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June
2, 2008
New Pics Boost Feelings
Mars Lander has Bared Ice (Source: AP)
Sharp new images received Saturday from the Phoenix lander largely convinced
scientists that the spacecraft's thrusters had uncovered a large patch
of ice just below the Martian surface. That bodes well for the
mission's main goal of digging for ice that can be tested for evidence
of organic compounds that are the chemical building blocks of life.
Team members had said Friday that photos showing the ground beneath the
lander suggested the vehicle was resting on splotches of ice.
Washington University scientist Ray Arvidson said the spacecraft's
thrusters may have blown away dirt covering the ice when the robot
landed one week ago. (5/31)
Mars Lander Prepares for
Digging Mission (Source: AP)
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander spent its first full day in the Martian
arctic plains checking its instruments in preparation for an ambitious
digging mission to study whether the site could have once been
habitable. Sol 1, as the days are known on Mars, was a busy time for
the three-legged lander, which set down Sunday in relatively flat
terrain cut by polygon-shaped fissures. The geometric cracks are likely
caused by the repeated freezing and thawing of buried ice. Phoenix
planned to take more views of its surroundings to help scientists zero
in on a digging site and also take images of its onboard instruments,
including its trench-digging robotic arm. Early indications show the
protective cover around the arm did not unwrap all the way after
landing, but it should not affect the ability to unstow the arm. (5/26)
Radio Glitch Delays Plans for Maneuvering Mars Lander Arm
(Source: AP)
A glitch with a Mars orbiter relaying commands from Earth delayed plans
for the Phoenix Mars Lander's second day of activities on Tuesday. The
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter turned its UHF radio off, possibly because
of a cosmic ray, cutting off communications with the lander. The
orbiter was programmed to respond as it did, but orbiter team members
were trying to get the radio back on. It has a second radio aboard that
might be used instead, though reprogramming would be needed. (5/28)
After Delay, NASA Releases Arm of Mars Lander (Source: AIA)
NASA on Wednesday began releasing the robotic arm of its new Mars
lander. A radio glitch delayed the release by one day. Scientists say
the lander is in excellent shape. Associated Press (5/29)
Editorial: Russia Watches Another American Robot Visit Mars
Again (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
People may well be interested to know how America's main space partner
and rival is faring. The USSR and new Russia tried to organize unmanned
missions to Mars eleven times, but none of them has been followed
through: the probes either failed to reach Mars or stopped work
immediately upon landing. Ever since President Bush announced plans for
Mars, arguments have raged among Russian scientists whether the costly
attempts to land on Mars with uncertain results were worthwhile. The
Russian Space Agency does not have a clearly articulated Martian
program. There is a reason for that. Russia at present is implementing
the Federal Space Program for 2006-2015, which does not envisage
large-scale Martian projects.
At the same time Roscosmos has repeatedly said that manned missions to
Mars are certain to take place after 2030-2035. Next year will see the
start of the much-touted Mars-500 project, when a group of volunteers
will spend 520 days in a special module simulating the conditions of a
prolonged space flight. As part of that project the Russian
Medical-Biological Research Institute in late May completed experiments
to assess the capacity of the human body to spend prolonged periods in
a confined space with low oxygen content. (5/28)
Editorial: Britain Should be Leading the Search for Life on
Mars (Source: The Guardian)
Had Europe fully backed the Beagle project we, rather than NASA, would
be on the verge of solving space's greatest mystery. I'm 99% certain
they will find water. And, if so, they will also be able to identify
the salts within it, and whether they are suitable for micro-organisms
to live on. They'll be able to clearly answer whether this place could
be suitable for life to evolve. They are also going to check for
organic molecules. I really hope they find them. Though we have found
carbon on meteorites on earth, nobody has ever discovered a single atom
of carbon on Mars - other than the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
And this is where the mission's limitations could set in. The measuring
equipment they have on board won't be able to tell if any carbon is
biological (ie, living carbon) or simply the debris of meteorites that
may have crashed on the planet. I can't help feeling frustrated,
because the Beagle 2 mission would have been able to make this
distinction. The Phoenix design is based on a craft that crash-landed
in 1999, and building Beagle technology into this mission simply wasn't
feasible in the planning time they had. After the 1999 loss, NASA
simply shrugged their shoulders, learned their lessons, and got on with
the next mission. With Beagle, the British government and the European
Space Agency sighed a collective "oh dear," and stopped there. There
was no reason why another Beagle mission couldn't have worked, but they
seemed to lose the will to go on. (5/28)
Editorial: Lander's Legacy: Young People Looking Skyward
(Source: Tucson Citizen)
Maybe Phoenix will find life's building blocks on Mars, maybe it won't.
But in one lasting way, the mission already is a huge success: It has
prompted thousands of people to tilt their heads skyward and ponder
space exploration. The Phoenix program has spent $4 million on
educational outreach. Thousands of Tucson-area students have visited
the mission's operations center north of downtown. More hour-long tours
are scheduled to begin Wednesdays starting June 11. Mars-related
activities are planned for the Tucson Children's Museum and the UA
Museum of Art. (5/28)
Which NASA? A Week of the Sublime and the Ugly (Source:
What's New)
There is a bold, adventurous NASA that explores the universe. That NASA
had a magnificent week. Having traveled 423 million miles since leaving
Earth the Phoenix Mars Lander soft landed in the Martian arctic. Its
eight foot backhoe will dig into the permafrost subsoil to see if
liquid water exists. There is another NASA that goes in circles on the
edge of space. That NASA is having a problem with the toilet on the
ISS. I need not go into detail to explain what happens when a toilet
backs up in zero gravity - it defines ugly. NASA rushed to get a
special pump to fix the toilet loaded on Discovery before its Saturday
launch. Discovery is set to deliver Japan’s Kibo module to the ISS next
week. Kibo, which means hope, is described as a major expansion of the
research capacity of the ISS. We can hope, but no field of science has
been noticeably affected by previous research on the shuttle or the
station. (5/31)
Shuttle Heads for
Rendezvous With Space Station (Source: New York Times)
The shuttle Discovery blasted its way into orbit through wispy clouds
against blue skies on its way to deliver a bus-sized laboratory to the
International Space Station. The column of smoke, bright white against
the brilliant day, cast a shadow to the east as the shuttle ascended,
and the sound waves from more than 7 million pounds of thrust made the
air itself seem to shudder. The shuttle, with its crew of seven
astronauts, roared off of the pad at 5:02 p.m., the beginning of a
five-minute window for launching that would line it up with the orbit
of the International Space Station. Discovery is expected to catch up
to the station and dock with it on Monday. (5/31)
Foam Sheds During
Discovery Launch (Source: Florida Today)
NASA says the foam shedding during Discovery's ascent is probably not
something to worry about. Space operations chief Bill Gerstenmaier said
that preliminary analysis identified about five pieces of foam
insulation breaking free from the tank. The pieces appeared to be thin,
light and consequently incapable of doing serious damage to the
orbiter. A full analysis will be done using launch films, pictures of
the external tank taken after separation in orbit and high-resolution
detail photographs of the orbiter's belly as it approaches the space
station on Monday. (6/1)
Embry-Riddle Graduate Launches Aboard Shuttle (Source:
ERAU)
NASA Astronaut Col. Ronald Garan, a graduate of Embry-Riddle
Aeronautical University, is making his first space shuttle flight
aboard Discovery on Mission STS-124. Garan graduated from
Embry-Riddle’s Worldwide Campus in 1995 with a master’s degree in
aeronautical science. Several officials from Embry-Riddle were present
at the launch to honor Col. Garan's accomplishment. (5/29)
New Challenge for Space
Station Crew: A Broken Toilet (Source: New York Times)
Four words you don’t want to hear in space: “The toilet is broken.” The
crew aboard the International Space Station is working on a problem
with the system for collecting solid and liquid waste, which is a
trickier proposition without gravity than it is on the Earth. Space
toilets use jets of fan-propelled air to guide waste into the proper
container. A NASA status report noted that last week, while using the
toilet system in the Russian-built service module, “the crew heard a
loud noise and the fan stopped working.” The solid waste collector is
functioning properly, but the system for collecting liquid waste was
not.
