United States
2009 – Bigelow Space Stations – Snapshot
Another type of in-space platform currently under development is Bigelow Aerospace’s Sundancer, an inflatable habitat tentatively scheduled for launch in 2011. Sundancer builds upon the success of the Genesis I and II demonstration modules, launched in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Sundancer is intended to accommodate experiments and support humans in orbit.
2009 – U.S. Suborbital – Snapshot
Although no suborbital human-rated vehicles flew in 2009, there was considerable progress by several companies actively developing such vehicles. Among the most visible of these was the formal unveiling in December 2009 of SpaceShipTwo, a suborbital vehicle built by The Spaceship Company, a joint venture of Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites. The event culminated a year of continued development of SpaceShipTwo and its carrier aircraft, WhiteKnightTwo. In May 2009, Virgin Galactic announced the beginning of tests of the rocket motor that will power SpaceShipTwo on its suborbital flights. The hybrid rocket motor uses a solid fuel and liquid nitrous oxide oxidizer developed by Sierra Nevada Corporation, the company that developed the rocket motor for SpaceShipOne.
2009 – U.S. Space Industry Employment – Snapshot
According to data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), more than a quarter million Americans are employed in the space industry. The most recent (2006) estimate by the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Commercial Space Transportation calculates the combined direct and indirect value of the U.S. space industry, including the secondary and tertiary economic activities it enables, at approximately $## billion.
2009 – Ground Networks – Snapshot
Ground stations are an essential but often overlooked segment of space infrastructure. Ground stations connect satellites to terrestrial networks and collect satellite information ranging from tracking and telemetry to imagery and scientific data. The stations also upload information to spacecraft, including command and control data, software upgrades, and other mission-critical instructions. Employees at some ground stations process, analyze, and distribute satellite-based data, products, and services.
2009 – Meteorology – Snapshot
NASA operates or participates in more than a dozen remote sensing satellites and international programs. The Jason satellite, a joint mission between France and the United States that follows the highly successful TOPEX/Poseidon altimeter mission, has measured an increasing rate of sea level rise. Data from the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) and Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites have shown rapid changes in the Earth’s ice sheets.
2009 – Earth Observation and Remote Sensing – Snapshot
Spacecraft are used to provide detailed images of the Earth and measure ocean temperature, vegetation coverage, pollution levels, and other phenomena. These remote sensing satellites are used for civil, scientific, and military applications. They make it possible to do everything from viewing an individual’s house on Google Earth and forecasting the path of potential hurricanes to providing key data for first responders in areas affected by natural disasters.
2009 – PISA Test Snapshot
An examination of PISA test scores among 14 countries active in space offers a more focused view of relative math and science literacy, which has implications for the numbers of STEM graduates each country produces and in turn the supply of STEM-skilled workers available for space-related professions. Exhibit 4bb shows national PISA test scores from 2009 for major space countries in mathematics and science.
2009 – Indian Government Space Budget – Snapshot
For FY 2009, the budget of India’s Department of Space (DOS), which includes funding for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and several smaller autonomous agencies, was ## billion rupees (US$## billion), an increase of ##% from the previous year’s budget of ## billion rupees.[
2009 – STEM Degrees Awarded – Snapshot
Note: This section’s exhibits are from The Space Report 2012. At the university level, the United States produced approximately 240,000 STEM-trained bachelor’s degree graduates, 75,000 master’s degree graduates, and 22,000 doctoral graduates in 2009. These graduates earned degrees in physical… Thank you for visiting The Space Report! The Authoritative Guide to Global Space Activity, Packed…
2009 – European Commission Space Budget – Snapshot
The 2009 budget of the European Commission includes €## billion (US$## billion) in funding for space-related programs. The EC space-related budget focuses on three primary areas: space research, security research, and European satellite navigation programs. The space and security research areas are executed through the EC’s Seventh Framework Program, which provides research and development funding to European Union member states on a competitive basis.