Constellation Program to be Cancelled?

[Christopher K.]

This might be a quite heartbreaking post.

A suggested budget from the current White House administration scraps the Constellation Program initiated by the previous administration in 2003 after the Columbia tragedy. The Program includes the construction of the Ares I and V rockets, Orion crew capsule and Altair lunar lander. The current administration implies Constellation is draining funds from other space-related activities.

NASA has spent nine billion dollars on the Program.

Jim Kohlenberger, chief of staff at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, is quoted by the BBC as saying, "This isn't a step backwards. I think the step backwards was trying to recreate the Moon landings of 40 years ago using largely yesterday's technology, instead of game-changing new technology that can take us further, faster and more affordably into space."

Some say the Program ran into the alleged technical difficulties and timetable problems due to lack of proper funding from the outset.

The suggested budget changes would also 1) extend the life of the International Space Station, 2) provide incentive for more commercial involvement, 3) fund a replacement for the lost Orbiting Carbon Observatory, 4) add six billion dollars over five years to the NASA budget.

The BBC quotes Alabama senator Richard Shelby as saying, "Congress cannot and will not sit back and watch the reckless abandonment of sound principles, a proven track record, a steady path to success, and the destruction of our human spaceflight program".

Meanwhile, NASA has awarded 50 million dollars to further commercial involvement. According to Astronomy, Sierra Nevada will receive $20 million and Boeing will receive $18 million.

ABC quotes Eric Anderson, the CEO of Space Adventures, as saying, "I think the new plan is fantastic...If you have children, I want those kids to grow up in a world where they realistically believe they can fly in space."

Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio states, "The budget includes an increase of $580 million for aeronautics, nearly $4.2 billion for space exploration, and $572 million for space technology, all of which would benefit NASA Glenn."

Sky & Telescope's Robert Naeye states, "I need to learn more about this new plan and its ramifications before I can pass judgment. For the future of NASA, the U.S., and human spaceflight, I just hope that the Congressional meat grinder can ultimately evaluate the new NASA plan on its long-term merits and not on its short-term economic impact on local constituencies."

The September 2009 Review of U.S. Human Space Flight Plans Committee "Summary Report":
http://www.ostp.gov/galleries/press_release_files/Augustineforweb.pdf

NASA Fiscal Year 2011 Budget Estimates:
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/420990main_FY_201_%20Budget_Overview_1_Feb_2010.pdf

United States Senate Subcommittee on Science and Space:
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Subcommittees.Subcommittee&Subcommittee_ID=f37a9835-d7d5-4d9d-9394-210b787fbc31

1 September Statement by Charles Bolden:
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/420994main_2011_Budget_Administrator_Remarks.pdf

Norman Augustine Statement:
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/421061main_augustine_statement.pdf

NASA Budget Begins Death March for U.S. Human Space Flight Statement from Richard Shelby:
http://shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.NewsReleases&ContentRecord_id=8a4b0876-802a-23ad-43f9-b1a7757ad978

New Direction in Space Statement from Buzz Aldrin:
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/421062main_Buzz_Aldrin_Statement.pdf

Statement from Senator Bill Nelson of Florida:
http://billnelson.senate.gov/news/details.cfm?id=322023&

Statement from Senator David Vitter of Louisiana:
http://vitter.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=8ae36100-e8de-9fd5-f5bf-46b5dee4937a

Planetary Society Statement on Obama Administration’s Proposed Space Exploration Plan and Fiscal Year 2011 NASA Budget:
http://www.planetary.org/about/press/releases/2010/0201_Planetary_Society_Welcomes_New_NASA.html

More Information:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8489097.stm
http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=9111
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/83275972.html
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/obama-budget-nasa-moon-program-canceled-private-companies/story?id=9718472
http://www.space.com/news/nasa-far-out-plans-100201.html

[Tom]

Wow, what a blow! It has taken me nearly this long just to get my thoughts together on this!

It seems that most of those who think the Constellation is too expensive welcome this, and on the surface it seems like the practical thing to do. While I agree with the Augustine Commission that NASA's budget does not warrant such a program it should be known that NASA's budget currently is .5% of the national budget. In 2006 it was about .8%. Just so you know during the Apollo days before the plug was pulled on the moon program, NASA's budget was over 5% of the national budget. NASA has slowly but surely having it's budget cut.

