March 19, 2023

SpaceX Sets a New Doubleheader Record with Florida and California Launches (Source: Space Daily)
SpaceX established a new record of only four hours between a launch of Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, and a pair of geostationary-bound satellites for SES from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport in Florida. Both launches and booster recoveries were successful. (3/18)

NASA Begins Building its First Robotic Lunar Rover (Source: Space Daily)
NASA's first robotic lunar rover is officially coming together and the team building it is over the Moon. The team recently began assembling the 1,000-pound viper rover at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Engineers have affixed the rover's lower chassis plate and the lower parts of the frame that will support all of VIPER - from the bottom of its wheels to the tip of its headlights. It all now sits atop a set of risers on a specialized lift table in a clean room at Johnson. (3/16)

Aerojet Rocketdyne Shareholders Approve Sale to L3Harris (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings stockholders have approved the proposed acquisition by L3Harris in a special meeting held on Thursday.
The aerospace and defense products company said that 99.7% of votes cast were in favor of the transaction. The Federal Trade Commission had requested a second review of the planned $4.7B sale, which extends the waiting period imposed by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act until 30 days after the two companies have substantially complied with the request. Aerojet's proposed sale to Lockheed Martin had terminated in February on competition concerns. (3/16)

NASA's Oldest Mars Orbiter Just Got a New Lease on Life (Source: Astronomy)
For more than 20 years, NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter has been circling the Red Planet, mapping the martian surface to help astronomers untangle the mysteries of Mars’ history. But in January 2022, engineers calculated that Odyssey only had enough propellant to last about 12 more months. It appeared that after traveling some 1.37 billion miles and looping around the Red Planet more than 94,000 times, Odyssey’s mission would soon come to a close.

Fortunately, that’s no longer the case. According to a recent NASA news release, new estimates suggest Odyssey actually has enough remaining propellant to last through at least the end of 2025. (3/16)

New Florida Launch Date for Relativity (Source: Fox35)
Maybe the third time will be the charm! After two scrubbed attempts, Relativity Space will try again to launch the world's first 3D-printed rocket from Florida's Space Coast. The new launch date is scheduled for March 22. The 3-hour launch window opens at 10 p.m. and goes until 1 a.m at Cape Canaveral's Space Force Station. (3/17)

Shadows in the Big Bang Afterglow Reveal Invisible Cosmic Structures (Source: Quanta)
After scientists discovered the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation in 1965, they meticulously mapped its tiny temperature variations, which displayed the exact state of the cosmos when it was a mere frothing plasma. Now they’re repurposing CMB data to catalog the large-scale structures that developed over billions of years as the universe matured. “That light experienced a bulk of the history of the universe, and by seeing how it’s changed, we can learn about different epochs,” said Kimmy Wu, a cosmologist at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

“We’re realizing that the CMB does not only tell us about the initial conditions of the universe. It also tells us about the galaxies themselves,” said Emmanuel Schaan. Click here. (3/17)

Image of Ancient Glacier on Mars Raises Hopes for Human Exploration (Source: PetaPixel)
The remains of a glacier on Mars have been discovered via the HiRISE camera attached to the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. If the ice is confirmed, it would have significant implications for humans who may land there one day. The SETI Institute made the announcement on Wednesday. It released the image that features light-toned deposits consisting of sulfate salts, crevasse fields, and moraine bands that are signs of a “relict glacier.”

The glacier is estimated to be roughly four miles wide and 2.5 miles long. The researchers hope that the discovery means that the planet was once more watery than previously thought. “What we’ve found is not ice, but a salt deposit with the detailed morphologic features of a glacier,” says Dr. Pascal Lee. Whether ice is preserved beneath the light-toned deposits remains to be seen but the study draws comparisons with the salt lakebeds of the Altiplano in South America where old glacier ice has remained protected underneath blankets of salts. (3/17)

Varda Wins Air Force Contract to Use Re-Entry Capsule for Hypersonic Research (Source: Varda Space Industries)
Varda has been awarded a $60 million Air Force STRATFI contract to advance our nation’s hypersonic capabilities. The Air Force will use Varda's re-entry vehicle as a hypersonic test-bed while flying back to Earth after its use in space for microgravity production of small molecule pharmaceuticals. (3/15)

Examining the State of Suborbital Space Science (Source: Phys.org)
Suborbital science is alive and well, and it's providing important results across a range of sciences. And, in the aftermath of recent shoot-downs of unknown balloons after the Chinese floated one over North America, it's important to know that balloons, as well as rockets and other launch vehicles, are big players in suborbital research for scientific purposes. Click here. (3/16)

Spaceport Cornwall Says it Will Focus on Building Space Cluster Despite Virgin Orbit Pausing All Operations (Source: Cornwall Live)
Spaceport Cornwall and Cornwall Council have said they want to “grow the space cluster” in Cornwall despite its main operator Virgin Orbit announcing it was pausing all activity. Sir Richard Branson's US firm announced this morning that it was stopping all activity and that almost all staff would be on furlough as it tries to secure new investment.

Cornwall Council has invested more than £10million into Spaceport Cornwall and claimed that the venture will result in hundreds of new jobs and attract businesses in the space industry to Cornwall. There are already many companies in the Duchy which have links to the space industry including Goonhilly Earth Station. (3/16)

Virgin Orbit Reportedly in Talks About Potential Buyout (Source: Seeking Alpha)
Virgin Orbit Holdings is in talks with multiple investors to buy out the struggling company, according to The Financial Times. The discussions follow reports that the company was seeking funding to continue operations and furloughing employees as founder Richard Branson declined to continue funding the company. According to the British broadsheet, two investors are in talks with the company to either purchase the entire business, take a stake, or siphon off assets. (3/16)

Video Update on Launch Industry Developments at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com)
Here is another flight over Cape Canaveral with the latest updates on SpaceX's launch and landing pads, Blue Origin hardware, and more. Joined by experts Adrian and Sawyer, we get an inside look at Blue Origin, the slow progress of SpaceX tower construction, the chopsticks and QD arm at 39A, Starfactory progress, and Falcon hardware. Plus, some strange observations, including a dismantled crane and steel rings stacked near a bunch of tents, which could be related to Blue Origin's activities. Don't miss this thrilling flyover with Spaceflight Simulator as a sponsor. Click here. (3/17)