Washington Updates

On April 21, Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, unveiled the Senate’s version of the 2011 budget with an added $726 million for continued testing of the Ares I rocket. If appropriated, NASA’s budget would be increased to $19.7 billion from $19 billion in the president’s FY2011 budget request. Senator Conrad…

The Strategic Forces Subcommittee of the House Armed Service Committee held a hearing on the Space Posture Review on April 21. Witnesses included: General C. Robert Kehler, USAF, commander, Air Force Space Command Robert J. Butler, deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber and space policy, Office of the Secretary of Defense Betty Sapp, principle deputy…

NASA’s proposed FY 2011 budget came under close scrutiny by both House and Senate lawmakers in March. During several hearings, lawmakers and aerospace industry veterans cited astronaut safety, commercial viability, workforce impacts, and a lack of program details as their most pressing concerns. On March 3, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) introduced S. 3068, a…

On March 4, Dr. Ed Weiler, NASA associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate (SMD), spoke with reporters at a Space Foundation Correspondents Group breakfast in Washington, D.C. Weiler began by saying that for the SMD, the president’s budget proposal provides both “good news and great news.” He said the “good news” is for heliophysics,…

Early last month, President Barack Obama released his proposed $3.8 trillion budget for the 2011 fiscal year, which gives NASA a proposed boost of $1.3 billion next year and a $6 billion increase over the next five years. To see the budget proposal, click here. The President’s plan zeroes out funding for the Constellation Program…

The Space Foundation’s Solutions from Space: Faster, Safer, Greener Commercial Aviation details how space technology is dramatically improving air traffic management. According to the paper, the advanced positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities offered by satellite systems can: Reduce air traffic congestion Lower fuel consumption Reduce noise pollution Lessen environmental impact Provide clearer, more accurate, real-time…