November 28, 2020

SpaceX Starlink Just Won a Huge Customer (Source: Motley Fool)
On Saturday, Oct. 24, SpaceX crossed the finish line, achieving the 800 Starlink broadband internet satellites in orbit it needed to offer "moderate" internet coverage to large portions of Earth's surface. Just two days later, the company officially opened up Starlink to "beta" subscribers, advertising 50Mb/s to 150Mb/s broadband internet service for prices as low as $99 a month (plus a $499 hardware fee). Demand for the new service in the U.S. has reportedly been brisk, and demand in Canada is about to get even brisker -- because just this month, regulators approved Starlink to offer internet service in Canada as well.

How important is this to Canada, and is $99 for as little as 50 mbps internet speeds really a good deal? With Comcast offering 200 mbps for under $50 in metro locales in the U.S. you might not think so, but here's the thing: Listening in on tweets from elated Canadian (future) customers, and hearing their lamentations about being forced to pay, for example, $46 a month (presumably Canadian) for 6 mbps, $75 for 5 mbps, or even $95 for a measly 2 mbps, it's pretty clear that the service Starlink is offering will be a big improvement for a lot of rural users. (11/26)

Gilmour Space and Northrop Grumman sign MoU to Grow Sovereign Capabilities in Australia (Source: Space Daily)
Australian rocket company, Gilmour Space Technologies, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with global aerospace giant Northrop Grumman Corporation to work on developing sovereign space capabilities in Australia. "Northrop Grumman aims to lead industry support in developing Australian sovereign space capabilities to help meet the needs of defence and realise the Australian Space Agency vision," said Chris Deeble, chief executive, Northrop Grumman Australia. (11/25)

Canada's Escape From Planet Earth? (Source: Maclean's)
By the time you read this, one of three things has happened: you have witnessed America re-elect a neo-fascist, and you are concerned; or, you have witnessed America decline to re-elect a neo-fascist, and the neo-fascist is angry, and his followers are angrier still, and you are concerned; or, Russia has bombed every post office in Pennsylvania and you are too busy watching footage of roving street militias to read this. In any event, whatever happens/has happened on Nov. 3, this is certain: after that date our country remains uneasy about our proximity to the country directly below us and, upon careful reflection, decides the time is right for Canada to commence exploring its options for colonizing the moon.

Luckily, this seems a good opportunity to do so, because the most important international agreement regarding space exploration has just been signed: the Artemis Accords. Now, the Artemis Accords aren’t strictly designed to facilitate moon colonization (which is, granted, not 100 per cent legal), but as they regulate space exploration, they’re currently the closest thing we have to a launchpad for the 38 million or so of our prospective lunar colonists. Here are the new rules, then, for “exploring” the moon.

Among other things, we’d have to: land only for peaceful purposes (Canada’s previous exploration/colonization efforts may compromise our credibility on this point, but presumably observers will be reassured by the obligingly unthreatening status of our defence spending); be transparent about our moon business (“We’re just here for the meteor views!”); “utilize current interoperability standards for space-based infrastructure” (I don’t know what any of that means, and it is doubtful a space law enforcement officer would either); help other countries’ space personnel in distress (fine, but unnecessary—wherever they’re from, and however far it is from the United States, space personnel will be relieved to be somewhere further). (11/25)

Danish Billionaire Backs Shetland Spaceport (Source: The Herald)
The Danish billionaire objecting to a spaceport near his Highland estate has invested almost £1.5m in a rival site on Shetland. Anders Povlsen, Scotland’s biggest landowner, has boosted a proposed space centre on Unst, which is currently lagging in the race to be Scotland’s first vertical rocket launch site. The £1.43m investment is being made by Mr Povlsen’s company Wild Ventures Ltd, which said it wanted spaceports built “in the right place”. (11/27)

The U.S.-China Split in Space (Source: Axios)
China has a flourishing space program with big ambitions. The nation is expected to build a space station in orbit in the coming years and eventually plans to send people to the Moon. Those plans run in parallel to U.S. ambitions to send people back to the lunar surface as the International Space Station program comes to an end.

Both nations also have strong military presences in orbit: China's tests of its anti-satellite weapons worry many U.S. space watchers that the nation doesn't adhere to widely accepted norms in orbit. The U.S. relies on spy satellites and other assets in space to fight wars. Unlike arrangements with other U.S. allies and adversaries that have so far held peace between powers in space, NASA and China are prevented from cooperating in space without congressional approval under the Wolf Amendment, first passed in 2011.