The crew tried replacing one device, an air/water separator, and then a
filter, but nothing seemed to bring the toilet back to full operation.
Russian mission control told the crew — Russian Cosmonauts Sergey
Volkov and Oleg Kononenko, and Garrett Reisman, a NASA astronaut, to
use the toilet on the Soyuz capsule that is attached to the station as
a lifeboat. But that system has very limited capacity, and so repairing
the system has become an increasingly urgent issue. (5/28)
NASA Partnering with Commercial Sector, Government on Station
Research (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
NASA will partner with the commercial sector and government agencies to
use the International Space Station for research. The U.S. section of
the space station can be used as a "national laboratory," according to
a NASA prepared statement. The space agency already has signed
agreements with the University of Colorado's Bioserve Center, Spacehab
of Texas, and Zero Gravity Inc. of Las Vegas. (5/31)
Space Station Crew May Face Another Bumpy Re-Entry
(Source: Reuters)
Faulty bolts were suspected of causing the last two "ballistic
landings" aboard Russian Soyuz capsules and they are also fitted on the
re-entry capsule now docked at the ISS. "There are explosive bolts
which keep two modules attached to Soyuz capsules," the source said.
"They are supposed to go off right before the entry into the Earth's
atmosphere." "For some reason this didn't work (on the previous two
re-entries), although the unseparated modules fell off eventually. What
is bad is that another Soyuz-TMA is believed to have this faulty device
and is docked at the ISS for the return trip." (5/25)
NASA Pullout Could Cut Japan’s 'Hope' Short (Source: USA
Today)
Excitement over the launch of Japan's Kibo ("Hope") module is tempered
by concern that the lab's mission may be cut short if NASA follows
through on its plan to withdraw from the station after 2015. The space
lab is designed to last at least 10 years and could probably be used
for 20. NASA's withdrawal from the space station could lead the lab to
prematurely shut down. Withdrawing from the station for lack of money a
few years after finishing it is "like buying a new car and saying, 'You
paid $40,000 for a new car, and now I can't put the gas in the tank,' "
said former senator John Glenn, the first American in orbit, during a
Capitol Hill visit this month. (5/28)
KSC Layoffs Could Devastate Brevard Economy, Officials Say
(Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The news about what Brevard County -- and Central Florida -- would lose
if NASA orders mass layoffs at Kennedy Space Center just gets worse.
The space agency says it could eliminate 6,400 positions at KSC after
it retires the space shuttle in 2010. Now, a new NASA economic study
puts a dollar sign on what those layoffs -- and related job losses --
would cost. The total: $879 million a year. NASA and local
economic-development officials say this is a "worst case" scenario that
might not come to pass. But, they acknowledge, it could happen, with
devastating effects on the local economy. (5/29)
Congressional Leaders Urge Orbital Sciences' Use of Cape
Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Space Florida)
Following on a recent proposal from Space Florida on behalf of the
State of Florida, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) and Sen. Mel
Martinez (R), along with 18 additional members of the Florida
congressional delegation, sent a letter to Orbital Sciences Corporation
urging them to locate their facilities for their Taurus-2 rocket at the
Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Click here
to view the letter. (5/27)
Virginia Legislators Feted for COTS Launch Effort (Source:
Spaceports Blog)
Three Southwestern Virginia state legislators were feted by over 200
people in a standing ovation Wednesday evening in Abingdon, Va. for
their legislative efforts to boost the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport
as the launch site for the NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation
Services (COTS) contract won by Orbital Sciences Corporation earlier
this year. The Technology Council had hoped that Orbital Sciences
Corporation would have announced its final launch pad site selection
pending between Virginia and Florida before the Wednesday event.
Orbital is expected to make a decision in less than 2-weeks now. (5/30)
New Mexico Spaceport Tax Date on the Table (Source: Las
Cruces Sun-News)
A decision last week by Doña Ana County Board of Commissioners could
determine whether a new spaceport sales tax goes into effect July 1,
rather than at the start of next year. The county commission will
consider approving a contract to form a spaceport tax district with
Sierra County and possibly the state. Also Wednesday, the commission
will decide the make-up of a governing board for the district, a point
that could cause contention. The one-quarter of 1 percent gross
receipts tax, approved in April 2007 by Doña Ana County voters, was
initially set to begin collection at the start of this year. It was
delayed, however, after state Attorney General Gary King said a
spaceport district had to be in place before the tax could be
collected. (5/25)
Educational Launch Competition Planned For New Mexico Spaceport
(Source: MEI)
The New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) intends to create a
competitive educational launch program for students in public schools
and universities. The program is envisioned to be a collaborative
effort between the NMSA, the Air Force Research Lab Space Vehicles
Directorate at Kirtland Air Force Base (AFRL), the X-Prize Foundation,
the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium at New Mexico State University
(NMSG), UP Aerospace and Microgravity Enterprises, Inc. (MEI).
NMSA Executive Director Steve Landeene looks forward to creating the
launch competition for the 2008-2009 academic year. “The spaceport is
all about finding new, innovative ways to access space, and inspiring
today’s young minds to meet tomorrow’s challenges,” Landeene said. “It
is a part of fulfilling Spaceport America’s educational mission.” The
competition will be for students to build and fly 100-plus scientific
payloads on an upcoming UP Aerospace vertical launch out of Spaceport
America, scheduled for Spring 2009. (4/15)
NASA Deputy Administrator
Shana Dale Supports California Outreach Effort (Source: CSA)
NASA Deputy Administrator
Shana Dale discusses NASA's recent outreach efforts in the Golden
State. Visit http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=28109 to view
her blog.
