ASRC Wins Contract Extension at NASA Glenn Research Center (Source: NASA)
NASA's Glenn Research Center has awarded a one-year contract option to Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC) for engineering and scientific services. The option has a value that will not exceed $50 million. The contract provides engineering and scientific support services to Glenn's Lewis Field and Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio. ASRC will provide on-site support services for technical, engineering and scientific tasks in the areas of aeronautics, microgravity science, space exploration, space power and propulsion, and related science and technology activities. (8/31)
Augustine Commission Delays Report Release (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
An independent space panel won't release its report on American human spaceflight today as expected. Instead the commission is shooting for a release in mid-September, said NASA's liaison to the 10-member panel, led by retired Lockheed Martin CEO Norm Augustine. The committee, however, aims to send a draft of their executive summary to NASA and the White House sometime in the next 36 hours, said NASA official Phil McAlister. He said the report won't contain any surprises and should correspond to four to seven options developed in hearings earlier this month. These include plans to rely on commercial rocket companies to reach the International Space Station and build a free-ranging spaceship capable of exploring the inner solar system. But all the options are hamstrung by NASA budgets that don't provide enough resources, the panel concluded. (8/31)
Chinese Rocket Fails to Deliver Commercial Satellite (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
The Chinese have suffered a problem during the launch of the Indonesian Palapa-D communications satellite via a CZ-3B Chang Zheng-3B (CZ3B-12) launch vehicle. The launch took place at the Xi Chang spaceport on Monday, but failed to place the spacecraft in the required orbit – due to an issue with the CZ-3B’s third stage. The Palapa-D satellite was scheduled to replace the Palapa-C2 (23864 1996-030A) satellite – which is due to come to the end of its life in 2011 – at 113.0 degrees East. It is unknown at this time if the spacecraft can be saved, though this is unlikely. Latest reports from the Chinese State media – which appeared to undergo a news blackout for several hours after launch – claim the problem is related to a failure of third stage ignition. (8/31)
To the Moon, NASA? Not on This Budget, Experts Say (Source: AP)
"NASA has been like a star athlete that's broken world records back in the 1960s and is stuck in the bleachers ever since, unable to suit up for what it does best," said space scientist Alan Stern, who quit last year as NASA's associate administrator for science. But, as has been the case since about 1971, money is holding engineers back, Stern said. "Bush never delivered on his promise to up NASA's funding," Stern said. He added that the previous NASA administrator "tried cannibalizing NASA (to pay for exploration) but that wasn't enough. (8/31)
Giving NASA a Clear Mission (Source: Space Review)
A common refrain among space advocates is that NASA is given too much to do and too little funding to accomplish it. G. Ryan Faith makes the case for giving NASA a straightforward mission -- space exploration -- and prioritizing its tasks accordingly. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1456/1 to view the article. (8/31)
Protecting the Space Workforce (Source: Space Review)
Cancellation of Defense Department programs and the uncertainty surrounding NASA's exploration plans could lead to the loss of thousands of aerospace jobs. Taylor Dinerman warns that such cuts could lead to a brain drain like the ones seen after previous mass layoffs. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1455/1 to view the article. (8/31)
Is the Near-Earth Space Frontier Closed? (Source: Space Review)
Much of what made the Space Age possible was driven by the development of ICBMs and related spacecraft systems. Andrew Tubbiolo argues that this legacy may make it more difficult for commercial and civil entities to expand their activities in Earth orbit. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1454/1 to view the article. (8/31)
India: Mars Mission by 2013-2015 (Source: Times of India)
India's mission to Mars will take place between 2013-2015, Indian Space Research Organization chief G Madhavan Nair said. "We have given a call for proposal to different scientific communities. Depending on the type of experiments they propose, we will be able to plan the mission," he said. The mission is at conceptual stage and will be taken up after Chandrayaan-2, Nair said. "Once in two years you get an opportunity for the mission," Nair said. ISRO Chairman is in Goa to host the eighth international conference on low cost planetary missions. (8/31)
Augustine Committee Ideas Require More Money (Source: Florida Today)
When President Barack Obama decides what to do with the manned spaceflight report a blue-ribbon panel will submit to the White House, the success of the option he chooses will depend largely on one factor, lawmakers say. Money. "The No. 1 most significant thing that needs to happen -- whichever choice is made -- is that sufficient funding must go with the recommendation," said U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, a New Smyrna Beach Democrat whose district includes Kennedy Space Center. "In the past, there have been visions with funding that didn't match," she said.
U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski, the Maryland Democrat who chairs the Senate Appropriations panel that oversees NASA funding, agreed: "NASA has been asked to do too much with too little." It's not clear how Obama will react to the report outlined by the 10-member Augustine Panel. But John Logsdon, former director of George Washington University's Space Policy Institute, said the choices are not mutually exclusive. "You can take some of one, and mix it with some of another," he said. Both Kosmas and U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, have pushed for using the shuttles beyond their expected 2011 retirement date. (8/31)
Asteroid Mission Getting Attention (Source: Florida Today)
I love the movie Armageddon. Sure, the movie wildly departs from the realities of space flight. Two souped-up, top-secret military space shuttles are rolled out on a moment's notice, shipped to Kennedy Space Center and launched within minutes of another from adjoining pads. A bunch of barely trained oil riggers make up an astronaut crew asked to save the world by crash-landing on a monster asteroid and bust it apart with a nuclear warhead. Oh, and they're supposed to fly safely home.
However, the underlying premise of the movie is very real, and more and more people are starting to say it would be a good idea for NASA to look at sending astronauts to an asteroid. Among them: the panel of space experts who are delivering their final report on the future of NASA to President Barack Obama this week. (8/31)
August 30 News Items
China To Launch Indonesia's CommSat (Source: Space Daily)
China will soon send an Indonesian communications satellite into space on the back of Chinese-made Long March 3B rocket, a spokesperson for the Xichang Satellite Launch Center said. All preparatory work is well underway and both the satellite and the rocket were in good condition, the spokesperson said. The Palapa D satellite, owned by Indosat, an Indonesian satellite communications company, will provide satellite links and broadcasting services for Indonesia and other southeastern Asian nations. Indosat ordered the Palapa D satellite from the French company Thales Alenia Space in 2007. (8/30)
Indian Space Tourism Considered (Source: Deccan Chronicle)
India now has the potential to operate space tourism from its soil and it will become a reality soon, said cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma. Mr Sharma, now a retired wing commander of the Indian Air Force and the first and only cosmonaut from Indian soil, said India, with its variety of landscapes, looked beautiful from space. He said India now had the potential and technical know-how to build spacecraft to promote space tourism. Space tourism from Indian soil will become a reality soon, he asserted. (8/29)
NASA May Rely More on Business (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's Saturn V moon rockets and shuttles have long symbolized American leadership in human spaceflight. But the shuttle's impending retirement, a reduced budget and an emerging commercial space industry could combine to nudge NASA out of the business of operating its own rocket fleets and launching astronauts into low Earth orbit. Most of the options weighed by a presidential panel reviewing the agency's human spaceflight program would rely on the private sector to ferry cargo and astronauts, first to the International Space Station and later on the first legs of trips to the moon or beyond.
Relieved of that responsibility, the thinking goes, NASA could focus limited resources on tackling technologies needed for its most ambitious exploration goals. "It seems unreasonable to us that NASA should spend its time just repeatedly doing what it knows how to do," Norman Augustine, chairman of the Human Space Flight Plans Committee, said in a recent interview with PBS. "NASA ought to be exploring outer space and doing new things." The shipping of goods and people a few hundred miles above Earth, he added, "that should be a commercial endeavor, in our view."
One option would be for NASA to continue developing its shuttle successors under the Constellation program: an Ares I rocket for launching the Orion crew capsule and a larger Ares V to lift heavy cargo needed for landings or outposts on another planetary surface. But under current budget projections, Ares I and Orion wouldn't be ready to fly until the space station was at or near the end of its life in 2015 or 2020, and the Ares V years later. Advocates say commercial alternatives to Ares I could be ready faster and cheaper and would jump-start a frontier economy in low Earth orbit by guaranteeing a multibillion-dollar market for their services. (8/30)
Editorial: Challenge of Space (Source: Arab News)
The subject of outer space has changed. Even 20 years ago, the so-called “space race” was still between the Russians and the Americans. Their geopolitical rivalry rather than the pure science of space exploration was what drove their efforts. The Soviets launched the very first satellite in 1957 and four years later put the first man, Yuri Gagarin, into orbit. That achievement prompted President Kennedy to vow the Americans would be the first to put a man on the Moon.
Now China and India, Japan and the EU are all pursuing their own space programs. Last year, to intense national pride, the Chinese put their first man in space. India’s space efforts are not that far behind. A manned mission is scheduled in four years’ time. It is unlikely Saturday’s loss of communications with its first lunar orbital satellite, Chandrayaan-1, will impede India's plans. But it ought nevertheless to give pause for thought, not just to New Delhi but to all countries that are either already established in space or contemplating the major technological and logistical effort of getting there. For all space nations, there has to be a fine line between demonstrating such technical and scientific expertise and pressing on alone with their own space programs without reference to other countries.
It has been argued that with its millions of poor, India can ill afford the $79 million spent on this lunar mission. But this is to suggest that this sum of money was actually shot into space in the Chandrayaan satellite. In fact, of course, it was spent productively, largely in India and as with every other national space effort, has boosted the local technology base. That is arguably of more value than the intense pride most Indians have taken in the lunar mission. (8/30)
Why Stevenage is the Final Frontier in Space Technology (Source: Daily Mail)
EADS Astrium is the third biggest space company in the world (after Boeing and Lockheed Martin), and space technology is not something Britain is merely good at; there are some areas where we're the best. We're at the forefront of robotics, which is why our autonomous rover, due to take o ff for Mars in 2016, is going to enable us to explore the planet more thoroughly than any mission so far. And in the field of satellite manufacture, we are peerless. Not only are the models we build more sophisticated than anyone else's - three are being constructed to measure for the first time the 'gravitational waves' predicted by Einstein and we're even planning to send one to the Sun - but they're also more reliable, which is why they're so in demand by the telecommunications industry. This reliability is something in which Astrium's highly committed, multinational work force takes enormous pride. (8/30)
NASA Looking to Solve Medium-Lift Conundrum (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
Facing a lack of rocket options for medium-class robotic missions, NASA's launch czar said the agency will not need another medium-lift rocket until at least 2014, enough time for new boosters to prove themselves. William Wrobel, NASA's assistant associate administrator for launch services, said future medium-class missions will most likely fly on Falcon 9 or Taurus 2 rockets now being developed for resupply missions to the International Space Station. NASA is discontinuing its use of the venerable Delta 2 rocket line, a family of boosters that has been the backbone of the country's launch infrastructure for more than 20 years. After the last NASA Delta 2 mission in late 2011, there are no medium-class spacecraft due for launch until around 2014, according to Wrobel. (8/30)
Proposed Reprieve for Shuttle Could Help Relaunch US Space Program (Source: Guardian)
The US space shuttle, scheduled to be scrapped next year, could be thrown a last-minute lifeline this week. A reprieve is to be included as an option for rejuvenating America's beleaguered space program in a report commissioned by President Barack Obama. Only seven more flights have been earmarked for the shuttle, the most complicated machine ever flown. In the wake of the Challenger and Columbia disasters, and soaring launch costs, the spacecraft was deemed to be too dangerous and too expensive to fly. But a review of US manned space projects – by a committee led by aerospace executive Norm Augustine – will include a proposal that the shuttle's life be extended for a further five years, with two flights being made annually. (8/30)
Editorial: NASA Needs Stability and Resources (Source: Houston Chronicle)
As space shuttle astronauts, each of us has sat high atop a magnificent U.S.-built space ship loaded with 1.6 million pounds of liquid hydrogen and oxygen, waiting for the shuttle's solid rocket motors and engines to ignite and propel us from zero to 17,500 miles per hour into orbit around the Earth. We understand the importance and significance of having a safe and well-funded space program, as we personally accepted the risk worth taking with every mission. With each flight, we entrusted our lives to experienced, innovative men and women on the ground, dedicated to our safety and passionately committed to our nation's space program.
As America prepares to embark upon a new era of human space exploration, President Obama has commissioned a review of the nation's human space flight plans. Known as the Augustine Committee, this panel has the important charter of evaluating the current NASA plan and offering options for the future. Its report is expected this week. We urge this panel, along with the president, Congress and the American people to consider that: Exploration must be recognized as a national imperative that sustains U.S. leadership in space; a significant increase in human space-flight safety should be accomplished under government leadership; we must leave low Earth orbit and explore destinations beyond; and sustaining robust funding and staying the course are imperative to implementing a safe, reliable and meaningful space exploration program worthy of our nation. Click here to view this editorial, written collaboratively by 16 astronauts. (8/30)
China will soon send an Indonesian communications satellite into space on the back of Chinese-made Long March 3B rocket, a spokesperson for the Xichang Satellite Launch Center said. All preparatory work is well underway and both the satellite and the rocket were in good condition, the spokesperson said. The Palapa D satellite, owned by Indosat, an Indonesian satellite communications company, will provide satellite links and broadcasting services for Indonesia and other southeastern Asian nations. Indosat ordered the Palapa D satellite from the French company Thales Alenia Space in 2007. (8/30)
Indian Space Tourism Considered (Source: Deccan Chronicle)
India now has the potential to operate space tourism from its soil and it will become a reality soon, said cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma. Mr Sharma, now a retired wing commander of the Indian Air Force and the first and only cosmonaut from Indian soil, said India, with its variety of landscapes, looked beautiful from space. He said India now had the potential and technical know-how to build spacecraft to promote space tourism. Space tourism from Indian soil will become a reality soon, he asserted. (8/29)
NASA May Rely More on Business (Source: Florida Today)
NASA's Saturn V moon rockets and shuttles have long symbolized American leadership in human spaceflight. But the shuttle's impending retirement, a reduced budget and an emerging commercial space industry could combine to nudge NASA out of the business of operating its own rocket fleets and launching astronauts into low Earth orbit. Most of the options weighed by a presidential panel reviewing the agency's human spaceflight program would rely on the private sector to ferry cargo and astronauts, first to the International Space Station and later on the first legs of trips to the moon or beyond.
Relieved of that responsibility, the thinking goes, NASA could focus limited resources on tackling technologies needed for its most ambitious exploration goals. "It seems unreasonable to us that NASA should spend its time just repeatedly doing what it knows how to do," Norman Augustine, chairman of the Human Space Flight Plans Committee, said in a recent interview with PBS. "NASA ought to be exploring outer space and doing new things." The shipping of goods and people a few hundred miles above Earth, he added, "that should be a commercial endeavor, in our view."
One option would be for NASA to continue developing its shuttle successors under the Constellation program: an Ares I rocket for launching the Orion crew capsule and a larger Ares V to lift heavy cargo needed for landings or outposts on another planetary surface. But under current budget projections, Ares I and Orion wouldn't be ready to fly until the space station was at or near the end of its life in 2015 or 2020, and the Ares V years later. Advocates say commercial alternatives to Ares I could be ready faster and cheaper and would jump-start a frontier economy in low Earth orbit by guaranteeing a multibillion-dollar market for their services. (8/30)
Editorial: Challenge of Space (Source: Arab News)
The subject of outer space has changed. Even 20 years ago, the so-called “space race” was still between the Russians and the Americans. Their geopolitical rivalry rather than the pure science of space exploration was what drove their efforts. The Soviets launched the very first satellite in 1957 and four years later put the first man, Yuri Gagarin, into orbit. That achievement prompted President Kennedy to vow the Americans would be the first to put a man on the Moon.
Now China and India, Japan and the EU are all pursuing their own space programs. Last year, to intense national pride, the Chinese put their first man in space. India’s space efforts are not that far behind. A manned mission is scheduled in four years’ time. It is unlikely Saturday’s loss of communications with its first lunar orbital satellite, Chandrayaan-1, will impede India's plans. But it ought nevertheless to give pause for thought, not just to New Delhi but to all countries that are either already established in space or contemplating the major technological and logistical effort of getting there. For all space nations, there has to be a fine line between demonstrating such technical and scientific expertise and pressing on alone with their own space programs without reference to other countries.
It has been argued that with its millions of poor, India can ill afford the $79 million spent on this lunar mission. But this is to suggest that this sum of money was actually shot into space in the Chandrayaan satellite. In fact, of course, it was spent productively, largely in India and as with every other national space effort, has boosted the local technology base. That is arguably of more value than the intense pride most Indians have taken in the lunar mission. (8/30)
Why Stevenage is the Final Frontier in Space Technology (Source: Daily Mail)
EADS Astrium is the third biggest space company in the world (after Boeing and Lockheed Martin), and space technology is not something Britain is merely good at; there are some areas where we're the best. We're at the forefront of robotics, which is why our autonomous rover, due to take o ff for Mars in 2016, is going to enable us to explore the planet more thoroughly than any mission so far. And in the field of satellite manufacture, we are peerless. Not only are the models we build more sophisticated than anyone else's - three are being constructed to measure for the first time the 'gravitational waves' predicted by Einstein and we're even planning to send one to the Sun - but they're also more reliable, which is why they're so in demand by the telecommunications industry. This reliability is something in which Astrium's highly committed, multinational work force takes enormous pride. (8/30)
NASA Looking to Solve Medium-Lift Conundrum (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
Facing a lack of rocket options for medium-class robotic missions, NASA's launch czar said the agency will not need another medium-lift rocket until at least 2014, enough time for new boosters to prove themselves. William Wrobel, NASA's assistant associate administrator for launch services, said future medium-class missions will most likely fly on Falcon 9 or Taurus 2 rockets now being developed for resupply missions to the International Space Station. NASA is discontinuing its use of the venerable Delta 2 rocket line, a family of boosters that has been the backbone of the country's launch infrastructure for more than 20 years. After the last NASA Delta 2 mission in late 2011, there are no medium-class spacecraft due for launch until around 2014, according to Wrobel. (8/30)
Proposed Reprieve for Shuttle Could Help Relaunch US Space Program (Source: Guardian)
The US space shuttle, scheduled to be scrapped next year, could be thrown a last-minute lifeline this week. A reprieve is to be included as an option for rejuvenating America's beleaguered space program in a report commissioned by President Barack Obama. Only seven more flights have been earmarked for the shuttle, the most complicated machine ever flown. In the wake of the Challenger and Columbia disasters, and soaring launch costs, the spacecraft was deemed to be too dangerous and too expensive to fly. But a review of US manned space projects – by a committee led by aerospace executive Norm Augustine – will include a proposal that the shuttle's life be extended for a further five years, with two flights being made annually. (8/30)
Editorial: NASA Needs Stability and Resources (Source: Houston Chronicle)
As space shuttle astronauts, each of us has sat high atop a magnificent U.S.-built space ship loaded with 1.6 million pounds of liquid hydrogen and oxygen, waiting for the shuttle's solid rocket motors and engines to ignite and propel us from zero to 17,500 miles per hour into orbit around the Earth. We understand the importance and significance of having a safe and well-funded space program, as we personally accepted the risk worth taking with every mission. With each flight, we entrusted our lives to experienced, innovative men and women on the ground, dedicated to our safety and passionately committed to our nation's space program.
