NASA Seeks Suborbital
Flight Services Proposals (Source: SpaceRef)
NASA is seeking proposals from U.S. commercial suborbital reusable
launch vehicle providers to integrate and fly technology payloads for
the space agency. NASA uses companies for suborbital flights to
encourage and facilitate the growth of this important aerospace market
while also providing a means to advance a wide range of new launch
vehicle and space technologies. (3/25)
Virgin Galactic Seeks
Businesses to Supply Spaceport America (Source: Las Cruces
Sun-News)
Whether manned commercial flights to space will begin at Spaceport
America anytime soon remains to be seen, anchor tenant Virgin Galactic
is on the lookout for companies to provide a variety of products and
services at the facility near Upham. Any business that is "willing to
push the limits of normal (because normal is boring)" as the company
puts it, but be able to do business at the spaceport.
"Procurement will be ongoing," said Bruce Jackson, a vice president
with the company. "Contracts put in place will be rebid in the future,
likely two to three years after their original effective date." He said
that in most cases a bidding process does occur, and in all instances a
proposal is required. "Our supply chain team determines the best way to
procure based on several factors, including: product/service
requirements, likely contract value, operational criticality, available
supply base, etc.," Jackson said. (3/25)
DARPA Picks Boeing To
Demonstrate Airborne Launcher Concept (Source: Space News)
DARPA has awarded Boeing a contract worth as much as $104 million to
build and demonstrate a low-cost airborne launching system for small
satellites. The contract is for DARPA’s Airborne Launch Assist Space
Access (ALASA) program, which is intended to field a system to launch
satellites weighing up to 45 kilograms into low Earth orbit for $1
million each.
The base value of Boeing’s contract is $30.6 million, with a first
option worth $72 million and a second option worth $2 million,
according to the posting. The program is aiming for a demonstration
launch in fiscal year 2015. DARPA requested $55 million for the program
in 2015, up from $42 million in 2014, according to the budget
documents. DARPA in 2012 awarded ALASA design contracts to Boeing,
Lockheed Martin and Virgin Galactic, along with related technology
development contracts to three other companies. (3/24)
Thuraya Touts 15 Percent
Revenue Growth in 2013 (Source: Space News)
Mobile satellite services provider Thuraya Telecommunications Co.
reported $122 million in revenue in 2013, up 15 percent from 2012, and
is forecasting its revenue will surpass $200 million by 2018. EBITDA,
or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, was
up 29 percent, to $36 million, the company said in a statement emailed
March 25, adding that among the principal mobile satellite services
providers, it is the least indebted as a multiple of EBITDA after it
restructured its debt. (3/25)
Cinemas See Satellite
Tech as Ticket to Bigger Revenue (Source: LA Times)
Tim Warner, chief executive of Cinemark Holdings Inc., admits he'd
never heard of the popular science fiction series "Dr. Who." So the
Montana native was skeptical when executives at BBC America approached
him about the idea of screening a simulcast of the 50th anniversary
episode of the cult-classic British TV series in Cinemark theaters
across Latin America and the U.S.
In late November, hundreds of "Whovians" showed up at more than 700
theaters from Los Angeles to New York and Sao Paulo, Brazil, many
dressed as their favorite characters, to watch screenings of the
special Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor. "To be honest, many of us
had never heard of 'Dr. Who,'" recalled Warner, who runs the nation's
third-largest theater chain. "They told us it was going to sell out. We
said, 'Yeah, right.' Not only did it sell out, but people showed up in
costumes."
The event convinced Warner that what happened with "Dr. Who" was just
the tip of the iceberg in terms of TV shows, sports programs and other
types of so-called alternative entertainment that could help redefine
the way Americans think about the multiplex. Now they plan to offer TV
shows, concerts and sporting events at their venues, capitalizing on a
new satellite network that makes it possible to beam live entertainment
to most theaters in America. (3/25)
Thousands Vote on NASA's
Next Spacesuit Design: You Can, Too (Source: NBC)
Want to help design a spacesuit? NASA is taking one small step toward
crowdsourced space exploration by letting Internet users select the
cover layer for its next prototype suit. NASA engineers drew up the
choices in collaboration with spacesuit manufacturer ILC Dover and
student designers from Philadelphia University.
You can vote for the "Biomimicry" pattern, inspired by the look of
bioluminescent sea creatures; the "Technology" pattern, with glowing
panels that seem to pay homage to the classic video-game movie "Tron";
or "Trends in Society," which mimics swoopy sportswear patterns. Click here.
