June 22 News Items

Atlantis Lands in California (Source: Florida Today)
Commander Rick Sturckow has guided the space shuttle Atlantis to a perfect touchdown at the Edwards Air Force Base in California. Atlantis completed a 5.8 million mile journey that saw its crew of seven astronauts add a new set of solar arrays to the International Space Station. The crew also delivered a new permanent resident to the space station and brought home record-breaking station resident Sunita Williams. Landing attempts at Kennedy Space Center were called off due to overcast skies.

Gov. Crist Appoints Four to Space Florida Board (Source: EOG)
Gov. Charlie Crist has appointed four Floridians to serve on the board of directors of Space Florida. They include Kenneth Ford of the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition; Gary Spulak of Embraer; Kenneth Haiko of Packaging Corporation of America; and Ravindra Mehta of Mehta Engineering.

Do It Yourself Anti-Satellite System? Military And Civilian Satellites Need Protection (Source: Science Daily)
Satellite tracking software freely available on the Internet and some textbook physics could be used by any organization that can get hold of an intermediate range rocket to mount an unsophisticated attack on military or civilian satellites. Such an attack would require modest engineering capability and only a limited budget. That is according to a team of researchers writing in the International Journal of Critical Infrastructures. Military satellites, global positioning systems, weather satellites and even satellite TV systems could all become victims of such an attack.

The team's findings suggest that dozens of systems on which military and civilian activities depend make near-space a vulnerable environment. The team used a so-called "mathematical game" and textbook physics equations for ballistics to help them build a computer model to demonstrate that anti-satellite weaponry is a real possibility. Accuracy and elegance are not issues in carrying out a satellite attack, the researchers say, as long as the projectile hits the satellite. "While it may be true that, when it comes to nuts and bolts, things may not be quite as simple as they sound here, the bare fact remains - it can be done." Their conclusions suggest that the risk of deliberate satellite sabotage should be placed higher on the security agenda.

Government Wants to Sack Energia Space Corp. Head (Source: RIA Novosti)
A Russian space industry source said the government is set to seek the resignation of the president of the country's head rocket and space enterprise, Energia. State-controlled Energia designs Soyuz piloted spaceships and Progress carrier rockets, launches communications satellites, and operates the Russian segment of the International Space Station. Energia President Sevastyanov unexpectedly left the Le Bourget air space show in France Wednesday for Moscow along with Energia's delegation. During his tenure, Sevastyanov has not been on good terms with the Federal Space Agency, a government regulator in the space industry. The Energia head has been repeatedly criticized primarily for his daring projects on Moon exploration, which the agency called lunacy and looked to restrict Sevastyanov's powers. The Energia board has moved to suspend Sevastyanov's powers.

Arianespace to Launch Insat 4G for India (Source: Arianespace)
The Indian Space Research Organization, ISRO, has once again chosen Arianespace, this time to launch its Insat 4G communications satellite. Three months after Ariane 5 successfully orbited the Insat 4B satellite, the organizations announced their plans to launch the new satellite at the end of 2008 aboard an Ariane 5 rocket. Arianespace has orbited 13 Indian satellites to date.

India Space Costs Well Below Europe and U.S. (Source: The Hindu)
The satellite launching fee charged by ISRO will come down drastically once the country set up the GSLV rocket launching pads, a top government official said. An Indian official said France per-kilogram launch charges are $21,000 by Europe, $25,000 by the U.S., and $14,000 by India. "This is due to the high technical capabilities of Indian scientists.", he said. This efficiency was achieved despite the fact that the Indian government spent only two percent of its revenue on space, compared to 11 percent by the U.S. and nine percent by European countries. India was also the cheapest for building the satellites, he said, adding that for building a 35 MH satellite, European countries spend between $1.8 million to $2.4 million, while Indian scientists could do the job for one million dollars.

Education Experts Testify on Usefulness of NASA and Other Federal STEM Support (Source: SpaceRef.com)
Education experts from around the country described their interactions with federal agencies, including NASA, at recent Congressional hearings. They discussed the effectiveness and appropriateness of resources and assistance provided by those agencies. The witnesses recounted with enthusiasm many formal and informal educational collaborations with the agencies, such as ask-a-scientist online discussions, teacher summer institutes, films, workshops, etc. However, they pointed out that while the agencies have a substantial amount of content knowledge, they do not have expertise in pedagogy, classroom practice, curriculum materials, or teacher professional development.

