Discovery News: Space Diary

NASA Mars Probe Wins Reprieve

2008-10-10T16:09:43-04:00

NASA is gambling more money will resolve problems with its next Mars mission and keep it on track for launch next year.

But exactly where the extra cash to keep the Mars Science Laboratory on schedule -- and how much will be needed -- officials with the U.S. space agency would not say.

“If we’re going to launch in 2009 or 2011 additional budget resources are going to be necessary. The sources of that we cannot release until we get approval from the Office of Management and Budget and Congress,” Doug McCuistion, director of the Mars Exploration Program at NASA headquarters, said during a conference call with reporters.

Costs for the roving chemistry station, which is designed to assess Mars' suitability for life, already have swelled from $1.6 billion to $1.9 billion. The probe, which is about the size of a SUV, is slated for launch between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15, 2009, when Earth and Mars are favorably aligned. The planets sweep into optimal position every two years.

NASA has been launching probes at every opportunity in an attempt to learn if life ever took hold beyond Earth.

Mars Science Lab is an ambitious follow-on program to the two small rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, currently exploring the equatorial regions of Mars for signs of past water.

“This is a really important scientific mission,” McCuistion said. “This is truly the push into the next decade for the Mars program and for the discovery for the potential for life on other planets.

“I fully believe that Congress will support us as we go forward on this because they recognize the importance of the mission as well,” he added.

In an attempt to make up time lost due to a host of technical challenges, including actuators, materials and parachutes, Mars Science Lab contractors are working multiple shifts to deliver components so that testing can begin in late November or early December.

NASA plans to reassess the mission’s progress in January. If the probe has to miss its 2009 launch date, keeping the contractor and science teams employed for another two years is estimated to cost $300 million.

In addition to seeking additional funding from Congress, NASA will assess other science programs to see if any money can reallocated for Mars Science Lab, said NASA’s lead scientist Ed Weiler.

NASA Mars Probe Needs a Bailout

2008-10-10T09:46:00-04:00

Anyone got a spare billion or so? NASA's next Mars probe is a bit, well, this is embarrassing, but it has sorta busted the bank. (Very trendy!)

Agency managers held a come-to-Jesus meeting this week in D.C. and will be ramping up full spin control late this afternoon to put their best face forward for the media.
The facts are pretty clear: Too much mission, too little money. You can fudge around all you want but, like we're all starting to appreciate, you can only stretch time so far. For the troubled Mars probe, the deadline is the short window of opportunity to launch in the fall of 2009 when Earth and Mars are favorably aligned. Things aren't looking promising. So what will NASA do?

It seems pretty unpopular these days to actually do what you SAY you're going to do, which in NASA's case means canceling the mission because it is running more than 30 percent over budget. No, the fashion of the day seems to be to continue to pour good money after bad and hope a fairy godmother (aka U.S. taxpayers) bails you out in the end.

For Mars Science Lab, that would be akin to spending double, triple, quadruple the alloted cost and then having the good fortune to land in the midst of a thriving bacterial community on Mars, settling the age-old question about whether Earth alone supports life, winning a Nobel Prize, and reconciling with colleagues on all the other space science missions that had to be cast aside to feed Science Lab's bloat.

Not that's not going to help you in your retirement, but it may inspire your kids to at least THINK about careers in science and engineering, which is probably the only way out of the financial quagmire in which our country (and increasingly the world) is plodding through (unsuccessfully, apparently.) It is science, engineering and technology that created the digital age and I personally believe it is science, engineering and technology, in the hands of enterprising entrepreneurs, that is America's only hope of recreating prosperity.

Don't get me wrong. I think Mars exploration is cool, cool, cool. But I think INTEGRITY is even cooler.

(Caption: Not ready for prime time. Credit: NASA)

NASA Dude Takes On Wall Street Mess

2008-10-07T11:52:13-04:00

Does it take a rocket scientist to fix the ~~country's~~ world's financial mess? Well, maybe ... (hopefully!)

Neel Kashkari, 35, has a new title on his resume: Interim Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Stability. He was appointed to the job yesterday by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who is either Dr. Evil or Santa Claus. I can't decide which.

