Fwd: NASA news - my version

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Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: December 31, 2014 at 9:33:39 AM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: NASA news -  my version

Have a very Happy New Years  everyone! 

 

Don't forget to mark your calendars to join us next Thursday for our monthly NASA retirees luncheon at Hibachi Grill at 11:30—since tomorrow is new years day, we have delayed it a week.  

 

 

Also remember next Wednesday at 11:30 at the Gilruth Ballroom –Gene Kranz is the featured speaker

 

You are invited to JSC's SAIC/Safety and Mission Assurance (S&MA) Speaker Forum featuring Gene Kranz, Former NASA Flight Director and Director of Mission Operations.

 

As a former flight director and now motivational speaker, Gene Kranz will discuss the pride, determination, and passion that inspired and compelled the engineers and scientists who were responsible for the phenomenal success of the American space program.  In looking back at his career as flight director, Gene Kranz offers the following perspective: "We were working at the ragged edge of all knowledge, all technology and all experience."

 

 

NASA NEWS

• 2014 Spaceflight Reviews Continue.

• Astronaut To Attend India's Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

• YouTube UFO Archivist Spots Rainbow UFO In Apollo 12 Photo.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

• Wilmore's Birthday Celebrated At The ISS.

• ACES Will Test General Relativity When At The ISS In 2017.

• Short Film Focuses On Orion Mission, Human Space Exploration.

• Russia Leads The World In Launches In 2014.

• JAXA Plans Five Launches In 2015.

NASA NEWS

2014 Spaceflight Reviews Continue.

In continuing coverage, Spaceflight Now (12/30, 3K) ranked its "five most important events in spaceflight." in descending order, they are NASA's commercial crew contract award to Boeing and SpaceX, Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo accident, the Antares launch failure, the Orion test flight, and Philae's comet landing.

        The San Jose (CA) Mercury News (12/31, Green, 1.06M) lists Google's plans to reskin Hangar One, "create an educational center and assume management for much of Moffett Field," under a deal with NASA as among the "page one news on the Peninsula in 2014."

Astronaut To Attend India's Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

The Press Trust of India (12/30) reports that India's state finance minister Saurabh Patel announced that American astronaut Sunita Williams will be in attendance at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas opening ceremony in January.

YouTube UFO Archivist Spots Rainbow UFO In Apollo 12 Photo.

The Inquisitr (12/31, Vankin, 267K) reports that YouTube UFO archivist "StreetCap1" spotted a "rainbow-colored UFO" within a photo from the Apollo 12 mission. Recent sightings of "multi-colored UFO[s]" include one over Wigan, England and another over Florida.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

Wilmore's Birthday Celebrated At The ISS.

The Washington Post (12/30, Feltman, 4.9M) "Speaking of Science" blog reports on how ISS commander Barry Wilmore celebrated his birthday at the ISS. For much of the day, it was a "pretty typical Monday" with "eye readings" and tests of "how haptic feedback" affects astronauts in space. But to celebrate, NASA flight controllers sang "Happy Birthday" to Wilmore. The article noted that because cake is not allowed at the ISS because of the damage crumbs could do, Wilmore may have had "to settle for a birthday tortilla."

ACES Will Test General Relativity When At The ISS In 2017.

The Deutsche Presse Agentur (DEU) (12/30) reports that Airbus Defense and Space is developing "the most precise 'clock ensemble' ever" in order to test Einstein's general theory of relativity at the ISS. Once at the ISS in 2017, the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES) will test whether "the closer to a large body like the Earth, the slower time passes" by comparing its measurements to atomic clocks on Earth.

Short Film Focuses On Orion Mission, Human Space Exploration.

SPACE (12/30, David, 276K) reports on an episode within a short film series, "Humans Explore: We Are Capable of Greatness," which Space City Films' Marc Havican calls "a tribute to Orion and EFT-1, and to the impact that human space exploration has had on humanity."

        Blog Coverage. Ken Kremer at AmericaSpace (12/30) spoke with Jules Schneider, Orion Project Manager for Lockheed Martin, about how the Orion capsule's ascent abort system will be tested in 2018. This "mandatory safety demonstration flight test," known as the Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2), will launch the "now flight-proven Orion EFT-1 capsule" aboard a retired Peacekeeper intercontinental ballistic missile. According to Kremer, October's Antares launch failure back in October was a "vivid and stark reminder" of why such a system will be needed when astronauts are being launched deeper into space.

