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.
NASA's 2008 Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is switching from its originally intended Delta II launch vehicle to a larger rocket, according to Scott Horowitz, head of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. NASA is making the switch because the Delta II rocket is spin-stabilized, and the design of LRO turned out to be "not really compatible" with such a scheme, Horowitz told the NASA Advisory Council during a meeting in Washington Nov. 29.
With a third round of targeted buyouts under way to prune unneeded personnel, NASA is becoming more optimistic that it may be able to avoid layoffs, according to Toni Dawsey, acting assistant administrator for human capital management. "We're feeling that reduction in force [RIF] may not be necessary now," Dawsey told the NASA Advisory Council during a meeting in Washington Nov. 30. The latest buyouts hopefully will help bring the "uncovered capacity" at NASA's 10 field centers down to 500-600 full-time equivalent positions, she said.
A National Academies panel is recommending that NASA develop a single agency-wide plan for research aboard the International Space Station and increase its crew capacity to six as soon as possible.
