIA Novosti)
The launch of even a non-military satellite by North Korea would be considered a breach of a UN Security Council resolution, South Korea's ambassador to Russia said. Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman from North Korea's Committee on Aerospace Technologies said preparations were underway on the eastern coast of the country to launch a telecommunications satellite, though no date was named. "Any rocket with a range of over 300 kilometers [185 miles] may be considered ballistic," Li Gyu Hyen said. "Therefore, if North Korea launches a carrier rocket with a satellite, it would be considered a breach of the UN Security Council resolution." Intelligence sources earlier said North Korea was probably preparing to fire a long-range Taepodong-2 missile from the newly constructed Musudan-ri launch pad on the country's northeast coast. (2/24)
February 23 News Items
Poppell Named to Space Florida Board (Source: Space Florida)
House of Representative’s Speaker Pro-tempore, Representative Larry Cretul, named Representative Ralph Poppell to Space Florida’s Board of Directors. The Honorable Ralph Poppell, who has served the Florida House of Representatives since 2002, represents District 29 which includes the Titusville/Indian River area of the Space Coast. Space Florida's board includes two legislatively appointed members, one from the House and one from the Senate. Senator Thad Altman is the other legislative member. (2/23)
MIT Rocket Thruster Aims for Cheaper Nudges in Space (Source: EurekAlert)
Satellites orbiting the Earth must occasionally be nudged to stay on the correct path. MIT scientists are developing a new rocket that could make this and other spacecraft maneuvers much less costly, a consideration of growing importance as more private companies start working in space. The new system, called the Mini-Helicon Plasma Thruster, is much smaller than other rockets of its kind and runs on gases that are much less expensive than conventional propellants. As a result, it could slash fuel consumption by 10 times that of conventional systems used for the same applications. (2/23)
Nigerians Make U-turn on $251.6 Million NigComSat-I Project (Punch)
Nigeria's House of Representatives may pass a resolution asking the Federal Government to launch more communication satellites into orbit to strengthen Nigeria’s participation in space exploration. Its Committee on Science and Technology, which is probing the failure of the country’s first commercial satellite – Nigeria Communication Satellite-I – is backing plans by the National Space Research and Development Agency and the Nigeria Communication Satellite Limited to embark on the building of NigComSat-II and NigComSat-III. NigComSat-I, which was launched into orbit on May 13, 2007, in the twilight of the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, cost the country about $251.6m. The spacecraft, however, failed and was de-orbited about 18 months later in November 2008. (2/23)
NewSpace 2009 Set for Ames on July 18-20 (Source: SFF)
The Space Frontier Foundation announced that its annual NewSpace conference will be at NASA's Ames Research Center in Mountainview, California July 18-20. The conference will kick off with a film screening of "Orphans of Apollo" on July 17, open to the general public. A single track of programming will explore the exciting potential of NewSpace on Saturday and the business realities of NewSpace on Sunday - including a business plan competition in which entrepreneurs will compete in front of investors and analysts for cash prizes and private meetings. Visit http://newspace2009.spacefrontier.org/ for information. (2/23)
Colorado Center Encourages Aerospace Entrepreneurs (Source: CNN)
While the economy sputters here on Earth, space entrepreneurs in Colorado are looking to the heavens. In a cavernous testing facility called the "Incubator," specialized equipment recreates the unique conditions of a journey into space -- from platforms that mimic the violent shaking at liftoff to chambers that replicate space's bitter cold and complete vacuum. This is home to eSpace: The Center for Space Entrepreneurship, a not-for-profit partnership between SpaceDev, Inc., a private aerospace company, and the University of Colorado. Launched last month, eSpace helps fledgling aerospace companies try out new gadgetry and meet NASA specifications.
"One of the most important things in making space hardware is that it's going to [have to] work in space, because you can't repair it," said Scott Tibbitts, executive director of eSpace. "It's up there, it has to work." Tibbitts believes that in the near future, NASA's programs will be supplemented more often by entrepreneurial space ventures. He thinks eSpace can help these companies work toward making space exploration more affordable and accessible to private citizens. The center's Incubator doubles as the headquarters of SpaceDev, which Tibbitts founded almost by accident more than a dozen years ago. He developed a paraffin actuator, a mechanism filled with a waxlike substance that melts when it reaches a certain temperature, flipping a switch. (2/23)
Space Florida's President Tries to Build Bridges (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Space Florida President Steve Kohler Space Florida President Steve Kohler -- under fire from legislators and space boosters for his group's checkered record of business development -- is trying to enlist the help of his critics in the aerospace community to improve the agency’s image and effectiveness. In an email sent last Friday to members of the industry group that is planning an upcoming industry day in Tallahassee, Kohler acknowledged that the agency is facing “a time of focused scrutiny” from what he described as “few in the broader stakeholder community.” He said that he did not believe that the opinions expressed in recent articles represented the views of the entire industry. “Together, I want to find a proactive, cohesive course in support of a robust aerospace industry in Florida,” he wrote.
He added that his goal for the industry event in Tallahassee, known as Space Day, was to “support the good of the overall industry by advocating to our state leaders the importance of their active support to your companies, NASA, the 45th Space Wing and all of the statewide suppliers to the industry.” But the cry for help might be too late. The industry normally wholeheartedly backs the agency's funding and project requests. But this year, industry officials agreed to attend the event only if Space Florida removed its $4 million budget request from the lobbying agenda. Many of the companies are keen to avoid being associated with controversy. (2/23)
Editorial: Reaffirming Florida as the World’s Frontier to Space (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
With the new presidential administration and an uncertain economy, the State of Florida more than ever needs to maintain and promote its status as the premier launch complex for space launch and space exploration...We have international competitors quickly approaching to assume the lead in space exploration. China, Russia, India and the European Union have demonstrated their ability to launch satellites into orbit and are striving to develop the capabilities to explore the moon and Mars.
We must maintain Florida’s leadership in space as we move forward to send men and women back to the moon and beyond...The aerospace industry represents billions of dollars each year in economic impact to the state and employs thousands of residents in nearly all of our state’s 67 counties. We need to continue to support this industry to attract high value research and development, expand space industry business, boost commercial launch opportunities and provide employment assistance for keeping a highly skilled workforce in place.
On March 4, my friends and colleagues in the space industry will join me in visiting state leaders at the capitol to convey a unified message of preserving Florida’s vital commercial aerospace industry and workforce...We hope that more of you will educate yourself on the amazing spin-offs space brings that impacts your lives daily and the economic value of this asset to the state – an asset we cannot afford to lose. (2/23)
Orbital's Outlook Hampered by New Rocket Costs, Economy (Source: Space News)
Orbital Sciences Corp. warned investors on Feb. 19 that the company's spending on the new Taurus 2 rocket and Cygnus cargo-supply vehicle it is building to service the International Space Station will continue as a drag on profit in 2009, and that the commercial satellite market is likely this year to show the effects of a poor global economy. CEO David W. Thompson said Orbital likely will show "double-digit revenue growth, and a substantial profit margin rebound for 2010 and the years beyond" once the Taurus 2-related development is completed.
Orbital is in the midst of one of the most aggressive hiring programs in the space industry. The company increased its headcount by 600 in 2008, including 135 in the last three months of the year, and the work force now totals about 3,600, Chief Operating Officer J.R. Thompson said. Orbital plans to add 350-400 new employees in 2009, he said. J.R. Thompson said the Taurus 2 development schedule remains tight but that the company believes the remaining design reviews and vehicle assembly can be completed in time for an inaugural flight in late 2010. (2/23)
Orbital Expects Taurus-2 Contract Protest Resolution by April (Source: Space News)
Orbital booked roughly $2 billion in Taurus 2 and Cygnus orders from NASA in late 2008 as part of a Commercial Resupply Services contract to deliver cargo to and from the International Space Station. Orbital is facing a delay in revenue from the contract following a bid protest by Planetspace Inc., a Chicago-based firm that submitted a cargo-resupply proposal that scored higher and cost less than Orbital's. Orbital CEO David W. Thompson said the protest should be resolved by April and that he expected NASA's choice to be confirmed then. After its 2010 demonstration flight, Orbital is contracted to launch eight Taurus 2 Cygnus missions between 2011 and 2015. (2/23)
NASA Reconsidering Lockheed's GOES-R Win (Source: Space News)
NASA is reconsidering a $1.09 billion weather satellite contract it awarded to Lockheed Martin Space Systems in December. (2/23)
Iridium Policy Left Collision Avoidance to Chance (Source: Space News)
Iridium Satellite LLC, which lost an operational satellite in a Feb. 10 collision that created hundreds of pieces of debris that will make that orbit more dangerous for decades, habitually has taken no collision-avoidance action for its 66-satellite fleet other than "grit our teeth and hold our breath; that's our action," a company official said. (2/23)
Pentagon Seeks Military Role for Space Tourism Technology (Source: Flight Global)
As commercial spaceflight draws closer to reality, the US Department of Defense is officially interested. The National Security Space Office (NSSO) has invited companies such as Armadillo Aerospace, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic and XCOR to a conference from Feb. 24-26 in San Antonio, Texas to discuss how suborbital technology could be applied to military needs. The conference follows the release of an official request for information for a new program called the "rapid delivery of military capabilities via space". The document seeks information from commercial firms about new technologies that could loft a 200kg (440lb) payload above 92km (57 miles) altitude to ranges up to 9,250km (5,000nm). (2/23)
SpaceX Heat Shield Material Passes Reentry Simulation Tests (Source: SpaceX)
Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) announces the passing of a significant technical milestone in the development of its Dragon spacecraft with the successful arc jet testing of PICA-X high performance heat shield material. Subjected to temperatures as high as 1850 degrees Celsius (3360 degrees Fahrenheit), the tests simulated the reentry heating conditions that will be experienced by the Dragon capsule. Panels of the high performance carbon-based material will protect cargo and crew during the spacecraft's return from Earth orbit.
SpaceX developed the ability to manufacture PICA-X with the assistance of NASA, the originator of PICA (Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator). The “X” stands for the SpaceX-developed variants of the rigid, lightweight material, which has several improved properties and greater ease of manufacture. “We tested three different variants developed by SpaceX,” said Tom Mueller, VP of Propulsion, SpaceX. “Compared to the PICA heat shield flown successfully on NASA's Stardust sample return capsule, our SpaceX versions equaled or improved the performance of the heritage material in all cases.” (2/23)
India Approves £1.7bn Plan to Launch Astronauts (Source: Times Online)
India has approved a £1.7 billion plan to launch its first astronauts into space by 2015, in its latest bid to close the gap with China in what many see as a 21st Century Asian version of the Cold War race for the Moon. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will attempt to put two people into orbit 172 miles (275 km) above the Earth for seven days, according to a proposal approved by the Planning Commission at a meeting on Friday. (2/23)
Discovery Plan Could be Ready by Wednesday (Source: Florida Today)
Shuttle program managers will develop a plan by Wednesday that they hope allows them to fly Discovery, and later missions, while working to redesign valves in the shuttle orbiters' main propulsion system. Once targeted for Feb. 12 and most recently Feb. 27, a Discovery launch may not be possible before the Russians' Soyuz mission to the International space Station in mid-March. The shuttle and another Soyuz can't be at the space station at the same time, so if Discovery can't go by March 13, the shuttle team will have to wait until at least April 6.
However, NASA managers say they want to better understand the cause behind the failure of a valve that maintains pressure in the shuttle's orange external tank by allowing or restricting the flow of hydrogen gas into it. They said they came close to a decision to launch Discovery late Friday night, but some engineers questioned assumptions and data from the extensive valve tests conducted across the country in recent weeks, which produced a mountain of fresh data to digest. (2/23)
Editorial: For North Carolina: Earthly Benefits in a New Space Race (Source: Raleigh News Observer)
If your view of human space activity is one of NASA-owned, multi-billion-dollar, multi-year programs, you are missing an entirely different scene. To borrow an Earth-bound phrase, the race for space moves apace with a commercial embrace. A great deal of work has been done during the last few years in North Carolina to develop an aerospace workforce development plan and boost the state's aerospace industry. However, the primary emphasis has been on aviation and traditional aerospace, with little attention paid to the emerging entrepreneurial space industry, or NewSpace.
