Author: Marcia Smith

Senate Could Debate CJS or DOD Appropriations Next Week

Senate Could Debate CJS or DOD Appropriations Next Week

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 17, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:17 pm ET

Congress Daily (subscription required) reports that either the Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) or Department of Defense (DOD) appropriations bill could reach the Senate floor next week. CJS funds NASA and NOAA. (See our legislative checklist for more information on the bills.)

The newspaper quotes Senate Majority Leader Reid as expressing optimism that conference agreement could be reached on five of the 12 appropriations bills by the beginning of the new fiscal year on October 1. The House is expected to debate a short-term Continuing Resolution (CR) next week to keep agencies whose bills have not passed operating, according to Congress Daily.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:17 pm ET
Sen. Nelson Believes President Will Make Bold Decision on Human Space Flight

Sen. Nelson Believes President Will Make Bold Decision on Human Space Flight

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 16, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:16 pm ET

Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) closed his hearing on the Augustine committee report today on an optimistic note. While acknowledging how difficult it will be to find funds for human space flight in these budget deficit laden times, he said:

“I think the President really has a major decision here. There’s nothing like a President making a bold decision to focus the nation on where we ought to be going technologically. … I believe the President is a visionary and I believe that the President is going to make a bold stroke not unlike President Kennedy. He set this nation on a course that was extraordinary and it is my belief that President Obama will do that.”

A webcast of the hearing is available on the committee’s website. SpacePolicyOnline.com will post a summary of the hearing soon.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:16 pm ET
UPDATED: Who Will Lead Space Florida?

UPDATED: Who Will Lead Space Florida?

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 16, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:18 pm ET

FINAL UPDATE

Frank DiBello, acting President of Space Florida, has been selected as its new President, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

UPDATED

As first reported on NASAWatch, the Orlando Sentinel now reports that Ms. Dale has declined Space Florida’s offer.

ORIGINAL STORY

The Orlando Sentinel reported yesterday that former NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale was the unanimous choice of the search committee seeking a new president for Space Florida. A new story in that newspaper today, however, says that supporters of Space Florida’s acting president, Frank DiBello, are fighting to have the decision overturned and give the job to DiBello permanently. A Space Florida Board meeting reportedly is scheduled for tomorrow to further discuss the issue.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:18 pm ET
Congressional Hearings on Augustine Report Begin Today

Congressional Hearings on Augustine Report Begin Today

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 15, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:13 pm ET

Two days of congressional hearings on the Augustine committee report on the future of the human space flight program begin this afternoon.

Haven’t had time to read the Augustine committee’s report? Read our 1-page summary.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:13 pm ET
Mike Griffin's Testimony to the House Science and Technology Committee, September 15, 2009

Mike Griffin's Testimony to the House Science and Technology Committee, September 15, 2009

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 15, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:15 pm ET

A personal email from former NASA Administrator Mike Griffin to friends expressing his views about the Augustine committee report found its way onto some space-related websites last week. SpacePolicyOnline.com decided to wait for Dr. Griffin’s official views as expressed in his testimony today to the House Science and Technology Committee. They are much the same. His key argument is that the best option is to restore funding for the Constellation program rather than set off on a different course. He adds that, if necessary, development of the Altair lunar lander could be postponed and the Ares V/Orion combination could embark on some of the “Flexible Path” missions discussed in the Augustine report until funding for Altair becomes available.

A SpacePolicyOnline.com summary of the hearing will be available soon.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:15 pm ET
SBIRS Still Facing Challenges

SBIRS Still Facing Challenges

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 15, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:16 pm ET

General Robert Kehler, head of Air Force Space Command, told the annual conference of the Air Force Association that “persistent hardware and software problems” with the Space Based Infrared Satellite System (SBIRS) “have not yet been solved,” according to DODBuzz.

SBIRS (formerly SBIRS-High) has been plagued with problems since its inception in 1996 and has suffered repeated “Nunn-McCurdy” breaches requiring DOD to restructure the program and recertify the need for it. It is intended to replace the Defense Support Program (DSP) early warning satellites, though it has a broader set of requirements. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued numerous reports about SBIRS. In May 2009 testimony on challenges facing DOD space programs, GAO noted that the cost for SBIRS has grown to $12.2 blllion, $7.5 billion more than its original estimate, while the number of geosynchronous satellites has been reduced from five to four and the launch of the first GEO satellite has been delayed by 7 years. (The SBIRS program also is designed to have sensors on satellites in highly elliptical orbits (HEO); the first two of those have been launched. Originally there was a companion “SBIRS-Low” program, now the Space Tracking and Surveillance System. For a summary of SBIRS’ history, see GAO’s 2008 report.)