The "two major assets" that other R&D agencies can bring to K-12 education are their STEM workforce and their facilities, said Michael Lach, Director of Mathematics and Science for the Chicago Public Schools. He added that agency-developed curricula and lesson plans were frequently not helpful, especially if they were not easily adaptable to local concerns and state standards. The testimony of George Nelson, former astronaut and Director of STEM Education at Western Washington University, echoed this comment: "There is a huge inventory of poorly designed and under-evaluated mission-related curricula [that is] rarely used in classrooms and with no natural home in a coherent standards-based curriculum."

Iris Weiss noted that such materials "may add to the incoherence" of the educational system. "Some teachers can pull together...materials and organize them into a coherent curriculum," she said, but most "have neither the time nor the capacity," and critical prerequisites may be neglected. She testified that more stringent criteria should exist for agency education programs: Do they target priority areas for K-12 education? Do they have the capacity to address those needs effectively and to evaluate the impacts? Do their efforts reach a large number of teachers or students? Questioned about a recent report which found that few federal education programs have been rigorously evaluated, Weiss agreed,"there is no question we need to be doing a more rigorous job of evaluating programs." However, she noted that some types of evaluation, such as randomized controlled trials, might sound good in theory but were not necessarily practical in the real world of the classroom.

The witnesses suggested that the most appropriate roles for federal mission agencies might be workforce preparation in the form of undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral support and experiences; the provision of data to be used in curriculum development; and opportunities for teachers, students and parents to be exposed to scientists and the conduct of science in informal settings. Subcommittee Ranking Member Rep. Vern Ehlers (R-MI) declared that "Congress must authorize adequate evaluation capacity" for federal STEM education programs. They indicated that they would be looking to an inter-agency National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) committee to track, coordinate, prioritize, and review K-12 STEM education programs across the government.

NASA Ames Selects Florida Firm for Training Support (Source: SpaceRef.com)
NASA/ARC has selected Honourcode of Cantonment, Florida, to provide technical, programmatic and high performance expertise in applied systems engineering. Honourcode will provide a 4-day Applied Systems Engineering workshop for The Ames Project Excellence (APEX) Development Program, and 20 hours of expert technical assistance and consultation focused on software project management and systems engineering (appropriate for and relevant to NASA flight programs and projects).

NRO Shortfall May Delay ULA Missions (Source: Aerospace Daily)
The June 15 shortfall of a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V launch vehicle with a pair of classified National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) ocean surveillance spacecraft onboard may delay upcoming military missions by the Boeing/Lockheed Martin joint venture. Among them could be the first Boeing-built Wideband Gapfiller System (WGS) satellite, designed to begin replacing the aging Defense Satellite Communications Spacecraft (DSCS) constellation. The Atlas V's Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL-10 engine in its Centaur upper stage shut down early, leaving the NRO L-30 payloads in slightly lower altitudes and inclinations than desired.

Spacehab Gets $35M NASA Astrotech Contract (Source: AP)
Spacehab was awarded a $35 million contract to support spacecraft processing requirements for several upcoming NASA missions. Spacehab shares jumped 10 cents, to 74 cents. The stock has traded between 41 cents and $1.35 during the past 52 weeks. The NASA award is a major contract for Spacehab, which brought in $50.7 million in revenue from operations in fiscal 2006. The contract was awarded to Spacehab's Astrotech Space Operations division. The work will take place at Vandenberg Air Force Base at the Western Range in California.

Spacehab Signs Agreement with NASA for Commercial Transportation Spacecraft (Source: Spacehab)
Spacehab signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA to facilitate the Company's development of a commercial transportation system capable of ferrying pre-manufactured cargo and manufacturing equipment to low-Earth orbit. Execution of this agreement allows Spacehab to develop a highly reliable, low risk, up-mass alternative system for cargo delivery to space and complements its recently announced plans to manufacture biomedical and advanced materials on the International Space Station (ISS).