While it is understandable to focus on what is known and quantifiable, restricting our efforts this way inevitably leads to missed opportunities that are grabbed by states with greater vision. For example, the New Mexico Spaceport Authority recently announced the formation of the Spaceport America Institute (SAI). It will be a collaborative effort between Spaceport America and the educational community. Combined resources, talent and technology will augment education in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). It will also "support key workforce and technology efforts to grow industries in areas such as biotech, optics, energy, communications, and information technology." See any similarities to the education and economic development goals and industries of North Carolina? (2/23)
Billiards in Space (Source: Space Review)
This month's collision between Iridium and Russian satellites caused some people to ask why the incident could not have been avoided. Brian Weeden explains the difficulties of monitoring potential collisions and offers some proposals for improved monitoring and coordination. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1314/1 to view the article. (2/23)
Do We Need a New National Space Council? (Source: Space Review)
The Obama Administration appears committed to fulfilling a campaign pledge to reestablish the National Space Council in some form. Taylor Dinerman wonders, given its past record and the difficulties of the bureaucracy, if this is such a good idea. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1313/1 to view the article. (2/23)
Florida's Mess: How Did We Get Here? (Source: Space Review)
In recent weeks news reports and public comments have put Florida's space efforts in a rather harsh spotlight. Tim Bailey reviews the history of the state's efforts to promote the commercial space industry, and where things went wrong. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1312/1 to view the article. (2/23)
First Steps Towards Point-to-Point Spaceflight (Source: Space Review)
Point-to-point suborbital spaceflight has attracted the interest of many commercial space enthusiasts, but the technical and other hurdles that have to be overcome makes it not a near-term market. Nonetheless, Jeff Foust reports, some in both the public and private sectors are laying the groundwork for its future. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1311/1 to view the article. (2/23)
House of Representative’s Speaker Pro-tempore, Representative Larry Cretul, named Representative Ralph Poppell to Space Florida’s Board of Directors. The Honorable Ralph Poppell, who has served the Florida House of Representatives since 2002, represents District 29 which includes the Titusville/Indian River area of the Space Coast. Space Florida's board includes two legislatively appointed members, one from the House and one from the Senate. Senator Thad Altman is the other legislative member. (2/23)
MIT Rocket Thruster Aims for Cheaper Nudges in Space (Source: EurekAlert)
Satellites orbiting the Earth must occasionally be nudged to stay on the correct path. MIT scientists are developing a new rocket that could make this and other spacecraft maneuvers much less costly, a consideration of growing importance as more private companies start working in space. The new system, called the Mini-Helicon Plasma Thruster, is much smaller than other rockets of its kind and runs on gases that are much less expensive than conventional propellants. As a result, it could slash fuel consumption by 10 times that of conventional systems used for the same applications. (2/23)
Nigerians Make U-turn on $251.6 Million NigComSat-I Project (Punch)
Nigeria's House of Representatives may pass a resolution asking the Federal Government to launch more communication satellites into orbit to strengthen Nigeria’s participation in space exploration. Its Committee on Science and Technology, which is probing the failure of the country’s first commercial satellite – Nigeria Communication Satellite-I – is backing plans by the National Space Research and Development Agency and the Nigeria Communication Satellite Limited to embark on the building of NigComSat-II and NigComSat-III. NigComSat-I, which was launched into orbit on May 13, 2007, in the twilight of the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, cost the country about $251.6m. The spacecraft, however, failed and was de-orbited about 18 months later in November 2008. (2/23)
NewSpace 2009 Set for Ames on July 18-20 (Source: SFF)
The Space Frontier Foundation announced that its annual NewSpace conference will be at NASA's Ames Research Center in Mountainview, California July 18-20. The conference will kick off with a film screening of "Orphans of Apollo" on July 17, open to the general public. A single track of programming will explore the exciting potential of NewSpace on Saturday and the business realities of NewSpace on Sunday - including a business plan competition in which entrepreneurs will compete in front of investors and analysts for cash prizes and private meetings. Visit http://newspace2009.spacefrontier.org/ for information. (2/23)
Colorado Center Encourages Aerospace Entrepreneurs (Source: CNN)
While the economy sputters here on Earth, space entrepreneurs in Colorado are looking to the heavens. In a cavernous testing facility called the "Incubator," specialized equipment recreates the unique conditions of a journey into space -- from platforms that mimic the violent shaking at liftoff to chambers that replicate space's bitter cold and complete vacuum. This is home to eSpace: The Center for Space Entrepreneurship, a not-for-profit partnership between SpaceDev, Inc., a private aerospace company, and the University of Colorado. Launched last month, eSpace helps fledgling aerospace companies try out new gadgetry and meet NASA specifications.
"One of the most important things in making space hardware is that it's going to [have to] work in space, because you can't repair it," said Scott Tibbitts, executive director of eSpace. "It's up there, it has to work." Tibbitts believes that in the near future, NASA's programs will be supplemented more often by entrepreneurial space ventures. He thinks eSpace can help these companies work toward making space exploration more affordable and accessible to private citizens. The center's Incubator doubles as the headquarters of SpaceDev, which Tibbitts founded almost by accident more than a dozen years ago. He developed a paraffin actuator, a mechanism filled with a waxlike substance that melts when it reaches a certain temperature, flipping a switch. (2/23)
Space Florida's President Tries to Build Bridges (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Space Florida President Steve Kohler Space Florida President Steve Kohler -- under fire from legislators and space boosters for his group's checkered record of business development -- is trying to enlist the help of his critics in the aerospace community to improve the agency’s image and effectiveness. In an email sent last Friday to members of the industry group that is planning an upcoming industry day in Tallahassee, Kohler acknowledged that the agency is facing “a time of focused scrutiny” from what he described as “few in the broader stakeholder community.” He said that he did not believe that the opinions expressed in recent articles represented the views of the entire industry. “Together, I want to find a proactive, cohesive course in support of a robust aerospace industry in Florida,” he wrote.
He added that his goal for the industry event in Tallahassee, known as Space Day, was to “support the good of the overall industry by advocating to our state leaders the importance of their active support to your companies, NASA, the 45th Space Wing and all of the statewide suppliers to the industry.” But the cry for help might be too late. The industry normally wholeheartedly backs the agency's funding and project requests. But this year, industry officials agreed to attend the event only if Space Florida removed its $4 million budget request from the lobbying agenda. Many of the companies are keen to avoid being associated with controversy. (2/23)
Editorial: Reaffirming Florida as the World’s Frontier to Space (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
With the new presidential administration and an uncertain economy, the State of Florida more than ever needs to maintain and promote its status as the premier launch complex for space launch and space exploration...We have international competitors quickly approaching to assume the lead in space exploration. China, Russia, India and the European Union have demonstrated their ability to launch satellites into orbit and are striving to develop the capabilities to explore the moon and Mars.
We must maintain Florida’s leadership in space as we move forward to send men and women back to the moon and beyond...The aerospace industry represents billions of dollars each year in economic impact to the state and employs thousands of residents in nearly all of our state’s 67 counties. We need to continue to support this industry to attract high value research and development, expand space industry business, boost commercial launch opportunities and provide employment assistance for keeping a highly skilled workforce in place.
On March 4, my friends and colleagues in the space industry will join me in visiting state leaders at the capitol to convey a unified message of preserving Florida’s vital commercial aerospace industry and workforce...We hope that more of you will educate yourself on the amazing spin-offs space brings that impacts your lives daily and the economic value of this asset to the state – an asset we cannot afford to lose. (2/23)
Orbital's Outlook Hampered by New Rocket Costs, Economy (Source: Space News)
Orbital Sciences Corp. warned investors on Feb. 19 that the company's spending on the new Taurus 2 rocket and Cygnus cargo-supply vehicle it is building to service the International Space Station will continue as a drag on profit in 2009, and that the commercial satellite market is likely this year to show the effects of a poor global economy. CEO David W. Thompson said Orbital likely will show "double-digit revenue growth, and a substantial profit margin rebound for 2010 and the years beyond" once the Taurus 2-related development is completed.
Orbital is in the midst of one of the most aggressive hiring programs in the space industry. The company increased its headcount by 600 in 2008, including 135 in the last three months of the year, and the work force now totals about 3,600, Chief Operating Officer J.R. Thompson said. Orbital plans to add 350-400 new employees in 2009, he said. J.R. Thompson said the Taurus 2 development schedule remains tight but that the company believes the remaining design reviews and vehicle assembly can be completed in time for an inaugural flight in late 2010. (2/23)
Orbital Expects Taurus-2 Contract Protest Resolution by April (Source: Space News)
Orbital booked roughly $2 billion in Taurus 2 and Cygnus orders from NASA in late 2008 as part of a Commercial Resupply Services contract to deliver cargo to and from the International Space Station. Orbital is facing a delay in revenue from the contract following a bid protest by Planetspace Inc., a Chicago-based firm that submitted a cargo-resupply proposal that scored higher and cost less than Orbital's. Orbital CEO David W. Thompson said the protest should be resolved by April and that he expected NASA's choice to be confirmed then. After its 2010 demonstration flight, Orbital is contracted to launch eight Taurus 2 Cygnus missions between 2011 and 2015. (2/23)
NASA Reconsidering Lockheed's GOES-R Win (Source: Space News)
NASA is reconsidering a $1.09 billion weather satellite contract it awarded to Lockheed Martin Space Systems in December. (2/23)
Iridium Policy Left Collision Avoidance to Chance (Source: Space News)
Iridium Satellite LLC, which lost an operational satellite in a Feb. 10 collision that created hundreds of pieces of debris that will make that orbit more dangerous for decades, habitually has taken no collision-avoidance action for its 66-satellite fleet other than "grit our teeth and hold our breath; that's our action," a company official said. (2/23)
Pentagon Seeks Military Role for Space Tourism Technology (Source: Flight Global)
As commercial spaceflight draws closer to reality, the US Department of Defense is officially interested. The National Security Space Office (NSSO) has invited companies such as Armadillo Aerospace, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic and XCOR to a conference from Feb. 24-26 in San Antonio, Texas to discuss how suborbital technology could be applied to military needs. The conference follows the release of an official request for information for a new program called the "rapid delivery of military capabilities via space". The document seeks information from commercial firms about new technologies that could loft a 200kg (440lb) payload above 92km (57 miles) altitude to ranges up to 9,250km (5,000nm). (2/23)
SpaceX Heat Shield Material Passes Reentry Simulation Tests (Source: SpaceX)
Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) announces the passing of a significant technical milestone in the development of its Dragon spacecraft with the successful arc jet testing of PICA-X high performance heat shield material. Subjected to temperatures as high as 1850 degrees Celsius (3360 degrees Fahrenheit), the tests simulated the reentry heating conditions that will be experienced by the Dragon capsule. Panels of the high performance carbon-based material will protect cargo and crew during the spacecraft's return from Earth orbit.
SpaceX developed the ability to manufacture PICA-X with the assistance of NASA, the originator of PICA (Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator). The “X” stands for the SpaceX-developed variants of the rigid, lightweight material, which has several improved properties and greater ease of manufacture. “We tested three different variants developed by SpaceX,” said Tom Mueller, VP of Propulsion, SpaceX. “Compared to the PICA heat shield flown successfully on NASA's Stardust sample return capsule, our SpaceX versions equaled or improved the performance of the heritage material in all cases.” (2/23)
India Approves £1.7bn Plan to Launch Astronauts (Source: Times Online)
India has approved a £1.7 billion plan to launch its first astronauts into space by 2015, in its latest bid to close the gap with China in what many see as a 21st Century Asian version of the Cold War race for the Moon. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will attempt to put two people into orbit 172 miles (275 km) above the Earth for seven days, according to a proposal approved by the Planning Commission at a meeting on Friday. (2/23)
Discovery Plan Could be Ready by Wednesday (Source: Florida Today)
Shuttle program managers will develop a plan by Wednesday that they hope allows them to fly Discovery, and later missions, while working to redesign valves in the shuttle orbiters' main propulsion system. Once targeted for Feb. 12 and most recently Feb. 27, a Discovery launch may not be possible before the Russians' Soyuz mission to the International space Station in mid-March. The shuttle and another Soyuz can't be at the space station at the same time, so if Discovery can't go by March 13, the shuttle team will have to wait until at least April 6.