As America prepares to embark upon a new era of human space exploration, President Obama has commissioned a review of the nation's human space flight plans. Known as the Augustine Committee, this panel has the important charter of evaluating the current NASA plan and offering options for the future. Its report is expected this week. We urge this panel, along with the president, Congress and the American people to consider that: Exploration must be recognized as a national imperative that sustains U.S. leadership in space; a significant increase in human space-flight safety should be accomplished under government leadership; we must leave low Earth orbit and explore destinations beyond; and sustaining robust funding and staying the course are imperative to implementing a safe, reliable and meaningful space exploration program worthy of our nation. Click here to view this editorial, written collaboratively by 16 astronauts. (8/30)
August 29 News Items
Three California Firms Among 16 Winning NASA Small Business Research Awards (Source: NASA)
NASA has selected 16 small business projects to address important research and technology needs. The "Phase-2" awards are part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Three California-based companies/projects include: Hawthorne-based Systems Technology, Inc., for Aeroelastic Uncertainty Analysis Toolbox; Torrance-based Innosense, LLC, for Process-Hardened, Multi-Analyte Sensor for Characterizing Rocket Plum Constituents Under Test Environment; and San Diego-based Space Micro, Inc., for Low Power Universal Direct Conversion Transmit and Receive (UTR) RF Module for Software Defined Radios. (8/28)
California Wildfire Threatens JPL (Source: On Orbit)
On Orbit reports that a wildfire in California over the weekend was getting dangerously close to the NASA/CalTech Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Click here for more information and photos. (8/28)
Landsat 5 Back In Service After Taking a Tumble (Source: Space News)
The U.S. government's aging Landsat 5 Earth observation satellite was recertified for operations Aug. 17 after inexplicably tumbling out of its operating orbit Aug. 13, a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) spokesman said Aug. 26. The USGS is still investigating the cause of the anomaly, and one possibility is that it was struck by debris during the annual Perseid meteor shower that peaked around that time, spokesman Ron Beck said in an interview. (8/29)
Turksat Seeking Proposals For Turksat 4A Satellite (Source: Space News)
Turkey's national telecommunications satellite operator, Turksat, will issue a request for bids for a Turksat 4A satellite in the coming weeks and expects to select a manufacturer by the end of 2009, with a launch planned for 2011, Turksat Director-General Ozkan Dalbay said. (8/29)
Bankruptcy Court Sets Protostar Auction Dates (Source: Space News)
The Delaware Bankruptcy Court, which is overseeing startup satellite services provider ProtoStar Ltd.'s Chapter 11 case, has set an Oct. 8 deadline for initial bids from parties seeking to purchase the ProtoStar 1 and ProtoStar 2 telecommunications satellites. An open auction of ProtoStar's assets is scheduled for Oct. 14 at the New York offices of law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP. (8/29)
U.S. Air Force Seeks Input On Laser Comm Demo Sat (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Air Force is seeking input from industry by Oct. 2 about the feasibility of building a demonstration satellite that would use lasers to transmit information between space and the ground, according to a posting on a U.S. government procurement Web site. (8/29)
Intelsat Given Go-Ahead to Bypass Sea Launch for 3 Planned Launches (Source: Space News)
The U.S. court handling the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings of commercial launch provider Sea Launch Co. has granted Intelsat's request to modify three launch contracts to permit Intelsat to bypass Sea Launch and deal directly with Sea Launch's Russian partner. Intelsat is one of several commercial satellite operators including EchoStar, Eutelsat and Sirius XM Radio that have been petitioning the Delaware Bankruptcy Court to force Sea Launch to formally assume or reject their launch service agreements. Both options are available to Sea Launch now that it is under the court's protection. Sea Launch has been resisting its customers' demands, saying it needs more time to sort through its financial prospects before it decides which contracts it will honor, and which will be scuttled. (8/29)
Aerojet Looking to Restart Production of NK-33 Engine for Taurus-2 (Source: Space News)
Aerojet is in talks with Russian propulsion firms to restart production of the Soviet-era NK-33 rocket engine that the Sacramento, Calif.-based propulsion company is modernizing for use on Orbital Sciences' Taurus 2 medium-lift rocket. The two companies are also considering initiating a new production line in the United States. The engines would power the Taurus 2 launch vehicle in the U.S. The liquid oxygen and kerosene engines originally designed for Russia's abandoned Moon program were acquired by Aerojet in the 1990s and more recently redesignated AJ26-62 for use on Taurus 2.
Today, Aerojet has 37 NK-33 engines in the United States, and owns the rights to additional surplus inventory in Russia. Aerojet says there are ample NK-33s in the U.S. and Russia to support Orbital's Taurus-2 commitments to NASA. The Russians, on the other hand, are looking at more near-term scenarios, she said. Industry sources say Russia is interested in restarting NK-33 production to power its Soyuz rockets. (8/29)
White House to Rule on NPOESS Management Changes in September (Source: Space News)
The White House by Sept. 26 will decide on proposed changes to a troubled weather satellite program that include assigning management responsibility for the tri-agency effort to either NASA or the U.S. Air Force, according to government sources. According to a congressional source, Shere Abbott, associate director of environment in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, is leading a panel that seeks to make changes in time to influence the 2011 budget. The source was reading from a July 28 memo from John Holdren, White House science adviser and director of that office, to senior leaders of the agencies managing the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite (NPOESS) program. (8/29)
India Loses Contact With Moon Probe, Suffers Blow to Space Ambitions (Source: AFP)
India's first moon mission, launched amid much fanfare last year, came to an abrupt end Saturday after the country's lunar craft lost contact with its controllers. India launched an unmanned satellite and put a probe on the moon's surface late last year in an event that the national space agency hoped would give the country international "brand recognition" in the lunar business. The landing of the probe vaulted the country into the league of space-faring nations led by the U.S. and regional neighbours Russia, China and Japan and was seen as a symbolic and proud moment in the country's development. "The mission is definitely over. We have lost contact with the spacecraft," project director M. Annadurai said. (8/29)
Shuttle Discovery Lifts Off for ISS (Source: RIA Novosti)
The Discovery space shuttle finally lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida after bad weather and technical problems caused previous launch attempts to be scrubbed. Discovery blasted off at 11:59 p.m. local time on Friday for the International Space Station. The shuttle with its seven-person crew is commanded by veteran astronaut Rick Sturckow. It is due to deliver supplies, including fitness equipment and the Leonardo supply module, to the ISS. U.S. astronaut Tim Kopra, who has been part of the ISS crew since July, will be replaced by U.S. astronaut Nicole Stott. (8/29)
'Moon Rock' given to Holland by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin is Fake (Source: Daily Telegraph)
A moon rock given to the Dutch prime minister by Apollo 11 astronauts in 1969 has turned out to be a fake. Curators at Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, where the rock has attracted tens of thousands of visitors each year, discovered that the "lunar rock", valued at £308,000, was in fact petrified wood. Xandra van Gelder, who oversaw the investigation, said the museum would continue to keep the stone as a curiosity. "It's a good story, with some questions that are still unanswered," she said. "We can laugh about it." The rock was given to Willem Drees, a former Dutch leader, during a global tour by Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin following their moon mission 50 years ago.
J. William Middendorf, the former American ambassador to the Netherlands, made the presentation to Mr Drees and the rock was then donated to the Rijksmuseum after his death in 1988. "I do remember that Drees was very interested in the little piece of stone. But that it's not real, I don't know anything about that," Mr Middendorf said. Nasa gave moon rocks to more than 100 countries following lunar missions in 1969 and the 1970s. The United States Embassy in The Hague is carrying out an investigation into the affair. (8/28)
Private Companies Compete for Google Lunar X Prize (Source: New American)
The recent launch of South Korea’s Naro-1 rocket marked the emergence of the 10th nation with the capacity to launch payloads to orbit. But several private corporations — including SpaceX and Virgin Galactic — have been redefining the role of private corporations in the opening of the next frontier. Now, a growing number of private companies pursuing the Google Lunar X Prize are demonstrating that space exploration is not just for governments any more. The conditions of the Google Lunar X Prize competition are easy to summarize, but profoundly challenging to complete:
The Google Lunar X PRIZE is a $30 million international competition to safely land a robot on the surface of the Moon, travel 500 meters over the lunar surface, and send images and data back to the Earth. Teams must be at least 90 percent privately funded and must be registered to compete by December 31, 2010. The first team to land on the Moon and complete the mission objectives will be awarded $20 million; the full first prize is available until December 31, 2012. After that date, the first prize will drop to $15 million. The second team to do so will be awarded $5 million. Another $5 million will awarded in bonus prizes. The final deadline for winning the prize is December 31, 2014. (8/28)
NASA has selected 16 small business projects to address important research and technology needs. The "Phase-2" awards are part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Three California-based companies/projects include: Hawthorne-based Systems Technology, Inc., for Aeroelastic Uncertainty Analysis Toolbox; Torrance-based Innosense, LLC, for Process-Hardened, Multi-Analyte Sensor for Characterizing Rocket Plum Constituents Under Test Environment; and San Diego-based Space Micro, Inc., for Low Power Universal Direct Conversion Transmit and Receive (UTR) RF Module for Software Defined Radios. (8/28)
California Wildfire Threatens JPL (Source: On Orbit)
On Orbit reports that a wildfire in California over the weekend was getting dangerously close to the NASA/CalTech Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Click here for more information and photos. (8/28)
Landsat 5 Back In Service After Taking a Tumble (Source: Space News)
The U.S. government's aging Landsat 5 Earth observation satellite was recertified for operations Aug. 17 after inexplicably tumbling out of its operating orbit Aug. 13, a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) spokesman said Aug. 26. The USGS is still investigating the cause of the anomaly, and one possibility is that it was struck by debris during the annual Perseid meteor shower that peaked around that time, spokesman Ron Beck said in an interview. (8/29)
Turksat Seeking Proposals For Turksat 4A Satellite (Source: Space News)
Turkey's national telecommunications satellite operator, Turksat, will issue a request for bids for a Turksat 4A satellite in the coming weeks and expects to select a manufacturer by the end of 2009, with a launch planned for 2011, Turksat Director-General Ozkan Dalbay said. (8/29)
Bankruptcy Court Sets Protostar Auction Dates (Source: Space News)
The Delaware Bankruptcy Court, which is overseeing startup satellite services provider ProtoStar Ltd.'s Chapter 11 case, has set an Oct. 8 deadline for initial bids from parties seeking to purchase the ProtoStar 1 and ProtoStar 2 telecommunications satellites. An open auction of ProtoStar's assets is scheduled for Oct. 14 at the New York offices of law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP. (8/29)
U.S. Air Force Seeks Input On Laser Comm Demo Sat (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Air Force is seeking input from industry by Oct. 2 about the feasibility of building a demonstration satellite that would use lasers to transmit information between space and the ground, according to a posting on a U.S. government procurement Web site. (8/29)
Intelsat Given Go-Ahead to Bypass Sea Launch for 3 Planned Launches (Source: Space News)
The U.S. court handling the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings of commercial launch provider Sea Launch Co. has granted Intelsat's request to modify three launch contracts to permit Intelsat to bypass Sea Launch and deal directly with Sea Launch's Russian partner. Intelsat is one of several commercial satellite operators including EchoStar, Eutelsat and Sirius XM Radio that have been petitioning the Delaware Bankruptcy Court to force Sea Launch to formally assume or reject their launch service agreements. Both options are available to Sea Launch now that it is under the court's protection. Sea Launch has been resisting its customers' demands, saying it needs more time to sort through its financial prospects before it decides which contracts it will honor, and which will be scuttled. (8/29)
Aerojet Looking to Restart Production of NK-33 Engine for Taurus-2 (Source: Space News)
Aerojet is in talks with Russian propulsion firms to restart production of the Soviet-era NK-33 rocket engine that the Sacramento, Calif.-based propulsion company is modernizing for use on Orbital Sciences' Taurus 2 medium-lift rocket. The two companies are also considering initiating a new production line in the United States. The engines would power the Taurus 2 launch vehicle in the U.S. The liquid oxygen and kerosene engines originally designed for Russia's abandoned Moon program were acquired by Aerojet in the 1990s and more recently redesignated AJ26-62 for use on Taurus 2.
Today, Aerojet has 37 NK-33 engines in the United States, and owns the rights to additional surplus inventory in Russia. Aerojet says there are ample NK-33s in the U.S. and Russia to support Orbital's Taurus-2 commitments to NASA. The Russians, on the other hand, are looking at more near-term scenarios, she said. Industry sources say Russia is interested in restarting NK-33 production to power its Soyuz rockets. (8/29)
White House to Rule on NPOESS Management Changes in September (Source: Space News)
The White House by Sept. 26 will decide on proposed changes to a troubled weather satellite program that include assigning management responsibility for the tri-agency effort to either NASA or the U.S. Air Force, according to government sources. According to a congressional source, Shere Abbott, associate director of environment in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, is leading a panel that seeks to make changes in time to influence the 2011 budget. The source was reading from a July 28 memo from John Holdren, White House science adviser and director of that office, to senior leaders of the agencies managing the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite (NPOESS) program. (8/29)
India Loses Contact With Moon Probe, Suffers Blow to Space Ambitions (Source: AFP)
India's first moon mission, launched amid much fanfare last year, came to an abrupt end Saturday after the country's lunar craft lost contact with its controllers. India launched an unmanned satellite and put a probe on the moon's surface late last year in an event that the national space agency hoped would give the country international "brand recognition" in the lunar business. The landing of the probe vaulted the country into the league of space-faring nations led by the U.S. and regional neighbours Russia, China and Japan and was seen as a symbolic and proud moment in the country's development. "The mission is definitely over. We have lost contact with the spacecraft," project director M. Annadurai said. (8/29)
Shuttle Discovery Lifts Off for ISS (Source: RIA Novosti)
The Discovery space shuttle finally lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida after bad weather and technical problems caused previous launch attempts to be scrubbed. Discovery blasted off at 11:59 p.m. local time on Friday for the International Space Station. The shuttle with its seven-person crew is commanded by veteran astronaut Rick Sturckow. It is due to deliver supplies, including fitness equipment and the Leonardo supply module, to the ISS. U.S. astronaut Tim Kopra, who has been part of the ISS crew since July, will be replaced by U.S. astronaut Nicole Stott. (8/29)
'Moon Rock' given to Holland by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin is Fake (Source: Daily Telegraph)
A moon rock given to the Dutch prime minister by Apollo 11 astronauts in 1969 has turned out to be a fake. Curators at Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, where the rock has attracted tens of thousands of visitors each year, discovered that the "lunar rock", valued at £308,000, was in fact petrified wood. Xandra van Gelder, who oversaw the investigation, said the museum would continue to keep the stone as a curiosity. "It's a good story, with some questions that are still unanswered," she said. "We can laugh about it." The rock was given to Willem Drees, a former Dutch leader, during a global tour by Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin following their moon mission 50 years ago.
