July 10 News Items

Hawaii Works on Space Tourism Plan (Source: MSNBC)
Space pioneers envision launching high-end Hawaii tourists from the sand to the stars, taking island-hopping to new heights. Hawaii won't win the race to become the first state with space tourism, but in a new twist, it probably will be the first place where travelers can use the planes for real transportation. Hawaii's planes would take off in one place and land in another — from an airport on the Big Island to a landing on Oahu. (7/10)

Spaceport America Gets Bonds, Power (Source: Las Cruces Bulletin)
In the latter part of the coming week, Spaceport America should have $58 million for the first round of construction contracts to build the $198 million spaceport between Las Cruces and Truth or Consequences. At a recent special meeting, the New Mexico Spaceport Authority board was given details of bids on this first series of bonds to begin construction. The bids were very favorable, spaceport officials told the board, amounting to an interest rate of less than 5 percent for an annual debt service of an estimated $4.37 million.

This gives the spaceport more flexibility in case gross receipts taxes (GRT) from Doña Ana and Sierra counties are less than expected. Though conservative estimates were used when GRT increases were proposed to county voters, that was before the recession hit. Should the GRT yield better funds than estimated, the bonds can be sold off earlier or additional bonds can be sought for other projects. (7/10)

India: Let Us Develop a Military Space Program (Source: Rediff)
How do we deal with military symmetry in our unfriendly neighbourhood? One obvious first step is creating asymmetry through the assimilation of our space prowess. We need to develop and deploy space-based assets so as to cumulate sensor inputs, datalink it to the networked military command and control system from where it can be fed to the field units and commanders. This will enhance the battlefield situational awareness through real-time projection of the battlefield.

For this, the Indian armed forces will have to attain network centric warfare (NCW) capability, but they are just inching, not marching towards that goal. NCW will pivot upon the networking of terrestrial, nautical & aerospatial radars; AEW platforms; air defense fighters, missiles & artillery batteries; communication centers; electronic warfare systems and aggregation of other air defence assets of army and navy.

Though we enjoy the edge over Pakistan in satellite technology, one cannot rule out China -- Pakistan's soul mate and an alleged, unapologetic proliferator -- sharing its know-how and intelligence with Pakistan. China is light years ahead of us in offensive space technology; so our endeavor should be 'space denial.' In case of Pakistan, we must go all out to achieve total 'space control.' India must also prepare a contingency plan for the worst-case scenario -- China emerging as a 'rogue space power.' (7/10)

Avanti Secures Funds to Switch Launch Vehicles (Source: Space News)
Start-up broadband satellite operator Avanti Communications Group raised some $68 million in cash from institutional investors and the British government to pay the additional costs it will incur in shifting the launch of its first satellite to an Ariane 5 or Soyuz rocket instead of a Falcon 9 vehicle operated by Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), Avanti said. About a quarter of the funding is from the European Space Agency (ESA), from British ESA contributions.

Avanti's Hylas had been scheduled for launch in late 2009. The yearlong delay has been caused by unexpected difficulties Astrium has encountered in completing the payload. It remains unclear when the satellite will be ready for launch. SpaceX is also behind schedule with its new Falcon 9 launch vehicle, which previously had been slated to make its debut in 2007. Avanti announced in February 2008 that it had secured a Falcon 9 insurance policy valued at 89 million British pounds covering the satellite's launch and its first year in orbit. SpaceX said at the time that the Avanti contract was valued at $150 million including the Hylas flight and three additional Avanti launches for satellites Avanti has yet to order. (7/10)

Low-Cost Imaging Satellites Encouraged in Defense Bill (Source: Space News)
A U.S. Senate panel is taking aim at the Defense Department's plan for medium-level satellite imaging capabilities, calling for a new program to quickly field low-cost spacecraft and recommending changes to the Pentagon's latest strategy for engaging the commercial sector in this arena. (7/10)

House OKs Help for Firms Hurt by Shuttle Retirement (Source: Space News)
Legislation that includes language authored by U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas (D-Fla.) to assist small businesses affected by the space shuttle's looming retirement was approved July 8 by the House of Representatives. The Kosmas amendment to the Enhancing Small Business Innovation and Research Act (H.R. 2965) would give preference to these small businesses when applying for grants through the Small Businesses Innovation and Research (SBIR) program, helping them make the transition from space shuttle work to work in other industries. (7/10)

