November 19 News Items

SeaLaunch Launch Delayed Until November 20 (Source: RIA Novosti)
The delayed launch of a Zenit-3SL rocket with a Thuraya-3 communications satellite from the Pacific Ocean will go ahead on November 20. The launch, originally scheduled for November 18, has been delayed due to poor weather conditions.

Spacehab Supporting Milestones Under NASA Space Act Agreement (Source: Spacehab)
Spacehab hosted a formal Systems Requirements Review of its Advanced Research and Conventional Technology Utilization Spacecraft (ARCTUS) on Oct. 25-26 at its Houston Headquarters facility. Attendees included representatives from NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration, United Launch Alliance, Cimarron, Inc., and Lockheed Martin. Spacehab has engaged key suppliers to support major elements of the ARCTUS program including launch services provider, United Launch Alliance, spacecraft bus component supplier, Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Cimarron, tasked with mission control center development and integration, and Odyssey Space Research, LLC, providing trajectory analysis and integration services.

Capable of delivering and returning pressurized cargo to and from Low Earth Orbit, ARCTUS will supply a critical ‘means to an end’ for two distinct, yet complementary, space transport needs. First, ARCTUS supports NASA’s requirement to fill the International Space Station (ISS) cargo transport gap after the space shuttle’s planned 2010 retirement. Second, ARCTUS provides Spacehab with an additional means of space access in support of the Company’s previously announced microgravity processing initiatives, many of which are destined for production and processing on the ISS.

Launch Alliance Off to Fast Start (Source: Florida Today)
United Launch Alliance has fired off 11 rockets in its first year, including eight in the last six months. If there have been any early bumps in the marriage of the rocket divisions of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, it’s not evident in the pace of flights or the swiftness with which problems have been resolved. The alliance, which opened for business Dec. 1, has three more flights scheduled by year’s end from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport and Vandenberg Air Force Base to complete what will be one of the busiest launch years in recent history.

The Chicken and The Egg: RLVs and Space-Based Solar Power (Source: Space Review)
RLVs need a large market to be economically viable, while space-based solar power needs low launch costs for its own economic viability. Taylor Dinerman examines how to bridge the gap to enable both RLVs and space solar power. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1004/1 to view the article.

Space Property Rights and The 3:10 to Yuma (Source: Space Review)
What can a Western teach us about space property rights? According to Jonathan Card, it's a reminder that there's a need for the rule of law on any frontier. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1002/1 to view the article.

For Florida, the SpaceX Factor is Key (Source: Florida Today)
If all goes well, SpaceX represents a bright opportunity for Cape Canaveral. "The eyes of the world are on us," the company's local director of launch operations, Norman Bobczynski, told Florida government and business leaders recently. "...They're watching the state of Florida. They're watching SpaceX, and companies like SpaceX, and they're all asking the same question: 'Can they make it happen?' Like it or not, the success of SpaceX in this endeavor will have a tremendous impact on the state of Florida -- good or bad."

Making sure to land companies working on NASA's crew-cargo privatization program -- companies like SpaceX -- is "probably tops on our priority list," said Lee Solid, a consultant for the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast. The reason: the potential support jobs for the rocket launches, supply chains and even manufacturing. SpaceX has two new rockets in testing and a capsule-style spacecraft that appears on track to be a privatized cargo and maybe crew hauler for NASA's space station program. Click here to view the article.