However, NASA managers say they want to better understand the cause behind the failure of a valve that maintains pressure in the shuttle's orange external tank by allowing or restricting the flow of hydrogen gas into it. They said they came close to a decision to launch Discovery late Friday night, but some engineers questioned assumptions and data from the extensive valve tests conducted across the country in recent weeks, which produced a mountain of fresh data to digest. (2/23)
Editorial: For North Carolina: Earthly Benefits in a New Space Race (Source: Raleigh News Observer)
If your view of human space activity is one of NASA-owned, multi-billion-dollar, multi-year programs, you are missing an entirely different scene. To borrow an Earth-bound phrase, the race for space moves apace with a commercial embrace. A great deal of work has been done during the last few years in North Carolina to develop an aerospace workforce development plan and boost the state's aerospace industry. However, the primary emphasis has been on aviation and traditional aerospace, with little attention paid to the emerging entrepreneurial space industry, or NewSpace.
While it is understandable to focus on what is known and quantifiable, restricting our efforts this way inevitably leads to missed opportunities that are grabbed by states with greater vision. For example, the New Mexico Spaceport Authority recently announced the formation of the Spaceport America Institute (SAI). It will be a collaborative effort between Spaceport America and the educational community. Combined resources, talent and technology will augment education in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). It will also "support key workforce and technology efforts to grow industries in areas such as biotech, optics, energy, communications, and information technology." See any similarities to the education and economic development goals and industries of North Carolina? (2/23)
Billiards in Space (Source: Space Review)
This month's collision between Iridium and Russian satellites caused some people to ask why the incident could not have been avoided. Brian Weeden explains the difficulties of monitoring potential collisions and offers some proposals for improved monitoring and coordination. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1314/1 to view the article. (2/23)
Do We Need a New National Space Council? (Source: Space Review)
The Obama Administration appears committed to fulfilling a campaign pledge to reestablish the National Space Council in some form. Taylor Dinerman wonders, given its past record and the difficulties of the bureaucracy, if this is such a good idea. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1313/1 to view the article. (2/23)
Florida's Mess: How Did We Get Here? (Source: Space Review)
In recent weeks news reports and public comments have put Florida's space efforts in a rather harsh spotlight. Tim Bailey reviews the history of the state's efforts to promote the commercial space industry, and where things went wrong. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1312/1 to view the article. (2/23)
First Steps Towards Point-to-Point Spaceflight (Source: Space Review)
Point-to-point suborbital spaceflight has attracted the interest of many commercial space enthusiasts, but the technical and other hurdles that have to be overcome makes it not a near-term market. Nonetheless, Jeff Foust reports, some in both the public and private sectors are laying the groundwork for its future. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1311/1 to view the article. (2/23)
February 22 News Items
KSC and ISTEF Support Power Beaming and Tether Challenges on Apr. 29 - May 1 (Source: Parabolic Arc)
The 2009 Power Beaming and Tether Challenges have been set for Apr. 29 - May 1 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The KSC-based ISTEF facility (a DOD laser R&D operation) will provide support. Each prize has a $2 million prize for the winner. The 2009 Power Beaming Challenge is a prize contest designed to promote the development of new power distribution technologies. The 2009 Tether Challenge is designed to develop very strong tether material for use in various structural applications, including future space elevator applications. The prizes are being offered under NASA’s Centennial Challenges Program, which stimulates innovation and competition in space exploration and ongoing NASA mission areas. The Spaceward Foundation is administering both challenges for NASA. To register for and get additional information regarding the 2009 Power Beaming and Tether Challenges, visit http://www.spaceward.org. (2/22)
NASA to Launch Carbon Dioxide Tracker Satellite (Source: Guardian)
The world's first satellite designed to map concentrations of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is to be launched by NASA. Policymakers and governments will be able to use the data when setting and monitoring CO2 emissions targets designed to tackle climate change. "It's critical that we understand the processes controlling carbon dioxide in our atmosphere so we can predict how fast it will build up in the future and how quickly we will have to adapt to climate change," said David Crisp, principal investigator for the mission, which will blast off on a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California in the early hours of tomorrow morning. (2/22)
National Space Council Discussed in Senate Hearing (Source: Space Politics)
Last week's Senate Commerce Committee nomination hearing for John Holdren (OSTP) and Jane Lubchenco (NOAA) produced comments from Holdren about space as a critical area of investment: "I want to give special mention to the importance of R&D in our space program. Maintaining and expanding our capabilities in space is sometimes regarded as a luxury that we should do less of in the face of more pressing earthbound concerns...Space is crucial to our national defense; it’s crucial to civil as well as military communications and geopositioning; it’s crucial to weather forecasting and storm monitoring; crucial to observation and scientific study of the condition of our home planet’s land, vegetation, oceans, and atmosphere; and it’s crucial to scientific study and exploration looking outward...investments in space are a bargain."
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) asked Holdren about plans to reestablish the National Space Council. Holdren’s response: "The short answer...is yes, it is a priority. We have been looking at what the best way to resurrect the National Space Council in the White House would be...There’s no question that the gap in our capacity to put people in space is a matter of great concern with the shuttle program coming to an end and its successor program not yet ready. We are looking at that very carefully and I would look forward to working with you and Sen. Nelson and other members of this committee on how we can shrink that gap."
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) remarked: "That’s great, because one of the failings in the past, and not just with this immediate past administration, but previous ones, is that NASA becomes the handmaiden of the Office of Management and Budget. And that’s not the way to set policy, by having some green eyeshade person over there determining what the policy is, whether we’re talking about NASA or NOAA or whatever it is. But that’s the way it’s been in the past, and therefore another reason at the high councils of high government policymaking to have such a council right within the White House." (2/20)
Atlas-5 to Launch Military Satellite on Mar. 9 (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket will launch the second Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft (formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite). Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the 421 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, two solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. (2/22)
Space Investment Summit Planned in Florida on May 27 (Source: SPACErePORT)
The sixth Space Investment Summit will address the connection between the existing hospitality industry and the emerging space tourism industry. Presentations will focus on the latest developments in the rapidly growing space tourism industry (vehicles, funding, destinations, timeframes, numbers of customers and more), as well as new cross-industry business opportunities. The event will precede the annual International Space Development Conference, to be held at the same location. The California Space Authority is a sponsor. Visit http://spaceinvestmentsummit.com/ for information. (2/22)
The 2009 Power Beaming and Tether Challenges have been set for Apr. 29 - May 1 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The KSC-based ISTEF facility (a DOD laser R&D operation) will provide support. Each prize has a $2 million prize for the winner. The 2009 Power Beaming Challenge is a prize contest designed to promote the development of new power distribution technologies. The 2009 Tether Challenge is designed to develop very strong tether material for use in various structural applications, including future space elevator applications. The prizes are being offered under NASA’s Centennial Challenges Program, which stimulates innovation and competition in space exploration and ongoing NASA mission areas. The Spaceward Foundation is administering both challenges for NASA. To register for and get additional information regarding the 2009 Power Beaming and Tether Challenges, visit http://www.spaceward.org. (2/22)
NASA to Launch Carbon Dioxide Tracker Satellite (Source: Guardian)
The world's first satellite designed to map concentrations of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is to be launched by NASA. Policymakers and governments will be able to use the data when setting and monitoring CO2 emissions targets designed to tackle climate change. "It's critical that we understand the processes controlling carbon dioxide in our atmosphere so we can predict how fast it will build up in the future and how quickly we will have to adapt to climate change," said David Crisp, principal investigator for the mission, which will blast off on a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California in the early hours of tomorrow morning. (2/22)
National Space Council Discussed in Senate Hearing (Source: Space Politics)
Last week's Senate Commerce Committee nomination hearing for John Holdren (OSTP) and Jane Lubchenco (NOAA) produced comments from Holdren about space as a critical area of investment: "I want to give special mention to the importance of R&D in our space program. Maintaining and expanding our capabilities in space is sometimes regarded as a luxury that we should do less of in the face of more pressing earthbound concerns...Space is crucial to our national defense; it’s crucial to civil as well as military communications and geopositioning; it’s crucial to weather forecasting and storm monitoring; crucial to observation and scientific study of the condition of our home planet’s land, vegetation, oceans, and atmosphere; and it’s crucial to scientific study and exploration looking outward...investments in space are a bargain."
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) asked Holdren about plans to reestablish the National Space Council. Holdren’s response: "The short answer...is yes, it is a priority. We have been looking at what the best way to resurrect the National Space Council in the White House would be...There’s no question that the gap in our capacity to put people in space is a matter of great concern with the shuttle program coming to an end and its successor program not yet ready. We are looking at that very carefully and I would look forward to working with you and Sen. Nelson and other members of this committee on how we can shrink that gap."
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) remarked: "That’s great, because one of the failings in the past, and not just with this immediate past administration, but previous ones, is that NASA becomes the handmaiden of the Office of Management and Budget. And that’s not the way to set policy, by having some green eyeshade person over there determining what the policy is, whether we’re talking about NASA or NOAA or whatever it is. But that’s the way it’s been in the past, and therefore another reason at the high councils of high government policymaking to have such a council right within the White House." (2/20)
Atlas-5 to Launch Military Satellite on Mar. 9 (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket will launch the second Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft (formerly known as the Wideband Gapfiller Satellite). Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the 421 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, two solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. (2/22)
Space Investment Summit Planned in Florida on May 27 (Source: SPACErePORT)
The sixth Space Investment Summit will address the connection between the existing hospitality industry and the emerging space tourism industry. Presentations will focus on the latest developments in the rapidly growing space tourism industry (vehicles, funding, destinations, timeframes, numbers of customers and more), as well as new cross-industry business opportunities. The event will precede the annual International Space Development Conference, to be held at the same location. The California Space Authority is a sponsor. Visit http://spaceinvestmentsummit.com/ for information. (2/22)
February 21 News Items
Could Falcon-9 Join the EELV Family? (Sources: SPACErePORT, HobbySpace.com)
At the recent FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference, SpaceX made mention of their intent for their Falcon-9 rocket to support Air Force launch requirements under the same Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) procurement system that currently includes only the Atlas-5 and Delta-4 rockets. The Air Force recently posted a draft "EELV New Entrant Evaluation Plan" that would allow this to happen. The Air Force's range of interest is in supporting payloads weighing 3,845 kg up to 11,745 kg. (2/18)
Tuskegee Airman To Fly To Edge Of Space (Source: Aero-News.net)
In recognition of African American contributions to equal rights and aviation, California-based XCOR Aerospace presented Tuskegee Airman Le Roy Gillead, of San Francisco, with a ticket for a ride to the edge of space. “XCOR’s efforts to make space flight affordable are made possible only because we have inherited a tradition of freedom and aviation excellence,” XCOR CEO and founder, Jeff Greason said at the ceremony. “We established the Legacy Flight program to thank those persons and groups that have helped build this heritage. (2/21)
Shuttle Launch Delayed Again (Source: SpaceToday.net)
NASA announced late Friday night that it has postponed once again the launch of the shuttle Discovery in order to resolve outstanding issues with a key valve. The agency had hoped to clear Discovery on Friday for a launch Feb. 27 on the STS-119 mission to the ISS. However, by Friday evening shuttle managers concluded that they did not have all the information they needed to resolve concerns about a flow control valve that channels gaseous hydrogen in the shuttle's main engines. Engineers are concerned that any debris that breaks off the valve could damage other engine components. NASA did not set a new target launch date Friday, but will develop a plan by next Wednesday to resolve the concerns and move ahead. Officials said they hope to be able to launch the shuttle by mid-March. (2/21)
The Lure of Sirius: Tax Losses (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Some investors are baffled why media titans John Malone and Charles Ergen are competing to throw money at Sirius XM Radio Inc., the money-losing satellite-radio company that was perilously close to bankruptcy. But in fact, the company's most valuable asset could be precisely all the money it has lost. Sirius XM has at least $6 billion of tax losses, according to securities filings. That means that the losses it has accumulated over the years can be used as deductions to cut taxes on future profits. As long as those losses stay with Sirius, they have little value. (2/21)
Virginia Firm Awarded Mars Balloon Study (Source: Spaceports Blog)
Virginia-based Aurora Flight Sciences has been awarded an initial contract to develop an innovative autonomous balloon launcher to operate from the surface of Mars providing future missions atmospheric sampling and video data capture. Aurora envisions a compact lightweight balloon system that could be included on future Mars landers, thereby augmenting the mission with a small aerial vehicle building upon the firms experience in the development of a Mars airplane with NASA Langley Research Center (but not selected for a NASA Mars mission). (2/20)
Component Issue Delays Sea Launch Mission (Source: Space News)
Sea Launch Co. has halted preparations for the launch of the Italian Defense Ministry's Sicral 1B communications satellite after testing revealed a potential component problem aboard the spacecraft. The launch was originally planned for January. (2/21)
Nonpartisan Group Urges Obama to Tackle Space Problems (Source: Space News)
Some 30 leaders from across the U.S. military, intelligence, civil and commercial space arenas have come together to urge President Barack Obama to address the systemic problems they say are now plaguing the entire U.S. space enterprise. The nonpartisan, independent Committee for U.S. Space Leadership, composed of current space industry professionals and former top military and civil space officials, has concluded the U.S. space industrial workforce problems, looming gaps in important space-based capabilities and widespread program overreach can only be remedied by increased White House involvement. Failure to act, the group said in a memo to the president, could result in further erosion of U.S. leadership in space. Among the recommendations is the establishment of a White House focal point, such as a National Space Council, to set priorities, provide management oversight and coordinate decisions and actions across the departments and agencies. (2/21)
Alabama Company Targets Small Satellite Market (Source: Space News)
Huntsville-based Dynetics intends to enter the government market for small satellites, having recently paid $4.4 million for rights to build spacecraft buses based on one designed by the Von Braun Center for Science and Innovation. Dynetics has never built a satellite, but the company sees a growing government market for standardized small satellites in the several-hundred-kilogram class, which Dynetics eventually expects to be able to provide for around $10 million apiece.
