Tag: Politics
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Commercial space ventures hail NASA opportunities in orbit and on the moon
An artist’s conception shows Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander on the lunar surface. (Astrobotic Illustration) The Trump administration’s proposed shift to commercial partners for space operations in low Earth orbit as well as on and around the moon is getting a predictably positive reception from those potential partners. “This moment here, with the shift to the moon,…
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White House gets pushback on plan to phase out space station funding by 2025
The International Space Station has been continuously occupied since 2000. (NASA photo) White House budget plans are zeroing in on zeroing out federal funding for the International Space Station by 2025, to free up money for a Deep Space Gateway in lunar orbit. The plan is already generating opposition from those who want to leave…
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Moon, Mars and jobs: Trump puts his spin on space policy, with details to come
Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt gives an astronaut figurine to President Donald Trump after the signing of Space Policy Directive 1. Among the onlookers at far right are Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin and NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, who holds the U.S. record for cumulative time spent in space. A sample of lunar rock collected…
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VP Mike Pence visits Virgin Galactic and Stratolaunch space ventures in Mojave
Vice President Mike Pence sits in the cockpit of Stratolaunch’s mammoth airplane in Mojave, Calif. (Stratolaunch Systems Photo) Vice President Mike Pence made Mojave, Calif., the latest stop on his nationwide tour of spaceship development sites today, with visits to Virgin Galactic and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen’s Stratolaunch hangar. Pence was accompanied by his wife,…
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National Space Council hears calls for moon trips and stronger space defense
Vice President Mike Pence delivers opening remarks at the National Space Council’s inaugural meeting, conducted at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia. The shuttle Discovery looms in the background. (NASA Photo / Joel Kowsky) The Trump administration plans to send astronauts and robots back to the moon in…
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Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin makes its pitch to Congress for delivering cargo to the moon
An artist’s concept shows the Blue Moon lander on the lunar surface. (Blue Origin Illustration) Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, joined other companies today in laying out plans for commercial missions to the moon during a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill. “It’s time for America to return to the…
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Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin makes its pitch to Congress for delivering cargo to the moon
An artist’s concept shows the Blue Moon lander on the lunar surface. (Blue Origin Illustration) Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, joined other companies today in laying out plans for commercial missions to the moon during a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill. “It’s time for America to return to the…
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Trump’s choice for NASA chief, Rep. Jim Bridenstine, is likely to boost moonshots
Rep. Jim Bridenstine, R-Okla., addresses the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs in 2016. (Tom Kimmell Photo) The White House has confirmed long-running rumors that President Donald Trump’s pick for NASA administrator is U.S. Rep. Jim Bridenstine, R-Okla., an advocate for commercial spaceflight and missions to the moon. Bridenstine would be the first member of Congress…
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The internet goes all atwitter over U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher’s questions about Mars civilization
U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., asks about Mars’ ancient past. (House Science Committee via YouTube) What game was U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., playing when he asked Caltech geochemist Kenneth Farley whether there was any evidence of an ancient civilization on Mars? The question was an add-on at today’s House Space Subcommittee hearing on NASA’s…
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Congress toes a cautious line on support for commercial space partnerships
An artist’s conception shows Axiom Space’s commercial space station. (Axiom Space via Vimeo) WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of Congress spoke to space industry leaders on Capitol Hill last week to show their support for the private sector, but both sides expressed frustrations as well. At the sixth annual Future Space conference, U.S. Rep. Brian Babin, the…