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Since Michael Griffin became NASA administrator a few months ago we have seen a gradual change in the agency’s position on the role of commercial entities in carrying out the VSE. Griffin initially said he was open to it, but noted in early May that he did not want to get into a position where […] I have written here in the past about false dichotomies: the strawman choices columnists and editorial writers, among others, develop in an effort to build up their own pet projects at the expense of NASA. The latest example is a column Sunday by Tom Schmitt, publisher of the Council Bluffs (Iowa) Daily Nonpareil. Most of […] One of the often overlooked, but significant, provisions of the new space transportation policy is that NASA must cooperate with the Defense Department and submit a joint recommendation to the President on the development of any new heavy-lift vehicle to meet potential exploration-unique requirements.” The provision is interesting because the DOD is widely perceived as […] Earlier this week Craig Steidle, NASA associate administrator for exploration, told his employees that he was planning to leave the agency by the end of the month. His departure was prompted by a planned reassignment to an unspecified position at a field center, which Steidle turned down. This looks like it may be the first […] A reader with some insight into the development of the report by the House Appropriations Committee on the Science, State, Justice and Commerce appropriations bill passed along an interesting provision that has a “95% chance” of making it into the final report: NASA’s mission to research, investigate, and explore the limits of aeronautics and the […] Some astronomers have speculated that the universe will end in a “big crunch” as it collapses back onto itself, a conclusion that has fallen out of favor as evidence grows that the expansion of the universe will continue to accelerate. However, NASA’s budget expansion will not accelerate, and as a result the agency’s astronomy programs […] Remember the on-again, off-again, sorta-on-sorta-off strategic roadmapping process? A reader notes that some of the fruits of this effort have been released: some of the science roadmap reports have been published on NASA HQ’s web site. These cover topics like Mars exploration, planetary science, astronomy, and the like. Missing, it appears, is the lunar exploration […] NASA administrator Michael Griffin continued his tour of NASA’s field centers on Monday, visiting Glenn Research Center. Griffin sought to ease fears there that the center might be closed, but made it clear the future will be a little difficult, according to a Cleveland Plain Dealer article: “Research centers are not going out of business… […] One of the recommendations of the Aldridge Commission last year was that NASA convert some of its field centers into federally-funded research and development centers (FFRDCs), operated by universities or non-profits, in much the same way JPL is run by Caltech. The commission proposed that because it seemed a more politically-expedient solution than suggesting that […] While much of the media coverage surrounding NASA administrator Mike Griffin’s appearance before a Senate Appropriations Committee subcommittee Thursday focused on Griffin’s stated desire to reduce or eliminate the “gap” between the shuttle’s retirement and the CEV’s introduction—something Griffin has stated publicly in the recent past, including his confirmation hearing a month ago—another important aspect […] |
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