The satellite Dynetics will model its future satellites after is called FASTSat-HSV, short for Fast Affordable Science and Technology Satellite-Huntsville. It was designed by the Von Braun Center for Science and Innovation (VCSI) — a not-for-profit research organization — in collaboration with NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. In November, VCSI signed a DOD flight opportunity agreement to build the satellite to host six small payloads aboard a December Minotaur-4 launch. (2/21)
Com Dev Developing Satellites to Improve Ship Tracking (Source: Space News)
Canadian satellite component manufacturer Com Dev Ltd. is moving quickly into development of a line of satellites to provide a global ship identification and tracking service for maritime and coastal authorities and has begun production of the first two satellites. Com Dev has not announced a customer for the new satellites. But results from its demonstration satellite launched in April 2008 have persuaded the company that it has a technology advantage over the competition in providing a global Automatic Identification System (AIS) service that justifies committing capital well before lining up a customer set. (2/21)
NASA's Kepler Mission on Pad for March Launch From Florida (Source: Space News)
NASA's Kepler space telescope was moved to its launch pad Feb. 19 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport in preparation for a March 5 liftoff aboard a Delta 2 rocket. Following launch, Kepler will enter a 372.5-day orbit around the sun, trailing in Earth's wake. Over the course of its planned 42-month mission, Kepler will search the skies for planets 30 times to 600 times smaller than Jupiter. Its 0.95-meter diameter telescope is expected to be the first to find Earth-sized planets orbiting stars in the region where liquid water might exist. (2/21)
Official Says U.S. Is Not Building Space Weapons (Source: Space News)
The United States is not developing space weapons and could not afford to do so even if it wanted to, an official with the Pentagon's National Security Space Office said Feb. 19. Pete Hays, a senior policy analyst at the space office who is also associate director of the Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense Studies, said U.S. policy on space weaponry has remained pretty much the same over the last 30 years despite the occasionally heated debate on the subject during the administration of former U.S. President George W. Bush. (2/21)
Lockheed Takes Steps To Build New MUOS Satellites in California (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Sunnyvale, Calif., has begun purchasing long-lead items for a third and fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite for the U.S. Navy. Lockheed Martin was awarded a $2.1 billion contract from the Navy in 2004 to build the first two satellites in the series, with options for three more satellites worth up to a combined $1.2 billion. Lockheed Martin is preparing the first MUOS satellite for integration with its payload and will deliver the satellite in 2010, Tatum said in an e-mailed response to questions. The second satellite is now being built and will be mated with its payload in late 2009 for delivery in 2011. (2/21)
Aerojet Tests Ares 1 Roll Control Thrusters (Source: Space News)
Aerojet-General Corp. has completed a series of test firings of development thrusters for the Ares 1 rocket's roll control system, the Sacramento, Calif.-based company announced Feb. 19. The roll control system is meant to counteract the rocket's rotation during the first two minutes of flight to ensure Ares 1 stays on its designated trajectory. (2/21)
Florida's Space Industry Day May See Changes (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Space Day, scheduled for March 4 during the legislative session's first week, is an annual event hosted by Space Florida and Gov. Charlie Crist to showcase the aerospace community and promote space issues. The industry normally wholeheartedly backs the agency's funding and project requests. But this year, industry officials agreed to attend the event only if Space Florida removed its $4 million budget request from the lobbying agenda. The agency agreed. "It's going to be awkward for sure," said an executive for one major aerospace company operating at Cape Canaveral, who asked not to be identified. "We are all going to be at a reception with the governor and lieutenant governor doing everything we can to avoid supporting the government's own space-development agency." (2/20)
SpaceX Investigating Cause of Fire at Texas Test Facility (Source: Waco Tribune)
SpaceX is conducting an internal investigation over what caused a fuel fire at its McGregor testing facility Thursday night. The fire started during routine testing of a Merlin 1 C rocket engine. Staff members followed the facility’s safety response procedures to contain the fire, and there were no injuries. McGregor police and fire departments were called in to assist with the fire, which was contained to a fuel tank leak. (2/20)
More Test Rocket Hardware Arrives at KSC (Source: Florida Today)
The last newly manufactured section of the Ares I-X test rocket arrived at the Assembly and Refurbishment Facility of NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Friday. Called the frustum, the section resembles a giant funnel. Its function is to transition the primary flight loads from the rocket's upper stage to the first stage. The frustum is located between the forward skirt extension and the upper stage of the Ares I-X. The Ares I-X is targeted to launch in the summer of 2009. (2/20)
Industry Group Adopts Florida Space Advocacy Positions (Source: AIF)
Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), an influential Tallahassee-based group known as “The Voice of Florida Business” in the Sunshine State, has adopted a slate of space-related policy items for which it recommends support from the Florida Legislature. AIF says: "We must maintain this focus [on space] as a number of other states, especially Virginia, continue their efforts to overtake Florida’s historical role in space. Targeted infrastructure investments for Commercial Space launches will provide high-wage, high-tech jobs and will position Florida as the leader for this lucrative industry."
Specific AIF recommendations include: Creation of a Commercial Launch Zone (CLZ) that provides economic incentives for launch, manufacturing, and R&D; investments in aerospace workforce training; diversification of the space industry though university-based R&D under the Space Transportation Research & Development Institute (STRDI); creation of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) magnet schools; funding to preserve launch-related facilities and capabilities; and continued funding of Space Florida. Visit http://aif.com/esp_2/ESP2.shtm to view the entire AIF package of recommendations, and click here to see the collection of business organizations that support AIF's recommendations. (2/21)
At the recent FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference, SpaceX made mention of their intent for their Falcon-9 rocket to support Air Force launch requirements under the same Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) procurement system that currently includes only the Atlas-5 and Delta-4 rockets. The Air Force recently posted a draft "EELV New Entrant Evaluation Plan" that would allow this to happen. The Air Force's range of interest is in supporting payloads weighing 3,845 kg up to 11,745 kg. (2/18)
Tuskegee Airman To Fly To Edge Of Space (Source: Aero-News.net)
In recognition of African American contributions to equal rights and aviation, California-based XCOR Aerospace presented Tuskegee Airman Le Roy Gillead, of San Francisco, with a ticket for a ride to the edge of space. “XCOR’s efforts to make space flight affordable are made possible only because we have inherited a tradition of freedom and aviation excellence,” XCOR CEO and founder, Jeff Greason said at the ceremony. “We established the Legacy Flight program to thank those persons and groups that have helped build this heritage. (2/21)
Shuttle Launch Delayed Again (Source: SpaceToday.net)
NASA announced late Friday night that it has postponed once again the launch of the shuttle Discovery in order to resolve outstanding issues with a key valve. The agency had hoped to clear Discovery on Friday for a launch Feb. 27 on the STS-119 mission to the ISS. However, by Friday evening shuttle managers concluded that they did not have all the information they needed to resolve concerns about a flow control valve that channels gaseous hydrogen in the shuttle's main engines. Engineers are concerned that any debris that breaks off the valve could damage other engine components. NASA did not set a new target launch date Friday, but will develop a plan by next Wednesday to resolve the concerns and move ahead. Officials said they hope to be able to launch the shuttle by mid-March. (2/21)
The Lure of Sirius: Tax Losses (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Some investors are baffled why media titans John Malone and Charles Ergen are competing to throw money at Sirius XM Radio Inc., the money-losing satellite-radio company that was perilously close to bankruptcy. But in fact, the company's most valuable asset could be precisely all the money it has lost. Sirius XM has at least $6 billion of tax losses, according to securities filings. That means that the losses it has accumulated over the years can be used as deductions to cut taxes on future profits. As long as those losses stay with Sirius, they have little value. (2/21)
Virginia Firm Awarded Mars Balloon Study (Source: Spaceports Blog)
Virginia-based Aurora Flight Sciences has been awarded an initial contract to develop an innovative autonomous balloon launcher to operate from the surface of Mars providing future missions atmospheric sampling and video data capture. Aurora envisions a compact lightweight balloon system that could be included on future Mars landers, thereby augmenting the mission with a small aerial vehicle building upon the firms experience in the development of a Mars airplane with NASA Langley Research Center (but not selected for a NASA Mars mission). (2/20)
Component Issue Delays Sea Launch Mission (Source: Space News)
Sea Launch Co. has halted preparations for the launch of the Italian Defense Ministry's Sicral 1B communications satellite after testing revealed a potential component problem aboard the spacecraft. The launch was originally planned for January. (2/21)
Nonpartisan Group Urges Obama to Tackle Space Problems (Source: Space News)
Some 30 leaders from across the U.S. military, intelligence, civil and commercial space arenas have come together to urge President Barack Obama to address the systemic problems they say are now plaguing the entire U.S. space enterprise. The nonpartisan, independent Committee for U.S. Space Leadership, composed of current space industry professionals and former top military and civil space officials, has concluded the U.S. space industrial workforce problems, looming gaps in important space-based capabilities and widespread program overreach can only be remedied by increased White House involvement. Failure to act, the group said in a memo to the president, could result in further erosion of U.S. leadership in space. Among the recommendations is the establishment of a White House focal point, such as a National Space Council, to set priorities, provide management oversight and coordinate decisions and actions across the departments and agencies. (2/21)
Alabama Company Targets Small Satellite Market (Source: Space News)
Huntsville-based Dynetics intends to enter the government market for small satellites, having recently paid $4.4 million for rights to build spacecraft buses based on one designed by the Von Braun Center for Science and Innovation. Dynetics has never built a satellite, but the company sees a growing government market for standardized small satellites in the several-hundred-kilogram class, which Dynetics eventually expects to be able to provide for around $10 million apiece.