J. William Middendorf, the former American ambassador to the Netherlands, made the presentation to Mr Drees and the rock was then donated to the Rijksmuseum after his death in 1988. "I do remember that Drees was very interested in the little piece of stone. But that it's not real, I don't know anything about that," Mr Middendorf said. Nasa gave moon rocks to more than 100 countries following lunar missions in 1969 and the 1970s. The United States Embassy in The Hague is carrying out an investigation into the affair. (8/28)
Private Companies Compete for Google Lunar X Prize (Source: New American)
The recent launch of South Korea’s Naro-1 rocket marked the emergence of the 10th nation with the capacity to launch payloads to orbit. But several private corporations — including SpaceX and Virgin Galactic — have been redefining the role of private corporations in the opening of the next frontier. Now, a growing number of private companies pursuing the Google Lunar X Prize are demonstrating that space exploration is not just for governments any more. The conditions of the Google Lunar X Prize competition are easy to summarize, but profoundly challenging to complete:
The Google Lunar X PRIZE is a $30 million international competition to safely land a robot on the surface of the Moon, travel 500 meters over the lunar surface, and send images and data back to the Earth. Teams must be at least 90 percent privately funded and must be registered to compete by December 31, 2010. The first team to land on the Moon and complete the mission objectives will be awarded $20 million; the full first prize is available until December 31, 2012. After that date, the first prize will drop to $15 million. The second team to do so will be awarded $5 million. Another $5 million will awarded in bonus prizes. The final deadline for winning the prize is December 31, 2014. (8/28)
August 28 News Items
Two Florida Firms Among 16 Winning NASA Small Business Research Awards (Source: NASA)
NASA has selected 16 small business projects to address important research and technology needs. The "Phase-2" awards are part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Two Florida-based companies/projects include: Orlando-based Light Processing & Technologies, Inc., for High Power Compact Single-Frequency Volume Bragg Er-Doped Fiber Laser; and Tampa-based Advanced Materials Technology, Inc., for Advanced Insulation Materials for Cryogenic Propellant Storage Applications. (8/28)
Europe Wants to Buy Russian Soyuz Spacecraft (Source: Telegraph)
The European Space Agency, which is based in Paris, said a space vehicle of its own would enable European astronauts to continue working at the International Space Station even if the American shuttles cease operating. The scheduled launch of the first Russian Soyuz from the ESA base in French Guiana was postponed on Wednesday to 2010. To deliver the module the Russian space program would have to increase production of the vehicle to five units per year. Simonetta Di Pippo, the director of human spaceflight at the ESA, said discussions with her Russian counterparts had been fruitful. "From 13 [2013] on, we would like to have at least one European astronaut per year flying and this can be done in various ways. One of the proposals we are putting on the table is to buy a full Soyuz...I think in two or three months, we will be able to come out with a firm proposal." (8/28)
China, U.S. May Cooperate on World's Biggest Telescope (Source: Reuters)
Astronomers from China and the United States may cooperate on building the world's largest telescope aimed at providing deeper insight into the very early stages of the universe, Xinhua news agency reported on Friday. The Thirty-Meter-Telescope (TMT), conceived and headed by the University of California and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), is expected to be completed in 2019. "It is a big undertaking and it will define the future of astronomy and astrophysics for about 60 or 70 years, so it will automatically involve a large international community," said Caltech President Jean-Lou Chameau. The university and Caltech are talking to Chinese astronomers and scientists about cooperation on funding and technology, although no final decision has been made. Canada and Japan have signed up to the project, which needs total financing of $1 billion, it said. (8/28)
Leadership Changes at Marshall Space Flight Center (Source: SPACErePORT)
NASA has named Robert Lightfoot as the next director of Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). Lighfoot has been serving as acting director since previous MSFC Director Dave King left in April. Meanwhile, NASA's MSFC-based Ares project manager, Steve Cook, announced that he is also leaving the agency. (8/28)
Northrop to Spend $21M to Help Clean up California Superfund Site (Source: AIA)
Aerospace giant Northrop Grumman Corp. has agreed to spend about $21 million to clean up groundwater pollution in California's San Gabriel Valley from factories that date back to World War II, under a settlement with the EPA. Northrop operated three of 62 factories that discharged pollution into groundwater at what is now a Superfund site near Los Angeles. While the Northrop sites were not the largest source of pollution, the company stepped up and worked with other parties to help with the cleanup, officials said. (8/28)
Embry-Riddle Rocketeers Featured on Aug. 29 'Space Talk' Radio Show
Flying model rockets has inspired many youngsters to pursue careers in aerospace, including Patrick McCarthy and Wes Oleszewski, guests on the Aug. 29 edition of "Space Talk," hosted by Jim Banke. The use of model rockets as an inspiring, educational tool will be discussed, along with "war stories" about launching and recovering the small boosters. McCarthy is director of spaceport operations for Space Florida. He was part of the team that won the championship in their division at this month's National Association of Rocketry Annual Meet. Oleszewski is owner of Dr. Zooch Rockets, a company that specializes in model rockets of historic space launch vehicles. He is an author and creator of Klyde Morris, an editorial cartoon strip about aviation and space. Banke, McCarthy and Oleszewski are all graduates of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and worked together on "The Avion," the student newspaper.
"Space Talk" is broadcast live each Saturday at 4 p.m. ET on WMMB in Melbourne, Fla. WMMB can be heard in Brevard County on 1240 AM and 1350 AM. The show can be heard live on the Internet at http://www.wmmbam.com. Listeners can participate in the program by calling into the studio at 321-768-1240. Questions and comments also can be sent to spacetalking@aol.com or via Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/spacetalking. (8/28)
Day of Delays for NASA (Source: New York Times)
It was a day of delays for NASA. At the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, shuttle managers pushed back the planned launching of the space shuttle Discovery again as they continued to try to work around an issue concerning a fuel valve in the main engines. Instead of 12:22 a.m. Friday, the launch attempt will now be at the end of the day, at 11:59 p.m. Meanwhile, in Utah, a ground test of the first stage of NASA’s next generation rocket was called off with only 20 seconds left in the countdown, because of a failure with a hydraulic system that moves the engine nozzle. That test will now occur no earlier than next Tuesday. (8/28)
Space Traffic Requires Regulations (Source: Russia IC)
Recent International Aerospace Congress, which took place in Moscow, covered issues of mitigation of excessive space debris. Space authorities say that after 2055 steady growth of space debris puts in question further exploration of space by next generations. Experts warn about additional troubles for space exploration, such as possibility weapon deployment in space; growing traffic of small space ships, which are very hard to control; active space tourism and suborbital flights and etc. Russia needs development of international regulations of space activities, which meet all international standards. (8/27)
Details of New Japanese Cost-Cutting Launch Vehicle Leaked (Satellite Today)
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is spending $213 million to develop a small launch vehicle in 2010 to reduce satellite launch costs by two-thirds, according to Nikkei. JAXA is working with The Japanese Ministry of Science and Technology and IHI Corp. on the project. The new three-stage rocket will be 24 meters in length and 2.5 meters in diameter at its widest section – less than half the size and carrying capacity of JAXA’s H-2A launch vehicle. The rocket will be able to carry payloads as heavy as 1.2 tons and use solid fuel for all three of its stages. JAXA claims that, since it will not have to fill up with liquid fuel, using solid fuel will cut down on the time that the rocket will need to prepare for liftoff once it arrives at the launch site.
JAXA’s new rocket would bring competition into Asia’s discount launch vehicle market, as China is also looking to provide cheaper launch services through its Long-March vehicle. According to reports, the rocket will cost $32 million to produce and launch – less than a third of H-2A’s price tag. Falcon-1 missions currently cost between $8 and $10 million per launch. The first liftoff is expected to take place as early as fiscal 2012 and will most likely be used to send space research and solar system satellites into orbit. Eventually, the new rocket may carry a landing vehicle for Japan’s Moon exploration project, targeted for 2020, the agencies said in the reports. (8/27)
NASA has selected 16 small business projects to address important research and technology needs. The "Phase-2" awards are part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Two Florida-based companies/projects include: Orlando-based Light Processing & Technologies, Inc., for High Power Compact Single-Frequency Volume Bragg Er-Doped Fiber Laser; and Tampa-based Advanced Materials Technology, Inc., for Advanced Insulation Materials for Cryogenic Propellant Storage Applications. (8/28)
Europe Wants to Buy Russian Soyuz Spacecraft (Source: Telegraph)
The European Space Agency, which is based in Paris, said a space vehicle of its own would enable European astronauts to continue working at the International Space Station even if the American shuttles cease operating. The scheduled launch of the first Russian Soyuz from the ESA base in French Guiana was postponed on Wednesday to 2010. To deliver the module the Russian space program would have to increase production of the vehicle to five units per year. Simonetta Di Pippo, the director of human spaceflight at the ESA, said discussions with her Russian counterparts had been fruitful. "From 13 [2013] on, we would like to have at least one European astronaut per year flying and this can be done in various ways. One of the proposals we are putting on the table is to buy a full Soyuz...I think in two or three months, we will be able to come out with a firm proposal." (8/28)
China, U.S. May Cooperate on World's Biggest Telescope (Source: Reuters)
Astronomers from China and the United States may cooperate on building the world's largest telescope aimed at providing deeper insight into the very early stages of the universe, Xinhua news agency reported on Friday. The Thirty-Meter-Telescope (TMT), conceived and headed by the University of California and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), is expected to be completed in 2019. "It is a big undertaking and it will define the future of astronomy and astrophysics for about 60 or 70 years, so it will automatically involve a large international community," said Caltech President Jean-Lou Chameau. The university and Caltech are talking to Chinese astronomers and scientists about cooperation on funding and technology, although no final decision has been made. Canada and Japan have signed up to the project, which needs total financing of $1 billion, it said. (8/28)
Leadership Changes at Marshall Space Flight Center (Source: SPACErePORT)
NASA has named Robert Lightfoot as the next director of Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). Lighfoot has been serving as acting director since previous MSFC Director Dave King left in April. Meanwhile, NASA's MSFC-based Ares project manager, Steve Cook, announced that he is also leaving the agency. (8/28)
Northrop to Spend $21M to Help Clean up California Superfund Site (Source: AIA)
Aerospace giant Northrop Grumman Corp. has agreed to spend about $21 million to clean up groundwater pollution in California's San Gabriel Valley from factories that date back to World War II, under a settlement with the EPA. Northrop operated three of 62 factories that discharged pollution into groundwater at what is now a Superfund site near Los Angeles. While the Northrop sites were not the largest source of pollution, the company stepped up and worked with other parties to help with the cleanup, officials said. (8/28)
Embry-Riddle Rocketeers Featured on Aug. 29 'Space Talk' Radio Show
Flying model rockets has inspired many youngsters to pursue careers in aerospace, including Patrick McCarthy and Wes Oleszewski, guests on the Aug. 29 edition of "Space Talk," hosted by Jim Banke. The use of model rockets as an inspiring, educational tool will be discussed, along with "war stories" about launching and recovering the small boosters. McCarthy is director of spaceport operations for Space Florida. He was part of the team that won the championship in their division at this month's National Association of Rocketry Annual Meet. Oleszewski is owner of Dr. Zooch Rockets, a company that specializes in model rockets of historic space launch vehicles. He is an author and creator of Klyde Morris, an editorial cartoon strip about aviation and space. Banke, McCarthy and Oleszewski are all graduates of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and worked together on "The Avion," the student newspaper.
"Space Talk" is broadcast live each Saturday at 4 p.m. ET on WMMB in Melbourne, Fla. WMMB can be heard in Brevard County on 1240 AM and 1350 AM. The show can be heard live on the Internet at http://www.wmmbam.com. Listeners can participate in the program by calling into the studio at 321-768-1240. Questions and comments also can be sent to spacetalking@aol.com or via Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/spacetalking. (8/28)
Day of Delays for NASA (Source: New York Times)
It was a day of delays for NASA. At the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, shuttle managers pushed back the planned launching of the space shuttle Discovery again as they continued to try to work around an issue concerning a fuel valve in the main engines. Instead of 12:22 a.m. Friday, the launch attempt will now be at the end of the day, at 11:59 p.m. Meanwhile, in Utah, a ground test of the first stage of NASA’s next generation rocket was called off with only 20 seconds left in the countdown, because of a failure with a hydraulic system that moves the engine nozzle. That test will now occur no earlier than next Tuesday. (8/28)
Space Traffic Requires Regulations (Source: Russia IC)
Recent International Aerospace Congress, which took place in Moscow, covered issues of mitigation of excessive space debris. Space authorities say that after 2055 steady growth of space debris puts in question further exploration of space by next generations. Experts warn about additional troubles for space exploration, such as possibility weapon deployment in space; growing traffic of small space ships, which are very hard to control; active space tourism and suborbital flights and etc. Russia needs development of international regulations of space activities, which meet all international standards. (8/27)
Details of New Japanese Cost-Cutting Launch Vehicle Leaked (Satellite Today)
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is spending $213 million to develop a small launch vehicle in 2010 to reduce satellite launch costs by two-thirds, according to Nikkei. JAXA is working with The Japanese Ministry of Science and Technology and IHI Corp. on the project. The new three-stage rocket will be 24 meters in length and 2.5 meters in diameter at its widest section – less than half the size and carrying capacity of JAXA’s H-2A launch vehicle. The rocket will be able to carry payloads as heavy as 1.2 tons and use solid fuel for all three of its stages. JAXA claims that, since it will not have to fill up with liquid fuel, using solid fuel will cut down on the time that the rocket will need to prepare for liftoff once it arrives at the launch site.
JAXA’s new rocket would bring competition into Asia’s discount launch vehicle market, as China is also looking to provide cheaper launch services through its Long-March vehicle. According to reports, the rocket will cost $32 million to produce and launch – less than a third of H-2A’s price tag. Falcon-1 missions currently cost between $8 and $10 million per launch. The first liftoff is expected to take place as early as fiscal 2012 and will most likely be used to send space research and solar system satellites into orbit. Eventually, the new rocket may carry a landing vehicle for Japan’s Moon exploration project, targeted for 2020, the agencies said in the reports. (8/27)
August 27 News Items
Space Florida Preparing to Select New President (Source: SPACErePORT)
A committee of Space Florida's board of directors will meet on Sep. 3, 11 and 16 to interview candidates and recommend a permanent replacement for former president Steve Kohler, who resigned on May 8. The Sep. 3 and 11 meetings are all-day affairs in Pensacola and Orlando, and the Sep. 16 meeting is a teleconference with Gov. Charlie Crist or Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp (they serve as chairman and co-chairman of the board) to review the committee's recommendations. The full board will meet on Sep. 17 via teleconference to make a decision. Frank DiBello has been serving as Space Florida's acting president and is expected to be among the finalists for the permanent position. Executive recruiting firm Korn/Ferry International has been working under contract to Space Florida to support the process. (8/27)
Conrad Foundation Opens Registration for 2010 Spirit of Innovation Awards (Source: Conrad Foundation)
The San Francisco-based Conrad Foundation, a non-profit science-education and entrepreneurship advocacy organization, has opened registration for the 2010 Spirit of Innovation Awards. This competition challenges teams of high school students to create innovative products in four categories: aerospace exploration, space nutrition, renewable energy and green schools. Competing students will be guided through a phased pathway incorporating science, technology, design, marketing and business in an interdisciplinary, project-based product development experience. Visit http://www.conradawards.org for information. (8/27)
NASA Postpones Ares 1 Rocket Motor Test (Source: AFP)
NASA on Thursday delayed the debut test of the first stage motor of the Ares 1 rocket, the launch vehicle for the space shuttle's successor, Orion, the space agency said. The static test, which was supposed to have been conducted at NASA's Promontory test center in Utah, was postponed indefinitely following a problem in an auxiliary motor that supplied hydraulic pressure. (8/27)
Maryland Plan Calls for $72M Investment in STEM Workforce, R&D Infrastructure (Source: SSTI)
To establish Maryland as a global leader in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce and STEM-based R&D infrastructure, a task force convened last year by Gov. Martin O'Malley urges the state to adopt a set of initiatives to reach higher performance standards in teaching and learning in addition to greater productivity in transforming the state's high volume of R&D activity into economic growth and job creation. The full report of the task force, which is co-chaired by William Kirwan, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland, is available here. (8/27)
NASA Targeting Late Friday for Third Shuttle Launch Try (Source: AP)
NASA will try to launch space shuttle Discovery to the space station late Friday night, after back-to-back delays caused by bad weather and fuel valve trouble. It will be the third try for NASA, which is still struggling to understand why a critical shuttle fuel valve appeared to malfunction Tuesday midway through the fueling process. The valve was tested Wednesday night, and all indications were that it was a problem with a sensor rather than the valve itself, said NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. The hydrogen fuel valve, a big 8-inch device, is located in Discovery's engine compartment. (8/27)
Sun's Cycle Alters Earth's Climate (Source: Space.com)
Weather patterns across the globe are partly affected by connections between the 11-year solar cycle of activity, Earth's stratosphere and the tropical Pacific Ocean, a new study finds. The study could help scientists get an edge on eventually predicting the intensity of certain climate phenomena, such as the Indian monsoon and tropical Pacific rainfall, years in advance. The sun is the ultimate source of all the energy on Earth; its rays heat the planet and drive the churning motions of its atmosphere.
