April 13, 2023

India Needs a Military-Space Doctrine (Source: The Print)
“There’s a requirement to safeguard our assets with counter space capabilities. We must build resilience and redundancy in a space-based infrastructure,” Gen Chauhan said. The counter-space capability required for the objectives stated above is far more than the anti-satellite accomplishment demonstrated by India on a defunct low-earth orbiter on 27 March 2019. Most domestic analysis tends to believe that a successful demonstration of capability is deterrence enough, but the space domain is far bigger than that, as are the current and future challenges. Chinese counter-space capabilities, currently the only likely threat, are unequally placed in favour of Beijing. And they are growing. (4/13)

Blue Origin Expands in Denver (Source: Denver Business Journal)
Blue Origin is expanding its presence in Colorado with the addition of 36,000 square feet of office space in Denver's Highlands Ranch area. The company had previously occupied a smaller portion of the same building where it is expanding (4/12)

China Launch Plan Raises Concern in Taiwan (Source: Reuters)
Maritime and airspace restrictions for what appears to be an upcoming Chinese launch have raised concerns in Taiwan. The exclusion zone was originally scheduled for April 16 to 18 just northeast of Taiwan, but was later shortened to just 27 minutes on April 16. The exclusion zone is linked to "falling rocket debris" from a Chinese launch, but the original duration of the exclusion zone, and its location, came amid heightened tensions between China and Taiwan that has included Chinese military exercises near the island. (4/13)

Reality TV Show to Put Celebrities in Simulated Mars Habitat (Source: Variety)
Fox has ordered a reality TV show that involves celebrities on Mars — or, rather, a simulated Mars habitat. The "Stars on Mars" show, to premiere in June, involves unidentified "celebronauts" in the simulated Mars environment, competing until one is left. William Shatner will host the show, delivering tasks to the participants. "Thanks to lower gravity on Mars, you'll weigh 62% less," Shatner advises contestants. "Bad news: the air is unbreathable, so if you're from L.A., it'll remind you of home." (4/13)

Ground Station Service Providers Urge Advance Planning by Customers (Source: Space News)
While companies are making it easier to provide ground station services for satellites, that doesn't mean operators can wait until the last minute. Ground station providers say they have heard from customers looking for services just before the launch of their satellites. While those providers have worked to offer packaged services to make it easier to serve satellite customers, they note that they still have to get licenses for each new satellite in each country they will provide services, which can be an onerous process. Ground segment providers suggest potential customers approach them anywhere from a year to 18 months before launch. (4/13)

Inmarsat and MediaTek Team for Direct-to-Device Tech (Source: Space News)
Inmarsat and Taiwanese chipmaker MediaTek will jointly develop technologies to enable direct-to-device satellite communications. The companies said Wednesday they will work on technologies for two-way text messaging, emergency communications, device tracking and monitoring for devices without terrestrial network coverage. The companies previously collaborated to support Android smartphones from ruggedized handset maker Bullitt, which is offering satellite-enabled text messages with their technology via service provider Skylo. (4/13)

China’s Bid to Win the New Space Race (Source: WIRED)
The Chinese president has long pushed the idea that China’s space program—which is entirely and directly controlled by the People’s Liberation Army—is no threat to anyone, that it seeks to work within international frameworks and for the good of humankind. But is that really true? And how will China’s stellar ambitions shape the future of global politics? Click here. (4/12)

In Five Years, China Will Start Building a Lunar Base With Bricks Made From Moon Soil (Source: TIME)
China plans to start building a lunar base in about five years, kicking off with bricks made of moon soil, according to scientists with ties to the project, the South China Morning Post reported. Ding Lieyun, a top scientist at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, told local media that the first brick would be made from moon soil during the Chang’e 8 mission around 2028.

China has previously said its lunar base will likely be powered by nuclear energy, and will include a lander, hopper, orbiter and rover, all of which would be constructed by the Chang’e 6, 7 and 8 missions. It wasn’t immediately clear in the interview if the entire base will be built with lunar soil. (4/12)

Putin Gives Go-Ahead for New Russian Space Station (Source: TASS)
Roscosmos says that Russian President Vladimir Putin has given approval to start work on a Russian space station. That approval came on Wednesday, the 62nd anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's flight. Roscosmos says the modules for the Russian Orbital Station would be launched in the late 2020s but provided few details on the costs of the project. (4/13)

Kepler Raises $92 Million for Optical Data Relay Network (Source: Space News)
Kepler Communications has raised $92 million to develop an optical data relay network. Early-stage investor IA Ventures led the Series C round announced Thursday, which brings the total amount Kepler has raised to more than $200 million. Kepler currently operates 19 cubesats to provide low-data-rate connectivity, but the new funding would go towards a data relay network of larger smallsats that would provide real-time connectivity for LEO satellites that can currently only relay information when passing over approved ground stations. The company plans to begin deploying the first plane of data relay satellites in 2024 for initial services by early 2025 from what it is calling The Kepler Network. (4/13)