The 2009 GAO testimony stated that the SBIRS program planned to have a new plan in place by June 2009, but in its report (S. Rept. 111-74) on the DOD appropriations bill last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee said that the committee was informed in June of additional schedule delays and cost increases “associated with a number of parts quality issues.”

Acknowledging the challenges with SBIRS, the Air Force requested funds in the FY2010 budget for a follow-on system called Third Generation Infra-Red Surveillance program or 3GIRS. The Senate Appropriations Committee said that “Due to the chronic problems [with SBIRS] and the importance of missile warning for national security,” the committee supports 3GIRS. The House-passed version of the bill (H.R. 3326, H. Rept. 111-230) cuts the $143 million request for 3GIRS by $104 million, leaving only $39 million.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:16 pm ET
Augustine Committee Report: A SpacePolicyOnline.com Fact Sheet Now Available

Augustine Committee Report: A SpacePolicyOnline.com Fact Sheet Now Available

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 14, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:12 pm ET

Don’t have time to read the Augustine committee’s report before the hearings this week? Read our concise 1-page fact sheet summarizing its key points. Find it on our left menu under “Our Fact Sheets and Reports” or click here.

The fact sheet is authored by Laura M. Delgado who has just begun writing for SpacePolicyOnline.com. Laura is pursuing her M.A. in International Science and Technology Policy at George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute. For more on Laura, see her bio on our “About Us” page on the left menu.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:12 pm ET
China Begins Construction of New Space Launch Center in Hainan

China Begins Construction of New Space Launch Center in Hainan

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 14, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:13 pm ET

After many years of discussion, China has begun construction of a new space launch site in Wenchang city on the island of Hainan according to China Daily. At 19 degrees north latitude, it will be the southern-most of the country’s space launch facilities. China is building a new launch vehicle, the Long March 5, that is expected to make its debut at Hainan in 2014.

The Long March 5 (CZ-5) will have a 25 ton to low Earth orbit (LEO) payload capability — in the same class as the U.S. Delta 4 Heavy, space shuttle, and Ares I (under development). China Daily reported that the Hainan launch site would be used for geostationary launches, space station launches, and launches of deep space probes. It also could be used for Chinese human spaceflight launches beyond LEO.

Currently, China has launch sites at Jiuquan in the Gobi Desert, used for China’s Shenzhou human spaceflight missions and most spacecraft launches to high inclination orbits; Xichang, near Chengdu, used for launches to geostationary orbit; and Taiyuan, south of Beijing, for polar orbit launches.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:13 pm ET
Son of Israeli Astronaut Ramon Killed in Fighter Crash

Son of Israeli Astronaut Ramon Killed in Fighter Crash

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 14, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:17 pm ET

As reported on NASAWatch, Assaf Ramon, son of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, was killed in the crash of a fighter jet in Hebron, Israel yesterday. Ilan Ramon perished in the space shuttle Columbia tragedy in 2003, Now his son, Assaf, has died in the crash of an F-16 plane he was piloting; an investigation is underway.

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:17 pm ET
Space Policy Institute Seminar on Augustine Report

Space Policy Institute Seminar on Augustine Report

By Marcia Smith | Posted: September 14, 2009 12:00 am ET | Last Updated: December 5, 2011 6:17 pm ET

George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute will hold a half day seminar looking at the Augustine committee’s report on options for the human space flight program: September 28, 8:15 am -12:30 pm, 1957 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C., 7th floor conference room. Seating is limited so an RSVP is required (spi@gwu.edu). See the agenda below.

8:15 A.M. Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00 A.M. Welcome and Introductory Remarks

  • DR. SCOTT PACE, Director, Space Policy Institute

9:20 A.M. Panel 1: Setting the Context for NASA

  • GEN. LESTER LYLES (invited)
  • MR. A. THOMAS YOUNG
  • DR. DOUG STANLEY, Georgia Institute of Technology
  • MR. “JT” JEZERSKI, Office of Rep. Pete Olson (R-TX)

10:20 A.M. Coffee Break

10:40 A.M. Panel 2: Science and International Relations

  • DR. PAUL SPUDIS, Lunar and Planetary Institute
  • DR. TOM JONES, Planetary scientist, former astronaut
  • DR. JOHN LOGSDON, Space Policy Institute
  • DR. ALAIN DUPAS, Coll ge de Polytechnique

11:30 A.M. Panel 3: Security and Commerce

  • MR. BRETT ALEXANDER, Commercial Spaceflight Federation
  • MR. CARLOS MONEJE, Office of the Governor of Florida
  • MR. ROBERT READ, Office of the Undersecretary of Defense (AT&L)
  • MR. JOHN KARAS, Lockheed Martin

12:20 P.M. Closing Remarks

  • DR. SCOTT PACE, Director, Space Policy Institute

12:30 P.M. Lunch

Last Updated: Dec 05, 2011 6:17 pm ET

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