January 19, 2024

Astrobotic Lander Reenters Over South Pacific (Source: BBC)
Astrobotic said its Peregrine lunar lander safety reentered Thursday. The company announced it lost telemetry with the spacecraft at 3:50 p.m. Eastern, about 15 minutes before it reentered over the South Pacific. The company said late Thursday it was still working with government agencies to confirm the time and location of reentry. (1/19)

Stopgap Funding Bill to Keep Government Open Through March 1 (Source: Washington Post)
Congress passed another stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government open. The House and Senate passed a continuing resolution (CR) Thursday that funds some government agencies though March 1 and others through March 8. Some agencies, like the Department of Transportation, would have shut down if the CR was not passed by Friday. The CR gives more time for Congress to complete full-year spending bills for fiscal year 2024. (1/19)

SpaceX Land Swap Draws Some Opposition (Source: KVEO)
A proposed land swap between the state of Texas and SpaceX near the company's Starship facility is drawing criticism. Under the proposal, the state would hand over 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park adjacent to Starbase in return for SpaceX transferring 477 acres near Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge to the north. The proposal is opposed by one official in Cameron County, which includes Starbase, arguing that the county was working to acquire the Boca Chica property for preservation efforts. A public hearing on the proposed land swap is scheduled for next week. (1/19)

Space Investment Should Rebound in 2024 (Source: Space News)
Investment in space companies should rebound this year after a recent downturn. A study released this week by Space Capital found that about $17.9 billion was invested in the global space economy in 2023, 25% less than in 2022 and the lowest level in a decade. In a  webinar this week by industry organization SSPI, investors said that decline was driven by microeconomic factors, like high interest rates, as well as a "boom-and-bust cycle" of companies going public through SPAC mergers. They expect a turnaround this year given strong government interest in commercial space capabilities. (1/19)

Viasat Could Enhance GPS Signals (Source: Space News)
Viasat has demonstrated satellite navigation capabilities that could help the United Kingdom replace what it lost during Brexit. In a test late last year, an airplane used a navigation signal overlay from the Inmarsat I-3 F5 satellite to improve the accuracy of GPS signals. The company did not disclose performance details, but the test was intended to demonstrate how the overlay signal could improve positioning accuracy to a few centimeters, compared with the few meters provided by standard GPS alone. The U.K. lost access to a similar service, the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), after leaving the European Union. (1/19)

China's Landspace Tests Reusable Rocket (Source: Space News)
Chinese company Landspace has tested a vertical takeoff and landing vehicle as part of efforts to develop a reusable rocket. The VTVL-1 demonstrator flew a one-minute test Friday, reaching an altitude of 350 meters before descending for a powered landing. The test is part of the development of the stainless steel Zhuque-3 rocket Landspace announced in November. The company is aiming for the first flight of Zhuque-3 in 2025. This test is similar to "hop" tests conducted by fellow Beijing-based launch startup iSpace in November and December of last year. (1/19)

Scout Space Gets New CEO (Source: Space News)
Scout Space, a company developing satellite safety technologies, has a new CEO. The company said Thursday that Philip Hover-Smoot, its former chief counsel, will take over as CEO, with co-founder Eric Ingram, the previous CEO, moving to chairman and chief strategy officer. Hover-Smoot says his goal is to steer the 20-person startup toward commercialization after years of focusing on technical research and development projects, including several funded by the U.S. Air Force and Space Force. The company's long-term goal is to produce sensing payloads and software that give spacecraft eyes to enable better navigation and avoid threats. (1/19)

Elon Musk's Scheme to Gut Worker Protections Nationally (Source: Public Notice)
In November of 2022, eight former SpaceX employees filed a complaint, called a charge, with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that the company had interfered with their right to organization under the National Labor Relations Act. Importantly, the NLRB does not assess penalties. In the main, the Administrative Law Judge's (ALJ) issue what the agency’s website refers to as “make-whole remedies, such as reinstatement and backpay for discharged workers, and informational remedies, such as the posting of a notice by the employer promising to not violate the law.”

The NLRB is asking for SpaceX to post notices in the workplace, implement remedial training, and apologize to the wrongly terminated employees. The matter was set for a hearing before an ALJ on March 5 of this year in California. Then Musk filed a lawsuit in Texas. The reason Musk wants to be in Texas is because of a Fifth Circuit decision in a 2022 case called Jarkesy v. SEC in which a three-judge panel ruled that ALJs are unconstitutional. This position would have been unthinkable 15 years ago, but now that Republicans have a vise grip on the Supreme Court, they’ve decided that the judiciary needs to grab all the power it can.

