December 10, 2020

Starlink Satellites Brighter Than OneWeb Satellites, Despite Dimming Feature (Source: Cornell University)
The mean visual magnitude of OneWeb satellites at the standard satellite distance of 1,000 km is 7.18 +/-0.03 . When this value is adjusted to the nominal 1,200 km altitude of a OneWeb satellite in orbit it corresponds to magnitude 7.58 which is an indication of the mean brightness at zenith. The OneWeb satellites are fainter than the original Starlink satellites at a common distance. Preliminary data on the new and dimmer VisorSat design for Starlink suggests that they are still brighter than OneWeb at the satellites' respective operational altitudes. (12/9)

China Sees Booming Satellite Navigation, Positioning Industry (Source: Space Daily)
China's satellite navigation and positioning industry gained a total output value of 345 billion yuan (about $52.8 billion) in 2019, according to the latest report. The sector's output value is expected to hit 400 billion yuan in 2020, according to a report on the construction and development of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS). Over the past decade, China has seen the total output of its satellite navigation and positioning industry grow by an annual average of more than 20 percent. Along with positioning, navigation and timing services, the BDS-3 system can provide a variety of value-added services like global search and rescue assistance, short message communication, ground-based and satellite-based augmentation, as well as precise point positioning. (12/10)

China Launches Two Satellites for Gravitational Wave Detection (Source: Space Daily)
China sent two satellites for the detection of gravitational waves into planned orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province on Thursday morning. The two satellites, which compose the Gravitational Wave High-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM) mission, were launched by a Long March-11 carrier rocket at 4:14 am (Beijing Time), according to the center. Thursday's launch was the 355th mission of the Long March rocket series. (12/10)

Israel Sets Sights on 2024 Unmanned Moon Landing (Source: Space Daily)
Israel launched Wednesday the Beresheet 2 project aimed at landing an unmanned craft on the moon in 2024, after a previous such mission had crashed into the lunar surface. The original Beresheet, Hebrew for "Genesis", was a tall, oddly shaped 585-kilogram (1,290-pound) spacecraft built by Israeli NGO SpaceIL and state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries. It had reached the moon in April 2019, but suffered an engine failure as it prepared to land. (12/9)

Orbex Secures $24M in Funding Round for UK Space Launch (Source: Space Daily)
Orbex, the innovative European space launch company, has secured $24 million in a funding round led by BGF, the UK's most active investment company, and Octopus Ventures, one of the largest VCs in Europe. BGF and Octopus Ventures have joined existing investors High-Tech Grunderfonds, Heartcore Capital and Elecnor S.A. - parent company of the multi-national space firm Deimos Space - in a new funding round for the orbital launch services company. The new investments secure the roadmap to the first launch from the Space Hub Sutherland spaceport in Scotland. (12/10)

Space Force Studies Idea of National Spaceport Authority (Source: Space Daily)
The U.S. Space Force is studying the possibility of merging management of dozens of launch sites in Florida and California under a new operator to keep pace with the growing commercial space industry. The first step creating more efficient space launches would be to form a national spaceport authority, Space Force spokesman Nicholas Mercurio said. No proposed timeline for such a transition has been determined. "The closest thing we've found to compare this to is the St. Lawrence Seaway Authority and other port authorities around the world," Aerospace Corp. analyst Richard Lamb said.

"We've been stating since June of 2016 that there needs to be a better governance model for a spaceport," Ketcham said. "Neither NASA nor the Space Force are chartered or equipped to manage a bunch of commercial enterprises like we are seeing." If NASA and the Space Force aren't able to accommodate the growth of commercial space traffic, launchers may look overseas or develop their own spaceports, Ketcham said. Eventually, a national spaceport authority could combine some facilities or services at the neighboring Florida launch sites - Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Ketcham said.

"In Florida, particularly, there can be a lot of trouble preparing a site to launch again quickly after a rocket has lifted off," Firefly's Les Kovacs said. "They've been getting better lately, but more progress is needed." He added: "Anything they can do to standardize procedures and increase the frequency of launch would be a big help. The small launch industry will grow, and the question becomes who accommodates that best. The current structure may not be the right answer." (12/10)

Space Policy Formalizes Space Force Role (Source: Space News)
A new national space policy Wednesday formalizes the role of the U.S. Space Force. The new policy, announced at a meeting of the National Space Council, recognizes the U.S. Space Force as the primary organization responsible for defending the nation's interests in space. It also states that the Space Force will deter adversaries and other actors from conducting activities that may threaten the peaceful use of space. The national space policy was last updated by the Obama administration in 2010. (12/10)

Space Force Joins Intelligence Community (Source: Space News)
The Space Force may soon be added to the U.S. intelligence community. Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe said at the National Space Council meeting Wednesday that the Space Force would soon become the 18th member of the intelligence community, joining other military branches, Defense Department agencies and other organizations. Ratcliffe said his office also is working with the Space Force on plans to create a new national space intelligence center that will focus on technical intelligence needed to defend space systems from anti-satellite weapons being developed by China and Russia. (12/10)

An Explosive Ending to SpaceX's Successful Starship Flight (Source: Space News)
SpaceX's Starship vehicle soared to new heights on a test flight that had an explosive ending. The Starship SN8 prototype lifted off from SpaceX's Boca Chica, Texas, test site Wednesday. The vehicle ascended for several minutes then, after shutting down its engines, performed a "belly flop" maneuver to descend back to the launch site. The vehicle reignited its engine and moved back to the vertical to attempt a powered landing, but came in too fast and exploded upon landing. Despite the fiery demise of the vehicle, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk declared the flight a success, saying it demonstrated many aspects of the vehicle's unique design. Another Starship prototype, SN9, could be ready for test flights within a few weeks. (12/10)

