November 29, 2023

Aerojet Rocketdyne, ULA Mark 60th Anniversary of RL10 Rocket Engine (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
A rocket engine with a long pedigree marked a big milestone on Monday. It’s 60 years since the hydrogen-fueled RL10 engine debuted onboard a Centaur upper stage launched on Nov. 27, 1963. With that first launch, the RL10 engine, currently manufactured by Aerojet Rocketdyne, became the first engine powered by a combination of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to be fired in space. Since that point 60 years ago, 522 RL10 engines have flown in space, with the lion’s share of those flights aboard United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Delta and Atlas rockets. (11/28)

Millennium Space Systems Approved for Missile-Warning Satellite Production (Source: Space News)
Millennium Space Systems has won approval from the U.S. Space Force to begin production of a series of missile-warning satellites. Space Systems Command announced this week that Millennium's proposed satellite passed a critical design review and the company will begin manufacturing hardware for delivery and launch in late 2026. The company has a contract of undisclosed value to produce six satellites that will operate from medium Earth orbit. The Space Force is also evaluating concepts proposed by Raytheon and by L3Harris, but only Millennium has so far secured a production deal, cementing the company's status as front-runner in the project. (11/29)

NASA Delays Titan Probe (Source: Space News)
A NASA mission to Saturn's moon Titan has been delayed. NASA announced Tuesday that it postponed a confirmation review of the Dragonfly mission earlier this month, citing "incredibly large uncertainties" in budgets for 2024 and 2025 that would be available for the mission. NASA has rescheduled the confirmation review for next spring, after the release of the fiscal year 2025 budget proposal. The decision came after the project replanned the mission based on new budget projections, pushing back its launch one year to July 2028. (11/29)

Firefly Tests Miranda Engine (Source: Space News)
Firefly has conducted the first hot-fire test of its Miranda engine. The test, at 65% power, was intended to test the startup sequence of the new engine, designed to generate 230,000 pounds-force of thrust. The Miranda engine will be used on the first stage of the Antares 330, a new version of the Antares rocket Northrop Grumman and Firefly are jointly developing, along with the first and second stages of a new rocket, the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV). Both Antares 330 and MLV are scheduled to make their first launches in 2025. (11/29)

Japanese Companies Partner to Resell Kuiper Services (Source: Space News)
Two Japanese companies have partnered to resell services from Amazon's Project Kuiper broadband constellation. JSAT and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) Corporation said Tuesday they will distribute connectivity services from Kuiper to businesses and government organizations in Japan, while telcos owned by NTT would also be customers to bolster their terrestrial networks.

The partnership comes a month after the Japanese companies were certified to resell broadband to businesses in the country from SpaceX's Starlink. The companies say they see demand for satellite connectivity in islands and remote mountainous areas out of reach of terrestrial services. (11/29)

CSF Opposes Biden's "Mission Authorization" Proposal (Source: Space News)
An industry group says it is opposed to a White House proposal for "mission authorization" of novel commercial space activities. In a letter this week to House and Senate committees, the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) argued that the mission authorization proposal released earlier this month by the National Space Council could be burdensome and confusing for companies and agencies.

That proposal would split oversight between the FAA and the Office of Space Commerce, something the CSF says it opposes, preferring instead to give it solely to the Office of Space Commerce. That is the approach used in a House bill introduced earlier this month. The House Science Committee plans to complete the markup of that bill this afternoon. (11/29)

SDA Demonstrates Space-to-Ground Network (Source: Space News)
The Space Development Agency (SDA) for the first time demonstrated space-to-ground data communications using the Link 16 network. In three demonstrations held over the past several days, Link 16 terminals on three satellites in orbit, part of the Tranche 0 Transport Layer built by York Space, were able to talk to radios on the ground, SDA said Tuesday. Link 16 is an an encrypted tactical data protocol used to connect aircraft, ships and ground vehicles so they can exchange data, and the tests demonstrated it could be extended beyond line-of-sight into space. (11/29)

NASA Could Fly Indian Astronaut to ISS (Source: Hindustan Times)
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson says the agency is willing to fly an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station. Meeting with officials in India this week, Nelson said he had discussions about what the astronaut, to be selected by the Indian space agency ISRO, would do on the ISS. NASA would provide training for the astronaut with a flight possible by the end of 2024, but no details have been disclosed yet on how the Indian astronaut would get to the station and how long the astronaut would be on the ISS. (11/29)

Russian Cargo Craft Undocks From ISS (Source: TASS)
A Progress cargo spacecraft undocked from the ISS Wednesday. The Progress MS-23 spacecraft undocked from the station's Poisk module at about 2:55 a.m. Eastern and was scheduled to deorbit several hours later. The departure of that Progress spacecraft clears the way for the launch of Progress MS-25 early Friday, arriving at the ISS on Sunday. (11/29)

JAXA Hacked (Source: Yomiuri Shimbun)
Japan's space agency JAXA was the victim of a cyberattack this summer. A central server was accessed some time over the summer, giving intruders access to parts of the overall network. JAXA was not aware of the cyberattack until it was notified by police of the intrusion this fall. It was unclear how much data the intruders had access to, but a space agency source called it a "very serious situation." (11/29)

