ITALIAN RADAR: Italy has received written assurances from Russian space agency Roskosmos that it can launch its CosmoSkyMed radar constellation from the Baikonur, Kazakstan cosmodrome on the Starsem Soyuz, according to industry sources. An Italian decision to classify the dual-use system as a military payload, combined with arms export agency Rosobronexport's role as an intermediary in the sale, had jeopardized the launch because of rules in the Starsem statutes barring defense payloads.
TARGETING PODS: Lockheed Martin said Nov. 14 that it has been awarded a $20 million contract to provide Denmark's air force with LANTIRN Extended Range targeting pods. The contract calls for three new pods and upgrades to 13 existing pods. Spares, maintenance training and pilot familiarization training will also be included.
A new report from the Space Foundation pegs the global space industry at $180 billion for 2005, including $110 billion in commercial activity and $70 billion in civil government and military space. "This industry is much, much larger than most people think it is," Space Foundation President and CEO Elliot Pulham said during a conference call Nov. 14. "Space is not a little, interesting niche market... It's actually a very large and important industry."
SENATE PANELS: Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid (Nev.) on Nov. 14 announced committee assignments for the 110th Congress, which convenes in January when Democrats take over Capitol Hill. Appropriators will be chaired by longtime Sen. Robert Byrd (W.Va.) and include: Sens.
The micrometeoroid/orbiting debris strike on the orbiter Atlantis during STS-115 in September was likely caused by a tiny piece of circuit board from a previously launched space vehicle, according to the Web site NASA spaceflight.com.
NASA may be in a better position to gain a $1 billion windfall in the upcoming lame duck congressional session with the Democrats in line to gain control, but there shouldn't be major changes in overall support for space agency programs in the wake of the election.
NASA's Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV) is meeting its performance targets, contrary to rumors that its current design is overweight, according to Exploration Launch Manager Steve Cook. Last week at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, NASA kicked off the integrated system requirements review (SRR) for the Ares I, the shuttle-derived rocket that will boost the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) to orbit.
Congress should consider requiring the Department of Defense (DOD) to report how much procurement funding remains unobligated at the end of each fiscal year and how it plans to spend that money, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Given its rate of spending as of June 2006, which was nine months into fiscal 2006, "significant" multiyear procurement funding will likely remain available for use in fiscal 2007, according to GAO.
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. - The U.S. Air Force is starting to get a clearer picture of how best to use its stealthy aircraft and advanced radar systems, said Gen. Ronald Keys, commander of Air Combat Command. Using lessons learned from missions and exercises, the service is developing tactics, techniques and procedures on how to employ stealth and the Active Electronically Steered Array (AESA) radars. The service is also reshaping plans for how to mix retrofitted AESA aircraft like the F-15 Eagles with the next-generation F-22 Raptors.
U2 AWARD: The Air Force has awarded Raytheon Co. a $113 million contract to provide field support for ground systems, sensors, and data related to the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft program, the company said Nov. 13. The program includes pre-flight system checks, mission support during flight and post-mission problem analysis. New system installations and upgrades will also be provided. The contract was awarded by Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Ga.
Sen. Carl Levin (Mich.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee and its future chairman, said Nov. 13 that he would press for integrated testing of the nation's missile defense system and even suggested blocking further interceptor purchases until end-to-end evaluation is carried out.
ARMY The Boeing Co., Ridley Park, Pa., was awarded on Nov. 1, 2006, a $163,323,224 modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for CH-47F New Build Production Helicopters. The work will be performed in Philadelphia, Pa., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 29, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This was a sole source contract initiated on Dec. 31, 2003. The U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-04-C-0012).
The Australian military has decided to fit the Raytheon ALR-67(v)3 Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) to its entire F/A-18 fleet instead of BAE Systems Australia's ALR 2002B, according to a Nov. 13 announcement. The Australian-developed technology cannot be delivered under the desired timeframe, officials said. "Ensuring the success of the extensive Hornet upgrade and Australia's regional superiority is the most important priority and requires us to progress with another, proven option," they said.
Outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wasn't exactly Mr. Popularity at the Pentagon, and the brass is looking forward to the arrival of former CIA Director Robert Gates to replace him.
HAZE OF TITAN: Astrobiologists have simulated the chemistry that formed organic material in the atmospheres of Saturn's moon Titan and the early Earth, gaining insights into the processes that may have produced the organic material that fed early life here.
NASA may have the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) try to photograph the silent Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft later this week to determine what configuration it's in and give mission controllers a better idea of how to regain contact.