Just before the previous NASA administrator Michael Griffin resigned, he gave a speech in which he talked about the coming space economy. This no doubt would have included the Moon. Other countries, such as China, Russia, India, and others are gearing up their own moon program and I am sure this is a welcome opportunity for them. While I agree with Obama administration in wanting to help commercial companies go into space, it is far too early to do away with a program that is five years old with working hardware for more practical means. You must push the boundaries of what is practical to drive technology and exploration. The Constellation program did just that!

More later.

[Christopher K.]

At 1:30pm CST on Wednesday 24 February, a hearing regarding the budget request for NASA FY2011 will be held by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Science and Space. This will be in the Russell Senate Building and will be broadcast live on NASA-TV.

Witness Panel One will consist solely of NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. Witness Panel Two will consist of retired NASA astronaut Robert "Hoot' Gibson, aerospace engineer Michael Snyder, "This Week in Space" host Miles O'Brien, and A. Thomas Young (who is retired from Lockheed Martin).

The Subcommitee Chairman is Bill Nelson and its ranking member is David Vitter. Other members include Barbara Boxer, John Ensign, Daniel Inouye, Johnny Isakon, Mike Johanns, John Kerry, Mark Pryor, Olympia Snowe, John Thune, Tom Udall and Mark Warner.

From the Committee's website: "The Subcommittee on Science and Space has responsibility for science, engineering, and technology research and development and policy; calibration and measurement standards; and civilian aeronautical and space science and policy. The Subcommittee conducts oversight on the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Advancements in science and technology are vital to the nation’s continued economic security, innovation, and competitiveness. "

Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison has stated: "I am very concerned by reports NASA’s human space flight programs might become even more severely constrained. I would strongly oppose any further cuts to human space flight funding that would make the United States dependent on foreign nations for manned space access. NASA’s focus must remain on continuing America’s leadership in the use of and research in space."

The number for the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation's Public Information Office is (202) 224-5115.

The Subcommittee hearing today is "Cybersecurity: Next Steps to Protect Our Critical Infrastructure". Its hearing Thursday is "Aviation Safety: One Year after the Crash of Flight 3407".

Subcommittee on Science and Space 24 February Hearing:
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Hearings&ContentRecord_id=1fe8aef1-3b71-4380-921f-828311451d7e&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=a06730c4-d875-4fde-97db-9e2be611840e

Hutchison statement:
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=e6779a68-48f1-4b70-a962-c632c19de75a

[Christopher K.]

On 12 May, during a hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee, the following exchange took place between Senator George Lemieux and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden:
LEMIEUX: Let me quickly, since my time is short, ask you about termination. Are you telling vendors right now that you're terminating the Constellation program?
BOLDEN: No, sir. I am not. I cannot tell them that. They know, however, that the 2011 budget--that the president's 2011 budget proposal, the language is very explicit. It calls for termination of the Constellation program.
LEMIEUX: But that's just his proposal.
BOLDEN: That's his proposal.
LEMIEUX: You understand the law of the land right now is –-
BOLDEN: Sir, I abide by the law of the land right now. And we are not terminating anything. I can't do that lawfully.

Also on 12 May, retired astronaut Eugene Cernan delivered a statement prepared presumably for that same hearing. The five-page statement reads in part:
"One month ago, Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell and I released an opinion paper expressing our concern over the Administration’s FY2011 proposed space budget. We spent a great deal of time writing and refining our document, choosing words such as “devastating”, “slide to mediocrity”, and “third rate stature” very carefully, so that the intent of our message would not be misinterpreted and our deep concern about the future direction
of human space flight as outlined in the President’s proposal would be fully understood. We particularly wanted to avoid any political overtones because the support of America’s role in space since its beginning has traditionally transcended partisan politics.... We have recently heard a lot of eloquent verbage about the exploration of space – landing on an asteroid, circling Mars, and at some time in the future perhaps landing on the Red Planet. There is talk about a decision yet to come of building a large booster which might ultimately take us anywhere we want to go into the far reaches of the universe. There are, however, no details, no specific challenge, and no commitment as to where or specifically when this exploration might come to pass. Hope is not a destination, nor is it a management tool.... In this proposed budget we find several billions of dollars allotted to developing commercial human access to low Earth orbit, based upon the assumptions and claims by those competing for this exclusive contract who say that they can achieve this goal in little more than three years, and that it can be done for something less than 5 billion dollars.... Although I strongly support the goals and ideals of commercial access to space, the folks who propose such a limited architecture do not yet know what they don’t know.”

