One company’s pioneering gambit in low-Earth orbit — New backing and headaches for NASA — Is the James Webb telescope finally rounding the corner?

Delivered every Friday, POLITICO Space examines the policies and personalities shaping the second space age.

May 14, 2021 View in browser   By Bryan Bender Quick Fix — A ticket to ride, work and live in space: New spinoff Sierra Space's aggressive plan to build a low-Earth orbit economy. — A Senate panel advances key goals for NASA, including extending the life of the space station, but also throws a wrench in moon plans. — The James Webb Space Telescope has big plans for Halloween, but the GAO warns again it may not be ready for the party. WELCOME TO POLITICO SPACE, our must-read briefing on the policies and personalities shaping the new space age in Washington and beyond. Email us at bbender@politico.com with tips, pitches and feedback, and find us on Twitter at @bryandbender . And don't forget to check out POLITICO's astropolitics page for articles, Q&As and more. Space Spotlight 'THE WHOLE SHEBANG': As Sierra Nevada Corporation gears up to spin off its space business into the wholly owned subsidiary Sierra Space, it is sharpening its aggressive plans to pioneer a low-Earth orbit economy. At the center is its Dream Chaser space plane, which will land on NASA's former space shuttle runway, and the company's inflatable space habitats. "I think that we will be able to accelerate these plans for getting out there and doing these things faster if we carve out and have our own management team that's really fully dedicated to space operations and space exploitation, which is different from our previous combined efforts with Sierra Nevada Corporation," said Janet Kavandi, who is Sierra Nevada's executive vice president for space programs. Kavandi, who made three trips to the International Space Station herself and retired as director of NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio in 2019, said Sierra is thinking outside the box (and not just by airing ads during Elon Musk's "Saturday Night Live" appearance last weekend). "We really want to accelerate the ability to create an integrated infrastructure in space, especially in the lower orbit regime," she said. At the center of Sierra Space's plans is its Dream Chaser space plane, which will land on NASA's former space shuttle runway, and the company's inflatable space habitats. | Getty Images The company offers a uniquely complementary pair of options. It's ramping up production of the Dream Chaser, and Kavandi pegs the initial goal to be somewhere in the range of 10-15 reusable spacecraft. The plane is already under contract with NASA to resupply the ISS beginning in 2022. But its independent orbiting habitats are where the action will take place. "They launch inside a regular spacecraft so whenever you get out there, you can inflate them to a three-story habitat," Kavandi explained. "One launch you get the whole large volume, with power, solar arrays, radiators. You have the whole shebang there. It makes it much more efficient. Fewer launches, a lot more volume, some more bang for the buck." Connecting more than one station is also part of the vision. "When we create a whole space platform, then we have the ability to really use each module for different purposes, or even each floor of the modules for different tenants, whether you create a whole laboratory or a whole habitat for the hoteling purpose." The habitats, which will be able to accommodate up to six people, will be serviced by the cargo version of the Dream Chaser, the world's only commercial space plane. "We want to have our station up and operating and gone through its paces and ready to accept tenants by the 2026 timeframe," she added, "with at least one to two modules to start with. Maybe three. It depends on who all is interested in coming out." So who's going? She cited a host of anticipated government and commercial customers, including "international partners that haven't ever had the opportunity to go to space." She also said there is a lot of interest in booking space vacations so that tourists, who may also prefer landing on a runway rather than parachuting back to Earth, can "actually go up and spend some time in orbit and not just go up and free fall back down but actually be a true astronaut and spend time up there in space." The new company, which will officially become Sierra Space on June 1, expects its space revenues to grow from $400 million annually to $4 billion over the next decade. On the Hill MAJOR MOVES: The Senate Commerce Committee this week adopted a series of major changes impacting NASA and the space program, including authorizing the extension of operations on the ISS from 2024 to 2030 and accelerating development of the "exploration upper stage" of the Space Launch System rocket. But the biggest news was a provision added by panel Chair Maria Cantwell of Washington to require NASA to fund at least two commercial designs for a Human Landing System to bring astronauts to the surface of the moon. It mandates that within 30 days of passage, NASA "shall maintain competitiveness within the Human Landing System program by funding design, development, testing and evaluation for not fewer than 2 entities." The measure is the first step in Congress' effort to intervene in the unpopular decision last month to go with only SpaceX's Starship vehicle. Competing teams led by Blue Origin and Dynetics have filed protests with the Government Accountability Office. "America is at its best when we are innovating, competing and exploring," Cantwell, a major supporter of Blue Origin, said after the adoption of the Endless Frontier Act, which wrapped together a series of bills, in executive session. Tech giant Jeff Bezos' space company hailed the move. "We're pleased that the Senate Commerce Committee recognized the importance of competition in NASA's Human Landing System program," Blue Origin said in a statement. "Continued competition will safeguard America's space industrial base and get America back to the Moon as quickly as possible." NASA was mum on how the development, if it becomes law, would impact the HLS program and the 2024 goal to return to the moon. "NASA is unable to comment on the proposed amendment due to ongoing litigation of the recent Human Landing System selection," the agency said in a statement. But we heard from several agency insiders that it didn't go over well. The provision would effectively require the agency to go back to the drawing board on the acquisition, they warned. Eric Berger at Ars Technica called it a "warning shot" to NASA. "With her amendment, Cantwell seems to be saying that if Blue Origin can't be included in the program, Artemis shouldn't move forward," he wrote on Thursday. The better news? Cantwell's legislation would