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Wednesday’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space activities from around the world: SpaceX braces to reach for a new commercial milestone in space. NASA may receive most of the budget the agency is seeking. The Republican select new House committee chairs. Japan’s Akatsuki probe sails past Venus. Are the prospects for extraterrestrial life rising, or falling?
1. From Spaceflightnow.com: SpaceX schedules its first test mission for NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program for Wednesday. The company’s Falcon 9 rocket is set for launch between 9 a.m. and 12:22 p.m. from Cape Canaveral, Florida. After two orbits of the Earth, the spacecraft is to splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. NASA is looking to SpaceX to provide the commercial transport of cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station.
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon9/002/101207preview/
A. From Spaceflightnow.com: What are the chances the ambitious mission will accomplish all of its objectives? About 60 percent, says founder Elon Musk.
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon9/002/101208risk/
B. From the New York Times: The SpaceX mission represents the future of U.S. spaceflight. The Falcon 9’s success and the efforts of other commercial space companies could drive down the cost of space access.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/08/science/space/08launch.html?_r=2&ref=science
C. From the Los Angeles Times: The SpaceX mission could be the long sought turning point for commercial spaceflight.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-spacex-capsule-20101208,0,2381140.story
2. From Space News: A new draft appropriations measure would fund NASA at $18.91 billion for 2011, just below the $19 that was authorized by Congress and signed by President Obama. The bill would fund NASA for the rest of the fiscal year, and supply funding for a new heavy lift rocket and multi-purpose crew capsule. The money appears to permit the additional shuttle mission NASA desires using Atlantis and fund the development of the commercial transportation initiative. What the measure lacks is full funding to begin upgrades to the Kennedy Space Center. Action could come today.
http://www.spacenews.com/policy/101207-draft-increases-nasa-budget.html
A. From the Orlando Sentinel: The appropriations measure funds the mid-2011 Atlantis mission, but provides half the funding once promised for the Kennedy modernization initiative.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/space/os-budget-protects-shuttle-20101207,0,3942646.story
B. From Politico: U.S. Rep. Ralph Hall, a Texas Democrat turned Republican and a strong NASA supporter will chair the House Science and Technology Committee in the next term. President Obama’s climate policies are expected to receive the committee’s scrutiny. Hall, 87, edges out Dana Rohrabacher, a California Republican.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46101.html
C. From The Hill: U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, a Kentucky Republican, will chair the House Appropriations Committee.
http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/132561-house-republicans-choose-their-committee-chairmen
3. From the Mainichi Daily News of Japan: Japan’s Akatsuki probe fails Tuesday to swing into orbit around Venus:
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20101208p2g00m0dm020000c.html
A. From the Associated Press via MSNBC: Akatsuki appears to have flown past Venus
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40542718/ns/technology_and_science-space/
4. From the Associated Press via the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and others: Several recent discoveries are increasing the prospect of extra-terrestrial life, say scientists. They include a recent new estimate that increases by three the number of stars in the universe; the discovery of arsenic loving bacteria and the identification of an extraterrestrial planet in the habitable zone of its star.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/wire/sns-ap-us-sci-alien-life,0,4678751.story
A. From Wired.com: University of British Columbia researcher Rosie Redfield and others in the science community discount the NASA funded claim that scientists have identified a arsenic loving strain of bacteria that has implications for the existence of extraterrestrial life. The claim from a team led by Felisa Wolfe-Simon was published in the journal Science last week.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/12/arsenic-life-under-fire/
5. From Florida Today: NASA’s inspector general criticizes the agency for the way its disposing of computers and other Information Technology hardware associated with the retiring shuttle program. NASA is not doing enough to ensure sensitive information about shuttle operations and maintenance has been “sanitized,” IG Paul Martin reports.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20101208/NEWS02/12080338/Report%20criticizes%20KSC%20for%20sloppy%20computer%20disposal?GID=pX6dY9DyrV+4zUHbb1wbldCIVjqPWgfM+qkr5Hw2UPQ%3D
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