May 6, 2017

Arianespace Tallies Up Another Successful Mission with Launch of Two Telecom Satellites (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
More than a month after its initial planned launch was delayed by a "social movement" in the French South American overseas department, Arianespace's Flight VA236 finally departed from the Guiana Space Center and delivered two telecommunication satellites to geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). The Ariane 5 continued its string of successful missions and deployed Brazil's SGDC and South Korea's KOREASAT-7 satellites. (5/4)

Alabama Teams with Airbus for Aviation Education Center (Source: Flying Magazine)
To satisfy the need for a growing workforce in what Alabama Governor Kay Ivey calls a growing “aerospace cluster,” the state has announced plans for a $6.5 million Alabama Aviation Education Center. The Alabama Aviation Education Center will feature classrooms, workshops and innovation rooms, providing aviation-themed activities and STEM-focused educational programs. The Alabama Governor’s Office is contributing $5 million to the center.

“The Alabama Aviation Education Center will enhance our efforts to show young people that they can find rewarding career opportunities in the state’s dynamic aerospace industry,” said Governor Ivey. The center will be located at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley Field adjacent to a major Airbus aircraft manufacturing facility. Airbus is contributing $1.5 million to the development and will help create the educational programs at the center. Airbus Americas Inc, the North American subsidiary of Airbus, will manage and operate the center.

The $600 million Airbus A320 assembly line at the Mobile Aeroplex delivered its first customer airplane just last year. The facility has the capacity to produce four A320s per month at full production, supporting 1,000 direct and indirect jobs in the area. Another major aviation player located at the Aeroplex is Continental Motors, manufacturer of general aviation engines. (5/4)

First Contract Under USAF RD-180 Replacement Program Complete (Source: USAF)
The first of ten contracts awarded under the Booster Propulsion Technology Maturation Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) was recently completed. Moog Inc. successfully completed a “Non-Destructive Evaluation, Standards, and Testing” project, March 13. The company met all program objectives and completed all deliverables on time and on budget during the 15-month period of performance.

The Space and Missile Systems Center awarded the Booster Propulsion BAA contracts between November 2015 to January 2016 with the objective of maturing technologies and reducing risk in support of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. The BAA was part of a comprehensive Air Force plan to transition off the Russian made RD-180 propulsion system used on the Atlas V rocket by investing in domestic industry launch solutions. (5/5)

Former SpaceX Worker Had Safety Concerns, Then was Fired? Judge Dismisses Defamation Allegation (Source: MyNewsLA)
A judge dismissed a defamation allegation brought by a former employee of SpaceX against the company, but ruled that the plaintiff could take his wrongful termination and retaliation claims to trial. The judge issued his rulings Wednesday in the lawsuit brought in April 2016 by Jason Blasdell. The judge questioned how Blasdell, who said he was called “disruptive” by management, could claim that his reputation was besmirched.

The judge said the trial will focus on whether Blasdell had a reasonable belief that SpaceX was falsifying rocket-test documents and whether he was fired for false reasons. The trial is scheduled May 22. Blasdell says he received consistently positive reviews while working as an avionics test technician from 2010 until his 2014 firing. He says he began seeing safety issues related to the testing procedures of rocket parts, leading him to question the quality of the testing and the risks it posed for the rockets and for the potential loss of human life.

Blasdell claims he complained to Elon Musk and Gwynne Shotwell and to the firm’s human resources department, alleging there were potentially dangerous deviations from protocol that his managers were pressuring test technicians to make. Shotwell had told Blasdell that she would investigate his concerns and hire an outside consultant to investigate, according to the plaintiff’s court papers. Blasdell says he followed up with Shotwell by email but her response only criticized the manner in Blasdel communicated with management, according to Blasdell’s complaint. (5/5)

Race To Replace RD-180 At Critical Juncture (Source: Aviation Week)
The rocket engine battle between the 500,000-lb.-thrust class Aerojet Rocketdyne AR1 and Blue Origin BE-4 is heating up, with the AR1 moving through a critical design review and the BE-4 due to conduct a full-scale hot-fire test soon. (5/5)

Successful Testing of Full-Scale Preburner Keeps AR1 Engine on Schedule for 2019 (Source: Aerojet Rocketdyne)
Aerojet Rocketdyne has conducted hot-fire tests to validate the design of the preburner for the AR1 rocket engine, which represents the nation's lowest-risk, lowest-cost-to-the-taxpayer and fastest path to replacing the Russian-built RD-180 engine currently used to launch most U.S. national security payloads into space.

"This important milestone keeps AR1 squarely on track for flight readiness in 2019," said Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO and President Eileen Drake. "Our proven design process and demonstrated manufacturing approaches are key contributors to Aerojet Rocketdyne's unmatched record of mission success. When replacing the Russian-made engines on current launch vehicles, mission success has to be the country's number one priority."

