In my opinion, the most important thing that NASA is doing right now, in terms of ultimately opening up space for the rest of us, is their first tentative steps toward procuring commercial orbital services. Michael Mealing seems to agree, and has set up a new blog to monitor progress, or lack of it. I’m adding it to the space blogroll.

[Update at 9:20 AM EST]

Michael Belfiore has some industry reaction to the announcement.

Short answer–t/Space is pleased.

Jeff Foust notes that there’s surprisingly little opposition to the RTGs in the upcoming New Horizons Mission (with some interesting discussion in his comments section).

I think that his take is right–back in 1997, when Cassini launched, loony leftists didn’t have a lot of better things to do, but now they’re so consumed with the war and George Bush that they don’t have the time or energy to focus on non-issues like this. As I pointed out in comments over there, when even perennial loony tune Bruce Gagnon doesn’t have time to organize anything against it, no one else will, either.

[Update a few minutes later]

Thomas James (Bruce’s occasional nemesis) has more New Horizons info.