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SpaceX’s DM-2 mission lifts off from Kennedy Space Center. Photo: NASA
Space

Republican Congressman Mike Waltz Shapes Military & Civilian Space Policy


• Republican Congressman Mike Waltz has been focusing a lot on space. Two of his House committees are working on budgets affecting both the military and civilian side of the industry. One committee helped move a National Defense Authorization Act which expands the newly created U.S. Space Force and the other committee is laying the groundwork for NASA’s next budget. Waltz represents Florida’s 6th congressional district. 90.7’s space reporter Brendan Byrne spoke with Waltz about the space budgets, and the growing need for more space-based defenses. Interview highlights On U.S. space defense policy: I think we really  fell behind in some ways with sequestration, which were which were the kind of across the board budget cuts. I think frankly, not to …
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MacDill Air For Base in Tampa hosts two combatant command groups. Photo: Air Force
Space

The Air Force’s Space Command Is Looking For A New Home. These 8 Florida Communities Are In The Running.


• Governor Ron DeSantis nominated eight Florida communities to compete for the Air Force’s Space Command headquarters.  Cities and counties across the country are vying to host a new combatant command group called Space Command which streamlines space-based technology and defenses across the military. Hosting Space Command will bring more than 1,000 military personnel jobs to the area as well as defense contract opportunities. In Florida, Brevard, Orange, Seminole, Miami-Dade, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, along with the cities of Jacksonville and Pensacola, all submitted nomination letters to the Air Force. Now, the Air Force will send additional questionnaires to the applicants. The agency plans to make a recommendation to the president next year. Space Command is different from the U.S. Space …
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NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, is a mobile robot that will roam around the Moon’s south pole looking for water ice. Photo: NASA
Space

The Deep Space Economy


• Commercial space is booming — fueled by fresh cash, lots of new rockets and a change in how NASA works with private companies. What’s ahead for this new chapter in private space business?
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Rendering of Space Perspective’s Spaceship Neptune in flight over Florida’s Space Coast. Photo: Space Perspective
Space

Space Tourism Promises Fresh Perspective Of Planet Earth


• As early as next year, space tourism company Space Perspective will ferry humans to the edge of space using a giant hydrogen-filled balloon. The capsule will have all the comforts of home – like a bar and a bathroom – and promises breathtaking views of the curvature of the Earth and blackness of space. As more and more space tourism ventures come online, how will greater access to space change how humans perceive this planet?
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First three Black astronauts to go to space, including Ronald McNair, Guy Bluford and Fred Gregory from the class of 1978 selection of astronauts. Photo: NASA
Space

Race In Space


• Protests across the country have highlighted systemic racism and turned the national conversation towards equality and justice. So how does racial inequality affect space exploration?
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