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2 Hoosiers picked by Vice President Mike Pence to help navigate space mission

WASHINGTON — Two Hoosiers have been tapped by Vice President Mike Pence to advise the administration on space policy as the White House prepares to go back to the moon and begins ceding more responsibility for short-term missions to the private sector.

NASA astronaut David Wolf, an Indianapolis native, and Indiana businessman Fred Klipsch, a long-time political supporter of Pence’s and a major donor, have been chosen to serve on a Users Advisory Group to the National Space Council that Pence chairs.  The 29 members will offer guidance to the council, which coordinates space policy across military, exploration, science and commercial missions.

“I’m always available for something that’s productive and fun,” Klipsch said. “I think it will be unbelievably intriguing.”

Wolf, a visiting professor at Purdue University, said the direction Pence wants to take the space program is "spot on with my thinking."

"It has been a long time since the White House has taken such a high level of interest in the space program," Wolf said. "This is a bringing together of energy that can accomplish these 'lofty,’ but achievable, goals."

Pence vowed last year to send Americans back to the lunar surface as part of a broader strategy to reclaim the ground rival nations have gained over the past decade.

Source :- indystar

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