March 15, 2023

Space Florida's Frank DiBello Announces Upcoming Retirement After 14 Years Leading the Organization (Source: Space Florida)
Space Florida’s President and CEO Frank DiBello notified the Board of Directors of his decision to retire, effective June 30, 2023. In the coming months, the Space Florida Board of Directors will launch a nationwide search for the next president and CEO of the organization, with Mr. DiBello assisting with the process for his successor. DiBello has served as the leader of Space Florida since May 2009 and has been a key part of Florida’s exponential growth in the commercial space industry following the end of the Space Shuttle program in 2011.

Space Florida was created in 2006 to strengthen Florida’s position as a global leader in aerospace research, investment, exploration, and commerce. The organization supports Florida’s growing space industry and serves as a partner to connect potential businesses interested in expanding or opening in Florida with opportunities for growth. (3/15)

Amazon Kuiper to Offer Beta Access in 2024 (Source: Space News)
Amazon plans to start offering "beta services" from its Project Kuiper broadband constellation next year. Dave Limp, senior vice president of devices and services at Amazon, said at Satellite 2023 Tuesday that the company plans to start launching its first operational Kuiper spacecraft in the first half of 2024, after the launch of two prototypes on the first Vulcan Centaur in May. That will enable it to provide initial services for "large customers" later next year. Amazon plans to produce three to five satellites daily as it races to meet a regulatory deadline to have half its proposed constellation of 3,236 satellites in LEO by mid-2026. The company also rolled out three models of terminals for Kuiper that will offer speeds ranging from 100 megabits to 1 gigabit per second. (3/15)

Astranis to Develop Two GEO Satellites for Mexico's Apco (Source: Space News)
Astranis won orders for two small GEO satellites to serve Mexico. Astranis said Mexican telco Apco Networks ordered the two satellites for launch next year to provide dedicated Ka-band services that Apco Networks currently leases from other operators. Astranis is developing "micro-GEO" satellites weighing less than 400 kilograms to provide focused services. The first of its satellites is scheduled to launch next month as a secondary payload on the Falcon Heavy launch of the first ViaSat-3 satellite. (3/15)

Firefly Wins Second NASA Lunar Lander Launch Contract (Source: Space News)
Firefly Aerospace won a second NASA lunar lander mission Tuesday. NASA announced it awarded a Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order to Firefly worth $112 million for a 2026 mission. That Blue Ghost 2 mission will deliver ESA's Lunar Pathfinder spacecraft into lunar orbit and land a radio astronomy instrument on the far side of the moon. Firefly is working on its first Blue Ghost lander under a separate CLPS award that is scheduled to launch in 2024. (3/15)

Viasat Upgrades Satellite Cybersecurity Amid Growing Threats (Source: Space News)
Viasat has upgraded the cybersecurity of its satellites in response to growing threats. The new threat detection tool, designed for use across its global network, uses a zero-trust architecture assumes all devices are potential threats. Viasat developed this tool under the Enhanced Cybersecurity Services program run by the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. The system was already in development when Russian hackers knocked customers of its KA-SAT satellite offline at the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine last year. (3/15)

SpaceX Launches ISS Cargo Capsule, Recovers Booster (Sources: Space News, Space.com)
A cargo Dragon spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station after a launch Tuesday night. A Falcon 9 lifted off at 8:30 p.m. Eastern, placing the Dragon into orbit 12 minutes later. The spacecraft, scheduled to dock with the station Thursday morning, is carrying about 2,850 kilograms of equipment, supplies and science payloads for the station, and will remain there for about a month before returning to Earth. The launch was not affected by a maneuver that the ISS performed early Tuesday to adjust its orbit to avoid debris from a Russian ASAT test. (3/15)

Kayhan Upgrades Space Traffic Management Platform (Source: Space News)
Kayhan Space has upgraded its space traffic management platform to help satellite operators coordinate collision avoidance. In contrast to Kayhan's Pathfinder Pro, which assesses conjunction risk and recommends maneuvers for individual constellations, Pathfinder 2.0 is designed to help satellite operators avoid one another. While collision avoidance can be automated by Pathfinder 2.0, satellite operators can manually override the recommendations. (3/15)

