Space Florida President Frank DiBello

Florida Today has a lengthy profile of Space Florida President Frank DiBello, who is in the thick of efforts to help find laid off aerospace workers new jobs in the Sunshine State:

Before his September 2009 selection as head of the state agency that works with the space industry, DiBello spent nearly 40 years helping fledgling satellite and spaceflight companies gather investors. Of those companies, some struggled. Some thrived. And some vanished. The varied experience gave the 67-year-old DiBello a singular grounding in the financial aspects of spaceflight and a Rolodex that includes many major players in the space industry….

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Video of the induction of new members to the Astronaut Hall of Fame on Saturday.

This Week in Space reviews the Falcon 9 launch and talks to SpaceX founder Elon Musk.

The Space Show schedule for this week: Monday, June 7, 2010, 2-3:30 PM PDT: We welcome back Robert Zimmerman for space news and industry updates. Tuesday, June 8, 2010, 7- 8:30 PM PDT: Taylor Dinerman returns with his unique insights and perceptions for today’s space industry. Sunday, June 13 , 12-1:30 PM PDT. The Space Show welcomes Dr. Thais Russomano from Brazil to explore space life sciences in Latin America […]

The Space Review looks at Falcon 9, solar power, British space policy, and apes. The Falcon 9 flies Jeff Foust reports on the successful test flight of SpaceX’s new Falcon 9 rocket and its implications for industry and policy. Blinded by the light Like some other 1970s fads, space solar power (SSP) has enjoyed a comeback in the last few years. Dwayne Day contrasts the attention, or lack thereof, SSP […]

Videos from an Armadillo Aerospace test flight conducted on June 5, including a mid-flight engine restart.

Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center

While most eyes were focused on SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 launch at the Cape on Friday, officials gathered in Orlando to piece together how they will deem with the looming mass unemployment on the Space Coast:

A federal task force aimed at boosting Florida’s economy after the shuttle program ends held a town hall meeting Friday, giving NASA contractors and business leaders a chance to voice opinions and suggest ideas.

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Ares I-X lifts off from the Cape.

Huntsville leaders to ‘turn up the noise’ about importance of Constellation space program
The Huntsville Times

Huntsville leaders fighting Obama administration plans to scuttle NASA’s Constellation program said Friday they want to work with the current Congress to secure the program’s future rather than risk success on who might be in Washington after the November election.

So they want to “turn up the noise,” Mayor Tommy Battle said. They want people to show Congress their support for the manned space flight program by e-mail, letters, phone calls, web videos and other ways of getting Washington’s attention.

Space shuttle Atlantis lands at Edwards Air Force Base in California, completing the final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. Image Credit: NASA/Carla Thomas

Help sought for NASA workers: Officials request millions to help staff who could lose jobs in cutbacks of programs
Houston Chronicle

Job transition assistance is on its way to Houston-area aerospace workers facing potential job losses from the retirement of NASA’s shuttle fleet and threatened cancellation of the moon program, the Texas Workforce Commission said on Friday.

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SPACE FRONTIER FOUNDATION PRESS RELEASE

Take That Critics! The NewSpace Age is Here!

The Space Frontier Foundation congratulated SpaceX of Hawthorne, California for a successful flight of their Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The first test of the rocket, lifted off at 2:45 p.m. EDT from Florida’s Cape Canaveral, defying the odds and critics by flying a perfect flight and delivering its test payload to orbit as planned. The Foundation sees this success as proving the viability of commercial “NewSpace” firms and their ability to take over transportation from Earth to low Earth orbit – as called for in NASA’s new space policy.

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The National Space Society, the Planetary Society, and the Space Foundation all issued statements praising SpaceX for the first flight of the Falcon 9 rocket on Friday.

NATIONAL SPACE SOCIETY

The National Space Society (NSS) congratulates Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) on a successful first launch of their Falcon 9 rocket, The launch payload for this test flight was the aerodynamic test article for the Dragon cargo and crew module.

Gary Barnhard, Executive Director of the National Space Society, said, “This is another milestone in the annals of spaceflight.  By successfully launching a multi-engine, multi-stage rocket of their own design and manufacture with a payload to Low Earth Orbit, SpaceX has taken a bold step forward.  Make no mistake about it, building rockets is not a forgiving business.  Their successful flight is a testament to SpaceX’s concerted efforts to get it right.  The eyes of the world were on them and they did get it right.”

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Commercial Spaceflight Federation
Press Release

Space industry leaders, astronauts, and the Commercial Spaceflight Federation are issuing the following statements following the launch of the Falcon 9 vehicle to orbit:

Bretton Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation:

“Today is a historic day for SpaceX. The Falcon 9 rocket rising into the sky was carrying the hopes and dreams of the hundreds of engineers who worked on this new project. And I know that thousands of well-wishers across the country were cheering that rocket on. For a brand-new rocket to accomplish this much on its first mission is truly impressive, given the historical difficulties of first flights.”

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