January 28, 2021

Boeing’s Starliner Will Attempt to Redo its Failed Flight Test in March (Source: BGR)
In what was undoubtedly one of the most high-profile failures of 2019, Boeing’s high-priced and oft-delayed Starliner spacecraft fell well short of its goal of reaching the ISS during a test flight. The spacecraft made it back to Earth in one piece, but it didn’t come anywhere close to reaching the space station and NASA decided that the company would need to attempt the mission again before it would allow any of its astronauts to set foot inside. Now, after a year with a global pandemic and a huge list of items that NASA wanted Boeing to check out before it would clear the way for another test flight, Starliner is ready to fly again.

Boeing and NASA have announced that the next test mission — which, again, will just be a redo of the failed 2019 mission — is currently scheduled for March 25. The 2019 test flight of Starliner ended with a whimper due to what was described as an issue with the internal clock. The mission timer wasn’t synced with the actual time, and the spacecraft ended up burning a bunch of extra fuel that it needed if it was going to make it to the ISS. Instead, the spacecraft was brought back down to Earth, and Boeing insisted that if the mission had a crew on board, the issue would have been noticed and corrected before it became a real problem. (1/28)

Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster 35th Anniversary Marks Week of NASA Tragedies (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
It was a Tuesday. Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 second after liftoff killing all seven astronauts aboard on Jan. 28, 1986. The tragedy happened 19 years and one day after the deaths of three astronauts of the Apollo program in 1967 in a fire during a simulation at Kennedy Space Center. And seven more astronauts would die 17 years and four days after Challenger on Feb. 1, 2003 when Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry. The three tragedies that took 17 lives across one week mark NASA’s lowest points in its history. It will honor all of them as well as others who lost their lives in pursuit of space exploration on its Day of Remembrance officially Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021. (1/27)

Connector Problems Prevent Full Installation of External Payload Platform in ISS Spacewalk (Source: CBS)
Spacewalking astronauts ran into problems installing an experiment platform outside the International Space Station Wednesday. Astronauts Mike Hopkins and Victor Glover spent nearly seven hours outside the station to perform several tasks, including completing the installation of the Bartolomeo external payload platform on the Columbus module. They were unable to attach two of the six power and data cables for the platform, though, because of connection problems. Bartolomeo will be able to support some experiments in this configuration until the two cables are attached on a future spacewalk. The astronauts also installed a Ka-band antenna on Columbus and removed grapple fixtures on the station's truss in preparation for future upgrades of the station's power system. (1/28)

Subcommittee Chair Supports Investigation of Space Command HQ Decision Process (Source: Space News)
Another member of Congress is asking the Biden administration to revisit the decision to move Space Command headquarters to Alabama. At a webinar Wednesday, Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN), chairman of the strategic forces subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee, said he would support an investigation of how the selection was made, alleging political corruption was behind the decision to move the command's headquarters from Colorado to Alabama. His comments come after similar calls for a reconsideration of the decision by members of Congress from Colorado and New Mexico. (1/28)

Subcommittee Chair Seeks Reform of Space Force Procurement (Source: Space News)
Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN), chairman of the strategic forces subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee, is asking the administration to reform the Space Force's procurement efforts. He said lawmakers are concerned that Space Force programs are not keeping up with rapid advances in commercial space technology and the service is not modernizing fast enough. Congress has yet to hear from the Space Force on a new approach for buying future systems, he said, criticizing former Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett for failing to submit a congressionally mandated report on space acquisition reforms. (1/28)

Firefly Seeks to Raise $350 Million (Source: Space News)
Small launch vehicle developer Firefly Aerospace is looking to raise $350 million. The funding, company CEO Tom Markusic said this week, would go toward expanding its production capabilities and support development of a new medium-class launch vehicle. Firefly's efforts have been funded to date by entrepreneur Max Polyakov and his investment fund, Noosphere Ventures, to the tune of $200 million, but Markusic said the company is open to a wide range of funding sources for this new round. He said the first launch of the company's Alpha small launch vehicle should take place from Vandenberg Air Force Base in "a few short weeks." (1/28)