UCF Student Among Team Members Winning NASA Internships for Supersonic Aircraft Designs (Source: NASA)
UCF's Alex Lepage is part of a second-place multi-university team that has won summer jobs at NASA this year, thanks to their participation in a contest to design a supersonic airliner. They were challenged to design a small supersonic airliner and submit a research paper limited to 25 pages. Designs had to be efficient, environmentally friendly, low sonic boom commercial aircraft that could be ready for initial service by 2020. (7/10)

NASA Awards Satellite Sensor Contract to University of Colorado (Source: NASA)
NASA has awarded a contract to the University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics for the development of the Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor, or TSIS, a key instrument for the future National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System, known as NPOESS. The total estimated value of the cost, no-fee contract is approximately $42 million. (7/10)

Two Florida Projects Win Innovation Fund Grants (Source: NASA)
NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program, working with the Office of the Chief Engineer at NASA Headquarters, has selected 20 projects for the 2009 NASA Innovation Fund. The selected projects are led by NASA scientists and engineers and include partners from five universities, two small businesses, Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio and the National Institute for Aerospace in Hampton, Va. More than 230 proposals were submitted this year. Each project is funded for a maximum of $50,000, with work to be completed by the end of September. The Florida (KSC) projects include: Repair Techniques for Composite Structures; and a Dust Tolerant Intelligent Electrical Connection System. (7/10)

Five California Projects Win Innovation Fund Grants (Source: NASA)
NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program, working with the Office of the Chief Engineer at NASA Headquarters, has selected 20 projects for the 2009 NASA Innovation Fund. The selected projects are led by NASA scientists and engineers and include partners from five universities, two small businesses, Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio and the National Institute for Aerospace in Hampton, Va. More than 230 proposals were submitted this year. Each project is funded for a maximum of $50,000, with work to be completed by the end of September. The California projects are located at Ames, Dryden, and JPL. Click here for a list. (7/10)

Mars Rover Devours Budgets (Source: Nature)
The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), NASA's souped-up 1-ton rover due for launch in 2011, needs yet more money. The latest budget overrun could for the first time delay other missions in the agency's cash-strapped planetary-science division. The rover's latest price tag is $2.286 billion — 40% more than the official $1.63 billion estimate made in 2006. But even that will not be enough. In a 'breach report' due to be handed to the US Congress by the end of July, NASA will report that the troublesome mission, now also called Curiosity, needs $15–115 million more on top of the $2.286-billion estimate. (7/10)

Astronaut Oefelein to Wed While Nowak Awaits Court (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Colleen Shipman, the alleged victim of Lisa Nowak's alleged bizarre kidnapping plot in 2007, is to wed William Oefelein, the third member of what was portrayed as an astronaut love triangle with Fatal Attraction overtones. According to police, Nowak had a relationship with Oefelein before Shipman began dating him and found romantic e-mails that Shipman sent to Oefelein, who was in space at the time of the incident. Nowak, a former mission specialist who flew aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 2006, is free on bail, awaiting a November hearing in her case, and lives near Houston. (7/10)

General Dynamics Awarded National Air and Space Intelligence Center Contract (Source: 7/10)
The National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC) has awarded General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems an Advanced Technical Exploitation Program (ATEP) contract. This five-year, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract has a ceiling value of $600 million to be competed among the three awardees who received contracts. General Dynamics will provide around-the-clock intelligence analysis, software systems development and support, and sensor exploitation research and development of space-based and airborne sensor data. General Dynamics' solutions will directly support national priorities, including the Overseas Contingency Operations and missile defense, with timelines to meet that range from minutes to hours. (7/10)

Editorial: Bolden's Right: America Must Lead or Lose in Exploration of Space (Source: Florida Today)
The most telling moment in former astronaut Charlie Bolden’s confirmation hearing Wednesday as NASA’s next boss came in response to a question about how he planned to reinvigorate the agency. The two-time shuttle commander and retired Marine Corps major general told this story: When he’d go into a classroom in 1980 and ask students how many of them wanted to be astronauts, every hand went up. But today, he said, “I may see three hands. All of them want to go into business.” NASA’s inability to inspire a new generation of Americans — along with an inability to gain sustained political support for its efforts in Washington — shows the enormous challenges that Bolden will face when he takes the agency’s helm. (7/10)