11/23/12 news

  Human Spaceflight News (Black) Friday – November 23, 2012   HEADLINES AND LEADS   Future of U.S. Space Exploration Rides on Orion Orion "is the vehicle that can take us to the moon, to mars, to an asteroid"   http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/bayFuture-of-US-Space-Exploration-Rides-on-Orion-180438231.html   Lucy Noland & Jonathan Lloyd – KNBC TV (Los Angeles)   The future of U.S. space exploration is scheduled to lift off with a test flight in about two years that will mark another step forward after the end of NASA's shuttle program. Orion, target date for the first unmanned test flight is 2014, will sit atop a rocket stack and return to Earth at high speed before parachutes deploy for an ocean splashdown. Although it might look like something from the early days of U.S. space travel, Orion is designed to go much deeper into space.   Cracks Discovered in First Space-bound Orion Capsule   Dan Leone - Space News   NASA’s first orbital flight-model Orion crew capsule will have to be repaired before its planned 2014 debut after its aft bulkhead cracked during recent pressure testing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a NASA spokeswoman said Nov. 19. The cracks were discovered during a proof pressure test the week of Nov. 5. Proof testing, in which a pressure vessel is subject to stresses greater than those it is expected to encounter during routine use, is one of the many preflight tests NASA is performing on Orion to certify the craft is safe for astronauts, agency spokeswoman Rachel Kraft said. “The cracks are in three adjacent, radial ribs of this integrally machined, aluminum bulkhead,” Kraft wrote in an email. “This hardware will be repaired and will not need to be remanufactured.”   ESA member states fund Orion service module   Stephen Clark - SpaceflightNow.com   Buoyed by a surprise investment from Britain, the European Space Agency secured approval from its member states on Wednesday to develop a service module for NASA's Orion deep space exploration vehicle, giving the continent a stake in human missions beyond low Earth orbit. The initial investment, worth $320 million over the next two years, will start development of a propulsion and power module for the Orion multipurpose crew vehicle, or MPCV. Britain, which has eschewed contributing the space station in the past, put the proposal over the top with a pledge to pay 20 million euros, or about $25 million, for the service module.   'Crawler' aces tests in post-shuttle life Upgrades will let transporter carry heavier rockets   James Dean - Florida Today   Like a symbol of the space program itself, a historic transporter inched closer to its post-shuttle future at Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday. The six-million pound crawler-transporter, one of two built to haul Saturn V rockets, fired up a new pair of generators and — surprisingly quietly for such a massive machine — rolled slowly away from a launch pad where it spent two weeks testing upgraded systems. Forty-six years after it became operational, the eight-tracked “crawler” is undergoing an extensive overhaul to support NASA’s next heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System, which will be its heaviest load yet with an initial estimated weight of 14 million pounds.   Out of this world Talking leadership with Kennedy Space Center director Robert Cabana   Tom Fox - Washington Post   Robert Cabana is the director of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where he manages a team of about 8,600 civil service and contractor employees. He completed his astronaut training in 1986 and has flown four space shuttle missions, notably serving as commander of Endeavour in 1988 on the first space station assembly mission. Cabana spoke with Tom Fox, who writes the Washington Post’s Federal Coach blog…   Scottish science fan 'posts' his photo to International Space Station   Yahoo News     A Scottish space fan fulfilled a lifelong dream - and visited the International Space Station, at least in virtual form. Ian Sheffield, 66, paid to have his photo taken into space - and stamped with a circular red stamp showing the picture has visited the ISS, 250 miles above Earth. Sheffield arranged the 'trip' through a contact, and is coy about how much he paid - it costs at least £6,000 per lb of cargo put into orbit. The round trip is 56 million miles. A Russian astronaut propped up his picture in the window of the Space Station.   ESA Council Meeting Jeopardized By Discord   Amy Svitak - Aviation Week   In 2008, with Europe headed into recession, the European Space Agency approved a €10 billion ($13 billion) multiyear space spending program, saying that an economic downturn was no time to cut investment in research and technology development that could stimulate much-needed growth. Four years later, with Europe further mired in financial turmoil, these same governments are meeting to decide a fresh set of spending for the agency's programs and operations in the coming years. But with many big contributors facing severe spending cuts at home, it is far from clear whether member states will have the same appetite for R&D investment. Some officials are suggesting the science program—the largest spending line at around €2.6 billion over five years—will not even be able to keep up with inflation.   European Space Agency Takes a Step into the Future   Christoph Seidler - Spiegel Online   The European Space Agency has a new budget and member states have also set aside a bitter debate over the future of the Ariane rocket, the program's commercial workhorse. All sides are happy -- and Russia may even benefit from the deal. On Tuesday night in Naples, however, the European Space Agency (ESA) received a boost. Following difficult minister-level negotiations at the ESA summit, an agreement was reached on the agency's future, guaranteeing both a further development of the Ariane rocket as well as ongoing European involvement in the International Space Station (ISS).   Private space exploration: Do we need it?   Andrei Kislyakov - Russia Beyond the Boundaries   There is no doubt that the global business community is once again getting ready to explore new waters. This time, “new waters” means space. In late autumn, the first privately designed and built automatic cargo spacecraft (Dragon) was developed by the U.S. company SpaceX and made a successful return flight to the International Space Station (ISS), thus christening the endeavor for private space flights. However, many experts, including those in Russia, have their doubts that the private space business is relevant for Russia.   A Brief History of Thanksgiving Turkey in Space   Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com   From the American frontier to the final frontier, turkey has served as the literal and figurative centerpiece of Thanksgiving celebrations for centuries. To mark the holiday, SPACE.com partner collectSPACE.com prepared this feast of facts about the history of turkey in outer space, beginning with this year's orbital observance…   Thanksgiving on Mars: What Astronauts Will Feast On in 2030   Sara Breselor - Wired.com   NASA has a long way to go before sending a crew to Mars, yet it’s already considering the important details—like lunch. The agency’s Advanced Food Technology Project, working with Lockheed Martin, is developing menus for a manned mission to the Red Planet sometime in the 2030s. Interplanetary travel will require a more sophisticated system than ever before for preserving and packaging meals, as well as a way to grow food during the trip. Plans even include the greatest American meal, Thanksgiving—though pulling it off 80 million miles from Earth won’t be easy. It’s enough to make a 20-year head start sound downright reasonable.   