Monthly Archive for June, 2008Page 2 of 6

Oceaneering Suited NASA’s Needs Better than Hamilton Sundstrand, ILC Dover

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NASA Eyed Management In Spacesuit Selection
Frank Morring, Jr.
Aviation Week & Space Technology

“NASA picked a team headed by Oceaneering International Inc. (OII) to build its next-generation spacesuits because it felt the team’s systems engineering and management plans are more likely to get the job done than those proposed by veteran suitmakers Hamilton Sundstrand and ILC Dover.”

Harris will build next-generation space suit radios
David Hubler
Washington Technology

“Harris Corp. will provide the radio communications and navigation system for NASA’s next-generation spacesuit under a seven-year contract with a potential value of $58 million.”

NASA Awards Contract for Constellation Spacesuit for the Moon
Press Release
Paragon Space Development Company

Space Business Forum: More Money, Less Bureaucracy Needed

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7 Expert Answers for How Big Business Will Spend Cash in Space
Joe Pappalardo
Popular Mechanics

Of all the tons of fuel that drives modern space flight, cash is the most critical. That was the stark reality brought front and center on Wednesday at the first-ever Space Business Forum in New York, where leading rocket scientists, military officers and even hedge-fund managers crunched the numbers to illuminate the future of the space industry. From the European influence on suborbital tourism to why the Air Force doesn’t trust private rockets, and from the increasingly outsourced business model at NASA to a place for that other “green” movement, here’s a news analysis of where the power lies.

Challenges Ahead for New Space Investors
Tariq Malik
Space.com

“New startups hoping to make their mark on the space industry still face high entry barriers just to cover their initial costs, investors said Wednesday.

“The high cost and risks associated with new commercial ventures, as well as the bureaucratic government hoops they have to jump through, provide substantial barriers for nascent companies aiming for space, experts said during the 2008 Space Business Forum here presented by the Space Foundation, a non-profit advocacy organization.”

XCor Begins Building Airframe, Continues Rocket Tests

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XCOR Begins Lynx Build
Rob Coppinger
Hyperbola Blog

Coppinger has photos of XCOR’s Lynx high-altitude tourism vehicle, now being assembled at the company’s facility in Mojave, Calif.

XCOR Rocket Engine to Continue Flight Testing
Rob Coppinger
Flight Global

XCOR Aerospace is by July to restart flight testing its XR-4K14 1,500lb-thrust (6.67kN) liquid oxygen/kerosene engine and the aircraft it propels, the Rocket Racing League’s X-Racer…The XR-4K14 is the predecessor to Xcor’s single-stage-to-suborbit Lynx vehicle’s 5K18 engine and it will have changes made to its piston driven pump’s drive gas consumption before flight testing resumes.

Students to Become Cassini Scientists, Study Saturn’s Moon Rhea

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NASA PRESS RELEASE

Four students have won the Cassini Scientist for a Day contest, with most choosing Rhea, Saturn’s second-largest moon, as the best place for scientists to study using NASA’s Cassini spacecraft.

Contest participants had to choose one of three target areas for Cassini’s camera: Saturn’s moon Enceladus, Rhea, or a section of Saturn’s rings that includes the tiny moon Pan. The students had to write an essay explaining why their chosen snapshot would yield the most scientific rewards, and the winners were invited to discuss their essays with Cassini scientists via teleconference.

The essays were judged by a panel of Cassini scientists, mission planners, and the education and outreach team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

This year’s winners are located in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Michigan. Their essays were chosen from 197 essays written by fifth-to-twelfth-grade students across the United States.

  Continue reading ‘Students to Become Cassini Scientists, Study Saturn’s Moon Rhea’

Space Angels Network Announces Founding Members

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SPACE ANGELS PRESS RELEASE

Space Angels Network, LLC, a national network of seed- and early-stage investors focused on aerospace-related ventures, announced today its initial group of “Founding Members”—individual accredited investors with significant experience in aerospace ventures.

Founding Members include:

“Since our Founding Members form the core of our organization by actively helping with strategic advice, deal flow, and membership recruitment, we sought individuals with extensive experience in both angel investing and also aerospace ventures,” said Guillermo Söhnlein, founder and managing director of Space Angels Network. “They play a critical leadership role in screening deals, conducting due diligence, and negotiating terms. We value their time and commitment, and we look forward to working with them as we grow our community of aerospace-focused accredited investors.”

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Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Spaceport Gets Boost from Orbital COTS Decision

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Spaceport plan ‘once in a lifetime’ for county
Carol Vaughn
The Daily Times

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for the county,” said Accomack Economic Development Director Larry Forbes of the Orbital project, adding that county officials will do everything they can to maximize the economic opportunity it brings.

“Who knows where all this is going to go?” Forbes said, citing a June 6 report in Aerospace Daily & Defense Report that suggests NASA may be considering accelerating the crew transport portion of the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program.

