Maryland Senator and NASA backer Barbara Mikulski is set to get a big promotion, moving up to become the first female chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. The new role will give Mikulski, who has served in the Senate for 26 years, greater influence over spending on the entire federal budget.
The unexpected decision came after the death last week of Hawaii Sen. Daniel Inouye. Several other senators in line for the position reportedly passed on the assignment.
Mikulski is the current chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee’s Subcommitee on Commerce, Justice, and Science, which oversees funding for NASA, National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce, Federal Trade Commission, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Barbara Mikulski visits Wallops to get an update on Antares, the first Orion capsule is prepped at Michoud, Langley conducts experiments on a composite capsule, Charles Bolden is presented with an award, and much more.
Sen. Richard Shelby: “Mr. Administrator, I believe that the core mission of NASA is to build cutting-edge systems that allow us to expand our knowledge of the universe.”
Shelby’s “cutting edge systems” involve a monster Space Launch System (SLS) based on shuttle booster technologies designed in the 1970′s that will cost a fortune to build, maintain and operate. In fact, it’s so expensive that we won’t be able to fly it very often, limiting our ability to explore the universe. Continue reading ‘More Nonsense From Congress’
Pad OA at Wallops Island. (Credit: Orbital Sciences Corporation)
Virginians are pushing back against efforts by Florida to maintain its monopoly on human spaceflight missions. Jack Kennedy, a prominent backer of commercial space in Virginia, sent the following email to supporters on Saturday:
“Space Florida is getting really aggressive and negative to the possibility of human commercial space launch from Wallops Island, Virginia.
“I strongly urge you to communicate with Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Congressman Frank Wolf and Senator Mark Warner, in particular. ASK that they call upon Boeing to openly pledge to launch the Atlas-V from Virginia under the NASA Commercial Crew program by 2015.
“Your e-Mail, letter, and/or phone call to these three Congressional offices may go a long way to make human space flight from Virginia a reality (especially in the wake of the Florida push back against Virginia’s spaceport).
Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley. (Credit: Jay Baker)
OFFICE OF MARTIN O’MALLEY PR
Governor Martin O’Malley today unveiled a bold new initiative to increase the business development and commercialization opportunities of the state’s space industry at the Maryland Space Business Roundtable in Greenbelt. Speaking before over 500 members of the Roundtable, the Governor reinforced the O’Malley-Brown Administration’s commitment to this vibrant sector and outlined new policy initiatives and investments in Maryland: The Business of Space Science.
“Working side-by-side with our congressional delegation and our ‘Space Senator,’ Barbara Mikulski, we will pursue program policies to leverage our federal facilities and institutions of science and discovery to unlock the enormous economic and employment potential of Maryland’s space sector,” Governor O’Malley said. “The breakthroughs and innovations occurring in Maryland at NASA, NOAA, Johns Hopkins, APL and other institutions represent new frontiers for commercialization and business development in areas like carbon monitoring, manufacturing and life sciences.”
Here’s an interesting quote from Maryland Sen. Barbara Mikulski which was included in a press release issued after Gov. Martin O’Malley toured the Wallops Flight Facility on Monday.
“Wallops Island Flight Facility is home to American innovation. I fought to keep jobs at the Wallops Flight Facility and I will continue to fight to create the jobs of the future. Today we can see our investment in innovation is paying off, as Wallops becomes the Southwest Airlines of space: a lower cost, safer way to launch.â€
Mikulski slips Nelson a note on NASA Orlando Sentinel
Earlier this week, Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland sent a two-page letter to Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida that attempts to outline her vision for NASA and notes that it is “more important than ever†that the two lawmakers “work on consultation†to consider the White House plan to blast future NASA astronauts into space aboard commercial rockets.
“Our human spaceflight program needs a destination. Since NASA’s creation, it has been a mission-driven agency, and I believe having a clear direction and destination has contributed to NASA’s many successes,†notes Mikulski.
She does not opine on Obama’s decision to scrap Constellation for commercial rockets, other than to note that the station “should be re-supplied with cargo by commercial vehicles.†She makes no note of the possibility of commercial companies launching humans to low-Earth orbit.
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