Eureka! Is life on Europa? (Source: Cincinnati Enquirer)
'Follow the Water." That is NASA's motto for the future of the space program. Where there is water, there could be life. And the discovery of life outside Earth could be the biggest story of the 21st century. Mars is a good place to look, but astronomers believe Europa, a tiny moon of Jupiter - one of its 63 known moons - may harbor more water than all of the oceans on Earth. Although not in the budget this year, NASA would like to send an orbiter to confirm the amount of water on Europa. (Since no plans have been finalized nor money allocated, this mission could be years in the future). Then NASA would fly a craft to drill through the ice (about 2 miles thick) and deposit a small remote-controlled submarine into the depths. This "hydrobot" would swim around with cameras and other sensors to see what lurks below.

Shipman Arrives with Former Astronaut, Gives Deposition (Source: Florida Today)
It took 90 minutes for Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman to tell her side of the love triangle in the case of former astronaut Lisa Nowak’s alleged attempt to kidnap her in February from an Orlando International Airport parking lot. Shipman and former astronaut Bill Oefelein left the King Reporting Office in Suntree holding hands and smiling. Neither made any comments as they got into attorney Kepler Funk’s black Porsche SUV. Nowak told police she drove from Houston to Orlando to talk with Shipman about their mutual love interest, former shuttle pilot Oefelein. Nowak carried with her a duffle bag filled with a BB pistol, wig, trenchcoat, hat, knife, steel mallet, surgical rubber tubing and black plastic garbage bags. Nowak is charged with attempted kidnapping, battery and attempted vehicle burglary with a battery.

Spy Chief Scraps Stealth Satellite Program (Source: MSNBC)
Spy chief Mike McConnell has junked a multibillion-dollar spy satellite program that engineers hoped would someday pass undetected through the space above other nations. The move from the director of national intelligence comes after several years of congressional efforts to kill the program, known publicly as the next generation of “Misty” satellites. The new satellite was to be a stealthy intelligence spacecraft designed to take pictures of adversaries and avoid detection. Little is known about the nation’s classified network of satellites, which represent some of the most expensive government programs and receive almost no public oversight. Because of their multibillion-dollar price tags, sensitive missions and lengthy development schedules, spy agencies go to great pains to keep details from becoming public.

Arianespace to Launch THOR 6 Satellite (Source: Arianespace)
Arianespace will launch the THOR 6 satellite for Telenor into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) in the middle of 2009, aboard an Ariane 5 or Soyuz launcher from the Guiana Space Center, Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. This is Arianespace’s first contract with Telenor Satellite Broadcasting. Built by Thales Alenia Space, THOR 6 will weigh about 3,000 kg at launch. It will provide direct-to-home (DTH) television services for the Nordic countries and Central Europe. It’s design life is about 15 years.

Arianespace to Launch Pan-African Satellite Rascom 1 (Source: Arianespace)
Arianespace will launch the Rascom-1 satellite for Thales Alenia Space. Rascom 1 is scheduled for a launch into geostationary transfer orbit in the last quarter of 2007. It will be launched by an Ariane 5 from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Rascom 1 will provide at least 15 years of telecommunication services in rural areas of Africa, as well as domestic and international connections, direct TV broadcast services and Internet access.

NASA Readies Florida, California for Shuttle Landing (Source: Houston Chronicle)
NASA prepared landing sites in Florida and California for the Atlantis astronauts' return to Earth on Friday after stormy weather at Kennedy Space Center kept them from touching down Thursday. Friday's forecast at Kennedy, on the Atlantic coast of central Florida, included more storms. Better weather was expected at Edwards Air Force Base, northeast of Los Angeles, though high winds could be a factor late in the day. To raise Friday's odds of returning to Earth, astronauts elevated their altitude slightly, a move that increases the number of landing opportunities at both sites from four to five.

NASA Authorizes Contract for Ares I Materials (Source: NASA)
NASA has authorized a contract with a maximum value of $16.7 million with Alcoa North American Rolled Products to supply aluminum lithium plates and metal ingots for early development of the Ares I crew launch vehicles upper stage. The firm fixed-price contract has a period of performance through Aug. 5, 2008.