ESA has chosen badly with respect to its launch vehicle development   David Todd - FlightInternational.com (Opinion)   At the recent European Space Agency ministerial meeting in Naples, Italy, the agency really had three choices with respect to its launch vehicle development:  it could built the Ariane 5 ME (Mid-Life Evolution) which might buy a little more time for Ariane 5;  or It could develop a new expendable (and cheaper-to-fly) modular Ariane 6 rocket; or it could go for a full scale reusable or partially reusable rocket design.   Each option had downsides. __________   COMPLETE STORIES   Future of U.S. Space Exploration Rides on Orion Orion "is the vehicle that can take us to the moon, to mars, to an asteroid"   http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/bayFuture-of-US-Space-Exploration-Rides-on-Orion-180438231.html   Lucy Noland & Jonathan Lloyd – KNBC TV (Los Angeles)   The future of U.S. space exploration is scheduled to lift off with a test flight in about two years that will mark another step forward after the end of NASA's shuttle program.   Orion, target date for the first unmanned test flight is 2014, will sit atop a rocket stack and return to Earth at high speed before parachutes deploy for an ocean splashdown. Although it might look like something from the early days of U.S. space travel, Orion is designed to go much deeper into space.   "This is the vehicle that's going to take us further into the solar system than we've ever been before," said Col. Rex Walheim as he opened the hatch to Orion. "For 40 years we've been stuck in low-Earth orbit, and this is the vehicle that can take us to the moon, to Mars, to an asteroid."   The spacecraft, developed for NASA by Lockheed Martin, is about 16 feet wide and designed to carry four people on missions that could last months. Mission control will use satellite navigation systems to guide the wingless craft to splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California.   "It will be coming back at much higher speeds, so the wings would actually make it more difficult to get a thermal protection system that would help you," said Mark Geyer, Orion project manager.   A recovery ship from San Diego will haul the craft and astronauts to Long Beach Harbor.   The craft will travel more than 3,600 miles during the test flight -- 15 times farther from Earth than the International Space Station -- after launch atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Orion's heat shield, parachutes and other systems will be put to the test.   The target date for the first manned flight to the moon since 1972 is year 2021. Voyages to an asteroid is planned for the mid-2020s and Mars by the 2030s.   Cracks Discovered in First Space-bound Orion Capsule   Dan Leone - Space News   NASA’s first orbital flight-model Orion crew capsule will have to be repaired before its planned 2014 debut after its aft bulkhead cracked during recent pressure testing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a NASA spokeswoman said Nov. 19.   The cracks were discovered during a proof pressure test the week of Nov. 5. Proof testing, in which a pressure vessel is subject to stresses greater than those it is expected to encounter during routine use, is one of the many preflight tests NASA is performing on Orion to certify the craft is safe for astronauts, agency spokeswoman Rachel Kraft said.   “The cracks are in three adjacent, radial ribs of this integrally machined, aluminum bulkhead,” Kraft wrote in an email. “This hardware will be repaired and will not need to be remanufactured.”   It took Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Denver about a year to make the vehicle that was damaged. Kraft did not say how long it would take to repair the capsule, built as part of a program intended to take astronauts to destinations beyond low Earth orbit.   Cracking occurred when the pressure inside the Orion module reached about 149 kilopascals, or 21.6 pounds per square inch, Kraft said. To pass the proof test, the Orion pressure module has to withstand about 164 kilopascals, which is roughly 1.5 times the maximum stress the capsule is expected to encounter during missions, she said. Increasing the pressure inside the craft in an ambient environment of 1 atmosphere — air pressure at sea level — effectively simulates the conditions Orion would encounter in a vacuum.   William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, speculated that a beam affixed to the bulkhead’s cracked ribs by a pair of bolts “may have been a little stiffer than some of the models portrayed.”   To figure out what went wrong, “we’ll actually cut out these cracks [from the bulkhead] and then we’ll do a scan with an electron microscope,” Gerstenmaier told members of the NASA Advisory Council’s Human Exploration and Operations Committee here. The group, which makes policy recommendations for NASA managers met here Nov. 15.   A team of Lockheed Martin engineers will perform the post-test investigation. NASA is evaluating what effect, if any, the incident will have on the Orion’s scheduled late-2014 debut, designed to test essential systems on the vehicle including its heat shield and avionics, Kraft said.   During that flight, which is known as Exploration Flight Test-1, an uncrewed Orion will be launched to orbit and re-enter the atmosphere at about 32,000 kilometers per hour, or roughly 80 percent of the velocity the capsule would reach during a return from lunar orbit. Lockheed is running the flight test for NASA; the agency will pay the company for the flight data.   Lockheed Martin’s Orion prime contract, awarded in 2006, is worth $6.23 billion. NASA added $375 million to that award in December so that Lockheed Martin could buy a Delta 4 Heavy rocket for the Exploration Flight Test 1 launch.   Gerstenmaier said in a July hearing that the pacing item for this test flight is the Delta 4, built by United Launch Alliance, Lockheed Martin’s 50-50 joint venture with Boeing Defense, Space and Security of St. Louis. The rocket would not be available until September 2014, Gerstenmaier said at the time.   Delta 4 is not Orion’s primary carrier rocket. NASA is building the massive Space Launch System rocket at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., to loft Orion on missions beyond low Earth orbit.   The space-shuttle derived Space Launch System is slated to launch the Orion capsule on missions that will take it around the far side of the Moon in 2017 and 2021. Only the second of these flights will be crewed.   While NASA is internally studying other Orion missions, the agency has identified funding only through the 2021 flight.   ESA member states fund Orion service module   Stephen Clark - SpaceflightNow.com   Buoyed by a surprise investment from Britain, the European Space Agency secured approval from its member states on Wednesday to develop a service module for NASA's Orion deep space exploration vehicle, giving the continent a stake in human missions beyond low Earth orbit.   The initial investment, worth $320 million over the next two years, will start development of a propulsion and power module for the Orion multipurpose crew vehicle, or MPCV.   