On 26 May Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson released a statement that read in part “I am deeply troubled to have learned that the program manager for the Constellation program was removed from his post. The timing of the program manager’s removal raises significant concerns about whether NASA is continuing to implement the authorized program as directed by Congress. Emails sent to program officials last week indicate that NASA senior administrators were actively mandating de-prioritizing funding for elements of the program that do not fit within the President's new proposal.”

The program manager in question is Jeff Hanley, who has overseen Constellation for five years.

The final welds on the Orion crew vehicle were accomplished on 15 June at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans.

On the final welding of Orion:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/orion_first_weld.html

Captain Cernan's complete statement:
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/?a=Files.Serve&File_id=78b85667-581a-4082-814f-cd91c39f09dd

[Tom]

NASA's Constellation Program Get's Big Boost in Senate!

Here is the link directly from the Subcommittee on Science and Space:

http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index ... 3219b6f868

Our own David Vitter is a ranking member of the Subcommittee on Science and Space and a big supporter of the Constellation Program!

[Tom]

I found nothing current on the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, but this in the NY Times is very promising indeed.

http://www.examiner.com/x-21670-Houston ... to-be-kept


Also in the news: Senator Hutchison responds to Obama attempt to kill NASA's Constellation through the back door.

http://www.examiner.com/x-21670-Houston ... -back-door

[Tom]

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation approves a bill to preserve America's human spaceflight capabilities!

http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index ... 52dc758066

http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index ... 52dc758066

[Tom]

Things are looking better and better!

http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index ... 52dc758066

[Christopher K.]

The Protecting Human Space Flight Act of 2010 was introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives on 28 June. It reads in part, "amounts appropriated for fiscal year 2010 (or for prior fiscal years that remain available) to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the Constellation program shall be expended only for carrying out the Constellation program, including through contracts and necessary support activities".

On 27 July there was a successful test of the Orion Crew Vehicle Parachute Assembly System. It took place at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Grounds in Arizona.

The number of astronauts that would be inside the Orion Crew Vehicle is four. An active lunar mission would last twenty-one days.

More information at:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/const ... _test.html

Full Text of the Protecting Human Space Flight Act:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.5614:

[Tom]

Senate NASA Bill Moves One Step Closer to becoming Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement after the Senate approved the NASA Authorization Act of 2010:

“This bill offers a blueprint to move America’s civilian space program forward in a smart, fiscally responsible way,” Chairman Rockefeller said. “We’ve had to take a clear, hard look at what we want from NASA in the years and decades to come. We’ve asked the tough questions. The result is a truly bipartisan bill that will help refocus and reinvigorate the agency, while making key investments in aeronautics, science, and education. I’m proud the Senate has moved it one step closer to becoming law.”

Key Elements of the NASA Authorization Act of 2010:

* Authorization of Appropriations – Largely in-line with the President’s fiscal year 2011 budget request to Congress; the bill would authorize fiscal year 2011 to fiscal year 2013 appropriations for NASA.

* Science and Aeronautics – The bill protects a balanced portfolio for NASA, including full funding of aeronautics, Earth and space science, and education, as proposed by the President.

* Space Technology – Investments in technology and robotic capabilities are tied to mission-driven goals and support U.S. innovation and competitiveness.

* Education – The bill supports new education initiatives such as teacher training programs; and increases the investment in the NASA EPSCoR (Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research) and NASA Space Grant program.

* Human Space Flight – The bill couples efforts to national and global needs and challenges; provides a sustainable exploration program with new technologies and in-space capabilities; and future exploration builds off of the workforce, assets, and capabilities of the Space Shuttle and other efforts.

* Shuttle Retirement and final “Launch on Need” Mission – The bill authorizes one last Shuttle flight, based on an independent safety review, to provide necessary support for the extension of the International Space Station.

* International Space Station – The bill extends the Station to at least 2020, which is important for international and commercial collaboration and growth, research, and technology development; and maximizes the scientific return on the significant investment in the Station.

* Commercial Cargo and Crew – If the industry develops as envisioned, this should provide cheaper access to the International Space Station and relieve the U.S. reliance on Russian partners for access to the Station after the Shuttle retires; a strong focus on milestones will reduce risk and assure astronaut safety.

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