Russia Leads The World In Launches In 2014.

Sputnik News (12/30) reports that with 38 successful launches of 80 satellites in 2014, Russia was again the world leader in launches.

        Russia's ITAR-TASS News Agency (12/31, 1K) reports that in the coming year, Russia plans to launch "around thirty launches of space carrier rockets from different spaceports."

        Pravda (RUS) (12/31, 21K) also covers the story.

        Blog Coverage. Amy Thompson at Spaceflight Insider (12/30) writes that the United Launch Alliance had a "busy year" with 14 launches and an "impressive" perfect success rate. According to Thompson, the "most unique" launch of the year was the Orion capsule. ULA CEO Tory Bruno said that it was a "banner year" for the company.

JAXA Plans Five Launches In 2015.

The Jiji Press (12/31, 52) reports that JAXA could have "one of the busiest years ever at the Tanegashima Space Center" with five launches planned in 2015. The first launch involves "information-gathering satellite" on January 29. JAXA also plans to launch "the fifth Kounotori unmanned cargo transporter to the International Space Station" in the coming year.

 

China will soon control space-- We must regain & expand our capabilities!!!

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Better spread the word ( tweet, blog, etc.) before it is too late re China---right to bear arms believers --Think about this!

Nasaproblems.com states China will be the dominate space faring Nation on Earth by 2020.

The article below supports nasaproblems.com.

   

http://carnegieendowment.org/files/tellis_china_space1.pdf


You see what they do to " illegal" guns!

Fwd: nasa news == my version

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: December 29, 2014 at 10:35:02 AM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: nasa news == my version

Whole heartedly agree with the last article…but didn't need a study to confirm it…

 

 

Don't forget our monthly NASA retirees lunch is delayed to next Thursday January 8^th at Hibachi Grill   at 11:30

 

 

 

 

TODAY'S TABLE OF CONTENTS

LEADING THE NEWS

• Astronauts Show What Christmas Is Like In Space.

NASA NEWS

• 2014 Reviews Highlight Accomplishments In Space.

• NASA Said To Be "Crazy" If It Does Not Start Europa Mission.

• Georgia Schools Tackling Engineering Problems Through NASA Design Challenges.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

• Team Simulating Mars Mission In Hawaii.

• ISS Could Help NASA Learn To Make Astronaut Missions More Autonomous.

• Next SpaceX Launch Has Role In Company's Plans For Mars Mission One Day.

• Company Supplied New Alloy For Orion.

• Federal Grant Helping Laid-Off Shuttle Workers Ends.

• Serova Conducts Spontaneous Apple Seed Experiment.

• NASA-Funded Study Shows The Importance Of Naps.

LEADING THE NEWS

Astronauts Show What Christmas Is Like In Space.

ABC News (12/25, Mohney, 5.02M) reported on how the astronauts aboard the ISS celebrated Christmas, even leaving "powdered milk and freeze dried cookies" for Santa Claus. Astronaut Terry Vicks and others are also tweeting images "of what the holiday looks like in zero gravity." Meanwhile, Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti released "a moving rendition of the song 'Imagine.'"

        SPACE (12/25, Dickerson, 276K) noted that NASA spokesman Joshua Buck said that the astronauts would have Christmas "off, spend time together enjoying their time off, looking out the window and generally taking it easy."

        Florida Today (12/27, Dean, 151K), Vox (12/25, Stromberg, 344K), AOL (12/25, 12.52M), WTVY-TV Dothan, AL (12/26, 2K) website, RT (RUS) (12/24, 346K), Universe Today (12/24, Kremer, 9K), WLUK-TV Green Bay, WI (12/26, 7:45 a.m. CST, 45K), and over 100 other local TV broadcasts also covered the story.

   

NASA NEWS

2014 Reviews Highlight Accomplishments In Space.

The Denver Post (12/28, Keeney, 1.12M) continued reviews to the last year in space, with a focus on how Colorado as a state had a big year because it was involved in major projects like the first launch of the Orion capsule and the MAVEN mission, which arrived at Mars. The article also noted the ties to the launch of the WorldView-3 satellite and Dream Chaser spacecraft, which failed to win a NASA commercial crew contract.