The satellite Dynetics will model its future satellites after is called FASTSat-HSV, short for Fast Affordable Science and Technology Satellite-Huntsville. It was designed by the Von Braun Center for Science and Innovation (VCSI) — a not-for-profit research organization — in collaboration with NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. In November, VCSI signed a DOD flight opportunity agreement to build the satellite to host six small payloads aboard a December Minotaur-4 launch. (2/21)
Com Dev Developing Satellites to Improve Ship Tracking (Source: Space News)
Canadian satellite component manufacturer Com Dev Ltd. is moving quickly into development of a line of satellites to provide a global ship identification and tracking service for maritime and coastal authorities and has begun production of the first two satellites. Com Dev has not announced a customer for the new satellites. But results from its demonstration satellite launched in April 2008 have persuaded the company that it has a technology advantage over the competition in providing a global Automatic Identification System (AIS) service that justifies committing capital well before lining up a customer set. (2/21)
NASA's Kepler Mission on Pad for March Launch From Florida (Source: Space News)
NASA's Kepler space telescope was moved to its launch pad Feb. 19 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport in preparation for a March 5 liftoff aboard a Delta 2 rocket. Following launch, Kepler will enter a 372.5-day orbit around the sun, trailing in Earth's wake. Over the course of its planned 42-month mission, Kepler will search the skies for planets 30 times to 600 times smaller than Jupiter. Its 0.95-meter diameter telescope is expected to be the first to find Earth-sized planets orbiting stars in the region where liquid water might exist. (2/21)
Official Says U.S. Is Not Building Space Weapons (Source: Space News)
The United States is not developing space weapons and could not afford to do so even if it wanted to, an official with the Pentagon's National Security Space Office said Feb. 19. Pete Hays, a senior policy analyst at the space office who is also associate director of the Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense Studies, said U.S. policy on space weaponry has remained pretty much the same over the last 30 years despite the occasionally heated debate on the subject during the administration of former U.S. President George W. Bush. (2/21)
Lockheed Takes Steps To Build New MUOS Satellites in California (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Sunnyvale, Calif., has begun purchasing long-lead items for a third and fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite for the U.S. Navy. Lockheed Martin was awarded a $2.1 billion contract from the Navy in 2004 to build the first two satellites in the series, with options for three more satellites worth up to a combined $1.2 billion. Lockheed Martin is preparing the first MUOS satellite for integration with its payload and will deliver the satellite in 2010, Tatum said in an e-mailed response to questions. The second satellite is now being built and will be mated with its payload in late 2009 for delivery in 2011. (2/21)
Aerojet Tests Ares 1 Roll Control Thrusters (Source: Space News)
Aerojet-General Corp. has completed a series of test firings of development thrusters for the Ares 1 rocket's roll control system, the Sacramento, Calif.-based company announced Feb. 19. The roll control system is meant to counteract the rocket's rotation during the first two minutes of flight to ensure Ares 1 stays on its designated trajectory. (2/21)
Florida's Space Industry Day May See Changes (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Space Day, scheduled for March 4 during the legislative session's first week, is an annual event hosted by Space Florida and Gov. Charlie Crist to showcase the aerospace community and promote space issues. The industry normally wholeheartedly backs the agency's funding and project requests. But this year, industry officials agreed to attend the event only if Space Florida removed its $4 million budget request from the lobbying agenda. The agency agreed. "It's going to be awkward for sure," said an executive for one major aerospace company operating at Cape Canaveral, who asked not to be identified. "We are all going to be at a reception with the governor and lieutenant governor doing everything we can to avoid supporting the government's own space-development agency." (2/20)
SpaceX Investigating Cause of Fire at Texas Test Facility (Source: Waco Tribune)
SpaceX is conducting an internal investigation over what caused a fuel fire at its McGregor testing facility Thursday night. The fire started during routine testing of a Merlin 1 C rocket engine. Staff members followed the facility’s safety response procedures to contain the fire, and there were no injuries. McGregor police and fire departments were called in to assist with the fire, which was contained to a fuel tank leak. (2/20)
More Test Rocket Hardware Arrives at KSC (Source: Florida Today)
The last newly manufactured section of the Ares I-X test rocket arrived at the Assembly and Refurbishment Facility of NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Friday. Called the frustum, the section resembles a giant funnel. Its function is to transition the primary flight loads from the rocket's upper stage to the first stage. The frustum is located between the forward skirt extension and the upper stage of the Ares I-X. The Ares I-X is targeted to launch in the summer of 2009. (2/20)
Industry Group Adopts Florida Space Advocacy Positions (Source: AIF)
Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), an influential Tallahassee-based group known as “The Voice of Florida Business” in the Sunshine State, has adopted a slate of space-related policy items for which it recommends support from the Florida Legislature. AIF says: "We must maintain this focus [on space] as a number of other states, especially Virginia, continue their efforts to overtake Florida’s historical role in space. Targeted infrastructure investments for Commercial Space launches will provide high-wage, high-tech jobs and will position Florida as the leader for this lucrative industry."
Specific AIF recommendations include: Creation of a Commercial Launch Zone (CLZ) that provides economic incentives for launch, manufacturing, and R&D; investments in aerospace workforce training; diversification of the space industry though university-based R&D under the Space Transportation Research & Development Institute (STRDI); creation of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) magnet schools; funding to preserve launch-related facilities and capabilities; and continued funding of Space Florida. Visit http://aif.com/esp_2/ESP2.shtm to view the entire AIF package of recommendations, and click here to see the collection of business organizations that support AIF's recommendations. (2/21)
February 20 News Items
Lockheed Plans Makeover of California Research Campus (Source: AIA)
Looking to better compete for Silicon Valley's sought-after engineering talent, Lockheed Martin is planning a "full-scale makeover" of its research campus in Palo Alto, Calif. "Lockheed Martin has made the commitment to transform the campus over the next 10 years by investing and building state-of-the-art facilities," the company said in a letter to the city's architectural review board. (2/20)
Alabama University Students Aspire to be Next Generation of Rocket Scientists (Source: UAH)
Some kids dream of one day becoming a doctor, veterinarian or perhaps a lawyer. But each dream is fueled by different things. There is an aspiring group of students and professors at The University of Alabama in Huntsville whose childhood aspirations were to become rocket scientists. Now, they no longer have to imagine the possibilities -- rocket science is their reality. They are contributing vital research to NASA's Constellation Program, which is working to build America's next spacecraft to return humans to the moon.
The students and professors are participants in the Constellation University Institutes Project (CUIP). The project comprises 24 universities in association with the Constellation Program. The teams work to address some of the technical issues of space access and exploration, including rocket stability and high performance, inexpensive solid propellants. Such issues are critical to the development of Constellation's spacecraft, and these aspiring rocket scientists rise to the challenge. (2/20)
Space Florida Launch Pad Funds Frozen (Source: Florida Today)
Lawmakers on Thursday said they would order Space Florida to halt spending $10 million of the $14.5 million allocated last year for converting Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, until the group gets its guiding principles in order. Space Florida Executive Director Steve Kohler said delaying spending until the agency's master plan is complete won't hurt the $55 million complex.
There's a Dec. 31 deadline for Space Florida to complete its master plan. Kohler said it would be done "well before" then. Sen. Mike Fasano, a Republican from New Port Richey and chairman of the committee, said language would be drafted to stop the spending of $10 million until the master plan is done. "I would assume that would encourage them to complete it very quickly," Fasano said. Kohler said ongoing development of Air Force and Kennedy Space Center master plans have meant holding off on finishing Space Florida's own plan.
Editor's Note: Space Florida officials say they do not intend to seek state funding beyond the initial $14.5 million for LC-36. Instead, they intend to leverage other industry or federal funding to complete the launch facility. (2/20)
British Skylon Spaceplane Just Ten Years Away (Source: Cosmos)
A high-tech spaceplane that takes off from an ordinary runway, and will slash the cost of flying to space, could be just ten years away, say experts. The Skylon plane – which garnered one million euros ($1.9 million) in support from the European Space Agency this week – is designed to carry up to 12 tons of cargo into orbit and return to land on the same runway. The unmanned, 82-meter plane is totally reusable, unlike most current launch technology. NASA's Space Shuttle is partly reusable and can carry 24.4 tons of cargo to low Earth orbit, but has to be launched like a conventional rocket at phenomenal expense. Skylon's designers estimate that their shuttle could slash the cost of launching into orbit from $100- to 700-million per launch, to just $10 million, and in doing so, encourage a new age of space exploration. (2/20)
Galaxies Form Out of Thin Air (Source: Cosmos)
Experts thought that dark matter was a prerequisite for the birth of galaxies. But a new study of dwarf galaxies, which are forming from remnants of the universe's primordial gases, is turning that idea on its head. These dwarf galaxies – which are relatively small, each containing only a few billion stars – are forming in a ring-shaped cloud of helium and hydrogen in the constellation Leo, according to a report in the British journal Nature this week. The cloud, discovered 25 years ago, appears to lack dark matter, which was initially perplexing for astronomers. In most galaxies, it is thought that invisible dark matter acted as a gravitational seed that attracted visible matter like stars, gas and dust. (2/20)
Looking to better compete for Silicon Valley's sought-after engineering talent, Lockheed Martin is planning a "full-scale makeover" of its research campus in Palo Alto, Calif. "Lockheed Martin has made the commitment to transform the campus over the next 10 years by investing and building state-of-the-art facilities," the company said in a letter to the city's architectural review board. (2/20)
Alabama University Students Aspire to be Next Generation of Rocket Scientists (Source: UAH)
Some kids dream of one day becoming a doctor, veterinarian or perhaps a lawyer. But each dream is fueled by different things. There is an aspiring group of students and professors at The University of Alabama in Huntsville whose childhood aspirations were to become rocket scientists. Now, they no longer have to imagine the possibilities -- rocket science is their reality. They are contributing vital research to NASA's Constellation Program, which is working to build America's next spacecraft to return humans to the moon.
The students and professors are participants in the Constellation University Institutes Project (CUIP). The project comprises 24 universities in association with the Constellation Program. The teams work to address some of the technical issues of space access and exploration, including rocket stability and high performance, inexpensive solid propellants. Such issues are critical to the development of Constellation's spacecraft, and these aspiring rocket scientists rise to the challenge. (2/20)
Space Florida Launch Pad Funds Frozen (Source: Florida Today)
Lawmakers on Thursday said they would order Space Florida to halt spending $10 million of the $14.5 million allocated last year for converting Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, until the group gets its guiding principles in order. Space Florida Executive Director Steve Kohler said delaying spending until the agency's master plan is complete won't hurt the $55 million complex.
There's a Dec. 31 deadline for Space Florida to complete its master plan. Kohler said it would be done "well before" then. Sen. Mike Fasano, a Republican from New Port Richey and chairman of the committee, said language would be drafted to stop the spending of $10 million until the master plan is done. "I would assume that would encourage them to complete it very quickly," Fasano said. Kohler said ongoing development of Air Force and Kennedy Space Center master plans have meant holding off on finishing Space Florida's own plan.
