Posible parada de la NASA

 La NASA ha emitido un boletín especial ante la más que posible parada de la Agencia Espacial si el Congreso no aprueba el presupuesto de este año.

En 1995 y 1996 la duración del cierre fue de un total de 26 días. También hubo paradas después de las misiones Apolo. Esperemos que las misiones en curso y la STS-134 no se vean muy afectadas y que el plazo no se alargue indefinidamente.


PDFs con la información y documentos oficiales en Government Shut Down Information


Desde Universe Today:

The big question weighing on the minds of anyone involved or interested in US space exploration is how a US government shutdown would affect the space agency. In short, if a NASA job or service is curtailed or a department or building is closed and it doesn’t threaten a life, a spacecraft, data, or a mission, it won’t be continued during a government shutdown. That means thousands of NASA employees would be furloughed, scientists for robotic missions won’t be able to work on gathering new data, and the STS-134 launch could be delayed indefinitely until Congress passes a budget.

While the shuttle mission wouldn’t launch as scheduled on April 29 to the International Space Station because of a shutdown, all NASA workers essential to the ISS and its operations would continue to work, as well as those who keep the space shuttle Endeavour – out on the launchpad – safe and stable. Additionally, engineers involved with NASA’s many space probes and Earth orbiting satellites who monitor spacecraft health and keep them functioning – those “necessary to prevent harm to life or property” as NASA put it, would keep working. But scientists and researchers involved with those missions will likely be sent home.
In a letter to the Office of Management and Budget, NASA Chief Financial Officer Elizabeth Robinson provided an update on how NASA will function in the event of a government funding hiatus. “The decision on what personnel should be excepted from furlough is very fact specific, and Directors in charge of NASA Centers are in the best position to make detailed decisions regarding the suspension of ongoing, regular functions which could imminently threaten the safety of human life or the protection of property,” Robinson wrote.
For example, at NASA Headquarters, there are 1,611 total employees, and only 22 are considered “essential” and would not be furloughed. At NASA’s Ames Research Center, only 25 out of 1250 full time employees would not be furloughed if and when shutdown happens.
A government employee told us that during a furlough, even if someone is classified as “essential” or “exempted” and has to come in and work, they won’t get paid until later. For “non-essential” employees, there is no guarantee the government will provide any compensation for the time the government offices are is closed. “For the shutdown in 1995, they DID give everyone back pay,” said the employee, who wished to remain anonymous. “But this time? Who knows?”
For anyone who lives and breathes NASA on the internet, you will find your lifeblood cut. NASA TV will not broadcast. NASA websites will not be updated including the main nasa.gov site; the NASA Earth Observatory website sent out an email to notify subscribers that they will not be able to update starting April 9 if the shutdown occurs. This is for security reasons, since IT people won’t be there to maintain and secure the websites.
NASA employees, including astronauts who have “official” Twitter accounts have been ordered not to Tweet under a government shutdown and the same goes for Facebook updates for any official NASA account or mission. One exception is that ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli on board the ISS can still use Twitter.
Any tours and public access to NASA Centers and facilities will be canceled, and any NASA instructors at schools or universities will be ordered not to report. A news conference scheduled for April 12 at the Kennedy Space Center to announce which museums will have won the rights to display NASA’s three space shuttles would has been put on hold pending the government shutdown.
These and other things will occur if no agreement is reached on a fiscal year 2011 budget by midnight tonight, (Friday, April 8, 2011). For more details, see this NASA page which includes three pdf documents which outline what happens for the space agency during a government shutdown. Without getting into the politics, the entire situation is very sad and disheartening.

Del Daily News:

By Samieh Shalash, sshalash@dailypress.com | 247-4537

7:25 p.m. EDT, April 8, 2011

If a federal government shutdown begins Saturday morning, it could last anywhere from a day to weeks, says John Gilmour, a government professor at the College of William and Mary.
The halt will officially begin at midnight Friday if Congress doesn't hash out a budget deal for 2011 by then. That gives politicians time to continue negotiating before a shutdown truly kicks in Monday, Gilmour said.
"One possibility is that they will figure out a deal over the weekend and be done," he said Friday afternoon. "If they can't figure it out by then, I think it will go on for a while like it did in 1995."
If a budget is not passed, an estimated 800,000 federal workers will be furloughed and most government services would halt, except for vital services such as military operations and Homeland Security. Paychecks will not be issued to federal and military workers.

Affected workers would include the 3,800 employees at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton. Federal employees there filed timecards a little early this week to make sure they'd receive full pay April 15, said spokesman Rob Wyman.

"The center is going through the motions to be prepared to shut down in the event that Congress can't come to a resolution tonight," he said Friday afternoon.
Staff will still report to work Monday even if there's a shutdown so they can tie up loose ends, Wyman added. That's everything from leaving out of office messages on their voicemail and e-mail to emptying refrigerators of perishable items.
Hampton resident Tami Pollard, whose husband Sam has worked at NASA for 21 years, said the most disconcerting aspect of a possible shutdown is not knowing how long it might last.
The couple experienced a nearly month-long furlough during the last government shutdown 15 years ago, Pollard said, and is prepared to deal with another if they have to. It's irresponsible of the federal government to have let the budget debate drag on to this point, she added.
Shutdowns in 1995 and 1996 totaled 26 days, for which furloughed employees received retroactive paychecks.
It's not a given that back pay would be issued for time not worked in the event of a shutdown this year, Gilmour said.
Congress has always paid federal employees for forced time off after a budget passes, he said, because members felt it was unfair to penalize government employees for this conflict between Congress and the president.
This year, Gilmour said, Tea Party members are saying that if the government shuts down, employees should not be paid for time they were forced to take off. President Barack Obama's administration has said it supports retroactive pay.
Ideology, not money, is really at the heart of this year's budget disagreements, he added, with Republicans insisting that the budget restricts use of federal funds for abortion in Washington, D.C, eliminates funding for Planned Parenthood and restricts regulatory enforcement by the Environmental Protection Agency among other cuts that essentially equate to policy changes.
"If (House Speaker) John Boehner (R-Ohio) is willing to agree to bills that don't include those, Tea Party factions would see him as a traitor selling out," Gilmour said. "And Democrats can't agree to them, they're just an anathema to their beliefs."
A shutdown is unlikely to affect day-to-day life for most Americans, he added, since state and local services provide most direct services.

Copyright © 2011, Newport News, Va., Daily Press