Congress Funds DoD WGS GEO Spacecraft (Source: Space News)
As the Defense Department works to make greater use of small satellites, Congress is funding a much larger one. Congress enacted a 2023 defense appropriations bill in late December earmarking $442 million for a wideband communications satellite that the Pentagon did not request. The funding will pay for a geosynchronous Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) spacecraft, a satellite that Boeing has manufactured for nearly two decades and recently redesigned with a new payload and security features. That provision took industry by surprise since previous versions of the appropriations bill did not include it. (3/15)

GEO Satellite Builders Diversifying Toward Smaller Spacecraft (Source: Space News)
Companies with a history of manufacturing large geostationary satellites have succeeded in diversifying their product lines to attract new customers. In an era where the number of GEO satellite orders is no more than half of historical levels, manufacturers have expanded their businesses, supplying small and medium-size satellites to commercial and government customers. Manufacturers say that while smaller satellites are less expensive, they can still be profitable through the use of standardization. (3/15)

Ransomware Attack on SpaceX Contractor Threatens Release of Technical Drawings (Source: Cybernews)
Hackers claim to have accessed SpaceX schematics through a contractor. LockBit, which specializes in ransomware attacks, said it accessed "about 3,000 drawings" through Maximum Industries, a company that provides machining services. It gave the contractor until March 20 to pay a ransom or else it threatened to sell those documents to "other manufacturers". It was unclear exactly what information it had access to, and neither Maximum Industries nor SpaceX commented on the claims. (3/15)

JWST Observes Star Ready to Go Nova (Source: AP)
The James Webb Space Telescope has observed a star about to explode. NASA released the image Monday of the star WR 124, 15,000 light-years away and 30 times the mass of the sun. Astronomers say the star in its final phases of life before a supernova explosion, shedding material into space, and the image offers a rare glimpse into that phase of the star's life. NASA released the image as part of a presentation about the mission at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. (3/15)

Investors Project Space Company Funding to Rebound in 2023 (Source: Space News)
Despite the near-term shakeup caused by a bank failure and broader economic pressures, investors expect funding of space companies to rebound in 2023. Mark Boggett, chief executive of Seraphim Space, said that his fund estimated investment in the industry dropped by 25% in 2022 over 2021, but that funding would return to 2021 levels this year.

“Despite where we are with the macroeconomic environment, my expectation is that we will be back up to 2021 levels this year,” he said. Seraphim found that $12.1 billion was invested in the space sector in 2021 — a record — versus $8.9 billion in 2022. Boggett said that resurgence came from several factors including growing military spending that creates more demand for space-related capabilities as well as climate and sustainability initiatives. He also cited sovereign wealth funds that have increased investment in space. (3/14)

Study Finds Ocean Currents May Affect Rotation of Europa’s Icy Crust (Source: NASA)
NASA scientists have strong evidence that Jupiter’s moon Europa has an internal ocean under its icy outer shell – an enormous body of salty water swirling around the moon’s rocky interior. New computer modeling suggests the water may actually be pushing the ice shell along, possibly speeding up and slowing down the rotation of the moon’s icy shell over time.

Scientists have known that Europa’s shell is probably free-floating, rotating at a different rate than the ocean below and the rocky interior. The new modeling is the first to show that Europa’s ocean currents could be contributing to the rotation of its icy shell. A key element of the study involved calculating drag – the horizontal force that the moon’s ocean exerts on the ice above it. The research hints at how the power of the ocean flow and its drag against the ice layer could even account for some of the geology seen on Europa’s surface. (3/13)

Amazon Shows Off Antennas for its Kuiper Satellite Network (Source: GeekWire)
After years of development, Amazon is showing off the antennas it plans to use for its Project Kuiper satellite broadband network — and says it plans to begin offering beta service for large customers next year. The largest antenna, for enterprise customers, is about the size of a café table. The antenna designed for home use is as big as an LP record’s album sleeve and should cost around $400 to make. The smallest antenna, still under development, is just a little bigger than an ebook reader. (3/14)

