Most of Washington may be on vacation this month, but two of the National Research Council (NRC) decadal survey committees are busily working away. Six of the seven panels of the Decadal Survey on Biological and Physical Sciences in Space will meet jointly this week (Aug. 19-21), and three of the five panels of the …
President Obama has ordered a review of U.S. export control policy. In a press statement on Thursday, August 13, the White House announced that the President has directed that the National Economic Council (NEC) and National Security Council (NSC) “launch a broad-based interagency process for reviewing the overall U.S. export control system, including both the …
NASA will conduct a Flight Readiness Review (FRR) tomorrow, August 18, to determine if the space shuttle Discovery is ready for its STS-128 mission. NASA is continuing to assess whether it is satisifed that the foam loss issues that affected the previous shuttle launch are sufficiently well understood and will not recur. Launch is currently …
The Augustine panel had no encouraging words for supporters of the Constellation program or any of the other concepts for sending humans beyond low Earth orbit. New York Times, NASA Panel Grapples with Cost of Space Plans The United States cannot afford to send humans anywhere beyond the space station – especially Mars – unless …
The National Research Council released an interim report today on strategies for surveying and detecting Near Earth Objects.
The Aerospace Industries Association is sponsoring a one-hour symposium on What’s Next for the International Space Station from 10:00-11:00 am on August 13, 2009 in 2318 Rayburn House Office Building. Scheduled speakers and RSVP info below. William GerstenmaierAssociate Administrator, NASA Space Operations Directorate Joy Bryant Vice President & Program Manager, International Space StationThe Boeing Company …
Congress Daily (subscription required) reports that the Senate is likely to focus on appropriations bills when it returns from its August recess on September 8 since health care legislation is not likely to be ready for floor action. According to the report, first up will be either the Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill that includes …
The National Research Council’s Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board (ASEB) has released a study calling for reinstatement of NASA’s Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC). Established in 1998 to provide grants for external studies of revolutionary aeronautics and space technologies, NASA eliminated NIAC in 2007 because of budgetary pressures. It was funded at approximately $4 million …
A SpacePolicyOnline.com summary of the August 5, 2009 meeting of the Augustine committee that is deliberating the options for the human space flight program is now available. Look on our left menu for “Our Meeting Summaries” or simply click here.
The House and Senate have cut the funding requested by the Department of Energy (DOE) to restart production of plutonium-238 (Pu-238) that is needed to power some NASA space science and lunar exploration spacecraft. Pu-238 is needed to fuel radioisotope power sources (RPSs) that supply power for systems and instruments on spacecraft that cannot rely …