        Voice of America (12/25, Putic, 99K) noted that the "biggest achievements of 2014," whether successes like a spacecraft landing on a comet, the launch of Orion, and the arrival of MAVEN at Mar, or failures like Orbital Sciences and Virgin Galactic's accidents, took place in the latter half of the year.

       

NASA Said To Be "Crazy" If It Does Not Start Europa Mission.

Discovery News (12/26, Klotz, 417K) continued coverage of how NASA received $100 million to start work on an mission to Europa in the recently-passed budget. Casey Dreier, advocacy director with the Planetary Society, wrote that although such a mission still needs the approval of the Office of Management and Budget, NASA would be "crazy" not to work on the mission.

Georgia Schools Tackling Engineering Problems Through NASA Design Challenges.

The Athens (AL) News Courier (12/26, Croomes, 18K) reported on a partnership between NASA and Athens, Georgia area schools. The Design Challenges for the Classroom program will give students "real-world problems" that NASA engineers tackle, according to Athens Middle School assistant principal Chris Pennington. The goal of the program is to promote interest in STEM fields.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

Team Simulating Mars Mission In Hawaii.

NBC Nightly News (12/28, story 10, 2:20, Holt, 7.86M) broadcast on how a group in Hawaii is taking part in a NASA-funded study "to look at how a small group of people can work together isolated from the rest of society." Reporter Hallie Jackson said that this project aims "to simulate a real manned mission" to Mars. Kim Binsted of the University of Hawaii said that part of the mission is to learn how to detect psychological problems with crew members "before they become serious."

        Mars One Candidate Also Trying To Participate In Mars Society Simulation. NPR (12/27, 2.22M) "All Things Considered" profiled Lt. Heidi Beemer, who is in the running to be selected as part of the crew to be sent to Mars on a one-way trip with Mars One. She will learn whether she will be among the final group of 40 to 50 candidates next year. Meanwhile, as "a plan B," Beemer is also one of 21 finalists competing to take part in the Mars Society's Mars Arctic 365 program, "a one-year simulated Mars exploration mission planned for next year in the high arctic."

        Experiment Could Test "Pee Power" On Mars. The Cincinnati Enquirer (12/25, Balmert, 521K) reported that Gerardine Botte, director of Ohio University's Center for Electrochemical Engineering Research, designed a "pee power" experiment that is now a finalist in a Mars One competition. Her GreenBox would take an astronaut's urine and break it down into potable water and "fuel-grade hydrogen" for use as an energy source. If selected, it will be sent to Mars in 2018 on a robotic mission.

        The AP (12/26) also covered the story, citing the Enquirer piece. UberGizmo (12/28, Kee, 5K) has additional coverage.

        Blog Coverage. Matt Williams at Universe Today (12/26, 9K) has similar coverage about another experiment participating in the Mars One competition. This one would release cyanobacteria into Mars' atmosphere to convert carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen. Williams noted that the team is benefiting from current ISS research involving cyanobacteria.

ISS Could Help NASA Learn To Make Astronaut Missions More Autonomous.

In a 7100-word article, Charles Fishman at the Atlantic (12/27, 10.91M) wrote about how "strange" it is that the ISS, a "stunning achievement" in space that has been operating continuously for years, is "completely ignored" by the public. Fishman commented that this is a "disservice" to NASA and those that serve at it. While noting that the ISS is "more thrilling and dangerous" and much more difficult than many on Earth would think, Fishman focused on how regimented astronaut life is currently. NASA currently "struggles" to balance the needs of the astronauts with the requirement to get as much done as possible. To Fishman, one of the biggest challenges to overcome that no one expected is "learning to let astronauts manage their own lives in space." The "real value" of the ISS could be to make astronauts more autonomous in space.

        NASA Releases New App All About The ISS. The Indo-Asian News Service (12/28) reported on a new NASA app called the "Space Station Earthquake Explorer," which has "everything you need to know about" the ISS. The apps includes an experiments section, a "benefits" section, and even a media section with "podcasts, videos and games."

       

Next SpaceX Launch Has Role In Company's Plans For Mars Mission One Day.