Mars 2020 Lander On Track for Feb. 18 Arrival (Source: Space News)
NASA says the Mars 2020 spacecraft is on track for a landing next month. The spacecraft will land the Perseverance rover at Jezero Crater on Feb. 18 to begin a mission to study the ancient lake bed there and collect samples for later return to Earth. The spacecraft is in good health, project officials said Wednesday, with final preparations for the landing underway. (1/28)

Rocket Lab Demonstrates New Kick Stage (Source: Space News)
Rocket Lab demonstrated the enhanced performance of the Electron rocket's kick stage on its latest launch. That mission used the kick stage to send its payload into a 1,200 kilometer circular orbit, much higher than most Electron missions, then lowered its perigee after payload deployment. The company said that mission demonstrated how it can provide flexible, customized services for its customers. Rocket Lab plans to fly its Photon satellite bus on the next Electron rocket, testing it in preparation for its use launching the CAPSTONE lunar mission for NASA in the second quarter. (1/28)

Bezos and Blue Origin Test BE-4 Engine for New Glenn and Vulcan (Source: GeekWire)
Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos took in a BE-4 engine test. Bezos posted a video to Instagram Wednesday of the "long-duration, full-thrust" test firing, which he saw during a recent visit to Blue Origin's West Texas test facility. Neither he nor the company disclosed additional details about the test or the status of BE-4 engine development. That engine will be used on Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket as well as United Launch Alliance's Vulcan. (1/28)

Venus Phosphine May Instead Be Sulfur Dioxide (Source: University of Washington)
Phosphine thought to exist in the atmosphere of Venus might be something else entirely. Scientists announced in September that they had detected traces of the gas in the planet's atmosphere, which could be a sign of biological activity. A new study accepted for publication in the journal Astrophysical Journal reexamined the data using a comprehensive model of the planet's atmosphere. It concluded the signal originally interpreted as phosphine is instead sulfur dioxide, the third most common compound in the atmosphere of Venus and one that is not linked to life. (1/28)

Evidence That Water Can Be Created on Lunar Surface by Earth's Magnetosphere (Source: Phys.org)
Many studies have discovered lunar water: ice in shadowed polar craters, water bound in volcanic rocks, and unexpected rusty iron deposits in the lunar soil. Despite these findings, there is still no true confirmation of the extent or origin of lunar surface water. The prevailing theory is that positively charged hydrogen ions propelled by the solar wind bombard the lunar surface and spontaneously react to make water (as hydroxyl (OH-) and molecular (H2O)). However, a new multinational study proposes that solar wind may not be the only source of water-forming ions.

The researchers show that particles from Earth can seed the moon with water, as well, implying that other planets could also contribute water to their satellites. Though the solar wind is a likely source for lunar surface water, computer models predict that up to half of it should evaporate and disappear at high-latitude regions during the approximately three days of the full moon when it passes within Earth's magnetosphere.

Surprisingly, the latest analysis of surface hydroxyl/water surface maps by the Chandrayaan-1 satellite's Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) showed that lunar surface water does not disappear during this magnetosphere shielding period. Earth's magnetic field was thought to block the solar wind from reaching the moon so that water could not be regenerated faster than it was lost, but the researchers found this was not the case. The researchers argue that lunar water could be replenished by flows of magnetospheric ions, also known as "Earth wind." (1/28)

NOAA, JAXA Agreement to Boost Global Weather Forecasts (Source: NOAA)
NOAA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) recently entered a new agreement, designed to improve global weather forecasts, while building upon a long, successful partnership between the two agencies.  The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Global Observing Satellite Missions, signed last month, will continue NOAA’s ability to provide secure and timely access to global environmental data that protect life and property in the U.S. (1/27)

Musk and Bezos Jockey Over Constellation Altitudes (Source: The Verge)
Musk and Bezos, the two richest people in the world, are racing to build vast networks of satellites in low-Earth orbit capable of bringing high-speed broadband internet to rural parts of the world that have little or no access to the internet. SpaceX has 955 satellites in orbit for its Starlink network and plans to launch thousands more, while Amazon’s Kuiper System is in earlier stages of development without any satellites in orbit — yet.

