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In June 2009, Roscosmos informed the United States of its intention to develop an orbital research facility by the time the ISS is retired. This complex would be known as the Orbital Piloted Assembly and Experiment Complex (OPSEK). The Russian Multipurpose Laboratory Module and Node Module are expected to dock with the ISS in 2012, but whenever the decommissioning of the ISS occurs, Roscosmos intends to detach those modules to use as the basis for OPSEK.
Read MoreIn-space activities include research and development services, manufacturing, satellite refueling, and orbital debris clean-up. Most public and private funding for in-space activity is currently focused on research and development programs…
Read MoreIridium’s LEO constellation of ## active and ## spare satellites relay signals to each other directly, unlike other systems that require multiple hops between space and the ground to send signals around the world. In June 2010, the company named France’s Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor to construct the communications payload for Iridium’s second-generation, ##-satellite constellation Iridium NEXT.
Read MoreSpace activities in South Africa are funded through the Department of Science and Technology (DST). In FY 2011, which ran from April 2011 to March 2012, the DST planned to spend ## million rand (US$## million) on space activities executed through two programs: the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) and the Space Science Research, Development and Innovation subprogram. SANSA, established in 2008, planned an FY 2011 budget of ## million rand (US$## million).
Read MoreIn 2010, the global space workforce continued to weather the effects of the global financial crisis, recession, and ongoing economic uncertainty with relative resiliency. Declines in American space employment caused hardship but were relatively small compared to the overall global space workforce.
Read MoreNew commercial transportation services are in development to carry cargo, passengers, and astronauts into space. In the United States, the retirement of the Space Shuttle in July 2011 creates an opportunity for new commercial cargo transportation services to resupply the ISS. The Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, started in 2006, is designed to help develop U.S. commercial cargo transportation systems. Through Space Act Agreements, SpaceX and Orbital will receive up to $## million upon successful completion of their current agreements in 2012. In April 2011, NASA estimated that it would invest a total of $## million in the COTS program from its beginning in 2006 to its completion in 2012. This figure exceeds the original program cost estimate of $## million. The bulk of COTS funding has been directed to two launch vehicles and associated spacecraft: Orbital Sciences’ Antares (formerly Taurus II) rocket with its Cygnus spacecraft, and SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket with its Dragon spacecraft. Both SpaceX and Orbital have won contracts under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) initiative, a follow-on to the COTS program, to provide cargo supply services to the ISS. Under these contracts, SpaceX and Orbital are required to launch a total of 20 tons of cargo each to the ISS through 2016.
Read MoreTotal MSS revenues in 2010 reached $1.38 billion, an 8.8% increase over the previous year, and are expected to exceed $2.2 billion by 2020. The market is dominated by two…
Read MoreSTEM achievement in primary and secondary schools is an indicator of how well the United States is ensuring that students are later prepared to pursue STEM degrees, enabling them to enter the space workforce. Every two years, the U.S. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) uses standardized tests to rate the mathematics and science proficiency of fourth- and eighth-grade students.
Read MoreNote: This exhibit is from The Space Report 2012. In 2010 and 2011, several highly specialized satellites that utilize a relatively underused frequency range, called the Ka-band, were placed…
Read MoreIn calendar year 2011, South Korea spent an estimated ## billion won (US$## million) on civil space, a ##% decrease from the 2010 budget of ## billion won (US$## million). South Korea’s 2011 civil space spending constituted approximately ##% of the country’s ## trillion won (US$## billion) national budget. Civil space activities in South Korea are carried out primarily by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI).
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