THE WEBB TELESCOPE IS NASA’S HURRICANE KATRINA, A DEVASTATING FORCE THAT HAS GUTTED ASTROPHYSICS RESEARCH-Kelly ‘11

[John; reporter; NASA’a James Webb Space Telescope Billions Over Budget, 7 Years Late; Floriday Today; 06 Jun 2011; http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=195686; retrieved 26 Jul 2011]

Alan Boss, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington who chairs NASA's independent advisory committee on astronomy research, worries the project could eat up a growing share of the nation's funding for astronomy and space science.

He's gone so far as to call the telescope's woes "NASA's Hurricane Katrina."

NASA has since removed the project from its astrophysics budget, making it a higher priority and less of a drain there. But it's still part of the overall science portfolio, drawing from a limited pot of money. Cash spent on Webb can't be spent on other science, Boss said. NASA concedes Webb will be a priority.

Until the issues with Webb are resolved, Boss said, "everything is on hold with regard to funding for any major new projects."
THE TELESCOPE WILL DEVASTATE NASA’S ASTROPHYSICS BUDGET-Chang ‘10

[Kenneth; staff writer; Telescope is Behind Schedule and Over Budget, Panel Says; New York Times; 10 Nov 2010;

“The bottom line was that there was just not enough money in the budget to execute the work that was required,” said the review panel’s leader, John R. Casani, a former project manager for NASA’s successful Voyager, Galileo and Cassini missions.

The report raised fear that other projects would be hurt. “This is NASA’s Hurricane Katrina,” said Alan P. Boss, who leads the subcommittee that advises NASA’s astrophysics program. The telescope, he said, “will leave nothing but devastation in the astrophysics division budget.”
THE BEST CASE FOR THE WEBB TELESCOPE FUNDING WILL WIPE OUT ASTROPHYSICS BUDGET FOR A DECADE-Klamper ‘10

[Amy; JWST's Latest $1.5B Cost Overrun Imperils Other High-priority Projects; Space News; 12 Nov 2010; http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101112-jwst-cost-imperils-priority-projects.html; retrieved 26 Jul 2011]

“Even at the best case, the $1.5 billion upper will virtually wipe out the inspirations of the newly released decadal survey in astrophysics for 2010-2020,” said Stern, who currently is associate vice president of the Southwest Research Institute’s Space Science and Engineering Division in Boulder, Colo.

[Amy; JWST's Latest $1.5B Cost Overrun Imperils Other High-priority Projects; Space News; 12 Nov 2010; http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101112-jwst-cost-imperils-priority-projects.html; retrieved 26 Jul 2011]

During a Nov. 10 news conference, NASA released the findings of an independent review that found the JWST will cost some $1.5 billion more than its current $5 billion life-cycle cost estimate, and that the observatory’s launch, previously slated for June 2014, will not occur before September 2015. Led by John Casani of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., the Independent Comprehensive Review Panel attributed JWST cost growth to poor management and inadequate funding reserves needed to develop, launch and operate the next-generation flagship astronomy mission.

“Are we going to turn off all the many existing astrophysics satellites and kill the support to analyze the data from them and stop building anything else, just so JWST can continue to overrun?” Stern said. “That’s the question that the astrophysics community has to ask of itself, and that NASA should be asking.”

[Lee; Space Science: The Telescope that Ate Astronomy; Nature’ 27 Oct 2010; http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101027/full/4671028a.html; retrieved 25 Jul 2011]

[John; reporter; NASA’a James Webb Space Telescope Billions Over Budget, 7 Years Late; Floriday Today; 06 Jun 2011; http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=195686; retrieved 26 Jul 2011]

NASA now says the telescope can't launch until at least 2018, though outside analysts suggest the flight could slip past 2020. The latest estimated price tag: up to $6.8 billion. NASA admits the launch delay will push the bill even higher.

And, scientists are worried the cost growth and schedule delays are gobbling up more and more of the nation's astronomy budget and NASA's attention, threatening funding for other space science programs.

Some fear the dilemma will get worse if the replanning work this summer forces NASA to shift billions more science dollars to Webb to get it back on track.

SOLVENCY: SECRECY IS DANGEROUS

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

In this light, Space.com reporter Jeremy Hsu wrote May 5, that ambiguities in devising militarized space technology "can make it tricky for nations to gauge the purpose or intentions behind new prototypes." And such uncertainties are precisely the fodder that fuel an arms race.

