February 7, 2024

Viasat Puts Malfunctioning Satellite to Work (Source: Space News)
Viasat is preparing to put a satellite with a malfunctioning antenna into service. Company executives said Tuesday that ViaSat-3 F1 should be providing connectivity to commercial aircraft by the middle of the year. The spacecraft lost more than 90% of its one terabit per second of capacity when its large antenna failed to deploy properly after launch last year. Viasat said it is making changes to ViaSat-3 F2, which has a similar antenna, pushing back its launch to the first half of next year. ViaSat-3 F3 has a different antenna and remains scheduled for launch in the fourth quarter. Viasat filed a $421 million insurance claim for the hobbled spacecraft and has already received initial payments. (2/7)

Expect a Year of Reckoning for Venture-Funded Startups (Source: Space News)
An upturn in broader markets doesn't mean a return to the freewheeling investment in space companies seen a few years ago. Investors said the "bubble" of investment that peaked in 2021 resulted in companies raising money at unsustainable valuations, as well as some that should not have been funded at all. While rising stock markets and expected reductions in interest rates give them optimism about the industry generally, they cautioned this will be a "year of reckoning" for some venture-funded companies as they try to raise new rounds amid a diminished supply of capital. (2/7)

Space Sustainability Goes Beyond Debris Issues (Source: Space News)
The space industry needs to take a broader view of space sustainability that goes beyond debris. Richard DalBello, director of the Office of Space Commerce, said space sustainability needs to include issues such as equitable access to orbits, protection of astronomy from satellite interference and managing reentry risks. He said there is a need to define a set of "internationally accepted" actions to address those issues. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has taken a step in that direction, approving a resolution last fall to collect information on best practices for disposing of satellites at the end of their missions that could lead to more harmonized regulations. (2/7)

Meteorite in Germany Was a Rare Type (Source: Space.com)
Meteorites found from a German fireball last month are from a rare class. Scientists recovered meteorites from 2024 BX1, a tiny asteroid found hours before it burned up in the atmosphere, creating a brilliant fireball seen over parts of Germany. Analysis of the meteorites shows they come from a type called aubrites that make up only 1% of all known meteorites. Scientists said the meteorites could provide insights into the early solar system. (2/7)

NASA Working to Resolve Voyager 1 Telemetry Problem (Source: Ars Technica)
NASA is still working to resolve a computer problem that is preventing the Voyager 1 spacecraft from communicating with Earth. The problem, first noticed in November, prevents the spacecraft from returning telemetry, although it is able to receive commands from Earth. Engineers have been reviewing 50-year-old documentation about the spacecraft's computer to develop ways to resolve the issue, and are planning steps that include instructing the computer to go into modes not used for decades to isolate where the problem is located. Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd said it would be "the biggest miracle" if they are able to fix the problem. (2/7)

Lee Solid, Longtime Florida Space Industry Leader, Passes Away (Source: SPACErePORT)
Lee Solid, a longtime corporate leader and consultant supporting Florida's space industry development, passed away last week on the Space Coast. His career began in 1959 when he was recruited to join Rocketdyne in support of the nation's race against the Soviet Union in space, focusing on rocket engines. He rose to become the VP and General Manager of Rockwell and Boeing during the Apollo and Space Shuttle programs, and then continued his service as a valued consultant supporting the state's aerospace strategic planning and economic development. Click here. (2/6)

US Space System Command Selects LeoLabs for Critical Space Safety Initiative (Source: Space Daily)
LeoLabs, a leader in space situational awareness and satellite tracking, has been selected for the U.S. Space System Command's (SSC) prestigious Space Domain Awareness (SDA) Technology Accelerator Program (TAP) Lab. This selection underscores the critical role of continuous space monitoring in securing space domains and highlights LeoLabs' unique position in providing all-weather, round-the-clock radar coverage of low Earth orbit (LEO). (2/6)

Rising Collision Risks in Sun-Synchronous Orbits Amid Satellite Surge (Source: Space Daily)
The strategic importance of sun-synchronous orbits for earth observation missions, crucial for both civil and defense applications, is being challenged by an escalating risk of collisions. These orbits, characterized by their paths over the Earth's polar regions, are increasingly congested due to a surge in satellite launches, posing significant dangers to satellite operators and global space operations. (2/6)

