September 9, 2023

Cruise Ships Get Prime Rocket Launch Viewing (Source: CruiseHive)
Three ships from different cruise lines will be daparting Port Canaveral in time for great viewing of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch of Starlink satellites at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. With as many as 13,000 guests, the three vessels include Disney's Wish, Carnival's Liberty, and Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas. (9/8)

Another New Way to Measure Distance in the Universe: Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (Source: Universe Today)
Measuring cosmic distances is a major challenge thanks to the fact that we live in a relativistic Universe. When astronomers observe distant objects, they are not just looking through space but also back in time. In addition, the cosmos has been expanding ever since it was born in the Big Bang, and that expansion is accelerating. Astronomers typically rely on one of two methods to measure cosmic distances (known as the Cosmic Distance Ladder). On the one hand, astronomers rely on redshift measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) to determine cosmological distances. (9/8)

Why Planet Labs Stock Is Down Today (Source: Motley Fool)
Satellite imagery specialist Planet Labs PBC (PL -11.04%) reported underwhelming results from the most recent quarter and offered tepid guidance about what is to come. Investors appear to be losing patience with this space start-up, sending shares down 15% in Friday trading. (9/8)

Did a Comet Airburst Destroy a Native American Community? (Source: Universe Today)
In 1908, when an object entered the Earth’s atmosphere above the Podkamennaya Tunguska River, it flattened 80 million trees over nearly 2,200 square kilometers, and sent atmospheric shock waves reverberating around the world. Fortunately, this event was in a remote region and very few people were believed to be killed. But research published in Nature’s Scientific Reports in 2022 suggested that a similar, but even more powerful comet airburst in the Ohio River Valley may have been the death knell for the Hopewell civilization, some 1,600-1,700 years ago just outside modern day Cincinnati. However, other scientists rejected the arguments.

The initial paper points to several lines of evidence for an impact event in the region. The first is that archaeological sites in the area contain a surprising number of meteorites and objects made from meteoritic iron. Other archaeologists have suggested that these objects were prized in the culture and that the members of this civilization would trade for them using a continent-wide network of exchange. The next clue the authors point to is a widespread presence of minute iron and silicon-rich sand grain-sized particles in the regions surveyed. (9/7)

NASA Scientists Test New Tool for Tracking Algal Blooms (Source: NASA)
A recent study, led by scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, has shown how one space-based instrument called TROPOMI, or TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument, was able to peer through thin clouds to uncover powerful clues about Karenia brevis (or K. brevis), the microscopic algae responsible for the 2020 blooms. TROPOMI’s enhanced ability to “see” and measure fine wavelengths of light could potentially help federal agencies and local communities better forecast and manage harmful outbreaks. (TROPOMI flies aboard the European Sentinel 5P spacecraft, which was launched in 2017.)

The scientists examined the West Florida Shelf, a stretch of continental crust arcing from the Panhandle to the Keys. From its origins in other parts of the Gulf of Mexico, K. brevis is carried toward the coastline on strong winds and ocean currents. Recent research has shown that western Florida, like many coastal communities, may be increasingly vulnerable to outbreaks because these algae flourish in nutrient-rich, warm conditions fueled by runoff, fertilizer, and climate change. (9/8)

Test Of Dark Eagle Hypersonic Missile At Cape Canaveral Aborted (Source: The Drive)
Aplanned test of the U.S. Army's Dark Eagle hypersonic missile from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida has been canceled. This follows the scrubbing of what was expected to be the first test launch of one of these weapons, which the Army is developing in cooperation with the U.S. Navy, using the former service's ground-based launch system earlier this year. The long-standing goal has been to field the first operational Dark Eagles before the end of this year and the first unit to be equipped with them has already stood up.