The amount of energy the sun puts out varies over an 11-year cycle (this cycle also governs the appearance of sunspots on the sun's surface as well as radiation storms that can knock out satellites), but that cycle changes the total amount of energy reaching Earth by only about 0.1 percent. A conundrum for meteorologists was explaining whether and how such a small variation could drive major changes in weather patterns on Earth. (8/27)
Posey Talks Space in Interview (Source: Florida Today)
Question: A presidential commission has announced recommendations on spaceflight and the shuttle fleet that seem to put the Space Coast in a tough position. Your take? Answer: None of the scenarios is what we had hoped. There are some things you just can't do on the cheap. And you can't maintain space dominance for half as much as it should cost. I see nothing that will reduce the (shuttle jobs) gap, which the president said he would do when he was here. I see the gap getting longer -- I don't even like to say that out loud. We have legislation . . . Rep. Suzanne Kosmas is a co-sponsor, that would fly the shuttle until there is a man-rated vehicle that can take its place. (8/27)
Editorial: Fly Me to the Moon (Source: Honolulu Advertiser)
The U.S. pyramiding national, state, city debts put people in bondage; literally, in servitude. But, may we consider the privatization of NASA? Space exploration is a huge waste of federal revenue! NASA can easily be funded by corporations in the private sector rather than on backs of the nation’s poor. Privatization would remove the massive yearly cost of NASA’s accounts payable. CNBC reported in July that NASA costs taxpayers $187 billion! NASA’s “lease rights” could be sold to corporations to create an account receivable to begin repaying the federal deficit. Social programs are altogether more important than exploration of outer space. Even exploring earth’s oceans has more practical common sense and promise than NASA’s current purpose (and what is it, anyway?). (8/27)
NASA Ames Designated 2009 AIAA Historic Aerospace Site (Source: NASA)
In recognition of 70 years of pioneering aerospace research and its significant contributions to aerospace history, NASA Ames Research Center today was honored as a 2009 Historic Aerospace Site by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Since its founding in 1939, Ames has made substantial strides in aerospace research. (8/26)
Rocket Engine Test Stands Exhibit Slated (Source: Ventura County Star)
The Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education (ACME) and NASA are hosting an exhibit on the history of the rocket engine test stands at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The Aug. 28 exhibit opening features a presentation on the test stands by Allen Elliott of NASA and the ACME members. ACME opened in May as a center where community members can learn about Santa Susana Field Laboratory and the historic clean-up initiatives to take place as recently directed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. In a unique and unprecedented collaboration by founders William Preston Bowling and Christina Walsh, ACME will organize and activate a public hungry for accurate information about this and other astronomically polluted Nuclear and Aerospace Research sites. For more information, visit: http://www.ACMELA.org. (8/27)
Test for NASA's Ares-1 Rocket Motor (Source: BBC)
The first-stage rocket motor that NASA hopes will launch astronauts in future undergoes its first full-scale test on Thursday. The static firing will take place at a facility owned by manufacturer Alliant Techsystems Inc (ATK) in Utah. The five-segment booster is intended to power the early flight phase of NASA's Ares 1 rocket, the vehicle designed to loft its new Orion crew carrier. The two-minute burn will give engineers valuable performance data. Further engineering data will come from the October flight of a demonstrator version of the Ares 1 known as Ares 1-X. (8/27)
A committee of Space Florida's board of directors will meet on Sep. 3, 11 and 16 to interview candidates and recommend a permanent replacement for former president Steve Kohler, who resigned on May 8. The Sep. 3 and 11 meetings are all-day affairs in Pensacola and Orlando, and the Sep. 16 meeting is a teleconference with Gov. Charlie Crist or Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp (they serve as chairman and co-chairman of the board) to review the committee's recommendations. The full board will meet on Sep. 17 via teleconference to make a decision. Frank DiBello has been serving as Space Florida's acting president and is expected to be among the finalists for the permanent position. Executive recruiting firm Korn/Ferry International has been working under contract to Space Florida to support the process. (8/27)
Conrad Foundation Opens Registration for 2010 Spirit of Innovation Awards (Source: Conrad Foundation)
The San Francisco-based Conrad Foundation, a non-profit science-education and entrepreneurship advocacy organization, has opened registration for the 2010 Spirit of Innovation Awards. This competition challenges teams of high school students to create innovative products in four categories: aerospace exploration, space nutrition, renewable energy and green schools. Competing students will be guided through a phased pathway incorporating science, technology, design, marketing and business in an interdisciplinary, project-based product development experience. Visit http://www.conradawards.org for information. (8/27)
NASA Postpones Ares 1 Rocket Motor Test (Source: AFP)
NASA on Thursday delayed the debut test of the first stage motor of the Ares 1 rocket, the launch vehicle for the space shuttle's successor, Orion, the space agency said. The static test, which was supposed to have been conducted at NASA's Promontory test center in Utah, was postponed indefinitely following a problem in an auxiliary motor that supplied hydraulic pressure. (8/27)
Maryland Plan Calls for $72M Investment in STEM Workforce, R&D Infrastructure (Source: SSTI)
To establish Maryland as a global leader in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce and STEM-based R&D infrastructure, a task force convened last year by Gov. Martin O'Malley urges the state to adopt a set of initiatives to reach higher performance standards in teaching and learning in addition to greater productivity in transforming the state's high volume of R&D activity into economic growth and job creation. The full report of the task force, which is co-chaired by William Kirwan, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland, is available here. (8/27)
NASA Targeting Late Friday for Third Shuttle Launch Try (Source: AP)
NASA will try to launch space shuttle Discovery to the space station late Friday night, after back-to-back delays caused by bad weather and fuel valve trouble. It will be the third try for NASA, which is still struggling to understand why a critical shuttle fuel valve appeared to malfunction Tuesday midway through the fueling process. The valve was tested Wednesday night, and all indications were that it was a problem with a sensor rather than the valve itself, said NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. The hydrogen fuel valve, a big 8-inch device, is located in Discovery's engine compartment. (8/27)
Sun's Cycle Alters Earth's Climate (Source: Space.com)
Weather patterns across the globe are partly affected by connections between the 11-year solar cycle of activity, Earth's stratosphere and the tropical Pacific Ocean, a new study finds. The study could help scientists get an edge on eventually predicting the intensity of certain climate phenomena, such as the Indian monsoon and tropical Pacific rainfall, years in advance. The sun is the ultimate source of all the energy on Earth; its rays heat the planet and drive the churning motions of its atmosphere.
The amount of energy the sun puts out varies over an 11-year cycle (this cycle also governs the appearance of sunspots on the sun's surface as well as radiation storms that can knock out satellites), but that cycle changes the total amount of energy reaching Earth by only about 0.1 percent. A conundrum for meteorologists was explaining whether and how such a small variation could drive major changes in weather patterns on Earth. (8/27)
Posey Talks Space in Interview (Source: Florida Today)
Question: A presidential commission has announced recommendations on spaceflight and the shuttle fleet that seem to put the Space Coast in a tough position. Your take? Answer: None of the scenarios is what we had hoped. There are some things you just can't do on the cheap. And you can't maintain space dominance for half as much as it should cost. I see nothing that will reduce the (shuttle jobs) gap, which the president said he would do when he was here. I see the gap getting longer -- I don't even like to say that out loud. We have legislation . . . Rep. Suzanne Kosmas is a co-sponsor, that would fly the shuttle until there is a man-rated vehicle that can take its place. (8/27)
Editorial: Fly Me to the Moon (Source: Honolulu Advertiser)
The U.S. pyramiding national, state, city debts put people in bondage; literally, in servitude. But, may we consider the privatization of NASA? Space exploration is a huge waste of federal revenue! NASA can easily be funded by corporations in the private sector rather than on backs of the nation’s poor. Privatization would remove the massive yearly cost of NASA’s accounts payable. CNBC reported in July that NASA costs taxpayers $187 billion! NASA’s “lease rights” could be sold to corporations to create an account receivable to begin repaying the federal deficit. Social programs are altogether more important than exploration of outer space. Even exploring earth’s oceans has more practical common sense and promise than NASA’s current purpose (and what is it, anyway?). (8/27)
NASA Ames Designated 2009 AIAA Historic Aerospace Site (Source: NASA)
In recognition of 70 years of pioneering aerospace research and its significant contributions to aerospace history, NASA Ames Research Center today was honored as a 2009 Historic Aerospace Site by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Since its founding in 1939, Ames has made substantial strides in aerospace research. (8/26)
Rocket Engine Test Stands Exhibit Slated (Source: Ventura County Star)
The Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education (ACME) and NASA are hosting an exhibit on the history of the rocket engine test stands at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The Aug. 28 exhibit opening features a presentation on the test stands by Allen Elliott of NASA and the ACME members. ACME opened in May as a center where community members can learn about Santa Susana Field Laboratory and the historic clean-up initiatives to take place as recently directed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. In a unique and unprecedented collaboration by founders William Preston Bowling and Christina Walsh, ACME will organize and activate a public hungry for accurate information about this and other astronomically polluted Nuclear and Aerospace Research sites. For more information, visit: http://www.ACMELA.org. (8/27)
Test for NASA's Ares-1 Rocket Motor (Source: BBC)
The first-stage rocket motor that NASA hopes will launch astronauts in future undergoes its first full-scale test on Thursday. The static firing will take place at a facility owned by manufacturer Alliant Techsystems Inc (ATK) in Utah. The five-segment booster is intended to power the early flight phase of NASA's Ares 1 rocket, the vehicle designed to loft its new Orion crew carrier. The two-minute burn will give engineers valuable performance data. Further engineering data will come from the October flight of a demonstrator version of the Ares 1 known as Ares 1-X. (8/27)
August 26 News Items
NASA Extends Lockheed Martin Space Station Cargo Integration Contract (Source: NASA)
NASA has awarded Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems Inc. in Houston a one-year contract extension valued at $33 million to provide integration services for cargo delivery to and from the International Space Station. Lockheed Martin has held the station's cargo mission contract since January 2004. The one-year extension will bring the total value of the contract to $381 million. (8/26)
Landsat 5 Resumes Operations After Anomaly (Source: Space News)
The U.S. government's aging Landsat 5 Earth observation satellite was recertified for operations Aug. 17 after inexplicably tumbling out of its operating orbit Aug. 13, a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) spokesman said Aug. 26. (8/26)
LCROSS Mission On Track Despite Weekend Propellant Bender (Source: Space News)
A navigation glitch that caused NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) to consume more than half of its propellant over the weekend should not prevent the novel spacecraft from crashing into the Moon this October as planned. (8/26)
Kamikaze Planet (Source: Science Now)
Astronomers have found a giant planet orbiting so close to its parent star that it's bound to spiral inward to its doom or else be ripped to shreds by the star's gravity. Either way, the planet called WASP-18b should provide astronomers with a mother lode of data about the delicate gravitational balancing act that affects all solar systems. Researchers have found an extreme version of tidal forces at work. WASP-18b is roughly 10 times the mass of Jupiter, and it orbits only about 3 million kilometers from its star. WASP-18b and its star are so close to each other that it takes the planet, which is described in tomorrow's issue of Nature, less than a day to complete a revolution. (8/26)
Dust Storm Adds Urgency to Mars Rover Predicament (Source: Space.com)
Dust storms are currently stirring up the Martian skies in the region where NASA's Spirit rover is stuck in the sand. The swirling sands don't pose an immediate threat to Spirit, but they could create more urgency for the effort to free the mired rover if dust obscures her access to solar energy. Spirit has been stuck in Martian dirt up to its hubcaps since May 6, when it became mired in a dirt patch (now called "Troy") while driving backward. (8/26)
Swanky Space Hotel Concept Revealed (Source: Space.com)
Space tourism may face some challenges with the uncertainty over the next-generation rides into space. But that hasn't stopped Earth designers from envisioning future space hotels for paying thrill seekers. A robot concierge, a redesigned showerhead and a full-sensory exercise wall are just part of the Space Hotel Project created by master's degree students in a program hosted by Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art in the UK. The concept could theoretically attach to the International Space Station, so long as the growing space outpost remains in orbit. (8/26)
Joint American-Russian Manned Mars Mission? (Source: Spaceports Blog)
The the head of NASA's Moscow office has invited Russia to carry out a joint manned flight to Mars, according to RIA Novosti. Marc Bowman told an international aviation and space conference in Moscow that the Mars mission should take advantage of the achievements made by the International Space Station and use a multinational crew. Bowman said the flight should be under the control of NASA and the Russian space agency but with the participation of international space agencies. However, he said that before a joint flight to Mars could be made, it was necessary to complete the ISS mission and fly to the Moon to collect essential scientific and technical information. Bowman is the Manager of Moscow Technical Liaison Office (MTLO), the Deputy Director of the Human Space Flight Program-Russia (HSFP-R), in addition to serving as an attache with the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. (8/26)
Editorial: Lo$t in $pace (Source: Mesquite Local News)
Some of the loudest noise surrounding the current debate over a nationalized health care plan involves the cost of such a program. How much will it cost, how will it be paid and who will foot the bill? What I haven’t heard much of and which I would like to have addressed is a third consideration, which involves existing government activities that could be cut or modified. This third consideration would involve shifting government expenditures according to a set of prioritized decisions as to how our Federal tax dollars are spent in support of other programs.
What programs should we cut? In this regard I would like to suggest reducing the cost of a program that will surely prove to be unpopular, yet no longer serves a legitimate government need. I am proposing that we begin to dismantle and eliminate the current and future programs operated by NASA. It’s a difficult recommendation to make as our space program has, over the years, been the source of great pride and discovery. However, since we won the space race by beating the Soviet Union to the moon, there is not really that much more left to learn about space flight. This is exemplified by the current use of the Space Shuttle to ferry people and things into space. Unfortunately this white elephant has proven to be neither safe nor cost effective. (8/26)
Sep. 8 Space Club Luncheon Features ATK Perspective on Ares (Source: NSCFL)
The Florida Committee of the National Space Club will hold its next luncheon event on Sep. 8 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Cocoa Beach. The featured speaker will be Charlie Precourt, providing an update on NASA's Ares rocket development program and ATK's perspective. For reservations, call LaDonna at 321-505-2037 or mailto:ladonna.j.neterer@boeing.com. (8/25)
Ted Kennedy Dies; Space Program and NASA Explorer Schools Among his Causes (Source: Examiner)
Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), brother of President John F. Kennedy, who challenged America to land on the moon in a decade, has died of brain cancer. In 2006, Kennedy, along with former astronaut Jeff Hoffman and other dignitaries, opened a NASA Explorers School in Lynn, Mass. Part of a national effort, the Explorers Schools puts NASA content and programs into science, technology and mathematics curricula in classroom grades 4-9 across the United States. Targeting underserved populations in diverse geographic locations, NASA Explorer Schools will bring together educators, administrators, students and families in sustained involvement with NASA's education programs. (8/26)
Russia, U.S. Undecided on Site of Rocket Observation Center (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia and the U.S. have yet to decide on where to place a joint control point to observe rocket launches by foreign countries, Russia's chief of staff said on Wednesday. During his visit to Moscow in July, U.S. President Barack Obama discussed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev issues relating to the development of anti-rocket systems, and began talks on creating a joint "Center for Information Exchange," which would inform both countries of rocket launches throughout the world.
"The issue of creating a joint control point to observe rocket launches and to inform one another of unsanctioned launches is being discussed," Gen. Nikolai Makarov told a news conference in Mongolia's capital. He said the center would allow both countries to inform each other of rocket launches, which country is launching them, and of the threat posed by them. The two countries have been discussing the creation of such a center since 2000, but have not yet decided on where the center should be located, although Moscow has not been ruled out. (8/24)
Volunteers Needed for Cocoa Beach Air Show, Oct. 2-4 (Source: SPACErePORT)
Volunteers are vital to an air show's success! By becoming a volunteer you can play a significant role in making the 2009 Cocoa Beach Air Show (Oct. 2-4) happen and see it all from behind the scenes. You'll also get to participate in some of the private functions and events that will take place during Air Show Week in Cocoa Beach. Please note that all of the volunteer positions are unpaid. Every volunteer will receive: 2 tickets to Show Center Beach; a parking pass; complimentary lunch and soft drinks on the day(s) worked; a special edition event t-shirt being provided only to performers, staff & volunteers. Click here to volunteer.
Russia to Invest $143 Million in Engines for New Angara Rocket (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia will invest about 4.5 billion rubles ($143 mln) by 2015 in the production of engines for a family of Angara carrier rockets, the Perm Territory's government said on Monday. The RD-191 is a high-performance single-combustion chamber rocket engine, which recently passed a series of benchmark tests at the Proton-PM company in the Perm Territory in the Urals, and will be soon certified for test flights. Russia's Federal Space Agency Roscosmos and the Perm Territory signed an investment agreement last week during the MAKS-2009 air show near Moscow.
The environmentally-friendly Angara rocket, currently under development by the Khrunichev center, is designed to put heavy payloads into orbit. It is intended mainly for launch from the Plesetsk spaceport to reduce Moscow's dependence on Kazakhstan's Baikonur, the main launch facility for the current generation of Russian rockets. The new line of rockets will complement, and eventually replace, the existing line of Rockot and Proton launch vehicles. It will be available in a range of configurations capable of lifting between two and 24.5 metric tons into low-earth orbit. (8/24)
NASA Sets Friday Morning for Next Shuttle Launch Attempt (Source: NASA)
NASA has targeted the next launch attempt for space shuttle Discovery for no earlier than 12:22 a.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 28, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Wednesday's launch attempt was postponed after an indication that a valve in the shuttle's main propulsion system failed to perform as expected during fueling of the shuttle's external fuel tank. (8/26)
Editorial: Why the Space Program No Longer Inspires Kids (Source: Denver Post)
If our children no longer care about space exploration, it's not because they're tuning out. In recent decades, what has our space program given this country, and our children, to be proud of? The most memorable events I can think of are misfires and failures—the tragedies of the Challenger and Columbia space shuttles, and the romantic crime drama of Linda Nowak, an American astronaut gone bad. I find it mind-boggling that four decades after the 1969 moon landing, we have taken no next step.
In 2009, we can benefit from four more decades of scientific research and technological advancements. Another moon landing and even a journey beyond should not represent the challenges that they seem to do. We continue to act as though we've never tried this before. This nation has lost something. Call it focus. Call it grit and determination. Call it a reality check.
We see how China's energy efficiency programs are catching up to and may soon overtake ours. We see how the current financial crisis reveals the extent to which our country has been living an illusion for close to 30 years. And we see the increasing polarization of our political system, where we are more likely to identify ourselves as Democrats or Republicans than as Americans. Will it really be a surprise if Russia or China reaches the moon, before we do? (8/26)
South Korea: It's Time to Double Efforts to Realize Space Dream (Source: Korea Times)
South Korea took one step closer to space development even though it failed to put a satellite into orbit during its first space rocket launch on Tuesday. To put it simply, it failed in its dream of joining the world's space club. First, we have to admit that the nation has pushed its space program too quickly and recklessly despite its inability to make its own space rocket. The country had to turn to Russia in 2004 to jointly develop the Korea Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV-1). It paid 250 billion won to the space power for the joint project, under which Russia made the main, first-stage rocket while Korea assembled the second-stage rocket and the scientific satellite.
The Korean side had hoped to acquire some core technologies for rocket production from Russia. But the foreign partner has refused to transfer such sensitive technology to Korea. Therefore, the partnership has proved to be nothing but Korea's purchase of the Russian rocket. On the other hand, the Russian side has taken an opportunity to experiment with its next-generation rocket by exploiting the KSLV-1 project. (8/26)
NASA Ames Gets Ready for New Green Building (Source: San Jose Mercury News)
NASA's Ames Research Center is ready to begin construction of what is planned as the greenest building ever built by the federal government, a structure that will use state-of-the-art sensors developed for space missions but also rely on the age-old strategy of opening the window to catch a cool breeze. Christened "Sustainability Base" by NASA in an homage to "Tranquility Base," the site of the first moon landing 40 years ago, the $20.6 million building will begin construction in late September or early October near the gateway to Moffett Field. (8/26)
Managers Mull Options After LCROSS Moon Mission Malfunction (Source: Spaceflight Now)
Officials are hurriedly looking for ways to save fuel on NASA's $79 million lunar impactor mission after a crisis Saturday caused the spacecraft to burn more than half of its remaining propellant. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite used about 140 kilograms, or 309 pounds, of maneuvering fuel to maintain the probe's orientation in space Saturday, according to Dan Andrews, the mission's project manager at Ames Research Center.