Surrogates for Presidential Candidates Answer Space Questions
(Source: ERAU)
Lori Garver (representing Hillary Clinton), Floyd Deschamps
(representing John McCain), and Steve Robinson (representing Barack
Obama) participated in a space Q&A with CNN's Miles O'Brien during
last week's ISDC event in Washington. Garver showed that Clinton has
the most detailed space policy platform. Deschamps' responses for
McCain relied mainly on the Senator's history of support for space
issues as a committee chairman. Robinson confirmed Obama's support for
space within a broader science and education context. Many in
attendance were hoping for more thoughtful and revealing space policy
positions from McCain and Obama. (6/1)
Nelson on Presidential Candidates and Space Policy
(Source: Space Politics)
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) recently spent some time talking about the
presidential election and the relevance of space policy to the
campaign. He is convinced that space will be critical to winning
Florida, and thus the White House. “I am banking on the fact that I
believe that Florida is going to be critical again in this presidential
election,” he said. “And therefore I am going to take this opportunity
to educate the two presidential candidates that if they want to win
Florida, this [space policy] is mightily important.”
Nelson has already talked about this issue to the Democratic
candidates. Nelson referred to Obama’s recent comments about space in
Florida. “You will see he made a different statement, and I thanked him
for that this morning, and he said, ‘I’ve been listening to you,’” he
recounted. “And I said, ‘I know how to win in Florida.’” He added he
had similar discussions with Clinton, who he described as having “the
best position of all three of them on the space program.”
Nelson said he had some discussions with McCain on space, “and it is my
intention to lean on him pretty hard” on the subject. Nelson said he
was concerned about McCain’s proposal for a domestic spending freeze if
elected. “The thing that worries me about John is that John gets into
these rigid positions and it’s hard to get him off of it,” Nelson said.
“If that’s his position, I want to make sure the people of Florida know
that, and especially the people of east-central Florida. So maybe we’ll
have a chance to get a little more flexibility out of him if Florida
becomes key.” Nelson added that another battleground state in the
general election is likely to be Ohio. “And guess who I’ve been talking
to: John Glenn,” he said. “I think he is prepared to do the same thing
in Ohio” if the state becomes key to the election. (5/26)
Space Policy Panel at Netroots Nation (Source: Space
Politics)
There will a space policy panel at Netroots Nation (formerly Yearly
Kos), this July in Austin, Texas. It’s a fairly high-power panel,
featuring Lori Garver, Patti Grace Smith, and George Whitesides, among
others. The panel is “an opportunity to bring critical space policy
issues to light within a potent progressive political constituency—the
Netroots—that hasn’t historically paid much attention to space. It is
also an opportunity for the Netroots to weigh in on what a new
progressive space policy agenda could be under a progressive
Administration in 2009.” The formal description of the panel:
"NASA is in crisis–overburdened, under-funded, and inefficient. Yet the
progressive legacy of space, which dates back to JFK, is being quietly
reborn: NASA can reinvent itself as a critical resource in climate
change mitigation; the UN and some in the U.S. military are
collaborating to prevent space weapons from becoming an arms race with
China; progressive “NewSpace” entrepreneurs are creating new domestic
high-tech jobs. Before 2009, a new progressive space policy needs to be
devised and advocated beyond the traditional space constituencies, to
upgrade Bush’s failing space exploration vision. Who better to initiate
this work than the Netroots?" (5/26)
Alternative Boondoggles (Source: Antipope.org)
The direct cost to the US government of the war and occupation of Iraq
— counting only funds appropriated by Congress — so far runs to roughly
$523 billion. So. What fun boondoggles could we have bought with $523
billion? Price estimates vary from $20 billion (presumably for a single
round-trip) to $450 billion (presumably for a single round trip plus
all the externalities, like developing the spacecraft and equipment and
conducting a thorough prior reconnaissance using unmanned landers).
Either way, the direct costs of the Iraq war exceed the maximum cost
estimate for a manned Mars expedition, infrastructure and all, by 20%.
If we take $20 billion as the cost per mission and $450 billion as the
cost to develop the technology to go there, the direct cost of the Iraq
war would be sufficient to develop a gold-plated Mars expeditionary
capability and send six crews of astronauts to Mars (and bring them
back afterwards). (5/26)
Iraq War Spending Bill Eyed As Vehicle To Boost R&D Funding
(Source: Congress Daily)
House members of the Congressional Research Caucus, as well as their
backers in the science community, are hoping their colleagues will
follow the Senate's lead and use the Iraq supplemental budget to
replenish research and development budgets. The Senate-passed version,
approved last week by a veto-proof majority, contained about $1.2
billion for federal research programs, including $400 million for the
National Institutes of Health; $200 million each for NASA and the
National Science Foundation; and $100 million for the Energy
Department's Office of Science. But Reps. Bill Foster, D-Ill., and Judy
Biggert, R-Ill., expect a tough fight ahead in the House. (5/27)
Military Auditors Say They Can't Keep up With Spending Growth
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
Staffing shortages have left DOD auditors unable to oversee billions in
military spending. A report by the Pentagon's inspector general said
auditors have not been able to keep pace with the expansion of the
budget, which doubled from $300 billion in fiscal 2000 to $600 billion
in fiscal 2007. (5/28)
Is China's Space Program Armed for Apollo 2.0? (Source:
Popular Mechanics)
Space experts differ on whether China wants to compete directly with
the U.S.—perhaps, given our slow and fumbling efforts, beating us back
to the Moon—or simply displace Japan as the prime technological power
in Asia. On the one hand, the U.S. retains a huge lead, while China is
still building up spacecraft, like lunar probes and orbital docking
equipment, that we mastered back in the 1960s. On the other hand, like
America in the 60s, China is forging ahead, while the U.S. in the 21st
century is, at best, standing still. Visit http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4266340.html
to view the article. (5/31)
China Using Taiwanese Satellite for Quake Assessment
(Source: Space News)
Chinese authorities coordinating post-earthquake emergency response are
making use of a Taiwanese satellite that, when it was ordered and
launched, provoked protests from China and the threat of sanctions
against France, whose industry built it, according to European
government officials and an international organization providing
disaster response imagery. (5/30)
China: Giant Space Vegetables Now On Earth (Source:
Space.com)
Giant space vegetables grown from seeds sent into space have been grown
in China. In 2006, 2,000 seeds were blasted into space in a Shijan 8
satellite. After germinating, the best seeds were then selected for
further breeding. The harvest includes extra-large pumpkins, two-foot
long cucumbers, fourteen pound aubergines and chili plants that
resemble small trees. Looks like you might want to order the
small-sized portion of take-out the next time you are in orbit. The
plants are claimed to offer harvests that are higher than normal;
important news for China, a country with limited arable land and 1.3
billion people. (5/29)
China Launches First of New Generation Polar Orbiting
Satellites (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
A Chinese CZ-4C Chang Zheng-4C launch vehicle - carrying the Feng
Yun-3A satellite - has lifted off from the Taiyuan spaceport located in
the Shanxi province. This is the first satellite of the second
generation of Chinese polar orbiting meteorological satellites. The
satellite will operate in a 836 km sun-synchronous orbit with an
inclination of 98.7 degrees, covering the planet twice a day. (5/27)
India To Up Commercial Launch Ante (Source: GasWorld.com)
Buoyed with the high success rate achieved with its commercial
launches, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) plans to step
up its commercial activities in order to earn larger revenues,
negotiating with certain countries that restrict the use of Indian
launch vehicles. ISRO Chairman, G Madhavan Nair said, “Our domestic
requirement is four to five launches per year and we are trying to
increase commercial launches. We are favorably placed since our costs
are about 80% of international launching costs. But some countries have
restrictions on launching their satellites from other countries, as
well as Indian launch vehicles. The technology which we use is
applicable for dual purpose - hence some of these countries have
reservations.” (5/31)
ISRO to Launch Crewed Mission in Six Years (Source: India
Today)
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is confident of carrying
out a manned mission to outer space within six to seven years, its
Chairman Dr G Madhavan Nair said. Low-cost access to space, recoverable
and re-usable launch vehicles were also objectives of ISRO, he said.