Editor's Note: Space Florida officials say they do not intend to seek state funding beyond the initial $14.5 million for LC-36. Instead, they intend to leverage other industry or federal funding to complete the launch facility. (2/20)
British Skylon Spaceplane Just Ten Years Away (Source: Cosmos)
A high-tech spaceplane that takes off from an ordinary runway, and will slash the cost of flying to space, could be just ten years away, say experts. The Skylon plane – which garnered one million euros ($1.9 million) in support from the European Space Agency this week – is designed to carry up to 12 tons of cargo into orbit and return to land on the same runway. The unmanned, 82-meter plane is totally reusable, unlike most current launch technology. NASA's Space Shuttle is partly reusable and can carry 24.4 tons of cargo to low Earth orbit, but has to be launched like a conventional rocket at phenomenal expense. Skylon's designers estimate that their shuttle could slash the cost of launching into orbit from $100- to 700-million per launch, to just $10 million, and in doing so, encourage a new age of space exploration. (2/20)
Galaxies Form Out of Thin Air (Source: Cosmos)
Experts thought that dark matter was a prerequisite for the birth of galaxies. But a new study of dwarf galaxies, which are forming from remnants of the universe's primordial gases, is turning that idea on its head. These dwarf galaxies – which are relatively small, each containing only a few billion stars – are forming in a ring-shaped cloud of helium and hydrogen in the constellation Leo, according to a report in the British journal Nature this week. The cloud, discovered 25 years ago, appears to lack dark matter, which was initially perplexing for astronomers. In most galaxies, it is thought that invisible dark matter acted as a gravitational seed that attracted visible matter like stars, gas and dust. (2/20)
February 19 News Items
New Speakers Confirmed, Papers Invited for ISDC in Florida (Source: NSSFL)
The International Space Development Conference will be held in Orlando on May 28-30. Recently confirmed ISDC speakers include Elon Musk (SpaceX), Will Pomerantz (X PRIZE) and Alan Ladwig (NASA). Among other topics, ISDC will provide insights on the Obama Administration's transition and evolving space policy directions. Other sessions will focus on living in space, space settlement, science missions, technology development, education, outreach, and more! Paper abstracts are invited for participating in these sessions. Visit http://www.ISDC2009.org for information on registration and abstract submission. (2/19)
Space Transportation R&D Institute to Support Spaceport Roadmap Initiative (Source: ERAU)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the University of Central Florida have kicked-off a spaceport "roadmapping" initiative supported by the NASA-sponsored Florida Space Grant Consortium and Space Florida. The collaboration is part of an Embry-Riddle-led multi-university Space Transportation Research & Development Institute (STRDI). The project will identify steps that should be taken to maximize the commercial and government use of taxpayer-funded infrastructure at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, including policy recommendations for improving the Cape's competitiveness. The universities have begun discussions with Space Florida to ensure that the project complements the agency's own state-sponsored strategic and master planning efforts at the spaceport. (2/19)
Aging Mars Rover Gets a Power Boost (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's aging Mars rover Spirit has a bit more power under its hood thanks to some Martian winds that cleaned dust from its vital solar panels. The handy cleaning occurred earlier this month and was discovered by engineers scanning data from Spirit's power subsystem. "We will be able to use this energy to do significantly more driving," said a rover mission manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). "Our drives have been averaging about 50 minutes, and energy has usually been the limiting factor. We may be able to increase that to drives of an hour and a half." (2/19)
SpaceTEC Plans Annual Partners Meeting in Cocoa Beach on May 3-5 (Source: SpaceTEC)
The 2009 SpaceTEC Annual Meeting is scheduled for May 3-5, 2009 in Cocoa Beach. SpaceTEC is a national consortium of academic institutions that collaborate to provide aerospace technical training, and administer a certification program for aerospace industry technicians. Visit http://www.spacetec.org for information. (2/19)
RSC ENERGIA Clarifies Relationship With ILS (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
Mass media information and that of the official web-site of International Launch Services (ILS) gives the mistaken impression that RSC Energia is still taking an active part in ILS. Actually it is not the fact. RSC Energia has been debarred from any meaningful participation in ILS in recent years. In 1992, Russia's government authorized Khrunichev to set up a joint enterprise with Lockheed to market launch services aboard Proton and Atlas rockets. The venture was reorganized as ILS after Lockheed merged with Martin Marietta in 1995. In 2006, Lockheed Martin quit the project and sold its shares to Space Transport Inc.
In May 2008 Khrunichev Research and Production Space Center acquired the entire Space Transport, Inc. block of shares in ILS. Notwithstanding the fact that RSC Energia owns 17% of the whole equity capital of ILS, its participation in the Company is rather formal than real. Energia is not in the position to influence the decision making process. Repeated attempts that RSC Energia took over the recent years to get representation on the ILS Board of Directors proved to be futile. (2/19)
Space Florida Agrees to Freeze Launch Complex Spending (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The chairman of a state Senate committee reviewing Space Florida’s work said Thursday he would push to freeze about $10 million in public financing intended to help build a much-heralded commercial launch complex at Cape Canaveral. State auditors recommended the freeze on spaceport funds for the Launch Complex 36 project in a review of the Brevard-based agency’s performance earlier this year because the agency hasn’t yet finalized a master plan for the $55 million facility.
Space Florida President Steve Kohler told a Senate committee that the plan would be complete by the end of the year and agreed to cooperate with the halt on state spending on the launch pad. "I would assume that will encourage them to complete it very quickly,” said Committee Chairman Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey. The Legislature devoted $14.5 million to kick-start the construction on Air Force property last spring, and just over $2 million has already been tapped.
Backers of the complex have suggested they would need to ask the Legislature for as much as $44 million more over the next three years, although Kohler said they hoped to leverage the current funding to sell bonds – if enough commercial business can be generated to pay for them. But the complex is somewhat controversial within the space industry, because it would be designed to launch different types of rockets – something many private companies are reluctant to go along with. Thus far, no private investors have agreed to launch from the complex. (2/19)
Four Rockets Launched From Alaska (Source: NewsMiner.com)
Four NASA rockets were launched from Poker Flat Research Range early Wednesday morning. The rockets, carrying payloads that emitted glowing vapor trails that help scientists study turbulence in the upper atmosphere, were launched between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. Alaska Standard Time. The whitish trails, some resembling corkscrews in the sky, were visible in many parts of Interior and northern Alaska. Skies were clear with a faint arc of the aurora visible. “There were four trails on the up-leg (of the rocket trajectory), four on the down-leg,” said Gerald Lehmacher of Clemson University, principal investigator for the experiment. “The instruments worked well.” (2/19)
Astrotech Official Suggests Florida Facility Could Support Satellite Assembly (Source: ERAU)
Astrotech's Lance Lord, during a presentation to the Space Florida Board of Directors, said the company's payload processing facility near the Cape Canaveral Spaceport could support final assembly of large satellites, allowing satellite manufacturers to relieve congestion at their out-of-state production facilities. He also said Astrotech looks forward to supporting the payload processing requirements of companies that would operate from Launch Complex 36, which is proposed for conversion into a multi-vehicle facility by Space Florida. (2/19)
Orbital Space Tourism Prices Rise (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Microsoft billionaut Charles Simonyi, who will soon be taking a second working vacation to the International Space Station, says on his second trip into space he’ll be much more efficient at performing experiments, being more adapted to zero gravity. In a Seattle Times article, Simonyi seems to confirm that he’s paying about $35 million for his upcoming 13-day trip, an increase of about $10 million from his 2007 flight. “The costs are going up — both the manufacturing costs and the demand are going up. It’s a short-term phenomenon,” Simonyi claims. This is actually about triple what Dennis Tito paid only eight years ago (the official $20 million figure was significantly inflated).
Some of the increase is due to the dramatic decline in the value of the dollar during the Bush presidency. But, certainly not all of it. Supply and demand - and the Russians getting smarter about how much to charge - have played a part. So in 8 years, no actual progress has been made in bringing down the cost of orbital flights in the past decade. I’m not sure how exactly prices are supposed to drop, with the shuttle retiring next year and Russia straining to produce enough Soyuz and Progress vehicles to help keep ISS supplied. Space Adventures is planning to fly independent missions to ISS with one cosmonauts and two paying customers beginning in 2011. But, I think this is a once-a-year flight (instead of every six months as it is now), so the number of available seats probably wouldn’t increase. So, where is the incentive for Space Adventures to drop the price? (2/19)
UK Government to Back Air-Launched Satellite Launcher (Source: Flight Global)
The UK government is prepared to fully support the development of the air launched micro satellite carrying rocket proposed by Virgin Galactic and Surrey Satellite Technology (SSTL). Although SSTL has written to the UK government's civil space activity coordinating body, the British National Space Center (BNSC), requesting phase A study support for the launcher a senior BNSC official told Flight that it will see the project through to the end.
Potentially starting this April the 12-month study will produce a concept design, development schedule and costs. SSTL started talking to Virgin Galactic in mid-2008 and its own market analysis convinced it that the growing worldwide micro satellites market would support such a service. An all composite two-stage rocket could place 200kg (440lb) into low Earth orbit. This analysis was provided to Virgin Galactic, which agreed with SSTL's conclusions, and has since named the rocket LauncherOne. (2/19)
X-Prize Official Praises Space Florida (Sources: Parabolic Arc, X-Prize.org)
The X Prize’s William Pomerantz praises Space Florida’s work with the non-profit organization: “The Google Lunar X PRIZE has offered me some chance to watch Space Florida at work. We’ve had two major areas of overlap with Space Florida on that prize: first, the agency stepped forward by offering a Bonus Prize of $2 million to the winner of the competition if they launch from Florida. Secondly, I know that they were very instrumental in helping encourage the formation of what eventually became team Omega Envoy. In both cases, the express purpose of their efforts was to promote commercial space enterprise in the state of Florida. Also in both cases, these efforts were started by and internally pushed within Space Florida without any real prompting on our part.” (2/19)
Viability of Multi-User Launch Complex Questioned (Source: ERAU)
Space Florida's plan to convert Launch Complex 36 into a multi-user facility has raised some eyebrows among seasoned rocketeers. As indicated in the recent legislative audit of Space Florida: "several representatives of space launch companies ... questioned whether Space Florida could develop this site as a multi-use launch complex because each launch vehicle has unique technical specifications." Space Florida's Steve Kohler responded in a recent Orlando Sentinel article that such a pad "not only can be done, it has been done."
Mr. Kohler is correct. Launch Complex 46 was converted into a multi-user launch pad in the 1990s by Space Florida's predecessor, the Spaceport Florida Authority. LC-46 was designed to accommodate vehicles planned by Alliant Techsystems, Lockheed Martin, and Orbital Sciences Corporation. Converting LC-46 for three users was complicated, but aided by the fact that their vehicles were relatively small and similar in design. Ultimately, the facility hosted only two launches -- both by Lockheed Martin Athena vehicles -- before the market dried up for this particular class of rockets.
Despite the fact that LC-36 would support (as yet unnamed) larger, more sophisticated vehicles, a multi-user redesign of the facility would be technically feasible, thanks, in part, to the fact that LC-36 includes two launch pads. However, the real challenges are in its operational and financial feasibility. Launch companies that might share LC-36 would encounter significant scheduling conflicts and other challenges related to liability and the protection of proprietary interests. And the design/construction cost for accommodating multiple substantially dissimilar vehicles (of varying commercial viability and in an overcrowded international marketplace) might be difficult to justify. (2/19)
New Company Looks to Produce Space Based Solar Power Within a Decade (Source: Universe Today)
Is space-based solar power (SBSP) a technology whose time has come? The concept and even some of the hardware for harnessing energy from the sun with orbiting solar arrays has been around for some time. But the biggest challenge for making the concept a reality, says entrepreneur Peter Sage of Space Energy, Inc., is that SBSP has never been commercially viable. But that could be changing. Space Energy, Inc. has assembled an impressive team of scientists, engineers and business people, putting together what Sage calls "a rock-solid commercial platform" for their company. And given the current looming issues of growing energy needs and climate change, Space Energy, Inc. could be in the right place at the right time. Click here to view the article. (2/19)
Spacehab Becomes Astrotech (Source: NASA Watch)
Spacehab is changing its corporate name to Astrotech Corp. The shareholders of the Company's common stock authorized the corporate name change at the annual meeting held on Feb. 10, 2009. Spacehab has filed for and received approval for the name change with the state of Washington. "Astrotech Corporation is a name that more accurately reflects the Company's current mission and vision for future growth," said Thomas B. Pickens III, Spacehab's chairman and chief executive officer. "By aligning our corporate name with our core business offering, we are communicating to the investment community and customers the Company's new focus." (2/19)
NASA Set to Launch Climate-Change Satellite from California (Source: AIA)
NASA's new Orbiting Carbon Observatory, scheduled to launch from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base on Tuesday, will be tasked with mapping carbon dioxide levels across the globe. "OCO will be making one of the most challenging measurements of any atmospheric trace gas that has ever been made," according to an official at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Three high-resolution spectrometers from Hamilton Sundstrand Sensor Systems will analyze the light absorption of molecules to measure carbon dioxide and oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere. (2/19)
Why Our Space Program Must Continue (Source: WND.com)
A staple of Cold War fiction in the 1980s was the idea that the United States and the Soviet Union would take their rivalry, and its accompanying military buildup, into the final frontier of space. As a boy I had illustrated books on future technology that depicted armed satellites blasting away at each other. The technology that would enable peaceful, laser-armed satellites to clear away "space junk" was the same technology that would enable warring space-nations to take shots at each other's orbiting infrastructure. It all sounded very prophetic, and as a child who loved science fiction and who had a firm belief in the inevitable evolution of daily life into that speculative vision of the near future, I knew it was only a matter of time before such space battles came to pass. Of course, I also had pillowcases with robots on them.
