August 27, 2023

Astronomers Discover Never-Before-Seen Way To Destroy a Star (Source: SciTech Daily)
Astronomers studying a powerful gamma-ray burst (GRB) with the Gemini South telescope, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, may have detected a never-before-seen way to destroy a star. Unlike most GRBs, which are caused by exploding massive stars or the chance mergers of neutron stars, astronomers have concluded that this GRB came instead from the collision of stars or stellar remnants in the jam-packed environment surrounding a supermassive black hole at the core of an ancient galaxy. (8/25)

NASA's New Horizons Mission Faces an Uncertain Future (Source: Space.com)
With its budget being trimmed for 2024, NASA is making some weighty decisions... and one includes drastically trimming New Horizons funds by replacing the current science staff with a new team in an effort to save about $3 million—a rounding error in terms of the planetary science budget. The principal investigator of the mission from its earliest days, Dr. Alan Stern, is not happy about the situation. "New Horizons is the only spacecraft in the Kuiper Belt, and the only one currently planned to go there. We have valuable new Kuiper Belt observations, and a search for a new flyby target, still to complete every year until we leave the Belt." (8/25)

Orbital Composites Lands New Government Contracts to Advance In-Space Manufacturing (Source: Tech Crunch)
Advanced manufacturing startup Orbital Composites is expanding its in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing development work with three new Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts valued at more than $3 million combined. One contract, for the U.S. Space Force (USSF), is focused on developing a new type of antenna based on an emerging field called “quantum field theory,” that has promising applications for defense customers and in the energy sector.

The second, also for the USSF, is looking at developing and printing low-cost CubeSats engineered to withstand harsh radiation environments, such as in geosynchronous orbit (GEO). The final SBIR, with the Air Force, is focused on developing composite printing techniques using an advanced material called “carbon-carbon.” (8/25)

How a Whistleblower Says Booz Allen Hamilton Defrauded the Government (Source: Washington Post)
Only a few months into a new finance job, Sarah Feinberg felt stunned when a senior manager with a Northern Virginia-based defense contractor called federal auditors “too stupid” to notice overcharging, according to a federal complaint she filed. Feinberg said she had warned the manager that the company, Booz Allen Hamilton, was losing tens of millions of dollars and, in her view, billing more than it should on U.S. government contracts to cover the losses.

During the ensuing nine months, she repeatedly raised concerns with senior executives, including internal compliance officials and the chief financial officer, according to the 37-page civil complaint she filed against Booz Allen in 2016 under the federal False Claims Act. In July, the Justice Department announced that Booz Allen had agreed to pay $377 million — $209 million in restitution to the federal government and the rest in penalties — to settle the matter, one of the largest awards in a government procurement case in history.

Feinberg, who said she felt vindicated and was to receive nearly $70 million for making the case known to authorities, nevertheless could not help feeling doubts about whether justice was served. “Assuming the company is not debarred and can continue to do business with the government, there’s a real question, in terms of the system as a whole, of whether the consequences are significant enough,” said Seton Hall University law professor Jacob T. Elberg. (8/26)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches 22 Starlink Satellites From Cape Canaveral (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
SpaceX launched its second Falcon 9 mission of the day, sending 22 second-generation Starlink satellites into orbit on Saturday. It followed the successful launch of a four-member crew to the International Space Station earlier in the day. With Saturday’s successful mission, more than 5,000 Starlink satellites have now reached orbit. (8/26)

SpaceX Wants to Boost the Speed of its Starlink Service (Source: Cord Cutters)
SpaceX is working with online content delivery services provider Cloudflare to boost the speed of its Starlink satellite internet service, according to The Information. The two companies are working together to see if they can increase the performance of Starlink’s network of mini data centers located around the world, The Information reported, citing a person with knowledge of the project. (8/26)

T-Mobile and SpaceX’s Starlink 5G Partnership: What’s Going on One Year Later? (Source: Cord Cutters)
A year ago today, T-Mobile and SpaceX unveiled a partnership to combine the former’s spectrum with the latter’s network of low orbit satellites for more comprehensive wireless coverage, an initiative they coined “Coverage Above and Beyond.” But what’s happened since that buzzy announcement? After the FCC approved a proposal to help satellite providers offer wireless service from space, there’s been a flurry of activity in the last few months — largely from their rivals.

In May, AT&T, T-Mobile’s perennial rival, objected to the service, arguing that the proposed signals may interfere with its cellular network. Dish Network, which previously had a cozy relationship with T-Mobile after acquiring its Boost Mobile prepaid business, earlier filed a petition to get access to Starlink’s 12Ghz spectrum. SpaceX said letting Dish on its spectrum would make its service unusable.