Apart from its launch programs, ISRO could make remarkable progress in
areas like tele-medicine and tele-education, he said. (6/1)
Khrunichev Purchases Majority Interest in International Launch
Services (Source: ILS)
ILS International Launch Services Inc. announced that Khrunichev State
Research and Production Space Center acquired the shares of ILS owned
by majority shareholder, Space Transport Inc. Financial details were
not disclosed. The transaction was completed today. "For ILS employees
and customers, there will be no change in operations or management and
we will continue our focus on performance. The completion of this
transaction only strengthens the relationship with our launch partner,
Khrunichev.” (5/29)
ILS Close to Return to Flight as Khrunichev Takes Control
(Source: Space News)
The builder of the Proton-M launch vehicle has begun tests of a newly
designed gas duct to replace the model that failed March 15 and will
announce a return to flight date and an updated manifest by the end of
June, according to the president of the company that sells Proton
launch services worldwide. (5/30)
Technical Hitch Scrubs Ariane Rocket Launch (Source:
Reuters)
A technical hitch scrubbed the launch of an Ariane rocket carrying a
British military satellite and a Turkish telecoms satellite hours
before its scheduled blastoff. "During final pre-launch checks for the
Ariane 5 ECA's mission with Skynet 5C and Turksat 3A, the result of a
launcher software test was not nominal," Arianespace said from its
launch site in Kourou, French Guiana. A new launch date will be
announced "as soon as possible." The Ariane-5 rocket was to have
launched Skynet 5C for Britain's ministry of Defense and Turksat 3A for
Turkish telecoms operator Turksat. (5/30)
Agency Heads Urge Europe to Build Its Own Crew Spacecraft
(Source: Space News)
The heads of two of Europe's three biggest space agencies want the
European Space Agency (ESA) to begin a long-term program that would
lead to an independent European capability to send astronauts into
space. Neither Johann-Dietrich Woerner, chairman of the German
aerospace center, DLR, nor Italian Space Agency President Giovanni
Bignami provided indications of how much money they would have to
invest in a European crew-transport capability. But their remarks
suggested that European government ministers may be presented with such
a proposal when they meet in late November to set a multiyear space
plan. Woerner also said Germany is supporting a proposal to modify
Europe's unmanned Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) so it can return
cargo to Earth after delivering supplies to the international space
station.
Some officials say it would cost no more than 300 million euros ($473
million) to add a heat shield to the ATV and make other adjustments to
its shell that would give it a re-entry capability. The first ATV is
currently in the midst of its inaugural mission at the international
space station. Once its supplies are transferred to the station, the
ATV will be filled with garbage, undocked and guided to a spot in orbit
where it will make its destructive re-entry over the South Pacific
Ocean. ESA owes NASA four other ATVs as part of a barter arrangement.
For Woerner, modifying ATV to permit a cargo-return function would be
the first step in a gradual evolution of the vehicle over a decade that
could lead to further refinements that would allow it to transport
crews to and from space. Bignami said bluntly that "a real space power
must be able to send its own people into space." He urged that ESA
begin the effort. (5/31)
Russia and Europe to Build New Manned Spacecraft (Source:
RIA Novosti)
Russian and European space agencies are due to discuss the joint
development of a manned spacecraft at a Berlin air show taking place
May 27 to June 1. A spokesman for the Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos)
said earlier that it had agreed with the European Space Agency (ESA) to
jointly build a manned spacecraft for flights to near-Earth orbits and
the Moon. Anatoly Perminov said further talks would focus on areas of
responsibility for the agencies. He went on to say that once
responsibilities had been settled, funding and commitments at the level
of production facilities would be considered in detail. (5/27)
ITAR-Free Version of European Satellite Planned (Source:
Space News)
European governments have agreed that a new commercial
telecommunications satellite design they are financing will permit
customers to order a version without U.S.-built parts covered by the
now-infamous U.S. technology export regime known as ITAR, government
and industry officials said here May 27. (5/28)
Swiss Supercollider Puts U.S. on Sidelines (Source:
SpaceDaily.com)
There is still consternation among the scientific community over a
decision by Congress 15 years ago to cut off funding for the proposed
Superconducting Super Collider near Dallas, a decision that continues
to have consequences for the nation's scientific competitiveness. The
move by CERN Laboratory of Switzerland to open the world's most
powerful particle accelerator later this year will result in the United
States losing its long-held hegemony as the leader in the field, Texas
A&M physicist Bhaskar Dutta told the newspaper. "Europe's now
playing in the major leagues, and we're in the minors," he said. (5/25)
There is a Better Way Forward, Part Two (Source: Space
Review)
Advocates for DIRECT (as an alternative to Ares-1 and Ares-5) argue
that their concept takes better advantage of existing shuttle
infrastructure and provides better performance than the vehicles
currently under development by NASA. If we allow the Ares 1 to destroy
our current Shuttle-derived heavy-lift infrastructure and workforce,
there will be no going back. Visit http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1135/1
to view the article. (5/27)
New Alliant Techsystems
Vehicle to Launch in July (Source: Flight
International)
Solid rocket propulsion maker Alliant Techsystems (ATK) is readying its
first prototype complete rocket for launch from the NASA Wallops Flight
Center facility in Virginia at the end of July. The two-stage
internally funded vehicle, called the ATK launch vehicle (ALV), will
carry three NASA payloads for the suborbital flight. One payload, from
NASA's Langley Research Center, is designed for hypersonic boundary
layer research and then two "soccer ball-sized" secondary payloads,
from NASA Ames Research Center, will be deployed at the ALV's
suborbital trajectory's apogee. ATK vice president Charlie Precourt
tells Flight International that the company is undertaking the project
to gain experience in integrating and launching a vehicle. (6/1)
SpaceX Rocket Tested in Central Texas (Source: KCEN)
A big rocket test lit up the Central Texas sky Thursday night. Space
Exploration Technologies successfully conducted a 15 second 5 engine
test of its Merlin Rocket that will eventually boost a Falcon One
spacecraft into space. The testing in McGregor is part of a $278
million NASA contract to develop a next generation spacecraft for
travel to the international space station. (5/31)
SpaceDev Payload Selected for June Falcon-1 Launch
(Source: Space News)
The Pentagon announced May 29 that its Operationally Responsive Space
(ORS) program office has selected a SpaceDev-built spacecraft over two
other candidate payloads for the upcoming launch of Space Exploration
Technologies' Falcon-1 rocket. (5/30)
Bigelow Taps Aerojet for Sundancer Aft-End Thruster
(Source: Space News)
GenCorp Aerojet concluded a $23 million deal in early May to supply
Bigelow Aerospace with a monopropellant hydrazine thruster system for
the aft end of the Sundancer inflatable space habitat the Las
Vegas-based company intends to launch early next decade. The thruster
will be used for rendezvous and docking, reboost maneuvers as well as
the module's end of life controlled deorbit. Aerojet's system is