(3/25)
Mitsubishi Remains Prime
for New Japanese Launcher (Source: JAXA)
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) made an announcement to
the private sector on Feb. 27 to compare proposals and select a prime
contractor who can be responsible for launch and space transportation
services for a newly developed flagship launch vehicle. As a result,
after carefully evaluated proposals including confirmation of
application prerequisites and conformity with requirements, we have
selected Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) as the prime
contractor.
JAXA will begin developing the new national flagship launch vehicle in
early Japan Fiscal Year 2014 in cooperation with a group of private
companies led by MHI. The new flagship launch vehicle is aiming to
enter the international satellite launch market on a full scale with
high competitiveness while being responsible for Japan's space
transportation after the 2020s by renovating our current flagship
rockets, the H-IIA and H-IIB Launch Vehicles, and by improving
usability through launch cost reduction by half and other enhancements.
(3/25)
Studying Crops, From
Outer Space (Source: Carnegie Institution)
Plants convert energy from sunlight into chemical energy during a
process called photosynthesis. This energy is passed on to humans and
animals that eat the plants, and thus photosynthesis is the primary
source of energy for all life on Earth. But the photosynthetic activity
of various regions is changing due to human interaction with the
environment, including climate change, which makes large-scale studies
of photosynthetic activity of interest.
New research from a team including Carnegie's Joe Berry reveals a
fundamentally new approach for measuring photosynthetic activity as it
occurs around the planet. Their work is based on a breakthrough in the
capacity to use satellite technology to measure light that is emitted
by plant leaves as a byproduct of photosynthesis. This light is called
fluorescence and it is produced when sunlight excites the
photosynthetic pigment chloropyll.
The method offers a direct measurement of activity occurring as the
satellite passes overhead. Other approaches to detecting photosynthetic
activity on a large scale are less direct, so until now, models have
been the primary tool for estimating photosynthetic productivity on a
planetary scale. The accuracy of these models has been difficult to
evaluate. "This new method uses satellites to sense fluorescence
emitted during photosynthesis," Berry said. "It changes everything. It
gives us a direct observation of photosynthesis on a large scale for
the first time ever." (3/24)
Sierra Nevada and
Lockheed Martin Expand Dream Chaser Manufacturing (Source:
SNC)
Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC) and Dream Chaser strategic partner Lockheed
Martin announced the expansion of SNC Dream Chaser spacecraft orbital
vehicle manufacturing operations. Lockheed Martin is under contract to
manufacture the next Dream Chaser composite structure which will be for
the first orbital vehicle scheduled to launch on November 1, 2016.
The MAF, which is owned and operated by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight
Center, has been operational since 1961 and has played a significant
role on our nation’s space programs ranging from Apollo to the space
shuttle. Today, leveraging the experience, technical expertise and
current infrastructure at Michoud, next generation vehicles such as
SNC’s Dream Chaser and Lockheed Martin’s Orion are being fabricated
within the same walls as legendary programs. (3/25)
Inmarsat Aided Search for
Missing Malaysia Airlines Flight (Source: Aviation Week)
Inmarsat used data analysis to help investigators pinpoint the final
flight path of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which ended in the Indian
Ocean. The flight pinged one of Inmarsat’s 10 satellites every hour,
and Inmarsat was able to establish the flight was airborne for six
hours after losing contact. (3/24)
Vivisat Claims Orders for
its Satellite Life-Extension Spacecraft (Source:
Commercial Space Blog)
Alliant Techsystems (ATK) subsidiary Vivisat, a "satellite-servicing
startup developing life-extension vehicles for end-of-life commercial
communications satellites in geostationary orbit," has booked "two
customers for three missions, and expects to start building its
specialized spacecraft by the end of 2014," according to Aviation Week.
But details of the "final financing" to fund the missions are still to
be settled, according to the article, which quoted both Vivisat CEO
Craig Weston and COO Bryan McGuirk. The system uses a Mission Extension
Vehicle (MEV) to dock permanently to an orbiting satellite and take
over operations from the original propulsion system. (3/24)
On Colorado Aerospace
Day; Legislators Criticize Feds for NASA Cuts (Source:
Denver Business Journal)
Colorado legislators lauded the state's aerospace industry Monday and
criticized the U.S. government for yanking funding from NASA. Members
of the state House and Senate passed a resolution declaring March 24 as
Colorado Aerospace Day. With executives from some of the state’s major
space-travel companies in attendance, they noted that Colorado receives
$1.8 billion in prime NASA contracts each year, is home to 170,000
aerospace jobs, and ranks first in the nation in per-capita aerospace
employment. (3/25)
Palazzo, Edwards Push for
SLS/Orion, Human Spaceflight, in Budget (Source: SpaceRef)
Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Space Subcommittee,
respectively, today sent a letter to President Barack Obama in support
of NASA’s Space Launch System and Orion as part of prioritizing human
space exploration within NASA’s budgets. The letter was signed by a
bipartisan coalition of 30 House members. Click here.
