October 11, 2017

Citing Safety, NASA Panel Advises Building a New, Costly Mobile Launcher at KSC (Source: Ars Technica)
A NASA advisory group thinks the agency should build a replacement for a mobile launch platform yet to be used. The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, at a recent meeting, said it was concerned that modifications to the mobile launch platform after the first launch of the Space Launch System will create a long gap that poses a safety risk to the overall SLS program.

The platform, originally built for Constellation, will need changes after the first SLS launch to accommodate the larger Block 1B version of the rocket, which will be used on second and subsequent SLS missions. The gap between the first and second SLS launches could be reduced, the panel argued, if NASA started now on building a new mobile launch platform designed for the Block 1B version of SLS. (10/11)

Harris Developing Smaller, More Secure Military SatComm Terminals (Source: Space News)
Secure terminals for military satellite communications are getting smaller. Secure, jam-proof terminals today are typically too large to be carried by forces in the field. Harris Corporation says it's working on terminals the size of a suitcase, and a modem the size of an iPad, that provide anti-jamming capabilities. Work on such systems has taken on new urgency as the Army believes that future battles will involve opponents with more sophisticated technologies to disrupt satellite communications. (10/11)

New Mexico Company Plans Internet Service for Blue Origin Spaceflight Participants (Source: Space News)
A New Mexico company plans to offer internet access on New Shepard suborbital spaceflights. Solstar Space said it will test its communications system on two flights of Blue Origin's suborbital vehicle next year as part of NASA's Flight Opportunities program. That system, called the Schmitt Space Communicator after Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt, will provide internet access for experiments flying on the vehicle, and could be used by future suborbital space tourists as well. (10/11)

VP Pence Visits Virgin Galactic and Stratolaunch at Mojave Spaceport (Source: Ridgecrest Independent)
Vice President Mike Pence visited commercial space companies during a brief stop Tuesday in Mojave, California. Pence visited facilities used by Virgin Orbit and Virgin Galactic, as well as Stratolaunch Systems, during a two-hour visit to the Mojave Air and Space Port. "Mojave is very much a part of the infrastructure of American space exploration today," Pence said in comments during the visit. (10/11)

Luxembourg Sings Agreement with UAE on Space Resource Collaboration (Source: SpaceResources)
The government of Luxembourg signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Arab Emirates on space resources issues. The agreement, signed in Luxembourg Tuesday, covers bilateral cooperation on space issues, with an emphasis on utilization of space resources. That includes plans to "regularly consult on questions of international governance of space" in support of common positions. Luxembourg passed a law earlier this year providing companies there with rights to space resources they extract, while the UAE is also considering space resources legislation. (10/11)

UCF Football Game Devoted to Space Exploration (Source: UCF)
The University of Central Florida was founded in 1963 as Florida Technological University, with the mission of supporting the growing United States space program at nearby Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The university's motto, “Reach for the Stars,” represented its promising aerospace education in engineering, electronics and other technological professions.

The UCF football team's October 14 game will be dedicated to space exploration and will honor some of the universities space research and researchers. The team's uniform will also feature some space flourishes. Click here. (10/11)

SpaceX Launches and Lands Another Falcon From the Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Florida Today)
A Falcon 9 launched a communications satellite Wednesday evening on SpaceX's second mission in less than three days. The rocket lifted off from a Kennedy Space Center launch pad carrying the SES-11/EchoStar-105 satellite. The launch was the third to use a previously flown first stage, with a successful landing on a droneship offshore. (10/11)

Russia Plans Extra-Speedy Cargo Trip to ISS (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
A Progress spacecraft will launch a test of a speedy transit to the ISS. The Soyuz rocket carrying the Progress MS-07 spacecraft is scheduled to launch Thursday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 5:32 a.m. Eastern. This launch will be the first test of a two-orbit rendezvous with the ISS, with the Progress arriving at the station just three hours after launch. Most Progress and Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS fly a four-orbit approach to the ISS, which itself is a recent change from transits that took two days to reach the station after launch. (10/11)

Missile Demand Keeps US Rocket Motor Production Humming (Source: Space News)
Demand for advanced missiles is fueling investments in rocket motors. An Orbital ATK executive said that interest in hypersonic missiles and those with a longer range is supporting work on solid rocket motor technologies. That is helping shore up an industrial base for such motors weakened when the space shuttle program, a major consumer of solid motors, was retired. (10/11)

Moon Express and NanoRacks Partner on Lunar Payload Solutions (Source: Space News)
Moon Express and NanoRacks will partner on providing commercial lunar payload solutions. The companies announced an agreement Tuesday whereby NanoRacks will provide sales, marketing and technical support for payloads flying on the series of lunar landers under development by Moon Express. NanoRacks plans to use the lessons learned from flying payloads to the ISS to demonstrate there is a commercial market for payloads to the moon. (10/11)

Iridium Launch Delivers More Harris-Built Aireon Payloads to Space for Air Traffic Management (Source: Aviation Week)
Aireon announced the successful launch and deployment of the third batch of 10 Iridium NEXT satellites, carrying its space-based automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ADS-B) payloads. Conducted from Vandenberg Air Force Base with a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, this launch has increased the total number of Aireon payloads in orbit to 30.

Another 45 are destined for space in a series of five additional launches planned over the next ten months. Aireon said it is well on its way to become the first to provide global, real-time air traffic surveillance and tracking to air navigation service providers (ANSPs) and aviation stakeholders.

The Aireon payloads from the first two launches, completed on January 14th and June 25th of 2017, have demonstrated the ground-breaking capability to identify aircraft all over world, resulting in more than six billion ADS-B position reports being received in just seven months. (10/11)

Honeywell Unveils Plans To Spin Off Pair Of Businesses, Focus on Aerospace (Source: Law360)
Honeywell International Inc. revealed plans Tuesday to spin off its homes product and ADI global distribution business and its transportation systems business, following a strategic portfolio review that came amid pressure from an activist hedge fund. Honeywell said the separation of the businesses, which together account for annualized revenue of about $7.5 billion, into two separate, publicly traded companies is expected to be tax-free to its investors. (10/11)

Could Blue Origin — a ULA partner — Become a Rival for National Security Space Launches? (Source: Denver  Business Journal)
Jeff Bezos might be evolving into a competitor to United Launch Alliance. Blue Origin is talking with the U.S. Air Force about getting into national security launch missions, according to the rocket company’s CEO, Bob Smith. “Our New Glenn launch vehicle will be more capable than existing launch vehicles flying today, and can be used not only for human spaceflight and other commercial missions, but also for civil and national security payloads,” Smith said.

“Therefore, we are in early discussions with the national security community and NASA about how to certify New Glenn for their use.” That signals a change from the Blue Origin’s previous public stance that it would be a ULA supplier on national security missions. ULA is partnering with Blue Origin on the development the BE-4 engine that could power ULA’s Vulcan rockets.

“We have been aware of this for quite some time and it does not affect our relationship with respect to the Vulcan engine,” said Jessica Rye, ULA spokeswoman, when asked about the news. Bezos has described Blue Origin as focused on launching commercial space missions and space tourism, and its national security involvement would be in supplying BE-4 engines to ULA. (10/9)