Spacehab Signs Agreement with NASA for Commercial Transportation Spacecraft (Source: Spacehab)
Spacehab signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA to facilitate the Company's development of a commercial transportation system capable of ferrying pre-manufactured cargo and manufacturing equipment to low-Earth orbit. Execution of this agreement allows Spacehab to develop a highly reliable, low risk, up-mass alternative system for cargo delivery to space and complements its recently announced plans to manufacture biomedical and advanced materials on the International Space Station (ISS).

ESA Launches New Program for Air Traffic Management Via Satellite (Source: ESA)
Pilots and flight controllers will benefit from exchanging data and communicating via satellite and terrestrial systems in the future Single European Sky. This is the aim of a new program set in motion by ESA Member States. The Single European Sky was launched by the European Commission (EC) in 2004, proposing a new approach to air traffic management in Europe that would unlock viable growth in air transport. The EC has set up a specific program, Single European Sky Air traffic management Research (SESAR), addressing administrative, operational and technical concepts for communication, navigation and surveillance for air traffic safety. Within this wide scope, satellites have the opportunity to demonstrate their potential for safety-of-life communications.

Chairmen: President’s Lack of Willingness to Discuss NASA Budget ‘Deeply Disappointing’ (Source: House of Reps)
House Committee on Science and Technology Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN), Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Mark Udall (D-CO), and Energy and Environment Subcommittee Chairman Nick Lampson (D-TX) today issued the following statement in response to the Administration’s letter rejecting their request for a meeting of Members of Congress with President Bush to discuss NASA’s budgetary situation: “We are deeply disappointed that the President has decided not to seize the opportunity to meet with Members of Congress to discuss how best to ensure that NASA will have the resources needed to carry out a balanced and robust program of science, aeronautics, and human space flight and exploration initiatives.”

“We intend to work with NASA supporters on both sides of the aisle in Congress to try to give NASA the resources it will need to carry out the tasks that the nation has asked it to undertake. However, the President’s disengagement will make that effort immeasurably more difficult.” Chairmen Gordon, Udall and Lampson have spent considerable time during the past several months fighting for more NASA funding, including Rep. Lampson personally arranging for Administrator Griffin to meet with Chairman Obey on the House Appropriations Committee, and with other key Members.

Nine Teams to Compete in Lunar Lander Contest (Source: New Scientist)
Competition between prototype lunar landers is heating up, with nine teams planning to compete in the NASA-sponsored Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge. The $2 million prize competition is designed to spur innovation for future vehicles that could take off and land vertically on the Moon. The event will be held on Oct. 27-28 in New Mexico. The "Level 1" winning vehicle must rise at least 50 meters, hover for 90 seconds, then land on a concrete pad 100 metres away, before making a similar flight back to the launch pad. A "Level 2 test" requires a hovering time of 180 seconds, and the vehicle has to land on an uneven surface that simulates the Moon. Click here to view the article.

Space Summit Idea Gets 'Tepid' Response (Source: Aviation Week)
Sen. Barbara Mikulski has received what she calls a "tepid" response to her request that President Bush convene a bipartisan summit with lawmakers to discuss the future of the U.S. space program. The administration's letter to Mikulski (D-Md.), signed by outgoing Office of Management and Budget Director Robert Portman and White House Science Adviser John Marburger, does not address the summit idea directly, instead inviting Mikulski to meet with Portman, Marburger and NASA Administrator Michael Griffin. "While I appreciate the response ... I regret the president did not address this invitation himself," Mikulski, who chairs the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA, said in a June 20 statement. "I will continue to seek a new dialogue with the president. Only through the active cooperation of the White House and the Congress can we have a healthy, robust and balanced space program."

Mikulski's summit request, made in April, also was signed by Sen. Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), Commerce Science and Space Subcommittee Chairman Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), and 13 House members. The letter calls for "a national commitment to our space program to put it on a path for success." According to the White House response..."While some difficult choices have been required in recent years, we believe NASA remains generally well-positioned to carry out a balanced civil space effort and to maintain the nation's leadership in this sector."