“Automated pre-flight checks identified that a battery did not activate, which resulted in not conducting the test," Navy Vice Adm. Johnny Wolfe, that service's Director for Strategic Sytems Programs, disclosed at a subsequent Congressional hearing. "We are aggressively investigating the cause of the no test and will continue to move forward with our development and additional testing in support of Army fielding as soon as the cause is identified and corrected." (9/8)

SpaceX Launches 22 Starlink Satellites from Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: WESH)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launch took off Friday night. Twenty-two Starlink satellites were launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This mission marks the first-stage booster's seventh flight, according to SpaceX. The booster was recovered downrange. (9/8)

Polish Astronaut Candidate Begins ESA Training (Source: ESA)
As of 1 September 2023, Sławosz Uznański joined ESA as a project astronaut anticipating flying on a future space mission. Sławosz was selected in November 2022 as a member of the ESA astronaut reserve after a year-long selection process. The 2022 ESA recruitment campaign received more than 22 500 applications from across its Member States. (9/7)

See Chinese Astronauts Clean the Tiangong Space Station (Source: CCTV)
The Shenzhou-16 crew, Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao, recently took some time to give the Tiangong space station a deep clean. Click here. (9/8) 

FAA Orders Dozens of Changes Before Next SpaceX Starship Launch Attempt (Source: The Hill)
The Federal Aviation Administration on Friday ordered SpaceX to make numerous changes to its infrastructure and process before being allowed to launch another rocket after its last attempt destroyed its launch pad and caused widespread damage. The agency provided 63 steps SpaceX must take before it allows the company to launch another rocket from its facility near Brownsville, Texas. (9/8)

The Future of Human Spaceflight Safety is in the Hands of Congress (Source: Space News)
The expansion of commercial capabilities will increase the amount of research, science and technology demonstrations performed in space by orders of magnitude. Groundbreaking achievements born from these efforts rest on policy and legislation that created a path for private companies to develop human spaceflight transportation systems – a sea change from the previous 50 years, when the only such systems were solely owned and operated by governments.

Included in this historic legislation was the establishment of a “learning period,” whereby the commercial spaceflight industry was provided a time period during which no regulation would be imposed that might stifle innovation and the development of new systems. That learning period is scheduled to sunset this year, meaning that legislation must either be renewed, or it will expire.

Congress has a choice to make this fall: reauthorize the “learning period” putting the nation on a glide path to secure a safety framework commensurate with industry maturity, or allow the “learning period” to expire, which puts the future of commercial human spaceflight – and American leadership in space writ large – at serious risk. (9/8)

Dream Chaser Mission Profile for ISS Cargo Resupply (Source: Sierra Space)
Learn how the world’s only commercial spaceplane flies from launch to landing for its upcoming NASA CRS-2 mission to resupply the International Space Station. With its unique design, Dream Chaser incurs a 1.5g re-entry before landing at NASA’s Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center, making critical cargo accessible faster. Click here. (9/7)

SpaceX President was Reportedly Upset That Elon Musk Kept Financing Starlink in Ukraine Before Pentagon Deal (Source: Business Insider)
SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell was upset when Elon Musk kept financing Starlink in Ukraine even after the Pentagon offered to fund the enterprise, author Walter Isaacson wrote in a recent excerpt from his biography on Musk. "The Pentagon had a $145 million check ready to hand to me, literally," Shotwell said, according to Isaacson. "Then Elon succumbed to the bullshit on Twitter and to the haters at the Pentagon who leaked the story." (9/7)

H-2A’s Successful Launch Does Not End Japan’s Rocket Woes (Source: Asahi Shimbun)
The Sep. 7 launch of a flagship H-2A rocket operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. put an X-ray telescope into orbit that will explore the origins of the universe, as well as a small lunar lander. Japan’s space program has been marred by recent failures involving its two other mainstay rockets--the Epsilon and the H3, H-2A’s successor, both developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The H-2A Launch Vehicle No. 47 was originally scheduled to be launched in May, but that was delayed because it shared components with the H3. The potential risks related to these parts had to be evaluated. The latest launch of the H-2A averted a nightmare scenario: a rapid succession of botched launches involving all three mainstay rockets. Be that as it may, the nation’s rocket program will continue facing tough challenges for the time being.