One of Kashkari's first jobs was with NASA contractor TRW in Redondo Beach, Calif., where he developed technology for science missions including the James Webb Space Telescope. I hope it's not a bad sign that a diminutive version of the observatory Kashkari worked on is still on the ground, with launch scheduled for three years later than its original 2010 date.

Not that that Kashkari's fault. He's been ensconced in Washington D.C. with the Treasury since July 2006 serving as a Paulson senior advisor. Claims to fame, according to a Treasury press release: developing President Bush's Twenty in Ten energy security plan, enhancing Treasury’s engagement with India, and developing and executing the Treasury's response to the housing crisis, including the formation of the HOPE NOW Alliance, the development of the subprime fast-track loan modification plan. (I'm not sure if that last one belongs in the brag book or not.)

Before joining the G, Kashkari was a vice president at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in San Francisco, where he oversaw the firm's IT Security Investment Banking practice, advising public and private companies on mergers and acquisitions and financial transactions. (Again, no comment.)

His new responsibilities put him in charge of the G's Troubled Asset Relief Program, and being a good NASA boy, I'm willing to bet he'll refer to this by its acronym, TARP. I'm hoping that that will serve as a visceral reminder of what more and more people will be using as roofs if this fiasco isn't fixed soon.

The Sky is Falling

2008-10-07T09:44:12-04:00

If anyone tries to tell you today that the sky is falling, you might just want to check it out -- and I don't mean looking to see what the stock market is doing. I refer to a naturally occurring event which for the first time has been predicted -- a meteor strike.

The tiny asteroid blasted through the atmosphere over Sudan early today, creating a spectacular fireball as it descended.

Despite packing a punch of 1,000 tons of TNT, the rock from space did no harm.

It was the first time scientists were able to make a prediction of an incoming object that would enter Earth's atmosphere. There's lots of room for improvement, however: The forecast was made one day in advance.

Here's a report from Thaindian News

New Delhi, Oct 7 (IANS) It was a spectacular show in the sky early Tuesday morning, when a small asteroid entered the earth’s atmosphere releasing a huge amount of light and energy before exploding.The asteroid, 2008 TC3, entered the earth’s atmosphere at 2.46 a.m. (GMT) in Sudan (Africa). The asteroid was also visible in Europe but not in Asia.
“Measuring only a few meters across, the space rock created a spectacular fireball, releasing huge energy as it disintegrated and exploded in the atmosphere,” Director of Nehru Planetarium N. Rathnashree told IANS.

The celestial activity holds significance for space scientists as for the first time they were able to predict in advance that asteroid of such small size will hit the earth surface Tuesday morning, Rathnashree said.

Turning down apprehensions of small asteroids causing an impact on people and property, Rathnashree said: “There is nothing to be panicky as after explosion in the atmosphere only small pieces reach the ground as meteorites”.

Help Me, NASA!

2008-10-03T09:37:13-04:00

I'm sure there will be some (many) folks who will shudder to learn that their tax dollars are being spent on this, but I for one, am all for it. You see, I live with a TEEN-AGER, just one (and I bow to any of you with multiples) and I've come to believe that mine, at least, is the living embodiment of CONFLICT.

It starts in the morning with breakfast (Me: Yes. Kid: No), continues after school through homework (Me: No TV. Kid: "I NEEEEEED the noise" +iPhone+Computer+Music) all the way through bedtime (Me: Goodnight, Did-you-remember-your-retainers? Kid: Deep growling sounds.)

So it was with a bit of glee that I found myself in a discussion about conflict resolution with Dartmouth University's Jay Buckey, a doctor and former space shuttle researcher who flew in 1998. He is working with a team developing psychological self-help programs that NASA is funding for use on the space station.

I hope this is one program that doesn't get stuck in the spin-off process, because I think it has tremendous potential. Buckey kindly guided me through what has become a standard script in my house, I'll title, "Mom, I Really Need The Car."

"The conflict is not about the car," Buckey tells me. "The conflict is about the internal thoughts, the meaning that we put on the action, and then the response. It's helpful to pause for a moment before responding, if you can, and think 'What is the meaning I'm putting on this?'

"The other side is the action. We desire to respond emotionally, but that may not be the best response."

Buckey suggested I asked the ~~demanding tyrant~~ teen-ager before me why he wants the car, even if the question only serves to buy me more time to think.

