Keith’s Rant #3: It is getting tiresome watching space fans sit in their sound proof rooms writing about space fantasies on social media and op eds in niche publications. These folks seem to be bereft of any understanding of what is going on in the real world – here in the U.S. or elsewhere – or care that budgets are being slashed. And no one can stop the cutting. They scramble to get random leftover scraps rather than push back. No reason is given for the cuts. The current meme right now is simply to cut. No strategic plan is in place to guide the cuts or show a path to be followed after the cuts have been made. This whole thing is a turbine that serves only to feed on its own exhaust. Unless a cogent plan is in place – one that is relevant to the 99.99% of the folks who actually pay for all the space stuff – this whole party will collapse in on itself (again) in 3.5 years.

Keith’s note: NASA PAO just provided this statement with regard to my post You Must Hide Your Pride At NASA (they waited 4 days to respond) which was cited in a press release from House Science Committee Democrats. To be clear: I stand by every single word in my post. Its real folks.

• NASA: “There are no new bans on any personal affects in employees’ workspaces. As always, the items must adhere to legal, safety, and NASA rules and guidelines. Some managers have been reminding employees to be mindful of what personal affects they have in their workspaces, but there are no penalties or warnings about being placed on administrative leave for displaying personal items.”

Keith’s note: Two weeks: Waiting to see if/when these Space-oriented organizations (list below) respond to newly announced personnel and diversity policy actions directly affecting NASA. Or not. They are just going to let this all happen. If y’all can’t be bothered to speak up then why should I bother?

Keith’s note: According to this little gem that was tossed online after hours on a Friday “NASA Adjusts Agreements to Benefit Commercial Station Development“ “We continue to see an immense amount of dedication from our partners,” said Angela Hart, manager of Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.“The agency is committed to continuing to work with industry with the goal having one or more stations in orbit to ensure competition, lower costs, and meet the demand of NASA and other customers.” Uh huh. Since when has NASA lowered the cost – of anything? This whole ISS vs Gateway/Artemis vs Orbital Reef vs Starlab vs Axiom vs Russia vs China vs Congress with regard to space stations is all going to result in an inelastic collision – soon. To some extent this announcement is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. The money is simply not there for everything, competing priorities are inherently non-synergistic, and in place of a coherent, national strategy – one that takes these things into account in a realistic way – we have a short-term, seat of the pants, ad hoc, fake it until you make it, free for all. Something has got to give since neither the money or a clear policy path are on the horizon. And the warning signs – if they are even apparent – will be ignored until it is too late. And expecting the National Space Council to do anything substantive is simply naive in the extreme. Oh then there’s the whole 2024 election thing and the fact that NASA has no idea when the moon walking resumes and … Just sayin’

Keith’s note: It is June 2022. The last time the National Space Council poked its head out through the curtains was December 2021. Six months. Does anyone know what they are doing? If you go to the official National Space Council Users’ Advisory Group (NSpC UAG) page at NASA you are greeted with banner image of the Trump Administration’s UAG. If you go to the membership roster page it lists […]

Nearly Half the Public Wants the U.S. to Maintain Its Space Dominance. Appetite for Space Exploration Is a Different Story, Morning Consult “Making space exploration a priority though, even during a pandemic, could bode well for Americans’ morale, Logsdon said, such as what happened with the first moon landing in 1969 that came on the heels of a decade of domestic and international civil unrest. “It was a counter balance […]

National Space Council Releases Report on Deep Space Exploration and Development Today, the National Space Council released “A New Era for Deep Space Exploration and Development,” a report prepared by the National Space Council staff in consultation with National Space Council members and the Users’ Advisory Group that describes the rationale and purpose for the Administration’s new direction in space. Deputy Assistant to the President and Executive Secretary of the […]

Space Council To Update 2010 National Space Policy, Space Policy Online “The White House National Space Council is looking at revising the existing U.S. National Space Policy, issued in 2010 during the Obama Administration. Space Council director Scott Pace said today he expects a lot of continuity with the existing policy, but enough has changed to warrant an update. Meanwhile, the head of Russia’s space agency blasted the White House’s […]

AIA’s Mike French on House NASA Authorization Act “The space policy community should be smiling. After record marks last month, we now have bipartisan, bicameral support across Congress and the Executive Branch to return to the Moon this decade and go on to Mars. On the eve of an anticipated strong budget request, I’m looking forward to working as a community to secure and fund this consensus.” Commercial Spaceflight Federation […]

Major Policy Issues in Evolving Global Space Operations, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies “This paper is designed to inform decision-makers and other interested parties on how the United States may develop national space policy to address the dynamic space environment, based on input from a variety of experts. The issues addressed here, such as space traffic management, small satellites, proximity operations, orbital debris, counterspace threats, and norms of behavior, were […]