May 20, 2018

Having Babies on Mars Is Going to Be a ‘Titanic Challenge’ (Source: Daily Beast)
A new report from the journal Futures forecasts that having babies on Mars is going to be a little more difficult than the birds-and-bees mechanics we experience here on Earth. In fact, the researchers go so far as to suggest that reproducing on the Red Planet—essential for the success of human colonization—could be downright dangerous.

The primary problem with having babies on Mars is the fact that the planet’s atmosphere does not protect against harmful radiation and magnetism. Earth’s atmosphere shields humans from these rays—a major reason why Earth was able to sustain life in the first place.

Mars, however, doesn’t have this sort of protective atmospheric armor that Earth does. Its atmosphere is actually about 100 times thinner than Earth’s, which means that cosmic radiation practically floods through the Martian atmosphere. For any human—adult, child, or fetal—on the ground below that, this is deadly. In fact, for fertilization to occur in the first place, it has to somehow withstand this radiation. (5/18)

Starfighters Expands Access to F-104 Flight Training at Kennedy Space Center (Source: Starfighters)
Licensed pilots now have direct access to F-104 flight training reservations through an online reservation process. This follows Starfighters Aerospace’s recent authorization from the FAA that opens the skies above NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) for pilot training in the legendary supersonic aircraft. An FAA Letter of Deviation Authority (LODA) allows licensed pilots to receive type-specific training in the same ‘right-stuff’ jets used for decades to prepare NASA astronauts for spaceflight and conduct to aeronautical research.

Pilots receive pre-flight syllabus-based training at Starfighters’ KSC-based hangar at the former Space Shuttle runway, ending with one or more checkout flights in the restricted airspace above the spaceport. This limited-access training covers the fundamentals of flying the F-104 and is designed to enhance confidence and flight safety. The amount of time it takes to complete the basic training and aircraft familiarization (TRA1) will vary by pilot. Click here. And here's a video. (5/21)

China’s First Private Rocket Reaches 127,000 Feet on Maiden Flight (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
OneSpace Technology Co., a Beijing-based aerospace company, has successfully launched a suborbital rocket. This was the first flight for China’s commercial launch sector. Nicknamed “Chongqing Liangjiang Star,” the booster lifted off from a launch site located somewhere in northwest China. The exact location was not disclosed by the company.

The mission was designated OS-X0 as it was the first test launch of OneSpace’s OS-X rocket. During the flight, the launch vehicle reached an altitude of 127,106 feet (38.74 kilometers) and had a top speed of more than 5.7 times the speed of sound. This was confirmed by Shu Chang, the company’s founder and CEO.

OS-X is a 29.5-foot (9-meter) solid-fueled single-stage rocket weighing about 7.2 metric tons. OneSpace disclosed that the rocket has a payload capacity of 220 pounds (100 kilograms) and can travel for around five minutes, or 170 miles (273 kilometers). The company also said that OS-X is equipped with wireless communication devices, low-cost energy sources and its control system can be customized to meet customer demands. (5/20)

Neil Armstrong’s Dyna-Soar Abort Training Aircraft Being Restored for Moon Landing Anniversary (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
A piece of Neil Armstrong’s pre-astronaut space history is being restored in preparation for next July’s 50-year anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. The Armstrong Air and Space Museum in the astronaut’s hometown of Wapakoneta, Ohio, is restoring the Douglas F5D Skylancer aircraft that he flew as part of his training for the Dyna-Soar project, which was cancelled in December of 1963. Armstrong had been named to NASA astronaut group three in October of that year.

The Skylancer has been on outdoor display in front of the museum since its opening in 1972. Naturally, the years and the elements have caught up with the aircraft, which has been repainted only twice in the 46 years it has been on display. On longtime loan from NASA since its arrival at the museum, last year ownership was transferred to the Ohio History Connection—the operator of the museum—so the Skylancer could remain a permanent part of the facility. (5/20)

Russia May Renew 'Satan' Missile Launches to Place Satellites In Orbit (Source: Sputnik)
Russia may renew launches of the Voevoda (NATO reporting name Satan) intercontinental ballistic missiles to place spacecraft into orbit. In March, then-Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said that Russia's space industry was ready to use Satan missiles that will then be replaced with Sarmat missiles.

"The issue of use of decommissioned RS-20V [NATO reporting name SS-18 Satan] missiles in line with the conversion launches program is being considered," the source said, adding that the RS-20B modification will not be used for launching satellites. Currently Russia has 46 RS-20V missiles and some 11 RS-20B missiles. (5/20)

Earth's Magnetic Field Is Drifting Westward, and Nobody Knows Why (Source: Space.com)
Over the 400 years or so that humans have been measuring Earth's magnetic field, it has drifted inexorably to the west. Now, a new hypothesis suggests that weird waves in Earth's outer core may cause this drift. The slow waves, called Rossby waves, arise in rotating fluids. They're also known as "planetary waves," and they're found in many large, rotating bodies, including on Earth in the oceans and atmosphere and on Jupiter and the sun.

Earth's outer core is also a rotating fluid, meaning Rossby waves circulate in the core, too. Whereas oceanic and atmospheric Rossby waves have crests that move westward against Earth's eastward rotation, Rossby waves in the core are "a bit like turning atmospheric Rossby waves inside out," said O.P. Bardsley, a doctoral student at the University of Cambridge in England, and the author of a new study on the Rossby wave hypothesis. Their crests always move east. (5/20)

Embry-Riddle Cubesat Malfunctions (Source: Phys.org)
Embry-Riddle's EagleSat-1 is working through post-launch challenges. "It turns out we are not getting data back. There is still learning occurring, which is our main reason for doing the program. The students are learning the process of failure analysis and understanding the spacecraft a little bit better as a result of trying to figure out what could have gone wrong and try to figure out if there is anything we can do while it is on orbit," said Dr. Gary Yale, associate professor of aerospace engineering and faculty mentor for EagleSat-1, at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

One possibility under consideration by the team of undergraduate researchers is that their antenna did not deploy after launch. The EagleSat-1 team hopes that if that is the problem, eventually the fishing line holding the antenna down will decay due to ultraviolet radiation in the space environment, causing the line to break and deploy the antenna, which was the backup plan for that eventuality. (5/14)

Mark Kelly: US Schools 'Absolutely' Should be Hardened (Source: The Hill)
Gun control advocate Mark Kelly said on Sunday that American schools “absolutely” should be hardened with metal detectors and restricted access. “Absolutely,” Kelly, a former astronaut, told “Fox News Sunday” when asked if schools should implement metal detectors and restricted access areas in an effort to prevent school shootings.

Kelly is married to former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ), who survived an assassination attempt while she was a member of Congress. His remarks come after ten people were killed in a shooting at a high school in Texas last week. While Kelly said on Sunday that schools should have increased security, he also argued that the U.S. must prevent dangerous individuals from obtaining a gun. (5/20)