Space Force a Valuable Opportunity to Startups, VC Says (Source: Space News)
Venture capital investor Timur Davis is advising space industry startups not to neglect potential opportunities with the US Space Force or NASA, a shift from the industry's past focus on commercial opportunities. "I'd say the government is absolutely a double-edged sword, mostly on the good edge, but not always," said Davis. (2/6)

Canadian Space Contributions (Source: Wings)
The Gateway is a small space station that will act as an outpost orbiting the moon, providing support for lunar surface missions and, in the longer term, as a staging point for further deep space exploration. The Gateway will be the home for Canada’s biggest financial contribution to Artemis: Canadarm3.

Currently being built by Canadian company MDA Space with the support of dozens of Canadian partners and suppliers, Canadarm3 represents the next generation of space robotics. In contrast to the International Space Station, astronauts will not always be present on the Gateway, so Canadarm3 is being built with advanced AI-enabled sensors to enable autonomous operations. Just like what Canadarm did for the Space Shuttle Program and Canadarm2 did for the ISS, Canadarm3 will be an iconic reminder of Canada’s international status as a spacefaring nation. (2/7)

Despite Upcoming Flight Pause, Spaceport America Officials are Still Looking Up (Source: SourceNM)
Hot air balloons, model planes and flight simulators lined the Rotunda halls Tuesday, next to banners advertising Space Force, White Sands Missile Range and more during the Aviation and Aerospace Day at the New Mexico capitol. New Mexico Spaceport Authority executive director Scott McLaughlin worked the booth while bedecked in a celestial body tie, and told Source NM that he was there to talk with lawmakers about the importance of aerospace expansion, and funds for the spaceport. (2/7)

JPL Anticipates 570 Positions Lost with Funding-Driven Workforce Reduction (Source: NASA JPL)
After exhausting all other measures to adjust to a lower budget from NASA, and in the absence of an FY24 appropriation from Congress, we have had to make the difficult decision to reduce the JPL workforce through layoffs. JPL staff has been advised that the workforce reduction will affect approximately 530 of our colleagues, an impact of about 8%, plus approximately 40 additional members of our contractor workforce. The impacts will occur across both technical and support areas of the Lab. These are painful but necessary adjustments that will enable us to adhere to our budget allocation while continuing our important work for NASA and our nation. (2/6)

Researchers Designs Robots to Maintain Resilient Deep Space Habitats (Source: Interesting Engineering)
A group of researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have been developing robots to repair or replace damaged components in a habitat. The Resilient ExtraTerrestrial Habitats Institute (RETHi), led by Purdue University in partnership with SEAS, the University of Connecticut, and the University of Texas at San Antonio, aims to design and operate deep space habitats SmartHabsthat can rapidly recover from expected and unexpected disruptions. (2/2)

NASA Tests New Spacecraft Propellant Gauge on Lunar Lander (Source: NASA)
It’s easy to measure fuel in tanks on Earth, where gravity pulls the liquid to the bottom. But in space, the game changes. Quantifying fuel that’s floating around inside a spacecraft’s tank isn’t so simple.

“Because of the very small amount of gravity, fluid doesn’t settle to the bottom of propellant tanks but rather clings to the walls and could be anywhere inside,” said Lauren Ameen, deputy manager for the Cryogenic Fluid Management Portfolio Project Office at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. “That makes it really challenging to understand how much propellant you have within your tank, which is really important to maximize your mission duration and plan how much you need to launch with.” (2/6)

NASA Sees Demand Increase for JWST (Source: Nature)
NASA is seeing unprecedented demand for the James Webb Space Telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute, which operates JWST, is currently reviewing proposals for the next cycle of JWST observations, and astronomers expect that only one out of nine proposals will be approved. That is more selective than the first two observing cycles for JWST or for observations on the Hubble Space Telescope, where one out of four to six proposals is selected. Astronomers attribute the demand to capabilities that JWST offers that are not possible on other telescopes in space or on Earth. (2/6)