Britain, which has eschewed contributing the space station in the past, put the proposal over the top with a pledge to pay 20 million euros, or about $25 million, for the service module.   Jean-Jacques Dordain, ESA's director general, said the development could help a European astronaut secure a spot on Orion crews bound for deep space, the moon, or asteroids. The European-built service module will contain fuel tanks, provide propulsion, and hold Orion's solar panels to generate electricity. NASA plans to provide a maneuvering engine to mount on the service module.   In a meeting of government ministers in Italy on Tuesday and Wednesday, ESA's member states haggled over the agency's budget, eventually settling on 10 billion euros, or $13 billion, in spending from ESA's 20 member states over the next few years.   Top agenda items included decisions on a future European launcher and the extension of Europe's involvement in the International Space Station.   Governments agreed to upgrade Europe's existing Ariane 5 launcher and put off a decision on a replacement rocket until mid-2014. And officials came to a consensus to continue ESA's support of the space station until 2020, a pivotal decision which hinged on the Orion service module.   The first flight of a full-up Orion capsule is scheduled for launch in late 2017. The unmanned mission will launch on NASA's Space Launch System, a heavy-lifting rocket being developed to facilitate missions beyond Earth orbit.   The flight plan calls for the 16.5-foot-diameter capsule to fly around the moon and return to Earth on a voyage lasting more than one week.   "The first flight is to go to the moon," Dordain said. "And we can say we will be part of the first flight of the MPCV by delivering the service module.   Construction of the service module for the 2017 mission will pay back NASA for Europe's share of the space station's operating costs. The space station partners prefer supplying a "barter element" to reimburse NASA for the costs rather than paying in cash.   Europe's barter element for the station's operating costs through 2017 is the Automated Transfer Vehicle, a resupply freighter designed to haul propellant, air, food, water, spare parts and experiments to the outpost once per year.   ESA is discontinuing the ATV program after the fifth vehicle, which is expected to launch in 2014. The end of the ATV program leaves Europe owing NASA for operating expenses from 2017 until 2020, which is as far as the space station partners have agreed to operate the orbiting lab.   The funding shortfall from 2017 until 2020 is about 450 million euros, or $580 million. Europe and NASA have a preliminary agreement for ESA to build the Orion service module for the 2017 test flight, but European governments were required to approve the measure this week. A formal agreement between ESA and NASA could be signed in the next few months.   "This is the first time ESA is contributing to a crew transfer vehicle," Dordain said Wednesday. "This is certainly a breakthrough."   The U.S.-based Orion prime contractor, Lockheed Martin Corp., has sidelined development of a U.S. service module to focus on construction and testing of the crew capsule, which is designed to carry four people.   The next time European government ministers meet in 2014, they will be asked to spend at least another $260 million on the service module program to see it through to flight in 2017.   France fought the German-backed proposal for the Orion service module, arguing it did not advance European technological development because it is similar to the service module used by the ATV.   The Orion service module, like the ATV propulsion section, will likely be manufactured by EADS Astrium in Bremen, Germany.   Germany is Europe's largest space station backer, committing $690 million to the program over the next several years.   An unmanned test flight of a prototype Orion vehicle is due for launch in September 2014 on a United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket, but it will not include a functional service module. The capsule will be sent into a high-altitude 3,600-mile-high orbit around Earth and then return back into the atmosphere, reaching speeds simulating a re-entry from a deep space mission to stress the capsule's heat shield.   Johann-Dietrich Woerner, chairman of the German Aerospace Center, said there is only an agreement with NASA for one Orion service module so far.   "From our point of view, we would like to have this as the basis for future cooperation with the USA," Woerner said in an interview. "So far, we will build everything for the service module for the maiden flight in Europe, and then we will discuss future joint activities in that field. Right now, the target is the maiden flight of Orion to the moon."   Germany's overall ESA subscription - totaling $3.3 billion - makes it the largest contributor to the space agency. France agreed to spend $3 billion on ESA programs.   The UK eclipsed Italy to become the third-largest ESA member state, promising $1.9 billion. Italy pledged almost $1.5 billion.   The commitments are mostly spread over the next two-to-four years, depending on which programs each country is backing.   Britain's investment in the space station is part of a $100 million increase in space spending over the next five years. The British contribution to the Orion service module will include work on telecommunications and propulsion systems, according to the UK government.   "I will speak English because this is the price I have to pay for the UK to be on-board the ISS," Dordain joked in a press briefing. He later called the British decision an "historic event" for Europe.   'Crawler' aces tests in post-shuttle life Upgrades will let transporter carry heavier rockets   James Dean - Florida Today   Like a symbol of the space program itself, a historic transporter inched closer to its post-shuttle future at Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday.   The six-million pound crawler-transporter, one of two built to haul Saturn V rockets, fired up a new pair of generators and — surprisingly quietly for such a massive machine — rolled slowly away from a launch pad where it spent two weeks testing upgraded systems.   Forty-six years after it became operational, the eight-tracked “crawler” is undergoing an extensive overhaul to support NASA’s next heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System, which will be its heaviest load yet with an initial estimated weight of 14 million pounds.   “It’s about time to change it up and get ready and prepare for the new program,” said Mary Hanna, NASA crawler-transporter project manager. “We haven't had the opportunity to do that before.”   A gap of at least six years between the final shuttle flight in July 2011 and a first unmanned test flight of the SLS, planned in 2017, has provided the opportunity.   After a year of work, NASA and contractor teams are wrapping up the first phase of a $50 million upgrade expected to be completed in 2015.   Original generators and engines have been replaced with a more powerful set, along with the brakes, lubrication and software systems and miles of cables and wiring. Still to be improved: roller bearing assemblies, the jacking and leveling system and gearbox.   When the work is done, the crawler will be able to carry up to 18 million pounds, well above the 12 million-pound load of a shuttle on its mobile launcher platform.   “It was pretty extraordinary before, and we’re making it even more extraordinary,” said Terry Berman, the United Space Alliance project manager.   