LCROSS is tugging a 41-foot-long Centaur rocket stage on a circuitous route through space. Scientists are preparing for a fleeting series of observations as the spent booster is released for a suicidal plunge into the moon on Oct. 9. The 6-foot-tall shepherding spacecraft's attitude control system was specifically designed to handle the unusual job of positioning the 47-foot-long stack as it flies toward the moon. LCROSS is now perilously close to its built-in propellant margins, and the team will probably have to cancel some activities that are not crucial to the mission. (8/26)
NASA has awarded Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems Inc. in Houston a one-year contract extension valued at $33 million to provide integration services for cargo delivery to and from the International Space Station. Lockheed Martin has held the station's cargo mission contract since January 2004. The one-year extension will bring the total value of the contract to $381 million. (8/26)
Landsat 5 Resumes Operations After Anomaly (Source: Space News)
The U.S. government's aging Landsat 5 Earth observation satellite was recertified for operations Aug. 17 after inexplicably tumbling out of its operating orbit Aug. 13, a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) spokesman said Aug. 26. (8/26)
LCROSS Mission On Track Despite Weekend Propellant Bender (Source: Space News)
A navigation glitch that caused NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) to consume more than half of its propellant over the weekend should not prevent the novel spacecraft from crashing into the Moon this October as planned. (8/26)
Kamikaze Planet (Source: Science Now)
Astronomers have found a giant planet orbiting so close to its parent star that it's bound to spiral inward to its doom or else be ripped to shreds by the star's gravity. Either way, the planet called WASP-18b should provide astronomers with a mother lode of data about the delicate gravitational balancing act that affects all solar systems. Researchers have found an extreme version of tidal forces at work. WASP-18b is roughly 10 times the mass of Jupiter, and it orbits only about 3 million kilometers from its star. WASP-18b and its star are so close to each other that it takes the planet, which is described in tomorrow's issue of Nature, less than a day to complete a revolution. (8/26)
Dust Storm Adds Urgency to Mars Rover Predicament (Source: Space.com)
Dust storms are currently stirring up the Martian skies in the region where NASA's Spirit rover is stuck in the sand. The swirling sands don't pose an immediate threat to Spirit, but they could create more urgency for the effort to free the mired rover if dust obscures her access to solar energy. Spirit has been stuck in Martian dirt up to its hubcaps since May 6, when it became mired in a dirt patch (now called "Troy") while driving backward. (8/26)
Swanky Space Hotel Concept Revealed (Source: Space.com)
Space tourism may face some challenges with the uncertainty over the next-generation rides into space. But that hasn't stopped Earth designers from envisioning future space hotels for paying thrill seekers. A robot concierge, a redesigned showerhead and a full-sensory exercise wall are just part of the Space Hotel Project created by master's degree students in a program hosted by Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art in the UK. The concept could theoretically attach to the International Space Station, so long as the growing space outpost remains in orbit. (8/26)
Joint American-Russian Manned Mars Mission? (Source: Spaceports Blog)
The the head of NASA's Moscow office has invited Russia to carry out a joint manned flight to Mars, according to RIA Novosti. Marc Bowman told an international aviation and space conference in Moscow that the Mars mission should take advantage of the achievements made by the International Space Station and use a multinational crew. Bowman said the flight should be under the control of NASA and the Russian space agency but with the participation of international space agencies. However, he said that before a joint flight to Mars could be made, it was necessary to complete the ISS mission and fly to the Moon to collect essential scientific and technical information. Bowman is the Manager of Moscow Technical Liaison Office (MTLO), the Deputy Director of the Human Space Flight Program-Russia (HSFP-R), in addition to serving as an attache with the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. (8/26)
Editorial: Lo$t in $pace (Source: Mesquite Local News)
Some of the loudest noise surrounding the current debate over a nationalized health care plan involves the cost of such a program. How much will it cost, how will it be paid and who will foot the bill? What I haven’t heard much of and which I would like to have addressed is a third consideration, which involves existing government activities that could be cut or modified. This third consideration would involve shifting government expenditures according to a set of prioritized decisions as to how our Federal tax dollars are spent in support of other programs.
What programs should we cut? In this regard I would like to suggest reducing the cost of a program that will surely prove to be unpopular, yet no longer serves a legitimate government need. I am proposing that we begin to dismantle and eliminate the current and future programs operated by NASA. It’s a difficult recommendation to make as our space program has, over the years, been the source of great pride and discovery. However, since we won the space race by beating the Soviet Union to the moon, there is not really that much more left to learn about space flight. This is exemplified by the current use of the Space Shuttle to ferry people and things into space. Unfortunately this white elephant has proven to be neither safe nor cost effective. (8/26)
Sep. 8 Space Club Luncheon Features ATK Perspective on Ares (Source: NSCFL)
The Florida Committee of the National Space Club will hold its next luncheon event on Sep. 8 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Cocoa Beach. The featured speaker will be Charlie Precourt, providing an update on NASA's Ares rocket development program and ATK's perspective. For reservations, call LaDonna at 321-505-2037 or mailto:ladonna.j.neterer@boeing.com. (8/25)
Ted Kennedy Dies; Space Program and NASA Explorer Schools Among his Causes (Source: Examiner)
Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), brother of President John F. Kennedy, who challenged America to land on the moon in a decade, has died of brain cancer. In 2006, Kennedy, along with former astronaut Jeff Hoffman and other dignitaries, opened a NASA Explorers School in Lynn, Mass. Part of a national effort, the Explorers Schools puts NASA content and programs into science, technology and mathematics curricula in classroom grades 4-9 across the United States. Targeting underserved populations in diverse geographic locations, NASA Explorer Schools will bring together educators, administrators, students and families in sustained involvement with NASA's education programs. (8/26)
Russia, U.S. Undecided on Site of Rocket Observation Center (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia and the U.S. have yet to decide on where to place a joint control point to observe rocket launches by foreign countries, Russia's chief of staff said on Wednesday. During his visit to Moscow in July, U.S. President Barack Obama discussed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev issues relating to the development of anti-rocket systems, and began talks on creating a joint "Center for Information Exchange," which would inform both countries of rocket launches throughout the world.
"The issue of creating a joint control point to observe rocket launches and to inform one another of unsanctioned launches is being discussed," Gen. Nikolai Makarov told a news conference in Mongolia's capital. He said the center would allow both countries to inform each other of rocket launches, which country is launching them, and of the threat posed by them. The two countries have been discussing the creation of such a center since 2000, but have not yet decided on where the center should be located, although Moscow has not been ruled out. (8/24)
Volunteers Needed for Cocoa Beach Air Show, Oct. 2-4 (Source: SPACErePORT)
Volunteers are vital to an air show's success! By becoming a volunteer you can play a significant role in making the 2009 Cocoa Beach Air Show (Oct. 2-4) happen and see it all from behind the scenes. You'll also get to participate in some of the private functions and events that will take place during Air Show Week in Cocoa Beach. Please note that all of the volunteer positions are unpaid. Every volunteer will receive: 2 tickets to Show Center Beach; a parking pass; complimentary lunch and soft drinks on the day(s) worked; a special edition event t-shirt being provided only to performers, staff & volunteers. Click here to volunteer.
Russia to Invest $143 Million in Engines for New Angara Rocket (Source: RIA Novosti)
Russia will invest about 4.5 billion rubles ($143 mln) by 2015 in the production of engines for a family of Angara carrier rockets, the Perm Territory's government said on Monday. The RD-191 is a high-performance single-combustion chamber rocket engine, which recently passed a series of benchmark tests at the Proton-PM company in the Perm Territory in the Urals, and will be soon certified for test flights. Russia's Federal Space Agency Roscosmos and the Perm Territory signed an investment agreement last week during the MAKS-2009 air show near Moscow.
The environmentally-friendly Angara rocket, currently under development by the Khrunichev center, is designed to put heavy payloads into orbit. It is intended mainly for launch from the Plesetsk spaceport to reduce Moscow's dependence on Kazakhstan's Baikonur, the main launch facility for the current generation of Russian rockets. The new line of rockets will complement, and eventually replace, the existing line of Rockot and Proton launch vehicles. It will be available in a range of configurations capable of lifting between two and 24.5 metric tons into low-earth orbit. (8/24)
NASA Sets Friday Morning for Next Shuttle Launch Attempt (Source: NASA)
NASA has targeted the next launch attempt for space shuttle Discovery for no earlier than 12:22 a.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 28, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Wednesday's launch attempt was postponed after an indication that a valve in the shuttle's main propulsion system failed to perform as expected during fueling of the shuttle's external fuel tank. (8/26)
Editorial: Why the Space Program No Longer Inspires Kids (Source: Denver Post)
If our children no longer care about space exploration, it's not because they're tuning out. In recent decades, what has our space program given this country, and our children, to be proud of? The most memorable events I can think of are misfires and failures—the tragedies of the Challenger and Columbia space shuttles, and the romantic crime drama of Linda Nowak, an American astronaut gone bad. I find it mind-boggling that four decades after the 1969 moon landing, we have taken no next step.
In 2009, we can benefit from four more decades of scientific research and technological advancements. Another moon landing and even a journey beyond should not represent the challenges that they seem to do. We continue to act as though we've never tried this before. This nation has lost something. Call it focus. Call it grit and determination. Call it a reality check.
We see how China's energy efficiency programs are catching up to and may soon overtake ours. We see how the current financial crisis reveals the extent to which our country has been living an illusion for close to 30 years. And we see the increasing polarization of our political system, where we are more likely to identify ourselves as Democrats or Republicans than as Americans. Will it really be a surprise if Russia or China reaches the moon, before we do? (8/26)
South Korea: It's Time to Double Efforts to Realize Space Dream (Source: Korea Times)
South Korea took one step closer to space development even though it failed to put a satellite into orbit during its first space rocket launch on Tuesday. To put it simply, it failed in its dream of joining the world's space club. First, we have to admit that the nation has pushed its space program too quickly and recklessly despite its inability to make its own space rocket. The country had to turn to Russia in 2004 to jointly develop the Korea Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV-1). It paid 250 billion won to the space power for the joint project, under which Russia made the main, first-stage rocket while Korea assembled the second-stage rocket and the scientific satellite.
The Korean side had hoped to acquire some core technologies for rocket production from Russia. But the foreign partner has refused to transfer such sensitive technology to Korea. Therefore, the partnership has proved to be nothing but Korea's purchase of the Russian rocket. On the other hand, the Russian side has taken an opportunity to experiment with its next-generation rocket by exploiting the KSLV-1 project. (8/26)
NASA Ames Gets Ready for New Green Building (Source: San Jose Mercury News)
NASA's Ames Research Center is ready to begin construction of what is planned as the greenest building ever built by the federal government, a structure that will use state-of-the-art sensors developed for space missions but also rely on the age-old strategy of opening the window to catch a cool breeze. Christened "Sustainability Base" by NASA in an homage to "Tranquility Base," the site of the first moon landing 40 years ago, the $20.6 million building will begin construction in late September or early October near the gateway to Moffett Field. (8/26)
Managers Mull Options After LCROSS Moon Mission Malfunction (Source: Spaceflight Now)
Officials are hurriedly looking for ways to save fuel on NASA's $79 million lunar impactor mission after a crisis Saturday caused the spacecraft to burn more than half of its remaining propellant. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite used about 140 kilograms, or 309 pounds, of maneuvering fuel to maintain the probe's orientation in space Saturday, according to Dan Andrews, the mission's project manager at Ames Research Center.
LCROSS is tugging a 41-foot-long Centaur rocket stage on a circuitous route through space. Scientists are preparing for a fleeting series of observations as the spent booster is released for a suicidal plunge into the moon on Oct. 9. The 6-foot-tall shepherding spacecraft's attitude control system was specifically designed to handle the unusual job of positioning the 47-foot-long stack as it flies toward the moon. LCROSS is now perilously close to its built-in propellant margins, and the team will probably have to cancel some activities that are not crucial to the mission. (8/26)
August 25 News Items
Soyuz Launch From French Guiana Delayed (Source: Space Daily)
Moscow (AFP) Aug 25, 2009 - The first launch of a Russian Soyuz rocket from the European Space Agency base at Kourou in French Guiana has been postponed until April 2010, Russia's Progress space program said Tuesday. The postponement is due to a delay "linked to a mobile launch pad," the Itar-Tass news agency quoted Progress director Alexander Kirilin as saying. (8/25)
Space Shuttle Launch Scrubbed Again (Source: Florida Today)
NASA has called off the scheduled launch of the space shuttle Discovery because of a broken valve during fueling today. The planned 1:10 a.m. liftoff of the space shuttle and seven astronauts was called off just before 6 p.m. while teams were loading supercold propellants into the external tank. NASA is still trying to understand why the valve was stuck. The engineering work will continue into the evening. NASA has not decided when to try again. (8/25)
Lunar Lander Challenge Competition Winning Attempts Scheduled (Source: Northrop Grumman)
The X PRIZE Foundation announced that three teams have registered to make attempts to win the $1.65 million still available in the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge. The competition is designed to accelerate technological developments supporting the commercial creation of vertical take-off and landing rockets with enhanced safety and performance. The Challenge is divided into two levels. Level 1, requires a rocket to take off from a designated launch area; climb to a low, fixed altitude; and fly for at least 90 seconds before landing precisely on a different landing pad. The flight must then be repeated in reverse. Both flights, along with all of the necessary preparation for each, must take place within a two and a half hour period. Visit http://space.xprize.org/lunar-lander-challenge for information. (8/25)
NASA Budget Outlook Still Uncertain (Source: Space Policy Online)
As everyone anticipates the final report of the Augustine committee, NASA's FY2010 budget awaits action in Congress and the FY2011 budget request is being formulated. Although Congress Daily reported earlier this month that the appropriations bill that includes NASA (Commerce, Justice, Science) could be among the first action items for the Senate when it returns in September, Space News reported today in its print edition that "The White House is expected to submit an amended 2010 budget request for NASA's exploration program by mid-September..." Nothing is impossible, but it would seem odd for the Senate to move an appropriations bill to the floor if an Administration amendment is expected imminently. (8/25)
White House Budget Guidance for FY-2011 Highlights Space (Source: Space Policy Online)
The White House guidance regarding the FY2011 budget formulation process for science and technology specifically notes the importance of the space program. After listing four "practical challenges," the August 4 memo from OMB and OSTP identifies four requirements for addressing them. The fourth is: "Enhancing our capabilities in space, which are essential for communications, geopostioning, intelligence gathering, Earth observation, and national defense, as well as for increasing our understanding of the universe and our place in it." The extent to which the latter goal is dependent on human space exploration rather than robotic is open to interpretation. At the very least, there is no indication that the White House lacks an appreciation of the space program's potential. The question is whether it will provide the money needed to realize it. (8/25)
Skill Shortage Looms for Military Acquisition Expertise (Source: AIA)
As the Pentagon rushes to add 20,000 procurement experts to its payroll, analysts say the task will be complicated by a lack of qualified candidates and fierce competition among various branches of the armed forces. Next year alone, Defense Secretary Robert Gates wants to hire 4,100 systems engineers, logistics specialists, contracting officers and project managers to bring spiraling acquisition costs under control. But AIA Vice President Cord Sterling agrees with many other industry experts in warning that the rapid buildup could have unintended consequences. "The workforce needs to be grown, not acquired," he says. (8/25)
Aerospace Employment to Fall by 4.5% This Year, Study Predicts (Sources: AIA, Reuters)
A new report from AIA and several partners predicts the U.S. aerospace and defense industry will shed some 30,000 jobs in 2009, shrinking by roughly 4.5%. Further job losses are expected through 2010, though overall the industry will fare much better than it did at the end of the Cold War, when payrolls were cut by about 40%. Retirement eligibility was expected to increase from 13 percent this year to 18 percent in 2011 and 20 percent in 2013, compared with just 5.7 percent in 2008. (8/25)
Behind Moon Travel Goal, Big Talk and Little Money (Source: New York Times)
Forty years after it first landed men on the Moon, NASA has little chance of repeating that accomplishment by the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11. Maybe not even by the 60th. Five years after NASA was given a goal of returning to the Moon by 2020, the agency is arriving at an uncomfortable realization — that the American human spaceflight program might not accomplish anything new anytime soon.
“Unless the president is willing to step up and take a bold step like President Kennedy did, the manned spaceflight program is going to go in the ditch,” said Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida. NASA’s current plan is to retire the space shuttles by September of next year after completing construction of the International Space Station, then rely on Russian rockets until a next-generation rocket, the Ares I, is ready in March 2015. The agency would then retire and dispose of the space station in 2016 and use the freed-up money to develop the heavy-lift Ares V rocket, a lunar lander and the technology for building a Moon settlement.
In the last couple of months, the Augustine Panel reached two points of broad consensus. One was that it made little sense to spend 10 years building the space station and then throw it away after only 5 years of operation. The second was at that at present financing levels, about $100 billion for human spaceflight in the decade from 2010 to 2020, the current program was, in the panel’s words, “not executable.” (8/25)
South Korean Launch Places Fails to Deliver Satellite (Source: Telegraph)
South Korea has staged a rocket launch in a move may stir tensions with its neighbour to the north. The launch, which was initially delayed from late July, is likely to rile North Korea, which was sanctioned by the United Nations for its own attempt to launch a rocket earlier this year. North Korean state media said Pyongyang would "closely watch" the reaction of the international community to the launch.
