CSExtra – Monday, April 4, 2011

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Monday’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space-related developments from around the world, as well as a roundup of weekend developments.  In Kazakhstan, two Russians and an American prepare to lift off late Monday for the International Space Station.  In Washington, the debate over NASA’s future and budget continues. A House hearing on climate change produces some unanticipated testimony. In Florida, shuttle Endeavour’s crew wrapped up a training session at the Kennedy Space Center. A summary of the latest issues in astrobiology and a new strategy for detecting alien intelligence. A look at NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission and a new theory about the evolution of the Martian terrain.  More on the anticipated April 12 announcement from NASA on where the agency’s retired orbiters will be assigned for public display. A look ahead at major space policy events.

1. From the Associated Press via the Washington Post:  Preparations are under way to launch  Russians Andrey Borisenko and Alexander Samokutyaev and American Ron Garan to the International Space Station from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday at 6:18 p.m., EDT. Their Soyuz 26S spacecraft will dock late Wednesday, starting a 5 to 6 month tour of duty for the three men.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/us-russian-space-crew-all-taking-first-ride-on-soyuz-to-orbiting-station/2011/04/03/AFYusTVC_story.html

2. From Florida Today,  April 2, In an op-ed, columnist John Kelly looks back at last week’s House Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee hearing on NASA’s space exploration plans. Legislators expressed frustration at a lack of action on the 2010 NASA Authorization Act.  But NASA is caught in the middle — between the road map outlined in the authorization act and the budget impasse. Congress needs to act on a spending plan, Kelly writes.
http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011104030317

A. From the Orlando Sentinel, April 3:  NASA is evaluating which of several companies should receive part of $300 million in funding to foster commercial transportation for astronauts to the International Space Station and other orbital destinations. Among them is ATK and Liberty, which is a modified Ares 1 launcher — part of NASA’s all but cancelled Constellation Program. The Sentinel asks: Should taxpayers receive a dividend for the $1.2 billion that NASA invested in the Ares 1, which was cancelled for cost and schedule considerations.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-atk-reviving-ares-20110403,0,7606700.story?page=1

B. From Space News, April 1: NASA’s 2012 budget request includes $548 million to meet a projected shortfall in the pension fund of shuttle prime contractor United Space Alliance. The pension issue affects 11,000 current and former employees of the company.
http://www.spacenews.com/civil/110401-nasa-payment-cover-pension.html

3. From the New York Times, April 3: Columnist Paul Krugman assesses a House climate change hearing last week. Representatives from the Berkeley Earth Surface Science Project reversed its skepticism of climate change in testimony that supported the findings of NASA scientists and other experts who see a warming trend.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/04/opinion/04krugman.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=NASA&st=cse

A. From the Los Angeles Times, April 3:  Results of the Berkeley Earth Surface Science Project study, led by physicist Richard Muller, will be submitted to scientific journals for peer review.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-climate-berkeley-20110404,0,772697.story

4. From the Associated Press via the Washington Post, April 4:  A look at NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission and its better known Curiosity rover. The $2.5 billion project to study the Martian surface for habitable environments is slated for launching late this year, about two years later than planned because of assembly issues. Curiosity has nearly 30,000 Twitter followers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/nasa-preparing-25b-mega-rover-for-launch-after-two-year-delay/2011/04/04/AFo0x0ZC_story.html

A. From Fox News, April 1: Fox checks into an intriguing theory that modern Mars was shaped by a massive natural nuclear explosion in the distant past.
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/04/01/natural-nuclear-blast-mars/

5.  From Space.com, April 1:  The six member crew of the shuttle Endeavour wraps up a four-day training session at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center with a countdown rehearsal. The training was interrupted by stormy weather. During the exercise, NASA shuttle program managers approved plans to launch Endeavour’s 14-day mission as soon as April 19 at 7:48 p.m., EDT.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/11282-nasa-space-shuttle-endeavour-launch-rehearsal.html

6.  From The Coalition for Space Exploration, April 3:  In the six months since launching, China’s Chang’e 2 lunar orbiter has staked out possible landing sites at Sinus Iridium a large crater. China’s is aiming for a 2013 launch of the Chang’e 3 lander with a robotic rover.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/blog/china%e2%80%99s-lunar-orbiter-identifies-future-landing-spots

7. From MSNBC, April 2: The web site looks at some recent open questions regarding the search for extra-terrestrial life. The article follows up on recent claims of arsenic based microbial life and microbes in meteorites.
http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/04/01/6392766-alien-life-revisited

A. From Discovery.com, April 1: Some scientist suggest a new avenue in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, and that is SETT, the Search for Extraterrestrial Technology. There could be signs of mining for rare metals and other resources in the asteroid belts of planetary systems, they suggest.
http://news.discovery.com/space/asteriod-forensics-may-point-to-alien-space-miners-110401.html

8. From The Washington Post, April 3:  In an editorial, the Washington Post calls for a level playing field and transparency NASA’s decisions on where to assign Discovery, Endeavour and Atlantis for post-retirement public display. The editorial suggests that locales with historical connections to the orbiter have the greatest merit for housing one of the shuttles.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/shuttle-descent/2011/03/30/AFFsvHQC_story.html

A. From Florida Today, April 2:  The latest on the competition among 29 museums and other public venues for a retired shuttle orbiter. The decision expected April 12 comes down to two winners. Discovery is already committed to the Air and Space Museum in Washington.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20110403/NEWS01/104030326/Battle-retired-shuttles-gets-fiery?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Home

9. From Spacepolicyonline.com, April 3: Space-related events of interest in the week ahead, including a summary of the on-going debate over the fiscal year 2011 budget.  The current budget Continuing Resolution expires Friday at midnight, and there is a lack of clarity over what will happen next.
http://www.spacepolicyonline.com/pages/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1511:events-of-interest-week-of-april-4-8-2011&catid=67:news&Itemid=27

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