National Space Council
Companies, international partners key to future lunar exploration
Entrepreneurs and international government agencies will play important roles in NASA’s future lunar exploration, according to speakers at the 2019 International Astronautical Congress here.
Pence added to IAC 2019 opening ceremony
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to speak during the opening ceremony of the 70th International Astronautical Congress here Oct. 21, the IAC’s organizers announced this week.
Administration policies seek to promote use of space nuclear power
A revised policy for approving the launch of spacecraft with nuclear power systems is the latest measure intended to support greater use of nuclear power systems in orbit and beyond.
Space Council recommendations address exploration and management concerns
Despite a strong public endorsement of NASA’s efforts to return humans to the moon as a step towards Mars, a series of recommendations approved by the National Space Council Aug. 20 highlight concerns about the agency’s plans to do so.
Space Council says NASA’s exploration programs “on track”
Nearly five months after directing NASA to accelerate its plans to return humans to the surface of the moon, Vice President Mike Pence said Aug. 20 that the agency’s efforts since then were “on track.”
U.S. Space Command and National Reconnaissance Office will join forces to defend space
The intelligence community and the DoD agreed to align U.S. Space Command and the NRO into a unified defense structure.
Executive order could reduce number of NASA advisory committees
An executive order calling for an across-the-board reduction in federal advisory groups could force NASA to shut down several of the committees that support the agency.
Advisory group seeks role evaluating NASA’s lunar plans
The advisory group of the National Space Council wants to take on a role evaluating NASA’s plans to return humans to the moon by 2024, once those plans are developed.
Space Council seeks urgency in NASA exploration plans
The National Space Council will likely press NASA at its upcoming meeting to speed up its plans to return humans to the moon as the agency continues to study alternative approaches for the next flight of its Orion spacecraft.
National Space Council to meet to discuss exploration plans
The National Space Council will hold its next public meeting March 26 to discuss NASA’s human space exploration plans.
Space council advisory group to study role of human space exploration supporting science
The advisory group for the National Space Council is looking at ways that NASA’s human exploration plans can also support space science, while acknowledging the lack of representation of the scientific community in the group.
Bush remembered for role shaping post-Cold War space policy
Despite serving just a single term in the White House, the late President George H.W. Bush is remembered as playing a key role in space policy as the country transitioned from the Cold War competition with the Soviet Union to a more cooperative relationship with Russia.
Advisory group skeptical of NASA lunar exploration plans
NASA’s plans to return humans to the surface of the moon within 10 years got a chilly reception from an advisory group Nov. 15, who called on the agency to accelerate that timeframe and reconsider development of the Gateway facility in lunar orbit.
National Space Council votes unanimously to send Space Force proposal to Trump
Trump is determined to make the new military branch a reality, Pence said. “He asks me about the Space Force every week.”
Space Force to be the topic of next National Space Council meeting
The status of proposals to create a separate branch of the U.S. military devoted to space will be the subject of the next meeting of the National Space Council on Oct. 23.
Space Council advisory group planning next meeting
Three months after its inaugural meeting, the advisory group supporting the National Space Council is working to organize itself and identify topics for study while preparing for its next full meeting.