The crawler was put through tests, including climbing launch pad 39A’s ramp, where brakes are needed, and picking up and lowering a mobile launcher platform. Despite a few bugs, the new systems have “done phenomenal,” Hanna said.   The crawler’s base, which is the size of a baseball infield, appeared to be a gleaming, freshly painted gray. Its eight tracks, and the belts of one-ton shoes snaking around them, looked worn from their years and miles traveled over the center’s river-rock crawlerway.   A team of about 30 USA personnel monitored the crawler’s systems and progress, which averaged 0.8 mph and was expected to peak at just over 1 mph.   A truck hosed down the path ahead to minimize loose dirt and debris that could cause a jam.   All the crawler needed was a rocket to carry.   Out of this world Talking leadership with Kennedy Space Center director Robert Cabana   Tom Fox - Washington Post   Robert Cabana is the director of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where he manages a team of about 8,600 civil service and contractor employees. He completed his astronaut training in 1986 and has flown four space shuttle missions, notably serving as commander of Endeavour in 1988 on the first space station assembly mission.   Cabana spoke with Tom Fox, who writes the Washington Post’s Federal Coach blog and is the vice president for leadership and innovation at the Partnership for Public Service. Fox also heads up the Partnership’s Center for Government Leadership.   How did your career path lead you to NASA?   When I was five-years old, my mom and I took a trip to D.C. and I distinctly remember seeing the Wright Flyer and Spirit of St. Louis at the Smithsonian. After that, all I ever wanted to do was to fly. I went off to the Naval Academy because I wanted to be a naval aviator, and then I ended up taking a commission in the Marine Corps. After flying in the Marine Corps and becoming a test pilot, I learned NASA was taking applications for the shuttle program. I met all the qualifications and said, “Hey, I can actually do this.” Folks often ask me how someone becomes an astronaut. I tell them, “persistence.” I didn’t get into flight school the first try and I didn’t get into the astronaut program the first try.   The Kennedy Space Center is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. What are some of your aspirations for the next 50 years?   We’re transforming the Kennedy Space Center into a 21st-century launch complex. We want to make it a multi-user space port, where there are government and commercial launches for crew and cargo, for suborbital, orbital and flights of exploration beyond earth. We’re expanding partnerships with commercial companies to utilize excess shuttle capabilities that we no longer need. We’re exploring contract options with SpaceX, Sierra Nevada Corporation and Boeing to fly our crews to the International Space Station, so we don’t have to rely on our Russian partners. In the meantime, we will continue to meet NASA’s science needs by launching science missions. So it’s a time of transition, but an exciting time. It’s going to be progressive and evolutionary, but the key is that we’re putting the infrastructure in place to make it happen.   How do you engage your employees during the transition from the space shuttle program?   You have to chart a clear course to the future and get the team to buy in to it, be a part of it and give them the responsibility to make it happen. The very first thing I told my team when I came here four years ago was that the shuttle program was going to end. I said that we have to be ready for that transition, and it’s going to be hard. I told my team there’s going be a lot of people who are going to be out of work, and we have to do our best to help find work for them, and help them get through this transition. I think it’s critical to be clear about the path forward.   What leadership techniques do you use to connect with your staff?   I really believe in servant leadership. You have to put the welfare of your people above your own. Good leaders care for their people. Leaders don’t say, “I did it.” They give credit to the team. Leaders also need to get down onto the floor and talk with the people that you work with. Ask them what they’re doing. They want to tell you about the things that they’re working on. You’ll learn more from walking around on the floor than you’ll ever learn sitting in some conference room up on the top floor.   What other leadership qualities are important?   You have to have integrity. Nothing can cause you to lose respect of your people and not be a good leader if you don’t have integrity. They know when you’re not telling the truth. Charting a clear path for the future is essential. And never stop learning. You’ve got to be open to new things. As we grow older change is hard. Learning new things is hard.   How does NASA attract and motivate young scientists and engineers?   I’m so impressed with the new hires who are coming out of college. They have computer skills that are just phenomenal. They have so many tools that we never had. We allow them to use some of those tools. We give them a challenging task, let them learn and give them the opportunity to be innovative. We listen to what they have to say, and are amazed at what they come up with. We’re fortunate at NASA. Young people want to be part of this program. How many people can come to work every day and know that they’re making the difference not just in the future of our nation, but of our planet?   Who are your top leadership role models and what have you learned from them?   I’ve been fortunate to serve under so many good leaders, I would hate to single one out as better than the rest. From my vantage point, what made me respect them and want to follow them, was that they were technically excellent in their field, they excelled at what they did. They challenged me and I didn’t want to let them down. They had integrity and could be trusted. They clearly communicated what they wanted accomplished and held people accountable. They genuinely cared for the people that worked for them, and helped them to be successful.   Scottish science fan 'posts' his photo to International Space Station Ian Sheffield, 66, paid to have his photo taken into space - and stamped with a circular red stamp showing it has visited the ISS, 250 miles above Earth   Yahoo News     A Scottish space fan fulfilled a lifelong dream - and visited the International Space Station, at least in virtual form.   Ian Sheffield, 66, paid to have his photo taken into space - and stamped with a circular red stamp showing the picture has visited the ISS, 250 miles above Earth.   Sheffield arranged the 'trip' through a contact, and is coy about how much he paid - it costs at least £6,000 per lb of cargo put into orbit. The round trip is 56 million miles.   A Russian astronaut propped up his picture in the window of the Space Station.   Ian said this week: "I couldn't afford the £15 million fare to go myself, so I thought 'why not send a substitute?'   "The best way of identifying me was to send my actual photograph.  I was very excited when I got it back."   On the top right hand corner of Ian's portrait is the circular red stamp signifying that the item has flown on board the Station.   The Soyuz spacecraft can also be seen attached to the space station.   Ian, a retired chartered engineer at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh, organised the unique journey for his picture through a private contact in Germany, who then passed the portrait to Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka.   