August 21, 2017

Mars 160: Crew Returns to ‘Earth’ (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
The Mars Society's Mars 160 mission simulation has concluded and the six members of the international crew has started making their way home to “Earth.” The simulation in the Canadian high arctic ended on Aug. 14, 2017, and the crew was flown out from the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station (FMARS) on Aug. 16. Arriving in Yellowknife, Canada, on Aug. 18, the crew is starting to make their way to the United States where many of them will talk about their experience during the mission at the Mars Society Convention in Irvine, California, on Sept. 9. (8/21)

Mars 2020 Mission to Use Smart Methods to Seek Signs of Past Life (Source: Space Daily)
NASA's Mars 2020 mission, which will look for signs of past life on Mars, will use smart methods originally developed to find the oldest life on Earth. The 2020 mission builds on the successes of prior rovers, to make coordinated measurements that could detect signs of ancient life - or biosignatures - in their original spatial context. These techniques, known as "spatially resolved biosignature analysis" derive from geochemical analysis of early life on Earth. (8/21)

Moon Express Building Lunar Lander in Florida, May Launch Here Too (Source: Orlando Business Journal)
Cape Canaveral-based private aerospace company Moon Express is building the first of its four vehicles that will land on the moon when its launches its lunar mission before the end of this year. The company is testing its lander vehicle MX-1 Scout at Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 17 and 18. While work for the lander is taking place in Cape Canaveral, the launch will happen in New Zealand atop Rocket Lab's Electron vehicle. Although Moon Express's first launch will be in New Zealand, future launches may take place at Cape Canaveral. Richards said it's the "best place to launch from the moon and stay close to other rocket activity." (8/14)

Rocket Lab Faces Government Environmental Checks in New Zealand (Source: Radio New Zealand)
The New Zealand government is proposing to check up on Mahia-based space firm Rocket Lab after 100 launches to make sure it is not damaging the environment. A report by National Institute of Atmospheric and Water Research on behalf of the Ministry for the Environment found more than 100 launches would be enough for rocket debris to potentially cause ecological damage to the seabed. The company's testing program on Mahia Peninsula in Hawke's Bay plans to launch a rocket each week when its programme becomes fully commercial, so could hit that 100-launch point within two years. (8/18)

Australia's Gilmour Space Is Launching Rockets To Space By Focusing On Simplicity (Source: Forbes)
The role of rocket technology is deceptively ubiquitous. But the industry has also been historically cost expensive and time intensive, which poses a restrictive barrier for satellite innovation to get to market. Gilmour Space is an Australian startup that has identified these inefficiencies and hopes to redefine the industry’s approach.

The startup was founded by Adam Gilmour in 2012 and focuses on "developing and launching low-cost rockets for the fast-growing small satellite market.” This offering was born out of a market deficiency. Smaller sized satellites, primarily used for mapping, imaging and weather forecasting, require proportionately small sized rockets to launch to orbit.

“In the old days, satellites were very big," he says. "The average satellite was as big as a minibus and even a small one was as big as a car. We’ve seen that technology has enabled satellites to get smaller in the same way that it allowed mobile phones to shrink. But all the main rocket companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin are still focussing on the mini-van ones. There is no launch company designed to take the lighter satellites in operation at the moment.” (8/20)

Captive-Carry Tests Coming for Hypersonic Flying Testbed (Source: Aviation Week)
With demand for high-speed test capability on the increase, small launch-vehicle developer Generation Orbit Launch Services is preparing for a critical series of hot-fire and captive-carry flight tests of its hypersonic flying testbed at Edwards AFB, California. The Atlanta-based company is developing the GOLauncher 1 (GO1) vehicle for suborbital research and hypersonic flight-testing, and aims to fill a gap in high-speed atmospheric test capability. (8/15)

Why the US Must Lead Again (Source: Space Review)
The new National Space Council will have many options for issues to tackle when it starts its work in the coming weeks. Douglas Loverro argues in an open letter to the council’s incoming executive secretary that it should focus on the policies the US should promote internationally that best serve national needs. Click here. (8/14)
 
CubeSats: Faster and Cheaper, But Are They Better? (Source: Space Review)
CubeSats have become very popular in recent years as a low-cost platform for many missions, but some have found difficulties using them for certain missions where high reliability is important. Jeff Foust reports on discussions at a recent conference on efforts to improve CubeSat reliability without losing their key benefits. Click here. (8/14)
 