Launch Startup Astra Space Seeks to Move Cash From Failed SVB (Source: Bloomberg)
Astra Space Inc. said it’s seeking new financial partners after the failure of Silicon Valley Bank, where the launch startup has held its cash and maintained securities accounts. About 15% of Astra’s cash, equivalents and marketable securities were with the bank as of March 10, according to a regulatory filing Monday. While US regulators said depositors would have access to all of their money, Astra said it’s unclear how the collapse will affect its ability to access cash or whether it will impact letters of credit securing its security deposit obligations to landlords. (3/13)

Satellite Plans Move Ahead for Kymeta and OneWeb — and for SpaceX and T-Mobile (Source: GeekWire)
Kymeta Corp. says it has completed its first shipment of electronically steered flat-panel antennas to OneWeb for that company’s satellite-based data network. Kymeta said its Hawk u8 terminal will be available for OneWeb’s fixed-location applications, and will soon be available for land-based and sea-based mobile communications. OneWeb is putting the finishing touches on its constellation in low Earth orbit, or LEO, and is planning to ramp up commercial broadband service within a few months.

Meanwhile, OneWeb announced that it’s signed a letter of intent with Amazon Web Services to explore bundling satellite connectivity with cloud services and edge computing services. Clint Crosier, AWS’ director for aerospace and satellite services, said “we are excited to work with OneWeb in their efforts to provide cloud-based connectivity and deliver innovative services to customers worldwide." (3/13)

Amazon Presses For Level Playing Field On Which To Compete With SpaceX’s Starlink (Source: Forbes)
There’s an idea prevalent in political circles that when companies get too big, they inevitably become a threat to competition and consumer welfare. Here’s an instance where the precise opposite is true. Amazon wants to build a constellation of 3,236 satellites in low-earth orbit that would deliver broadband internet service to disadvantaged users around the world. The effort is called Project Kuiper, and it is promising cable-like speeds with very little latency.

When Project Kuiper unveils its planned pricing in the near future, the fees for using the service will likely compare favorably with those of SpaceX’s Starlink. Needless to say, the folks who run Starlink are not wildly enthusiastic at the prospect of competition from one of the world’s biggest tech companies. There is no way that a fledgling startup could compete in this market, given the amount of investment required. Boeing seriously considered jumping in a few years back, but couldn’t make the business case close.

Amazon is willing to take the risk in part because it has the resources to cope with any setbacks. The most immediate challenge that Project Kuiper faces, though, isn’t resources but regulators. Companies that beat Kuiper into orbit, led by SpaceX, are urging the FCC to go slow in changing its rules for sharing spectrum in order to accommodate newcomers. Amazon is arguing that there is sufficient capacity in the relevant spectrum bands to avoid interference by newcomers with the signals generated by existing operators. It says if the spectrum is allocated efficiently and operators share information, competition need not be destructive. (3/13)

SpaceX Plans to Test Starlink’s Satellite-to-Cell Service with T-Mobile This Year (Source: CNBC)
SpaceX plans to begin testing its Starlink satellite-to-cell service with T-Mobile this year, an executive of Elon Musk’s company said on Monday. The market for space-based data services that go directly to devices on the ground, such as smartphones, is widely considered to have lucrative potential. The company currently has “well over” 1 million Starlink users, SpaceX Vice President of Starlink enterprise sales Jonathan Hofeller said at the Satellite 2023 conference in Washington, D.C. (3/13)

Space Exploration is Not the New Colonialism (Source: Spiked)
Humans have boldly ventured beyond the Earth into space for more than half a century now. It’s a testament to the ambition of the modern world. And today, humanity is still more ambitious. A new space race is underway between the US and China to mine the Moon for rare metals. NASA is even hoping to establish a long-term presence on the Moon and eventually send humans to Mars.

But it seems that some scientists-cum-activists, in hock to identity politics, want to rein in that ambition. Speaking ahead of a US conference on the ethics of space exploration, held by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) last week, astrobiologist Dr. Pamela Conrad told the Guardian that space exploration, particularly efforts to mine the Moon, is in danger of becoming an exercise in ‘colonialism’ and ‘exploitation’. Conrad warned that ‘if something that’s not here [on Earth] is seen as a resource, just ripe to be exploited, then that [perpetuates] colonialism’.