Apparently, these sorts of techniques are useful for a wide range of situations, including living with a group of people in an enclosed area like the space station.

"A successful long-duration flight is very dependent on the atmosphere between the people," Buckey says. "If it's a group really working well together and enjoying each other's company, it's going to be a great experience."

So, last night I kept my mouth shut while the kid slouched in a bean bag chair doing calculus with TV on; let him take the car so he could get to school early to make up a history test; and felt a glimmer of satisfaction when he decided that yes, he would like breakfast today after all.

Baby steps, my friends.

Falcon Flies, Next Stop Space Station?

2008-09-28T21:48:01-04:00

Heard the big news? No, not the Great Government Bailout of 2008. A real-live capitalist, using his own money and moxie, racked up the first successful flight of a rocket he's been developing to change the game in space.

The dude is Elon Musk, of Pay-Pal fame and fortune, who has been picking away at the not insubstantial barriers to entry into the commercial space arena.

"That was freakin' awesome," Musk said after the launch Sunday night.

The Falcon 1 booster lifted off from Omelek Island at Kwajalein Atoll in the central Pacific Ocean.

It was Musk's fourth attempt to reach orbit.

The battle is far from over. With a successful launch on the books, Musk told me in an interview last week that he's going to make a bid for ferrying astronauts to and from the space station after the shuttle is retired. Technical know-how, Musk has now demonstrated. As for the political battles to come, the challenges may just be beginning.

Check back at space.discovery.com on Monday for an exclusive Q&A with Musk.

Here's a really good account of the launch on SpaceflightNow.com.

And here's a Discovery News story about what this launch might mean for NASA and the U.S. space program

The President of Free Space, Part 3: Hope or Fear

2008-09-24T16:02:56-04:00

Silly me. When I embarked on this project to chase down strings of rationality in the race for the U.S. presidency, using the space program as my fishing reel, I made a bad assumption. I thought rationality MATTERED to all people. You know? Fact-gathering, logical reasoning, analysis, verification … the processes of science? Please stop chuckling. I know I should have known better.

So forget about the LOGICAL thing to do for NASA, let alone the country. I've realized what counts most in our society is a good story. We love drama. If it was our gross domestic product, we'd have so much money Sarah Palin would be writing us checks from the Treasury, just like they do with oil revenue in Alaska.

Now I know that (supposedly) the most important thing in the universe right now is our national financial situation. The question is what we are going to do about it? What will solve it?

I've learned from NASA that there is really only one way to go about solving a problem. It's called the scientific method, but I'm not really sure if it's being taught in school anymore. It's what got this country to the moon FORTY YEARS before our sisters, Japan, India, China (and I'm sorry if I'm forgetting anyone) had a clue how to do it, much less a program. Our only peer was the Soviet Union and we were scared to death they'd get there first. (They shouldn't have worried. Apparently, all they needed to do was wait until we became diverted, and in exchange for losing the moon race we'd build them a castle in the sky; for I'm told that Russia will be left sole occupant of the $100 billion International Space station unless our elected officials take a break from handling the NATIONAL FINANCIAL EMERGENCY and approve an exemption for NASA to buy rides to the station on Russian Soyuz rockets. Perhaps that's why NASA's very erudite leader, Michael Griffin, used a most unscientific word in his officially acknowledged leaked email alerting the world to our IMPENDING NATIONAL SPACE CRISIS. He termed its handling a "jihad.")

I don't know if the proposed $700 billion GREAT GOVERNMENT GIVEAWAY of 2008 is the right thing to do or not. I don't know if time is of the essence. I don't even know how you decide that, but I hope and pray that it is made with some degree of rationality. My Libertarian friends are even kind of exited by the stir, hoping it will rouse the good but sleepy citizens of this land we love to stop watching American Idol and reruns of Gilligan's Island (but by all means, please keep tuning in to Discovery Channel).

In a Democracy, APATHY is a cancer.

No offense intended, but we might want to question the sanity and motivations of John McCain and Barack Obama for wanting to take on this mess. (You too, Bob Barr!) There's no question they have balls: We've seen the pictures, watched the grainy films of handsome, young McCain in the POW camp and we can only imagine. And as far as Obama, well would YOU want to be a black man in America, much less one running for PRESIDENT??

