February 7 News Items

NASA Funding (Mostly) Survives Senate Stimulus Compromise (Source: Space Politics)
Late Friday evening the office of Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), who had been working to trim some spending from the Senate’s economic stimulus bill, released a statement with details on a compromise he and other senators reached on spending cuts. The $1.5 billion for NASA that Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) advocated, including $500 million to reduce the Shuttle-Constellation gap, had in the crosshairs of Ben Nelson, Susan Collins (R-ME), and other cutters. The compromise, though, leaves that $500 million intact, instead cutting $200 million of the $500 million sought for Earth sciences research. Assuming this compromise does pass the full Senate, keep in mind that the Senate version will have to be reconciled with the House version, which provided $600 million for NASA, and none of that for human spaceflight. (2/7)

Zubrin on Mars in Stimulus Plan (Source: Roll Call)
A Mars-Apollo program done today would have an even bigger impact, because nowadays the science and engineering professions are open to women and minorities in a way that simply was not the case in the 1960s. So this time, the stirring challenge would go out to all our youth: Learn your science and you can be a pioneer of new worlds. From such a call we would reap millions of new scientists, engineers, inventors, doctors, medical researchers and technological entrepreneurs — young men and women who would ensure our prosperity, national defense and continued progress for decades to come.

We can reach Mars within eight years, and we should. In doing so, we will make it clear to the world, and to ourselves, that we are a people whose can-do spirit can defy any limit, that we are living at the beginning of our history, not at its end, and that henceforth, our greatest deeds will continue to be celebrated in newspapers and not just in museums. We can not only beat the current recession, but soar far beyond it, into a wide-open future truly worthy of the promise that is America. (2/7)

Political Tensions Hamper Search for NASA Chief (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Disagreements between the White House and some senior Democratic lawmakers have complicated the choice of the next U.S. civilian space chief -- and led to the emergence of a possible compromise candidate. Retired four-star Air Force Gen. Lester Lyles is now viewed as new contender to head NASA, according to lawmakers and aerospace industry officials. Gen. Lyles once headed the country's missile-defense program and more recently participated in blue-ribbon commissions studying manned space exploration. Barely three weeks ago, White House officials were close to announcing that another retired Air Force general, Scott Gration, had been chosen to run NASA. But the decision was put off partly because veteran Democratic lawmakers, especially Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida, complained about Gen. Gration's lack of NASA and space background.

The personnel squabble reflects a broader struggle over the direction of the U.S. manned space exploration programs, which faces new funding and policy challenges. As an outsider to NASA, Gen. Gration was perceived as more likely than other candidates to propose potentially major changes to programs and contractor teams established years ago by the Bush Administration and supported by certain Congressional leaders and NASA's bureaucracy. Now, the odds of Gen. Lyles eventually getting the nod seem to be increasing, as the White house considers alternatives. Some industry and government officials say Gen. Gration is still in the running. (2/7)

Further Valve Testing Delays Discovery Launch Until at Least Feb. 22 (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The launch of space shuttle Discovery to the space station has been delayed at least three more days and is now scheduled to lift off from KSC on Feb. 22 at the earliest. Shuttle mission STS-119 to install the last major U.S.-made addition to the space station -- a truss with solar arrays -- originally was scheduled to blast off Thursday, but because of ongoing tests on gas valves that help pressurize the shuttle's fuel tank during ascent, the launch was delayed by at least a week. NASA on Friday said it needs the extra time because of an ongoing review of the valves. (2/7)

Live From Space! at Embry-Riddle in Arizona (Source: Prescott News)
Stacy DeVeau, from the NASA Educator Resource Center on-campus at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, (ERAU) had her hands full Tuesday morning. She was juggling representatives from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California, a live hook-up between ERAU and the International Space Station, (ISS) and hosting one of only 24 human beings to ever fly to the moon. The event took place in The Davis Learning Center at the ERAU campus, and the auditorium was packed with approximately 350 students ranging from elementary through college ages from the quad-city area, ERAU students, teachers and home schooled children. (2/7)