The Washington Post (12/25, Davenport, 4.9M) "Wonkblog" continued coverage of how SpaceX will attempt an "audacious maneuver" to land its Falcon 9 rocket booster on a barge on the next mission to the ISS. The article, noting the risks and difficulties, characterized the work as part of Elon Musk's goals of colonizing Mars one day.

        The Orlando (FL) Sentinel (12/27, Powers, 822K) examined SpaceX's launch plans for the next few years, starting with the ISS mission in January. It now has 40 launches on its books, "include five for launching the Falcon Heavy." According to John Logsdon, professor emeritus at George Washington University's Space Policy Institute, SpaceX is aiming to become the "dominant player in space activity," adding that this is not solely based on its missions for NASA.

        CNN's Money (12/26, Pagliery) also covered the story.

Company Supplied New Alloy For Orion.

WVNS-TV Bluefield, WV (12/26, 11:25 p.m. EST, 1K) broadcast that Constellium Rolled Products provided a "new lithium-infused aluminum alloy" used by the Orion spacecraft during its test flight earlier this month.

        The Charleston (WV) Gazette (12/24, Constantino, 44K) also covers the story.

        Work On Orion Helps Air Force Cadets Become Better Officers. The Colorado Springs (CO) Gazette (12/28, Roeder, 143K) reported that Air Force Academy cadets contributed to the Orion project by conducting wind tunnel tests starting in 2006, which allowed the capsule's designers to understand "how small forces can affect the stability of the capsule as it falls." The cadets also helped develop Orion's parachute system. The article noted that Tom Yechout, an academy aeronautics professor, believes that by working on this NASA projects, the cadets do become "better officers" in the future.

        Blog Coverage. Eric Berger at the Houston Chronicle (12/24, 2.47M) posted NASA flight director Milt Heflin's account of recovering the Orion capsule from the sea because of his "unique vantage point" of having done the same during the Apollo program. Heflin said that the "magnificent teamwork" he saw between "NASA, the Department of Defense, Lockheed Martin and various contractors" was very similar to what took place decades ago. Heflin concluded that if others "get the hell out of the way" of NASA and others, they can succeed in sending people deeper into space because they are "incredibly talented and capable."

Federal Grant Helping Laid-Off Shuttle Workers Ends.

Florida Today (12/27, Dean, 151K) reported that this month, a Federal grant which helped "some of the roughly 8,000 laid-off shuttle contractors find jobs" ended. According to records, as of September 30, close to 3,000 people benefited from the grant, with over 2,000 finding jobs.

Serova Conducts Spontaneous Apple Seed Experiment.

Russia Beyond The Headlines (12/27, Zavyalova) reported that cosmonaut Elena Serova has conducted "a spontaneous experiment" to see how apple seeds germinate in space. The article posted several of Serova's posts describing the experiment, which has resulted in a tree that is now two months old.

NASA-Funded Study Shows The Importance Of Naps.

TIME (12/27, Barker, 23.35M) explored in-depth five ways to be "smarter," according to research. One of the ways listed is by taking naps. According to a NASA-funded study, astronauts who napped for fifteen minutes had "markedly improved" performance, even if there was no "increase in alertness or the ability to pay more attention to a boring task."

 

Declining Space Capabilities--- Visit local TV station

Declining space capabilities
For all who read this, please visit you local TV Station & demand they report the facts on what this adm has done to the USA 's space capabilities, For more info--- read nasaproblems.com , Real Space Act of 2013 FB , keeptheshuttleflyingc.blogspot.com
We should not be paying Russia to get to ISS! It has been 2011 since we placed a man in orbit & will be 3 or 4 more until commercial (cots) flies a manned mission ( assuming no accidents)--- likely will be that will delay flights further.

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Visit your local TV station manager &convince him to Air the facts re destruction of our capabilities!

China

"This is due to the amount of resources [China] dedicates to space activities, the breadth of its programs, its long-term thinking and its determination," Heracleous continued.

He noted that other countries, too, are getting in on the space game — nations like India, which recently launched an orbiter to Mars at the "incredibly low cost" of $74 million, though its program "lacks the scope of the U.S., Russian or Chinese programs."

But those countries' space programs are gaining momentum and closing ground, he said.

Heracleous and Gonzalez have written in their study that NASA can overcome its predicament by addressing two issues — its lack of employee turnover and its budgetary problems.

