‘Made in Space’: Coming soon to a product near you, Reuters “Uhran notes that the timescale of a typical [Space station] research project is three to five years, which doesn’t easily mesh with corporate priorities like reaching sales or profit targets for the next quarter, or even the next year.” Keith’s note: So … what do Mark Uhran and his colleagues do about this issue (by no means a new […]

‘Made in Space’: Coming soon to a product near you, Reuters “The European Space Agency is hatching plans for a branding campaign aimed at making people more aware of the benefits of spending their hard-earned taxes on the International Space Station. …”It frustrates people, because we know we have a valuable asset,” Mark Uhran, NASA’s assistant associate administrator for the International Space Station, told Reuters at a conference in Berlin […]

Keith’s note: Sources report that ProOrbis is considering taking formal legal action against the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS). It is expected that this will be made public in the very near future. The specifics of this possible lawsuit are unclear. But it would beinstructive to recall that when Jeanne Becker, the first Executive Director of CASIS resigned, she said: “Unrealistic expectations have been levied collectively […]

Resignation Letter from CASIS Executive Director Jeanne L. Becker “Unrealistic expectations have been levied collectively by Congressional staffers, by NASA (Mr. Uhran) and by ProOrbis. These pressures have placed unnecessary stress and hardship on CASIS, not only organizationally but also on management, forcing a defensive posture with constant focus on mitigation strategies to fend off political threats of the elimination of CASIS. … Now, for unknown reasons, following selection of […]

Update: NASA Provides Media Interviews For Space Station National Lab Award “NASA has canceled the previously scheduled news conference on Friday, Sept. 9, about the award of the organization that will manage the portion of the International Space Station operated as a U.S. national laboratory. The briefing was canceled because the launch of the agency’s GRAIL mission has been postponed until Friday morning. NASA will offer in-person media interview opportunities […]

NASA Selects Nonprofit to Manage Space Station National Lab Research “NASA has selected the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space Inc. (CASIS) to develop and manage the U.S. portion of the International Space Station that will be operated as a national laboratory. At the conclusion of successful negotiations, the independent, nonprofit research management organization will help ensure the station’s unique capabilities are available to the broadest possible cross-section […]

Remarks by Mark L. Uhran Assistant Associate Administrator, International Space Station at STA Luncheon “So this brings us reasonably up to date. I can’t discuss many more details because we’re still in the competitive phase of acquiring this cooperative agreement, but I can say that NASA has received multiple proposals from a strong and highly competitive field. The selection decision is imminent, and you can expect an award announcement later […]

Keith’s note: According to the ISS National Lab Management Entity CAN the “anticipated selection announcement” was 31 May 2011. That day came and went last week. Nothing was announced. Given that it took decades for NASA to get this far – and that they only did so after Congressional direction – one can expect that they will drag their feet on this process as long as they can. Remarks by […]

Keith’s note: According to the ISS National Lab Management Entity CAN the “anticipated selection announcement” is 31 May 2011. NASA never wanted to go down this path to begin with. As such, it will be interesting to see what team NASA picks and whether the agency will ever truly yield any control of the ISS to an external entity – or allow any creative thinking to enter into the management […]

Concept to Implementation in as Little as Six Months “The National Laboratory Office sponsored some payloads that went into orbit in as little as 6 months, but that is not the norm at this time. A developer is already in the assembly process on their end for the payload, rather than in the development stage of their idea. An amazing turnaround like this is for known re-flight science, not for […]