March 1 News Items

Virginia astronaut honored by House of Delegates (Source: WDBJ)
NASA Astronaut and Lynchburg native Leland Melvin is preparing to return to space later this year. But last week, he was in the spotlight at the State Capitol. Before lawmakers concluded the 2009 session of the General Assembly, they honored the Heritage High School graduate on the floor of the House of Delegates. Melvin served as a Mission Specialist on the Space Shuttle Atlantis in 2008, and he is scheduled to fly again in the Fall. He is a 1982 graduate of Heritage High School, and holds degrees from the University of Richmond and the University of Virginia. (3/1)

Virginia Approves $10-Million for Spaceport (Source: Spaceports Blog)
The 2009 Virginia General Assembly approved Saturday evening $10-million in capital outlay for the development of fueling support equipment, improvements to support buildings and services, and the development of a vehicle integration facility at the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) facility at Wallops Island, Virginia. The state legislature has now committed $26-million in the past two years to the spaceport expansion.

The launch infrastructure improvements come to ensure the necessary facilities to support a growing launch manifest at the spaceport. One dozen orbital launches are now being planned between 2009 and 2015. Nine of the space launches include Orbital Science Corporation Taurus-2 commercial re-supply missions to the international space station. Accomack County is now seeking over $8 million in federal stimulus funding to expand the Wallops Flight Facility runways to lure winged spacecraft to the Eastern Shore. (3/1)

China to Launch Space Station in 2010 (Source: Spaceports Blog)
The People's Republic of China will launch the nation's first space station called the 'Tiangong-1' or "Heavenly Palace-1" in 2010 and it will dock with a Shenzhou-8 spacecraft in orbit around the Earth in 2011, Chinese state media has reported. The planned 2011 docking would be remotely carried out by scientists on the ground and would not involve astronauts, the report said. (3/1)

India's Rocket to Carry More Astronauts in Space (Source: Times of India)
As the country readies itself for putting a human on a space flight, scientists are busy developing next generation rockets that can carry more astronauts and put heavier satellites in orbit. The Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk III), expected to be launched in the next three years (perhaps by 2011), will give the country self-sufficiency in launching the entire range of satellites. Scientists at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thiruvananthapuram will carry out testing of all engines this year. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) scientists also said the GSLV Mk III will enable them to send "heavier and more meaningful" probes to Mars and also help send more astronauts on a single mission. (3/1)

E'Prime Legal Woes Continue with Shareholder Suit (Source: SPACErePORT)
E'Prime Aerospace Corp. (symbol:EPEO) and its shareholders have filed a three count complaint in the U.S. District Court in Orlando against prior officers Bob G. Davis and Betty Scott Davis. The First Count is for Securities Fraud. The Second Count is for Manipulation of Securities. The Third Count is for Breach of Fiduciary Duty. Chief District Judge Anne Conway on Feb. 5 ordered the the lawsuit to be heard before a U.S. Magistrate Judge. A group of E'Prime shareholders involved in the legal action are encouraging other shareholders to "tell their story" to the SEC about the original management's alleged misdeeds by visiting http://www.sec.gov/complaint/cf942sec9570.htm.

E'Prime has been attempting for many years to enter the commercial launch industry with a family of rockets based on U.S. Peacekeeper missile technologies. Present corporate officers are continuing their efforts to move the company from development stage into a viable Launch Service Company. E'Prime officials plan to attend the NSSO’s upcoming Technology Forum on Suborbital Missions and the Small Unit Space Transport & Isertion (SUSTAIN) Concept in Texas on Feb. 24-26. (3/1)

Iridium To Replace Lost Satellite (Source: AIN Online)
Iridium said it has begun taking steps to replace a lost communication satellite with one of eight in-orbit spares. The collision of a 2,000-pound decommissioned Russian satellite with the smaller Iridium craft on Feb. 10 created a swirling field of debris but left only a tiny gap in Iridium’s 66-satellite constellation, resulting in brief outages for some customers. Due to the “mesh” design of the Iridium network few customers are affected, according to a spokeswoman. Iridium anticipates the spare satellite will be in place by the end of the month. (3/1)

Editorial: The Shuttle's Demise (Source: Florida Today)
The end is near. For the space shuttle program, that is. Those who were hoping President Obama would extend the fleet’s life are surely disappointed — but should not be surprised — that he’s sticking to former President Bush’s plan to retire the orbiters next year. That train has been barreling down the tracks since 2004, and with it the certainty that Kennedy Space Center will lose about 3,500 jobs — high-pay, high-skill jobs that will disappear at a time when the recession is taking a deepening toll on the Space Coast economy.

