August 29, 2020

Spaceport America Interim Chief Sees Progress While New CFO Search Proceeds (Source: KRWG)
Spaceport America might be trying to reach for the stars, but COVID delays and pending investigations are currently leaving them grounded. Interim CEO Scott McLaughlin presented to the Legislative Finance Committee Thursday, offering insight into the controversial workings of New Mexico’s only commercialized spaceport. Coinciding with the investigation of CEO Dan Hicks is the search for a new CFO. Former CFO Zach De Gregorio resigned after being the one to issue complaints against Hicks.

Despite the controversy, McLaughlin spoke about positive progress being made, such as job creation. “Right now, we have about 216 private, direct jobs attributed to Spaceport America, and these are not employees of the state of New Mexico, there are employees of Virgin Galactic, SpinLaunch and AeroVironment.” McLaughlin said. “These are direct jobs who create maybe two to three other indirect and induced jobs. We’re looking at somewhere in the order of 700-800 jobs that are attributed to Spaceport America.” (8/28)

Allegations of Criminal Acts Part of CEO Probe, Spaceport America Official Says (Source: Santa Fe New Mexican)
Details about the investigation into Spaceport America CEO Dan Hicks continued to emerge Thursday, as its board chairwoman revealed the probe may be criminal in nature. A wide range of allegations against Hicks are being looked into, including possible violations of the state procurement code, potential financial mismanagement such as improper spending, alleged disbursement of gross receipts tax revenue for unauthorized purposes and possible conflict of interest, Economic Development Department Secretary Alicia Keyes said. (8/28)

Starlink's Speed Tests Look Impressive, But Unlikely to Win Any Federal Subsidies (Source: Business Insider)
Starlink, SpaceX's growing network of internet-beaming satellites, is undergoing a private beta test. In mid-August, Starlink performance results from an internet-connection-testing website began appearing on Reddit. The results impressed some users who lack access to affordable high-speed broadband internet. But telecommunications-industry experts see potential issues for Starlink in the testing data if SpaceX is competing for $16 billion in federal subsidies this fall.

SpaceX is likely using Starlink to compete for a large pool of Federal Communications Commission subsidies this fall, called the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. (The FCC declined to share a list of entrants, and SpaceX did not acknowledge Business Insider's queries.) The FCC plans to pay up to $16 billion this fall to those providers that can bring the best broadband access to the most areas for the lowest cost.Starlink might seem like a shoo-in for the subsidies, but the rules of the program stack the deck against satellite-based systems. (8/27)

Interplanetary Probes From Behind the Iron Curtain: The Soviet Venera Program (Source: Astronomy)
The Pioneer and Voyager probes the United States sent to explore the outer planets in the 1970s are often, and accurately, lauded as historic interplanetary achievements. That’s partly because, equipped with the Pioneer Plaque and the Voyager Golden Record, these objects are ostensibly meant to be found by aliens someday, helping them easily burrow into public consciousness. Similarly, robotic explorers to Mars, including the Viking landers and the Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity rovers, take innumerable headlines, and they’re often even given anthropomorphized personalities.

Almost forgotten, however, are the ambitious Soviet exploration missions of Venus. Beginning at the dawn of the Space Age in the late 1950s, the Soviets worked to design and construct a series of Venus probes. And for almost 30 years, they built and flew the interplanetary spacecraft as part of the Venera program — carrying out rather impressive feats, even by today’s standards. Click here. (8/26)

Carrington Event Still Provides Warning of Sun’s Potential 161 Years Later (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
On 28 August 1859, a series of sunspots began to form on the surface of our stellar parent.  The sunspots quickly tangled the Sun’s magnetic field lines in their area and produced bright, observed solar flares and one — likely two — Coronal Mass Ejections, one major. The massive solar storm impacted our planet on 1-2 September 1859, causing widespread disruption to electrical and Telegraph services and spawning auroras visible in the tropics.

Officially known as SOL1859-09-01, the Carrington Event as it has become known colloquially showcased for the first time the potentially disastrous relationship between the Sun’s energetic temperament and the nascent technology of the 19th century. It also resulted in the earliest observations of solar flares — by Richard Carrington (for whom the event is named) and Richard Hodgson — and was the event that made Carrington realize the relationship between geomagnetic storms and the Sun. Click here. (8/28)

Boeing’s Starliner Makes Progress Ahead of Flight Test with Astronauts (Source: NASA)
NASA and Boeing continue to make progress toward the company’s second uncrewed flight test of the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft prior to flying astronauts to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The Commercial Crew Program currently is targeting no earlier than December 2020 for launch of the uncrewed Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) pending hardware readiness, flight software qualification, and launch vehicle and space station manifest priorities.

Over the summer, Boeing’s Starliner team focused on readying the next spacecraft for its upcoming flight tests as well as making improvements identified during various review processes throughout the beginning of the year. NASA also announced an additional crew assignment for its first operational mission, NASA’s Boeing Starliner-1, with astronauts to the space station. Click here. (8/28)

Astra Pushes Back Next Alaska Launch Attempt (Source: Astra)
Astra has delayed its next launch attempt from the Alaska Kodiak Launch Complex to September 10, with the launch window opening at 10:00 p.m. local time. (8/28)

No One Seems to Know About NASA's Most Important Mission (Source: TIME)
If NASA had its way, the name Artemis would be as familiar to most Americans as the name Apollo. It feels like every NASA press release includes the promise that the Artemis program will "land the first woman and next man on the moon by 2024." It's a nifty bit of aspiration and marketing—just right for an an agency promoting both science and 21st century gender equality.

So you'd think that the name might have long since entered the popular conversation—that Americans might know about the three big missions coming up in the next few years: Artemis I, next year's uncrewed flight of the Space Launch System (SLS)—the giant new moon rocket—and the Orion spacecraft that will eventually carry astronauts; Artemis II, tentatively set for the summer of 2023, which will carry a crew of four on a circumlunar flight around the far side of the moon and back home; and Artemis III, which will stick that promised landing on the lunar surface in 2024.

But Artemis has not yet entered the conversation. Google "Artemis II" and the first thing you get is...a sofa. Yes, a sofa. It's a lovely sofa—a handsome sectional with a convenient ottoman. But it's not a moon mission. Part of the problem is almost certainly that even the most ardent space fans are suffering a kind of promise fatigue. (8/28)

NASA Selects Proposals for New Space Environment Missions (Source: NASA)
NASA has selected five proposals for concept studies of missions to help improve understanding of the dynamics of the Sun and the constantly changing space environment with which it interacts around Earth. The information will improve understanding about the universe as well as offer key information to help protect astronauts, satellites, and communications signals – such as GPS – in space.

Each of these Medium-Class Explorer proposals will receive $1.25 million to conduct a nine-month mission concept study. Following the study period, NASA will choose up to two proposals to go forward to launch. Each potential mission has a separate launch opportunity and timeframe. Click here. (8/28)