The Naro rocket, partly developed by Russia, was carrying a domestic satellite that was supposed to monitor the atmosphere. But the satellite failed to detach from the rocket and enter an orbit. "All aspects of the launch were normal, but the satellite exceeded its planned orbit and reached an altitude of 223 miles," said Ahn Byong-man, the Science minister. The satellite should have separated at around 187 miles. (8/25)
Weather Scrubs Shuttle Launch, Second Try Tonight (Source: Florida Today)
Rain and lightning forced postponement of the space shuttle launch this morning and could do the same to the 2nd attempt overnight. NASA aims to try again at 1:10 a.m. Wednesday to launch the space shuttle Discovery and seven astronauts on a supply run and crew delivery mission to the International Space Station. The weather forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of acceptable conditions. Yesterday's forecast was for an 80 percent of good launch weather, but conditions deteriorated fast late last night. Lightning and rain storms persisted late into the night and NASA could not get Discovery and the crew off the ground. (8/25)
South Korea Launches Rocket; Satellite Fate Unknown (Source: Space Today)
South Korea launched its first orbital rocket on Tuesday, although the fate of the satellite on board was not immediately clear. The Korea Space Launch Vehicle 1 (KSLV-1) lifted off at 4:00 am EDT Tuesday on its inaugural flight, carrying a small experimental satellite. The satellite was supposed to be placed into a 300-kilometer orbit, but initial reports indicated that the satellite failed to separate on schedule. The reports were not clear whether the satellite was placed in a higher-than-planned orbit or failed to separate from the rocket's upper stage at all. Other aspects of the launch vehicle, which uses a Russian-built first stage, appeared to operate well. The long-postponed launch was previously scheduled for last week but scrubbed minutes before liftoff because of pressurization problem traced back to a software glitch. (8/25)
India to Launch Oceansat-2 in Septembner to Track Marine Life (Source: IBN Live)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to launch Oceansat-2, an exclusive satellite to track marine life and identify potential fishing zones in September. It will also provide inputs for weather forecasting and climate studies. Oceansat-2 will take off on the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota. (8/25)
Florida Group Updates Federal Policy Wish List (Source: Florida Today)
A council of space industry representatives has completed a final draft of its Federal Space Policy Agenda designed to help state officials present a unified front in their campaign to help the space industry. Years of underfunding have left NASA facing a gap in human spaceflight that will begin when the shuttle is retired in 2010 and last well beyond 2015, the committee says.
"Increase the top line budget for NASA to close the gap..." reads the beginning of the draft document approved Monday by the Aerospace Career & Development Council (ACDC). The group's position calls for both extending the shuttle program beyond next year and speeding the development of the next manned rocket system. Planks in the policy also support an educational center of excellence in Florida and legal language to ease enhanced-use leases at Florida spaceports.
The draft approved Monday will be circulated after a final review by the members this week. The council includes industry representatives, government agencies and universities. Its goal is provide a unified vision to help the space industry maintain employment as the shuttle program ends. (8/25)
Group Ponders BRAC-Like Federal Response to Central Florida Job Losses (Source: SPACErePORT)
The Florida Aerospace Career & Development Council (ACDC) on Monday discussed the unavoidable loss of thousands of high-paying space industry jobs. One suggestion raised by the group was to urge a federal response similar to programs enacted in the wake of recent military base closures. The Dept. of Defense and other agencies collaborated to provide economic transition services to communities impacted by base closures. No such services are planned in response to the Space Shuttle program's closure.
The Brevard Workforce agency is exploring the region's eligibility for other federal funding that could be available in response to major economic transitions. Members of the Florida Congressional Delegation are working to obtain funding to support the community's growing need for workforce training, counseling and placement services. (8/25)
Moscow (AFP) Aug 25, 2009 - The first launch of a Russian Soyuz rocket from the European Space Agency base at Kourou in French Guiana has been postponed until April 2010, Russia's Progress space program said Tuesday. The postponement is due to a delay "linked to a mobile launch pad," the Itar-Tass news agency quoted Progress director Alexander Kirilin as saying. (8/25)
Space Shuttle Launch Scrubbed Again (Source: Florida Today)
NASA has called off the scheduled launch of the space shuttle Discovery because of a broken valve during fueling today. The planned 1:10 a.m. liftoff of the space shuttle and seven astronauts was called off just before 6 p.m. while teams were loading supercold propellants into the external tank. NASA is still trying to understand why the valve was stuck. The engineering work will continue into the evening. NASA has not decided when to try again. (8/25)
Lunar Lander Challenge Competition Winning Attempts Scheduled (Source: Northrop Grumman)
The X PRIZE Foundation announced that three teams have registered to make attempts to win the $1.65 million still available in the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge. The competition is designed to accelerate technological developments supporting the commercial creation of vertical take-off and landing rockets with enhanced safety and performance. The Challenge is divided into two levels. Level 1, requires a rocket to take off from a designated launch area; climb to a low, fixed altitude; and fly for at least 90 seconds before landing precisely on a different landing pad. The flight must then be repeated in reverse. Both flights, along with all of the necessary preparation for each, must take place within a two and a half hour period. Visit http://space.xprize.org/lunar-lander-challenge for information. (8/25)
NASA Budget Outlook Still Uncertain (Source: Space Policy Online)
As everyone anticipates the final report of the Augustine committee, NASA's FY2010 budget awaits action in Congress and the FY2011 budget request is being formulated. Although Congress Daily reported earlier this month that the appropriations bill that includes NASA (Commerce, Justice, Science) could be among the first action items for the Senate when it returns in September, Space News reported today in its print edition that "The White House is expected to submit an amended 2010 budget request for NASA's exploration program by mid-September..." Nothing is impossible, but it would seem odd for the Senate to move an appropriations bill to the floor if an Administration amendment is expected imminently. (8/25)
White House Budget Guidance for FY-2011 Highlights Space (Source: Space Policy Online)
The White House guidance regarding the FY2011 budget formulation process for science and technology specifically notes the importance of the space program. After listing four "practical challenges," the August 4 memo from OMB and OSTP identifies four requirements for addressing them. The fourth is: "Enhancing our capabilities in space, which are essential for communications, geopostioning, intelligence gathering, Earth observation, and national defense, as well as for increasing our understanding of the universe and our place in it." The extent to which the latter goal is dependent on human space exploration rather than robotic is open to interpretation. At the very least, there is no indication that the White House lacks an appreciation of the space program's potential. The question is whether it will provide the money needed to realize it. (8/25)
Skill Shortage Looms for Military Acquisition Expertise (Source: AIA)
As the Pentagon rushes to add 20,000 procurement experts to its payroll, analysts say the task will be complicated by a lack of qualified candidates and fierce competition among various branches of the armed forces. Next year alone, Defense Secretary Robert Gates wants to hire 4,100 systems engineers, logistics specialists, contracting officers and project managers to bring spiraling acquisition costs under control. But AIA Vice President Cord Sterling agrees with many other industry experts in warning that the rapid buildup could have unintended consequences. "The workforce needs to be grown, not acquired," he says. (8/25)
Aerospace Employment to Fall by 4.5% This Year, Study Predicts (Sources: AIA, Reuters)
A new report from AIA and several partners predicts the U.S. aerospace and defense industry will shed some 30,000 jobs in 2009, shrinking by roughly 4.5%. Further job losses are expected through 2010, though overall the industry will fare much better than it did at the end of the Cold War, when payrolls were cut by about 40%. Retirement eligibility was expected to increase from 13 percent this year to 18 percent in 2011 and 20 percent in 2013, compared with just 5.7 percent in 2008. (8/25)
Behind Moon Travel Goal, Big Talk and Little Money (Source: New York Times)
Forty years after it first landed men on the Moon, NASA has little chance of repeating that accomplishment by the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11. Maybe not even by the 60th. Five years after NASA was given a goal of returning to the Moon by 2020, the agency is arriving at an uncomfortable realization — that the American human spaceflight program might not accomplish anything new anytime soon.
“Unless the president is willing to step up and take a bold step like President Kennedy did, the manned spaceflight program is going to go in the ditch,” said Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida. NASA’s current plan is to retire the space shuttles by September of next year after completing construction of the International Space Station, then rely on Russian rockets until a next-generation rocket, the Ares I, is ready in March 2015. The agency would then retire and dispose of the space station in 2016 and use the freed-up money to develop the heavy-lift Ares V rocket, a lunar lander and the technology for building a Moon settlement.
In the last couple of months, the Augustine Panel reached two points of broad consensus. One was that it made little sense to spend 10 years building the space station and then throw it away after only 5 years of operation. The second was at that at present financing levels, about $100 billion for human spaceflight in the decade from 2010 to 2020, the current program was, in the panel’s words, “not executable.” (8/25)
South Korean Launch Places Fails to Deliver Satellite (Source: Telegraph)
South Korea has staged a rocket launch in a move may stir tensions with its neighbour to the north. The launch, which was initially delayed from late July, is likely to rile North Korea, which was sanctioned by the United Nations for its own attempt to launch a rocket earlier this year. North Korean state media said Pyongyang would "closely watch" the reaction of the international community to the launch.
The Naro rocket, partly developed by Russia, was carrying a domestic satellite that was supposed to monitor the atmosphere. But the satellite failed to detach from the rocket and enter an orbit. "All aspects of the launch were normal, but the satellite exceeded its planned orbit and reached an altitude of 223 miles," said Ahn Byong-man, the Science minister. The satellite should have separated at around 187 miles. (8/25)
Weather Scrubs Shuttle Launch, Second Try Tonight (Source: Florida Today)
Rain and lightning forced postponement of the space shuttle launch this morning and could do the same to the 2nd attempt overnight. NASA aims to try again at 1:10 a.m. Wednesday to launch the space shuttle Discovery and seven astronauts on a supply run and crew delivery mission to the International Space Station. The weather forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of acceptable conditions. Yesterday's forecast was for an 80 percent of good launch weather, but conditions deteriorated fast late last night. Lightning and rain storms persisted late into the night and NASA could not get Discovery and the crew off the ground. (8/25)
South Korea Launches Rocket; Satellite Fate Unknown (Source: Space Today)
South Korea launched its first orbital rocket on Tuesday, although the fate of the satellite on board was not immediately clear. The Korea Space Launch Vehicle 1 (KSLV-1) lifted off at 4:00 am EDT Tuesday on its inaugural flight, carrying a small experimental satellite. The satellite was supposed to be placed into a 300-kilometer orbit, but initial reports indicated that the satellite failed to separate on schedule. The reports were not clear whether the satellite was placed in a higher-than-planned orbit or failed to separate from the rocket's upper stage at all. Other aspects of the launch vehicle, which uses a Russian-built first stage, appeared to operate well. The long-postponed launch was previously scheduled for last week but scrubbed minutes before liftoff because of pressurization problem traced back to a software glitch. (8/25)
India to Launch Oceansat-2 in Septembner to Track Marine Life (Source: IBN Live)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to launch Oceansat-2, an exclusive satellite to track marine life and identify potential fishing zones in September. It will also provide inputs for weather forecasting and climate studies. Oceansat-2 will take off on the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota. (8/25)
Florida Group Updates Federal Policy Wish List (Source: Florida Today)
A council of space industry representatives has completed a final draft of its Federal Space Policy Agenda designed to help state officials present a unified front in their campaign to help the space industry. Years of underfunding have left NASA facing a gap in human spaceflight that will begin when the shuttle is retired in 2010 and last well beyond 2015, the committee says.
"Increase the top line budget for NASA to close the gap..." reads the beginning of the draft document approved Monday by the Aerospace Career & Development Council (ACDC). The group's position calls for both extending the shuttle program beyond next year and speeding the development of the next manned rocket system. Planks in the policy also support an educational center of excellence in Florida and legal language to ease enhanced-use leases at Florida spaceports.
The draft approved Monday will be circulated after a final review by the members this week. The council includes industry representatives, government agencies and universities. Its goal is provide a unified vision to help the space industry maintain employment as the shuttle program ends. (8/25)
Group Ponders BRAC-Like Federal Response to Central Florida Job Losses (Source: SPACErePORT)
The Florida Aerospace Career & Development Council (ACDC) on Monday discussed the unavoidable loss of thousands of high-paying space industry jobs. One suggestion raised by the group was to urge a federal response similar to programs enacted in the wake of recent military base closures. The Dept. of Defense and other agencies collaborated to provide economic transition services to communities impacted by base closures. No such services are planned in response to the Space Shuttle program's closure.
The Brevard Workforce agency is exploring the region's eligibility for other federal funding that could be available in response to major economic transitions. Members of the Florida Congressional Delegation are working to obtain funding to support the community's growing need for workforce training, counseling and placement services. (8/25)
August 24 News Items
SpaceX Making Steady Progress on Falcon-9 (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com)
SpaceX continues to plan to debut the new Falcon 9 rocket by the end of this year, but company engineers are still qualifying some parts of the vehicle for the rigors of launch. "We're not down to an exact date, but we are targeting the end of the year. And so far, so good," said Tim Buzza, SpaceX's vice president of launch operations. Everything should be qualified for flight in about two months, Buzza said.
Company officials are careful to point out the Falcon-9 uses similar technology to the smaller Falcon-1, but the new launcher is more than twice as tall and 25 times more powerful than anything SpaceX has flown before. Pieces of the first Falcon-9 are stopping at the company's Texas test facility on the trek from California to the launch site in Florida. "We're focusing on those first two flights and getting all that hardware moving from Hawthorne through Texas to the Cape," Buzza said. (8/24)
Coping With the Closing (Source: Space Review)
Space enthusiasts have coped with the relative lack of progress in the four decades since humans first walked on the Moon in varying ways. John Hickman describes these various approaches and how they can pose obstacles to the future. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1452/1 to view the article. (8/24)
Still on the Ground Floor (Source: Space Review)
Several years ago there was renewed interest in the concept of the space elevator, but that enthusiasm has yet to translate into major progress. Jeff Foust reports on a recent conference where the space elevator community took stock of the current situation and made plans to forge ahead. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1451/1 to view the article. (8/24)
PAN's Labyrinth (Source: Space Review)
An Atlas 5 is scheduled to launch next month a mysterious satellite identified only as PAN. Dwayne Day sheds a little more light on this spacecraft and its possible mission. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1450/1 to view the article. (8/24)
U.S. State Department Comments on North Korea's Concerns Over South Korean Launch (Source: US State Dept.)
A State Department spokesman gave the following comments in response to media questions about North Korea's concern that South Korea's space launch was not receiving the same kind of international scrutiny directed at North Korea's recent rocket launch activity... "The South Koreans have developed their program in a very open and transparent way and in keeping with the international agreements that they have signed onto. This is in stark contrast to the example set by North Korea, which has not abided by its international agreements." (8/24)
Using Existing Rockets Could Save Taxpayers Cash (Source: Florida Today)
The Atlas V and Delta IV rockets were designed, built and launched by private companies. But they're far from privately developed rockets. You and I and other taxpayers will have spent at least $30 billion on Boeing's Delta IV and Lockheed Martin's Atlas V over the rockets' lifetimes, more than double what the companies and military leaders told Congress it would cost. So, it could be a good thing for taxpayers if the government adds work to America's underutilized existing rocket fleet rather than continuing to spend billions more dollars developing a new rocket that is destined to end up over budget and years behind schedule.
The story of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles is like most other big government space projects, whether run by NASA or the Defense Department. They almost always end up less capable than planned, more expensive than advertised and reaching space years late. In the beginning, taxpayers were to invest just $1 billion in the development of the two new rockets. Boeing and Lockheed were to pick up the rest of the tab, and then sell launches of military, science and spy satellites back to the government at a cheaper rate. Taxpayers would save up to $10 billion over the life of the program compared to past launcher programs. (8/24)
ESA Proceeds with Advanced Re-Entry to Evolve to Human Capsule for Space Access (Source: ESA)
The European Advanced Reentry Vehicle is proceeding through the development cycle. It is based on an evolution of the ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which has shown its capabilities for logistics supply to the International Space Station. ARV would provide ESA with the means of undertaking complete space transportation missions, from launch to landing, using the International Space Station (ISS) as its initial destination. Launched on an Ariane 5, the ARV would have a forward section to return payloads to Earth. This concept could then be used as a basis for a human space transportation vehicle. (8/24)
ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) Being Prepared for 2012 Test (Source: ESA)
In 2012, Europe's new Vega launch vehicle will carry ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle into space. The vehicle will then return to Earth to test a range of enabling systems and technologies for atmospheric re-entry. Vega is targeting a market for small satellite launches. (8/24)
Bring Your Questions for Buzz Aldrin (Source: NYT Freakonomics)
On Saturday, Buzz Aldrin became the first astronaut to accept an Emmy award. Aldrin has agreed to take your questions — about NASA, walking on the moon, the value to society of space exploration, or anything else you can conjure — so ask away in the comments section below. As with all Q&A’s, we will post his answers here in a few days. Click here to participate in the conversation. (8/24)
Ares I-X Launch Defended As Important For Any Rocket Program (Source: Florida Today)
NASA is readying the world's tallest rocket for rollout at Kennedy Space Center and officials are confident the Ares I-X will fly no matter what course the Obama Administration charts for the agency. NASA officials stated that the data is applicable to any rocket, not just the Ares I. NASA Ares I-X mission manager Bob Ess said, "We have a very high confidence level that the Ares I-X is germane to NASA. Period. No caveats." Even with "looming uncertainty," Ess stated that his team is "totally focused" on the launch. Ess said the assembly of the rocket was a test in and of itself. A team of just 30 launch controllers -- compared to 200 for space shuttle operations -- will conduct the Ares I-X countdown. (8/24)
NASA Budget Changes Pending Decisions on Alternatives (Source: Space News)
Obama is not expected to significantly boost the projected funding profile for NASA's manned spaceflight program...according to sources with ties to the administration. Instead, officials are scrubbing NASA's 2010 budget proposal, and the assumptions made by the Augustine Panel, for potential cost savings over the next decade. Some sources familiar with the administration's thinking say the agency should not expect any more than an extra $1 billion for manned exploration. Even though the future of Orion and Ares 1 remain uncertain, sources close to the administration say the latter is likely to meet the budget ax in favor of an alternative launcher. Likewise, Orion could be vulnerable if a safe, reliable commercial option for crew transport to the space station could be quickly developed. (8/24)
Political Fight Looms Over Commercialization of Space (Source: AIA)
Private companies are hailing "a much more free-market approach" to space exploration as federal budget shortfalls require a rethinking of NASA's role. A number of companies, including United Launch Alliance and SpaceX, are rushing to build workhorse rockets that NASA can use on a contract basis, freeing the space agency to focus its spending elsewhere. But shifting to commercial contracts would likely spark a backlash on Capitol Hill as lawmakers fight to keep NASA jobs for their districts. (8/24)
Start-Ups Are Poised For Latest Space Race (Source: Wall Street Journal)
In America's latest space race, a new breed of scrappy entrepreneurs could be facing off against some of the government's largest, long-established aerospace contractors. The scale and nature of sending this type of work to private contractors, unheard of in the history of NASA, could help the administration cope with an increasingly dire budget situation and fill crucial gaps in its program. SpaceX, a trailblazer in this commercial space arena, hopes the initial launch of its Falcon 9 heavy-lift rocket will happen by early 2010. They are lobbying Congress and urging the White House to come up with financial support for the rocket.
