[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 149 (Thursday, November 10, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2333]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2862, SCIENCE, STATE, JUSTICE, COMMERCE, AND 
               RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006

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                               speech of

                          HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 9, 2005

  Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, from the dawn of civilization, man has 
peered out into the heavens and dreamt of exploring the vast expanses 
of our universe. During the past half century, from America's first 
satellite, the grapefruit-sized Explorer I, to the International Space 
Station now being built 200 miles above us, human beings have begun to 
learn how to operate in the harsh environs of space.
  Our unmanned space probes--from the Ranger and Surveyor craft that 
paved the way for Apollo to the Voyager spacecraft that explored the 
outer planets--continue to increase our understanding of the universe. 
Everyone of the ambitious American space probes that has visited 
another planet has been managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory 
(JPL) in Pasadena, California.
  It is for this reason, I am proud that the conference report covering 
NASA operations includes full support of the work of JPL on the Mars 
exploration program and the Space Interferometry Mission.
  NASA's Mars exploration program embodies the President's vision for 
space exploration. It will expand our knowledge of one of our neighbors 
in the solar system and pave the way for a manned mission to Mars. 
NASA's search for planets and life beyond our solar system is also 
having increasing and dramatic success with more than 150 planets now 
discovered. With full funding, the Space Interferometry Mission will 
examine over two thousand stars for planetary systems, fulfilling a 
critical step in the search for Earth-like planets.
  For their strong support of this vision, I would like to thank 
Chairman Lewis and Ranking Member Obey. I would also like to thank 
Chairman Wolf and Ranking Member Mollohan for meeting on several 
occasions to discuss the important work of JPL.
  In addition to expanding our reach into the depths of the universe, 
the space research program at JPL will have additional benefits here on 
Earth. According to economists, investment in research and development 
has one of the highest rates of return in the long-run. While public 
investment in research and development in other nations has increased 
in recent years, it has stagnated in the United States. Full funding 
for the work at JPL demonstrates our continuing commitment to research 
in the sciences.
  The space exploration program also has an impact on young people. 
Generations of students have been inspired to enter scientific fields 
by stunning images from the heavens. The funding for cooperative 
education programs between NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and 
Griffith Observatory recognizes the importance of encouraging more 
students to enter scientific fields.
  With our commitment to the programs at NASA's Jet Propulsion 
laboratory, we are pursuing both the human quest to understand our 
universe and the American quest for continuing leadership in space 
exploration.

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