(3/25)
US More Dependent on
Russia in Space, Than Russia on US (Source: Voice of
Russia)
The United States in the space area is more dependent on Russia than
Russia on the United States, said John Logsdon, a member of the NASA
Advisory Council, when asked whether astronauts would not be carried by
Russian rockets to the International Space Station in connection with
the current situation over Ukraine.
The United States and Russia were mutually dependent to ensure the ISS
functioning, Logsdon said. He believes the station cannot work
successfully without the support of the American mission control centre
based in Texas. Thus, Russia needs support of the American side, but
not to the same degree as the United States needs Russia, he noted.
(3/25)
Launches a Source of
Pride on Space Coast (Source: Florida Today)
A.J. Holbeck grew up watching Space Coast launches like the rest of us,
enjoying the rockets’ glare and rumble with little idea how many parts
and personnel came together to make each mission possible. “I did not
realize how much support it actually takes,” said Holbeck, a
26-year-old Rockledge native who joined United Launch Alliance last
year as a subcontract administrator. Holbeck remembers his first time
seeing the pad’s maze of pipes and pressure gauges up close and
marveling at “how much engineering, how much design went behind just
the ground support to launch the rocket.”
Now, he helps provide the equipment and services that ensure a launch
pad works, a technician has the right safety gear, the grounds are
mowed and specialists are on standby in case a system has a hiccup
during a countdown. That support system will be put to the test again
soon when ULA counts down to liftoff of a powerful Atlas V rocket
carrying a classified National Reconnaissance Office satellite from the
Cape Canaveral Spaceport.
The nearly 200-foot rocket rolled to its pad Monday morning, but a
planned launch this afternoon was postponed at least one day by an
outage in range instrumentation. In a statement Monday evening, the Air
Force's 45th Space Wing said it was assessing the problem and how long
repairs would take. (3/25)
Shotwell on SpaceX Launch
Delay, Reusability Plans (Source: NewSpace Journal)
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said contamination in the trunk of the
Dragon spacecraft was one of several factors to cause of the launch
delay from Mar. 16 to Mar. 30. Others included “struggling on some
buffering with data transfer between here and Houston” and more time
needed to work with the range on recovery of the first stage. And she
hinted that the Dragon team needed some time to catch their breath.
“So, it was really the combination of those four things where we said,
‘You know what, we need to step back.’”
Shotwell also discussed some of the changes SpaceX made since their
previous attempt to try and recover the Falcon 9 first stage from
September. She said engineers are “optimizing” the reentry burn by the
first stage after separation and the landing burn before splashdown.
“In addition, we have to get a little more stability on that stage as
it comes in,” she said, which they’re doing with the optimized burns
and an attitude control system.
Shotwell emphasized that these were test flights: “This is a really
hard problem. I do believe we will solve it.” She did state that the
company hopes to return a Falcon 9 stage to a landing site on land
(rather than in the ocean, as this stage will do) later this year, and
reuse a Falcon 9 first stage next year. The reusability won’t have any
affect on the published payload capacity. “[It] has about 30 percent
more performance than what we put on the web, and that extra
performance is reserved for us to do our reusability and recoverability
demonstrations right now,” she said. (3/25)
Elaborate New Mexico
Spaceport Visitor’s Building on Hold (Source: KRQE)
Commercial space flight is a new industry and the New Mexico Spaceport
Authority has had to make a lot of adjustments along the way. The
latest adjustment means plans for an elaborate, stand-alone visitor’s
center will be put on hold. The standalone Visitors Center was supposed
to greet guests as they arrived at Spaceport America – an elaborate
building full of hands-on exhibits, games and artifacts.
It was envisioned as a way to immerse visitors into the Spaceport
experience, whether they were taking a $250,000 space flight or not.
“Besides all the space customers, space launch customers we have in
terms of revenue,” said Christine Anderson, NMSA executive director.
“Getting another source of revenue stream is really important so the
visitors are extremely important.” But getting to that revenue stream
from a separate visitor’s center takes capital the Spaceport just
doesn’t have.
