The European Union is keen to set up its own network of space surveillance assets that could track spy satellites and near-Earth objects, help satellite operators avoid orbital-debris collisions and protect critical infrastructure when spent spacecraft or other objects enter Earth's atmosphere. (Photo: NASA)
A Lunar X-Prize contender plans to mount a commercial mission to the Moon as a step toward a private lunar sample-return flight around 2020 and ultimately, perhaps, lunar mining for water and valuable minerals. Moon Express Inc.—a strong contender in the $30 million Google Lunar X-Prize competition—says it will mount a follow-on mission to the Moon's south pole in partnership with the International Lunar Observatory Association (ILOA), one of the piggyback customers for its X-Prize entry.
As the European Union's biggest defense powers pare back military budgets, the crisis in public spending is bolstering the EU's case for taking on more responsibility in the realm of defense, space and security. The European Commission (EC) issued a long-awaited slate of broad policy proposals last month that would harmonize defense commerce in Europe, develop common standards, fund dual-use R&D and ultimately see the EU's executive arm purchase and operate its own military hardware.
Tap on the icon in the digital edition of AW&ST for an interactive map with more on the U.S. missile defense sensor architecture, or go to AviationWeek.com/misdef
Arabsat has signed a contract to build its new headquarters in the diplomatic quarter in Riyadh. The new building will be constructed on land provided by the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and covers an area of nearly 14,000 square meters.
The Global Space and Satellite Forum in Abu Dhabi has heard how US-based ViviSat plans to extend the life of geosynchronous satellites that are running out of fuel with its Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV).
FALCON FLIGHT: Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) is set to launch three Canadian-built C-band Earth-observation radar satellites for MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates under a “launch reservation contract” awarded to the Hawthorne, Calif.-based launch service provider July 30. Funded by the Canadian Space Agency, the Radarsat Constellation Mission is designed to continue the C-band dataset of earlier Radarsats with as many as four daily passes over Canadian territory and “several” passes a day over the Northwest Passage.
Despite NASA being an early pioneer in the field of cloud computing, the agency’s cloud-based systems and data could be at risk due to weaknesses in its IT oversight, according to the agency’s Inspector General (IG).
FRANKFURT — EADS has decided to make significant changes to its corporate structure and put the entire company under the Airbus brand. The board of directors followed a proposal put forward by CEO Tom Enders to change the company’s name to Airbus Group. Defense and space units Cassidian and Astrium will be merged and called Airbus Defense and Space. Eurocopter also will lose its current brand and be re-launched as Airbus Helicopters.
EADS has decided to make significant changes to its corporate structure and put the entire company under the Airbus brand. The board of directors approval followed a proposal put forward by CEO Tom Enders to change the company’s name to Airbus Group. Defense and space units Cassidian and Astrium will be merged and called Airbus Defense and Space. Eurocopter also will lose its current brand and be re-launched as Airbus Helicopters.
PARIS — The launch manifests of NASA’s two commercial cargo service providers will bump up against one another in December when Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) and Orbital Sciences Corp. are slated to send competing rockets and spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). NASA says both missions were intentionally scheduled for the end of 2013 in anticipation that one will experience delays in meeting target launch dates.
LOST ALLY: Deputy NASA Administrator Lori Garver is losing a key ally in her ongoing battles with more traditional NASA management. President Barack Obama has named Beth Robinson, NASA’s chief financial officer, as undersecretary of energy, that department’s No. 3 post. A Ph.D.
FRANKFURT — Berhard Gerwert is expected to be named as the CEO of EADS’ new joint defense and space unit. Industry sources tell Aviation Week that the current CEO of EADS defense division Cassidian will run the joint entity. The future of Astrium’s current CEO, Francois Auque, is unclear.
EADS’s board of directors is scheduled to meet today to approve sweeping changes to the group that, if approved, will renamed the company Airbus Group and reduce the number of divisions from four to three. The new structure will merge EADS’s defense and space operations into one entity, which will be called Airbus Systems. Berhard Gerwert, currently head of EADS’s defense unit Cassidian, is expected to be named CEO of the new unit, industry sources tell Aviation Week. The future of Francois Auque, CEO of EADS’s Astrium space division, is unclear.