intended to complement the novel attitude control system Huntsville,
Ala.-based Orion Propulsion is providing under a separate $4.8 million
contract. Orion's station-keeping thruster system, to be installed on
Sundancer's forward end, will be fueled by byproducts from the module's
environmental control and life support system. (5/31)
Inflatable Robots Could Explore Mars (Source: New
Scientist)
An army of inflatable, spherical robots might one day roll around on
the Martian surface. Engineers who have designed the lightweight probes
say they could economically explore vast regions of other planets. "Our
inflatable rovers are lightweight, travel great distances, use very low
energy and will be fairly cheap," says Fredrik Bruhn of Ǻngström
Aerospace in Uppsala, Sweden, who initiated the idea that has now been
developed by a team of engineers. "One battery charge will let such a
rover travel around 100 kilometers." While researchers have proposed
rolling spherical rovers before, no-one has previously suggested making
them inflatable. With funding from the Swedish National Space Board,
Bruhn's team has designed an inflatable version with a diameter of just
30 centimeters when it gets pumped full of xenon gas from an internal
cartridge on landing. (5/30)
Where Man Boldly Goes, Bacteria Follow (Source: Eurekalert)
Are we contaminating space? Life in outer space is an absolute
certainty, and it is likely to be more familiar than we might think,
according to an article in the May issue of Microbiology Today. Ever
since the start of the space race we have sent more than just
satellites and astronauts into space: spacecraft are not routinely
decontaminated and are teeming with microbial life. The Russian space
station Mir was launched in 1986 and microbial studies investigated the
diversity of bacteria living alongside the astronauts. In 1998,
free-floating blobs of water found during a NASA mission to the station
were analyzed and discovered to contain microbes including faecal
bacteria like E. coli, plague bacterium-related species of Yersinia,
and even what was suspected to be Legionella, as well as fungi, amoebae
and protozoa. (5/29)
"The Earth Strain" - Spreading Life To The Stars (Whether We
Want To or Not) (Source: Daily Galaxy)
When the Apollo 11 astronauts splashed down in the Pacific they were
immediately whisked off into quarantine, spending three weeks in a
rather unglamorous steel shell for fear that they'd contracted lethal
space-plagues. A recent paper by Professor Cockell of the Open
University points out that the flow of life is more likely to be FROM
the vast dirty ball teeming with billions of organisms TO the utterly
dead space rocks. The idea is that hardy hitchhikers on our
interplanetary probes could face alien ecosystems with "The Earth
Strain", and they won't even have a rugged team of determined
scientists to find a cure. Visit http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2008/05/the-earth-strai.html
to view the article. (5/27)
National Space Biomedical
Research Institute Seeks Fellows (Source: CSA)
The NASA-sponsored NSBRI
solicits applications for its Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. The
Fellowships will be competitively available for two years in any
laboratory in the United States carrying out ground-based,
space-related biomedical/biotechnological research in accordance with
the NSBRI's goals. Visit
http://www.nsbri.org/Announcements/rfa08-03.html for information.
Planet Similar to Earth Found (Source: Contra Costa Times)
Astronomers have discovered what may be the smallest alien planet yet -
a rocky "super-Earth" only four times heavier than our home planet.
It's orbiting a small star at a distance that puts it in the so-called
"habitable zone" - a region neither too hot nor too cold for liquid
water and therefore suitable for possible life. Scientists believe such
Earth-like planets are the best hope for detecting evidence of living
organisms beyond our solar system. The object is one of 45 potential
new planets in the Milky Way galaxy recently discovered by the European
Southern Observatory's 140-inch telescope in Chile. (5/31)
Utah State University Researchers Aiming for Sun (Source:
KSL.com)
Utah researchers are testing new-generation materials for a unique and
historic spacecraft that will fly into the sun. In fact, it will not
only go there, where no one has gone before, but it will return to
Earth. It's hard to imagine we could build anything here on Earth that
would survive a flight to the sun. But we've reached a point in the
development of new materials that NASA now feels confident it's time to
make the trip. It's one thing, this far on Earth, to stand and feel a
summer heat of roughly 100 degrees. But try flying directly into the
corona of the sun itself. (5/31)
University of Colorado Wins Snow and Ice Archive Contract
(Source: NASA)
NASA has selected the University of Colorado at Boulder for the
management and operations of the Earth Observing System Data and
Information System Snow and Ice Distributed Active Archive Center. The
maximum value of the cost, no-fee contract is $32 million over a
five-year period. The Snow and Ice Distributed Active Archive Center
focuses on receiving, archiving, transforming, validating and
distributing digital and analog snow and ice data products generated
from numerous Earth observation satellite. (5/29)
Antiscience: NASA Again Rejects Antimatter Test (Source:
What's New)
According to today’s Science, a battle is shaping up over NASA’s
refusal to send the Alfa Magnetic Spectrometer to the ISS on board the
space shuttle. The experiment was agreed to by former NASA chief Dan
Goldin more than a decade ago. However, Michael Griffin, NASA chief,
claims every square centimeter of shuttle space is all needed just to
finish the ISS on schedule. Otherwise the ISS would have to be dropped
in the Pacific unfinished. The NASA authorization bill approved last
week, however, proposes $150M for the launch. The bill will be
considered by the full house this summer. (5/31)
NASA Selects Small Explorer Projects for Concept Studies
(Source: NASA)
NASA has selected six candidate mission proposals for evaluation as
part of the agency's Small Explorer (SMEX) Program. The proposals will
study the far reaches of the universe, including the Earth's
thermosphere and ionosphere, the sun, black holes, the first stars, and
Earthlike planets around nearby stars. The selected proposals include:
Coronal Physics Explorer (Naval Research Laboratory); Gravity and
Extreme Magnetism SMEX (Goddard Space Flight Center); Interface Region
Imaging Spectrograph (Lockheed Martin Space Systems); Joint
Astrophysics Nascent Universe Satellite (Pennsylvania State
University); Neutral Ion Coupling Explorer (University of California,
Berkeley); and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (Massachusetts
Institute of Technology). (5/29)
NASA Space Missions Fuel Massive Storage Projects (Source:
Byte and Switch)
NASA’s Mars mission may be grabbing headlines this week, but there has
been a vast storage infrastructure underpinning the nine-month,
422-million-mile trek to the Red Planet. Data storage projects are
playing an increasingly important role for NASA as the administration
plans more ambitious space missions and a myriad of cutting-edge
research. Officials have already teamed up with Google, for example,
around "large-scale data management" and will host a joint conference
with the IEEE in September devoted to designing and building “mass
storage systems." (5/29)
NASA Awards Marshall Operations Support Services Contract
(Source: NASA)
NASA has selected EG&G Technical Services Inc. of Gaithersburg,
Md., to provide facility operations and maintenance services at NASA's
Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. The contract begins on July 1,
2008, with a one-year base period, followed by four one-year options.
