Editor’s note: The following public exchange of letters regarding Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) cost overruns has been underway between former SMD Alan Stern and NASA HQ’s proxy, Jim Garvin from NASA GSFC for several weeks. Once again, Garvin attempts to play the standard NASA game of moving the goal posts with what amounts to selective semantic mathematics so as to try and decrease the true scope of MSL’s cost overrun. […]

Editor’s note: According to NASA sources, NASA Headquarters has been struggling to figure out how to respond to former SMD AA Alan Stern’s 24 November op ed “NASA’s Black Hole Budgets” which appeared on the New York Times editorial page. Indeed, the latest iteration of HQ’s rebuttal is draft #5 (or #6). There has also been a difference of opinion as to whose name to put on the rebuttal when […]

5…4…3…2…Yawwwwwn, ABC News “What if we saw more of that on NASA TV? What if the cameras were live 24 hours a day on the space station and you could peek at the crew anytime you wanted to and see and hear what they were doing, rather than the one hour a day in the morning NASA lets you see a carefully programmed presentation?” Editor’s note: Did you know that […]

NASA STS-126 Report #33 Sunday, November 30, 2008 – 4:00 p.m. “”The seven member crew of Endeavour returned to Earth today, landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Mission managers waived landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida this morning, the shuttle’s primary landing site. Thunderstorms and strong winds prevented Endeavour from attempting either of the two opportunities for Kennedy, and the shuttle was diverted to Edwards.”” NASA […]

NASA Presidental Transition Action Item Log Editor’s note: The following is an amalgam of several different versions of a document titled “Presidential Transition Action Item Log” provided by NASA sources this week. More than 80 specific requests to NASA by the Obama Transition Team are listed. This document is maintained by the PA&E (Program Analysis and Evaluation) Office at NASA HQ. Obama Team Seeks Data on Possible Changes to Ares, […]

UPDATE: NASA Picks Virtual Heroes and Whitecard for MMO?, Virtual Worlds News “Last month NASA announced that it had selected three proposals to hear for its upcoming educational virtual world. It appears a decision has been made. We were passed what seems to be, though we haven’t been able to confirm, an email from MindArk CEO Jan Welter Timkrans to some members of Entropia, which was up for consideration, explaining […]

Netroots Nation: Progressive NASA and Space Policy Under a New Administration (video) (PartI) (Part 2) NASA Presidental Transition Action Item Log 69. Information Transparency – List the agency’s major information dissemination activities (in reports, on web sites, etc.). Describe how the agency decides what information to publish on the Internet and on paper. Identify the agency officials who manage these decisions and to whom they report. Note: OCIO and OP […]

XCOR Aerospace to Announce Ticket Sales for Suborbital Space Flights on December 2nd “On Tuesday, December 2, XCOR Aerospace, builder of the 2-seat Lynx rocket-powered suborbital launch vehicle, is introducing its General Sales Agent for ticket sales and will announce a price that is substantially lower than prices quoted by leading competitors. XCOR will introduce its new partner, a well-known and established travel entrepreneur with extensive experience in high-end adventure […]

NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale’s Blog: Last Entry – November 26,2008 “This will be my last entry on this blog as I prepare to transition out of NASA in January 2009. When people, regardless of where they live around the world, find out that I work at NASA, their eyes light up. It is a tribute to this great Agency! People around the world hold NASA in the highest regard. […]

Editor’s note: It appears that NASA is considering slipping MSL’s launch to 2010. This will add hundreds of millions of dollars to its final cost without increasing its science value. Monday’s New York Times OpEd by former SMD AA Stern pointed out how damaging these out of control mission costs have become – especially when they occur on large missions with hefty political backing. Yet someone still has to pay […]