Space Policy Events for March 24-28, 2014

The following events may be of interest in the week ahead.  The House and Senate are in session and, yes, there’s another chance for wintry weather here in the DC area on Tuesday, so check to be sure that any events you’re interested in on Tuesday or Wednesday are still on track.  (It’s not supposed to be too bad this time, though.)

During the Week

With the tense U.S.-Russian relationships resulting from the situation in Ukraine commanding attention, perhaps the most interesting event this week will be the launch of two Russians and an American to the International Space Station (ISS) from Kazakhstan on Tuesday.  There is no outward sign of cracks in the ISS partnership, so the expectation is that this will be as routine as a launch ever can be.   Launch is at 5:17 pm EDT; docking is just under 6 hours later at 11:04 pm EDT.

Meanwhile, back here in the States, congressional hearings on the budget for science agencies in general and NASA specifically kick off before the House Science, Space and Technology Committee on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.  NASA’s hearing will come a day after a forum at NASA Headquarters with an update on its Asteroid Initiative — the “initiative” is the Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) plus the Asteroid Grand Challenge plus the extra money in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate to augment the search for asteroids — on Wednesday afternoon.  NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg who recently was aboard the ISS will speak there.  She and Luca Parmitano — the ESA astronaut whose helmet filled with water during that EVA last year — will speak at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD, later that day about their recent tour of duty aboard ISS.

Lots of other interesting events are on tap, too.   The list below has everything we know about as of Sunday afternoon.

Monday, March 24

• AIA Panel on Reducing the Cost of National Security Space Capabilities, 2325 Rayburn, 9:00-10:30 am ET
• NASA Astronaut Karen Nyberg participates in NASA Social , NASA HQ, Washington, DC, 3:00 pm ET

Tuesday, March 25

• Marshall Institute Panel on Human Settlement in Space: Moon’s Challenges and Opportunities, TechAmerica office at 1919 North Lynn St., Arlington, VA, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm ET
• Soyuz TMA-12M launch to and docking with International Space Station, Baikonur, Kazakhstan:  launch 5:17 pm ET (March 26, 3:17 am local time at launch site); docking 11:04 pm ET

Wednesday, March 26

• House SS&T Hearing on FY2015 Request for Science Agencies (with President’s Science Adviser Holdren), 2318 Rayburn, 10:00 am ET
• House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee Hearing on FY2015 Air Force Budget Request, H-140 Capitol, 10:00 am ET
• NASA Asteroid Initiative Opportunities Forum (astronaut Karen Nyberg will speak at the beginning), NASA HQ, Washington, DC, 12:30-4:30 pm ET
• NASA Astronaut Karen Nyberg and ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano Presentation on Their Recent Tour of Duty on ISS, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 5:30 pm ET

Wednesday-Thursday, March 26-27

• NASA Advisory Council Astrophysics Subcommittee, NASA HQ, Washington, DC, 8:30 am – 5:00 pm both days

Thursday, March 27

• House SS&T Hearing on FY2015 NASA Budget Request (with Bolden), 2318 Rayburn, 9:00 am ET (note earlier time than usual)
• SPI/USRA Symposium on Science and Commerce in Space — Balancing Public and Private Sector Interests, Capitol Holiday Inn, 550 C Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 1:00-5:00 pm ET