Fwd: NASA News --my version

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: January 6, 2015 at 9:32:11 AM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: NASA News --my version

Hope you can join us this Thursday at Hibachi Grill for our monthly NASA retirees luncheon.  Don't forget Gene Kranz's talk at the Gilruth tomorrow too at 11:30am in the ballroom.

 

LEADING THE NEWS

• SpaceX About To Make "Unprecedented" Reusable Rocket Test.

NASA NEWS

• Peck Laments Reduced Funding For Space Technology.

• Lubell: Congress Should Consider New Ways Of Funding Research.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

• GAO Denies Sierra Nevada's Protest Of NASA Contract Award.

• Hoffman Advocates For Return To The Moon Before Mars.

• US Space And Rocket Center Praised.

LEADING THE NEWS

SpaceX About To Make "Unprecedented" Reusable Rocket Test.----someday

Coverage of SpaceX's upcoming launch continued, with the scope expanding dramatically over the past day. SpaceX's reusable rocket tests dominated the reports, with the mission to the ISS typically relegated to secondary status even in articles that noted it as the launch's main goal. When NASA was the main focus of a story, the article typically was about the scientific cargo heading the station.

NASA NEWS

Peck Laments Reduced Funding For Space Technology.

The Public Radio International (1/5, Wernick, 2K) website reports that Mason Peck, NASA's former chief technologist, criticized Congress' recent budget for space technology development, which is hundreds of millions of dollars lower than its peak level of $1 billion near the start of the Obama Administration. According to the article, Peck argues that history "clearly demonstrates" that when the government funds NASA technology development, US companies can generate money and jobs. The article notes that Peck and his proteges have been working on small satellite developments, including the KickSat, which was launched to the ISS last year.

Lubell: Congress Should Consider New Ways Of Funding Research.

In an op-ed for Roll Call (1/5, Subscription Publication, 90K), Michael S. Lubell, director of public affairs of the American Physical Society, writes that it is "very troubling" that much of the "institutional memory about science and technology" in the House has been lost over the last few years with the departures of people like Rush D. Holt and Frank R. Wolf, who will not be members of the 114th Congress. The Senate will also have a "gaping hole" to fill. However, Lubell notes that there is now an opportunity for new members of Congress to consider new ways to stabilize science funding, such as "a research bank, administered by a public-private partnership," that could help groups weather "unpredictable fiscal storms." Lubell thinks that corporations should "readily agree" to invest in the back because they have benefited "big time" from research from agencies like "the NSF, NASA, NIST and the Department of Defense."

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

GAO Denies Sierra Nevada's Protest Of NASA Contract Award.

The AP (1/5) reports that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) ruled against Sierra Nevada Corp. in its protest of NASA's commercial crew contract award to Boeing and SpaceX. The GAO supported NASA's conclusion that winners' bids were "the best value to the government." According to the article, until the GAO's full decision is released to the public, Sierra Nevada's bid will remain sealed.

       

       

Hoffman Advocates For Return To The Moon Before Mars.

Business Insider (1/5, Welsh, Orwig, 2.38M) reports that in an interview, astronaut Jeffrey A. Hoffman argued that NASA needs to go to the moon before heading to Mars because it is "infinitely cheaper, shorter, and safer." Hoffman also argues that there is still a lot to learn about the moon, especially about the water in craters that could be used as fuel for future missions. According to the article, Hoffman and others do "have a point" when they talk about how easier it is to access the moon compared to Mars, one that is "lost in the minds of Mars-dreamers."

US Space And Rocket Center Praised.

In an article for Alabama Live (1/5, Corrigan, 497K), John Corrigan explores some unexpected features of Alabama, including the US Space and Rocket Center, which the he describes as "a microcosm of the unity and ingenuity of the Rocket City." Corrigan did not realize how "mind-blowing and impactful" the center was until he and "frenzied Space Campers" watched the Orion launch.