Administration officials left open a little wiggle room, saying they’ll support one additional flight beyond the nine now on the books and that more details will come in April. But the shuttle’s demise is a done deal for necessary reasons. It’s time for NASA to move toward the future and spend the $3 billion a year now used on the shuttles to build a new fleet of spacecraft to return astronauts to the moon.

The administration’s announcement heightens the urgency for Brevard County and state economic development officials to lure and grow new industries in fields that could include green energy and the importance of fostering a robust commercial space program at Cape Canaveral. That means thinking long term — and making the right investments — to replace the lost KSC jobs that will never return. (3/1)

China Lunar Probe Mission Ends with Planned Crash (Source: AP)
China's lunar probe crashed into the moon Sunday in a controlled collision at the end of a 16-month mission, state media reported. The Chang'e 1 lunar satellite hit the moon at 4:13 p.m. local time (0813 GMT) on Sunday. The satellite was under remote control by two observation and control stations in east China's Qingdao and Kashgar, a small city in northwest China. (3/1)

China Plans First Space Docking for 2011 (Source: AFP)
China will launch a space module next year and carry out the nation's first space docking in 2011 as a step towards its goal of building a space station, state media said Sunday. The Tiangong-1, or "Heavenly Palace-1" is scheduled for launch in late 2010 and will dock with a Shenzhou-8 spacecraft early the following year. "The module, named Tiangong-1, is designed to provide a 'safe room' for Chinese astronauts to live and conduct scientific research in zero gravity," the report said. "Weighing about 8.5 tonnes, Tiangong-1 is able to perform long-term unattended operation, which will be an essential step toward building a space station." (3/1)

Editorial - Olson: 'Doing the Hard Things' (Source: Washington Times)
During the debate on the economic stimulus proposals in the House, many different standards were used by my colleagues to justify policies and proposals eligible for funding. But there are some standards that are universally accepted as ones worthy of government investment: Does it advance our national interests, does it create jobs, and does it serve as a worthwhile investment both in time, energy and resources? To me, our nation's space program meets these criteria. It has throughout its rich history and based on current and future missions it has scheduled, it will in the future.

The debate across our government generally, and frankly within NASA specifically, about funding priorities is a good one. A blank check, especially written by the government, is not a good management incentive for innovation in my opinion... What do we want the American space program to look like? I believe most Americans support a space program that actually flies humans beyond Low Earth Orbit and supports exploration of the moon, Mars and beyond. The current state of NASA cannot become the status quo. We must move forward, expand research and research partnerships, and fully fund exploration as well as aeronautics and science research. (3/1)

Wandering US Spy Satellite Prompts Continuing Concerns (Source: Florida Today)
While the unprecedented smashup between a U.S. and Russian satellite earlier this month sparked a lot of attention, another wayward spacecraft — out-of-whack U.S. secret satellite DSP-23 — remains a serious concern. Lofted into orbit in November 2007, this Defense Support Program (DSP) spacecraft apparently went belly-up the following year. Making matters worse, DSP-23 died before it could be nudged into a graveyard orbit, where it would no longer be a collision threat for other satellites.

Last month, space reporter Craig Covault at Spaceflight Now broke the story that two Micro-Satellite Technology Experiment (MiTEx) satellites were dispatched to peek in on the errant satellite. Of course, mum's the word from the U.S. military on the DSP-23's off-kilter status. But, fingers are crossed at SES ASTRA — operator of the ASTRA Satellite System that provides satellite services in Europe — regarding the meanderings of DSP-23. The misbehaving DSP-23 spacecraft has "visited" ASTRA satellites for the last two months. That SES ASTRA system is used by a wide range of broadcast and multimedia companies to deliver broadcast and broadband services to 117 million households.

"It will be of concern for many [GEO satellites]...for a very long time," said Hugues Laroche. "As operators of GEO satellites I guess we are still exposed to lower risks of collision probabilities than low Earth orbits, but still this is a concern," he said. That's especially the case, Laroche added, since the GEO ring is such a tiny resource. When a satellite dies prematurely there, it remains in the vicinity for a long time...with a longitude swing on one hand and an inclination drift on the other, he said. (2/25)