"At the end of the day," said Larry Williams, the company's point man in Washington, "a commercial approach requires industry to share the development investment risk" but also permits greater rewards by selling the technology to other customers. "It's a much more free-market approach." Other smaller industry players and various start-up firms are also bound to compete for the new business, which is slated to go into operation around the middle of the next decade. Also poised to jump into the commercial-services market is United Launch Alliance, a Boeing / Lockheed Martin joint venture that already launches nearly all of the Pentagon's larger satellites. (8/24)
UCF Professor Joins Spaceflight Research Group (Source: Central Florida Future)
An associate professor of planetary science at UCF was recently appointed to a prestigious research and development group that specializes in space vehicles. Josh Colwell joined the Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s Suborbital Applications Researchers Group in August. He will serve on a panel with other professionals from universities such as John Hopkins University, Purdue University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology specializing in microgravity physics. Each professor brings his own expertise and experience to the panel. Where Colwell specializes in microgravity physics, other professors specialize in areas like atmospheric sciences, space life sciences and aerospace engineering. (8/24)
Joseph Smith's Mormon Teachings Equate with Modern Cosmology (Source: Mormon Times)
When the Big Bang theory emerged around 1930, Joseph Smith's views of the universe didn't look good from a scientific perspective, according to a former NASA physicist. But times, and the climate of cosmology, have changed. Ron Hellings, a believing Latter-day Saint who earned a doctorate in physics and spent 25 years as a research scientist at NASA, is well-aware of the contradictions and uncertainty out there. "In the last 20 years, we have learned so much about the universe that we are now mystified and profoundly confused," Hellings said. "This is no time for anyone to criticize anyone else's beliefs based on what cosmologists know."
That applies to the Mormon Prophet, whom Hellings is convinced knew something about the cosmos and did his best with the language at his disposal. During a presentation at the Mormon Apologetics Conference titled "Joseph Smith and Modern Cosmology," Hellings explored teachings of the Prophet that have "cosmic implications" and analyzed them against the backdrop of science. He detailed the evolving understanding of the universe and how we arrived at an exciting but "very confusing" time in the world of cosmology.
Hellings put particular emphasis on Doctrine and Covenants 131:7, which states, "There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure." He emphasized that the Prophet expressed his learning in his own words -- not those of a future scientist. "I believe that it's true that Joseph Smith knew something about the cosmos, and that he tried to explain it to the Saints in the language that he had at his command." Translated into more modern terminology, Hellings concluded that the Prophet's views on the cosmos comprise the following points: matter-energy is conserved, everything is matter-energy, and the universe is infinite and eternal. (8/24)
NASA Should Keep its Commitment to the international Space Station (Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
The presidential panel reviewing the U.S. manned space program had tough choices to make. But there's at least one choice that didn't call for a rocket scientist. Namely, NASA should follow the panel's recommendation and keep its commitment to the international space station at least to 2020, four years longer than the cutoff date called for under the agency's current budget plan. What's the point of pulling the plug in 2016 on a project that took more than 10 years and $100 billion to build just a few years after it's finished? Why give up so soon on this vehicle for research and international cooperation among more than a dozen nations? It was only a few months ago that the station was finally ready to upgrade to a six-member crew, giving it enough manpower to begin fulfilling its research potential. (8/24)
World's Tallest Rocket Readied For Test Flight (Source: Florida Today)
NASA is readying the world's tallest rocket for rollout at Kennedy Space Center and officials are confident the Ares I-X will fly no matter what course the Obama Administration charts for the agency. Standing 327 feet tall in NASA's 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building, the super-sized rocket is about 15 stories taller than a NASA space shuttle. It is scheduled to roll out to launch pad 39B on Oct. 26 and then launch five days later. (8/24)
SpaceX continues to plan to debut the new Falcon 9 rocket by the end of this year, but company engineers are still qualifying some parts of the vehicle for the rigors of launch. "We're not down to an exact date, but we are targeting the end of the year. And so far, so good," said Tim Buzza, SpaceX's vice president of launch operations. Everything should be qualified for flight in about two months, Buzza said.
Company officials are careful to point out the Falcon-9 uses similar technology to the smaller Falcon-1, but the new launcher is more than twice as tall and 25 times more powerful than anything SpaceX has flown before. Pieces of the first Falcon-9 are stopping at the company's Texas test facility on the trek from California to the launch site in Florida. "We're focusing on those first two flights and getting all that hardware moving from Hawthorne through Texas to the Cape," Buzza said. (8/24)
Coping With the Closing (Source: Space Review)
Space enthusiasts have coped with the relative lack of progress in the four decades since humans first walked on the Moon in varying ways. John Hickman describes these various approaches and how they can pose obstacles to the future. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1452/1 to view the article. (8/24)
Still on the Ground Floor (Source: Space Review)
Several years ago there was renewed interest in the concept of the space elevator, but that enthusiasm has yet to translate into major progress. Jeff Foust reports on a recent conference where the space elevator community took stock of the current situation and made plans to forge ahead. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1451/1 to view the article. (8/24)
PAN's Labyrinth (Source: Space Review)
An Atlas 5 is scheduled to launch next month a mysterious satellite identified only as PAN. Dwayne Day sheds a little more light on this spacecraft and its possible mission. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1450/1 to view the article. (8/24)
U.S. State Department Comments on North Korea's Concerns Over South Korean Launch (Source: US State Dept.)
A State Department spokesman gave the following comments in response to media questions about North Korea's concern that South Korea's space launch was not receiving the same kind of international scrutiny directed at North Korea's recent rocket launch activity... "The South Koreans have developed their program in a very open and transparent way and in keeping with the international agreements that they have signed onto. This is in stark contrast to the example set by North Korea, which has not abided by its international agreements." (8/24)
Using Existing Rockets Could Save Taxpayers Cash (Source: Florida Today)
The Atlas V and Delta IV rockets were designed, built and launched by private companies. But they're far from privately developed rockets. You and I and other taxpayers will have spent at least $30 billion on Boeing's Delta IV and Lockheed Martin's Atlas V over the rockets' lifetimes, more than double what the companies and military leaders told Congress it would cost. So, it could be a good thing for taxpayers if the government adds work to America's underutilized existing rocket fleet rather than continuing to spend billions more dollars developing a new rocket that is destined to end up over budget and years behind schedule.
The story of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles is like most other big government space projects, whether run by NASA or the Defense Department. They almost always end up less capable than planned, more expensive than advertised and reaching space years late. In the beginning, taxpayers were to invest just $1 billion in the development of the two new rockets. Boeing and Lockheed were to pick up the rest of the tab, and then sell launches of military, science and spy satellites back to the government at a cheaper rate. Taxpayers would save up to $10 billion over the life of the program compared to past launcher programs. (8/24)
ESA Proceeds with Advanced Re-Entry to Evolve to Human Capsule for Space Access (Source: ESA)
The European Advanced Reentry Vehicle is proceeding through the development cycle. It is based on an evolution of the ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which has shown its capabilities for logistics supply to the International Space Station. ARV would provide ESA with the means of undertaking complete space transportation missions, from launch to landing, using the International Space Station (ISS) as its initial destination. Launched on an Ariane 5, the ARV would have a forward section to return payloads to Earth. This concept could then be used as a basis for a human space transportation vehicle. (8/24)
ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) Being Prepared for 2012 Test (Source: ESA)
In 2012, Europe's new Vega launch vehicle will carry ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle into space. The vehicle will then return to Earth to test a range of enabling systems and technologies for atmospheric re-entry. Vega is targeting a market for small satellite launches. (8/24)
Bring Your Questions for Buzz Aldrin (Source: NYT Freakonomics)
On Saturday, Buzz Aldrin became the first astronaut to accept an Emmy award. Aldrin has agreed to take your questions — about NASA, walking on the moon, the value to society of space exploration, or anything else you can conjure — so ask away in the comments section below. As with all Q&A’s, we will post his answers here in a few days. Click here to participate in the conversation. (8/24)
Ares I-X Launch Defended As Important For Any Rocket Program (Source: Florida Today)
NASA is readying the world's tallest rocket for rollout at Kennedy Space Center and officials are confident the Ares I-X will fly no matter what course the Obama Administration charts for the agency. NASA officials stated that the data is applicable to any rocket, not just the Ares I. NASA Ares I-X mission manager Bob Ess said, "We have a very high confidence level that the Ares I-X is germane to NASA. Period. No caveats." Even with "looming uncertainty," Ess stated that his team is "totally focused" on the launch. Ess said the assembly of the rocket was a test in and of itself. A team of just 30 launch controllers -- compared to 200 for space shuttle operations -- will conduct the Ares I-X countdown. (8/24)
NASA Budget Changes Pending Decisions on Alternatives (Source: Space News)
Obama is not expected to significantly boost the projected funding profile for NASA's manned spaceflight program...according to sources with ties to the administration. Instead, officials are scrubbing NASA's 2010 budget proposal, and the assumptions made by the Augustine Panel, for potential cost savings over the next decade. Some sources familiar with the administration's thinking say the agency should not expect any more than an extra $1 billion for manned exploration. Even though the future of Orion and Ares 1 remain uncertain, sources close to the administration say the latter is likely to meet the budget ax in favor of an alternative launcher. Likewise, Orion could be vulnerable if a safe, reliable commercial option for crew transport to the space station could be quickly developed. (8/24)
Political Fight Looms Over Commercialization of Space (Source: AIA)
Private companies are hailing "a much more free-market approach" to space exploration as federal budget shortfalls require a rethinking of NASA's role. A number of companies, including United Launch Alliance and SpaceX, are rushing to build workhorse rockets that NASA can use on a contract basis, freeing the space agency to focus its spending elsewhere. But shifting to commercial contracts would likely spark a backlash on Capitol Hill as lawmakers fight to keep NASA jobs for their districts. (8/24)
Start-Ups Are Poised For Latest Space Race (Source: Wall Street Journal)
In America's latest space race, a new breed of scrappy entrepreneurs could be facing off against some of the government's largest, long-established aerospace contractors. The scale and nature of sending this type of work to private contractors, unheard of in the history of NASA, could help the administration cope with an increasingly dire budget situation and fill crucial gaps in its program. SpaceX, a trailblazer in this commercial space arena, hopes the initial launch of its Falcon 9 heavy-lift rocket will happen by early 2010. They are lobbying Congress and urging the White House to come up with financial support for the rocket.
"At the end of the day," said Larry Williams, the company's point man in Washington, "a commercial approach requires industry to share the development investment risk" but also permits greater rewards by selling the technology to other customers. "It's a much more free-market approach." Other smaller industry players and various start-up firms are also bound to compete for the new business, which is slated to go into operation around the middle of the next decade. Also poised to jump into the commercial-services market is United Launch Alliance, a Boeing / Lockheed Martin joint venture that already launches nearly all of the Pentagon's larger satellites. (8/24)
UCF Professor Joins Spaceflight Research Group (Source: Central Florida Future)
An associate professor of planetary science at UCF was recently appointed to a prestigious research and development group that specializes in space vehicles. Josh Colwell joined the Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s Suborbital Applications Researchers Group in August. He will serve on a panel with other professionals from universities such as John Hopkins University, Purdue University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology specializing in microgravity physics. Each professor brings his own expertise and experience to the panel. Where Colwell specializes in microgravity physics, other professors specialize in areas like atmospheric sciences, space life sciences and aerospace engineering. (8/24)
Joseph Smith's Mormon Teachings Equate with Modern Cosmology (Source: Mormon Times)
When the Big Bang theory emerged around 1930, Joseph Smith's views of the universe didn't look good from a scientific perspective, according to a former NASA physicist. But times, and the climate of cosmology, have changed. Ron Hellings, a believing Latter-day Saint who earned a doctorate in physics and spent 25 years as a research scientist at NASA, is well-aware of the contradictions and uncertainty out there. "In the last 20 years, we have learned so much about the universe that we are now mystified and profoundly confused," Hellings said. "This is no time for anyone to criticize anyone else's beliefs based on what cosmologists know."
That applies to the Mormon Prophet, whom Hellings is convinced knew something about the cosmos and did his best with the language at his disposal. During a presentation at the Mormon Apologetics Conference titled "Joseph Smith and Modern Cosmology," Hellings explored teachings of the Prophet that have "cosmic implications" and analyzed them against the backdrop of science. He detailed the evolving understanding of the universe and how we arrived at an exciting but "very confusing" time in the world of cosmology.
Hellings put particular emphasis on Doctrine and Covenants 131:7, which states, "There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure." He emphasized that the Prophet expressed his learning in his own words -- not those of a future scientist. "I believe that it's true that Joseph Smith knew something about the cosmos, and that he tried to explain it to the Saints in the language that he had at his command." Translated into more modern terminology, Hellings concluded that the Prophet's views on the cosmos comprise the following points: matter-energy is conserved, everything is matter-energy, and the universe is infinite and eternal. (8/24)
NASA Should Keep its Commitment to the international Space Station (Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
The presidential panel reviewing the U.S. manned space program had tough choices to make. But there's at least one choice that didn't call for a rocket scientist. Namely, NASA should follow the panel's recommendation and keep its commitment to the international space station at least to 2020, four years longer than the cutoff date called for under the agency's current budget plan. What's the point of pulling the plug in 2016 on a project that took more than 10 years and $100 billion to build just a few years after it's finished? Why give up so soon on this vehicle for research and international cooperation among more than a dozen nations? It was only a few months ago that the station was finally ready to upgrade to a six-member crew, giving it enough manpower to begin fulfilling its research potential. (8/24)
World's Tallest Rocket Readied For Test Flight (Source: Florida Today)
NASA is readying the world's tallest rocket for rollout at Kennedy Space Center and officials are confident the Ares I-X will fly no matter what course the Obama Administration charts for the agency. Standing 327 feet tall in NASA's 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building, the super-sized rocket is about 15 stories taller than a NASA space shuttle. It is scheduled to roll out to launch pad 39B on Oct. 26 and then launch five days later. (8/24)
August 23 News Items
The Concepts and Billions of Dollars Were There, So What Happened? Is Ares Next? (Source: Huntsville Times)
The American space program has no set goals, faces changing priorities and has axed multi-billion dollar projects every few years. A few examples: NASA spent $4 billion on an advanced solid rocket motor, but killed the program in 1994. The X-33 space plane concept cost $2 billion and disappeared from the drawing board in 2001. The Aerospike engine cost $1 billion but was also spiked in 2001. The RS-84 engine development project sputtered out in 2004 after $100 million was spent. Plans for the Orbital Space Plane, a shuttle replacement, were permanently docked in 2004 after spending $2 billion.
This drift wastes money and time - resources that may be in short supply for NASA in the future, experts say. "NASA really has that problem of no follow-up these days," said Don Nelson, who worked for more than 35 years for the space agency at Johnson Space Center in Houston, and closely with Marshall Space Flight Center on space shuttle projects. "The military is not quite as bad. They have their own special technology lab - Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) - that goes in and develops technology and the Pentagon uses it. "NASA just doesn't have that." (8/23)
NASA's Fate is Now Obama's Quandary (Source: Florida Today)
Significant job losses will come to Kennedy Space Center no matter what course President Barack Obama chooses for NASA after reviewing options from the Augustine Panel. An estimated 1,500 or more jobs likely will be lost, even if Obama decides to keep the shuttles flying through 2015. And U.S. astronauts won't fly beyond the International Space Station and Earth's orbit until the 2020s at best -- and possibly much later. Under all but one of the options still on the table, the shuttle fleet would be retired as planned in 2011. The resulting job losses are estimated at 3,500 to 7,000 at KSC alone. That doesn't account for indirect job losses for area businesses that depend on a busy spaceport.
Under every scenario, even those requiring Obama to invest billions of dollars more per year in NASA, American astronauts wouldn't venture beyond the space station and low Earth orbit before the end of the next decade. That includes NASA's current plan, which calls for a human moon mission by 2020. The panel said it's unlikely to happen until 2021 at best and maybe 2028. Almost all the options involve extending the use of the space station to 2020, possibly preserving a small number of payload-processing jobs at KSC. Click here to view the article. (8/23)
What's a Grown-Up Reason for our Space Program? (Source: Staunton (VA) News Leader)
Why does it seem that no one has the guts to criticize the billions — no, hundreds of billions — of dollars this country has wasted on rockets, shuttles, space stations and other space toys?! How does learning how to filter and then drink one's own urine while in outer space help me pay my rent or feed my children?