Mr Padalka was launched into space along with two other astronauts on the Soyuz spacecraft expedition 31 on May 14 and after spending 125 days in orbit, the picture returned to Earth and Ian received it in the post last week.   Ian, who paid a small fee to have the photo sent into space, said post office staff in in Gullane were shocked when he described the journey the picture would be taking.   He said: "When I posted it to Germany last October, the lady behind the counter was slightly bemused when I casually mentioned that it would probably be the longest distance letter she would ever handle.   "She was surprised when I mentioned it. The few people I've shown the picture to have been quite taken aback because it's so unusual."   Ian, who now works in the visitor centre at the observatory in Edinburgh, has been obsessed with space and astronomy since he was about 10 years old.   The photo is now one of three rare items in his collection as he is also one of just a handful of people in possession of moon dust from the 1969 Apollo 11 mission and the 1971 Apollo 15 landing.   Although they are little more than a pinhead in size and were legally purchased, ownership of the samples, which are worth around £2,000 each, has been contested by NASA, which claims they are a national treasure for the United States.   They are kept in a safe at Ian's secluded home, along with provenance documents confirming their authenticity.   Grandfather-of-three Ian, from East Lothian, Scotland, said: "I have had various approaches from NASA over the years asking me to return the samples but I have always said no.   "I bought them legally and am thrilled to have the experience of being able to touch a piece of the moon.   "We have kind of reached a stalemate, in that I have been led to understand that NASA will not pursue the matter unless I put them on public display, which I have no intention of doing.   "As long as I keep them safe and secure I don't think they will give me any bother."   Despite his great interest in the galaxy and formerly having a personal observatory in his garden, Ian said he wouldn't like to travel into space personally.   He added: "I'm pragmatic enough to realise that I've not got the right kind of make-up to be an astronaut. I suppose I'm not quick-witted enough."   ESA Council Meeting Jeopardized By Discord   Amy Svitak - Aviation Week   In 2008, with Europe headed into recession, the European Space Agency approved a €10 billion ($13 billion) multiyear space spending program, saying that an economic downturn was no time to cut investment in research and technology development that could stimulate much-needed growth.   Four years later, with Europe further mired in financial turmoil, these same governments are meeting to decide a fresh set of spending for the agency's programs and operations in the coming years. But with many big contributors facing severe spending cuts at home, it is far from clear whether member states will have the same appetite for R&D investment. Some officials are suggesting the science program—the largest spending line at around €2.6 billion over five years—will not even be able to keep up with inflation.   “Flat cash would be in line with what our national budgets have received for science,” says David Williams, the head of the U.K. Space Agency and president of the European Space Agency (ESA) ruling council, the ministers of which will meet for two days in Naples this week to hash out the multiyear spending plan. Two of ESA's four largest contributors, France and Italy, have remained mum as to what their total investment will be. Germany, ESA's largest financial backer, has signaled a small increase over its 2008 level of nearly €2.7 billion.   In a surprise move, however, the British chancellor of the exchequer on Nov. 9 committed his nation to a 25% increase in ESA spending in 2013-17.   In terms of total contribution, the unprecedented funding boost still leaves the U.K. far below France, Germany and Italy, which are grappling with big-ticket items, such as paying for a next-generation launcher and continuing support for the International Space Station (ISS). Britain has no commitment to either of those, and so it could use the increase to nab larger pieces of small and mid-sized programs, including development of a new telecom satellite platform and the Metop Second-Generation meteorological satellite (EPS-SG).   Science is only one of a half-dozen spending lines up for debate. ESA ministers will haggle over Earth observation, telecommunications, navigation, exploration, launch vehicles and support for the ISS, the latter two being among the most contentious issues to resolve.   For the first time in 25 years, Europe is being asked to consider starting a new, multibillion-euro rocket development, one that may not provide the same kind of industrial participation as the current Ariane 5 ECA vehicle.   The German government, backed by German and French industry, says designs for a successor, known as Ariane 6, are not yet clear enough to permit an immediate start to a program that could cost roughly €4 billion over 10 years. They are? in favor of completing the mid-life evolution (Ariane 5 ME) agreed to in 2008, an upgrade that would increase the Ariane 5's payload carrying power by 20% to more than 11,000 kg (24,250 lb.).   Nonetheless, ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain has said Europe cannot lose any more time on Ariane 6, given competition in the global commercial market and the need to end ESA's €120 million in annual price supports for Ariane 5.   France's higher education and research minister, Genevieve Fioraso, has proposed maximizing synergies between Ariane 5 ME and Ariane 6 to preserve past investments. During a late-October visit to industrial-gas giant Air Liquide in Sassenage, France, she said the rocket's development would sustain Europe's expertise in launchers while resulting in a less costly vehicle that takes account of long-term market conditions and prospects for intense competition. “There is no use delaying the decision,” says Fioraso, who will lead the French delegation at the ESA ministerial meeting.   France and Germany must also reach consensus on continued European participation in the ISS beyond 2015, and how to pay for it. ESA's Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) is the largest cargo carrier currently serving the station, but only five such vehicles are expected to cover ESA's share of common operating costs aboard the orbiting outpost through 2017. Beyond that, NASA has asked Europe to provide a propulsion module based on the ATV for its Orion crew exploration vehicle, a plan Germany supports. But Italy and France would like Europe to find something more technologically challenging to cover ESA's share of roughly €450 million in ISS common operating costs in 2017-20.   Meanwhile, French space agency CNES says Europe is lacking several hundred million euros to fund its own use of the station, an issue that should be resolved before ESA debates a so-called ISS “barter element” with NASA.   Russian space agency Roscosmos is expected to make an appearance at the ministerial meeting to formalize participation in ExoMars, Europe's only ongoing space exploration program. ESA governments have spent several hundred million euros on the program to date, but its costs have grown and a previous bilateral partnership between ESA and NASA collapsed in 2011, leaving Russia to step in as a partner.   