The Jarkesy decision was appealed to the Supreme Court and argued in November, but as of now, it’s the law in the Fifth Circuit. And so it forms the basis of SpaceX’s complaint alleging that the NLRB’s enforcement action is unconstitutional. Essentially, SpaceX says that because the ALJs enjoy civil service protections and can’t be fired by the president as political appointees, and because the NLRB’s procedures don’t allow for a jury trial, the enforcement action against SpaceX is illegal under Jarkesy. (1/19)

Sasken's Novel Satellite Product Enhances Communication in Disaster Scenarios (Source: Space Daily)
Sasken Technologies announced a significant milestone in satellite communication technology. The company unveiled the world's first LTE-technology-based satellite product, named the Mobile Satellite Equipment (MSE). The MSE system's distinct feature is the integration of a Tracking Antenna unit, a significant enhancement that offers a modernized, resource-efficient, and extensible platform. This ensures long-term support for telecommunication services and presents satellite telecom operators with new opportunities for market growth due to its cost-effectiveness and increased user capacity. (1/19)

NASA's Transition to Commercial Space Networks: A Leap in Wideband Communication (Source: Space Daily)
As NASA's venerable Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) constellation nears retirement, a fresh era of space communication is on the horizon. The Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program, a cornerstone of NASA's communication strategy, is spearheading efforts to transition NASA missions toward utilizing commercial space-based relay services for their near-Earth communications needs. (1/19)

AST SpaceMobile Launches $100 Million Stock Offering Amid Strategic Tech Investments (Source: Space Daily)
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS), a pioneering company in space-based cellular broadband technology, has recently made two significant announcements that mark a substantial leap in its quest to deliver global connectivity. The company has launched a public offering of $100 million of its Class A common stock and secured a strategic investment from industry giants AT&T, Google, and Vodafone.

AST SpaceMobile announced the launch of a public offering of $100 million of its Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share. This move is strategically aimed at bolstering the company's financial foundation for general corporate purposes. In a gesture of confidence, the underwriter is granted a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional $15 million of Class A Common Stock at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. (1/19)

To the Moon and Back: Modern Lunar Exploration (Source: Space Daily)
Modern lunar exploration programs include plans to put humans on the Moon for the first time since 1972 and eventually establish bases there. Here is a rundown of the latest moonshots. (1/19)

SpaceX Launching a Restaurant, Shopping Center in South Texas (Source: Houston Chronicle)
SpaceX is embarking on a side quest from its rocket launch activities and will soon start construction on a restaurant and shopping center near Starbase, the company’s spaceport facility in South Texas. The projects, which have a combined name of “RioWest,” are expected to be completed Dec. 31, according to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. The restaurant, located at Rio Grande Drive in Brownsville, has an estimated cost of $6.1 million for a space with indoor dining and an outdoor deck overlooking the Rio Grande. The retail space has an $8.9 million price tag for a grocery store, retail shops and a café on Quick Silver Avenue. (1/17)

SpaceX Launches Axiom Astronauts to ISS (Source: SPACErePORT)
A SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket on Thursday launched four Axiom commercial astronauts on the company's third mission to space. The astronauts will spend up to 14 days aboard the orbiting lab. After launch from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, the rocket's first stage returned to the spaceport for a successful landing. (1/18)

Suborbital Space Tourists: Suit Or No Suit, That Is The Question (Source: Forbes)
Just over two years ago, when I interviewed Red Bull Stratos extreme parachutist Felix Baumgartner on the tenth anniversary of his 127,852-foot jump from the edge of space, I casually asked if one of the suborbital space tourism companies offered him a free flight, would he take it. His answer was "if you want me to get on one of those rockets, you’ll have to pay me.”

Why? Because tourists on such flights don’t wear space suits. A sudden loss of cabin pressure would kill everyone aboard in less than a minute. Blood boils at the Armstrong Line, around 60,000 feet, without sufficient pressurization. These suborbital flights go above 250,000 feet. Some American extreme-altitude military pilots I met reinforced Baumgartner’s supposition.

I’m not going to fault space tourists who have signed up for flights, and layed out big bucks to do so. Many a baby boomer’s dream is to go to space. I understand that. It was my own dream at one point. But ticketholders need to determine, then calculate, the real risks associated with these rides. I was a suborbital ticketholder for nearly 14 years. I recently had my deposit returned because of a number of things, one of which was some space tourists effectively cutting in line to do “research,” and reportedly paying a good deal more than the average ticketholder to do so. (1/14)

New Mystery Object Could Be Lightest Black Hole Ever Seen (Source: Space.com)
Astronomers have discovered a mystery object in the Milky Way that is more massive than the heaviest neutron star but lighter than the smallest black hole. The mystery body could help scientists better determine where to draw the dividing line between neutron stars and black holes, both born when a massive star dies. (1/18)

Astrophysicist Proposes a New Theory of Gravity Without a Conservation Law (Source: Phys.org)
The general theory of relativity is based on the concept of curved space–time. To describe how the energy and momentum of fields are distributed in space–time, as well as how they interact with the gravitational field, a special mathematical construct is used—the energy–momentum tensor. This is a kind of analog of energy and momentum in ordinary mechanics. A RUDN astrophysicist has built a new theory of gravity, in which the "law of conservation" of the energy–momentum tensor is not required.