It is a firm-fixed price contract with an indefinite
delivery/indefinite quantity portion. The maximum potential value of
this contract is approximately $153 million. (5/29)
NASA Launches New
Education Initiative with Disney (Source: NASA)
The liftoff of space shuttle Discovery kicks off a new education
initiative between NASA and Disney Parks. A 12-inch-tall Buzz Lightyear
action figure will be carried aboard the shuttle as part of the
partnership to encourage students to pursue studies in science,
technology and mathematics, one of NASA's main educational goals.
Disney's Youth Educational Series and NASA have developed an online
program known as the Space Ranger Education Series. It includes fun
educational games for students, as well as materials for educators to
download and integrate into their classroom curriculum. (5/29)
Space Tourism Explores a Different Role in Science
(Source: Columbus Dispatch)
For your next vacation, how about a trip to the International Space
Station? In April 2007, that's exactly what billionaire Charles Simonyi
did, at a cost of about $20 million. Simonyi is the fifth space tourist
to fly to the station via a Russian Soyuz rocket. Simonyi was asked
about the role of humans in space and whether it affects our scientific
understanding of the cosmos. He was clear in his opinion that virtually
all scientific knowledge beyond the Earth-moon system has come from
telescope observations and robotic probes. He said that we send people
into space for adventure and to learn more about the considerable
hazards of space travel, not to learn about astronomy. This was a
refreshingly honest assessment. Both observational astronomy and the
human-space program are useful, each in its own way. As a
philanthropist and space tourist, Simonyi has contributed to both.
(5/28)
How to Win the Google Lunar X Prize and Beat NASA to the Moon
(Source: Popular Mechanics)
The year is 2012. A quarter-million miles from Earth, a small
spacecraft is nearing the surface of the moon. When the unmanned craft
touches down in a cloud of rocket-blown dust, it becomes the first
man-made object to arrive intact on the lunar surface in 32 years. But
the logo on the side of the spacecraft doesn't belong to NASA or any
other government space agency. Instead, the images beamed back to Earth
by the small rover that emerges from the spacecraft reveal a familiar
multicolored corporate logo: Google's. Not a single dollar of public
money has been expended, or a scrap of governmental red tape
encountered, during the mission.
That's the scenario envisioned by the creators of the Google Lunar X
Prize, a $20 million reward for the first privately funded group to
land a rover on the moon by Dec. 31, 2012. To win the prize, the rover
must do more than arrive in one piece. It must travel at least 500
meters, or about a third of a mile, and send a "mooncast" of
high-definition video, photos and text to Earth. At this writing, 10
teams have registered to compete for the jackpot. "It used to take a
nation to land on the moon," says Peter Diamandis, CEO of the X Prize
Foundation. "We're throwing down the gauntlet to challenge private
groups to do it a hundred times cheaper." Visit http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4265261.html
to view the article. (5/28)
SpaceDev Provided More Than 30 Mechanisms for Phoenix Program
(Source: SpaceDaily.com)
SpaceDev says it has provided a wide array of hardware and instruments
for the Phoenix Lander that successfully landed on Mars' north arctic
plain Sunday, May 25th at 4:53 pm PDT. SpaceDev mechanical systems on
the spacecraft included 16 devices supporting the Microscopy,
Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA) instrument, eight
actuators on the Thermal Evolved Gas Analyzer (TEGA) instrument, two
actuators deploying the solar arrays, two actuators pointing the Stereo
Surface Imager (SSI) camera, and three actuators on the robotic arm.
All in all, more than 30 SpaceDev devices are now on the surface of
Mars supporting the Phoenix spacecraft. (5/28)
Japan Plans to Brew 'Space Beer' (Source: AFP)
A Japanese brewery Tuesday said it was planning the first "space beer,"
using offspring of barley once stored at the International Space
Station. Researchers said the project was part of efforts to prepare
for a future in which humans spend extended periods of time in space --
and might like a cold beer after a space walk. Japanese brewery Sapporo
Holdings said it would make beer using the third generation of barley
grains that had spent five months on the International Space Station in
2006. "We want to finish the beer by November. It will be the first
space beer," Sapporo executive Junichi Ichikawa told reporters. (5/27)
Not So Fast, Japan, Comet's Tail Ale is First Space Beer
(Source: MEI)
The world's first space beer made its inaugural flight at Kelly's
Brewery in Albuquerque. Microgravity Enterprises Inc., which partnered
with Kelly's to make Comet's Tail Amber Ale from yeast that went to
space, held a "Launch Fest" last year at the brewery. "We went through
three kegs in about four hours," said Zach Guilmette, head brewer at
Kelly's. "I've never seen a new beer sell so quickly." Said one
customer: "The fact that it went to space sort of guarantees that you
have to at least try it." (8/07)
Continental Pilot Startled
by Encounter with 'Rocket' (Source: Houston
Chronicle)
A Continental Airlines pilot reported being startled by what he
described as a rocket that shot past his cockpit window Monday when the
plane was about eight miles north of George Bush Intercontinental
Airport. "We don't know for sure what the object was. But we think it
might be somebody doing model rocketing," said an FAA spokesman. "The
pilot saw the rocket and some people saw the rocket's trail (of
smoke)." The pilot made no diversionary maneuvers and the plane was not
damaged.
If it was model rocket, investigators want to know the type and who
launched it. "Building rockets is a legitimate hobby, but hobbyists
have to let the FAA know what they're doing," the FAA spokesman said.
Robert Morehead, an engineer who is president of the Amateur
Spaceflight Association in Houston, said the FAA would only need to be
notified if a rocket would be entering controlled airspace.
No Criminal Charges to be Filed Against Orbital (Source:
Space News)
The U.S. Department of Justice has notified Orbital Sciences Corp. that
no criminal charges will be filed against the company as the result of
an investigation into alleged violations of government contracting
laws, according to a May 27 Orbital filing with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC). (5/28)
XM Is Seeking $120 Million In Financing (Source:
Washington Post)
XM Satellite Radio Holdings warned in a regulatory filing last week
that its financial position may be threatened if it cannot find $120
million worth of financing to adhere to the terms of its high-profile
contract with Major League Baseball. The District satellite radio
company is required to set aside $120 million in an escrow account as
part of its eight-year contract with baseball, giving it the right to
air news, scores, highlights and live game coverage. (5/26)
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California
Aerospace Event Calendar
California Defense
Technology & Intelligence Career Fairs Planned for June 3-5
June 3, 2008 in El
Segundo, CA. June 4, 2008 in Oceanside, CA. June 5, 2008 in San Diego,
CA. The career fairs are geared to bring employers, recruiters,
professional development & academic organizations and cleared job
seekers together within U.S. Defense, Intelligence, Government and
Contractor Communities. Job seekers with any federal security clearance
or an intelligence, contractor, military, scientific or government
background are highly encouraged to attend. 15%
Series Discount for all 3 registrations. Additional
information available at http://www.TransitionCareers.com or contact
Brent@Transition Careers.com or 443-270-6572.
CSA Co-Hosts Satellite
Conference in San Diego on June 10-12
The California Space
Authority is co-hosting a joint conference on satellite communications
on June 10-12 in San Diego. For more information on the 26th
International Communications Satellite Systems Conference (ICSSC), and
the ISCe 2008 satellite & communications conference, visit http://www.isce.com/. ISCe is offering
a 10% registration discount to all CSA members (a priority code will be
e-mailed to all CSA members).
California Space Authority Sponsors Los Angeles Breakfast
Roundtable on June 12
The California Space Authority will sponsor a roundtable breakfast
meeting on June 12 at the Los Angeles Sheraton Gateway LAX. The event
will feature various senior officials from the space industry and the
military, and a review of California's progress with space industry,
workforce, policy, and academic development. For information and to
RSVP contact Patti Ruiz Baker at 805-349-2633, ext. 112, or mailto:patti.ruiz@californiaspaceauthority.org.
(5/22)
Teacher Workshops Planned
Near California Spaceport on June 14
NASA and the California
Space Authority encourage teachers to participate in the Delta II
launch of the Jason-2 Satellite: NASA and NOAA’s Ocean Surface
Topography mission. For all interested school educators &
administrators: this is a unique opportunity to learn about realworld
Earth and atmospheric science, rocket science (no previous knowledge
necessary), and OSTM/Jason-2’s cutting-edge satellite instrument
technology. This educational program will provide a general
introduction to the NASA/NOAA OSTM/Jason-2 mission and a variety of
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) workshops with
specific science behind the Jason-2 satellite instruments. Visit
http://sealevel.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/ostm.html.
Galaxy Forum USA Planned
in Santa Clara on July 4
The Galaxy: A new human
domain, enormous and immense, yet finite enough for human understanding
and familiarization – featuring noted astronomer Don Goldsmith, Jon
Lomberg’s Galaxy Garden of Hawaii, Yuki Takahashi on Galaxy Observation
from the South Pole, and the International Lunar Observatory. July 4,
2008 at the Santa Clara Hilton. Admission is free; please contact
news@spaceagepub.com or call 650-324-3705 to reserve your place.
ITAR Seminar Planned in
Hawthorne/Manhattan Beach on July 30
This seminar will provide
an overview of U.S. export controls focusing on the International
Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Speakers will detail key issues
related to ITAR regulations and the increased enforcement of trade
policies. Topics of discussion will include changes & trends at the
State Department, D-trade, third country/dual nationals, best practices
on how to successfully navigate the ITAR minefield, and much more. The
July 30 event will be held in Hawthorne/Manhattan Beach, California.
Visit http://www.buyusa.gov/westlosangeles/itar.html for information
and registration.
Joint Propulsion
Conference Planned in Connecticut on July 20-23
This is the AIAA's premier
event for engineering and management professionals focused on space
technologies, systems, programs, and policy. Visit
http://www.aiaa.org/content.cfm?pageid=230&lumeetingid=1874 for
information.
2008 Regolith Excavation
Challenge Planned at CalPoly on Aug. 2-3
CSA is sponsoring the
Regolith Excavation Challenge on August 2-3, 2008, on the campus of
California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo. Visit
http://regolith.csewi.org/
Two Teacher Workshops
Planned on Aug. 11-14
The U.S. Department of
Education and the Department of Defense Education Activity are
sponsoring a free Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative workshop on the Marine
Corps Base in Twentynine Palms, Calif. This workshop provides
opportunities to learn reading and math strategies from prominent
teachers and district officials who will share research-based practices
they have successfully applied in their schools and classrooms. This
event will be held on Aug. 11-12. Visit https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=88
for information.
A second workshop is
planned for Aug. 13-14 in Los Angeles by the Office of Charter Schools
at the U.S. Department of Education and the California Charter Schools
Association. This free Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative workshop will be
held at the Pacific Palisades Charter High School in Pacific Palisades.
This workshop provides opportunities to learn reading, science, history
and math strategies from prominent teachers and district officials who
will share research-based practices they have successfully applied in
their schools and classrooms. Visit https://www.t2tweb.us/Workshops/EventInfo.asp?EventID=87
for information.
Navy Gold Coast Conference
Planned on August 27-28
The San Diego Chapter of
NDIA (National Defense Industrial Association) is proud to present the
2008 "Navy Small Business Opportunity Conference." It has also come to
be known as simply the "Gold Coast" Conference. The Navy Co-Sponsors of
this event are NAVSEA, NAVAIR, SPAWAR, NAVSUP, NAVFAC and the Navy's
Office of Small Business Programs. Visit
http://2008goldcoast.ndia-sd.org for information.
AIAA Space 2008 Conference
& Exposition Planned in San Diego Sep. 9-11
The San Diego Convention
Center will host Space 2008 on Sep. 9-11. This AIAA sponsored event
will focus on space as an underpinning our commercial, civil, and
military sectors. Three of the top issues in the upcoming
election—-economic competitiveness, the global war on terror, and the
need for increased global climate change monitoring—-are all dependent
on our technological and operational achievements in space. Visit
http://www.aiaa.org for information.
APSCC 2008 Satellite
Conference & Exhibition Planned in Korea on Sept. 22-25
The satellite industry's
premier conference for business and networking opportunities in Asia is
planned for September 22 - 25, 2008 at the Hotel Lotte, Jeju, Korea. To
register visit http://www.apscc.or.kr/event/apscc2008.asp. Registration
Discount to CSA Members!