Finding Ender: The Utility of Tactical Decision Games for Space Warfare (Source: Space Review)
The best ideas for military tactics can come not from generals but from junior officers and enlisted personnel. Joseph T. Page II describes how tactical decision games, used elsewhere in the US military, could be applied to space. Click here. (8/14)
 
Building Off US Law to Create an International Registry of Extraterrestrial Mining Claims (Source: Space Review)
Passage of space resources laws in the US and Luxembourg have raised questions about whether treaties grant rights for extracted resources to companies or countries. Will Gray argues that those laws can become the basis for an international regime for mining claims off Earth. Click here. (8/14)

Ukraine Government to Investigate Potential Engine Tech Transfer to North Korea (Source: Space News)
The government of Ukraine is taking a more serious look into allegations that North Korea acquired rocket engines from the country. The immediate response to a report last week by the International Institute for Strategic Studies that argued North Korea acquired engines from Ukraine or Russia was to criticize both it and the author, including trolling on social media that suggested that the report's author, Michael Elleman, somehow had ties to the Russian government. Only more recently has the Ukrainian government said it will undertake a thorough investigation into whether any such transfer of engines took place. (8/21)

Ukraine Plant Sucked Into North Korea Missile Row has Fallen on Hard Times (Source: Reuters)
The wall around the Yuzhmash rocket factory in east Ukraine is in places overgrown with weeds, a sign of hard times at a plant which a new study says could be the source of engines that power North Korean missiles. Workers at the plant have had their hours cut and wages are in arrears, but Yuzhmash denies the study's finding that unhappy employees could have been induced to steal engine technology and sell it to illicit arms dealers who passed it on to Pyongyang. Click here. (8/18)

Australian Leaders Advocate for National Space Agency (Source: AAP)
The leaders of two Australian regions said Monday they will work together to advocate for a national space agency. The leaders of the state of South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory announced Monday they signed a memorandum of understanding to call on the federal government to create a national space agency. Australia is one of the few major countries without a space agency, and a government review of the space industry, which could recommend establishing an agency, is ongoing. (8/21)

UK Gets 26 Spaceport Proposals (Source: UK Space Agency)
The British government said it got a strong response to a call for proposals regarding spaceports in the country. The UK Space Agency said it received 26 proposals for grants to support developing of suborbital and orbital launch capabilities in the country. The proposals covered sites throughout the country, hosting vehicles developed both in the country and from operators in the U.S. and Europe. The agency's deputy CEO said there "may be a case for awarding a number of grants" to support those efforts. (8/21)

Canada Report Considers Space Strategy Alternatives (Source: ISEDC)
The Canadian government released a report outlining issues that could go into a national space strategy. The report, released Friday, summarizes the results of a series of public consultations by the government's Space Advisory Board. In the report, the board recommended that the government formally designate space as a "national strategic asset" and strengthen Canada's existing world-class space capabilities, among other issues. (8/21)

Kennedy Space Center Resurgence Led by Bob Cabana's Vision (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana faced resistance when he wanted to transform the 144,000-square-foot property on the Space Coast from a primarily government-based launch hub into one that welcomed commercial companies. Some saw it as opening the door to competitors. Cabana saw a way to diversify and recover after the famed space shuttle program shut down in 2011.

“It was hard for some of them,” he said. “But what a terrible waste of facilities had we not. They would have sat there and just salted and rusted away.” The resulting growth in the industry has created potential opportunities for contractors. “If we are to be successful as a nation, it’s not all government, it’s not all commercial,” he said. “We need them both if we are going to truly be successful as a nation in space.” Click here. (8/21)

Additive Manufacturing in the Space Industry to Reach $4.7 Billion (Source: Via Satellite)
Research and Markets’ new report is projecting that the yearly value of additive manufactured parts in the space industry will reach $4.7 billion, driving nearly $1 billion in yearly sales of 3D-printed equipment, software and materials.

The “Additive Manufacturing for Space Industry Applications – From Earth to Orbit and Beyond: An Opportunity Analysis and Ten-Year Forecast” report quantifies the projected value of additive manufactured parts and identifies the most commercially important technologies, materials and applications for 3D printing of space-borne parts. It includes 10-year forecasts of the materials, hardware, software and additive manufacture service, both in terms of demand and revenues. (8/21)