also authorize a major boost in the overall budget for the Artemis program to return to the moon by 2024 to more than $10 billion, but does not include any appropriations. Some other NASA highlights: The legislation would authorize "a series of X-plane demonstrators that will focus on energy efficiency" and to develop a low-boom supersonic aircraft. It also directs the space agency "to create a skilled technical education outreach program to expose K-12 students to skilled technical occupations at NASA centers." Here is a useful summary of some of the bill's other provisions. Related: NASA, Axiom agree to first private astronaut mission on space station, via NASA. In Orbit TELESCOPE TIME? The James Webb Space Telescope, one of NASA's most complex science endeavors ever, is undergoing final tests before being shipped this summer to French Guiana for an expected Halloween launch, as Science reports. But the replacement for the Hubble telescope, which is now legendary for its schedule delays and cost overruns, is not out of the woods yet, according to a new assessment from the GAO published on Thursday. Things have definitely improved: "The project is managing 39 risks — 11 fewer than when GAO reported in January 2020," the congressional watchdog said. But among them are numerous issues that NASA says will have to be managed after launch, "including those related to sunshield deployment and the functionality of the observatory's sensitive, near-infrared camera. Some of these risks could result in loss of mission, but NASA assessed that they are unlikely to occur." Another potential wrinkle: The rocket that is supposed to carry it into orbit, the Arianne V, has recently experienced what Space News described this week as "the separation of the faring induced vibrations into the payload stack well above acceptable limits." Given the fragile nature of the telescope's components, which are being integrated by Northrop Grumman, that's a big worry. The bottom line: the launch is likely to be delayed again. It's just par for the course, unfortunately. "The cost of the telescope has nearly doubled — to $9.7 billion — since 2009," as GAO points out. "Its launch, now planned for October 2021, has been delayed over 7 years." Related: James Webb Space Telescope's golden mirror in final test, via BBC. Industry Intel TRUST ISSUES: The public slugfest over Lockheed Martin's proposed acquisition of Aerojet Rocketdyne continues unabated as the Federal Trade Commission deliberates behind closed doors on whether it poses antitrust problems. An antitrust advocacy group, the Centrist Democrats of America, urged President Joe Biden to nix the deal, reiterating that it believes there is a "compelling case as to why your Administration should block this potential acquisition" because it could stifle competition with the other contractors that rely on Aerojet's rocket propulsion technologies, including Boeing, Raytheon Technologies and Northrop Grumman. A new ally? Depending on the timing of the FTC's decision, opponents could have a new ally in Frank Kendall, Biden's nominee to be secretary of the Air Force. "U.S. antitrust authorities could gain a powerful ally in Frank Kendall if the former Pentagon acquisitions chief is confirmed as Secretary of the US Air Force," Curtis Eichelberger, who covers mergers and acquisitions for MLex in Washington, wrote in an analysis this week. "Kendall has expressed concerns about consolidation in the defense industry and has even advocated for working with Congress to explore legal tools and policies that would preserve diversity and innovation among defense companies." But Lockheed appears as confident as ever that its case is solid. On Thursday, Chief Financial Officer Ken Possenriede told the Goldman Sachs Industrials and Materials Conference that "We think it makes sense for this acquisition to occur … and we believe we could see this thing close by the end of the year." "When we were doing due diligence with them, it was clear to us that they would be a better supplier, not just to Lockheed Martin, but to industry," he said. Making Moves Robert Cabana, who has served as director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida since 2008, has been tapped to be associate administrator, the agency's top civil servant, NASA announced this week. He replaces Steve Jurczyk, who held the post since 2018 and also served as acting NASA administrator from Jan. 20 to May 3. Janet Petro, who has served as deputy director of the Kennedy space center since 2007, is now acting center director. TRIVIA Congratulations to Jens Mondry of Germany for correctly answering that it was a compass that Albert Einstein's father gave him when he was five years old that changed his life, and that it was philosopher Immanuel Kant who most shaped his worldview. THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: Who was the first non-super power astronaut to travel to space and why was he recently in the news? The first person to email bbender@politico.com gets bragging rights and a shoutout in the next newsletter! Reading Room — In wide-ranging interview, Bill Nelson lays out his vision for NASA: The Washington Post — Senate Intelligence chairman wants further review of decision to relocate U.S. Space Command: Space News — What if space junk and climate change become the same problem? The New York Times — SpaceX reveals plans for first orbital Starship test flight: Futurist — Space Force seeks bids for rocket engine testing and space transportation technologies: Space News — OneWeb to buy TrustComm after recent demo for Pentagon: Aviation Week — SpaceX's Gwynne Shotwell as Blue Origin's CEO? New book about Jeff Bezos says she was asked: GeekWire — China plans to land first rover on Mars today: India Today — Russian-founded space start-up faces national security pressure: Foreign Policy — Australia gets first space commander: Australian Broadcasting Corporation — Japanese billionaire, Russian actress to fly to ISS: Space News — Is war in space inevitable? Space.com — Don't forget to water the plants in space: NASA Event Horizon MONDAY: The Space Force Association hosts an event with Brig. Gen. Mike Adamson, the Canadian Air Force's space commander, at 1 p.m. MONDAY: The United Nations kicks off a multi-day webinar series on responsible behavior in outer space at 9 a.m. TUESDAY: The House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics holds a hearing on NASA's earth science and climate change activities at 11 a.m. WEDNESDAY: The Space Foundation hosts a discussion with space reporters at 1 p.m. THURSDAY: The Aerospace Corporation's Space Policy Show tackles the space industrial base at 1 p.m.   Follow us on Twitter Bryan Bender @bryandbender Dave Brown @dave_brown24   Follow us

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