In general relativity, the energy–momentum tensor is considered to be unchanged, or conserved. Just as, for example, in ordinary mechanics, the law of conservation of energy is fulfilled. However, this assumption is not always justified. For example, at sufficiently high energies the so-called non-renormalizability problem arises. Technically, this means that mathematical flaws appear that cannot be eliminated. (1/18)

Meet Helios, a New Class of Space Tug with Some Real Muscle (Source: Ars Technica)
In recent years there have been a number of modest "tugs" brought online to ferry small satellites to designated orbits. These miniature spacecraft provide so-called last-mile service and are particularly useful for satellites that launch as a part of rideshare missions and seek to reach a different altitude or inclination than that of the primary payload. However, these space logistics vehicles, offered by various companies such as D-Orbit, Momentus, Launcher, and several others, are generally designed for satellites with a mass of a few dozen to a few hundred kilograms.

What has been lacking so far is a larger in-space tug that can haul bigger satellites to more distant orbits. That's the market that a new spacecraft built by Impulse Space, Helios, intends to serve. With a diameter of just under 5 meters, Helios is sized to fit within a Falcon 9 fairing. According to Impulse Space founder and chief executive Tom Mueller, the basic idea is to allow the low-cost Falcon 9 rocket to launch large satellites directly into geostationary space. "We're basically adding a third stage to a medium launch vehicle," he said. "It's basically doing most of what a Falcon Heavy will do for much less money, and without throwing away a core." (1/17)

Three Pacific Northwest Space Companies Win Awards From Space Force Venture Fund (Source: GeekWire)
SpaceWERX, which essentially serves as a venture fund for the U.S. Space Force, has awarded contracts worth as much as $1.7 million each to 18 companies — including three startups headquartered in the Seattle area. The Washington state awardees are Marysville-based Gravitics, which is working on next-generation space station modules; Bothell-based Portal Space Systems, which is focusing on systems for in-space mobility and orbital debris removal; and Tukwila-based Starfish Space, which is developing spacecraft and software for on-orbit satellite servicing. (1/17)

Sidus Space Unveils Multi-Material 3D Printed Space Hardware Division (Source: Sidus Space)
Sidus Space is introducing its innovative Multi-Material 3D Printing Division. The Company's expertise expands beyond traditional hardware and satellite manufacturing, now offering innovative engineering and advanced 3D printing services. (1/18)

Chinese Company Targets 2025 for 1st Launch of Powerful New Rocket (Source: Space.com)
A Chinese launch company has set August 2025 as the target for the first launch of its Kinetic-2 liquid propellant rocket. CAS Space, whose full name is Zhongke Aerospace Exploration Technology Company, has already launched its Kinetica-1 (Lijian-1) solid rocket, even briefly setting a national record for the number of satellites aboard a single launch with the vehicle. But the company is also planning a larger, more complex liquid propellant launcher that will eventually be reusable. (1/18)

Space Business: More Consolidation in 2024? (Source: Quartz)
If you had to guess based on launches, you’d think 2023 was a stellar year for investment in the space industry. But while the fourth quarter ended strong, just $17.9 billion of capital flowed into the sector last year—a 25% drop from 2022 and a decadal low. These numbers come out of Space Capital’s year-end investment report, which was released this week. They suggest the space economy was not immune to trends in venture funding broadly, as high interest rates, bank collapses, and a concerning spate of high-profile mass layoffs prompted a pullback. (1/17)

Former NASA Administrator Hates Artemis (Source: Ars Technica)
On Wednesday, former NASA Administrator Michael Griffin, 73, put forward a deferential but determined countenance as he addressed a House subcommittee that was conducting a hearing on NASA's Artemis Program to return humans to the Moon. “I will be direct," Griffin said. "In my judgment, the Artemis Program is excessively complex, unrealistically priced, compromises crew safety, poses very high mission risk of completion, and is highly unlikely to be completed in a timely manner even if successful.” Click here. (1/18)

Water Ice Buried at Mars' Equator is Over 2 Miles Thick (Source: Space.com)
A European Space Agency (ESA) probe has found enough water to cover Mars in an ocean between 4.9 and 8.9 feet (1.5 and 2.7 meters) deep, buried in the form of dusty ice beneath the planet's equator. The finding was made by ESA's Mars Express mission, a veteran spacecraft that has been engaged in science operations around Mars for 20 years now. While it's not the first time that evidence for ice has been found near the Red Planet's equator, this new discovery is by far the largest amount of water ice detected there so far and appears to match previous discoveries of frozen water on Mars. (1/18)