Lunar exploration is also on the agenda (see article below), including development of a robotic lander and small terrestrial rover backed by Germany, which in today's economic environment is capable of making or breaking the ministerial summit.   The weight of the issues facing ESA governments now and the financial stresses on them have forced Dordain to effectively divide the meeting into two, though these summits occur usually just every three or four years. To avoid collapse of ESA, he proposes that only some issues be resolved definitively this year, leaving the rest to another ministerial conference scheduled for mid-2014.   Despite the challenging economic environment, Dordain says telecom projects are expected to see a slight increase, to €1.2-1.4 billion, with a portion of the U.K.'s spending increase targeted at development of a new telecom satellite platform dubbed NeoSat.   In addition, ESA wants to invest in an all-electric satellite known as Electra to counter international developments, notably by Boeing, which has already sold two such spacecraft commercially. The agency also wants to upgrade the Vega rocket, invest in a maritime surveillance system and expand its data relay service, all items likely to be delayed until 2014.   One agenda item ESA cannot postpone, however, is funding for the EPS-SG second-generation, polar-orbiting, meteorological satellite system. In 2008, one of the biggest controversies was the geo-industrial battle that ensued as France and Germany disputed who was to take the lead in developing Europe's Meteosat Third Generation (MTG-3) weather satellite system, a bidding war ESA ministers will be keen to avoid with EPS-SG, especially with potential U.K. interest in the program.   EPS-SG will be lumped into a €2.5 billion spending line that includes ESA's Earth-observation programs and elements of the European Union's Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program.   By 2014, Dordain says, the 27-nation EU will have determined its own multiyear budget for 2014-20, which will be the subject of a European summit just after the Naples meeting. The EU is struggling to resolve issues for many of the same reasons as ESA, including how to fund its commitment of €5.8 billion for GMES operations starting in 2014.   “I am told that the most difficult years for the member states are 2013 and 2014,” Dordain says. “It is always the next two years that are the most difficult.”   European Space Agency Takes a Step into the Future   Christoph Seidler - Spiegel Online   The European Space Agency has a new budget and member states have also set aside a bitter debate over the future of the Ariane rocket, the program's commercial workhorse. All sides are happy -- and Russia may even benefit from the deal.   Just one week ago, Europe's space exploration efforts took a significant hit. With several countries in the European Union facing the need to scale back spending in the face of the euro crisis, gathering funding for a proposed landing on the south pole of the moon had proven difficult. And last Friday, with Great Britain, Spain and Italy declining to commit, Germany also backed out. The so-called "Lunar Lander" project came to an end.   On Tuesday night in Naples, however, the European Space Agency (ESA) received a boost. Following difficult minister-level negotiations at the ESA summit, an agreement was reached on the agency's future, guaranteeing both a further development of the Ariane rocket as well as ongoing European involvement in the International Space Station (ISS). As part of that involvement, ESA is to cooperate with NASA on the construction of the Orion capsule to transport both people and goods to and from the ISS.   The step forward had by no means been assured in the run-up to the meeting. European budgets are overstretched as it is and many worried that the Continent's space program would suffer. In the early hours of Wednesday morning, however, representatives from the 20 ESA member states passed a budget of €10 billion ($12.8 billion) for the next three years, on par with the budget passed four years ago. ESA General Director Jean-Jacques Dordain called the agreement a "great success."   In addition to finances, however, the meeting focused on ironing out differences between competing German and French visions for the future of the Ariane rocket, ESA's reliable workhorse for propelling satellites and other cargo into space.   More Competitive   Germany had wanted to continue focusing on a stronger new version of the existing Ariane 5, known as the Ariane 5 ME ("Midlife Evolution"), as had been agreed to in 2008. The upgraded rocket has the advantage of being able to carry a 20 percent larger payload into orbit. The French, meanwhile, preferred concentrating on the next generation Ariane 6. While the new rocket could have a smaller payload capacity, it is hoped that it will be more competitive in the growing commercial market and will not require the €120 million in annual subsidies necessary to support the Ariane 5.   In the end, both countries got what they wanted. The development of the Ariane 5 ME will continue, good news for the Bochum-based aerospace company Astrium, which manufactures stages for the rocket. And the Ariane 6 project will also move forward, though further research must be conducted before production can begin. The hope is for a maiden journey in 2021 or 2022, according to French Research Minister Geneviève Fioraso. Much of the research and development for that project is to take place in France.   The Berlin-Paris compromise on the Ariane also cleared the way for European involvement in NASA's Orion project. The US space agency had expressed interest in cooperation due to its wish to incorporate elements of the unmanned European cargo vehicle ATV, but France had been skeptical and the funding for the added project had been murky.   To Mars with Russia   On Tuesday night, however, France withdrew its opposition. Furthermore, Britain's previously announced intention to increase its ESA funding by 30 percent over the next five years -- including €20 million for the Orion project -- helped shore up the financing. Britain will now provide some €300 million a year to the ESA, far below the German total contribution of €2.7 billion over the last four years, but a welcome increase over previous funding rounds.   The Naples summit also had one final success to celebrate. Back in February, NASA had backed out of a joint mission, known as ExoMars, to send a vehicle to collect samples from the atmosphere of Mars in 2016 and a surface exploratory vehicle onto the planet in 2018. Begun in 2005, some €400 million had already been invested in the mission. Now, ESA has a new partner. On Wednesday, it was reported that Russia is to join forces with the Europeans.   Private space exploration: Do we need it?   Andrei Kislyakov - Russia Beyond the Boundaries   There is no doubt that the global business community is once again getting ready to explore new waters. This time, “new waters” means space   In late autumn, the first privately designed and built automatic cargo spacecraft (Dragon) was developed by the U.S. company SpaceX and made a successful return flight to the International Space Station (ISS), thus christening the endeavor for private space flights. However, many experts, including those in Russia, have their doubts that the private space business is relevant for Russia.   