NASA takes first step back to moon

Congress OKs budget with $24 million for Marshall programs

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

By SHELBY G. SPIRES

Times Aerospace Writer shelbys@htimes.com

President Bush's plan to send astronauts back to the moon passed its first critical step Saturday when Congress approved NASA's 2005 budget, space experts say.

The $16.2 billion NASA budget includes $24 million for space shuttle and space exploration programs at Marshall Space Flight Center. The bill also includes $2 million for space science research at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and $800,000 for science research at Alabama A&M University.

The fiscal year began Oct. 1, and NASA centers have been waiting to begin work on the exploration plans.

"The question now is, what (is NASA) going to do with the money?" said Dennis Wingo, a Huntsville-based space entrepreneur. "NASA has to follow up on its promises. There's a lot of work to come."

Wingo, who runs the Huntsville-based space contractor SkyCorp Inc., said NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe's close relationship with the White House helped NASA get the money it needed.

"This is the first time since James Webb and John Kennedy that we have the same confluence of power between a NASA administrator and a president," he said. "It works for NASA.

"Now the ball is in NASA's court to make it work."

Also included in the budget is more than $4 billion for space shuttle operations next year. NASA plans to return the shuttle to flight status in May or June.

NASA leaders must update Congress within two months on the cost of returning the shuttle to flight and of building a robot probe to save the Hubble Space Telescope.

The space shuttle has been grounded since the orbiter Columbia broke apart on re-entry Feb. 1, 2003, taking the lives of seven astronauts. NASA canceled a planned Hubble servicing mission this year. Without that mission, the Hubble could tumble back to Earth in the next seven or eight years, space experts believe.

Hubble was developed and managed in Huntsville in the 1970s and '80s.

Also in this budget, Marshall will get money for development of nuclear power and propulsion for spacecraft and for safety improvements for the space shuttle main engine program office here.

"This is a wonderful first step" for renewed space exploration, said NASA Advisory Council member Mark McDaniel, a Huntsville lawyer. "It's obviously very favorable for the nation, NASA and for Marshall Space Flight Center."

The White House had asked Congress to approve about a $1 billion increase to lay the groundwork for the lunar exploration program, and this budget provided about $900,000 more than last year's $15.3 billion budget.

The NASA budget request included money for lunar probes and designs of the Crew Exploration Vehicle - the spacecraft NASA wants to use to shuttle astronauts to and from the space station, the moon and possibly Mars.

Tight spending, election year politics and the war in Iraq caused Congress to bicker over the NASA budget since it was proposed. At one point, spending committees removed the new space exploration requests and set no increase in the NASA budget.

"This was a crucial budget battle to win," said George Whitesides, director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Space Society. "If this didn't happen, then God knows where space exploration would have gone.

"Now that it has been endorsed, it will go forward."

Whitesides said the Aldridge Commission, a space expert panel appointed by the president to study returning to the moon, suggested "we, as a country, need to start looking at space as an infrastructure investment. We have to build that infrastructure. NASA's budget isn't going anywhere, but the question now is how we spend it."

Getting the NASA money was a fight for the Bush administration, McDaniel said.

"It says a lot that the White House took this on," he said. "This shows that President Bush is really behind it. ... At least for four years we'll have a vision for NASA. I hope it goes well beyond that.

"Under (the Bush) plan, it has to go out maybe 40 years."

The 2005 budget is only an initial investment to return to the moon and possibly even explore Mars, space experts say. The Congressional Budget Office estimates a moon mission likely will cost at least $64 billion and maybe more than $100 billion.




NASA takes first step back to moon Congress OKs budget with $24 million for Marshall programs Tuesday, November 23, 2004 By SHELBY G. SPIRES Times Aerospace Writer shelbys@htimes.com President Bush's plan to send astronauts back to the moon passed its first critical step Saturday when Congress approved NASA's 2005 budget, space experts say. The $16.2 billion NASA budget includes $24 million for space shuttle and space exploration programs at Marshall Space Flight Center. The bill also includes $2 million for space science research at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and $800,000 for science research at Alabama A&M University. The fiscal year began Oct. 1, and NASA centers have been waiting to begin work on the exploration plans. "The question now is, what (is NASA) going to do with the money?" said Dennis Wingo, a Huntsville-based space entrepreneur. "NASA has to follow up on its promises. There's a lot of work to come." Wingo, who runs the Huntsville-based space contractor SkyCorp Inc., said NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe's close relationship with the White House helped NASA get the money it needed. "This is the first time since James Webb and John Kennedy that we have the same confluence of power between a NASA administrator and a president," he said. "It works for NASA. "Now the ball is in NASA's court to make it work." Also included in the budget is more than $4 billion for space shuttle operations next year. NASA plans to return the shuttle to flight status in May or June. NASA leaders must update Congress within two months on the cost of returning the shuttle to flight and of building a robot probe to save the Hubble Space Telescope. The space shuttle has been grounded since the orbiter Columbia broke apart on re-entry Feb. 1, 2003, taking the lives of seven astronauts. NASA canceled a planned Hubble servicing mission this year. Without that mission, the Hubble could tumble back to Earth in the next seven or eight years, space experts believe. Hubble was developed and managed in Huntsville in the 1970s and '80s. Also in this budget, Marshall will get money for development of nuclear power and propulsion for spacecraft and for safety improvements for the space shuttle main engine program office here. "This is a wonderful first step" for renewed space exploration, said NASA Advisory Council member Mark McDaniel, a Huntsville lawyer. "It's obviously very favorable for the nation, NASA and for Marshall Space Flight Center." The White House had asked Congress to approve about a $1 billion increase to lay the groundwork for the lunar exploration program, and this budget provided about $900,000 more than last year's $15.3 billion budget. The NASA budget request included money for lunar probes and designs of the Crew Exploration Vehicle - the spacecraft NASA wants to use to shuttle astronauts to and from the space station, the moon and possibly Mars. Tight spending, election year politics and the war in Iraq caused Congress to bicker over the NASA budget since it was proposed. At one point, spending committees removed the new space exploration requests and set no increase in the NASA budget. "This was a crucial budget battle to win," said George Whitesides, director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Space Society. "If this didn't happen, then God knows where space exploration would have gone. "Now that it has been endorsed, it will go forward." Whitesides said the Aldridge Commission, a space expert panel appointed by the president to study returning to the moon, suggested "we, as a country, need to start looking at space as an infrastructure investment. We have to build that infrastructure. NASA's budget isn't going anywhere, but the question now is how we spend it." Getting the NASA money was a fight for the Bush administration, McDaniel said. "It says a lot that the White House took this on," he said. "This shows that President Bush is really behind it. ... At least for four years we'll have a vision for NASA. I hope it goes well beyond that. "Under (the Bush) plan, it has to go out maybe 40 years." The 2005 budget is only an initial investment to return to the moon and possibly even explore Mars, space experts say. The Congressional Budget Office estimates a moon mission likely will cost at least $64 billion and maybe more than $100 billion. Copyright 2004 al.com. All Rights Reserved.