New Fiery Doughnut Image is Our Most Detailed Glimpse of a Black Hole (Source: New Scientist)
We have been given our most detailed look at a black hole yet, thanks to an update to the world’s first image of a black hole, taken one year later. In 2019, researchers released an image of the supermassive black hole known as M87*, which is 55 million light years away at the centre of galaxy M87. That image, the world’s first glimpse of a black hole, was taken by a network of radio observatories around the world called the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), during its first observation run in 2017. Click here. (1/18)

Human Remains Set for Moon Memorial to Instead Burn in Earth’s Atmosphere (Source: Washington Post)
When Astrobotic Technology’s Peregrine lander took off Jan. 8 on a doomed mission to the moon, it was not a passenger-free flight. The remains and DNA of more than 70 deceased people, including science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke, were on board the spacecraft, which is expected to burn up Thursday during reentry to the Earth’s atmosphere after a failure in its propulsion system.

Celestis sells memorial flights on spacecraft launched by other organizations. These include the “Earth Orbit Service,” which starts at $4,995, and the “Voyager Service,” beginning at $12,995, in which remains are launched into deep space. Family and friends who had paid for the company’s Luna Service, which also starts at $12,995, for their loved ones’ remains to travel on the Peregrine lander took to a social media group to grieve. One woman in the group wrote a message of consolation, saying that their loved ones would still be among “the earliest adventurers to leave our lonely planet” even though they would not reach the moon. (1/18)

Starlink Authorizes Peplink as its First Technology Provider (Source: Teslarati)
SpaceX’s Starlink entered into an agreement with Peplink as its Authorized Technology Provider. Peplink provides a complete SD-WAN solution to customers, including edge routers that can connect multiple fixed or cellular WAN links simultaneously. It will provide technological support to Starlink connections through authorized solution providers. (1/17)

Starlink's Latest Offering: Gigabit Gateways Starting at $75,000 Per Month (Source: PC Magazine)
SpaceX is advertising a new Starlink service that can deliver gigabit speeds for the satellite internet service—but only if customers pay $1.25 million up front. In return, SpaceX won’t just send a dish; it’ll help build an entire facility dedicated to receiving up to 10Gbps in broadband speeds from the company’s fleet of orbiting satellites. (1/17)

American Space Museum Announces Four Events for 2024 (Source: ASM)
The American Space Museum will have its annual space worker celebration, ShuttleFest III, and three memorabilia shows as part of their exciting 2024 calendar of events. The non-profit organization in Titusville FL will have ShuttleFest III on April 13 at Hyatt Place Titusville with the theme “More Than Astronomy Missions”. This year the event will focus on unusual events surrounding the Astro telescope and several interplanetary satellite missions in the 1990s.

And the museum and its umbrella U.S. Space Walk of Fame Foundation will host three Saturday memorabilia shows at the Beachside Hotel & Suites in Cocoa Beach: Feb. 17, July 27 and Nov. 2, each from 9 am to 3 pm. Admission to the event will be a $10 donation to support the museum. Click here. (1/18)

Biden/Harris Administration Opens 22 Million Acres for Solar Power Development (Source: US Dept. of Interior)
The Department of the Interior today announced an updated roadmap for solar energy development across the West, designed to expand solar energy production in more Western states and make renewable energy siting and permitting on America’s public lands more efficient. The Bureau of Land Management also announced the next steps on several renewable projects in Arizona, California and Nevada, representing more than 1,700 megawatts of potential solar generation and 1,300 megawatts of potential battery storage capacity. (1/17)

UK, USA, Canada, EU and its Member States and Japan Seek Global Higher-Airspace Standards, Including Launch and Re-Entry (Source: Gov.UK)
New technology and engineering breakthroughs are driving a growing need for common rules to support the safe, secure and sustainable development of civil aviation operations taking place in higher airspace, typically above the level of today’s regulated conventional aircraft operations. Activity in higher airspace is poised to soar, with demand for applications as diverse as bringing 5G and 6G telecommunications to underserved communities, improving current earth observation capabilities and enabling innovation in transportation of people and goods.

Systems that ensure safety and security for the millions of flights occurring at lower altitudes are simply not in place for activity in higher airspace. Aircraft operating in higher airspace have vastly different performance characteristics and unconventional operational needs. Space launch and re-entry operations are not higher airspace operations simply because they transit through higher airspace. Separation between launch and re-entry operations and aviation activities needs to be maintained throughout all airspace for the safety of the wider airspace network. (12/18)