Conrad appears to be using the specific and brutal practice of ‘colonialism’ to describe – and demonize – humanity’s attempt to master nature in general. That’s a flawed enough approach to take to the history of our growing mastery of nature on Earth. But it’s even more flawed in the context of space. After all, there’s one big difference between laying claim to the resources of other countries under colonialism and attempting to mine the Moon – nobody lives on the Moon! So no one would be ‘exploited’ or ‘colonized’ if humans were to mine it. Space exploration is therefore not the same as colonialism. (3/14)

Mix-and-Match Kit Could Enable Astronauts to Build a Menagerie of Lunar Exploration Bots (Source: MIT News)
When astronauts begin to build a permanent base on the moon, as NASA plans to do in the coming years, they’ll need help. Robots could potentially do the heavy lifting by laying cables, deploying solar panels, erecting communications towers, and building habitats. But if each robot is designed for a specific action or task, a moon base could become overrun by a zoo of machines, each with its own unique parts and protocols.

To avoid a bottleneck of bots, a team of MIT engineers is designing a kit of universal robotic parts that an astronaut could easily mix and match to rapidly configure different robot “species” to fit various missions on the moon. Once a mission is completed, a robot can be disassembled and its parts used to configure a new robot to meet a different task.

The team calls the system WORMS, for the Walking Oligomeric Robotic Mobility System. The system’s parts include worm-inspired robotic limbs that an astronaut can easily snap onto a base, and that work together as a walking robot. Depending on the mission, parts can be configured to build, for instance, large “pack” bots capable of carrying heavy solar panels up a hill. The same parts could be reconfigured into six-legged spider bots that can be lowered into a lava tube to drill for frozen water. (3/14)

DLR Gottingen Helps in the Search for Signs of Life in Space (Source: Space Daily)
Is there life on other planetary bodies? Jupiter's moon Europa could provide an answer to this question: it is believed to harbour an ocean of water beneath its icy surface. But how might an exploration mission to the Jovian satellite be conducted without contaminating the landing site? To find out, researchers at the German Aerospace Center in Gottingen have carried out investigations in a unique facility on behalf of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

All space missions that search for traces of life face the same problem: the possibility of contaminating the exploration site through propulsion exhaust. "Propellant exhaust contamination can be a problem with all spacecraft," explains Martin Grabe from the DLR Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology. (3/13)

L3Harris Investigation to Test 3D Printed Materials for Satellite Manufacturing Launching on SpaceX CRS-27 (Source: CASIS)
As 3D printed rockets, car parts, and even homes begin to hit the market on Earth, L3Harris Technologies aims to leverage the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory in its search for durable materials to 3D print satellite components. Before 3D printed materials can be used to build more sustainable and efficient parts for spacecraft, they must be tested to ensure they can withstand the harsh environment of low Earth orbit (LEO).

Among the payloads launching on SpaceX’s upcoming 27th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission is a project to test an L3Harris-designed 3D printed radio frequency (RF) circuit and various 3D printed material samples. The project is a continuation of a 2021 experiment on the ISS that collected two months of data. This time, L3Harris will also test photonic material for a new technology called photonic integrated circuits. Used for satellite communications and similar to computer chips, these circuits utilize light instead of electrons in conventional electronics, similar to how light carries information in fiber optic cables for phone and internet data. (3/13)

Redwire's 3D Bioprinter to Print Human Meniscus on the ISS (Source: CASIS)
The knee is not only one of the largest and most complex joints in the body—it is also easily injured. In fact, one of the most common orthopedic injuries is the tearing of the meniscus, a half-moon-shaped piece of cartilage in the knee. Each knee has two menisci that allow the joint to move freely. Current treatments for a torn meniscus are less than ideal, involving removing or repairing the torn segment, which can ultimately lead to increased risk of arthritis or knee replacement, as the affected joint loses its cushioning. To improve patient care on Earth and develop more effective ways of treating torn tissues, researchers from Redwire Space are turning to the microgravity environment of the ISS.

