August 8 News Items

Calvert Pressing Ahead on NASA Sponsorship Bill (Source: SpacePolitics.com)
Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) plans to introduce the NASA Innovation Fund and Sponsorship Act in September, when Congress reconvenes after the summer recess. The general intent of the bill is to encourage NASA to solicit, review, and select sponsorship proposals from the private sector. The money from those deals would go into an Innovation Fund that would be used to support prize competitions. Calvert said he modeled this approach after the National Park Foundation, a private organization chartered by Congress to support the national park system “by raising private funds, making strategic grants, creating innovative partnerships and increasing public awareness.”

Calvert emphasized in his essay that the legislation would “explicitly prohibit product placement on NASA assets that the public would find objectionable or inappropriate”, citing examples like “decals on the space shuttles” and “blinking neon lights” on the ISS. How is “objectionable or inappropriate” defined? Calvert said the bill would create a seven-person Sponsorship Board that would review proposals; its membership would include the NASA administrator, NASA strategic communications chief, and “five private citizens who have a stake in NASA’s reputation and future”. Sponsorship proposals would also have to have some kind of educational component as well.

Planting a Garden in Space (Source: Wisconsin State Journal)
Plant-growth chambers made by a Madison company are journeying into space aboard Endeavour on its mission to the International Space Station. The shuttle will take along two Astro Garden units produced by the Madison-based Orbital Technologies Corp., also known as Orbitec, so astronauts can enjoy a space version of recreational gardening as they continue construction of the station. The plant chambers will remain on the space station after the shuttle returns to Earth. The astronauts "like seeing green and the smells coming off the aromatic plants, " said Orbitec senior scientist Bob Morrow.

ESA Plans Second Generation Galileo Satellites (Source: Flight International)
Four years before its first generation is operational, the European Space Agency is preparing to develop the next-generation Galileo satellite navigation system. Under ESA's Global Navigation Satellite System Evolutions program, the agency's industrial partners will investigate how to develop Galileo for a range of new uses and capabilities including improved accuracy, service coverage and resistance to interference. The deployment timeframe for the next generation Galileo capabilities is 2015-2025.

Astronomers Discovered Largest Known Exoplanet (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Astronomers have discovered an extrasolar planet with the largest radius measured to date, making the planet's density unexpectedly low. The planet, designated TrES-4, closely orbits the star GSC02620-00648, 1,435 light-years away. The planet was discovered by detecting periodic decreases in the star's brightness as the planet transited the star's disk as seen from Earth. Those studies found that the planet has a radius 1.67 times that of Jupiter, the largest radius of any planet so far measured. Separate observations found that the planet's mass is only 0.84 times that of Jupiter, giving the planet a density of 0.22 grams per cubic centimeter, too low to be explained by current models of giant planets.

NASA Picks Up the Pace for Shuttle Missions (Source: Christian Science Monitor)
NASA has five shuttle missions planned between August and the end of April 2008, including this month's Endeavour launch, as it rushes to finish the International Space Station before the orbiters are retired in 2010.

Human Failings Serve as NASA Wake-up Call (Source: MSNBC)
Over the past few months, space engineers have been forcibly reminded that booster seals and wing panels aren't the only things that can crack in space: Humans can, too. To the embarrassment of NASA officials, and to the glee of far too many outside cynics, the public has been treated to a ghastly parade of human failings from space workers that might have led to disaster if they occurred during flight: February's story of a love triangle gone wrong, which resulted in the arrest of astronaut Lisa Nowak; a murder-suicide at NASA's Johnson Space Center; and last month's tales of heavy alcohol use in the astronaut corps.

Still more stories circulate among the astronauts themselves. One account focuses on a spaceflier who had a detached retina corrected "on the outside" without NASA's knowledge. Another story tells of a veteran shuttle commander who should have been disqualified on medical grounds, but was allowed one last flight when the medical team acquiesced. Visit http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20167011/ to view the article.

Yashat Deal Valued at $1.66 Billion (Source: Space News)
Abu Dhabi's new Yahsat venture has signed a contract valued at $1.66 billion with Astrium and Thales Alenia Space of Europe to build a two-satellite telecommunications system for military and civilian users, the two satellite contractors announced Aug. 8.

Inmarsat Execs Detail Alphasat Investment (Source: Space News)
Mobile satellite services operator Inmarsat will spend around $350 million on the Alphasat program partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA). In return, the company will get early access to a next-generation mobile communications platform and a 30 percent increase in the L-band spectrum it can use to serve Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Inmarsat Shifts Next Satellite to Proton Launcher (Source: SpaceToday.net)
Inmarsat has signed a contract with International Launch Services to launch its next satellite on a Proton next year. The contract will allow the Inmarsat 4 F3 satellite to launch in March or April of 2008 on a Proton M. Inmarsat had a contract with Lockheed Martin for an Atlas 5 launch of the spacecraft, but the Atlas manifest could not secure a launch slot until early 2009. Inmarsat will retain the Atlas 5 launch reservation, but possibly sell it to another company. The announcement came the same day that Inmarsat announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2007, with revenues of $143.4 million, up 15.5% over the same quarter of 2006.

Harris Reports 22% Rise in Revenue (Source: Florida Today)
Melbourne-based Harris Corp. reported a record in annual sales and a substantial increase in profit. The company, with 6,700 employees in Brevard, said that for its fiscal year 2007 — which ended June 29 — revenue was $4.24 billion, a 22 percent increase over 2006. Net profit was $480.4 million, compared with $237.9 million in the prior fiscal year.

Embry-Riddle Alumnus Flies Aboard Endeavour to Space Station (Source: ERAU)
Col. Benjamin Alvin Drew, an Embry-Riddle alumnus, will make his rookie flight aboard this week's Endeavour STS-118 mission to space. Drew was asked in an interview how important it is for young people to be interested in exploration and in acquiring the skills that it will take to explore the universe farther. He responded, “Interest from people in school right now and young people is absolutely vital … it’s a lifeblood having new people coming up with new ideas and new innovations.” Drew, who earned a Master of Aerospace Science degree from Embry-Riddle in 1990, will fly with another rookie astronaut, elementary school teacher Barbara Morgan. He takes with him the hopes and dreams of Embry-Riddle’s 35,000 students from around the world and coast to coast, who will watch in awe as he represents their own aspirations in aviation and aerospace exploration.

NSS Space Coast Chapter Supports Launch (Source: NSS)
The Space Coast chapter of the National Space Society will promote the STS-118 launch to hundreds of launch
viewers at Spaceview Park in Titusville.

Space Club Honors Pioneers (Source: Florida Today)
A former Kennedy Space Center director, a steely-eyed missile man and one of the only surviving members of the Bumper launch team will be honored next week in Cocoa Beach. The National Space Club's Florida Committee will give Jay Honeycutt, Charles Murphy and Norris Gray the group's 2007 Lifetime Achievement Awards during a luncheon Aug. 14 at the Doubletree Oceanfront Hotel. Tickets for the luncheon still are available. RSVP by Thursday. Contact LaDonna Neterer at 321-867-0895 or e-mail her at mailto:LaDonna.J.Neterer@boeing.com