A group of 23 former astronauts has sent a letter to Congress urging full funding for NASA’s CCDev program. An excerpt:

“Because Commercial Crew is so important for NASAʼs future, we believe it should be fully funded and kept as one of NASAʼs top near-term priorities. Funding Commercial Crew at least at the Authorization Act level of $500 million will mean less reliance on Russia and a stronger space program here at home, and funding Commercial Crew at NASAʼs requested level of $850 million will enable these commercial vehicles to be developed on an even more expeditious basis. More robust funding for Commercial Crew will ensure that we get more use out of the Space Station, by getting Americans back up into space faster.”

Read the full letter below.

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Russia successfully launched the Phobos-Grunt spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome early on Wednesday morning. Roscosmos officials report a nominal launch of the Zenit rocket and a clean separation of the spacecraft from the second stage. Phobos-Grunt will land on the Martian moon Phobos, collect soil and rock samples, and return them to Earth. This is the first planetary mission for the Russian space program since 1996, when the ill-fated Mars […]

Falcon Heavy. (Credit: SpaceX)

USAF PR & FBO NOTICE — LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — The Space and Missile Systems Center here announced Nov. 7 the publication of a guide that will allow commercial launch providers to compete for future launch service opportunities.

Formally called the United States Air Force Launch Services New Entrant Certification Guide (NECG), the document lays out the approach the Air Force will use to certify commercial launch companies to provide launch services for Department of Defense National Security Space missions.

SMC will hold an Industry Day to discuss the NECG on:

Thursday, Dec. 1, 2011
Gordon Conference Center (GCC), Area 2, Building 270, 1st floor
200 North Douglas Street
El Segundo, CA 90245-2808

We will hold group general sessions from 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM to present overview information about the NECG. Contractors may request optional thirty minute breakout Q&A sessions to further discuss the topic of the day, which will begin at 2:00 PM between company and government representatives.

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Aviation Week has an update on the development of NASA’s J-2X engine, which is undergoing its first, full-duration 500-second hot-fire test on Wednesday at the Stennis Space Center. Formerly the pacing item in the development of the terminated Ares I crew launch vehicle, testing of the human-rated J-2X is being slowed to free funds for development of a throwaway version of the space shuttle main engine (SSME) that is also […]

Dr. Mason Peck. (Credit: Cornell University)

NASA PR — WASHINGTON — NASA Administrator Charles Bolden has named Cornell University Professor Mason Peck to be the agency’s chief technologist, effective in January. Peck will serve as the agency’s principal advisor and advocate on matters concerning technology policy and programs.

As the chief advocate, Peck will help communicate how NASA technologies benefit space missions and the day-to-day lives of Americans. The office coordinates, tracks and integrates technology investments across the agency and works to infuse innovative discoveries into future missions. The office also documents, demonstrates and communicates the societal impact of NASA’s technology investments.

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NASA PR — WASHINGTON — NASA plans to add an unmanned flight test of the Orion spacecraft in early 2014 to its contract with Lockheed Martin Space Systems for the multi-purpose crew vehicle’s design, development, test and evaluation. This test supports the new Space Launch System (SLS) that will take astronauts farther into space than ever before, create U.S. jobs, and provide the cornerstone for America’s future human spaceflight efforts.

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A full animation of Russia’s Phobos-Grunt mission, which is set to launch on Wednesday from Baikonur. The spacecraft will land on the Martian moon Phobos and return soil samples to Earth.

An open letter to Congress and the Administration

8 November 2011

Dear Members of Congress and the Administration:

We, the undersigned space leaders, are strong supporters of human spaceflight. Among us are former NASA astronauts, executives, and advisors, CEOs and directors of firms large and small, space scientists, space journalists, and others.

We write today to urge you to expedite plans to use commercial companies to carry crew to the Space Station. This effort is critical to the health of the Nation’s human spaceflight efforts.

More specifically, we are alarmed by possible congressional budget cuts to the $850M FY2012 budget request for NASA’s Commercial Crew program—the fastest paced and surest effort to restore US human access to orbit.

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NSS PR — Washington, D.C. — The National Space Society (NSS) will hold a press conference on November 14, 2011, from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., to announce the findings of a ground-breaking space solar power study conducted by the prestigious International Academy of Astronautics (IAA). “With space solar power technology, energy can be collected from space and transmitted wirelessly anywhere in […]

United Launch Alliance fuel depot concept. (Credit: ULA)

NASA is pursuing a 2016 orbiting fuel depot demonstration flight as a vigorous debate rages over whether depots or heavy-lift vehicles are the most cost effective way of sending humans on missions beyond Earth orbit. Aviation Week has the latest on NASA’s planned test flight:

NASA is striving to advance orbiting fuel depot technology through a project called Cryogenic Propellant Storage and Transfer (CPST), which hopes to launch an 1,800-kg (4,000-lb.) demonstration mission in 2016.

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