The quarrel centers on a filing from last summer, when SpaceX asked FCC officials for approval to change some Starlink satellites to altitudes between 540 and 570 km — close to Amazon’s proposed constellation, which will orbit Earth around a 590 km altitude. SpaceX says the tweak would make it easier to de-orbit old satellites without causing spectrum interference with other satellite operators, but Amazon and other companies beg to differ. They say it would create interference, heighten the risk of satellite collisions, and get in the way of Amazon’s future constellation as approved by the FCC. (1/27)

LIST & Gradal Announce Joint Luxembourg Lab Producing Ultra-lightweight Structures for Satellites (Source: Parabolic Arc)
The Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) is thrilled to announce a new partnership venture with established Luxembourg company Gradel to research and produce ultra-lightweight structures for the aeronautics and space industry. Parts will be produced for three European giants in satellite construction; Thales Alenia Space (France), Airbus Defence and Space (France), and OHB (Germany). (1/28)

Irrational Investing Lifts Space Stocks (Source: Quartz)
It’s no surprise that the world of meme-driven stock speculation (see GameStop) and “new space” business has some significant overlaps. Elon Musk, a pioneer in social media finance and accidental (?) stock promoter himself, got in on the GME trade. And so did Chamath Palihapitiya, the venture investor who took space tourism company Virgin Galactic public in 2019 by purchasing it with a publicly-traded blank check company, or special purpose acquisition vehicle (SPAC). And today that stock, SPCE, is surging. Virgin’s latest news was an aborted test flight in Dec. 2020, and it has yet to say publicly why the motor on its rocket plane failed to ignite. Since that test, SPCE’s stock price has gained more than 50%.

Is this logical? Sure, in the sense that the best-performing investments in our pandemic and social media age seem to be high tech things with fun narratives—Tesla’s electric cars, cryptocurrency and bitcoin, tech giants amid remote work, and… stocks that seem similar to things that Elon Musk tweets about. Consider Momentus, the venture-backed company developing an Orbital Transfer Vehicle, which is being taken public by a SPAC backed by Stable Road Capital, trading as SRAC. After the news, Quartz reported that Momentus’ Russian founder and CEO was the subject of a federal investigation into his access to restricted technologies; he resigned this week. The price of Stable Road’s publicly-traded SPAC fell on the news—but remains twice as as high as before the merger announcement.

The market, as John Maynard Keynes explained to value investors almost a century ago, can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent. When it comes to space, SPACs are kicking the tires on more than one start-up. But several VC-backed entrepreneurs I speak to warn that if newly public space firms disappoint, it could be harder for other businesses in the sector to enter public markets, either to cash out investors and employees or raise working capital. It might well be that these valuations persist, the companies start earning money, and everyone muddles through. Or the post-vaccine world may lure internet stock enthusiasts away from their trading apps while the SEC imposes new regulations on retail stock options, and they collapse. (1/28)

Welding Underway on Orion Indended for Landing Astronauts on the Moon (Source: Space Daily)
At NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, technicians from Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin have welded together three cone-shaped panels on Orion's crew module for the Artemis III mission that will land the first woman and next man on the Moon. The crew module's primary structure, the pressure vessel, is comprised of seven machined aluminum alloy pieces that are welded together through a weld process that produces a strong, air-tight habitable space for astronauts during the mission. (1/28)

China Plans Inaugural Long March 6A Launch in 2021 (Source: Space Daily)
Long March-6A, China's first carrier rocket powered by a solid and liquid engine, will make its maiden flight in 2021, its developer said. Long March-6A, a new generation medium-launch vehicle, can be powered by different numbers of liquid and solid engines to achieve different carrying capacity levels, which is more cost-effective, according to the Eighth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). The rocket has a higher degree of automation and is also more intelligent as it can monitor and diagnose its potential problems. (1/27)

Senate Commerce Gives Nod To Buttigieg Nomination for DOT (Source: AIN)
The Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday morning approved 21-3 Peter "Pete" Buttigieg to become the next U.S. transportation secretary, clearing the nomination for full Senate approval. His nomination received strong bipartisan support with Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), who continued to preside as chairman for the meeting, calling Buttigieg “impressive” and his Democrat counterpart in line to become chair, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), saying she enthusiastically endorsed the nomination. (1/27)