Mars Update: Phoenix Joins Alice in “Wonderland”

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NASA MISSION UPDATE

NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander began digging in an area called “Wonderland” early Tuesday, taking its first scoop of soil from a polygonal surface feature within the “national park” region that mission scientists have been preserving for science.

The lander’s Robotic Arm created the new test trench called “Snow White” on June 17, the 22nd Martian day, or sol, after the Phoenix spacecraft landed on May 25. Newly planned science activities will resume no earlier than Sol 24 as engineers look into how the spacecraft is handling larger than expected amounts of data.

During Tuesday’s dig, the arm didn’t reach the hard white material, possibly ice, that Phoenix exposed previously in the first trench it dug into the Martian soil.

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Support a Presidential Candidate, Help Fund Space Joyrides for Millionaires

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Richardson’s presidential campaign donated to help get spaceport tax passed
Jose L. Medina
Las Cruces Sun-News

Gov. Bill Richardson’s unsuccessful presidential campaign was the largest contributor to a political action committee that pushed for passage of a spaceport tax referendum in Sierra County last April…The Richardson for President campaign gave $10,000 to People for Aerospace of Sierra County on April 8, two weeks before the April 22 vote in which Sierra residents overwhelmingly approved the tax, clearing the way for a spaceport taxation district.

April Schmidlapp, who worked to defeat Sierra’s tax, said she feels the vote was bought. She said a loosely organized group of tax opponents at most spent “a couple thousand dollars.”

“It’s all part of a group in (Truth or Consequences) that just bullies its way through decision-making and gets what they want done,” she said.

What Spaceport doesn’t mean
Saturn Noriega
Alamogordo Daily News

Steve Landeene, executive director of the N.M. Spaceport Authority, says the port will create 2,500 jobs generating more than $1 billion in economic growth. If each job represents a new family (Mom/Dad/Child) you get 7,500 new people. Add some 3,500 more to supply that growth with services and consumables, and the total jumps to 11,000 (all estimates, of course).

I do not feel one-third of those jobs will come to Otero. Maybe not even one will, unless it’s a local who is lucky enough to land a SP job and is willing to drive over the St. Augustin Pass then 50 miles north of Las Cruces on a four-hour daily trek, rather than move nearer the SP.

Former NASA AA Alan Stern Joins Google Lunar X Prize Team Odyssey Moon

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ODYSSEY MOON PRESS RELEASE

Washington, DC – Odyssey Moon, a commercial lunar enterprise, announced today that former NASA Associate Administrator Dr. Alan Stern has accepted a role with the Isle of Man-based company. Dr. Stern was a recognized engine of change and innovation as chief of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, championing new science programs while being a stalwart advocate of cost and value control when he served at NASA.

Dr. Stern has joined the Odyssey Moon executive team on an exclusive part time consulting basis as the company’s Science Mission Director, part of a new diversified career focus spanning many of his lifelong interests and activities. He expects that his blended understanding of science and business will help Odyssey Moon establish a commercial lunar business while pursuing the $30 Million Google Lunar X PRIZE. “I am a fan of public-private partnerships and building bridges to new markets,” he said. “I believe we are on the verge of a whole new era of space exploration and that the private sector can provide reliable cost effective services that can increase the value and leverage government space budgets.”

A veteran of space exploration with over 25 year experience, Stern’s alliance with the private space sector comes at a critical time when NASA and other space agencies are looking carefully at the value proposition in partnering with the commercial sector for space activities.

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Where to Now? Analysts Ponder U.S. Space Program After Bush

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As the Bush Administration limps toward the finish line, analysts are trying to work out what the American space program should look like in the future. The Space Review has been examining these issues over the last few weeks.

The Vision for Space Exploration and the retirement of the Baby Boomers (part 3)
Charles Miller and Jeff Foust

In part 1 of this series, we made the case that the current plan to achieve the Vision for Space Exploration may well be unsustainable and unaffordable in the face of huge financial pressures created by the coming retirement of the baby boomers. In part 2 of this series, we suggested a Plan B strategy for achieving the goals of the VSE, which is credible even if NASA’s budget is significantly cut in the coming decade….Now, in part 3 of this essay, we make specific recommendations on “how” our nation should proceed to achieve cheap and reliable access to space (CRATS).

Space policy questions and decisions facing a new administration
Eligar Sadeh

The next president will face a number of major issues related to space policy upon taking office next January. Eligar Sadeh examines those issues as discussed at a forum earlier this year.

How to become a presidential hero
Greg Zsidisin

Promising to reexamine NASA’s implementation of the exploration vision, including such vehcles as the Ares 5 (above), could be a winning proposition for a presidential candidate.

The so-so space debate
Jeff Foust

Last Friday representatives of the three remaining major presidential candidates gathered in Washington to discuss space policy. Jeff Foust reports that the discussion ended with many of the questions about the candidates’ policies left unanswered.