TV Show Will Aim To Summon UFO Live on Air! (Source: Pressat)
Nub TV, the world’s first 24/7 channel mixing UFOS, the paranormal & music will this Christmas teach the world to…..summon a UFO! A special one off show hosted by Pocket Gods’ frontman Mark Christopher Lee and Guy Thompson will see them attempt to, using the CE5 process (Close Encounters Of The 5th Kind), summon a UFO live on air! They will also show their viewers how to do this themselves running through the process, so we may expect to see a lot of UFOs this Christmas! (11/28)

Vikings QB Joshua Dobbs Boosts NASA Profile with NFL Success (Source: ESPN)
For Minnesota Vikings fans, the emergence of 28-year-old journeyman quarterback Joshua Dobbs these past few weeks has been exciting to watch, not to mention fodder for a fresh round of memes, the appearance of space-suit-themed outfits in the stands and the craze over the coolest new nickname in football: "The Passtronaut."

But for NASA, Dobbs' meteoric rise has created a different kind of buzz. And while "The Joshua Dobbs Effect" might not be an actual scientific finding, there is some evidence that Dobbs, a quarterback and aerospace engineer who is now 2-1 with the Vikings heading into Monday night's game against the Chicago Bears, has generated a wave of new excitement -- in science.

When NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio posted about Dobbs on X in early November, user engagement soared. The post received more than 3 million views, and the account's followers increased by 216% compared to the previous week's gain. In 2022, the center said, the average number of engagements per post was 176. (11/27)

Saudi Arabia, US Collaborate to Drive Outer Space Exploration (Source: Arab News)
Space exploration involving Saudi Arabia and the US will strengthen thanks to a new agreement aimed at advancing discovery methods. Amid the visit made by Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Chairman of the Saudi Space Agency Abdullah bin Amer Al-Swaha to the North American country, both nations agreed to further stimulate commercial opportunities as well as exploratory missions related to space, according to a joint statement. (11/28)

Space Forge Secures £7.9 Million UK Space Agency Funding to Build Pioneering National Microgravity Research Center (Source: Space Forge)
Space Forge, which is pioneering space-based advanced materials manufacturing and return technology, has been awarded almost £8 million from the Space Clusters Infrastructure Fund (SCIF) administered by the UK Space Agency. With a total project value of £13 million, which will be reached through match contributions, this significant investment will enable Space Forge to establish a first-of-its-kind National Microgravity Research Center - driving advanced material research and production while fostering the growth of Wales’ space sector. (11/28)

Is Earth's Magnetic Field on The Verge of Flipping Over? An Expert Explains (Source: Science Alert)
The Earth's magnetic field plays a big role in protecting people from hazardous radiation and geomagnetic activity that could affect satellite communication and the operation of power grids. And it moves. Scientists have studied and tracked the motion of the magnetic poles for centuries. The historical movement of these poles indicates a change in the global geometry of the Earth's magnetic field.

It may even indicate the beginning of a field reversal – a "flip" between the north and south magnetic poles. I'm a physicist who studies the interaction between the planets and space. While the north magnetic pole moving a little bit isn't a big deal, a reversal could have a big impact on Earth's climate and our modern technology. But these reversals don't happen instantaneously. Instead, they occur over thousands of years. (11/28)

Space Force Association Plans National Convention in Orlando, Dec. 11 (Source: SFA)
Taking place in conjunction with the SFA Spacpower Conference at the Renaissance at Sea World. This is an opportunity to hear from the SFA Leadership Team about current initiatives, provide your input into organization priorities and most importantly get involved. Click here. (11/27)

Understanding Space Domain Awareness - Free Weninar on Dec. 14 (Source: Aviation Week)
Space domain awareness is the ability to rapidly detect, characterize, warn, attribute, and predict threats to space systems and is a top priority for the U.S. Space Command. For those who are interested in learning about the key systems and programs supporting the U.S. Space Force’s effort to attain the level of Space Domain Awareness, this webinar is a can’t-miss event! Click here. (11/27)

Uruguay Moves Toward a Spaceport (Source: El Pais)
Uruguay appears lagging behind in the current space race , driven by private companies and commercial purposes, unlike the one that broke out more than half a century ago, promoted by the United States. In any case, companies and the government are taking steps toward the development of the sector in the country. Within this framework, the National Space Policy Board, created by decree in February of last year, met yesterday for the second time and received a Brazilian consultant who reported on the feasibility of installing a rocket launch port in Rocha. (11/24)

For the First Time Since '65, the U.S. Military Will Blast a Nuclear Reactor Into Space (Source: Popular Mechanics)
The role of nuclear power may be up for debate on Earth, but in space, fission tech makes a lot of sense. The U.S. military—after already awarding Lockheed Martin with a contract related to the DRACO program—is forking over another $33.7 million to the aerospace company to make a nuclear-powered spacecraft. The spacecraft will use nuclear fission to power Stirling engines, creating electricity for propulsion, onboard systems, and payloads. (11/27)

What if Our Current Understanding of the Universe is Only a Fraction of a Much More Complex Reality (Source: Quora)
Do you believe that consciousness pervades the universe and is a fundamental feature of it? If the universe itself is conscious, how does that change our understanding of existence, purpose, and our place within it? (10/24)