Pentagon Declares Climate Change a 'National Security Issue' (Source: The Hill)
The Pentagon will now consider climate change when planning war games and will incorporate the issue into its future National Defense Strategy, according to a Wednesday announcement. “There is little about what the [Defense] Department does to defend the American people that is not affected by climate change. It is a national security issue, and we must treat it as such,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. “The Department will immediately take appropriate policy actions to prioritize climate change considerations in our activities and risk assessments, to mitigate this driver of insecurity.” (1/27)

Space Acquisition Office Takes Shape, But Status Remains Unresolved (Source: Breaking Defense)
The Air Force has reorganized its space acquisition office into three new directorates, but the critical (and controversial) question of whether a new, independent Space Force assistant secretary post will be established remains unanswered, says Shawn Barnes, who currently serves as the Air Force’s de facto space acquisition lead. Barnes told reporters this morning the reorganization of his current office — which was set in motion under the Trump administration — was given a green light earlier this month. (1/27)

NASA to Begin New RS-25 Engine Test Series for Future Artemis Missions (Source: NASA)
NASA is set to begin a new round of tests for development of RS-25 engines that will help power the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on future missions to the Moon and, eventually, Mars. The first test of the new series is set for Jan. 28 on the A-1 Test Stand at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. (1/27)

Deep Space Network Upgrades and New Antennas Increase Vital Communication Capabilities (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
NASA’s Deep Space Network, commonly referred to as the DSN, has welcomed a new dish, Deep Space Station 56, to its family of powerful ground listening stations around the world. The now-operational 34-meter antenna joins the network’s Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex located 60 kilometers west of Madrid, Spain while other dishes within the network undergo critical upgrades. The new dish is part of an ongoing series of enhancements to the DSN, which traces its roots back to 1958 when JPL was tasked with standing up a series of communications stations to support orbital telemetry operations for the Explorer 1 mission. (1/26)

What Happens to the Space Force Now? (Source: The Atlantic)
The Biden administration could have an easy time unwinding the Space Command headquarters decision, one of the many Trump-era policies it will likely roll back. But though the Space Force has often been treated as the butt of a bad joke, it is one Trump initiative that will last. It may not be the grand, legacy-making organization Trump imagined, but the Space Force isn’t going anywhere.

“Nobody’s debating whether the Space Force should exist,” Jared Zambrano-Stout, an aerospace consultant and a former chief of staff for the Trump administration’s National Space Council, told me. “They’re debating about what it should be doing.” Which puts President Joe Biden in an interesting predicament. The Space Force has always been more boring than its name implies, amounting to some organizational reshuffling of Air Force personnel and operations. But Trump has used it to fuel his own vision of American bravado, which his supporters have adopted.

With Trump gone, the new administration now finds itself having to embrace a piece of government saturated with MAGA spin and disdained by the left, and make it seem as ordinary as it actually is. But an armed service dedicated to space operations is not a Trump invention. The concept emerged in the 1990s, but it didn’t take off until Trump glommed on, and then it was all hands on deck. “The vice president put us to work and said, ‘Okay, the president wants this, so we need to figure out what’s the best way for us to put it together,’” Zambrano-Stout said. (1/26)

Colorado's Perlmutter Has a Hunch Space Command Will Stay in Colorado Springs (Source: CPR News)
Democratic U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter predicted Tuesday the U.S. Space Command headquarters will stay in Colorado. Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs now serves as the command’s temporary headquarters and is expected to keep that status for the next few years. But in the late days of the Trump presidency, administration officials issued a surprise order to put the command’s permanent headquarters in Huntsville, Alabama.

On Tuesday, Perlmutter joined the rest of the state’s congressional delegation in a letter urging the Biden administration to suspend the decision until there’s a full review. Perlmutter represents several of Denver’s northwest suburbs, including some major space contractors. He told Colorado Matters he expects Biden will ultimately overturn Trump’s call. (1/26)

The Coming Land Rush in Space (Source: Axios)
Space is the new Wild West. Nations and space companies are racing to come to a consensus on what they can own, mine and take possession of in outer space before competitors stake ground first. Private companies are building their businesses on sending spacecraft to the Moon, asteroids and other objects in the coming years to eventually extract resources that will be used or sold.

