July 25 News Items

Lockheed Martin Profit Rises (Source: Reuters)
Lockheed Martin, the world's No. 1 defense contractor, reported a greater-than-expected 34 percent rise in second-quarter profit, helped by higher revenue from its combat aircraft and electronic systems units and lower pension costs. The company reported quarterly earnings of $778 million, compared with $580 million a year earlier. Revenue rose 7 percent to $10.7 billion.

Russia to Use Satellites to Defend Vast Forests (Source: Reuters)
Russia will use satellites to catch loggers felling its vast Siberian forests known as the "green lungs of the planet", the state forestry agency said. Ancient taiga woodlands which cover much of Siberia are protected by Russian law, but since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union illegal loggers have cut down millions of trees, mainly for sale in neighboring China. "From January 1 2008 we will have continual protection," Vladimir Kresnov, head of the Russian forestry agency, said. Ecologists welcomed the satellite protection plan.

Lockheed Forgoing Bids on Commercial Satellites (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin is staying out of most commercial satellite contract competitions because they do not meet the company's profit threshold, company Chief Financial Officer Christopher E. Kubasik said July 24.

Astrium Wins Study for New Vega Upper Stage (Source: ESA)
Astrium has won a contract from the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Cologne to investigate concepts for a new upper stage for the European launcher Vega. The project is named “Venus” (Vega New Upper Stage). Currently under development, Vega is a small European launch vehicle which is scheduled for first launch in 2009. The study now awarded to Astrium is worth roughly half a million euros and will run for a period of 18 months. The upper stage currently envisaged for Vega, which is designed to carry payloads of up to 1.5 metric tons, will have a Russian/Ukrainian propulsion system.

Oxygen Device Sets Stage to Expand Station Crews, Research (Source: Florida Today)
A new U.S. oxygen generator was successfully tested this month on the International Space Station, setting the stage for a planned expansion to larger outpost crews. About 60 percent complete, the 250-ton station has been relying on a balky Russian oxygen generator as well as reserves hauled up to the station during supply runs. The new U.S. generator will play a crucial role in plans to expand the size of expedition crews from three to six, an increase that will significantly boost the amount of scientific research that can be carried out on the station.

Boeing Stock Lifts Off (Source: The Street)
Boeing surged past analysts' second-quarter estimates and boosted its full-year projections because of strong aircraft sales. Net earnings were $1.1 billion for the quarter. Revenue rose 14% to $17 billion as aircraft deliveries climbed, besting an estimated $16.2 billion. Boeing increased its 2007 research-and-development forecast to about $3.7 billion, up from between $3.2 billion and $3.4 billion, a result of higher spending than previously forecast to maintain the 787 Dreamliner schedule.

NASA Announces Next Undersea Exploration Mission Off Florida Coast (Source: SpaceRef.com)
NASA will send three astronauts and a Constellation Program aerospace engineer into the ocean depths off the Florida coast from Aug. 6 to 15. They will test lunar exploration concepts and a suite of medical objectives for long-duration spaceflight. During the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations 13 (NEEMO 13), the crew will conduct a variety of undersea "moon walks." They will test concepts for future lunar exploration using advanced navigation and communication equipment.

Similar in size to the International Space Station's living quarters, Aquarius is the world's only permanent underwater habitat and laboratory. The 45-foot-long, 13-foot diameter complex is three miles off Key Largo in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, about 62 feet beneath the surface.

Northrop Grumman Profit Rises (Source: Reuters)
Northrop Grumman said second-quarter profit rose a greater-than-expected 7 percent, helped by higher information technology sales and an insurance gain at its storm-hit shipbuilding unit. The No. 3 Pentagon supplier also raised the lower end of its full-year profit forecast as it projected higher sales overall and better margins. Northrop, behind only Lockheed Martin and Boeing in U.S. defense sales, reported quarterly profit of $460 million, compared with $430 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose 4 percent to $7.9 billion.

Space Station's Future Threatened, Expert Warns (Source: New Scientist)
NASA and its international partners may be hard-pressed to keep the space station alive after the planned retirement of the space shuttle in 2010, a US congressional committee was told. After the shuttles retire in 2010, current plans call for other vehicles, such as the European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), to pick up some of the slack in servicing the space station. NASA is relying on commercial space vehicles currently under development in its Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program to make up the rest. But Tommy Holloway, who retired in 2002 from his position as manager of NASA's space station program, said he doubts that the commercial vehicles will be ready by the time the shuttles retire, as planned.

New NASA Layer Incorporated into Google Earth (Source: nano2sol.com)
Posted the other day on the Google Lat Long Blog is mention of a new NASA layer being added to Google Earth. It incorporates Astronaut Photography of Earth, Satellite Imagery, and Earth City Lights. The photography layer shows the best images going back to the Mercury missions and is from the online Astronaut Photography collection. The satellite imagery is also a compilation of the best NASA images taken over the years.