I argue that despite the costs, despite the difficulties and despite the dangers, our continued advance into space, into the universe beyond the envelope of our atmosphere, is necessary for a purely emotional reason. A well-funded, persistent, driven space program is part of giving a nation hope, part of demonstrating to Americans that we as a people can reach for the stars and accomplish great things... Maintaining our commitment to the nation's space program will help us to understand better, and develop technologies to better cope with, problems like the recent satellite collision. (Ask yourself how much of our communications technology relies on satellites; this alone is incredibly important.) That, however, is arguably a short-term goal. In the long term, a commitment to our space program pushes us as a people to continue doing more. Now, more than ever, we need that push. We need that drive. (2/19)
Kohler: Space Florida Achievements Will Ensure Florida's Status as Industry Leader (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
It is unfortunate the Orlando Sentinel chose to print a one-sided article about Space Florida on Sunday ("Critics blast Space Florida as $50M waste"). The article failed the readers and the aerospace industry when it neglected to mention any of the achievements made in ensuring Florida remains a vital space leader for the future. The reporter received volumes of documents, customer-contact information and every financial audit since our inception, none of which was used in the article.
The article cites a $50 million investment in Space Florida, but it doesn't clarify that $35 million was direct funding to support the renovation of an older facility at the Kennedy Space Center, which will now create nearly 400 manufacturing and assembly jobs. The landmark decision by the Air Force to license Launch Complex 36 to Space Florida creates the capability for a number of companies to bring their launch business to Florida. We advocated for the successful Air Force assignment of Launch Complex 40 to SpaceX and provided more than $2 million in cash, facilities and in-kind support that continues today. Click here to view the editorial. (2/19)
Editorial: Toss the Red Tape: Success Depends on New Technology (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The Orlando Sentinel's Sunday editorial, "Failure to launch," brought back memories from my experience as an engineer for a commercial launch program at Cape Canaveral. I was part of the team that rebuilt launchpad 36B and launched the first commercial Atlas II/Centaur in 1991. The editorial says this industry has failed because "Florida has misjudged the commercial space market in some instances, and has been outflanked by the competition in others." Unfortunately, the editorial missed some of the real issues that have plagued this industry.
I interviewed with all of the major companies at Kennedy Space Center. I was offered several jobs, the most impressive of which appeared to be with the space-shuttle program. That was at least until I took a tour of the facilities that included crawling into the main engine compartment of the space shuttle. I felt as if I were touring the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Remember that the space shuttle was developed before the first personal computer ever hit the market.
But a new commercial space program caught my eye, so I took a job at General Dynamics on the Atlas/Centaur commercial space-launch program. During the next three years, I was part of a team that built and launched 12 commercial satellites. But I also learned firsthand how woefully antiquated and obsolete our space program had become. I am a strong advocate for safety, but the work environment in the early stages of the commercial space industry was almost impossible. Every task that is performed on a launchpad at Cape Canaveral is governed by a piece of paper, and you have to wade through an army of bureaucrats in order to get any of this paper approved. Although we were supposed to be a "commercial" launch facility, we were being asphyxiated in a sea of red tape. Click here to view the editorial. (2/19)
Spaceports are Old Tech (Source: ERAU)
Most Floridians believe the Cape is a cutting-edge technology center, but Mr. Waltrip's editorial correctly points out that we're dealing with 1960s era technologies. Florida's reliance on launch operations, and its lack of involvement in more diverse space R&D programs, puts our economy at risk whenever a launch vehicle program ends. The real high-value elements of our nation's space industry are in states that have focused on building strong R&D and manufacturing-based space programs. They ship their state-of-the-art rockets and payloads to Florida so we can truck them to orbit. For states pursuing spaceport development, the launch industry should not be viewed as the real prize, it should be viewed as a capability that can be leveraged to support other types of space enterprise. (2/19)
Skylon Spaceplane Gets Cash Boost (Source: BBC)
An innovative UK launcher concept is to get 1m euros (£900,000) of investment from the European Space Agency (ESA). The Skylon spaceplane would take off from a conventional aircraft runway, carry over 12 tons to orbit and then return to land on the same runway. The money will help prove the vehicle's core technologies, including its Sabre air-breathing rocket engine. Reaction Engines, the company behind the project, believes its reusable launcher could fly within 10 years. (2/19)
Florida Aerospace Company Expands to Huntsville (Source: Huntsville Times)
ASRC Aerospace Corp., an information technology and aerospace engineering company and NASA contractor, has set up a Huntsville operation. "We currently have work with five NASA centers," said Martin McLellan, vice president of ASRC Aerospace, which is based in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Having a presence in Huntsville, he said, better positions the company to add NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center as a partner. Dr. Judy Mobley has been named the director for Huntsville operations and is responsible for expanding business growth supporting Marshall, including the company's bid for Marshall's Information Technology Services contract, to be awarded later this year. (2/19)
Orbital Sciences Profit Falls (Source: MarketWatch)
Orbital Sciences Corp. said fourth-quarter net income fell to $13.2 million from $15.8 million, while revenue rose 11% to $311 million. The rocket maker nudged its 2009 guidance lower, forecasting revenue between $1.15 billion and $1.175 billion. Previously, the company expected revenue between $1.175 billion and $1.2 billion. (2/19)
New Visitor Complex Chief Pushes Space Center's 'Real Stuff' (Source: Florida Today)
William Moore began his new duties as chief operating officer of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex this month. The 57-year-old Atlanta native replaced Dan LeBlanc, who resigned in October after more than 12 years at the complex, the last six as COO. LeBlanc's strong marketing and guidance is credited with pushing the facility to the forefront of Central Florida destinations. The 42-year-old attraction, built as a means for NASA astronauts' and employees' families to view space center operations, draws more than 1.5 visitors annually. Moore comes from the Independence Visitor Center in Philadelphia, which displays the historic Liberty Bell. He will now oversee some 700 employees at the visitor center. (2/19)
The International Space Development Conference will be held in Orlando on May 28-30. Recently confirmed ISDC speakers include Elon Musk (SpaceX), Will Pomerantz (X PRIZE) and Alan Ladwig (NASA). Among other topics, ISDC will provide insights on the Obama Administration's transition and evolving space policy directions. Other sessions will focus on living in space, space settlement, science missions, technology development, education, outreach, and more! Paper abstracts are invited for participating in these sessions. Visit http://www.ISDC2009.org for information on registration and abstract submission. (2/19)
Space Transportation R&D Institute to Support Spaceport Roadmap Initiative (Source: ERAU)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the University of Central Florida have kicked-off a spaceport "roadmapping" initiative supported by the NASA-sponsored Florida Space Grant Consortium and Space Florida. The collaboration is part of an Embry-Riddle-led multi-university Space Transportation Research & Development Institute (STRDI). The project will identify steps that should be taken to maximize the commercial and government use of taxpayer-funded infrastructure at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, including policy recommendations for improving the Cape's competitiveness. The universities have begun discussions with Space Florida to ensure that the project complements the agency's own state-sponsored strategic and master planning efforts at the spaceport. (2/19)
Aging Mars Rover Gets a Power Boost (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's aging Mars rover Spirit has a bit more power under its hood thanks to some Martian winds that cleaned dust from its vital solar panels. The handy cleaning occurred earlier this month and was discovered by engineers scanning data from Spirit's power subsystem. "We will be able to use this energy to do significantly more driving," said a rover mission manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). "Our drives have been averaging about 50 minutes, and energy has usually been the limiting factor. We may be able to increase that to drives of an hour and a half." (2/19)
SpaceTEC Plans Annual Partners Meeting in Cocoa Beach on May 3-5 (Source: SpaceTEC)
The 2009 SpaceTEC Annual Meeting is scheduled for May 3-5, 2009 in Cocoa Beach. SpaceTEC is a national consortium of academic institutions that collaborate to provide aerospace technical training, and administer a certification program for aerospace industry technicians. Visit http://www.spacetec.org for information. (2/19)
RSC ENERGIA Clarifies Relationship With ILS (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
Mass media information and that of the official web-site of International Launch Services (ILS) gives the mistaken impression that RSC Energia is still taking an active part in ILS. Actually it is not the fact. RSC Energia has been debarred from any meaningful participation in ILS in recent years. In 1992, Russia's government authorized Khrunichev to set up a joint enterprise with Lockheed to market launch services aboard Proton and Atlas rockets. The venture was reorganized as ILS after Lockheed merged with Martin Marietta in 1995. In 2006, Lockheed Martin quit the project and sold its shares to Space Transport Inc.
In May 2008 Khrunichev Research and Production Space Center acquired the entire Space Transport, Inc. block of shares in ILS. Notwithstanding the fact that RSC Energia owns 17% of the whole equity capital of ILS, its participation in the Company is rather formal than real. Energia is not in the position to influence the decision making process. Repeated attempts that RSC Energia took over the recent years to get representation on the ILS Board of Directors proved to be futile. (2/19)
Space Florida Agrees to Freeze Launch Complex Spending (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The chairman of a state Senate committee reviewing Space Florida’s work said Thursday he would push to freeze about $10 million in public financing intended to help build a much-heralded commercial launch complex at Cape Canaveral. State auditors recommended the freeze on spaceport funds for the Launch Complex 36 project in a review of the Brevard-based agency’s performance earlier this year because the agency hasn’t yet finalized a master plan for the $55 million facility.
Space Florida President Steve Kohler told a Senate committee that the plan would be complete by the end of the year and agreed to cooperate with the halt on state spending on the launch pad. "I would assume that will encourage them to complete it very quickly,” said Committee Chairman Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey. The Legislature devoted $14.5 million to kick-start the construction on Air Force property last spring, and just over $2 million has already been tapped.
Backers of the complex have suggested they would need to ask the Legislature for as much as $44 million more over the next three years, although Kohler said they hoped to leverage the current funding to sell bonds – if enough commercial business can be generated to pay for them. But the complex is somewhat controversial within the space industry, because it would be designed to launch different types of rockets – something many private companies are reluctant to go along with. Thus far, no private investors have agreed to launch from the complex. (2/19)
Four Rockets Launched From Alaska (Source: NewsMiner.com)
Four NASA rockets were launched from Poker Flat Research Range early Wednesday morning. The rockets, carrying payloads that emitted glowing vapor trails that help scientists study turbulence in the upper atmosphere, were launched between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. Alaska Standard Time. The whitish trails, some resembling corkscrews in the sky, were visible in many parts of Interior and northern Alaska. Skies were clear with a faint arc of the aurora visible. “There were four trails on the up-leg (of the rocket trajectory), four on the down-leg,” said Gerald Lehmacher of Clemson University, principal investigator for the experiment. “The instruments worked well.” (2/19)
Astrotech Official Suggests Florida Facility Could Support Satellite Assembly (Source: ERAU)
Astrotech's Lance Lord, during a presentation to the Space Florida Board of Directors, said the company's payload processing facility near the Cape Canaveral Spaceport could support final assembly of large satellites, allowing satellite manufacturers to relieve congestion at their out-of-state production facilities. He also said Astrotech looks forward to supporting the payload processing requirements of companies that would operate from Launch Complex 36, which is proposed for conversion into a multi-vehicle facility by Space Florida. (2/19)
Orbital Space Tourism Prices Rise (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Microsoft billionaut Charles Simonyi, who will soon be taking a second working vacation to the International Space Station, says on his second trip into space he’ll be much more efficient at performing experiments, being more adapted to zero gravity. In a Seattle Times article, Simonyi seems to confirm that he’s paying about $35 million for his upcoming 13-day trip, an increase of about $10 million from his 2007 flight. “The costs are going up — both the manufacturing costs and the demand are going up. It’s a short-term phenomenon,” Simonyi claims. This is actually about triple what Dennis Tito paid only eight years ago (the official $20 million figure was significantly inflated).