While companies are still years away from being able to effectively mine the Moon for resources, lack of clear regulation creates uncertainty for them — and threatens projections that the space industry will become a trillion dollar industry by 2040. In an economics report released just before the Biden administration took office, the Trump administration warned that working out space property rights will be key to the space industry's growth.

"Although applications like space mining and space solar power satellites might be decades away from being profitable enterprises, it is worth laying the foundation for the emergence of future space industries now," the report reads. "If you have two competing companies or two competing governments looking to use the same resource deposits on the Moon, for example, who has first claim? Who has access? Who has the right to use that space, and over what period of time?" Ian Christensen, of the Secure World Foundation, told me. (1/26)

Oh No, Not Again: The Moon vs. Mars (Source: Forbes)
So far, early indicators of the Biden Administration’s likely space policy are encouraging. There is now a Moon rock sitting in the Oval Office and the recent NASA Agency Review Team was filled with highly qualified and respected space professionals. I believe that the new administration will take space seriously and avoid the one-dimensional, zero-sum analyses that have so often created false choices and driven sub-optimal programmatic outcomes for NASA.

The most popular of these false dichotomies are the fights over traditional vs. commercial vendors, robotic vs. human exploration, science vs. exploration and the ever-popular Moon vs. Mars battle. The last National Space Council and previous NASA leadership team wisely pursued a “whole of space” approach by burying these artificial conflicts and rejecting the policy constraints they implied. I am confident that President Biden’s space team will also see the wisdom in holistic space policy.

Bad ideas die hard. The Wall Street Journal ran a Moon vs. Mars editorial entitled, “For, NASA It Should Be Mars or Bust.” Freelance writer David Brown portrayed NASA’s Artemis lunar program as a misguided attempt to redo Apollo and argued that only by sending governmental astronauts directly to Mars, can the agency accomplish anything of value. Brown wrote that, “Donald Trump rejected the Mars plan, choosing instead to reach the Moon with Artemis, but NASA still says that Mars is on its agenda.” Click here. (1/27)

For NASA, It Should Be Mars or Bust (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Since the Apollo program ended almost 50 years ago, every newly elected U.S. president has been vexed by the same question: Where next to send astronauts? NASA’s current target is the moon, but the moon belongs to a previous generation of American pioneers. A grander, more fitting ambition for the space program that first landed human beings on another heavenly body is Mars—a destination that NASA has been preparing to reach since the days of its early visionaries. It is now time to realize their dream. (12/18)

China Automaker Geely Plans Satellite Constellation (Source: Global Times)
China's automaker Geely has officially launched its internet satellite project in Qingdao with an investment of 4.12 billion yuan ($637 million). That would make the Chinese automaker in par with Tesla in the adventure into aerospace. The project is located in the Qingdao Shanghe demonstration zone, with an area of 20,474.3 square meters, according to relevant reports. The management committee of Shanghe demonstration zone signed a contract with Geely Technology Group in August on low earth orbit internet satellite cooperation. A subsidiary of Geely, Zhejiang Shikong Daoyu Tech Co, undertook the project. (1/27)

$55M Tickets Get 3 Men Trip to Space Station on SpaceX Rocket From Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The first private space station crew was introduced Tuesday: Three men who are each paying $55 million to fly on a SpaceX rocket. They’ll be led by a former NASA astronaut now working for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the trip for next January. “This is the first private flight to the International Space Station. It’s never been done before,” said Axiom’s chief executive and president Mike Suffredini, a former space station program manager for NASA.

While mission commander Michael Lopez-Alegria is well known in space circles, “the other three guys are just people who want to be able to go to space, and we’re providing that opportunity,” Suffredini said. They include Larry Connor, Mark Pathy and Eytan Stibbe. The group will spend eight days at the space station, and will take one or two days to get there aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule following liftoff from Cape Canaveral.