Though I personally haven't given up that rationality will prevail when it comes time to vote, I've realized that that's a pretty high standard. As a steppingstone, I've designed a little quiz to help choose the next president, who as the leader of what we like to call The Free World, will be the President of Free Space, with the potential to galvanize what our space policy -- and our country -- will become. Open or closed? Driven by fear or hope? Logical or emotional? Privately pioneered or not? Breaking ground or following footsteps? Creative or reactive?

Since I realize this cannot be objective (and frankly I find it a little exhausting trying to figure out which administration would be better for the country, the Big Government Republicans or the Big Government Democrats) I'm basing this quiz on things that matter to me. Ready? Here goes:

Who has the better sense of humor?

Who is smarter?

Who is more tolerant of dissenting views?

Who solicits and loves feedback?

Who can better control his behavior?

Got your candidate? Good. Oh, one last question, if you don't mind. Does this change your vote?

End of an Era

2008-09-21T20:54:25-04:00

(Special for Discovery.com)

It's rare to have two shuttles on the launch pads at any time and rarer still to have their protective gantries swung open for an unobstructed view. In all likelihood, Saturday's double feature was the last time this show rolls. Next month, NASA expects to begin its final 10 shuttle flights, wrapping up with a 2010 mission to complete construction of the space station.

NASA decided to have a second shuttle ready to fly in case the crew, which is being dispatched to work on the Hubble Space Telescope, needs a rescue. They won't be able to reach the space station for shelter.

The gantries around both shuttles were open for a few hours on Saturday, one ship having just arrived and the other getting ready to have its payload put in the cargo bay.

Rescue Shuttle at the Pad

2008-09-19T08:25:41-04:00

Credit: NASA TV

NASA hopes it won't need it, but just in case the shuttle Atlantis/Hubble Space Telescope servicing crew needs a rescue sistership Endeavour will be ready to serve. Overnight, the shuttle was taken to the launch pad right next to where Atlantis is being prepared for launch on a Hubble refurb mission. It was a bit of a juggle to keep the pad open for Endeavour as it is being turned over for modifications to accommodate the shuttle's replacement, a rocket/capsule system known as Ares-Orion.

Endeavour, which is scheduled for an International Space Station construction mission in November, will remain poised for launch throughout Atlantis' servicing mission to Hubble, which officially remains on the books for liftoff on Oct. 10.

That date is likely to slip because of delays getting the new Hubble gear to the launch pad to be packed aboard the shuttle and because of the shutdown of the Johnson Space Center in Houston due to Hurricane Ike. JSC -- home to the astronauts and NASA's Mission Control Center -- remains closed due to power outages and flooding in surrounding areas.

NASA decided to prepare a second shuttle for launch in case Atlantis becomes too damaged to return home. The space station typically serves as an orbital shelter, but the Hubble crew will be too far away to reach it. The space agency developed rescue plans in the wake of the 2003 Columbia accident, which claimed the lives of seven astronauts. Columbia was damaged by launch debris but NASA didn't realize it. The shuttle broke apart as it flew through the atmosphere for landing. Shuttle crews now inspect their ships for damage during flight.

Mission Accomplished

2008-09-18T20:52:28-04:00

The end is near for the European Space Agency's first cargo transport to the International Space Station.
The folks who monitor the space weather report that the Jules Verne, also known as the Automated Transfer Vehicle, or ATV, is due for a fiery demise in Earth's atmosphere on Sept. 29.

Despite the "Doomed Spacecraft" headline on the press release, the plunge of the ATV into the atmosphere actually is the preferred mission end. Jettisoning the spacecraft so that it quickly heads toward the planet is the best way to keep it from becoming another piece of potentially dangerous space junk that can threaten spacecraft in low-Earth orbit.

During its final orbits around Earth, Jules Verne is visible over Europe and North America, glowing about as brightly as Polaris, the North Star. Optimum viewing is expected this weekend provided the skies are clear. To find out where and when to look, click on this link for a satellite tracking and viewing times. For a full roster of what's visible, check out Heaven's Above.

(Europe's first ATV leaves the space station on Sept. 5. After spending three weeks in a parking orbit, it's scheduled to plunge back through the atmosphere and land harmlessly in the Pacific Ocean on Sept. 29. Photo: NASA.)