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<DIV>From the <A href="http://www.iht.com/articles/120469.html">International
Herald Tribune</A>: The Bush administration is developing a new strategy for the
U.S. space program that would send American astronauts back to the moon for the
first time in more than 30 years, according to administration and congressional
officials who said the plan also included a manned mission to Mars. A lunar
mission - possibly establishing a permanent base there - is the focus of
high-level White House discussions on how to reinvigorate the space program
following the space shuttle Columbia accident this year, said the officials, who
spoke on condition of anonymity. NASA, along with other agencies, has been
providing the administration with information about these long-term objectives,"
said Robert Jacobs, a spokesman for the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration. <BR>NASA officials met in Washington this week as part of a
national space policy review prompted by the Columbia disaster, which killed all
seven astronauts aboard. While officials stressed that the White House had yet
to sign off on a specific plan, they said President George W. Bush was expected
soon to unveil a strategy that would include manned missions to the moon and to
Mars. The idea is to motivate NASA engineers and researchers by aiming to
explore deeper reaches of space than the current shuttle fleet is capable of
visiting. Vice President Dick Cheney recently met with members of Congress to
discuss the proposals, the officials said. <BR>NASA officials and space
specialists increasingly believe that recent American human space flight
activities - particularly the delayed and costly construction of the
International Space Station - do not push the envelope enough to motivate
researchers and engineers or spark the kind of public fascination with space
that was generated by the first missions to the moon. A challenge to go back to
the moon and reinvigorate the space flight program would be welcomed by the
public.</DIV></BODY></HTML>