Defunct European Spacecraft to Re-Enter (Source: ESA)
A defunct European Earth science spacecraft will reenter later this month. ERS-2, a 2,500-kilogram spacecraft launched in 1995 into sun-synchronous orbit, is expected to reenter around mid-February, according to the European Space Agency. The agency did not disclose how much of the spacecraft may survive reentry and reach the ground. ERS-2 operated until 2011, providing radar imagery as well as data on sea surface temperatures and winds and atmospheric ozone. (2/6)

Reflectors in Space Could Make Solar Farms on Earth Work for Longer Every Day (Source: Space Daily)
If you happened to be looking at the sky in Europe on a cold night on February 5 1993, there is a chance you could have seen a dim flash of light. That flash came from a Russian space mirror experiment called Znamya-2. Znamya-2 was a 20-metre reflective structure much like aluminium foil (Znamya means "banner" in Russian), unfurled from a spacecraft which had just undocked from the Russian Mir space station. Its goal was to demonstrate solar energy could be reflected from space to Earth. (2/6)

Space Force Initiates MUOS Service Life Extension with Lockheed Martin Design Contract (Source: Space Daily)
The Space Force's Space Systems Command has taken a significant step towards enhancing global military communications by contracting Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] for the early design of two additional satellites under the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) Service Life Extension (SLE) program. With a firm-fixed-price agreement valued at $66 million, this initiative focuses on risk reduction activities and preliminary design efforts, aiming to fortify the MUOS network into the 2030s. (2/5)

China Mobile Takes the Lead with First 6G Test Satellite (Source: Space Daily)
China Mobile has successfully launched the world's first test satellite utilizing 6G design architecture. This positions China Mobile at the forefront of the next generation of wireless technology. The 6G test satellite, set in a low-earth orbit (LEO) at approximately 500 kilometers above Earth, distinguishes itself by employing a distributed autonomous architecture for 6G. (2/6)

NASA's Laser Navigation Tech Enables Commercial Lunar Exploration (Source: Space Daily)
NASA's commercial lunar delivery services provider Intuitive Machines will launch its Nova-C lunar lander carrying several NASA science and technology payloads, including the Navigation Doppler Lidar (NDL). This innovative guidance system, developed by NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, under the agency's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), can potentially revolutionize landing spacecraft on extraterrestrial worlds.

The NDL technology is a NASA payload for this Intuitive Machines Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) delivery, meaning NASA will demonstrate NDL's capabilities in the lunar environment during the mission but the data is not considered mission-critical for the successful landing of Nova-C, as Intuitive Machines has its own navigation and landing systems. (2/6)

Harvard Astronomy Professor Avi Loeb Thinks He Has New Evidence of Alien Spacecraft (Source: WGBH)
Harvard astronomy professor Avi Loeb believes he has new evidence of alien spacecraft. Last June, he recovered small magnetic spherules from the Pacific Ocean and claims that the small, round objects were from a "watermelon"-sized object that collided with Earth in 2014 — in other words, a piece of alien-built technology.

One October 2023 paper deemed the spherules were made by human-produced coal ash. Loeb put out new findings last week that he claims debunk that theory. "What we did is compare 55 elements from the periodic table in coal ash to those special spherules that we found," he said. "And it's clearly very different." (2/6)

2023 a Banner Year for ISS National Lab (Source: CASIS)
2023 marked a banner year for the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory, with a record number of payloads flown to the orbiting outpost and increasing private-sector demand for access to low Earth orbit. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) has served as manager of the ISS National Lab for 12 years through a Cooperative Agreement with NASA. The agreement continues through 2027, with the goal of the ISS National Lab to facilitate access to the orbiting laboratory to benefit humanity and stimulate a robust economy in low Earth orbit (LEO).

Last year, 113 ISS National Lab-sponsored payloads were delivered to the space station—the most ever in a single fiscal year. More than 80% were from commercial entities. Nearly 40 peer-reviewed publications related to ISS National Lab-sponsored research were published last year. This brings the total number of peer-reviewed articles related to ISS National Lab R&D to more than 350. Five patents related to ISS National Lab-sponsored research were identified in FY23.

The ISS National Lab partnered with NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) Division for the first time on a new solicitation to advance critical research on cancer and other diseases. And this year, $26 million in external, non-NASA funding was committed to support specific R&D projects sponsored by the ISS National Lab (a 44% increase over last year), bringing the total amount of such funding committed to date to more than $285 million. (2/6)