Robert Zimmerman – Page 2761 – Behind The Black

A clarification of the Obama NASA manned space budget

February 14, 2011 4:07 pm Robert Zimmerman

To avoid confusion, I want to clarify why I consider Obama’s commercial space budget proposal today to be a decrease, not an increase, from past budget proposals. The history of this budget goes like this:

In February 2010 Obama proposed to spend $1 billion per year on new commercial space.
Congress responded by reducing that budget to $312 million for 2011 and $500 million per year thereafter.
The new Obama budget for 2012 proposes to spend $850 million per year for commercial space, more than presently authorized by Congress but less than proposed by Obama only last year.

It is almost certain that Congress will trim these numbers. Meanwhile, the amount of money to the program-formerly-called-Constellation goes up.

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NASA Probe Set for Big Valentine’s Day Date With a Comet

February 14, 2011 3:56 pm Robert Zimmerman

While politicians argue budgets here on Earth, the NASA probe Stardust is zooming in on its flyby of Comet Tempel 1 tonight.

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A victory for aerospace pork

February 14, 2011 1:52 pm Robert Zimmerman

Update: See my partial retraction here.

The NASA budget announced today by the White House proves how right I was when I stated back on July 8, 2010 that I had no faith in Obama’s new-found commitment to private commercial space. The new budget reduces the funds for private commercial space while putting the bulk of its support behind the unbuildable program-formerly-called Constellation. First read what I wrote in July:

The problem is that I simply do not believe the Obama administration. Everything I have learned about the current President, including the specifics (or lack thereof) of his proposal, tells me that none of his promises are going to be fulfilled. » Read more

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Obama sends Congress $3.73 trillion budget

February 14, 2011 1:27 pm Robert Zimmerman

Obama sends Congress his $3.73 trillion budget proposal.

Note that today is budget announcement day in Washington. The Obama administration is releasing its proposed federal budget for 2012, available for Congress to accept, revise, reject, change, or ignore. More shortly on what this means for NASA.

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Debt now equals total U.S. economy

February 14, 2011 1:07 pm Robert Zimmerman

Debt now equals total U.S. economy. And that’s according to the Obama administration!

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Astronauts simulate Mars landing

February 13, 2011 9:14 pm Robert Zimmerman

Astronauts on the Russian Mars500 simulated Mars mission simulated a Mars landing on Saturday. Key quote:

Three astronauts on the Mars500 simulated mission will make a simulated walk on the Mars “surface” Monday. After working 30 days on the simulated planet, the crew will then embark on a simulated 240-day return trip to Earth. Officials said the 520-day Mars500 mission is designed to test how humans cope with the physical and mental stresses of a long space flight.

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Obama’s new budget promises $1.1 trillion in deficit reduction over next decade

February 13, 2011 8:59 pm Robert Zimmerman

It ain’t enough but I like the trend: Obama’s new budget to be released tomorrow will promise $1.1 trillion in deficit reduction over next decade.

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Tuba Solo Fnugg Blue, played by Øystein Baadsvik

February 13, 2011 8:01 pm Robert Zimmerman

An evening pause: Believe it or not, a tuba solo, entitled Fnugg Blue, played by Øystein Baadsvik.

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Bernanke to Congress: We’re Much Closer to Total Destruction Than You Think

February 13, 2011 6:51 pm Robert Zimmerman

Bernanke to Congress: We’re much closer to total destruction than you think. Key quote:

One way or the other, fiscal adjustments sufficient to stabilize the federal budget must occur at some point. The question is whether these adjustments will take place through a careful and deliberative process that weighs priorities and gives people adequate time to adjust to changes in government programs or tax policies, or whether the needed fiscal adjustments will come as a rapid and painful response to a looming or actual fiscal crisis.

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