• In the 1960s, NASA's annual turnover rate was 10 to 15 percent, ensuring a continuous influx of fresh talent and ideas. Today it's 1.7 percent (excluding retirees), with 58 percent of its workers between the ages of 45 and 59. Using a successful government program, Sandia's Entrepreneurial Separation to Transfer Technology (ESTT), as a model, the authors propose that employees be allowed to leave NASA to start new companies or help existing organizations, with guaranteed reinstatement if they decide to return. This would give scientists an opportunity to gain new insights and perspectives on their technology before returning to NASA.
• During the Cold War, NASA received 4.5 percent of the federal budget; today it's down to 0.5 percent. The authors say this can be addressed by making NASA a network organization that is properly integrated internally and externally, meaning there is an organized working partnership not only between NASA centers but also with other superior space technology organizations.

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NASA must sharpen its space skills, say experts | Fox News

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2014/12/23/nasa-must-sharpen-its-space-skills-say-experts/?intcmp=features


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Fwd: Alexander Gerst timelapses photography from 6 months in space

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: Kent Castle <kent.d.castle@hotmail.com>
Date: December 26, 2014 5:53:49 PM CST
To: Patterson James <w8ljz@aol.com>, Williams Tom <gtomwill@att.net>, Downham Walter <w9alt0@dishmail.net>, Madsen Ron <ronstar@pdq.net>, Bogan Carole <bcbogan@earthlink.net>, Chamberlain Sharon <sharon.m.chamberlain@saic.com>, Astrology Valkyrie <astrogoddess@valkyrieastrology.com>, Bentz Jerry <bentz@sbcglobal.net>, Martin Bobby <bobbygmartin1938@gmail.com>
Subject: FW: Alexander Gerst timelapses photography from 6 months in space

 

---

From:
Subject: FW: Alexander Gerst timelapses photography from 6 months in space
Date: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 09:28:10 -0600

 

 

Alexander Gerst timelapses photography from 6 months in space

Auroras, illuminated cities and lightning make for a beautiful video.

By Aileen Graef   |   Dec. 23, 2014 at 7:04 AM

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNwWOul4i9Y

 

PARIS, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- German astronaut Alexander Gerst made a stunning timelapse video of his photography from his six months aboard the International Space Station.

The video is comprised of 12,500 images from his time in Lower Earth Orbit and includes auroras, storms, lit up cities, glimpses of the Soyuz rocket and the Canada arm as lightning across the Earth.
Alexander Gerst, American Reid Wiseman and Russian Maxim Suraev landed back on Earth in November. Gerst's images can also be found on his Flickr page.                                  

© 2014 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 

 

---

 

 

Better read nasaproblems.com--Can NASA be SAVED!

@KeepShuttle @megynkelly. the usa not maintaining adequate space capabilities. x37C ignored, shuttle in museum, China dominate by 2020 !!


@KeepShuttle @megynkelly COTS will not be manned for 3 to 4 years, 8 years with usa riding with russia & not developing our capabilities& technique

Shuttle Unique Capabilities!

Bobby Martin shared REAL Space Act of 2013's photo.

Just now · 

As our experts have stated, the many unique capabilities of shuttle plus the maintenance of our skills are lost, As clearly indicated by nasaproblems.com , Don Nelson , all this manned space flight down time coupled with China' s intent to have an operational reuseable shuttle, clearly places the USA in serious situation! YET, the media will not bring facts to the people! Spread the word!!

REAL Space Act of 2013

Never should have been retired!

###

Did you know that United Space Alliance (USA) submitted a proposal to fly the shuttles as a commercial service for NASA?

...See More

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Healthy NASA has contributed to Global Power!

USA technological superiority

Space exploration is not only critical in refusing to surrender the battlefield of space – our next serious theater of war -- to our present and future adversaries; it also necessary in retaining US technological superiority and being able to utilize the energy and mineral resources of the Solar system essential for future global prosperity.

The major problem is that It is not just NASA but the whole of the US space industry that is in trouble. It is laying off men and women by the thousand; their skills and experience will be lost forever. Reconstituting the ability to build complex and reliable space systems without these people will be an even more expensive and time consuming process.

