Spacefest 2007

I bumped into an ad for the Spacefest 2007 conference in Mesa, Arizona. It actually looks like an interesting weekend of events. For instance, speakers include author David Levy, astronaut John Young, and director Louis Friedman from the Planetary Society. The event will also include a space auction (wait, they are not selling Moon plots just yet), including items such as this Gemini 10 mission patch. Moreover, a variety of astronauts will be on hand to sign autographs (sometimes for a fee). It could be a fun few days.

Rain, Sleet, or Snow...Oh, Wait!

Yes, our invincible, intergalactic fleet has been grounded again by snowballs. Okay, hail, but still pretty sad. The Atlantis shuttle is still grounded in Florida since the hailstorm back in February. At the time of the event NASA reported that

"a severe thunderstorm with golf ball-size hail caused what could be 1,000 to 2,000 divots in the giant tank's foam insulation and minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. Further evaluation of the tank is necessary to get an accurate accounting of foam damage and must be done in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the entire tank can be more easily accessed."

As of today, NASA states the Atlantis may get of the ground in June. Miss this window and we will be into hurricane season - what fun.

Who do we blame? NASA for wimpy construction, or Al Gore for not predicting this in his film? We may want to follow the example of the Europeans and more our space launch sites closer to the equator. If it is not hail it will be a rising sea overtaking Cape Canaveral. How about floating platforms, similar to the private sector space industry? Then not even Global Warming can stop our attempts to resettle on Mars before everything Earth-side is gone.

Oh well, keep your fingers crossed.

Note: The image above is a refurbished North Sea oil platform owned by Sea Launch, a private sector firm. The launch platform provides accommodations for 68 crew and launch system personnel.

Katsuura , We Have a Problem

Japan has announced that its long delayed Moon mission may be scrapped. According to a MSNBC story, the Lunar-A probe, designed to place two seismic sensors on the lunar surface for the purpose of learning more about the origins of the Moon, has been delayed for more than a decade. The Japanese still have plans to put a man on the Moon by 2025. Maybe he/she can visit our new trailer park.

A Little Place on the Moon

NASA hopes to have humans landing on the Moon by 2020 and occupying the surface by 2024, at least for a week at a time. The base would be located on one of the lunar poles to allow for almost continuous solar energy (and access to the limited water below the surface). And we would allow other nations to visit and/or participate in the project.

Of course, the Moon would also operate as a staging ground for a trip to Mars, the strongest argument for setting up there in the first place.

"Using the space station and building an outpost on the moon to prepare for the trip to Mars are critical milestones in America's quest to become a truly spacefaring nation," Griffin writes. "I think that we should want that. I want that. I want it for the American people, for my grandchildren, for my great-grandchildren."

I still say we should have a new race to the moon, but this time by commercial companies. This does not mean a new homesteading program, but NASA could be a partner in some innovative projects. The Moon project will take considerable funding, so all options should be explored.

Besides, the International Space Station is not exactly the most successfully model. It seems to represent PR for space more than real science. Of course, the ISS could prove useful in that the space station modules might be reconfigured for placement on the Moon. Yes, NASA is creating a trailor park on the Moon's surface. But its a start. Did you expect the Jetsons?

For more, visit NASA's Moon site.

Also, take a look at the Space Foundation's publication "The Case for Space." This document offers some good support for the Moon and Mars missions.

Weird Tales from NASA

While some of us are concerned about water on Mars, the Great Space Race with China, and other mighty issues, the press seems to be quite concerned about astronauts in diapers and the latest boyfriend of Martha Stewart.

I suppose this is to be expected in a country where reality TV is still the rage, but maybe it is not such a bad thing. The more the austronauts seem like the rest of us the more we can relate to them. Maybe we are not looking for super people anymore. And the expansion of commercial space represents the movement towards the regular folks reaching the heavens.

I was even surprised to recently read that the circulation of National Geographic (8.5 million) is more than twice that of People magazine (3.7 million). So maybe we like our gossip, but we also like our science (and by extension, our scientists).

Save Our Science

The Planetary Society continues with its SOS campaign. According to the Society's site, they recently delivered a petition containing more than 5,000 signatures to the White House calling on President Bush to restore funding for space science and exploration in his 2008 budget proposal to the U.S. Congress. The Society is concerned about cuts in astrobiology programs and solar system research. White House cut also include a Europa mission to investigate a possible habitat for life beyond Earth and the Terrestrial Planet Finder, a search for Earth-like worlds elsewhere in the galaxy. In addition, the Administration earlier in the year cut all work on a Mars Sample Return mission and precursor activities for human exploration of the Red Planet. While we have heard a lot of talk about upcoming manned missions, let's remember that most of the real work (and science) is done by the less glorious yet more capable robotic missions. Maybe we need to increase the funding for our space program rather than eliminating the science. Follow SOS events by clicking here.

Discovery of New Flaws

I am glad to read that Discovery had another successful mission to the International Space Station last December. However, I am still puzzled with the news stories stating the mission was almost scrubbed because the shuttle could not fly during the New Year. It seems the shuttle's computers are not designed to go from one year to the next. Yes, while NASA boasts the space shuttle is "the most complex machine every built" with a "robust capacity," it cannot seem to deal with the complexities of the calendar. God forbid we also lose a coffee maker mid-flight.

James Webb Space Telescope?

Now that the Hubble has been saved (read more here) until 2012, we will not go blind anytime soon. But I recently read that the next generation telescope will be called the James Webb Space Telescope. While some have been critical of the naming of a NASA item after a "bureaucrat," Mr. Webb was always a strong supporter of a balance between a manned program and robotic craft that could do the necessary science. As NASA notes, "Webb's vision of a balanced program resulted in a decade of space science research that remains unparalleled today. During his tenure, NASA invested in the development of robotic spacecraft, which explored the lunar environment so that astronauts could do so later, and it sent scientific probes to Mars and Venus, giving Americans their first-ever view of the strange landscape of outer space."

My only concern is that this telescope will be put into an orbit where it cannot be visited and repaired. Maybe we need to consider the lessons from the Hubble telescope and ensure we have a backup plan.

Noogle

So, NASA and Google are cooperating. Does this mean more NASA work with some extra money, or less openness with the space program? Only time will tell, but given NASA budget situation - trying to fund a mission to Mars while also maintaining its science programs - every dollar will help. However, the funding aspect is still somewhat vague. Some of the benefits of this marriage may be 3-D maps of the moon and Mars and even real-time tracking of the International Space Station and shuttle (hopefully better than what you see on the airplane as you cross the Atlantic). Here is the NASA press release: "This agreement between NASA and Google will soon allow every American to experience a virtual flight over the surface of the moon or through the canyons of Mars," said NASA Administrator Michael Griffin at Headquarters in Washington. Of course, I remember doing this on my home computer 15 years ago with a private sector package.