Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
The space shuttle program held a debris verification review May 31 that uncovered "no showstoppers," Program Manager Wayne Hale said, clearing the next hurdle for Discovery's planned July 1 liftoff on mission STS-121. The debris review was added in the wake of the Columbia accident to gauge the shuttle team's progress in eliminating potentially dangerous sources of foam debris that could strike the orbiter during ascent.
The upcoming June 1 spacewalk by the Expedition 13 crew of the International Space Station (ISS) will re-activate an external vent for the finicky Russian Elektron oxygen generation system, which has been having trouble restarting after being turned off. The Elektron, which generates breathable air from wastewater, requires an external vent to release hydrogen byproduct into space. Last year, an electrolyte leak into the system's original vent line made it unusable.
Fledgling space elevator company Liftport Inc. says it plans to distribute an "encyclopedia" of technical questions associated with space elevators later this year in the hopes of attracting university researchers to the field. "We're trying to develop individual questions that would make really great research topics for a Ph.D. candidate" or other researcher, Liftport President Michael Laine said during a press conference in Washington on May 30.