Blue Origin-Led Team Submits Lunar Lander Design to NASA (Source: Blue Origin)
The Blue Origin-led "National Team" has submitted a lunar lander proposal to NASA. The Option A proposal for the Human Landing System (HLS) program represents an updated design of the lander intended to transport astronauts to and from the lunar surface for NASA's Artemis program. The Blue Origin team, which included Draper, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, is competing with Dynetics and SpaceX for future contracts for full-scale lander development. Those three companies each won HLS study contracts from NASA in April. (12/9)

NASA Selects Artemis Astronauts (Source: Space News)
NASA has selected a group of astronauts who will be eligible to fly on future Artemis missions. NASA announced at the National Space Council meeting that it selected 18 astronauts to be its "Artemis Team" of astronauts who could be assigned to future Artemis missions. NASA has yet to make any formal crew assignments for those missions to the moon, which will start with the Artemis 2 lunar flyby mission in 2023. NASA said it will add more astronauts, from the agency and international partners, as needed in the future. The Artemis 3 lunar landing mission would follow as soon as 2024, but NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine acknowledged at the meeting that without the full funding for the lunar lander program that Congress appears unlikely to provide, it "gets more and more difficult" to keep that schedule. (12/10)

Arianespace Vega C Rocket Picked to Launch Four Earth Science Satellites (Source: Space News)
Arianespace won a contract to launch a set of four small Earth observation satellites. Arianespace said it will launch the Composante Optique 3D (CO3D) satellites on a Vega C rocket in 2023. The CO3D satellites, being jointly developed by Airbus and the French space agency CNES, will be used to create a highly detailed 3D map of the Earth's landmass within two years. The contract also represents a sign of support for the Vega despite a launch failure last month. (12/10)

KP Labs Joins SmallSat Catalog With Smart Mission Ecosystem (Source: Orbital Transports)
KP Labs announced they have joined the Orbital Transports partner network by making their Smart Mission Ecosystem available through the SmallSat Catalog. The Smart Mission Ecosystem (SME) is a set of hardware, software, and AI-powered algorithms that supports the complete lifecycle of advanced smallsat missions from the analysis and design, through faster satellite integration thanks to the built-in algorithm, software and hardware-in-the-loop tests, to the increased reliability of operations in space and the on-board data processing supported by the artificial intelligence. (12/10)

ESA Signs Contracts for Reusable Space Rider Up To Maiden Flight Aboard Vega Rocket (Source: ESA)
ESA has given industry the go-ahead to build Space Rider space and ground segments. Launched on a Vega-C rocket, this spacecraft will serve as an uncrewed robotic laboratory in low Earth orbit, returning to Earth with its payloads and being reused on future missions. Space Rider offers routine access to and return from space for a wide range of European space and non-space applications, including in-orbit research and technology demonstrations. (12/10)

Spire Raises Funding From European Investment Bank (Source: Space News)
Spire Global has raised 20 million euros ($24 million) from the European Investment Bank (EIB), part of a growing effort by European agencies to support space startups. The funding is a venture debt deal. Such arrangements are loans to companies that repay the debt with both interest and warrants for stock. Spire plans to use the funding to continue development of a satellite constellation that provides weather and tracking data, as well as new software applications. (12/8)

Dawn Aerospace Licensed to Fly New Zealand’s First Spaceplane (Source: Parabolic Arc)
In a world-first, the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has granted Dawn  Aerospace an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Certificate to fly a suborbital spaceplane from a conventional airport. Authorized under Civil Aviation Rule Part 102, Dawn is setting a new precedent for how we access space. Presently, flights will operate without the need for restricted airspace, proving the worlds of spaceflight and civil aviation can fly in harmony.

Dawn’s Mk-II Aurora is the latest development in a series of test vehicles that will one-day launch satellites into space. Designed to take off and land from regular airports, it is capable of multiple flights per day. To achieve that, Dawn must fly just as other aircraft do, without the need to shut down airspace and have exclusion zones, as is typical for rocket launches. (12/9)

Space Investment Expected to Remain Strong in 2021 (Source: Deloitte)
Deloitte expects investment in space companies to remain strong in 2021. "As funding continues to increase and costs decline, the space industry is likely to experience increased opportunities," according to Deloitte's 2021 Aerospace and Defense Outlook. Specifically, Deloitte forecasts increased opportunities in satellite broadband, space launch services, space exploration, and technologies and capabilities with military space applications. Click here. (12/9)

Government Funds UK Companies at the Forefront of Space Innovation (Source: Space Daily)
21 UK organizations have been awarded a share of over 7 million pounds of funding to put the UK at the forefront of the latest advances in space innovation. The cash injection is going to high-risk, high-reward projects that support companies and universities with radical ideas for how we tackle climate change through Earth Observation or address satellite communications challenges, from providing greater connectivity to remote places to increasing the efficiency of our homes. Click here. (12/9)

Study Confirms Dark Coating Can Reduce Satellite Reflectivity (Source: Space Daily)
Observations conducted by the Murikabushi Telescope of Ishigakijima Astronomical Observatory confirmed that dark coating can reduce satellite reflectivity by half. There are concerns that numerous artificial satellites in orbit could impair astronomical observations, but these findings may help alleviate such conditions. Today's growing demand for space-based services has spawned a wave of satellite constellation projects which operate numerous artificial satellites in orbit. Since these satellites can shine by reflecting sunlight, the astronomy community has raised concerns about their potential impact on astronomical observations. (12/9)