Arianespace and Thales Alenia Launch Contract with Russia's Gazprom (Source: Arianespace)
Arianespace has been chosen to launch the two communications satellites, Yamal-401 and Yamal-402 within the scope of a contract between Thales Alenia Space and Russian operator Gazprom. The launch contract was signed yesterday in Moscow, following the contract signed by Thales Alenia Space and Gazprom for the in-orbit delivery of the satellites Yamal-401 and Yamal-402. Thales Alenia Space will build these two satellites using Spacebus 4000C3 platforms. They will be orbited by Ariane 5 ECA launchers in the second half of 2011. (2/7)

NASA Day at Maryland Capital Celebrates 50 Years of Discovery (Source: NASA)
On Thursday, Feb. 12, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Goddard employees will present an exciting day of interactive exhibits and presentations within the Presidential Conference Center, East Miller Senate Office Building, Annapolis, Maryland. House and Senate members and visitors will have the opportunity to experience the scientific wonderment of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Also recognizing Goddard's 50-year anniversary, the day will provide an excellent opportunity for Marylanders to gain a better understanding of Goddard's effect within the state, the nation and our global community.

Goddard is home to one of the greatest scientific achievements of our time, the Hubble Space Telescope, and is preparing to launch the final servicing mission later this year. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), built at Goddard and in final prep for launch in just a few weeks, is recognized as the first mission in NASA's planned return to the moon. Other Goddard programs include the James Webb Space Telescope and extensive Earth science studies that include extensive climate research from the Chesapeake Bay to Antarctica. (2/6)

Indiana NASA Contracts Soaring, Including Spaceport Company (Source: Indianapolis Business Journal)
Indiana’s share of NASA spending amounts to little more than a shiny penny at the bottom of a clothes dryer. Only $130 million made its way to the state in 2007—virtually nothing compared to the $12 billion the space agency doled out to all states and the $5 billion Indiana companies snagged from the U.S. Department of Defense. But like a rocket straining to get off a launch pad, the state is gaining momentum—more than doubling the value of the contracts in the past five years.

“In Indiana, we get a smaller amount of NASA dollars compared with other areas of the country, but that’s growing and we need to do a whole lot [more] work,” said Brian Tanner, president of Space Port Indiana, which next month plans s to fire off a Hoosier-built, single-stage rocket capable of carrying a commercial payload. The rocket isn’t a NASA project, but the Carmel company that’s building it, Technology Management Group Inc., wouldn’t have developed the skills without the NASA grants it pulls down. Tanner won’t disclose the potential customers, and the rocket isn’t expected to even fly as high as a commercial jet. Nevertheless, after blasting off from the pad at Columbus Municipal Airport, it will encounter the hostile environmental conditions useful to drug makers and other companies.

If Indiana still seems far out of the loop as a place for space-related research and development, well, it is. Texas swept in $3.5 billion in 2007, and California, $1.6 billion. However, Indiana stacked up well against many neighboring states. Illinois received only $27 million. Ohio, where NASA operates a number of facilities, did best in the Midwest, at $237 million. (2/6)

Spaceport Officials Talk To Maryland Lawmakers (Source: WMDT)
Officials from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport were in Annapolis Friday meeting with lawmakers. Back in December, NASA awarded Orbital Sciences a contract to re-supply the International Space Station. The company is planning to launch those missions from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, which is in Virginia. Officials say that will bring big business to the Shore. Greater Salisbury Executive Director Jan Wiseman says, "Now for instance, a student graduating in engineering can stay at home and make some money here. They don't have to go to New York or Chicago." Officials say it's important to keep lawmakers in the loop. The project will require State funding. Friday "MARS" officials learned they'll be receiving $150,000 from the State. (2/6)

Are We Bringing Our Germs to Mars? (Source: Time)
Star Trek fans know it as the Prime Directive: that there should be no interference with the internal affairs of other civilizations. Since human beings have yet to explore very far beyond Earth, pondering an interplanetary noninterference policy of our own may seem a little premature — at least until we've mastered warp drives and phasers. But in fact, such a directive already exists in some form — the international Outer Space Treaty of 1967, which governs the legal framework for activities in space. Best known for banning governments from putting nuclear weapons into orbit, the treaty also requires space-faring nations to avoid "harmful contamination" of other worlds while exploring the solar system.