Some of the increase is due to the dramatic decline in the value of the dollar during the Bush presidency. But, certainly not all of it. Supply and demand - and the Russians getting smarter about how much to charge - have played a part. So in 8 years, no actual progress has been made in bringing down the cost of orbital flights in the past decade. I’m not sure how exactly prices are supposed to drop, with the shuttle retiring next year and Russia straining to produce enough Soyuz and Progress vehicles to help keep ISS supplied. Space Adventures is planning to fly independent missions to ISS with one cosmonauts and two paying customers beginning in 2011. But, I think this is a once-a-year flight (instead of every six months as it is now), so the number of available seats probably wouldn’t increase. So, where is the incentive for Space Adventures to drop the price? (2/19)
UK Government to Back Air-Launched Satellite Launcher (Source: Flight Global)
The UK government is prepared to fully support the development of the air launched micro satellite carrying rocket proposed by Virgin Galactic and Surrey Satellite Technology (SSTL). Although SSTL has written to the UK government's civil space activity coordinating body, the British National Space Center (BNSC), requesting phase A study support for the launcher a senior BNSC official told Flight that it will see the project through to the end.
Potentially starting this April the 12-month study will produce a concept design, development schedule and costs. SSTL started talking to Virgin Galactic in mid-2008 and its own market analysis convinced it that the growing worldwide micro satellites market would support such a service. An all composite two-stage rocket could place 200kg (440lb) into low Earth orbit. This analysis was provided to Virgin Galactic, which agreed with SSTL's conclusions, and has since named the rocket LauncherOne. (2/19)
X-Prize Official Praises Space Florida (Sources: Parabolic Arc, X-Prize.org)
The X Prize’s William Pomerantz praises Space Florida’s work with the non-profit organization: “The Google Lunar X PRIZE has offered me some chance to watch Space Florida at work. We’ve had two major areas of overlap with Space Florida on that prize: first, the agency stepped forward by offering a Bonus Prize of $2 million to the winner of the competition if they launch from Florida. Secondly, I know that they were very instrumental in helping encourage the formation of what eventually became team Omega Envoy. In both cases, the express purpose of their efforts was to promote commercial space enterprise in the state of Florida. Also in both cases, these efforts were started by and internally pushed within Space Florida without any real prompting on our part.” (2/19)
Viability of Multi-User Launch Complex Questioned (Source: ERAU)
Space Florida's plan to convert Launch Complex 36 into a multi-user facility has raised some eyebrows among seasoned rocketeers. As indicated in the recent legislative audit of Space Florida: "several representatives of space launch companies ... questioned whether Space Florida could develop this site as a multi-use launch complex because each launch vehicle has unique technical specifications." Space Florida's Steve Kohler responded in a recent Orlando Sentinel article that such a pad "not only can be done, it has been done."
Mr. Kohler is correct. Launch Complex 46 was converted into a multi-user launch pad in the 1990s by Space Florida's predecessor, the Spaceport Florida Authority. LC-46 was designed to accommodate vehicles planned by Alliant Techsystems, Lockheed Martin, and Orbital Sciences Corporation. Converting LC-46 for three users was complicated, but aided by the fact that their vehicles were relatively small and similar in design. Ultimately, the facility hosted only two launches -- both by Lockheed Martin Athena vehicles -- before the market dried up for this particular class of rockets.
Despite the fact that LC-36 would support (as yet unnamed) larger, more sophisticated vehicles, a multi-user redesign of the facility would be technically feasible, thanks, in part, to the fact that LC-36 includes two launch pads. However, the real challenges are in its operational and financial feasibility. Launch companies that might share LC-36 would encounter significant scheduling conflicts and other challenges related to liability and the protection of proprietary interests. And the design/construction cost for accommodating multiple substantially dissimilar vehicles (of varying commercial viability and in an overcrowded international marketplace) might be difficult to justify. (2/19)
New Company Looks to Produce Space Based Solar Power Within a Decade (Source: Universe Today)
Is space-based solar power (SBSP) a technology whose time has come? The concept and even some of the hardware for harnessing energy from the sun with orbiting solar arrays has been around for some time. But the biggest challenge for making the concept a reality, says entrepreneur Peter Sage of Space Energy, Inc., is that SBSP has never been commercially viable. But that could be changing. Space Energy, Inc. has assembled an impressive team of scientists, engineers and business people, putting together what Sage calls "a rock-solid commercial platform" for their company. And given the current looming issues of growing energy needs and climate change, Space Energy, Inc. could be in the right place at the right time. Click here to view the article. (2/19)
Spacehab Becomes Astrotech (Source: NASA Watch)
Spacehab is changing its corporate name to Astrotech Corp. The shareholders of the Company's common stock authorized the corporate name change at the annual meeting held on Feb. 10, 2009. Spacehab has filed for and received approval for the name change with the state of Washington. "Astrotech Corporation is a name that more accurately reflects the Company's current mission and vision for future growth," said Thomas B. Pickens III, Spacehab's chairman and chief executive officer. "By aligning our corporate name with our core business offering, we are communicating to the investment community and customers the Company's new focus." (2/19)
NASA Set to Launch Climate-Change Satellite from California (Source: AIA)
NASA's new Orbiting Carbon Observatory, scheduled to launch from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base on Tuesday, will be tasked with mapping carbon dioxide levels across the globe. "OCO will be making one of the most challenging measurements of any atmospheric trace gas that has ever been made," according to an official at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Three high-resolution spectrometers from Hamilton Sundstrand Sensor Systems will analyze the light absorption of molecules to measure carbon dioxide and oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere. (2/19)
Why Our Space Program Must Continue (Source: WND.com)
A staple of Cold War fiction in the 1980s was the idea that the United States and the Soviet Union would take their rivalry, and its accompanying military buildup, into the final frontier of space. As a boy I had illustrated books on future technology that depicted armed satellites blasting away at each other. The technology that would enable peaceful, laser-armed satellites to clear away "space junk" was the same technology that would enable warring space-nations to take shots at each other's orbiting infrastructure. It all sounded very prophetic, and as a child who loved science fiction and who had a firm belief in the inevitable evolution of daily life into that speculative vision of the near future, I knew it was only a matter of time before such space battles came to pass. Of course, I also had pillowcases with robots on them.
I argue that despite the costs, despite the difficulties and despite the dangers, our continued advance into space, into the universe beyond the envelope of our atmosphere, is necessary for a purely emotional reason. A well-funded, persistent, driven space program is part of giving a nation hope, part of demonstrating to Americans that we as a people can reach for the stars and accomplish great things... Maintaining our commitment to the nation's space program will help us to understand better, and develop technologies to better cope with, problems like the recent satellite collision. (Ask yourself how much of our communications technology relies on satellites; this alone is incredibly important.) That, however, is arguably a short-term goal. In the long term, a commitment to our space program pushes us as a people to continue doing more. Now, more than ever, we need that push. We need that drive. (2/19)
Kohler: Space Florida Achievements Will Ensure Florida's Status as Industry Leader (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
It is unfortunate the Orlando Sentinel chose to print a one-sided article about Space Florida on Sunday ("Critics blast Space Florida as $50M waste"). The article failed the readers and the aerospace industry when it neglected to mention any of the achievements made in ensuring Florida remains a vital space leader for the future. The reporter received volumes of documents, customer-contact information and every financial audit since our inception, none of which was used in the article.
The article cites a $50 million investment in Space Florida, but it doesn't clarify that $35 million was direct funding to support the renovation of an older facility at the Kennedy Space Center, which will now create nearly 400 manufacturing and assembly jobs. The landmark decision by the Air Force to license Launch Complex 36 to Space Florida creates the capability for a number of companies to bring their launch business to Florida. We advocated for the successful Air Force assignment of Launch Complex 40 to SpaceX and provided more than $2 million in cash, facilities and in-kind support that continues today. Click here to view the editorial. (2/19)
Editorial: Toss the Red Tape: Success Depends on New Technology (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The Orlando Sentinel's Sunday editorial, "Failure to launch," brought back memories from my experience as an engineer for a commercial launch program at Cape Canaveral. I was part of the team that rebuilt launchpad 36B and launched the first commercial Atlas II/Centaur in 1991. The editorial says this industry has failed because "Florida has misjudged the commercial space market in some instances, and has been outflanked by the competition in others." Unfortunately, the editorial missed some of the real issues that have plagued this industry.
I interviewed with all of the major companies at Kennedy Space Center. I was offered several jobs, the most impressive of which appeared to be with the space-shuttle program. That was at least until I took a tour of the facilities that included crawling into the main engine compartment of the space shuttle. I felt as if I were touring the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Remember that the space shuttle was developed before the first personal computer ever hit the market.
But a new commercial space program caught my eye, so I took a job at General Dynamics on the Atlas/Centaur commercial space-launch program. During the next three years, I was part of a team that built and launched 12 commercial satellites. But I also learned firsthand how woefully antiquated and obsolete our space program had become. I am a strong advocate for safety, but the work environment in the early stages of the commercial space industry was almost impossible. Every task that is performed on a launchpad at Cape Canaveral is governed by a piece of paper, and you have to wade through an army of bureaucrats in order to get any of this paper approved. Although we were supposed to be a "commercial" launch facility, we were being asphyxiated in a sea of red tape. Click here to view the editorial. (2/19)
Spaceports are Old Tech (Source: ERAU)
Most Floridians believe the Cape is a cutting-edge technology center, but Mr. Waltrip's editorial correctly points out that we're dealing with 1960s era technologies. Florida's reliance on launch operations, and its lack of involvement in more diverse space R&D programs, puts our economy at risk whenever a launch vehicle program ends. The real high-value elements of our nation's space industry are in states that have focused on building strong R&D and manufacturing-based space programs. They ship their state-of-the-art rockets and payloads to Florida so we can truck them to orbit. For states pursuing spaceport development, the launch industry should not be viewed as the real prize, it should be viewed as a capability that can be leveraged to support other types of space enterprise. (2/19)
Skylon Spaceplane Gets Cash Boost (Source: BBC)
An innovative UK launcher concept is to get 1m euros (£900,000) of investment from the European Space Agency (ESA). The Skylon spaceplane would take off from a conventional aircraft runway, carry over 12 tons to orbit and then return to land on the same runway. The money will help prove the vehicle's core technologies, including its Sabre air-breathing rocket engine. Reaction Engines, the company behind the project, believes its reusable launcher could fly within 10 years. (2/19)
Florida Aerospace Company Expands to Huntsville (Source: Huntsville Times)
ASRC Aerospace Corp., an information technology and aerospace engineering company and NASA contractor, has set up a Huntsville operation. "We currently have work with five NASA centers," said Martin McLellan, vice president of ASRC Aerospace, which is based in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Having a presence in Huntsville, he said, better positions the company to add NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center as a partner. Dr. Judy Mobley has been named the director for Huntsville operations and is responsible for expanding business growth supporting Marshall, including the company's bid for Marshall's Information Technology Services contract, to be awarded later this year. (2/19)
Orbital Sciences Profit Falls (Source: MarketWatch)
Orbital Sciences Corp. said fourth-quarter net income fell to $13.2 million from $15.8 million, while revenue rose 11% to $311 million. The rocket maker nudged its 2009 guidance lower, forecasting revenue between $1.15 billion and $1.175 billion. Previously, the company expected revenue between $1.175 billion and $1.2 billion. (2/19)
New Visitor Complex Chief Pushes Space Center's 'Real Stuff' (Source: Florida Today)
William Moore began his new duties as chief operating officer of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex this month. The 57-year-old Atlanta native replaced Dan LeBlanc, who resigned in October after more than 12 years at the complex, the last six as COO. LeBlanc's strong marketing and guidance is credited with pushing the facility to the forefront of Central Florida destinations. The 42-year-old attraction, built as a means for NASA astronauts' and employees' families to view space center operations, draws more than 1.5 visitors annually. Moore comes from the Independence Visitor Center in Philadelphia, which displays the historic Liberty Bell. He will now oversee some 700 employees at the visitor center. (2/19)
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