National Security Users Seek Low Latency Imagery (Source: Space News)
The national security community is trying to get more timely access to commercial satellite imagery. A Planet executive said at the company's annual conference Wednesday that military users are increasingly emphasizing "low latency requirements" for satellite imagery. However, that effort is slowed by various internal DoD processes, like budgeting and requirements. Both government and industry officials say they need to work together to find ways to provide more timely imagery. (4/13)

NASA: New Glenn Likely Ready for Mars Launch in 2024 (Source: Space News)
The head of a NASA Mars mission flying on Blue Origin's New Glenn believes the rocket will be ready in time for a 2024 launch. NASA selected New Glenn in February to launch the ESCAPADE mission, currently scheduled for August 2024, sending two smallsats to Mars to study the planet's magnetosphere. New Glenn has yet to launch and Blue Origin has not disclosed when its first launch will occur, but the ESCAPADE principal investigator said this week that after meeting with Blue Origin he is "confident they will likely be ready" to launch ESCAPADE on time. Blue Origin officials previously said that ESCAPADE will be among the first New Glenn launches. (4/13)

Fuel Pressure, Timing Led to Stage 2 Failure on Relativity's First Flight (Source: Long Beach Business Journal)
Due to multiple malfunctions aboard Stage 2 of Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket, the engine did not reach full power, causing the company’s historic mission last month to be terminated just under seven minutes after takeoff. The company announced its preliminary finding exactly three weeks after the mission. An investigation is ongoing, the company stated, but in a series of tweets it outlined the root causes of the Stage 2 failure.

After the Stage 1 main engine cutoff, with the rocket traveling over 4,629 mph, the stage separation system cleanly released Stage 2 at T+163 seconds. The Stage 2 igniters were given the “on” command at T+166 seconds, with performance appearing nominal. At T+168 seconds, however, the Aeon Vac engine did not reach full thrust. The engine’s main valves opened slower than expected, which impacted the fuel pressure and the timing of it reaching the thrust chamber and gas generator. While the fuel pump generated pressure as expected, the oxygen pump did not. “The data from the oxygen pump is consistent with a vapor bubble being present at the pump inlet,” the company wrote. (4/12)

Spaceport America Makes Moves to Build Reception Center (Source: SourceNM)
An effort to design and build a new reception center in southern New Mexico at Spaceport America is underway, although the bidding process is still under wraps. In 2019, lawmakers awarded $10 million in capital outlay funds for the centerpiece building and other New Mexico Spaceport Authority improvements.

New Mexico Spaceport Authority put the project out for bid in February 2022, two years after the governing board approved spending $9 million to construct the new building during a virtual video meeting in Dec. 2020. The current facilities in the desert scrublands outside Truth and Consequences used $220 million of public money in construction between 2006 and 2012. (4/12)

Starship, Falcon Heavy and 50-Payload Falcon 9 Primed for Mid-April Launches (Source: America Space)
SpaceX is aiming for two missions from opposite coasts, as a veteran Falcon 9 with 50 customer payloads from 13 nations stands ready to fly from California on Friday morning, and a triple-barreled Falcon Heavy targets Tuesday evening for launch at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, carring the first of three heavyweight ViaSat-3 ultra-high-capacity broadband satellites. Additionally, SpaceX plans the first orbital-velocity test flight of its Starship/Super Heavy rocket out of Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, as early as next week. (4/12)

New UCF Agreement Will Help Researchers Study Metal Asteroids for Resources, Clues to Formation (Source: UCF)
A University of Central Florida researcher will be using the newly constructed Two-meter Twin Telescope (TTT) in the Canary Islands, Spain, to study metal-rich M-type asteroids. The work can inform the study of asteroids like 16 Psyche, an M-type, or metal, asteroid NASA is launching a mission in October 2023 to visit. The M-type asteroids offer both high concentrations of metals that could be harnessed to make structures in space as well as clues to the formation of asteroids and planets in the solar system. (4/12)

US Has Planes, Boats On Call for Emergencies, Why Not Satellites? (Source: C4ISRnet)
The Space Force is in the early phases of designing a Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve. Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman said during a March 15 McAleese and Associates conference in Washington that the Space Force has identified some mission areas within the service where a commercial reserve could play a role, including space domain awareness, satellite communications and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

The service is thinking through some of the policy, contractual and legal questions around how to employ commercial services during a conflict, he said. It’s also getting input from companies on how the CRAF model could be best adapted for the space domain. “The real key to success for making sure that commercial augmentation is available throughout the spectrum of a conflict is that we talk early upfront and we pre-plan and establish expectations,” Saltzman said. (4/11)