The preburner, a critical component that drives the engine's turbomachinery, was built using state-of-the-art techniques, including 3-D printing which features Aerojet Rocketdyne's proprietary Mondaloy™ high-strength, burn resistant nickel-based super alloy. With the design now confirmed, Aerojet Rocket has cleared one of the major technological hurdles to fulfill the congressional mandate to end U.S. dependence on Russian engine technology for military launches. (5/5)

Pakistan Reacts to India's ISRO’s GSLVF09 Launch (Source: One India)
Pakistan has reacted to the successful launch of ISRO’s GSLV-F09 so called South Asia Satellite saying that India excluded Pakistan from the project. During the 18th SAARC Summit, India offered to ‘gift’ a satellite to SAARC member states’. Subsequently, however, India made it clear that it would build, launch and operate the satellite solely,” Nafees Zakaria, Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson said.

Zakaria further added that Pakistan was keen to work on the project and was willing to share its expertise with India. “However, as India was not willing to develop the project on a collaborative basis, it was not possible for Pakistan to support it as a regional project under the umbrella of SAARC. (5/5)

NASA and Hollywood Worlds Collide at Benefit (Source: Page Six)
Astronauts and stars mixed at Pioneer Works’ Village Fête benefit celebrating the nonprofit’s science programs. NASA astronaut Mike Massimino — who set a spacewalking record while servicing the Hubble Space Telescope — told the Brooklyn crowd including Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Jemima Kirke and Christian Slater of his celestial stroll: “On one side [was] darkness, and on the other, the beautiful oasis that is our planet — truly a paradise, suspended in the vast blackness of space. Trust me, there is no nearby alternative.” (5/5)

Ancient Meteor Strike Triggered Eruptions Lasting Up to a Million Years (Source: Space.com)
A giant meteor impact on Earth nearly 2 billion years ago triggered more explosive and long-lived volcanic eruptions than previously thought, a new study finds. This finding sheds light on how meteor bombardment may have dramatically shaped the evolution of the early Earth, researchers in the new study said. Meteor strikes have left giant craters all over Earth.

For instance, the cosmic impact that scientists think ended the age of dinosaurs about 66 million years ago left behind a crater more than 110 miles (180 kilometers) wide near the town of Chicxulub (CHEEK-sheh-loob) in Mexico. From 2013 to 2014, the scientists in the new study collected samples from the 0.93-mile-thick (1.5 km) layer of rock that filled the Sudbury crater. The scientists examined 139 samples from 15 locations in the crater. Their analysis suggested that this material not only consisted of rock that had melted from the heat of the impact, but was also peppered with tiny fragments of volcanic rock. (5/5)

Vector Launches Prototype Vector-R Launch Vehicle that Features 3D Printed Parts (Source: SatNews)
Vector, a Tucson, Arizona-based space startup, has successfully launched a prototype of its Vector-R launch vehicle, which features 3D printed parts. The test, which was completed on May 3 near Mohave, California, is reportedly the first of many, as Vector prepares to become one of the first space companies to offer low-cost micro satellite vehicles and launches. (5/5)

India Launches GSLV Rocket with GSAT-9 Payload (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
In India’s second launch of 2017, a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mk-II sent the GSAT-9 communications satellite into orbit. Liftoff took place on May 5 from the Second Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Center in India. GSAT-9 was built by the India Space Research Organization (ISRO). It will deliver TV for India as well as other members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, also called SAARC. (5/5)

NASA Awards $100,000 in First Printing Stage of 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge (Source: Space Daily)
Seven teams working on technology that could someday be used to create habitats from materials on other worlds have completed the first printing segment of NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge. NASA has awarded $100,000 to the two top-scoring teams from this stage, the Phase 2: Level 1 Compression Test Competition. Point-based awards were made to Foster + Partners | Branch Technology of Chattanooga, Tennessee, who earned $85,930, and the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, earning $14,070.

The 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge is run through a partnership with NASA's Centennial Challenges Program and Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. The goal of the challenge is to foster the development of technologies to manufacture a habitat using local indigenous materials with, or without, recyclable materials. (5/5)

NASA Awards $100,000 in First Printing Stage of 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge (Source: Space Daily)
Seven teams working on technology that could someday be used to create habitats from materials on other worlds have completed the first printing segment of NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge. NASA has awarded $100,000 to the two top-scoring teams from this stage, the Phase 2: Level 1 Compression Test Competition. Point-based awards were made to Foster + Partners | Branch Technology of Chattanooga, Tennessee, who earned $85,930, and the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, earning $14,070.

The 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge is run through a partnership with NASA's Centennial Challenges Program and Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. The goal of the challenge is to foster the development of technologies to manufacture a habitat using local indigenous materials with, or without, recyclable materials. (5/5)