Supplier Transformation
Forum Set for Oct. 7
The third annual Supplier
Transformation Forum is planned on Oct. 7. The event will feature
multiple prime contractors, government agencies and all levels of the
supply chain, at Northrop Grumman's facility in Redondo Beach. This
forum will include updated information from last year's forum and have
a similar format. Last year's agenda is available at
http://www.innovatecalifornia.net/2_2_forum_details/ along with some of
the presentations and video. Save the date for this year's forum!
California Space Authority
(CSA) Annual Membership Meeting Planned for December 4
2:30 pm - 5:00 pm at The
Sheraton Gateway LAX in the California Room. Join us for cocktails and
appetizers while networking with the CSA Board of Directors and fellow
CSA members. The Annual Membership Meeting is
hosted by CSA. RSVP to
mailto:Elizabeth.Burkhead@californiaspaceauthority.org
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Last Week’s DOD
Contract Awards in California
McDonnell Douglas Corp., a wholly owned
subsidiary of The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Mo., is being awarded a
$25,954,182 order against a previously issued Basic Ordering Agreement
(N00019-05-G-0026) for F/A-18E/F Service Life Assessment Program
support services. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Mo., (68
percent) and El Segundo, Calif., (32 percent), and work is
expected to be completed in Dec. 2011. Contract funds will not expire
at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command,
Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
Armtec Countermeasures Co., Coachella, Calif.,
is being awarded a $10,528,066 firm-fixed-price,
indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for countermeasures in
support of the Naval Air Systems Command Airborne Expendable
Countermeasures (AECM) Program Office and the 84th Combat Sustainment
Wing, Hill AFB, Utah. Work will be performed in Lillington, N.C., and
work is expected to be completed by May 2012. Contract funds will not
expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was
competitively procured, with two proposals solicited and one offer
received. The Naval Inventory Control Point is the contracting activity.
The U.S. Navy is awarding
indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award contracts to 340
contractors that will provide for their competition for service
requirements solicited by Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Air Systems
Command, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, Naval Supply Systems
Command, Military Sealift Command, Naval Facilities Engineering
Command, Strategic Systems Programs, Office of Naval Research, Defense
Threat Reduction Agency and the United States Marine Corps. The 22
functional service areas within the scope of the contracts include: 1. Research and Development Support. 2. Engineering
System Engineering and Process Engineering Support. 3.
Modeling, Simulation, Stimulation, and Analysis Support.
4. Prototyping, Pre-Production, Model-Making, and
Fabrication Support. 5. System Design
Documentation and Technical Data Support. 6.
Software Engineering, Development, Programming, and Network Support. 7. Reliability, Maintainability, and Availability
(RM&A) Support. 8. Human Factors,
Performance, and Usability Engineering Support. 9.
System Safety Engineering Support. 10.
Configuration Management (CM) Support. 11.
Quality Assurance (QA) Support. 12. Information
System (IS) Development, Information Assurance (IA), and Information
Technology (IT) Support. 13. Inactivation and
Disposal Support. 14. Interoperability, Test
and Evaluation, Trials Support. 15. Measurement
Facilities, Range, and Instrumentation Support. 16. Logistics Support. 17. Supply and Provisioning Support.
18. Training Support. 19.
In-Service Engineering, Fleet Introduction, Installation and Checkout
Support. 20. Program Support. 21.
Functional and Administrative Support and 22.
Public Affairs and Multimedia Support. The government estimates a
maximum of $5,300,000,000 of services will be procured per year via
orders issued under the SeaPort-e multiple award contracts. The awards
have a one-year base period with one five-year award term and one
additional four-year award term. California-based contractors include: 3-D
Engineering Corp., Temecula, Calif.; Advance Engineering Sciences
Corp., Tustin, Calif.; Aim Computer Training Inc. dba Executrain, Santa
Clara, Calif.; All Star Technical Services LLC, San Diego, Calif.;
Alpha Scientific Laboratories, Inc., Alameda, Calif.; Alpha
Technologies & Services, Santa Clara, Calif.; Blackledge Diving,
Inc., Long Beach, Calif.; Blackstone Technology Group, San Francisco,
Calif.; BOSS Logic Inc., dba Systems Technology Institute, Camarillo,
Calif.; Celeris Systems, Inc, Anaheim, Calif.; CoLogiQ, Poway, Calif.;
Connell & Associates, Inc., Onyx, Calif.; Control Point Corp.,
Santa Barbara, Calif.; DeBritt Systems LLC, San Jose, Calif.; EdgeTech
Consulting, Inc., Irvine, Calif.; Elan Technical and Administrative
Services, Chula Vista, Calif.; Environmental Systems Research
Institute, Inc. dba ESRI, Redlands, Calif.; Global Research and
Technology Corp., Port Hueneme, Calif.; IDIQ Inc., Fallbrook, Calif.;
Infologic, Inc., Newport Beach, Calif.; Isensepro Inc., San Diego,
Calif.; KAB Laboratories, Inc., San Diego, Calif.; KUITY Corp, San
Diego, Calif.; Lean Quality Systems, Dana Point, Calif.; Macro
Technologies, Inc., San Diego, Calif.; MARRS Services, Inc., Santa Fe
Springs, Calif.; ONQ Technology, Escondido, Calif.; Orqid Consulting,
San Deigo, Calif.; Pacific Aerospace Consulting Inc., San Diego,
Calif.; Pacific Parallel Research, Inc. dba Pacific Parallel, Cardiff,
Calif.; Prometheus Information Technology, San Diego, Calif.;
Proofpoint Systems, Inc., Los Altos, Calif.; Quantum Dimension, Inc.,
Huntington Beach, Calif.; Secure Com Consulting Corp., San Diego,
Calif.; Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure, Inc., San Diego,
Calif.; SRI International, Menlo Park, Calif.; Stearns, Conrad and
Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. dba SCS Engineers, Long Beach,
Calif.; Tactical Air Support, Winchester, Calif.; VOTA Consulting
Corp., San Diego, Calif.; and X-Integration, San Diego, Calif.
BAE Systems Technology
Solutions & Services, Inc., Rockville, Md., is being
awarded a $21,716,356 modification to a previously awarded
cost-plus-fixed-fee term, level of effort contract (N00421-06-C-0085)
to exercise an option for maintenance, logistics, and life cycle
services in support of communication-electronic equipment/systems and
subsystems for various Navy, Army, Air Force, Special Operations Forces
and other Federal Agencies. These services are in support of the
Special Communications Requirements Division of the Naval Air Warfare
Center Aircraft Division. Work will be performed in Chesapeake, Va.,
(32 percent); Fayetteville, N.C., (28 percent); California, Md., (22
percent); San Diego, Calif., (6 percent); Fort Bliss, Texas, (4
percent); Ft. Walton Beach, Fla., (2 percent); Panzer Kaserne, Germany,
(2 percent); Homestead, Fla., (2 percent); Tampa, Fla., (1 percent),
and the District of Columbia, (1 percent), and work is expected to be
completed in Jun. 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of
the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft
Division, St. Inigoes, Md., is the contracting activity.
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