October 3 News Items

FSU Physicist Shining a Light on Mysterious 'Dark Matter' (Source: FSU)
We’ve all been taught that our bodies, the Earth, and in fact all matter in the universe is composed of tiny building blocks called atoms. Now imagine if this weren’t the case. This mind-bending concept is at the core of the scientific research that one Florida State University professor -- and hundreds of his colleagues all over the world -- are pursuing. “Recent scientific breakthroughs have shown that most of the matter in the universe -- about four-fifths -- is not made up of atoms, but of something else, called ‘dark matter,’” said FSU Physics Professor Howard Baer. “The evidence for dark matter is now overwhelming, and the required amount of dark matter is becoming precisely known.” Visit http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-10/fsu-fps100207.php to view the article.

Lawmakers Launch New Probe of NASA IG’s Work (Source: Federal Times)
Two lawmakers are investigating whistleblower allegations that NASA Inspector General Robert Cobb suppressed investigations and delayed or altered reports that might make the agency look bad. The investigation was announced in letter to Cobb on Sep. 27. Cobb has been under scrutiny from Congress for retaliating against employees who questioned whether he had an inappropriately friendly relationship with former NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe.

Rep. Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., chairman of the House Science and Technology committee and Rep. Brad Miller, D-N.C., chairman of the committee’s investigations and oversight arm, are pursuing the investigation. Rep. Miller, as well as Sens. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., chairman of the Senate Science Committee, and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., called for Cobb’s resignation in June. Cobb has said he will not resign.

Entrepreneurs Rally for New Space Age (Source: BBC)
The road to space is actually forked, with the United States planning to develop a new transportation system to replace the shuttles, which are to be retired in three years, and a commercial space transportation effort beginning to take shape. Because the new US vehicle will not be ready until at least 2015, the commercial ventures may actually get a head start. A commercial version of SpaceShipOne is expected to be unveiled next year, with suborbital passenger services to follow by 2010.

Elon Musk is working on a capsule that can carry crew to the International Space Station and at least a half-dozen other firms, many with deep pockets from previous successful internet business ventures, are designing and testing a new generation of spaceships for hire. Not to be left behind, mainstream aerospace contractors are starting to take note. Europe's EADS-Astrium announced in June it was developing a four-person spacecraft to make suborbital trips. California start-up Constellation Services International is teaming up with United Launch Alliance to explore the use of Lockheed Martin's Atlas 5 boosters to carry a commercially developed cargo canister to the station.

Europe Mired in Deadlock Over Funding for Galileo Satnav (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
The European Union struggled on Tuesday to come closer to agreeing how to fund the bloc's ambitious but troubled Galileo satellite network in the face of German opposition to using their joint budget. EU transport ministers meeting in Luxembourg set an end of the year deadline to work out just how to finance Europe's answer to the US' popular Global Positioning System after a public-private arrangement unravelled earlier this year.

Scientists Still in the Murk About 'Dark Energy' (Source: USA Today)
Nearly a decade after scientists discovered that a mysterious force is pushing the universe to expand at an ever-faster rate, they still don't understand how that is happening. University of Chicago cosmologist Michael Turner calls the acceleration "the most profound mystery in all of science." It was Turner who coined the term "dark energy" for the unknown substance that provides this cosmic push. Studies have shown that it comprises 74% of all the mass and energy of the universe. Scientists say that if they can understand dark energy, they may learn the fate of the universe — whether it will keep on expanding, tear itself apart or implode cataclysmically billions of years from now.

NASA plans to explore the question in a big way as well. The National Research Council recommended in early September that a dark-energy probe be the first spacecraft NASA launches in its delayed "Beyond Einstein" series of missions designed to explore the formation of the universe and some of its most unique features. Jointly sponsored by the Department of Energy, the series has three proposed missions, one of which would be selected and launched around 2015. "It's not very often that theorists face a situation in which they need to explain something that is 74% of everything there is and they don't have a clue," says Mario Livio, theorist for the space telescope institute.

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