According to GlobalSecurity.org's John Pike, the U.S. military "could even be using the cloak of mystery to deliberately bamboozle and confuse rival militaries." Pike told Space.com that "the X-37B and HTV-2 projects could represent the tip of a space weapons program hidden within the Pentagon's secret 'black budget,' or they might be nothing more than smoke and mirrors."
MILITARY DENIALS ABOUT THE X-37B SHOULD BE QUESTIONED-Burghardt ‘10

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

Needless to say, such denials should be taken with the proverbial grain of salt.

The highly-classified program has a checkered history. According to GlobalSecurity.org, the project is envisaged as a "reusable space architecture" that would provide "aircraft-like operability, flexibility, and responsiveness, supporting AF Space Command mission areas."
X-37B IS A SECRETIVE, MILITARY PROGRAM-Antczak ‘10

[John; AP writer; Air Force to Launch Robotic Winged Space Plane; Physorg.com; 03 Apr 2010; http://www.physorg.com/news189528362.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

"As long as you're confused you're in good shape," said defense analyst John Pike, director of Globalsecurity.org. "I looked into this a couple of years ago - the entire sort of hypersonic, suborbital, scramjet nest of programs - of which there are upwards of a dozen. The more I studied it the less I understood it."

The quietly scheduled launch culminates the project's long and expensive journey from NASA to the Pentagon's research and development arm and then to a secretive Air Force unit.

SOLVENCY: X-37B IS PERCEIVED AS SPACE WEAPON

[The Weaponization of Space: US to Launch Secret 'Space Warplane'; Global Research; 20 April 2010; http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=18752; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

He added that the project could be viewed "as the logical extension of the push into unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) where vehicles used for observation have moved into weapon carriers and various other missions, many classified."

"From the perspective of international observers, especially in space-aspiring states such as China, the X-37B program just reinforces their view that the U.S. is pushing to gain first mover advantage in rapid response, including possible weaponization of space using this vehicle or a derivative," Handberg noted.
THE X-37B WOULD BE SEEN AS A VIOLATION OF THE OUTER SPACE TREATY-Global Research ‘10

[The Weaponization of Space: US to Launch Secret 'Space Warplane'; Global Research; 20 April 2010; http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=18752; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

The Outer Space Treaty of 1967, officially known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, states that the exploration and use of outer space shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interests of all countries and shall be the province of all mankind; states shall not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in outer space in any other manner; the Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively for peaceful purposes; astronauts shall be regarded as the envoys of mankind; states shall be liable for damage caused by their space objects; and states shall avoid harmful contamination of space and celestial bodies.

[Tariq; Space.com writer; Air Force says X37-B space plane is not a weapon; Christian Science Monitor; 23 April 2010; http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2010/0423/Air-Force-says-X37-B-space-plane-is-not-a-weapon; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

"In any case, it is likely that other countries will see it as another capability intended to assure the United States will be able to dominate access to and the use of space," she said in an earlier interview.

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

While the system may evolve into a destabilizing new weapon, Dolman said that "all of the information leaked about the X-37B suggests its primary function will be as a test platform, but a test platform for what?"

Regardless of how the X-37B prototype pans out, we can be certain that as the U.S. imperialist empire continues its long trek on the road towards failed statehood, the Pentagon, always eager to expend the blood and treasure of the American people on endless wars of conquest, will continue to build new and ever-more destabilizing weapons.
THE X-37B IS A CLEAR BEGINNING TO THE MILITARIZATION OF SPACE-Lubold ‘10

[Gordon; Yahoo News writer; 24 April 2011; Air Force’s X-37 space plane: Precursor to war in orbit?; http://www.redicecreations.com/article.php?id=10674; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

But whether the X-37 space plane is merely showing off nearly two decades of research and development or is actually a precursor to militarizing the final frontier, is far from clear since the vehicle’s payload is classified. An Air Force official won’t even say when it will return to California or where it will land. But it can "loiter" over the globe for more than nine months.

"In all honesty, we don’t know when it’s coming back," said Gary Payton, deputy undersecretary for the Air Force’s space programs, in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.

Arms control advocates say it is pretty clearly the beginning of a "weaponization of space" – precursor to a precision global strike capability that would allow the US to hover for months at a time over anywhere it chose with little anyone could do about it.

"The idea of being able to launch an unmanned research platform that can stay up there for months on end provides you with all kinds of capability, both military and civilian," says Chris Hellman, a policy analyst with the National Priorities Project, a budget watchdog in Northampton, Mass.


