The Commerce, Justice and Science (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee has approved a $17.9 billion budget measure to fund NASA in FY 2015. The amount is $250 million more than the space agency is receiving in FY 2014. The measure now goes to the full Appropriations Committee. The table below shows funding by program. Program Amount Notes Science $5.193 Billion $42 million above FY 2014 enacted level Exploration $4.167 Billion See note […]
AUTHOR
Doug Messier
SHERPA space tug. (Credit: Spaceflight, Inc.)
SEATTLE, April 30, 2014 – Spaceflight Inc., the company reinventing the model for launching small satellites into space, today announced it has secured a launch service agreement to orbit its “SHERPA” hosted payload and in-space transportation system. Spaceflight’s inaugural SHERPA mission will deploy up to 1,200 kilograms of customer satellite payloads into low Earth orbit during the second half of 2015 on an undisclosed launch vehicle.
OG2 satellite (Credit: SNC)
SPARKS, Nev., April 30, 2014 – Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) announces the successful completion of the ORBCOMM Generation 2 (OG2) Pre-Ship Review and shipment of six satellites from the company’s Space Systems’ location in Louisville, Colorado. SNC is the prime contractor for this upgraded communication constellation leading all development and integration efforts for the ORBCOMM Mission 1 launch in May.
Elon Musk
By Douglas Messier
Managing Editor
Elon Musk’s efforts to overturn a U.S. Air Force launch contract with United Launch Alliance (ULA) has had an immediate impact, with a U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge issuing a preliminary injunction barring rival ULA from any further purchases of Russian-made RD-180 rocket engines for its Atlas V launch vehicle.
Judge Susan G. Braden issued the order late Wednesday barring ULA and the U.S. Air Force “from making any purchases from or payment of money to NPO Energomash or any entity, whether governmental, corporate or individual, that is subject to the control of Deputy Prime Minister Rogozin, unless and until the court receives the opinion of the United States Department of the Treasury, and the United States Department of Commerce and United States Department of State, that any such purchases or payments will not directly or indirectly contravene Executive Order 13,661. The scope of this preliminary injunction does not extend to any purchase orders that have been placed or moneys paid to NPO Energomash prior to the date of this Order.”
Griffin Lander. (Credit: Astrobotic Technology)
Pittsburgh, PA (Astrobotic PR) — Astrobotic Technology has announced a new partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for development of robotic lunar landing capability.
Astrobotic has been selected as a partner under NASA’s new Lunar Cargo Transportation and Landing by Soft Touchdown (Lunar CATALYST) initiative. NASA’s call for proposals sought partners in the development of reliable and cost-effective commercial robotic lunar lander capabilities that will enable the delivery of payloads to the surface of the moon. Commercial lunar transportation capabilities could support science and exploration objectives, such as sample returns, geophysical network deployment, resource prospecting, and technology demonstrations.
WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — Recognizing the critical role of American small businesses and research institutions play as innovation engines for new space technologies that will enable future space exploration, NASA has selected 383 research and technology proposals for negotiations that may lead to contracts worth a combined $47.6 million.
The proposals, from 257 U.S. small businesses and 29 research institutions, are part of NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program.
Commercial interior of the Boeing Crew Space Transportation (CST-100) next-generation manned space capsule, (Credit: Boeing)
NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev., April 30, 2014 (Boeing PR) — Boeing [NYSE:BA] today unveiled a new commercial interior of its Crew Space Transportation (CST-100) next-generation manned space capsule, showing how people other than NASA astronauts may one day travel to space.
Boeing and partner Bigelow Aerospace highlighted the future commercial interior of the capsule it is developing for NASA, while Bigelow showcased a full-scale model of its BA 330 commercial space habitat.
The moon rising over Half Moon Bay, California on Halloween 2009. (Credit: Douglas Messier)
WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — NASA announced Wednesday the selection of three U.S. companies to negotiate no-funds exchanged partnership agreements with the agency to advance lander capabilities that will enable delivery of payloads to the surface of the moon, as well as new science and exploration missions of interest to NASA and scientific and academic communities.
The selected companies are:
- Astrobotic Technology, Inc., Pittsburgh
- Masten Space Systems, Inc., Mojave, Calif.
- Moon Express, Inc., Moffett Field, Calif.
LONGUEUIL, Quebec (CSA PR) — The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) has awarded five contracts to Canadian industry to perform feasibility studies on five potential future microsatellite missions.
These proposed missions would address Canada’s domestic needs in security, health, forest fire surveillance, weather surveillance and water quality monitoring. As well, the missions would allow the Canadian space sector to advance industrial capabilities in microsatellite technology, especially in mission development, and advanced optical and communications payloads.
California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a measure that will give SpaceX and other aerospace companies a decade-long exemption from property taxes for launch vehicle propulsion systems. Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), who sponsored the measure, said the new law will qualify rocket propulsion systems for an existing business inventory tax exemption. The goal is to help keep the growing entrepreneurial space sector in California. “California’s aerospace industry is a vital […]