January 19, 2019

China's Moon Cotton Experiment Ends in Freezing Lunar Night (Source: Space Daily)
A cotton seedling that sprouted on the moon has been left to die as China's historic lunar lander continues a freezing night-time nap that will last as long as two earth weeks, scientists said. The Chinese space agency announced earlier this week that the seed had germinated inside a special canister aboard the Chang'e-4 probe, after the spacecraft on January 3 made the first-ever landing on the far side of the moon.

The mini biosphere -- which operated for over 212 hours -- was shut down as planned on Saturday, said Chongqing University, which designed the experiment. The lander also carried potato and arabidopsis seeds -- a plant of the mustard family -- as well as fruit fly eggs and yeast. Temperatures inside the ecosystem were expected to plunge below minus 52 degrees Celsius (minus 61.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and the organisms will be "in a frozen state", the university said in a statement on Tuesday. (1/18)

Isotropic Systems Raises $14M in to Advance Space-Based Connectivity (Source: Space Daily)
Isotropic Systems Ltd., the next-generation integrated satellite terminal solution provider, has announced a $14 million Series A round of funding led by Boeing HorizonX Ventures, with participation from WML, Space Angels and Space Capital.

"The Series A financing builds on an exceptional year for Isotropic which saw a rapidly growing roster of strategic partners and customers who are poised to unlock the full potential of high-throughput satellites and mega-constellations across all orbits," said John Finney, founder and chief executive officer of Isotropic Systems. (1/18)

Russia Kicks Off Work on Countering 'Hazards' From Outer Space (Source: Space Daily)
According to the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), researchers have so far detected around 18,000 hazardous objects in space, 99 percent of which are asteroids. The presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences agreed upon developing a national program to research the issues and methods of countering hazards from space, such as asteroids, comets and space debris, Scientific Director of the Academy's Astronomy Institute, Boris Shustov, told Sputnik on Thursday.

The researcher recalled that in 2010, the academics already suggested that a federal program on countering threats from asteroids, comets and space debris be initiated but it was rejected by Roscosmos. At the RAS presidium session on space hazards on Tuesday, the head of the strategy planning and special programs directorate of Roscosmos, Yuri Makarov, suggested that a national plan on countering such risks should be developed.

According to Shustov, Russia's contribution to detecting dangerous asteroids and comets is 0.1 percent while the United States is the most active country in this area. In 2017, European Space Agency (ESA) reported that a potential space intruder, measuring 15-30 meters (49-98 feet) flew past the Earth at a distance of 44,000 kilometers (27,340 miles). (1/17)

Evidence of Changing Seasons, Rain on Titan's North Pole (Source: Space Daily)
An image from the international Cassini spacecraft provides evidence of rainfall on the north pole of Titan, the largest of Saturn's moons. The rainfall would be the first indication of the start of a summer season in the moon's northern hemisphere. "The whole Titan community has been looking forward to seeing clouds and rains on Titan's north pole, indicating the start of the northern summer, but despite what the climate models had predicted, we weren't even seeing any clouds," said Rajani Dhingra. "People called it the curious case of missing clouds." (1/17)

US Says Satellite Attempt Shows Iran Threat (Source: Space Daily)
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday accused Iran of posing a missile threat after Tehran defied his warnings and tried to put a satellite into orbit, albeit unsuccessfully. Pompeo renewed his charge that the launch defied UN Security Council resolution 2231 of 2015, which endorsed an international agreement, from which the United States has withdrawn, on ending Iran's nuclear weapons.

"In defiance of the international community & UNSCR 2231, Iran's regime fired off a space launch vehicle today," Pompeo tweeted. "The launch yet again shows that Iran is pursuing enhanced missile capabilities that threaten Europe and the Middle East," he wrote. The reaction was relatively muted for a member of President Donald Trump's administration, which has ramped up pressure for months on Iran in hopes of crippling its economy and scaling back its influence in the region. (1/15)

New Online SETI Tool Tracks Alien Searches (Source: Space Daily)
A new online tool will assist amateurs and professionals in digging through massive data banks to uncover new clues into the search for alien life. As researchers around the globe continue their quest to find physical proof of extraterrestrial life, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute (SETI) has introduced new software to assist anyone with an interest in 'what's out there' to study the data and draw their own conclusions.

Anew web tool called Technosearch enables anyone to log on and view, study or mine every publication in the entire database. The database includes the document covering every SETI search, beginning in 1960 and continuing to the present day. In keeping with the mission statement of the organization - in part - 'to apply the knowledge gained', users can gain access to all the information to date and draw their own conclusions. (1/16)

From Volcanoes on Mars to Scarps on Mercury - How Places on Other Worlds Get Their Names (Source: Space Daily)
The New Horizons spacecraft, which flew past Pluto in 2015, successfully completed a flyby of "Ultima Thule", an object in the Kuiper belt of bodies beyond Neptune on January 1, 2019. The name Ultima Thule, signifying a distant unknown place, is fitting but it is currently just a nickname pending formal naming. The official names of the body and of the features on its surface will eventually be allocated (this could take years) by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), which celebrates its centenary in 2019.

The IAU's achievements during its first few decades include resolving contradictory sets of names given to features on the Moon and Mars by rival astronomers during the previous few centuries. The nomenclature working group's task would then have been largely over, had the space age not dawned - allowing space probes to send back images revealing spectacular landscape details on planets and their moons. (1/16)

Closing The Space Launch Information Gap (Source: Space Daily)
The space revolution is underway. The excitement in the industry is palpable, and new staggering achievements are being accomplished at almost a daily rate. There is also a rapidly increasing tempo of new company announcements, new players who want to serve existing space markets or create new ones. New space companies are creating significant value, but how can anyone see through the hype to know which companies will be successful?

For someone who wants to invest in these companies, it can be quite a dizzying experience. How can an investor know which companies are actually real? Which companies have technology that works, experienced leadership teams, and enough financing to see their plans through? The SpaceFund Reality rating (SFR) is an effort to provide critical, intelligent, and non-biased information about the status of the growing space industry, and to make as much of this data available to the public as possible. The SFR rating is designed to be a general guide, and is not intended as a critique or endorsement of any one company. (1/15)

Nuclear Arms Treaty Faces Collapse After Failed US-Russia Talks (Source: Space Daily)
The survival of a key nuclear arms control treaty was cast further in doubt Tuesday after the US and Russia blamed each other for pushing the agreement to the brink of collapse. Senior diplomats from both countries met in Geneva amid widespread concern over the fate of the bilateral Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which successfully put an end to a mini-arms race after it was signed in 1987.

US President Donald Trump said in October that his country would pull out of the deal unless Russia stops violating it. Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to develop nuclear missiles banned under the treaty if it is scrapped. "The meeting was disappointing as it is clear Russia continues to be in material breach of the Treaty and did not come prepared to explain how it plans to return to full and verifiable compliance," US Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, Andrea Thompson, said in a statement. (1/15)