THE ONLY POSSIBLE RATIONALE FOR CONTINUING X-37B PROJECT WAS FOR MILITARY PURPOSES-Global Research ‘10

[The Weaponization of Space: US to Launch Secret 'Space Warplane'; Global Research; 20 April 2010; http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=18752; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

The Pentagon has set April 21 as the date for the launch of the robotic space plane known as the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), which is a reusable unmanned plane capable of long outer space missions at low orbits.

Since the nature of the project is shrouded in mystery, defense analysts allege that the US military is building the first generation of US 'space Predator drones' that will build up the United States' space armada, the Christian Science Monitor wrote in a recent article.

Military experts argue that the US Department of Defense would not have saved NASA's costly X-37B project, which had been scrapped, if it did not have a military application.

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

This is borne out by an April 22 announcement by the 45th Space Wing Public Affairs office at Patrick Air Force base. Deputy Undersecretary Payton said "if these technologies on the vehicle prove to be as good as we estimate, it will make our access to space more responsive, perhaps cheaper, and push us in the vector toward being able to react to warfighter needs more quickly."

This was seconded by Col. Andre Lovett, 45th Space Wing vice commander: "This launch helps ensure that our warfighters will be provided the capabilities they need in the future."
THE X-37B COULD LEAD TO THE MILITARIZATION OF SPACE-Evans ‘10

[Michael, Pentagon Correspondent; Launch of Secret US Space Ship Makes Even More Secret Launch of New Weapon; The Sunday Times (London); 24 April 2010; http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article7106714.ece; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

It is officially described as an orbital test vehicle. However, one of its potential uses appears to be to launch a surge of small satellites during periods of high international tension. This would enable America to have eyes and ears orbiting above any potential troublespot in the world.

The X37B can stay in orbit for up to 270 days, whereas the Shuttle can last only 16 days. This will provide the US with the ability to carry out experiments for long periods, including the testing of new laser weapon systems. This would bring accusations that the launch of X37B, and a second vehicle planned for later this year, could lead to the militarisation of space.

SOLVENCY: X-37B IS A WEAPONS PROGRAM

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

Sitting atop a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket, the unmanned, reusable space plane roared into orbit after more than ten years of development by Boeing Corporation's "Phantom Works" black projects shop.

The successful orbital insertion of the X-37B was the culmination of a decades' long dream by the Department of Defense: to field a reusable spacecraft that combines an airplane's agility with the means to travel at 5 miles per second in orbit.

From the Pentagon's point of view, a craft such as the X-37B may be the harbinger of things to come: a johnny-on-the-spot weapons platform to take out the satellite assets of an enemy de jour, or as a launch vehicle that can deliver bombs, missiles or kinetic weapons anywhere on earth in less than two hours; what Air Force wags refer to as "operationally responsive space."

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

Equally destabilizing, a craft such as the X-37B "could carry 1000- or 2000-pound re-entry vehicles armed with precision munitions like bunker-busting penetrators or small-diameter bombs, or simply use the explosive impact of kinetic rods cratering at hypersonic speeds to destroy targets."

Joan Johnson-Freese, a Professor of National Security Studies at the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, told Space.comjournalist Leonard David last month that "other countries" will likely view the X-37B "as another capability intended to assure the United States will be able to dominate access to and the use of space."

X-37B COULD BE USED TO ATTACK GROUND-BASED TARGETS AND ENEMY SATELLITES-Burghardt ‘10

[Tom; staff writer; The Militarization of Outer Space: The Pentagon's Space Warriors; Space Daily; 11 May 2011; http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_Militarization_of_Outer_Space_The_Pentagon_Space_Warriors_999.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

Seconding Weinberger's assessment, Scott told Space.com that "ultimately, weapons could be delivered from a space plane in low Earth orbit." As noted above, these could come in the form of "precision" munitions or insane hypervelocity rod bundles, so called "Rods from God," tungsten projectiles lobbed from space at 36,000 feet per second that can "hit a cross-haired target on the ground."

[Jeffrey; staff writer; Don’t Look Up: The Secret Space Plane is Flying Again; Time; 11 Mar 2011; http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2058264,00.html; retrieved 05 Jul 2011]

"When we ask what secret mission [the OTV] is performing, that may assume greater rationality than it deserves," says Pike. "It may just be that this program got up a head of steam and was too big to fail."