The H-2A marked its 41st consecutive success, further cementing its reputation for reliability. However, there are limits to its competitiveness in the international space launch market, and the program will end after three more missions. (9/8)

Defining ‘Responsible Behavior’ in Space Is a Growing Necessity (Source: The Diplomat)
Outer space was considered a largely peaceful domain until a decade ago. No longer. The situation has been worsening progressively with countries pursuing destructive activities in space. Unless corrective steps are taken to regulate the kind of activities states engage in in outer space, exploration and peaceful use of outer space even in the medium term cannot be guaranteed.

There are several efforts that have been undertaken in recent years in order to moderate the activities in outer space. The most recent is the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) on reducing space threats through norms, rules, and principles of responsible behaviors. The group concluded its work on September 1. Given the contentious and competitive dynamics of great power relations at present, the OEWG could not arrive at a consensus. This was a repeat of the 2018-19 U.N. Group of Governmental Experts on further practical measures for the prevention of an arms race in outer space (PAROS), which also ended without success. (9/7)

Canadian Company 'Mission Control' Raises $3.25 Million (Source: SpaceQ)
Mission Control, a startup that is based in Ottawa, has raised $3.25 million in a seed round led by a Toronto Company. Mission Control officials said that the seed round of equity financing was led by GreenSky Ventures. The company plans to use the funding, principally, for two major ventures. The first is to continue work on its Spacefarer platform, which manages space-based robotics and payloads. The second is to continue the company’s long-standing work on artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for spaceflight. Mission Control also has received $10 million in non-diluted funding, in large part from the Canadian government. (9/7)

NASA Finally Admits What Everyone Already Knows: SLS is Unaffordable (Source: Ars Technica)
The Government Accountability Office says NASA lacks transparency on the true costs of its Space Launch System rocket program. Surprisingly, as part of the reporting process, NASA officials admitted the rocket was too expensive to support its lunar exploration efforts as part of the Artemis program. "Senior NASA officials told GAO that at current cost levels, the SLS program is unaffordable," the GAO report states.

The report also cites concerns about development costs of future hardware for NASA's big-ticket rocket program, including the Exploration Upper Stage. Another problem with NASA's cost estimates is that they do not appear to account for delays to Artemis missions. It is probable that the Artemis II mission, a crewed flight around the Moon, will launch no earlier than 2025. The Artemis III crewed landing will likely slip to at least 2026, if not more, with additional delays down the line. At least one NASA official apparently told the GAO that these delays would have no cost impacts, which seems highly improbable. (9/7)

How to Prevent Biofilms in Space? Scientists Try Lube (Source: Cosmos)
Where there’s humans there will be biofilms. Hospitals, your water bottle, and even the International Space Station (ISS) all house these difficult to get rid of bacteria or fungi on surfaces. “They jeopardise a variety of instruments or equipment,” says MIT's Kripa Varanasi. “Space suits, recycling units, radiators, and water treatment facilities. It’s a very important problem that needed to be understood.” Now researchers from the US have discovered that biofilms on the ISS can be prevented from forming by using what’s called lubricated impregnated surfaces (LIS). (9/8)

UAE Leads Persian Gulf Region's Efforts in Space (Source: NPR)
The UAE is a small country with big ambitions. Possibly, nowhere is that clearer than in its space program, which has already sent two astronauts to space and has a satellite probing the atmosphere around Mars. The UAE's relatively nascent space program reflects the country's wider ambitions to secure a spot on the world stage alongside global powers like the United States and China, which have advanced space programs and cutting-edge observation satellites and technology.

UAE astronaut Sultan Alneyadi's time aboard the ISS highlights the Gulf state's regional edge in space exploration. Saudi Arabia is also revamping its space program in a bid to catch up with its smaller Gulf neighbor. The UAE announced this year the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt, a multiyear project that will create numerous private Emirati science and technology companies with the aim of exploring seven asteroids and training young Emiratis in deep space mission control.

The Dubai-based Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, established in 2006 with just five engineers, has grown to about 250 engineers and scientists. Its Hope Probe has been orbiting Mars since 2021, gathering new findings about the red planet's atmosphere. Earlier this year, the UAE attempted to join an elite club of global powers that includes just the U.S., the then-Soviet Union, China and recently India in landing a rover on the moon. The joint mission with Japan's ispace lander failed, and the UAE immediately announced work on a new lunar rover. (9/8)