April 24, 2012

Television Interview by Coalition Director

On the occasion of space shuttle Discovery's arrival for display at the National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center, Coalition Director Art Harman was interviewed by Washington, DC's WUSA-TV Channel 9; brief portions of which were used on air in this segment. Direct link: WUSA9.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=1567846126001

A sad but true remark in this same clip is former astronaut Dr. Anna Fisher telling a young aspiring astronaut to "study Russian" as advice on how to become an astronaut. Space X will be launching the first cargo delivery to the space station in early May, which will help pave the way for their manned flights, which could come as early as the "two to three years" target which Space X founder Elon Musk told Mr. Harman last year.

April 23, 2012

Letter to the Editor: One Penny (of the budget) for NASA


Read and share Coalition Director Art Harman's letter to the editor to the Washington Times; in support of astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson's proposal to double the NASA budget to just one penny on the dollar of the budget. Americans will not prosper if we let China become the undisputed leader in high tech and space.

(Excerpts) Sadly, I must agree with the Washington Times editorial “America, we have a problem” (Wednesday). Americans indeed watched the arrival of the Space Shuttle Discovery with bittersweet emotions as one of humanity’s greatest technological accomplishments majestically arrived to become a museum exhibit and a tribute to our past greatness.

Both NASA and commercial ventures are, in fact, building the next generation of launch vehicles, including the Space Launch System, which is capable of taking us to the moon, asteroids and Mars. But without setting specific, bold goals and timetables, NASA and space advocates face great impediments in arguing for exciting new missions and, even more urgently, in sparing NASA from even more cuts...

How can we maintain the lead in space and help launch our nation back toward a proud future? Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson recently testified to the U.S. Senate on the need to double NASA’s budget, which is less than half of 1 percent of the U.S. budget. An increase to just one penny on the budget dollar would not break the budget, particularly as far greater sums are being saved as U.S. forces are reduced in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Read the full text at: www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/apr/21/cutting-space-program-lets-others-overtake-us/

April 17, 2012

Discovery's Proud Arrival in Washington

Space shuttle Discovery arrived in Washington, DC today; greeting Washingtonians with an aerial treat as she toured the area before landing at Dulles where she will be on display for all to see at the National Air and Space Museum's Dulles location. Here is a collection of photos, taken by Coalition Director Art Harman across the Potomac River from the city, showing Discovery's graceful debut. Click on each photo for a larger image.

Local residents are encouraged to visit Discovery at the museum, and a special treat on April 19 will be Discovery and Enterprise parked nose-to-nose. On April 23, Enterprise will depart on the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft for the Intrepid museum in New York City, offering some area residents yet another chance to see a shuttle in the air. http://www.nasm.si.edu/collections/discovery/activity-detail.cfm?id=3783