Space.com has a few more details about the X-37 automated shuttle set for launch aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral on Wednesday:

The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) is capable of supporting a flexible range of experiments, Blair said. “The first mission will emphasize proving technologies necessary for long duration reusable space vehicles with autonomous reentry and landing capabilities.”

“It’s a developmental effort,” Blair said, and it’s standard practice with many Department of Defense development efforts, “specific details of the OTV capabilities, limitations and vulnerabilities” are classified.

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Falcon hypersonic technology vehicle (HTV)

DARPA is set to launch its maneuverable, hypersonic Falcon HTV-2 test vehicle out of Vandenberg Air Force Base on Tuesday. The Lockheed Martin built vehicle — designed to fly at speeds of Mach 20 and above — will be launched aboard a Minotaur Lite rocket. It is set to fly about 4,100 nautical miles across the Pacific in less then 30 minutes before impacting in the ocean north of the Kwajalein Atoll. The goal of the project is to design weapons that will allow the U.S. to quickly respond to threats.

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PLANETARY SOCIETY STATEMENT

President Obama has charted a course that could launch the United States on a new path to historic “firsts” in space — first astronauts to travel beyond the Moon, first astronauts to touch down on an asteroid, first astronauts to reach a Lagrange point, first astronauts to reach Mars.

The Planetary Society’s leadership believes this new plan will take humans beyond Earth orbit to interplanetary space sooner than was possible under the old program, and it will take us farther and to more destinations than was ever planned with the Constellation program.

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NASA's Orion spacecraft - now with 100 percent fewer astronauts

In the wake of Barack Obama’s speech at the Kennedy Space Center on Thursday, the Boeing Company released a statement calling for for the U.S. to have a “clear path” to accelerate development on two key elements:

We support the president’s call for increased investment in heavy-lift launch vehicle technology, but we believe the United States should be on a clear path to accelerate the development and production of this critical system, along with a deep-space capsule. Both of these vehicles are essential to any deep-space exploration mission. We have the technology and the people to commence development of these vehicles now. A plan that includes a heavy-lift vehicle would enable space exploration supported by humans, large-array telescopes and deep-space robotic missions. It could achieve maximum benefit from American tax dollars by drawing on the cutting-edge technology already being developed for the Constellation program.

The full statement after the break.

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Altair on the moon

Writing in the conservative National Review, Robert Costa assails President Barack Obama’s space policy as a directionless mess lacking in vision that will cede American leadership in space:

Obama looks at the Constellation program, introduced by Pres. George W. Bush in 2004 with the goal of rocketing Americans back to the moon by 2020, and sees a problem he inherited, not a challenge to be met. Obama is axing the project a decade before the deadline, after $10 billion has been spent. “No one is more committed to manned spaceflight, to the human exploration of space, than I am,” Obama said. “But we’ve got to do it in a smart way. We can’t keep doing the same, old things.”

What about the thousands of NASA employees who will lose their jobs when the program goes under? The administration plans to channel $6 billion to commercial-spacecraft developers and cross its fingers that they hire the newly unemployed space workers. These firms launch rich folks into the clouds for weekend zooms around the Earth. Surely those posts are the aspiration of every first-class mathematician and aerospace engineer who grew up with eyes toward the sky….

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New Mexico Spaceport Authority director resigns
Las Cruces Sun-News

New Mexico Spaceport Authority director Steve Landeene announced his resignation Friday.

Landeene formally resigned in a letter to the Spaceport Authority Chairman and state Economic Development Secretary Fred Mondrag-n. Landeene pointed to a new law passed this year that decreases liability for the spaceport, saying the measure was “the last major element solidifying Spaceport America.”

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SpacX Founder Elon Musk

STATEMENT BY ELON MUSK
FOUNDER AND CEO, SPACEX

The Apollo Moon landing was one of humanity’s greatest achievements. Millennia from now, when the vast majority of the 20th century is reduced to a few footnotes known only to erudite scholars of history, they will still remember that was when we first set foot upon a heavenly body. It was a mere 66 years after the first powered airplane flight by the Wright brothers.

In the 41 years that have passed since 1969, we have yet to surpass that achievement in human spaceflight. Since then, our capability has actually declined considerably and to a degree that would yield shocked disbelief from anyone in that era. By now, we were supposed to have a base on the Moon, perhaps even on Mars, and have sent humans traveling on great odysseys to the outer planets. Instead, we have been confined to low Earth orbit and even that ends this year with the retirement of the Space Shuttle.

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The Colbert Report Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

NEXT STEP IN SPACE COALITION PRESS RELEASE

Next Step In Space, a coalition of over thirty businesses and organizations dedicated to scientific advancement and increased understanding of the Earth and our solar system through expanded human space flight today announced their support for NASA’s new strategy for space exploration.

The President outlined an ambitious effort to foster the development of path-breaking technologies; increase the number, scope, and pace of manned and unmanned space missions; make human spaceflight safer and more efficient; and help create thousands of jobs. Included in his vision for NASA is a sequence of deep-space destinations matched to growing capabilities, progressing step-by-step until we are able to reach Mars.

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COALITION FOR SPACE EXPLORATION PRESS RELEASE

The Coalition for Space Exploration (Coalition) recognizes today’s Space Conference in Florida as an important step in the continuing discussion on the future of America’s global leadership in space exploration.

The Coalition believes human space exploration is a national imperative that calls for a focused strategy with a more aggressive timetable and milestones to drive the development of capabilities, in support of its missions. To successfully forge the industry and international partnerships necessary for future space exploration missions, America must have robust, sustained support from its elected officials and the public. This cannot be achieved, when goals are distant and unclear.

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FLORIDA REP. SUZANNE KOSMAS STATEMENT

“The changes that the President has outlined today to his NASA proposal are steps in the right direction and a sign that he is listening to my concerns, but there is still room for improvement.

“The continuation of Orion, combined with new program offices at Kennedy Space Center, infrastructure upgrades and economic development funding, will help protect Space Coast jobs, and I am glad that the President has heard our call to preserve our highly skilled workforce.

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Press reports indicate that there are mixed reactions in key states about the administration’s revised plan for NASA. Things are looking up in Colorado:

Colorado senators and congressmen welcomed President Barack Obama’s decision to save a version of the Orion space capsule being developed in Colorado. “The president’s announcement is terrific news for Colorado, for all the workers on Orion,” said Democratic Sen. Mark Udall.

Udall spoke to reporters by phone along with Sen. Michael Bennet and Rep. Ed Perlmutter, both Democrats, and Rep. Mike Coffman, a Republican.

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