Meanwhile, this strategically vital industry will see its overseas competitors, such as China, grow and develop. America's edge in space is endangered, and if it disappears, a large proportion of America's global power will disappear along with it.

Presidents have traditionally used NASA for both diplomatic and military purposes. During the Eisenhower administration the President's advisors wrote that "The novel nature of space exploration offers opportunities for international cooperation in it's peaceful aspects. " Nixon did not hesitate to use the success of the Apollo Moon mission to enhance America's global position, the Astronauts traveled around the world as living symbols of US technological superiority. Bill Clinton sought to cement a positive relationship with post communist Russia by giving them a major role in the Space Station project.

NASA has also been useful in developing and preserving technologies with important military applications. The sensors used on interplanetary probes are similar and sometimes identical to the ones used on the most advanced spy satellites. Life support technologies developed for the shuttle find their way into the flight suits worn by pilots who fly high altitude military jets. And while America has not built a new ICBM or submarine launched nuclear missile for decades, NASA, by keeping the solid rocket motor industry alive has insured that if the decision were made to build a new type of missile for the US nuclear deterrent force, the Defense Department could do so without having to rebuild the nation's solid fueled rocket making expertise from nothing.

By keeping America's space industry alive and healthy NASA has in the past directly contributed to overall US global power. As the agency succumbs to confusion and a lack of clear direction its ability to help keep America secure and prosperous will inevitably diminish.

So, too, with the rest of the US aerospace industry. Boeing's effort to set up a second production line for its new 787 airliner has been declared illegal by the National Labor Relations Board on the grounds that it was going to be built in South Carolina, a "right to work" state. The courts seem to have thought that this was supposedly Boeing's way of illegally punishing the unionized workers in Washington state, who, by the way, will not suffer from a single layoff or lose a single hour's pay due to this increase in 787 production.

The F-22 manufacturing program is also shutting down. The administration claimed that it onlyneeds 187 of these air superiority fighters.

Those parts of the F-35 program that are not "on probation" are under attack for what are perceived as massive cost overruns. It looks as if the Defense budget will be cut by more than $500 billion; and there is serious talk of shutting down America's ability to build nuclear powered aircraft carriers

As America's space shuttle program comes to an end, NASA faces an uncertain and probably painful future. With a smaller budget and without a mission that has broad national support, the space agency has been floundering amid what the Washington Post calls "Rancor".

If NASA was in "disarray" in January 2009, as the current NASA leaders claim, then every single agency of the federal government that tries to accomplish or build anything was, and still is, in equal disarray. NOAA, the FAA, the Coast Guard, The Departments of Agricultural, Energy and Education, to name a few, have all proven incapable of meeting their goals or building hardware on time or within budget. Only those parts of the Government that are dedicated to stopping people from doing things,or regulating human activity, are not in "disarray." They may not be doing anything useful, but they are not in disarray.

To say, as Newt Gingrich did recently, that the problem at NASA is "Bureaucracy" is too miss the point. It was not NASA's employees who got America into this humiliating mess; it was America's politicians.

Admittedly, NASA's Administrator and his Deputy worked hard, along with the President's science advisor and the rest of the White House team, to alienate a critical mass of members of Congress by ignoring their concerns, rejecting their advice and blindsiding them with critical space policy decisions.

. The Obama administration then wrecked the previous program on the grounds that it was underfunded and behind schedule, and replaced it with a new program that looks as if it is now underfund and behind schedule. Congressmen and women being human, and under massive pressure to cut spending, have now cut the guts out of the space agency's proposed budget.

One of the more irony-laden recent press releases, at a time when this nation is saturated with them, is from the American Astronomical Society (AAS), protesting the House Appropriations committee's cancellation of the James Webb Space Telescope. What did the astronomers expect? Did they really believe that the US Government would demolish the human spaceflight program and leave their precious "science" programs untouched?

The House Appropriations Committee has cut deeply into NASA's overall budget, leaving it with $1.9 billion less than the President requested. Its members slashed the Commercial Crew Development program, and agreed to increase support only for the new Space Launch System, sometimes referred to as the Congressional Rocket.