Jacksonville-based Redwire’s upgraded BioFabrication Facility (or BFF) launched to the space station in November. Now that the BFF is installed, it is ready to flex its printing muscles with the facility’s first task: producing a full-sized, 3D printed human meniscus. Using supplies that are launching on SpaceX’s upcoming 27th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission, the meniscus tissue will be printed on station and then returned to Earth for analysis. Terrestrially, printing soft tissues is challenging due to gravity’s influence, which is why Redwire is taking its bioprinter to space. (3/9)

Space-Bound Heart Tissue to Aid Aging and Long-Flight Studies (Source: Space Daily)
Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers are collaborating with NASA to send human heart "tissue-on-a-chip" specimens into space as early as March. The project is designed to monitor the tissue for changes in heart muscle cells' mitochondria (their power supply) and ability to contract in low-gravity conditions. The tissue samples will be launched into space aboard SpaceX CRS-27. Astronauts on board during the mission will also introduce three FDA-approved medicines to the samples in efforts to prevent heart cell changes known or suspected to occur in those undertaking long-duration spaceflights. (3/9)

Hughes and Stargroup Extend Mobile Networks in Mexico (Source: Space Daily)
Hughes Network Systems reports that Stargroup, a Mexican telecommunications, has selected the Hughes JUPITER System and managed satellite broadband to extend LTE service to customers in rural communities. As part of the Mexican government's Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE) Telecomunicaciones e Internet para Todos initiative to help bridge the digital divide, Stargroup is connecting hundreds of remote cell towers using Hughes JUPITER System terminals and Hughes JUPITER 2 high-throughput satellite capacity. (3/10)

Sure South Atlantic Picks Intelsat to Connect Three British Island Territories (Source: Space Daily)
Intelsat, operator of one of the world's largest integrated satellite and terrestrial networks, and Sure South Atlantic, an international telecommunications service provider, have signed an expanded agreement to enable Sure to improve the capability and reliability of communications for residents of the Falkland Islands, Saint Helena and Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean.

As the sole licensee providing communication services to the British Overseas Territories, Sure is leveraging Intelsat's AgileCore UX service to expand and deliver improved 4G connectivity, enterprise broadband, quality internet, public Wi-Fi, and streaming video for all residents, in addition to supporting connectivity for military and government operations. (3/6)

Arianespace Vega C Rockets to Launch IRIDE Constellation (Source: Arianespace)
Arianespace has signed with ESA, who is acting on the behalf of the Italian government, for the procurement of two Vega C launches. The contract also includes an option for a third dedicated launch. These launches, scheduled for the last quarter of 2025 onwards from the Guiana Space Center (CSG), will support the deployment of the future Earth Observation constellation IRIDE.

IRIDE is an end-to-end system composed of constellations of LEO satellites (Upstream Segment), the ground-based Operations infrastructure (Downstream Segment) and a range of Services to be delivered to the Italian Public Administration (Service Segment). The constellation will be based on different sensing techniques and technologies, encompassing Synthetic Aperture Radars, SAR, imaging as well as optical imaging, from medium to high resolution and in many different frequency ranges. (3/14)

Artemis 1 Mannequins Return to Germany (Source: Space Daily)
Following their historical journey around the Moon as part of NASA's Artemis I mission, the radiation-measuring mannequins, Helga and Zohar, are back in Cologne. On 9 March 2023, the two female astronaut phantoms were presented to the media by the German Aerospace Center at its Institute of Aerospace Medicine for the first time since their flight. Once evaluated, the data from the Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment (MARE) project, led by DLR, will provide a three-dimensional image of the radiation exposure of the female body during a flight to the Moon and back. The research results will also be used for terrestrial applications. (3/10)

Chandra Helps Astronomers Discover a Surprisingly Lonely Galaxy (Source: Space Daily)
This image features a galaxy called 3C 297 that is lonelier than expected after it likely pulled in and absorbed its former companion galaxies, as described in our latest press release. The solo galaxy is located about 9.2 billion light-years from Earth and contains a quasar, a supermassive black hole pulling in gas at the center of the galaxy and driving powerful jets of matter seen in radio waves. This result made with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the International Gemini Observatory may push the limits for how quickly astronomers expect galaxies to grow in the early universe. (3/9)