Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
Space shuttle managers will head to the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans on Nov. 13 to assess an interim redesign of the external tank's worrisome ice/frost ramps and decide whether or not it is an improvement over continuing to fly the ramps as-is. The ice/frost ramps -- buildups of insulating foam designed to prevent ice formation -- are the last major area of concern on the tank for debris release during launch. There are 34 ice/frost ramps on the tank, which is built at Michoud.
As it prepares to resume night launches next month, NASA is confident that it still will be able to gather useful imagery of the space shuttle during ascent, according to Program Manager Wayne Hale. "At this point, we're as confident as we're likely to get that it's safe to return" to night operations, Hale said during a news conference at Johnson Space Center in Houston Nov. 6.
Boeing's proposed PICA heat shield material is considered the leading candidate for protecting NASA's Orion spacecraft during re-entry into Earth's atmosphere, although the agency is moving forward with an alternative technology development program in case the PICA material runs into problems.