Americans, who started this trend, have been working on private carrier rockets for years and eventually came up with two programs. The first one is SpaceX’s Dragon; the second is SpaceShip from Virgin Galactic.   The former project envisions the use of privately owned spacecraft in delivering cargo to the ISS and other low-orbit space vehicles; but Dragon carried a limited load for its first flight, so it is still a bit early to speak of commercial benefits.   Dragon will prove much more efficient as a manned spacecraft, however. According to the Skolkovo Foundation’s Space Technologies and Telecommunications Cluster head, Dmitry Paison, NASA spends an estimated $60 million to deliver one astronaut to the ISS in a Soyuz transport vehicle, whereas SpaceX promises to reduce the cost to $20 million and still make profits.   The spacecraft designed as part of the Virgin Galactic project have a very different objective indeed. The reusable SpaceShipOne shuttle was taken to a 9-mile altitude by its mother ship, WhiteKnightOne, before accelerating with its own rocket engine and reaching a 62-mile altitude; this altitude can be considered the lower space boundary. The shuttle continued in zero-gravity conditions for a few minutes and then landed like an ordinary plane, ready for its next flight.   Thrill-seekers will be able to take this kind of suborbital flight for $200,000, which is more than 100 times cheaper than a week’s stay at the ISS with delivery via a Russian Soyuz spacecraft.   However, Russians should exercise caution when adopting the American experience and introducing commercial practices in domestic space exploration. Stephen Attenborough, commercial director for Virgin Galactic, believes that Russia has a more solid state-run space program that renders private, commercial space exploration irrelevant.   In this context, it would be more appropriate to consider private initiatives for the utilization of space exploration results. “A characteristic coincidence,” Paison said, is that, “in 2011, NASA said it would enable private business to service low Earth orbit flights (including the American ISS segment), whereas Roscosmos said in 2012 that it had plans to allow private business to engage in the practical application of the results of space activities.”   Paison mentioned projects pursued together with Russian companies. “Some of the Skolkovo companies are advertising space products and services. We should wait a couple of years to see the first projects of this kind, such as the micro-satellite Sputniks program and the Dauria small-satellite service, as well as the Atmosfera parachute salvage system for rocket stages.”   When it comes to switching to private spacecraft, Roscosmos spokesperson Aleksei Kuznetsov believes that it is too early to draw conclusions from the first American flight.   “SpaceX is the first experience of private business in the space sector,” Kuznetsov told the Russian magazine Expert.   “We need time to understand where exactly this project will stand in space activities, and then we will decide whether it will be applicable in Russian space exploration, given our peculiarities and the preparedness of our business for projects of Dragon’s scale," he said. "There are businessmen in America who are ready to take risks. As far as I know, Elon Musk, the owner of SpaceX, incurred serious costs and even had to borrow. I guess he considered this project to be a long-term investment.”   Furthermore, it is hard to disagree with Pavel Bykov, deputy editor-in-chief of Expert, who said: “The crisis of global space programs is perceptible also in Russia, but we have a well-developed system based largely on the outdated Soyuz technology; however, it is constantly being updated and modernized. It might not be perfect from the point of view of astronauts and cargo delivery, but is a cheap and reliable system that can work virtually for an unlimited period and remain profitable.”   Indeed, from the point of view of one astronaut, the initiative to send private passengers into space is imperfect for more than just technical reasons.   “Space tourism is, unfortunately, a major problem for professionals like us,” said cosmonaut and deputy head at Energia Flight Space Center, Pavel Vinogradov. “Tourism undermines the very foundation of manned space flights, because we have to replace young cosmonauts with tourists.”   Still, according to the Roscosmos spokesperson, astronauts in Russia may not have to worry about being replaced by tourists anytime soon.   “It’s not clear whether our business is ready to take such risks or whether it has enough money. Another challenge for Russian private business is the availability of research and industrial potential to carry out projects of this scale,” said Kuznetsov.   A Brief History of Thanksgiving Turkey in Space   Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com   From the American frontier to the final frontier, turkey has served as the literal and figurative centerpiece of Thanksgiving celebrations for centuries.   To mark the holiday, SPACE.com partner collectSPACE.com prepared this feast of facts about the history of turkey in outer space, beginning with this year's orbital observance:   2012: Turkey without borders   Expedition 34 commander Kevin Ford said Tuesday (Nov. 20) from on board the International Space Station (ISS). "We have some smoked turkey, of course, to celebrate the holiday."   Thermostabilized turkey and freeze-dried stuffing are on the menu for the U.S. astronaut and his two cosmonaut crewmates, Evgeny Tarelkin and Oleg Novitskiy.   "Thanksgiving isn't a holiday that the Russians celebrate, but we've found that on orbit, the crew members celebrate each others' holidays," Vickie Kloeris, the manager of the Space Food Systems Lab at Johnson Space Center in Houston, told SPACE.com. "They will take part in Kevin Ford's celebration of Thanksgiving, just as American crew members will take part in some of the Russian holidays."   This is the twelfth year that astronauts (and cosmonauts) have been on the station during Thanksgiving, since the complex's first crew took up residency in November 2000.   1973: First Thanksgiving off Earth   The first astronauts to spend "Turkey Day" in space did so aboard Skylab, the United States' first space station. The Skylab 3 (SL-4) crew of Jerry Carr, Bill Pogue and Ed Gibson arrived aboard the orbiting workshop just six days before Thanksgiving on Nov. 22, 1973.   Unlike most federal employees, the NASA astronauts did not have the holiday off. Gibson and Pogue performed a six and a half hour spacewalk that Thursday, floating like a pair of Thanksgiving Day parade balloons, replacing film cartridges and repairing an antenna outside the station.   In the process of completing the repair, Pogue ripped into an aluminum-coated plastic blanket to gain access to an electronics box. The blanket's scraps, liberated from the station, sparkled in the glint of the setting sun.   "While we had our turkey that evening, we were able to look out the window and see the twinkling tinsel of our unintentional Christmas decorations," Pogue later wrote in his book, "How Do You Go to the Bathroom in Space?"   1972: Goodwill Turkey   The first and final missions to land men on the moon, Apollo 11 in July 1969 and Apollo 17 in December 1972, both had "Turkey and Gravy" on their crew menus (as did the missions that came between them). But the fowl food wasn't the only type of Turkey aboard the historic flights.   