Last fall, NMSA explored private financing for the building, but the
terms weren’t favorable. When the NMSA asked the legislature for about
$1 million for a temporary hangar to house the visitor experience they
received about $115,000. Now, they have a new plan. “It’s going to be
the same show, it’s just not as elaborate a building on site as it
would have been,” Anderson said. They’ll divide the exhibits and
activities between a planned Visitor’s Center in T or C and a sectioned
off a portion of the already-built Gateway to Space building. (3/25)
Aerospace Project May Get
Millions from Florida (Source: Florida Today)
The state of Florida may award nearly $21 million to a mystery economic
development project planned at the Melbourne International Airport.
State legislators on Tuesday will vote on whether to go along with Gov.
Rick Scott’s request to spend the money for “Project Magellan.” If
approved it would mark one of the largest single economic development
projects approved during Scott’s tenure as governor.
Brevard County officials earlier this month voted to award a grant to
cover city and county impact fees. Documents show that the company
receiving the money is promising to spend up to $500 million between
now and 2020. One group critical of the state’s economic development
efforts said the state should at least identify the company before
approving such a large amount of money. (3/25)
NASA Astronomer Finds
First Earth-Sized Planet in Habitable Zone (Source: Sploid)
The search for a new Earth outside the solar system seems to be nearing
its end. NASA's Ames Research Center astronomer Thomas Barclay has
found a planet nearly the size of Earth in the habitable zone of a star
in the Milky Way. Barclay's announcement at the Search for Life Beyond
the Solar System conference hasn't been officially published yet, so
the details are scarce. We know that:
1. It's an M1 red dwarf star (maybe we should call it Krypton); 2. It's
a goldilocks planet, orbiting within the zone where liquid water (and
life) can exist; 3. It's radius is only 1.1 times the size of Earth.
Until now the minimum size for a new Earth candidate was 1.4
times—Kepler-62f, which orbits a star about 1,200 light years away from
us; and 4. At least five other planets are orbiting this red dwarf.
(3/25)
Atlas Launch Delayed with
Eastern Range Equipment Outage (Source: USAF)
The March 25 Atlas-5 NROL-67 launch has been delayed due to a range
instrumentation outage. 45th Space Wing personnel are currently
assessing the situation and working to identify the extent of repairs
needed. (3/24)
FAA Seeks Comment on
Midland Spaceport Environmental Assessment (Source:
Parabolic Arc)
The FAA has initiated a public review and comment period for the Draft
EA. Interested parties are invited to submit comments on the Draft EA,
preferably in writing, on or before April 21, 2014. The FAA will hold
an open house public meeting on April 8, 2014, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30
p.m. at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Center for Energy
and Economic Diversification. (3/24)
Britain Looks To End Tax
on Satellite and Launch Insurance (Source: Space News)
The British government, which has promised to be friendlier to
commercial space companies, is proposing to eliminate a 6 percent tax
that British satellite operators pay for satellite launch and in-orbit
insurance. The government’s 2014 budget proposal, released March 19,
would permit satellite operators to benefit from the same Insurance
Premium Tax exemptions already afforded to commercial aircraft,
commercial shipping and other buyers of insurance. (3/24)
Why Earth Remains Capable
of Supporting Life Despite Greenhouse Gas Emissions
(Source: Kurzweil)
“Fresh” rock — nature’s atmospheric carbon dioxide regulator — explains
why the Earth has become neither sweltering like Venus nor frigid like
Mars. Scientists have long known that “fresh” rock pushed to the
surface via mountain formation effectively acts as a kind of sponge,
soaking up the greenhouse gas CO2. Left unchecked, however, that
process would deplete atmospheric CO2 levels to a point that would
plunge the Earth into an eternal winter within a few million years
during the formation of large mountain ranges like the Himalayas —
which has clearly not happened.
That’s because fresh rock exposed by uplift also emits carbon through a
chemical weathering process, which replenishes the atmospheric carbon
dioxide at a comparable rate — keeping things balanced for millions of
years. "Our presence on Earth is dependent upon this carbon cycle. This
is why life is able to survive,” said Mark Torres. Scientists studied
rocks taken from the Andes mountain range in Peru and found that
weathering processes affecting rocks in the Andes unearths abundant
pyrite, and its chemical breakdown produces acids that release CO2 from
other minerals.
Like many other large mountain ranges, such as the great Himalayas, the
Andes began to form during the Cenozoic period, which began about 60
million years ago and happened to coincide with a major perturbation in
the cycling of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Using marine records of the
long-term carbon cycle, they reconstructed the balance between CO2
release and uptake caused by the uplift of large mountain ranges and
found that CO2 release by rock weathering may have played a large, but
thus far unrecognized, role in regulating the concentration of
atmospheric carbon dioxide over the last roughly 60 million years.
