A couple days ago, two space activist organizations put out action alerts urging Americans interested in progress in space to support two critical budget items for NASA’s next fiscal year. First, the Space Frontier Foundation, a group that views space as a new frontier for humanity, and advocates government policies to treat it that way, published a call to action at its web site, along with emails to its supporters. Not long afterward, the Space Access Society, an organization dedicated to reducing the costs of getting into space, put out a similar one.
In both cases, the groups asked their followers to contact their representatives and urge them to support the full administration funding request for NASA’s Commercial Crew and the Space Technology Programs. From the SAS release:
“NASA Space Technology Program (STP) – America must invest in new technology to stay ahead of foreign space powers like Russia and China. NASA’s Space Technology Program, which now includes Exploration Technology Development and Demonstration (ETDD), is NASA’s primary cutting edge R&D initiative. STP/ETDD funding enables NASA’s research centers and America’s small businesses and innovators to assure America’s leadership in space. We support funding at the requested level of $1,024,200,000.”
Why this week? As the releases explain, the leadership of the committees that oversee NASA, and particularly Frank Wolf (R-VA), the chairman of the relevant appropriations committee has done something both unusual and praiseworthy — they have actually decided to poll the full House for input on what should be funded and what should be cut in the coming austere budgetary environment. A few weeks ago, these same groups led an effort to express their dissatisfaction with the earmark for the Senate’s rocket to nowhere. This time, they want to take the opportunity to make clear what they are (and what they think that Congress should be) for.
The first initiative will help to significantly reduce the cost of getting into space, not just for NASA astronauts, but for anyone else who wants to go, enabling among other things the development of private orbital facilities (such as those planned by Bigelow Aerospace) that have primarily been awaiting cost-effective transportation. It will serve a similar function for space transportation that the early use of airmail did in creating the airline industry. Also, as noted above, it is the fastest, surest route to ending our dependence on the Russians for access to our own space station.
The second program funds the key technologies needed to reduce the costs of getting beyond earth orbit, enabling human exploration and development of other destinations, whether the moon, asteroids or other planets such as Mars. Unlike the Senate Launch System, which is unnecessary for human space exploration (but crucial for maintaining legacy jobs), these technologies are on the critical path to the stars. I would encourage readers interested in actual accomplishment in the development of space to read the press releases, and contact your own representatives by noon tomorrow.