Lopez-Alegria, a former space station resident and spacewalking leader, called the group a “collection of pioneers.” Tom Cruise was mentioned last year as a potential crew member; NASA top officials confirmed he was interested in filming a movie at the space station. There was no word Tuesday on whether Cruise will catch the next Axiom flight. Suffredini declined to comment. (1/27)

Report: NASA's Efforts to Mitigate the Risks Posted by Orbital Debris (Source: NASA)
In this audit, we evaluated NASA’s efforts to mitigate the risks posed by orbital debris as well as the Agency’s coordination and communication efforts with international and commercial organizations to address the issue. To complete this work, we interviewed representatives from NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), and the commercial sector; reviewed federal laws, regulations, policies, and reports related to orbital debris; and assessed a sample of Orbital Debris Assessment Reports (ODAR), End of Mission Plans (EOMP), and supporting documentation to ensure they met NASA requirements. Click here. (1/27)

Moon Rock on Joe Biden's desk Raises Hopes for Lunar Return (Source: Space Daily)
A moon rock that President Joe Biden has placed in the Oval Office came from the last Apollo mission in 1972, raising hopes that he will support a new lunar landing program already underway. The White House said the moon rock was part of Biden's goal to have the office reflect the best of American accomplishments.

Astronauts chipped the rock from a large boulder at the base of the North Massif mountain in the Imbrium Impact Basin. The stone's official name is Lunar Sample 76015,143, which refers to NASA's generic numbering system for more than 840 pounds of rock retrieved during Apollo missions. Scientists were pleased with the testament to science and space exploration. Ellen Stofan, director of the National Air and Space Museum, posted a message of gratitude on Twitter for Biden's choice of the moon rock. (1/26)

Increasing Diversity and Inclusion in the Leadership of Competed Space Missions (Source: National Academies)
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will convene an ad hoc committee to address the topic "Increasing Diversity and Inclusion in the Leadership of Competed Space Missions." This committee will recommend actions to increase  diversity, inclusion, equity and accessibility in the leadership of space mission proposals submitted to the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) competed space mission programs. Click here. (1/26)

New Sirius XM Satellite Malfunctions During In-Orbit Testing (Source: NASDAQ)
Sirius XM successfully launched its SXM-7 satellite on December 13, 2020, and in-orbit testing of the satellite began on January 4, 2021. In a regulatory filing, the company said that during in-orbit testing of SXM-7, some events occurred and caused failures of certain SXM-7 payload units. The company added that at an evaluation of SXM-7 is underway and the full extent of the damage to SXM-7 is not yet known.

Sirius XM said it does not expect its satellite radio service to be impacted by these adverse SXM-7 events. The company's XM-3 and XM-4 satellites continue to operate and are expected to support its satellite radio service for several years. Further, the company's XM-5 satellite remains available as an in-orbit spare. Construction of the SXM-8 satellite is underway, with the satellite expected to be launched into a geostationary orbit later this year. (1/27)

UN and UK Sign Agreement to Promote Space Sustainability (Source: Space Daily)
The agreement will help nations ensure that outer space remains safe and sustainable for future generations. The increasing complexity of space missions, the emergence of large constellations of satellites and the increased risks of collision all affect the long-term sustainability of space activities. And there are currently approximately 170 million objects in orbit - mainly debris - which could collide with satellites vital to services we use every day.

In 2019, the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), of which the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) is Secretariat, adopted the Guidelines for the Long-Term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities (LTS guidelines), which provide a framework to ensure the safe and sustainable use of space. The Guidelines were subsequently welcomed by the United Nations General Assembly. Following this announcement, UK funding of 85,000 pounds will support international efforts to promote space sustainability by identifying examples of the sustainable use of outer space through a series of events and outreach efforts.

This project will also inform future UNOOSA capacity-building efforts to promote the future sustainability of outer space, and it will encourage all actors to implement the LTS guidelines to the fullest extent possible. The UK is partnering with the UN to implement and promote these vital standards to all emerging and established space-faring nations, helping to ensure that outer space remains open for our next generation of astronauts. This partnership with the UK Space Agency is the first time the UK has funded a project with UNOOSA. It will enable the UN to raise global awareness on this important issue and foster the global governance of outer space based on international law. (1/27)