To say that NASA is "screwed up" is to put it kindly. Sometimes destabilizing an institution may be necessary to revive it, but more often the destabilizing is simply destructive. NASA's leadership seems honestly to believe that everything is A-OK. In a Washington Post article on July 2nd, the agency's Deputy Administrator, Lori Garver, is quoted as saying, "We have a Program. We have a Budget. We have Bipartisan Support. We have a Destination." Unpacking that statement is an interesting exercise: it will show that while NASA is losing support for its budget on Capitol Hill, NASA's leaders do not seem to understand why this is happening.

NASA has rejected the policy that the Bush administration had carefully crafted in cooperation with Members of Congress from both parties and which had been accepted with overwhelming bipartisan support. It was a policy that not only would get America back to the Moon sometime in the middle of the next decade, but would do so with a minimum of job losses.

Of course NASA has a program; that is the easy part. Turning the program into reality is hard, and there is no sign that NASA's current leadership can convince Congress to fund the Program.

Traditionally NASA has undertaken the job of opening up the frontier and without the assurance that NASA can create it is hard to imagine that investors will be willing to risk providing the financing that the economic expansion of the US into the Solar system. NASA plays a role similar to one the US cavalry played when America moved west: it provides the settlers and business people with enough security to risk building a new economy.

The House Appropriations Committee has given NASA a budget. It Is hard to imagine how that budget can be made compatible with Lori Garver's and the administration's program. Congress is funding its priorities: a new rocket and the new exploration vehicle that the new rocket will launch. Congress is cutting the budget for the things that the administration wants such as the budget for unfocused technology development

The NASA program that the administration wants is one based on the idea that a new kind of 'commercial' space industry can provide access to orbit, while NASA invents new technologies that can explore the solar system at a lower cost than current technology would allow. The Congress disagrees and has ordered NASA to build a new heavy-lift rocket using existing technology. With this rocket, the US will be able to send human missions to the Moon or to Mars or, as the administration wants, to visit an asteroid.

The administration says that it wants to go to an asteroid because it wants to gather information about the formation of the Solar system; that it believes that the experience of going to an asteroid will help develop the technology and expertise needed to go to Mars.

Last year, Congress passed the NASA Authorization Bill with bipartisan support, but it lacked the overwhelming bipartisan support that previous NASA authorization bills had received in 2005 and 2007. Sadly, the space agency has lost much of its traditional base of Congressional support and has not been able to find much of a new one.

People at NASA say that they have a destination:a so-far unidentified asteroid.They say this will provide better scientific information about the early development of the Solar System and that the operation will be a low-cost way to develop technologies that will be needed if NASA is someday to send people to Mars. But NASA lacks a serious plan to get there and also is having a real problem finding other nations ready to cooperate. As long as the US cannot maintain a space policy for more than several years at a time, few countries will dare to invest their time and efforts in cooperating with it.

Last February, America's premier space policy expert, John Logsdon, pointed out that, "Today, there most certainly is no pressing national security question for which the answer is: "go to an asteroid."

In an era of tight budgets and angry partisanship, it may be foolish to imagine that any national leader could convince a large majority of Congress to fund an ambitious national program, let alone the kind of transnational "feel good" project -- such as the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission that was supposed to symbolize US- Soviet "détente"-- that some people in this administration seem to believe is desirable.

The expectation that the "New Space" commercial human spaceflight industry -- which can be described as a collection of small entrepreneurial firms that have been building small rockets and have been trying to find low cost ways to get into space -- will be able to replace NASA may not be realistic.

Considering how things are going in Washington,however, it may be more realistic than any other part of the space agency's current program. Congress seems ready to cut more than two thirds of the proposed budget for commercial human spaceflight --from the proposed roughly $900 million, down to about $300 million. That cut, however, will just slow the industry down rather than stop it.

This will mean that for many years there will be no way for Americans to get into orbit other than to buy a seat on a Soyuz capsule from the Russians.

As long as NASA depends on Russia for access to the ISS, Russia will be able to shut down that access at any moment and take full control of a station that America spent more than $80 billion dollars building. There is also the ongoing international image of America's astronauts dependent on Russia for their professional existence.

If NASA chooses to spread tiny -- by government standards -- sums of this $300 million around to all of the current recipients of "commercial" space contracts, the country will end up with a collection of undercapitalized, nearly bankrupt "New Space" companies that are totally dependent on government funding.

