Space Policy Events for the Week of April 8-12, 2013

The following events may be of interest in the coming week.  The House and Senate both are in session, returning from their Easter/Passover break.

During the Week

The big event this week is the release — at last — of President Obama’s FY2014 budget request.  It will be sent to Capitol Hill on Wednesday, the same day the House Science, Space and Technology Committee has scheduled Part II of the committee’s hearings on Near Earth Objects (NEOs).   Those are asteroids and comets that come close to, and may threaten, Earth.   The President’s budget request reportedly includes funds for NASA to begin work on the idea of capturing an asteroid, moving it into the Earth-Moon system, and sending astronauts to study it.   Such a mission would respond to scientific interest in asteroids, human exploration goals, planetary defense (defending Earth from asteroids or comets that could cause significant destruction), and the plans of a couple of entrepreneurial companies that want to mine asteroids for their raw materials.  A study by the Keck Institute of Space Studies last year estimated it would cost $2.6 billion in FY12 dollars.  The request for FY2014 is said to be about $100 million.

Several congressional hearings are scheduled this week on the budget requests for the Department of Defense (DOD) and, separately, the Department of Commerce (DOC), which manages weather satellites.  The budget request usually is sent to Congress by the President in February and by this time of the year, most of the budget hearings are completed.  Everything is behind schedule this year, though, because of the extended debate over the sequester and funding for the current fiscal year (FY2013).

Monday, April 8

• IISL/ECSL Space Law Symposium, Vienna, Austria

Monday-Thursday, April 8-11

• Space Foundation’s National Space Symposium, Colorado Springs, CO

Tuesday, April 9

• Georgetown Law School Space Law Panel, Hotung Building, Georgetown Law School, 4:00-5:00 pm ET

Wednesday, April 10

• President Obama Submits FY2014 Budget Request to Congress
• House SS&T Hearing on Near Earth Objects: Part II, 2318 Rayburn, 2:00 pm ET

Thursday, April 11

• HASC Hearing on FY2014 DOD Budget Request, 2118 Rayburn, 10:00 am ET
• Senate Approps CJS Sbcmte Hearing on FY2014 Dept of Commerce Budget Request, 192 Dirksen, 10:00 am ET
• NASA Advisory Council Earth Science Subcommittee Meeting, telecon, 12:30-3:00 pm ET
• House Approps CJS Sbcmte Hearing on FY2014 Dept of Commerce Budget Request, 2359 Rayburn, 1:30 pm ET

Friday, April 12

• HASC Hrg on FY2014 Air Force Budget Request, 2118 Rayburn, 10:00 am ET

 

Note:  The text of this article has been changed to reflect the fact that Wednesday’s hearing on NEOs has been upgraded from a subcommittee hearing to a full committee hearing.