Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin tours RSC Energia in July. (Credit: Russian Federation Government)

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has announced that the government will spend 115 billion rubles ($3.8 billion) on national space programs in 2011, RIA Novosti reports. Putin said that Russia’s space plans include:

• Launch of about 50 spacecraft in 2011
• Long-range development of the GLONASS navigational system until 2020
• Long-term plan to increase global market share through development of new automated and human spacecraft
• Construction of a new spaceport in the Russian Far East.

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Space Florida President Frank DiBello

Space News has a Q&A with Space Florida President and CEO Frank DiBello, who is leading efforts to help rebuild the Sunshine State’s aerospace industry as NASA winds down its space shuttle program. DiBello expressed confidence that the thousands of jobs being lost can be replace by diversifying away from NASA toward a broader base that will include DOD, commercial space, aviation, and other high-technology areas where the state’s highly skilled workforce can thrive.  He is optimistic about attracting more launches to Cape Canaveral, which has been hit hard to low-cost foreign competition.

Hasn’t the commercial space industry left Florida?

If we only look at it as commercial satellite launch, the nation has lost that business to France and to Russia and others. And I believe that can be brought back, I clearly do. And I think we’re going to have to get very competitive, not only in the satellite construction industry but in the launch industry.

I think you can increase capacity to launch Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles, but the real future lies in the introduction of a whole new class of launch vehicles that can be introduced at competitive pricing.
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Manx Radio has a brief interview with Leroy Chaio of Excalibur Almaz in which he describes the Isle of Man-based company’s plans for two space stations that it recently brought over from Russia: “It’s hard to say at this point, because currently our business plan does not include using the space stations. But, basically to purchase these assets so that if in the future it does make sense to refurbish […]

UK tech to aid private space shot BBC News The UK’s Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Bigelow. UK ATC has developed an infrared sensor for the US-European James Webb Space Telescope. Bigelow’s space telescope concepts include operating beyond the Moon, more than one million kilometres away at one of the Lagrange points – gravitational “sweet spots” where spacecraft can hold station without expending […]

Terminal Hangar Facility at Spaceport America.

I found some additional details on a construction delay that occurred late last year at Spaceport America. The Albuquerque Journal reported on Nov. 30:

One of two major structures under construction at the New Mexico Spaceport has been boarded up as officials re-evaluate its interior design.
The $2.9 million aircraft rescue and firefighting building was about 70 percent complete when workers were told to pack up, demobilize and return as late as April of next year.

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Source: “Virginia’s Aerospace Industry: An Economic Impact Analysis,” prepared for the Virginia Department of Aviation by Chmura Economics & Analyics, LLC in collaboration with the Performance Management Group at Virginia Commonwealth University. Published in November 2010.

Launch Pad OA at Wallops Island. (Credit: Orbital Sciences Corporation)

A new report indicates that aerospace contributed $7.6 billion in economic output and 28,110 jobs to the state of Viriginia in 2009. The report, “Virginia’s Aerospace Industry: An Economic Impact Analysis,” was prepared for the Virginia Department of Aviation by Chmura Economics & Analyics, LLC in collaboration with the Performance Management Group at Virginia Commonwealth University.

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This week in The Space Review…. Human operations beyond LEO by the end of the decade: An affordable near-term stepping stone Where should humans go next beyond Earth orbit, and how quickly? Harley Thronson, Dan Lester, and Ted Talay make the case for quickly and affordably establishing an outpost at the Earth-Moon Lagrange points. Public interest and space exploration The general public remains fascinated with many aspects of space exploration, […]

This week on The Space Show…. Monday, January 10, 2011 , 2-3:30 PM PST. We welcome Dr. George Sowers, vice president of Business Development for United Launch Alliance (ULA). In this role, Sowers is responsible for strategic planning, advanced technology development, advanced concept development and new business acquisition efforts. Tuesday, January 11, 2011, 7-8:30 PM PST: We welcome back well known author Mary Roach to the show. For this program, […]

Repair work to space shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank begins in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians will modify 32 support beams, called stringers, on the tank's intertank region by fitting pieces of metal, called radius blocks, over the stringers' edges where they attach to the thrust panel area. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

NASA MISSION UPDATE
Jan. 7, 2011

NASA managers are evaluating potential launch dates for space shuttle Discovery in late February and working to see if International Space Station on orbit operations would allow a launch as early as Feb. 24. More will be known next week and managers hope to set a launch date by the end of next week.

Progress continues to be made in understanding the most probable cause of cracks discovered on Discovery’s external tank mid-section, known as the intertank, where small cracks developed during the Nov. 5, 2010, launch attempt. Four additional small cracks were found during thorough X-ray of the backside of the tank after Discovery was returned to the Vehicle Assembly Building before Christmas.

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NASA Has Boosted COTS Funding by Additional $40 Million Since October
Space News

NASA has boosted its investment in two logistics services being developed for the international space station by $40 million so far this year, and plans to double that payout by the end of March despite the fact that Congress has yet to appropriate the necessary funds for the effort, according to an agency official.

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Rep. Gabrielle Giffords

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords remained in critical condition in an Arizona hospital on Sunday, one day after she was shot in the head by a gunman during a meeting with constituents in Tucson. Doctors said she was responsive to simple commands after undergoing surgery and they expect her to recover. Giffords is in a medically induced coma, and it will be some time before doctors can assess the prospects of the Democratic lawmaker, who was shot through the brain.

Twenty people were shot during the “Congress on the Corner” event at a Tuscon shopping center. Six have died, including a federal judge, an aide to the Congresswoman, and a 9-year-old girl. Giffords and 13 other victims have been treated for wounds at area hospitals.

Federal authorities have charged the alleged gunman, Jared Loughner, with “one count of attempted assassination of a member of Congress, two counts of killing an employee of the federal government and two counts of attempting to kill a federal employee,” MSNBC reported. He will likely face state charges for the other deaths and injuries. The motives for the shooting are unknown.

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