There is also the possibility that regulatory actions by the Federal Aviation Administration, or by some other part of the government, could bring the whole effort to build the "New Space" industry to an a loud halt, in which event the US would lose an important body of technical and business knowledge,as well as the drive, enthusiasm and imagination that these bring to the whole aerospace industry.

The problem is that the "New Space" industry is a valuable source of ideas and often pushes NASA and the large aerospace companies to innovate, to abandon their old procedures in favor of better new ones;but the industry lacks the capital to accomplish any really big projects such as building a rocket that can actually reach orbit. If America is going to be able to obtain access to the minerals and energy resources in the Solar System that it needs to thrive in the second half of the 21st century.

We shall have to have both the large, old fashioned aerospace firms and the small, nimble "New Space" firms.

SpaceX based in Hawthorne California, seems to stand by itself. The firm has the deep pockets of its founder, Elon Musk, co-inventor of PayPal, and it also has been developing its rockets and other space hardware for more than a decade. The company has so far successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket twice . Sometime in the late fall of this year, it hopes to launch it again, carrying the company's Dragon capsule. The Dragon will fly past the International Space Station (ISS), demonstrating that SpaceX can safely operate its maneuvering thrusters and its communications gear near that$100 billion orbital facility. If all goes well, next year the SpaceX Dragon capsule will dock with the station, proving that the firm can fulfill its obligations to fly supplies to the space station under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services contract it signed in 2008.

Once this happens, SpaceX will assume the mission of sending US cargo, consisting of food, water oxygen, and equipment,to keep the station running and to support the scientific experiments that are performed there.

At some later time, SpaceX hopes to show that it can fly people, as well as cargo, to the ISS. Under the best of circumstances, NASA's future access to orbit for people will depend on the success of a single firm's launch-system. Based on past experience with space systems' delays and cost overruns, this dependence on a single company will last until the end of the decade, if not longer.

The Air Force learned that when it relied exclusively on a single rocket to launch its vital satellites into orbit, if something went wrong with America's ability to keep its array of military satellites working and in orbit, it would not be able to monitor what was going on in important parts of the world. This happened in the late 1980s and early 1990s after a series of accidents grounded both the Space Shuttle and the Titan rockets. None of the other "New Space" firms that NASA has been supporting has any real chance of sending people into orbit within the next five years or more. If America's wants to have assured, low cost access to space, both for military reasons and to take advantage of the economic opportunities that are out there in the Solar System, it will have to have multiple ways of getting people and payloads in orbit. The current Delta and Atlas rockets may be reliable but they are not low cost.

Just as the Constellation Return-to-the-Moon program that the administration destroyed was constantly forced to adapt to funding shortfalls,the commercial human spaceflight program is also learning to adjust to constantly changing levels of government funding. If the next administration wanted to, it could cancel the whole commercial program and base the cancellation on the same grounds that were used to kill Constellation: that it is behind schedule and underfunded.

It looks as if keeping a strong and prosperous aerospace industry – and America – is nowhere near at the top of the President's priorities.

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A national disgrace!

REAL Space Act of 2013

Yesterday at 5:48am · 

In the face of impossible odds, people who love their country can change it.

The United States Space Program was an engine of our economy! 

Under the Obama Administration, NASA is waving the white flag as other countries forge ahead with plans for human lunar exploration and settlement. This is a national disgrace!

OBAMA has also outsourced human spaceflight to Russia! We now have no way to send American astronauts into space unless we pay Russia $70+ million per seat. Furthermore, the U.S. DoD must buy Russian engines (the RD-180) for our booster rockets to launch American satellites.

Support bipartisan legislation that sets NASA's focus on the Moon! Specifically, the REAL Space Act of 2013 directs NASA to plan to return to the Moon by 2022 and develop a sustained human presence there as a stepping stone for future exploration.

Support the REAL Space Act of 2013 and America's triumphant return to the Moon!

http://www.facebook.com/REALSpaceAct2013

Link to Congressman Bill Posey's web site included below.

http://posey.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx…

Link to Congressman Bill Posey's bill is included below.

"http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c113%3AH.R.1446%3A"

IF YOU CARE ABOUT AMERICA'S SPACE PROGRAM, "LIKE" THIS PAGE AND SPREAD THE WORD!

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