(3/24)
Giant Starshade Could
Help Find an Alien Earth (Source: Space.com)
A flower-shaped spacecraft may help scientists see Earth-like alien
worlds like never before. Called a "starshade," the huge,
sunflower-like spacecraft would deploy to its full size in space,
blocking the light of distant stars so that a space-based telescope can
image exoplanets in orbit around the stars. With this technology,
researchers could directly image other worlds and potentially find long
sought-after Earth twins, a historically difficult task for alien
planet hunters.
While still in the early phases of development, the starshade could
hunt for small planets around bright, nearby stars. This would help
scientists learn more about the planets and even hunt for signs of
potential life by peering into the alien worlds' atmospheres. (3/24)
DARPA Moves Forward With
Phoenix, ALASA and XS-1 Projects (Source: Parabolic Arc)
DARPA’s proposed budget for FY 2015 calls for a significant increase in
its Experimental Spaceplane One (XS-1) program and smaller boosts in
the Airborne Launch Assist Space Access (ALASA) program and Project
Phoenix, budget documents show. The defense agency has requested $27
million for re-useable XS-1 space plane this year, a significant boost
over the $10 million being spent for FY 2014.
With the increase in funding, DARPA plans to conduct a preliminary
design review (PDR) and select a single vendor for final design,
fabrication and flight test in the coming fiscal year, which will start
on Oct. 1. The XS-1 program is designed to launch payloads weighing
3,000-5,000 lbs (1,361-2,268 kg) to low earth orbit at a cost at least
10 times less expensive to current launch vehicles. Click here.
(3/24)
Editorial: Status Quo
Minus a Few Things (Source: Space News)
Aside from the proposed grounding of an airborne astronomy telescope
that is just entering full-scale science operations, U.S. President
Barack Obama’s 2015 budget request for NASA is a mixed bag for the
space community. The good news is that no other major programs are
marked for cancellation, and there’s startup funding for large-scale
planetary and astronomy missions.
On the other hand, the relentless fiscal pressures facing the
government are beginning to take their toll, as evidenced by
uncertainty surrounding ongoing science missions, plans to defer or
scrap development of other projects, and NASA’s call for industry’s
help to fund a laser communications experiment slated to fly as a
hosted payload aboard a commercial satellite. Click here.
(3/24)
Editorial: Technology
Drives Exploration of Tomorrow (Source: Space News)
As we approach a new cycle of debate on the NASA budget for fiscal year
2015, we are reminded of a famous quote by the renowned management guru
Peter Drucker: “The enterprise that does not innovate inevitably ages
and declines. And in a period of rapid change such as the present ...
the decline will be fast.”
Sobering words, ones we hope will not define the nation’s space agency
10 years from now. However, if we closely examine Congress’ fiscal year
2014 appropriation for research-and-development (R&D) funding
at NASA, one must worry that Drucker’s words may be a foreboding
premonition for NASA. Click here.
(3/24)
Editorial: Time for U.S.
To Collaborate with China in Space (Source: Space News)
The U.S.-China bilateral relationship is the most important of the 21st
century. In order to maintain the fidelity of this relationship and
bring to bear the potential advances in productive and technological
capacity it could unlock, a U.S.-China bilateral approach to space
exploration is needed. Click here.
(3/24)
NASA Counts on
Congressional Assist To Save Lunar Orbiter (Source: Space
News)
NASA has a plan to keep the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) flying
though this year and well into 2016, but the strategy hinges on a
helping hand from Congress. The Moon-mapping orbiter is one of seven
planetary science missions NASA is reviewing this spring to determine
whether their remaining scientific potential justifies their continued
operations.
The $17.5 billion budget proposal NASA sent to Congress earlier this
month for 2015 includes continued funding for all of the missions
except two: the 10-year-old Mars Opportunity rover and LRO, a
seven-instrument spacecraft launched in 2009 to reconnoiter the Moon in
advance of human lunar expeditions the Obama administration took off
the table. NASA says it wants to keep both LRO and Opportunity in
service a while longer assuming their mission-extension proposals win
approval during the biannual Senior Review of Operating Missions, which
is set to conclude in June.
But funding for LRO and Opportunity was deliberately excluded from
NASA’s core 2015 budget proposal. Instead, the agency is counting on
congressional approval of a $35 million “Planetary Science Extended
Mission Funding” line the White House included in President Barack
Obama’s Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative, a $52 billion
spending wish list that received a chilly reception from the House of
Representatives’ Republican majority, dimming prospects for passage.
(3/24)
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