Midland TX Spaceport Board Could Enable State Funding (Source: Midland Reporter-Telagram)
The Midland Spaceport Development Corp. is back in business. One day after county leaders agreed to authorize the creation of a development corporation, the Midland City Council did the same and picked its four members for the seven-person board. City leaders on Tuesday picked Ret. Gen. Frank Kisner, Mayor Lori Blong, Councilwoman Robin Poole and Councilwoman Amy Stretcher Burkes as the city’s selections. On Monday, county leaders had picked County Judge Terry Johnson, Commissioner Luis Sanchez and Ed Anderson.

The rebirth of the Spaceport Development Corp. will enable Midland to be eligible for funding from the state. There was previously a spaceport development corporation in Midland in 2014 but it was dissolved in 2020. Gov. Greg Abbott’s recommendation to the 88th Legislature was to provide $350 million for the creation of the Texas Space Commission to support the development of a coordinated strategic plan that will position Texas as a global leader in space travel, research and technology.

Legislation filed includes Senate Bill 1652, which calls for the creation, management and administration of the Texas Space Commission and the Texas Aerospace Research and Space Economy Consortium. House Bill 3447 creates the Aerospace and Space Economy Consortium. Editor's Note: Among Midland's targets is the potential creation of a high speed aero/space flight corridor, linking multiple spaceports for the development of a point-to-point spaceflight industry. (4/12)

New Zealander Without College Degree Couldn’t Talk His Way Into NASA and Boeing—So He Built a $1.8 Billion Rocket Company (Source: CNBC)
In early 2006, Peter Beck took a “rocket pilgrimage” to the U.S. The native New Zealander always dreamed of sending a rocket into space. He even skipped college because of it, taking an apprenticeship at a tools manufacturer so he could learn to work with his hands, tinkering with model rockets and propellants in his free time. By the time of his pilgrimage, he’d built a steam-powered rocket bicycle that traveled nearly 90 mph.

He hoped his experiments were enough to convince NASA or companies like Boeing to hire him as an intern. Instead, he was escorted off the premises of multiple rocket labs. Convincing investors to back someone without a college degree in an industry where he couldn’t even land an internship wouldn’t be easy. Failure would push him even further away from his lifelong dream. Beck launched the company, Rocket Lab, later that same year. In 2009, it became the Southern Hemisphere’s first private company to reach space. Editor's Note: I recall meeting with Peter during his 'pilgrimage' while I was working at the Spaceport Florida Authority and am (of course) impressed with that he has achieved. Click here. (4/11)

Musk and SpaceX Face a Big Obstacle on Their Way to Mars (Source: The Street)
The problem is that he must obtain the license to launch this long-awaited flight. And for the moment, the main regulator's position stands: The agency will issue the license when SpaceX has fulfilled all necessary conditions. This is position doesn't please Musk, who has decided to increase the pressure on the agency, the FAA. In the past few days, then, the innovator reiterates -- without identifying the FAA by name -- that what's stopping SpaceX from giving the world a new dream to unite around is the federal agency. (4/12)

Starship to Mars (Source: SpaceX)
Here's a new SpaceX video showing the company's vision for a dual Starship / Super Heavy mission to Mars. Click here. (4/11)

Florida Tech Researcher Asks: Is Technology-Based Intelligence More Likely to Evolve on Land or in Water? (Source: Phys.org)
A new paper published by Florida Tech astrobiologist Manasvi Lingam examines a core question: Is technology-based intelligence more likely to evolve on land or in water? "A Bayesian Analysis of Technological Intelligence in Land and Oceans," a paper by Lingam and researchers from the University of Texas and Università di Roma, was published in the March edition of The Astrophysical Journal.

Humans are a classic example of the kind of technological intelligence that can profoundly sculpt the biosphere through purposeful activities and produce detectable signatures of their technology. In the paper, the authors performed a Bayesian analysis of the probability of technologically intelligent species existing in land-based habitats and ocean-based habitats. It was found that ocean-based habitats should be more likely to host technological species, if all other factors are held equal, because ocean worlds are likely to be much more common.

"We say that, well, maybe it takes a really long time for life to emerge in the ocean because of various biophysical reasons such as the sensory capacities in land versus water," Lingam said. "Another possibility is, due to some set of factors (e.g., energy sources), maybe oceans are not as habitable for intelligent life as we think they ought to be. Currently, the conventional thinking is that liquid water is needed for life. Well, maybe it is indeed imperative for life, but maybe an excess of it (i.e., only oceans) hampers technological intelligence in some ways. So that was another solution to the paradox we came up with." (4/12)