This separation in space means the U.S. and China sometimes pursue different technologies and goals, and build separate international collaborations. Still, the U.S. space program as a whole is stronger and is likely to remain so, says Matthew Daniels. But the U.S.-China separation in space "may have long-term costs that exceed their benefits to America," the report says. If the U.S. is focused on international leadership and managing risk in space, "some narrow relaxation" of policies may be needed, he writes. (11/27)

Chinese Space Program Marches Ahead: Implications for India (Source: ORF)
Several important developments in the Chinese space program over the last ten months of 2020 are noteworthy and require careful analysis to ascertain their implications for India. Three areas are: i) Chinese space launch rates, ii) China’s collaboration with foreign space startups in the development of low-cost satellite propulsion fuel, and iii) China’s reportedly successful test of a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV).

In all these three segments, the Chinese space programme appears to have made progress this past year. Each of these milestones suggest that a raging pandemic — which originated in China — has had very little adverse effect, allowing the Chinese to insulate their space programme from the worst effects of COVID-19. (11/27)

China to Build Lunar Research Station Prototype (Source: Space Daily)
China plans to build a prototype for a lunar scientific research station in the fourth phase of the country's lunar exploration program, said Wu Weiren, chief designer of the program. The prototype, which will consist of multiple detectors operating in lunar orbit and on the lunar surface, will be capable of conducting scientific and technological research on the moon, as well as technical verification of lunar resource exploration and utilization, said Wu.

With the planned prototype, Chinese scientists will seek cooperation with their international counterparts to build an international lunar scientific research station, said Wu, also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

On Tuesday, China launched the Chang'e-5 spacecraft to collect and return samples from the moon, the country's first attempt to retrieve samples from an extraterrestrial body. It marked the end of the third phase of China's lunar exploration program. According to the plan of the fourth phase of the program, the Chang'e-7 spacecraft will conduct a comprehensive exploration of the moon's Antarctic topography, material composition and space environment, said Wu. The Chang'e-8 spacecraft will be tasked with conducting further scientific tests as well as the verification of key technologies, the scientist added. (11/27)

China Plans to Launch New Space Science Satellites (Source: Xinhua)
China plans to launch a space telescope for research in electromagnetic counterparts of gravitational waves in December, according to the National Space Science Center under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The telescope, Gravitational Wave High-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM), will be launched from the Xichang spaceport The GECAM mission is composed of two small satellites, and it will focus on detecting electromagnetic counterparts of gravitational waves, high-energy radiation from fast radio bursts, various gamma-ray bursts, and magnetar flares. (11/27)

China's Mighty Long March 9 Rocket Set to Debut in 2030 (Source: China Daily)
The China National Space Administration has revealed design specifications about the Long March 9, a super-heavy carrier rocket that will likely become one of the world's largest and mightiest launch vehicles. Xu Hongliang, secretary-general of the administration, said that the Long March 9 is in the research and development stage and is expected to enter service around 2030.

The super-heavy rocket will be 93 meters tall, have a liftoff weight of 4,140 metric tons and a thrust power of 5,760 tons. Its core stage will be about 10 meters in diameter, Xu said at the Wenchang International Aviation and Aerospace Forum's opening ceremony on Tuesday. The craft will be so powerful that it will be able to transport spacecraft with a combined weight of 140 tons to a low-Earth orbit hundreds of kilometers above the planet, he said. (11/26)

Japan’s New H3 Launcher Delayed by Rocket Engine Component Issues (Source: Space News)
The first launches of the new Japanese H3 launch vehicle are being delayed by issues with two components of the rocket’s main engine. The Japanese space agency JAXA said that problems were found with the new LE-9 engine’s combustion chamber and turbopump. JAXA and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) were aiming to hold the inaugural launch by the end of 2020 before the discovery of issues in May. This led JAXA to announce in September that the first flight would slip to some time in Japanese fiscal year 2021, beginning April 1, 2021. The rocket’s second launch likewise slipped to Japanese fiscal year 2022. (11/27)

NASA Can't Decide Whether Astronauts Should Wash Their Underwear (Source: New Scientist)
NASA and Procter & Gamble (P&G) have signed an agreement to develop the first detergent for washing clothes in space – despite a long-standing recommendation against astronauts doing their own laundry. While astronauts wear spacesuits when working outside the International Space Station (ISS), they wear ordinary clothes most of the time. Once these are too dirty to be worn, they are then either returned to Earth as rubbish or ejected along with other waste in a capsule to burn up in the atmosphere. (11/26)

Russian Space Agency Set to Begin Discussing ISS Lifespan with NASA in Early 2021 (Source: TASS)
Consultations on the International Space Station (ISS) lifespan will begin in early 2021. According Roscosmos, the ISS lifespan depends both on technical and political issues. "One way or another, we plan to commence consultations with NASA and other partners on these issues," Roscosmos underscored.