The missions, led by Neil Armstrong and Eugene Cernan respectively, also flew the flag of the Republic of Turkey. The red banner with its white star and crescent moon was part of the flights' flag kits, which held a colorful collection of state and country flags for post-flight presentation.   Similar flag kits were aboard the other Apollo flights, but Apollo 11's and Apollo 17's flags stand out for what they accompanied. After the missions returned to Earth, small samples of lunar material were encased in acrylic buttons, mounted to a wooden plaque and, with the flown flag of the nation, presented on behalf of the United States to the public of that country.   Turkey's Apollo 17 "goodwill" moon rock and flag that was flown to the moon is exhibited at the Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA) Natural History Museum in Ankara. The location of the country's Apollo 11-returned "goodwill" lunar sample display is currently unknown.   1968: Surprise turkey at the moon   The first mission to orbit the moon had turkey packed on board without the knowledge of the crew. Though the flight coincided with another holiday, the astronauts gave their thanks for the festive meal.   Arriving around the moon on Christmas Eve 1968, Apollo 8's commander Frank Borman had just finished lamenting to Mission Control about the freeze-dried holiday dinners he and his crewmates, James Lovell and Bill Anders, had aboard, when the three found the surprise meal waiting for them.   "In Apollo 8's food locker, wrapped in foil and tied with red and green ribbons: real turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce," historian Andrew Chaikin wrote in his 1994 book, "A Man on the Moon." The "wetpack" meal, developed by the military, was "by far the best meal of the voyage."   Thanksgiving on Mars: What Astronauts Will Feast On in 2030   Sara Breselor - Wired.com   NASA has a long way to go before sending a crew to Mars, yet it’s already considering the important details—like lunch. The agency’s Advanced Food Technology Project, working with Lockheed Martin, is developing menus for a manned mission to the Red Planet sometime in the 2030s. Interplanetary travel will require a more sophisticated system than ever before for preserving and packaging meals, as well as a way to grow food during the trip. Plans even include the greatest American meal, Thanksgiving—though pulling it off 80 million miles from Earth won’t be easy. It’s enough to make a 20-year head start sound downright reasonable.   Snap beans NASA agronomists have planned a Martian hydroponic greenhouse for fruits, veggies, and tubers. And picky ‘nauts can’t claim these drifted away: The galley will have a hood over the prep area to catch floating ingredients, as well as a refrigerator so that the astronauts can enjoy a crucial Thanksgiving tradition: leftovers.   Veggie loaf Foods destined for Mars need a shelf life of up to five years—longer than space chow of the past. Most animal products can’t be stabilized for that long, so no turkey. This soy protein loaf is as close as Cooper has come to an actual bird. No fighting over the drumsticks.   Stuffing NASA could power up the taste of space food with encapsulation technology, in which oils or granules of concentrated flavors are encased in tiny beads and coated with a substance that dissolves on contact with saliva. Capsules could be tossed into any recipe (e.g., sausage flavor in stuffing) to give the crew a blast of taste at every meal.   Mashed sweet and white potatoes Grown in the greenhouse, taters will be baked instead of boiled. Pressure in the Martian habitat is likely to be kept lower than on Earth, to ease the astronauts’ transition into Mars’ atmosphere. This lowers the boiling point of water and limits how hot it can get.   Pinto bean pie “Like a pecan pie without the pecans,” says NASA senior research scientist Maya Cooper. But will pinto pie taste sweet enough in space? NASA plans to find out: Astronauts traveling to the International Space Station will sample the five flavors (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami) so Cooper can define a threshold for each. Sweetness, say, might be 30 percent less sweet in space; she could then engineer a dessert for scientifically precise satisfaction.   ESA has chosen badly with respect to its launch vehicle development   David Todd - FlightInternational.com (Opinion)   At the recent European Space Agency ministerial meeting in Naples, Italy, the agency really had three choices with respect to its launch vehicle development:  it could built the Ariane 5 ME (Mid-Life Evolution) which might buy a little more time for Ariane 5;  or It could develop a new expendable (and cheaper-to-fly) modular Ariane 6 rocket; or it could go for a full scale reusable or partially reusable rocket design.   Each option had downsides.   The first option would not necessarily make the Ariane 5 much more competitive, save for its ability to carry more than one very large communications satellite at a time.  But it would be ready early.   Developing the new Ariane 6 is probably the most logical choice given that SpaceX Falcon rockets are beginning to threaten Arianespace on price. Nevertheless,  in a way, even the Ariane 6 is behind the curve technologically as it remains an expendable rocket while SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies) is already moving towards reusable technology.  Still, at least it would be cheaper to fly than an Ariane 5.     The final option and probably the best in the longer term is to develop a reusable  or partially reusable launch vehicle, possibly on the basis of the ESA-sponsored Reaction Engines Skylon technology programme (note that this writer is a small shareholder). The downside of this option is that it has more technical risk with a development that may be more expensive and take longer than the others.     To counter the downsides of each of these options, it would have been the logical to combine two of them together so that the strengths of one might counter the weakness of another.  That is: either develop the Ariane 5 ME as a quick fix and go for a reusable option for the longer term;  or, even better, go for the Ariane 6 for nearer term competitiveness, while developing reusables as its successor.     The final dual option, and probably the worst choice, was to do both the Ariane 5 ME and the Ariane 6.  This will inevitably mean that Arianespace will always be playing catch-up SpaceX.  Nevertheless, to appease Germany and France at the same time, this is what ESA's ministers have chosen to do, albeit that the formal decision to proceed with Ariane 6 will be made in 2014 after a full design review.    As he views his firm's competitive leadership which he plots to maintain using reusable rockets,  Elon Musk, the billionaire rocket engineer leader of SpaceX said in a BBC interview, that upgraded versions of Ariane 5 would have "no chance" of staying competitive with his own firm's Falcon launch vehicles.  He further advised that the European Space Agency (ESA) should now move directly to building its new lower cost Ariane 6 expendable launch vehicle.     in a subsequent press conference at the ESA Ministerial meeting in Naples, ESA's Director General, Jean-Jacques Dordain, jokingly reposted : ""Does this mean Elon Musk wants to contribute to Ariane 6?"    The answer is of course "No" but polymath Musk will surely appreciate a stupid decision when he sees one being made. For when ESA makes myopic choices like this, SpaceX deserves all the success it can get.   END