Human beings have yet to set foot on other planets, so the risk today comes from bacteria that can hitch a ride on unmanned spacecraft like NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander, which arrived on the red planet's surface last May. Even though Phoenix was assembled in a special clean room to minimize bacterial contamination, and its arm, which would have direct contact with Martian ice, was heat-sterilized before launch, it's likely that dozens or more species of microbes hitched a ride on Phoenix's 10-month trip to Mars. Once on Mars, it's possible that bacteria shielded by the structure of the spacecraft from the harsh Martian UV radiation could stay alive, in dormancy, for hundreds of thousands of years. And if native microbes do exist on Mars, there's a risk that foreign bacteria could contaminate or somehow change the development of their Martian counterparts. (2/6)

NASA Postpones Awarding Of Michoud Facility Contract (Source: Space News)
NASA has delayed the selection of a new contractor to manage its Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans until spring, about six months later than originally planned. Denver-based Lockheed Martin has operated and maintained the NASA-owned plant since 1983, and uses it to build the space shuttle external tank. To avoid potential conflicts of interest in the future, NASA intends to select a primary support contractor to run Michoud that is not building hardware for NASA at the site. The external tank program has been the primary NASA activity at Michoud, but that will change as the space agency prepares to retire the space shuttle and build a successor system designed to transport astronauts to the space station and later to the Moon. (2/6)

Third Satellite Considered For French Helios System (Source: Space News)
The French Defense Ministry is expected to decide by the end of this year whether its third generation of Helios optical and infrared reconnaissance spacecraft will consist of two satellites in the same orbit, or will include a third satellite in lower orbit providing higher-resolution imagery, French government and industry officials said. (2/6)

Air Force Pays ULA to Squeeze Another Launch Into 2009 Manifest (Source: Space News)
The Air Force will pay United Launch Alliance an extra $15 million to make room for another mission on an already-crowded 2009 launch manifest as the company tries to clear a backlog that has built up due to technical issues that grounded its fleet for much of last year. ULA will increase its operating tempo for Atlas 5, the workhorse of the fleet with 34 missions scheduled through early 2012. ULA now plans to launch seven Atlas 5s this year. The Air Force will pay for additional ULA personnel working more shifts at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida and at Vandenberg Air Force Station in California in order to shorten the turn-around time between Atlas 5 launches. (2/6)

As European Space Agency Grows, New Members Face Familiar Problems (Source: Space News)
The European Space Agency (ESA), which counted 12 national members in the 1980s, reached 18 in 2008 and is likely on the way to 25-nation membership, faces several hurdles as it tries to attract small European nations. Many of the problems facing prospective ESA members are those that confront small nations that are currently members of the agency. These include the difficulties of developing a national space industry with a tiny space budget, and how to invest these limited resources in ways that avoid head-on competition for contracts with ESA's well-armed larger members.

As much as current members, candidate ESA nations expect to use the agency's geographic-distribution rules to assure that most of what they invest returns in the form of contracts to their industries. But assuring high-technology contracts in nations with little or no aerospace industries is easier said than done, as was made clear in a two-day conference on the subject held in Budapest, Hungary, Jan. 26-27. The conference, "Models of Governance of National Space Activities," included presentations by current and prospective ESA governments. (2/6)

WhiteKnightTwo Second Flight with Vortex Generators Added (Source: Flight Global)
To counter a fishtail issue Virgin Galactic’s twin fuselage carrier aircraft WhiteKnightTwo (WK2) is suspected to have, vortex generators are pictured here added to its vertical stabilizers prior to its second flight. Taking off from Mojave air and spaceport’s runway 30 on 5 February the WK2 returned to testing with a 1.5 hour flight with a Beech Starship chase plane. The aircraft did a low pass and then a touch-and-go before finally touching down. This second flight took place about seven weeks after its maiden flight on Dec. 21. (2/6)

ITAR: Why America Is Lost in Space (Source: Newsweek)
Strict rules on U.S. military technology have helped boost Europe to the top of a $100 billion industry. "Contaminated by American technology" makes for a curious but enlightening description. For most of the past century, the world has viewed American technology as unrivaled, and the notion that the U.S. space industry could be shunted to the margins would have seemed absurd. But the attitude of European space-industry executives toward U.S. components and software has changed in recent years. When building, launching or operating satellites and other spacecraft, many have come to believe, American know-how is now a liability.

The culprit is not American technology per se, but onerous restrictions the U.S. government has placed on the export of space components to all countries—enemies and allies alike. Ten years ago the U.S. Congress, fearful that U.S. technology would wind up in Chinese missiles and bombs, put commercial satellites under the jurisdiction of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, a set of rules for purchasers of American military products. The rules say that each component of civilian spacecraft—even a rivet, if it was designed specifically for space—must be treated as a weapon.

Those rules have imposed huge bureaucratic burdens on European and Asian firms that want to use even the most modest technology made in America. The effect has been to hamper U.S. competitiveness in the space business and to give Europe a boost. The decade since ITAR took effect has seen a rapid rise in the demand for satellites and rockets to launch them, fueled by the markets for mobile phones, especially in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Washington seems to have imposed stringent rules just as space services began to soar and alternatives to American technology took root. Click here to view the article. (2/6)

KSC Serves as Backdrop for TV Show (Source: Florida Today)
Kennedy Space Center may be featured in the pilot episode of a CBS reality show. Filming for the show's first episode is scheduled to take place at KSC as early as next week. KSC and CBS officials didn't provide details, but network publicity material says the show is about people with terminal illnesses who celebrate life and inspire others. The show is created by host Jeff Probst and producer Mark Burnett of CBS' "Survivor" and by Denise Cramsey of ABC's "Extreme Makeover" and TLC's "Trading Spaces." Episodes reportedly will feature people living their dreams during the time they have left to live. (2/7)

Analysis: Political Shifts Change Outlook for Tanker Contract (Source: AIA)
As the battle over a $35 billion aerial tanker heats up again, observers say Boeing could have the political advantage this time around. President Barack Obama hails from Chicago, home to Boeing headquarters, and the company has strong support among Democratic leaders, who now control both houses of Congress. But congressional supporters of Northrop Grumman, which would build its planes in Alabama, say a sole-source contract with Boeing would only invite further delays (via protests) in developing the tanker. Along with some military experts, Northrop's backers are urging the Pentagon to share work between the two companies. Editor's Note: Northop Grumman's role in the tanker project would add Space Coast jobs that could offset job losses from the Space Shuttle's retirement. (2/6)

Iran: Satellite Doesn't Have the Impact of Sputnik (Source: What's New)
Iran’s launch of a satellite on Tuesday marked the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. While Western news reports have stressed that the satellite was very small, so of course was Sputnik. Intercontinental ballistic missiles were fielded by both the US and the USSR within two years after Sputnik. It is, however, easy to exaggerate the threat of an Iranian ICBM. It is the only weapon that carries a return address. To deploy such a weapon against a major nuclear power would be insane. Ahmadinejad in Iran and Kim Jong-il in North Korea are indeed both a little strange, but in an age of satellite communication we cannot treat every launch of a satellite as a belligerant act. (2/7)