Previously, the Scientific Russia website published a portion of the speech of ISS Russian segment flight manager Vladimir Solovyov, who claimed that there is a number of seriously damaged elements on the station that begin to fail. Solovyov noted that exponential failure of multiple modules on the ISS is expected after 2025, adding that further funding of the station may require about 10 to 15 billion rubles ($132 million to $198 million). (11/26)

Air Force Academy Looks to Become a Place for Space (Source: Air Force Magazine)
The U.S. Air Force Academy has long been the training ground for cadets headed for careers in military space. But with the creation of a Space Force, the Colorado school is looking to expand the opportunities available to space-minded students. "Where do you go if you want to be a pilot? I think most people would say, you go to the Air Force Academy if you want to fly in the United States Air Force,” said Col. Jeffrey H. Greenwood, USAFA’s Space Force liaison. “I want that same mentality of, if you want to serve in the United States Space Force.”

The Space Force, which falls under the Department of the Air Force, does not currently plan to establish its own service academy. Instead, USAFA brought in Greenwood in July to change up the space education experience. He’s modeling the Space Force detachment on the Marine Corps’ presence at the U.S. Naval Academy, alongside about 30 USAFA staffers who form the core of the school’s new Space Force detachment. (11/25)

Firehawk Aerospace Raises $2M for Next Generation Rocket Engines (Source: Space Daily)
Firehawk Aerospace, a rocket propulsion startup, has closed a $2 million seed round. The round is led by members of the Victorum Capital Club and includes additional investments from Achieve Capital and Harlow Capital Management. "Firehawk Aerospace has achieved a new level of performance for hybrid rocket engines through our patented 3D-printed rocket fuel," said Will Edwards, Co-Founder and CEO. "Firehawk Aerospace will provide a safe, reliable, and affordable rocket engine to power the next-generation of satellite launchers, guided reconnaisance systems, lunar transport systems, and manned space systems."

Firehawk Aerospace is providing customizable propulsion systems to make the future of space transportation safer and more accessible. The funds will be used to test Firehawk's engine at operational scale, grow its partnerships with leading government and commercial entities around the world, and expand its research and manufacturing facilities to Texas and Oklahoma. (11/27)

Defects in Mitochondria May Explain Many Health Problems Observed During Space Travel (Source: Space Daily)
For space exploration to be successful, it's vital to understand - and find ways to address - underlying causes of the health issues that have been observed in astronauts who have spent extended periods of time off world. These problems include loss of bone and muscle mass, immune dysfunction, and heart and liver problems. Using data collected from a number of different resources, a multidisciplinary team is reporting discovery of a common thread that drives this damage: mitochondrial dysfunction. The researchers used a systems approach to look at widespread alterations affecting biological function. (11/26)

Space Travel Can Adversely Impact Energy Production in a Cell (Source: Space Daily)
Studies of both mice and humans who have traveled into space reveal that critical parts of a cell's energy production machinery, the mitochondria, can be made dysfunctional due to changes in gravity, radiation exposure and other factors. These findings are part of an extensive research effort across many scientific disciplines to look at the health effects of travel into space. The research has implications for future space travel as well as how metabolic changes due to space travel could inform medical science on earth. (11/26)

How Can Space Improve Urban Planning? (Source: ESA)
Representatives of the city of Milan in Italy and the municipality of Baia Mare in Romania will join ESA engineers to identify how information gleaned from space can help cities to function smoothly. Andrea Aliscioni, Director of the Integrated Water Service Division for the Municipality of Milan, will explain how the city uses highly localised satellite data to monitor the health of its sewerage networks. He will be joined by Piero Pelizzaro, Chief Resilience Officer for the Municipality of Milan.

Meanwhile Sorin Pop of the Municipality of Baia Mare in Romania will describe the region’s efforts to create a smart, post-industrial regenerative ecosystem by reintroducing green plants. The system employs satellite data on biomass to conduct soil analysis from space. (11/26)

No comments: