January 2, 2024

In 2024 the Hera Mission Will Revisit the Asteroid Punched by NASA (Source: New Scientist)
The European Space Agency (ESA) is sending a mission to investigate what happened to an asteroid that NASA punched in 2022. The Hera mission, launching in October, will head to asteroid Dimorphos, which NASA hit with its Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission. “We need another spacecraft to go back to the crime scene in order to tell whether the impact left a crater or entirely reshaped the asteroid, because with the current data both scenarios are possible,” says Hera mission head Patrick Michel at the Côte d’Azur Observatory in France. “Hera is a detective that is going to do a complete investigation of the impact.” (1/2)

2024: Year of the Moon (Source: America Space)
The United States has not landed a spacecraft on the lunar surface in 51 years. Throughout that same period, astronauts have been restricted to Low Earth Orbit, which is only 250 miles above Earth’s surface. All of this will change in 2024, a year which will redefine our relationship with our nearest celestial neighbor. Click here. (1/1)

NASA Had a Very Busy — and Productive — 2023 (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
It’s been a busy year for NASA—full of asteroid missions and collaborations with industry, other national space agencies, and the U.S. military. This year, space’s power to inspire and drive innovation reached all corners of the world. Here’s our rundown of NASA’s greatest achievements of 2023. (12/30)

Boeing Advances Space Tech with X-37B (Source: Simple Flying)
The US Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office is conducting a series of orbital experiments aboard the Boeing X-37B spaceplane, which is on its seventh mission. "The technological advancements we're driving on X-37B will benefit the broader space community, especially as we see increased interest in space sustainability," said Michelle Parker of Boeing Defense. (12/30)

Russia Considers Developing Multiple Lunar Landers (Source: TASS)
Russia is considering developing two lunar landers for the price of one and a third. Yuri Borisov, the head of Roscosmos, said last week that he was studying a proposal by the Russian Academy of Sciences to build two Luna-27 landers rather than one to "multiply the efficiency" of the overall mission. A Russian official said that building a duplicate lander would increase the cost by only 30-35% because of savings in design and testing. Luna-27, slated for late this decade, will attempt to land in the south polar regions of the moon. (1/2)

Australia Mints Space Coin (Source: Australian Broadcasting Corp.)
The first coin minted in 2024 celebrates Australia's space program. The $1 coin, released Monday by the Royal Australian Mint, showcases Australia's achievements in space, from satellite launches to support for the Apollo 11 moon landing. It is also intended to highlight what Australian officials say will be a major year for space in the country. (1/2)

Former House Science Committee Chair Dies (Source: Dallas Morning News)
Eddie Bernice Johnson, a former congresswoman who chaired the House Science Committee, died Sunday at the age of 88. A Democrat from Dallas, Johnson spent 30 years in the House, becoming chair of the House Science Committee, whose oversight includes NASA, in 2019. She was the first Black woman to lead the committee. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson called her "a champion for STEM and NASA" in a statement. (1/2)

China Launches Broadband Satellites (Source: Space News)
A Chinese launch of three broadband satellites capped off a record year. A Long March 2C rocket lifted off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 7:13 p.m. Eastern Friday, placing three satellites into low Earth orbit. The three spacecraft are test satellites, likely for China's national Guowang LEO broadband megaconstellation project. The launch was the last of 2023, which saw more than 220 orbital launch attempts worldwide, eclipsing the record of 186 set in 2022. (1/2)

NASA Presses Ahead with Earth System Observatory (Source: Space News)
NASA is pressing ahead with the development of a multibillion-dollar Earth science program despite budgetary concerns. At town hall sessions during the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union last month, NASA officials said the first four missions of its Earth System Observatory are moving ahead, with launches planned in the late 2020s into the early 2030s. The missions are intended to implement the five "designated observables" recommended by the Earth Science Decadal Survey in 2018. Carrying out those missions requires an increase in the agency's overall Earth science budget, which is uncertain given House and Senate bills that provide NASA will less funding than requested. (1/2)
 
SpaceX Tests Engines for Next Starship Super-Heavy Launch (Source: Space.com)
SpaceX conducted static-fire tests Friday of both stages of its next Starship vehicle. The company fired all 33 engines in the Super Heavy booster and a single engine in the Starship upper stage, the latter demonstrating what SpaceX called a "flight-like startup for an in-space burn." Both vehicles are being prepared for the third integrated test flight of Starship. That launch has not been scheduled and will depend not just on the technical readiness of the booster but also on the completion of the investigation into the second test flight in November. (1/2)

India Has 204 Space Startups, Sector Received $123mn Investments in 2023 (Source: WION)
In 2023, India witnessed the emergence of 54 new space startups, thereby taking the total number of fledgling firms in the sector to 204. In this year alone, the Indian space startups received a funding of $123.9mn, thereby taking the total funding in this sector to $380.25mn, according to the Indian space industry body Indian Space Association (ISPA). (1/1)

Space Tech Forecast for 2024: Rising Investments, Lunar Exploration, and Pivotal SpaceX Moments (Source: Tech Crunch)
Despite a challenging economic period in 2022, 2023’s investment into the space tech sector showed signs of recovery. Space tech has showcased a remarkable resilience amid macroeconomic uncertainty, bucking trends in the broader venture capital tech market. Approximately $4.8 billion was invested into the space tech industry by the end of Q3, with growth-stage investment activity increasing.

M&A activity in the space sector is also on the rise, with the surge in deal volume for 2023 primarily propelled by well-capitalized NewSpace acquirers, alongside the introduction of significant private equity investors to the sector. (12/19)

Navajo Nation President Objects to NASA Sending Cremated Human Remains to the Moon (Source: Native News Online)
The moon has long been revered by many Native American tribes. So, when Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren recently discovered that NASA is planning to launch a rocket headed to the moon in early January with cremated human remains to be placed there, he sent a letter to NASA and the U.S. Department of Transportation asking to delay the launch. (12/31)