The space program is, and has been for a very, very long time, the biggest waste of tax dollars in the federal budget. Why does no one ever scream about that? Why must I hear "Patty Ann" announce news about the latest space junk (or shuttle, whichever you prefer) during a news break on the Glenn Beck show, but I never hear a peep from Mr. Beck about what an obscene waste of money this national hobby is? Is he afraid to attack this one? Has he been bought off by the "space lobby"?
Tell me ... what exactly does the space program accomplish that could not have been accomplished by private investors twice as fast and for half the money? No, check that — for one quarter the money? What makes this particular wasteful bureaucracy different? Why is it such a sacred cow? I contend the reason is quite simple ... embarrassingly simple, in fact. NASA is exempted from public criticism and massive budget cuts because too many grown men are really just little boys pretending to be all grown up. They love the space program for the same reason they love to drive big trucks and shoot guns — because each of these things fulfills a childhood urge. (8/23)
The American space program has no set goals, faces changing priorities and has axed multi-billion dollar projects every few years. A few examples: NASA spent $4 billion on an advanced solid rocket motor, but killed the program in 1994. The X-33 space plane concept cost $2 billion and disappeared from the drawing board in 2001. The Aerospike engine cost $1 billion but was also spiked in 2001. The RS-84 engine development project sputtered out in 2004 after $100 million was spent. Plans for the Orbital Space Plane, a shuttle replacement, were permanently docked in 2004 after spending $2 billion.
This drift wastes money and time - resources that may be in short supply for NASA in the future, experts say. "NASA really has that problem of no follow-up these days," said Don Nelson, who worked for more than 35 years for the space agency at Johnson Space Center in Houston, and closely with Marshall Space Flight Center on space shuttle projects. "The military is not quite as bad. They have their own special technology lab - Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) - that goes in and develops technology and the Pentagon uses it. "NASA just doesn't have that." (8/23)
NASA's Fate is Now Obama's Quandary (Source: Florida Today)
Significant job losses will come to Kennedy Space Center no matter what course President Barack Obama chooses for NASA after reviewing options from the Augustine Panel. An estimated 1,500 or more jobs likely will be lost, even if Obama decides to keep the shuttles flying through 2015. And U.S. astronauts won't fly beyond the International Space Station and Earth's orbit until the 2020s at best -- and possibly much later. Under all but one of the options still on the table, the shuttle fleet would be retired as planned in 2011. The resulting job losses are estimated at 3,500 to 7,000 at KSC alone. That doesn't account for indirect job losses for area businesses that depend on a busy spaceport.
Under every scenario, even those requiring Obama to invest billions of dollars more per year in NASA, American astronauts wouldn't venture beyond the space station and low Earth orbit before the end of the next decade. That includes NASA's current plan, which calls for a human moon mission by 2020. The panel said it's unlikely to happen until 2021 at best and maybe 2028. Almost all the options involve extending the use of the space station to 2020, possibly preserving a small number of payload-processing jobs at KSC. Click here to view the article. (8/23)
What's a Grown-Up Reason for our Space Program? (Source: Staunton (VA) News Leader)
Why does it seem that no one has the guts to criticize the billions — no, hundreds of billions — of dollars this country has wasted on rockets, shuttles, space stations and other space toys?! How does learning how to filter and then drink one's own urine while in outer space help me pay my rent or feed my children?
The space program is, and has been for a very, very long time, the biggest waste of tax dollars in the federal budget. Why does no one ever scream about that? Why must I hear "Patty Ann" announce news about the latest space junk (or shuttle, whichever you prefer) during a news break on the Glenn Beck show, but I never hear a peep from Mr. Beck about what an obscene waste of money this national hobby is? Is he afraid to attack this one? Has he been bought off by the "space lobby"?
Tell me ... what exactly does the space program accomplish that could not have been accomplished by private investors twice as fast and for half the money? No, check that — for one quarter the money? What makes this particular wasteful bureaucracy different? Why is it such a sacred cow? I contend the reason is quite simple ... embarrassingly simple, in fact. NASA is exempted from public criticism and massive budget cuts because too many grown men are really just little boys pretending to be all grown up. They love the space program for the same reason they love to drive big trucks and shoot guns — because each of these things fulfills a childhood urge. (8/23)
August 22 News Items
White House Expected to Amend 2010 NASA Budget Request (Source: Space News)
"I think the budget constrictions created by the fiscal 2010 budget are forcing the Augustine Committee toward approaches with a great deal of new risk," said Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at the George Washington University here... The White House is expected to submit an amended 2010 budget request for NASA's exploration program by mid-September, according to sources with ties to the administration. Political watchers note that activity in the Senate — which has yet to pass a NASA appropriations bill this year — likely will be dominated by health care reform in the coming weeks. (8/22)
NGA Keeps U.S. Imagery Firms Optimistic in Tough Economy (Source: Space News)
The two U.S.-based commercial satellite imagery providers presented bullish forecasts of their near-term business, saying the appetite for imagery on the part of their biggest customer, the U.S. government, is not slackening in the poor economy and may pick up. GeoEye Inc. and DigitalGlobe also reaffirmed that neither would start building new high-resolution optical Earth imaging spacecraft until the U.S. government signals it is willing to guarantee future data purchases or help pay for the satellites' construction — or perhaps both. (8/22)
Lockheed Takes Control of Orion Launch Abort Motor (Source: Space News)
Hoping to avoid further delays to the first flight test of NASA's Orion crew capsule, prime contractor Lockheed Martin has wrested management of the spacecraft's Launch Abort System steering motor from subcontractor Orbital Sciences Corp., according to industry sources familiar with the program. Orion's Pad Abort 1 flight test, originally planned for Sep. 2008 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., and now scheduled for late January at the earliest, is intended to demonstrate the capsule's emergency Launch Abort System (LAS). NASA officials say the first Pad Abort test has been delayed several times, due in part to technical problems with the abort system's attitude control motor, being developed by ATK under Orbital's management. Orbital has overall responsibility for the LAS. (8/22)
Missile Defense Agency Eyes Small Tracking Sats (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency in October will begin developing an acquisition strategy for a constellation of missile tracking satellites that will be smaller and more responsive than a pair of demonstration satellites slated to launch in September, the agency's director said Aug. 19. (8/22)
War Game Shows Need for Better Space Surveillance (Source: Space News)
Recent recent war games that simulated a 2019 conflict in space highlighted the United States' need for improved space situational awareness and closer cooperation with commercial satellite operators, a U.S. Air Force official said. During the Schreiver War Games 5 held at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., in April, a sophisticated spacefaring nation was able to deny the United States of many of its space capabilities, Air Force Lt. Gen. Larry James, commander of the 14th Air Force, said during a speech at the Space and Missile Defense Conference in Huntsville, Ala. (8/22)
Aerospace Workers Lose as U.S. Priorities Change (Source: Denver Business Journal)
Aerospace companies deal with complex equations every day, but some industry math is simple. Such as: Less money for projects equals fewer people building rockets and satellites. Two of the Denver-area’s biggest aerospace employers, United Launch Alliance (ULA) and Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., announced job cuts this summer, affecting hundreds of local employees. The cuts reflect expected slowdowns in government spending on specific projects, not the beginnings of a contraction for an industry that has largely been immune to the recession so far, experts say. (8/22)
Ariane Launches Two Satellites (Source: SpaceToday.net)
An Ariane 5 rocket successfully launched a pair of communications satellites Friday night. The Ariane 5 ECA lifted off from Kourou, French Guiana and placed the the JCSAT-12 and Optus D3 satellites into geosynchronous transfer orbits about a half-hour later. JCSAT-12, a Lockheed Martin A2100AX satellite, weighed 4,000 kilograms at launch and carries 30 Ku-band and 12 C-band transponders. Its owner, Japanese operator SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation, will use the satellite as an in-orbit backup for its existing fleet of satellite in GEO. Optus D3, an Orbital Sciences Star-2 model satellite, weighed about 2,500 kilograms at launch and carries 32 Ku-band transponders. (8/22)
NASA May Outsource Amid Budget Woes (Source: Wall Street Journal)
For the first time since the advent of manned space exploration, the U.S. appears ready to outsource to private companies everything from transporting astronauts to ferrying cargo into orbit. Proposals gaining momentum in Washington call for contractors to build and run competing systems under commercial contracts, according to federal officials, aerospace-industry officials and others familiar with the discussions.
Responding to questions, on Saturday the White House press office said the President "has confirmed his commitment to human space exploration" and is reviewing various options. "But at the end of the day, the President will make the decision, not a committee." In the face of severe federal budget constraints and a burgeoning commercial-space industry eager to play a larger role in exploring the solar system and perhaps beyond, these people said, a consensus for the new approach seems to be building inside the White House as well as NASA.
Under this scenario, a new breed of contractors would take over many of NASA's current responsibilities, freeing the agency to pursue longer-term, more ambitious goals such as new rocket-propulsion technology and manned missions to Mars. Ranging from conventional start-ups to firms created by wealthy entrepreneurs, these contractors would take the lead in servicing the International Space Station from the shuttle's planned retirement around 2011 through at least the end of that decade. (8/22)
Failure to Launch: Abandoned NASA Projects (Source: New Scientist)
Facing budget and technical concerns, the agency may abandon the development of its Ares rockets – amateur space historian Henry Spencer looks back at other big NASA projects that never got off the ground. Click here to view a slide show of these NASA projects. (8/22)
Scientists Go Suborbital (Source: MSNBC)
The killer app for private spaceflight, at least once the millionaires and celebrities have had their turn, may well be scientific research. "You spark this industry with tourists, but I predict in the next decade the research market is going to be bigger than the tourist market," says Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the Colorado-based Southwest Research Institute who is heading up a committee to link up researchers with future suborbital spaceflights.
Until recently, suborbital space trips were marketed primarily as the penultimate high for well-heeled thrill-seekers. Plunking down $200,000 for an afternoon-long ride to weightless heights was seen as the next adventure for folks who have been around the world, down to Antarctica and up to Everest - but can't take a $35 million trip to the international space station. But is the tourist market big enough to sustain private-sector spaceflight, particularly in the early years? Virtually all the major players in the still-gestating suborbital industry now realize that research flights could make the difference in their drive to profitability.
Scientists are already organizing themselves to take advantage of the opportunities ahead. This week, Stern convened the first meeting of a committee known as the Suborbital Applications Research Group (SARG, or "Sarge"), organized in Boulder, Colo., under the aegis of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. After the meeting, Stern and others touted the effort at a meeting of a National Academies board in Boulder. (8/22)
NASA, AFOSR Test Environmentally-Friendly Rocket Propellant (Source: NASA)
NASA and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, or AFOSR, have successfully launched a small rocket using an environmentally-friendly, safe propellant comprised of aluminum powder and water ice, called ALICE. Using ALICE as fuel, a nine-foot rocket soared to a height of 1,300 feet over Purdue University's Scholer farms in Indiana earlier this month. ALICE is generating excitement among researchers because this energetic propellant has the potential to replace some liquid or solid propellants. When it is optimized, it could have a higher performance than conventional propellants. (8/22)
"I think the budget constrictions created by the fiscal 2010 budget are forcing the Augustine Committee toward approaches with a great deal of new risk," said Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at the George Washington University here... The White House is expected to submit an amended 2010 budget request for NASA's exploration program by mid-September, according to sources with ties to the administration. Political watchers note that activity in the Senate — which has yet to pass a NASA appropriations bill this year — likely will be dominated by health care reform in the coming weeks. (8/22)
NGA Keeps U.S. Imagery Firms Optimistic in Tough Economy (Source: Space News)
The two U.S.-based commercial satellite imagery providers presented bullish forecasts of their near-term business, saying the appetite for imagery on the part of their biggest customer, the U.S. government, is not slackening in the poor economy and may pick up. GeoEye Inc. and DigitalGlobe also reaffirmed that neither would start building new high-resolution optical Earth imaging spacecraft until the U.S. government signals it is willing to guarantee future data purchases or help pay for the satellites' construction — or perhaps both. (8/22)
Lockheed Takes Control of Orion Launch Abort Motor (Source: Space News)
Hoping to avoid further delays to the first flight test of NASA's Orion crew capsule, prime contractor Lockheed Martin has wrested management of the spacecraft's Launch Abort System steering motor from subcontractor Orbital Sciences Corp., according to industry sources familiar with the program. Orion's Pad Abort 1 flight test, originally planned for Sep. 2008 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., and now scheduled for late January at the earliest, is intended to demonstrate the capsule's emergency Launch Abort System (LAS). NASA officials say the first Pad Abort test has been delayed several times, due in part to technical problems with the abort system's attitude control motor, being developed by ATK under Orbital's management. Orbital has overall responsibility for the LAS. (8/22)
Missile Defense Agency Eyes Small Tracking Sats (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency in October will begin developing an acquisition strategy for a constellation of missile tracking satellites that will be smaller and more responsive than a pair of demonstration satellites slated to launch in September, the agency's director said Aug. 19. (8/22)
War Game Shows Need for Better Space Surveillance (Source: Space News)
Recent recent war games that simulated a 2019 conflict in space highlighted the United States' need for improved space situational awareness and closer cooperation with commercial satellite operators, a U.S. Air Force official said. During the Schreiver War Games 5 held at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., in April, a sophisticated spacefaring nation was able to deny the United States of many of its space capabilities, Air Force Lt. Gen. Larry James, commander of the 14th Air Force, said during a speech at the Space and Missile Defense Conference in Huntsville, Ala. (8/22)
Aerospace Workers Lose as U.S. Priorities Change (Source: Denver Business Journal)
Aerospace companies deal with complex equations every day, but some industry math is simple. Such as: Less money for projects equals fewer people building rockets and satellites. Two of the Denver-area’s biggest aerospace employers, United Launch Alliance (ULA) and Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., announced job cuts this summer, affecting hundreds of local employees. The cuts reflect expected slowdowns in government spending on specific projects, not the beginnings of a contraction for an industry that has largely been immune to the recession so far, experts say. (8/22)
Ariane Launches Two Satellites (Source: SpaceToday.net)
An Ariane 5 rocket successfully launched a pair of communications satellites Friday night. The Ariane 5 ECA lifted off from Kourou, French Guiana and placed the the JCSAT-12 and Optus D3 satellites into geosynchronous transfer orbits about a half-hour later. JCSAT-12, a Lockheed Martin A2100AX satellite, weighed 4,000 kilograms at launch and carries 30 Ku-band and 12 C-band transponders. Its owner, Japanese operator SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation, will use the satellite as an in-orbit backup for its existing fleet of satellite in GEO. Optus D3, an Orbital Sciences Star-2 model satellite, weighed about 2,500 kilograms at launch and carries 32 Ku-band transponders. (8/22)
NASA May Outsource Amid Budget Woes (Source: Wall Street Journal)
For the first time since the advent of manned space exploration, the U.S. appears ready to outsource to private companies everything from transporting astronauts to ferrying cargo into orbit. Proposals gaining momentum in Washington call for contractors to build and run competing systems under commercial contracts, according to federal officials, aerospace-industry officials and others familiar with the discussions.
Responding to questions, on Saturday the White House press office said the President "has confirmed his commitment to human space exploration" and is reviewing various options. "But at the end of the day, the President will make the decision, not a committee." In the face of severe federal budget constraints and a burgeoning commercial-space industry eager to play a larger role in exploring the solar system and perhaps beyond, these people said, a consensus for the new approach seems to be building inside the White House as well as NASA.
Under this scenario, a new breed of contractors would take over many of NASA's current responsibilities, freeing the agency to pursue longer-term, more ambitious goals such as new rocket-propulsion technology and manned missions to Mars. Ranging from conventional start-ups to firms created by wealthy entrepreneurs, these contractors would take the lead in servicing the International Space Station from the shuttle's planned retirement around 2011 through at least the end of that decade. (8/22)
Failure to Launch: Abandoned NASA Projects (Source: New Scientist)
Facing budget and technical concerns, the agency may abandon the development of its Ares rockets – amateur space historian Henry Spencer looks back at other big NASA projects that never got off the ground. Click here to view a slide show of these NASA projects. (8/22)
Scientists Go Suborbital (Source: MSNBC)
The killer app for private spaceflight, at least once the millionaires and celebrities have had their turn, may well be scientific research. "You spark this industry with tourists, but I predict in the next decade the research market is going to be bigger than the tourist market," says Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the Colorado-based Southwest Research Institute who is heading up a committee to link up researchers with future suborbital spaceflights.
Until recently, suborbital space trips were marketed primarily as the penultimate high for well-heeled thrill-seekers. Plunking down $200,000 for an afternoon-long ride to weightless heights was seen as the next adventure for folks who have been around the world, down to Antarctica and up to Everest - but can't take a $35 million trip to the international space station. But is the tourist market big enough to sustain private-sector spaceflight, particularly in the early years? Virtually all the major players in the still-gestating suborbital industry now realize that research flights could make the difference in their drive to profitability.
Scientists are already organizing themselves to take advantage of the opportunities ahead. This week, Stern convened the first meeting of a committee known as the Suborbital Applications Research Group (SARG, or "Sarge"), organized in Boulder, Colo., under the aegis of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. After the meeting, Stern and others touted the effort at a meeting of a National Academies board in Boulder. (8/22)
NASA, AFOSR Test Environmentally-Friendly Rocket Propellant (Source: NASA)
NASA and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, or AFOSR, have successfully launched a small rocket using an environmentally-friendly, safe propellant comprised of aluminum powder and water ice, called ALICE. Using ALICE as fuel, a nine-foot rocket soared to a height of 1,300 feet over Purdue University's Scholer farms in Indiana earlier this month. ALICE is generating excitement among researchers because this energetic propellant has the potential to replace some liquid or solid propellants. When it is optimized, it could have a higher performance than conventional propellants. (8/22)
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