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 interagency committee chartered by Congress to create an aeronautics policy for the United States by next fall already has completed its first draft, according to Lisa Porter, NASA's associate administrator for aeronautics. As head of aeronautics for NASA, Porter is co-chairing the group, which is a subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council within the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The committee was stood up in September and has one year to complete its work.
NASA's Dawn mission, which has been standing down since Oct. 11 in response to programmatic problems, is awaiting the results of a technical assessment to see whether it will continue. The Discovery Program Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., is performing the assessment, which should be complete early next year, according to NASA. "This does not mean the cancellation of the program," the agency said in response to The DAILY's questions. "The fate of the mission will be decided after the assessment is complete."
NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., plans to release a request for proposals in early January soliciting new rotorcraft research from industry. Proposals will be due around Feb. 14, according to NASA. Ames anticipates issuing five five-year contracts worth $10 million each.