Last week, little-known satellite constellation operator Omnispace filed its opposition to the FCC, arguing that SpaceX has miscalculated the amount of interference it would produce, and said it would harm its own antenna system. The opposition underscores some of the key obstacles getting in the way of this ambitious project, which promised to close any coverage gaps across the U.S. and its surrounding waters. (8/25)

Can Space Investment Become Cool Again? (Source: Space News)
The once high-flying space finance sector has come crashing back to Earth. Two years ago, startups were raising large rounds or going public through mergers with special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs. There seemed to be no shortage of funding for companies working on capital-intensive efforts like launch vehicles or satellite constellations.

The outlook is now much grimmer. For example, on Aug. 1, Virgin Galactic reported quarterly losses of $134.4 million on just $2 million in revenue. The same day, Earth imaging company Planet said it was laying off more than 100 employees, or 10% of its workforce, as the company struggled with “increased cost and complexity” linked to rapid growth after going public through a SPAC.

The good news is that there are signs of an uptick in industry investment. Jon Lusczakoski, vice president at AE Industrial Partners, said a lot of venture capital is tied up in companies that have, on paper, generated a return for those funds, but still need an exit — a merger or acquisition, or going public — to secure those returns and reinvest the money. (8/25)

Why Amazon Is Spending $100 Million to Launch $1 Million Worth of Satellites (Source: Motley Fool)
Four years ago, Amazon.com revealed some big news: To compete with SpaceX and its globe-spanning Starlink satellite network, Amazon would build a satellite constellation of its own, called Project Kuiper. Comprising 3,236 satellites in low Earth orbit, Kuiper was supposed to begin with the launching of two prototype satellites to test the technology in 2022.

In a move to hurry its project along, Amazon announced last year that it would switch providers for its initial launch of the first two Kuipersats, choosing United Launch Alliance for the mission. Problem was, ULA's new rocket, Vulcan Centaur, also hadn't yet reached orbit and still hasn't. Earlier this month, Amazon announced that it is switching horses again. Instead of launching on ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket, Amazon will buy a launch atop one of ULA's proven Atlas V rockets instead.

This latest change pushes Project Kuiper's initial launch up to as early as next month -- as opposed to Q1 2024, which is now looking likely as the first launch of Vulcan Centaur. Yet Amazon's decision is still curious. Consider: ULA puts the list cost of its cheapest Atlas V model at $109 million. The two Kuipersats that Amazon wants to launch on the Atlas V, however, are probably worth less than $1 million combined. (Similar in size to a SpaceX Starlink, the Kuipersat prototypes are believed to weigh only a few hundred kilograms each, and to cost somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000 each). (8/26)

SpaceX Completes Successful Hot Fire Test of its Massive Starship Rocket (Source: Ars Technica)
SpaceX conducted a second hot fire test of its Super Heavy booster on Friday afternoon, likely taking a key step toward the next launch of its massive new rocket. A few minutes after the test firing, SpaceX founder Elon Musk characterized it as "successful" on the social media network formerly known as Twitter. SpaceX later confirmed that all 33 Raptor engines ignited during the test and that all but two ran for the full six-second duration.

This Super Heavy booster, the largest and most powerful rocket to ever fly, serves as the first stage of SpaceX's mega-rocket, which pushes the Starship upper stage into orbit. The first stage in action on Friday—dubbed Booster 9, as it is the ninth to be built as part of SpaceX's iterative design methodology—underwent its first static fire test on August 6. That hot fire test ended prematurely, after 2.74 seconds. Moreover, four of the rocket's 33 main Raptor engines either did not ignite or shut down prematurely. (8/35)

‘We’ll Launch Rockets Every Month’: Britain Finally Joins the Space Race (Source: The Guardian)
Rocket companies with plans for UK launches include Orbex Prime, whose launchers are scheduled to take off from Sutherland Spaceport in north Scotland, with other launch sites being touted for the Western Isles and the Kintyre peninsula as well as locations in Wales and Cornwall. The rebirth of UK satellite launching – which will be dominated by spaceports located north of Hadrian’s Wall – is the result of the dramatic miniaturization of modern electronics.

Early spacecraft were the size of cars and required massive launchers. Today, satellites are often the size of shoeboxes that need only modest launchers, like the Skyrora XL. It is 22m in height compared with the 110m-high Saturn V rockets that took Apollo astronauts to the moon. The three-stage Skyrora XL will be powered by 3D printed engines and in the near future should, if the company’s plans work out, be launching around a dozen satellites a year from Unst, the most northerly inhabited place in the British Isles. (8/27)

Unarmed Minuteman III Launch Scheduled for Next Week From Vandenberg (Source: KSBY)
An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base the first week of September. Base officials say the launch set for Tuesday night September 5 is routine and was scheduled years prior. (8/25)