The space shuttle may have to work past retirement age, after all.

The US Congress is currently trying to set NASA's future mission and goals by drafting a bill called the NASA Authorization Act. A version of the bill, obtained by New Scientist, has passed a Senate committee that would require the agency to look into the prospect of flying the shuttle past 2010. As this Senate press release states:

The bill includes a number of provisions to ensure the United States has uninterrupted human access...

I've just posted a news story on the latest results of the MESSENGER mission, announced in a telephone news conference held today. The timing may seem strange, as it's the day before a major holiday in the U.S., exactly the right time to hold a press conference if your goal is for people to ignore or overlook the news. However, the mission had no choice; the timing was dictated by the editors of Science magazine, who selected Independence Day ....