August 22, 2017

Georgia Space Alliance Formed (Source: GSA)
When one thinks of Georgia’s role in our nation’s transportation system, air and rail dominate the discussion. Coupled with the state’s port facilities and extensive road network, and it is easy to see how central the Peach State is to nearly every aspect of the country’s transportation infrastructure.

What we hope to add to the discussion is the space industry. Georgia's small but growing portfolio in spaceflight, satellites, telecommunications, and space science activities has captured natural attention lately with Spaceport Camden's launch of Vector's rocket test flight and other recent successes. Georgia’s entrepreneurial talent, research facilities, and infrastructure are ready to take on the next level of space transportation and activity. With your help, Georgia Space Alliance hopes to support and promote these achievements and future space visions for the state. Click here. (8/20)

Resurrected Firefly Backed by Noosphere (Source: Space Review)
Noosphere Ventures acquired the assets of Firefly when they went up for auction in the spring. “After they acquired the assets they started a new company, called Firefly Aerospace,” Tom Markusic said. Markusic was brought back to the company as its president. The new Firefly is now wholly owned by Noosphere, which Markusic said had sufficient money to fund Firefly’s development without the need to go out and raise additional money.

One change in the new Firefly will be the Alpha rocket. The original concept called for a vehicle able to place about 200 kilograms into low Earth orbit. Now, Markusic said, the company wants to make Alpha bigger, with a goal of 1,000 kilograms into low Earth orbit. Editor's Note: Max Polyakov is one of Noosphere's managing partners and was also behind the EOS Launcher organization that managed to control the auction of Firefly's assets earlier this year. (8/22)

Astro-Bling: Scientists Recreate 'Diamond Rain' of Neptune and Uranus (Source: Guardian)
Diamond rain might sound like the stuff of poetry, but deep within the ice giants of our solar system it is thought to be reality – and now scientists say they have recreated the phenomenon. The furthest flung true planets of our solar system, the ice giants Neptune and Uranus, are about 17 and 15 times the mass of Earth respectively.

While both have solid cores and atmospheres rich in gases including hydrogen and helium, the planets are largely made up a huge, slushy ocean of water, ammonia and substances known as hydrocarbons – molecules, such as methane, that are composed of hydrogen and carbon.

But researchers have long theorised that deep within these vast, blue planets something astonishing occurs: high temperatures and pressures act on the hydrocarbons deep in the oceans to produce diamonds that rain down, falling towards the planets’ interiors. Now scientists say they have managed mimic conditions found within these planets to produce tiny diamonds in the laboratory. What’s more, the researchers were able to probe the structure of the material as it was made. Click here. (8/21)

Vencore to Lay Off 53 Workers at KSC (Source: Orlando Business Journal)
Vencore Services & Solutions Inc., which provides professional, scientific and technical services to Kennedy Space Center, will reduce its operations and lay off 53 of its employees due to the February 2018 end of a $1.9 billion NASA contract. "Vencore and its subcontractor operations under the engineering services contract with NASA will be permanently reduced," according to Vencore Senior Vice President Steve Griffin's letter to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. (8/15)

Two Soyuz Rockets to Carry South Korean Satellites (Source: Tass)
Russia's Glavcosmos has signed a contract for two launches of South Korean satellites. Glavcosmos, which markets Soyuz launches from Russia, announced Monday a contract with the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and Korea Aerospace Industries for two Soyuz-2 launches of the CAS500-1 and CAS500-2 Earth-observation satellites. The announcement did not disclose when the launches would take place, but noted that each launch would also carry a number of secondary payloads. (8/22)

"Wet" Lunar Rocks Findings Contradicted (Source: UC San Diego)
A new analysis of a lunar rock contradicts another study that claimed that there may be significant amounts of water within the moon. Scientists studying a rock collected during the Apollo 16 mission, dubbed "Rusty Rock" because of a rust-like coating, concluded it formed in very high temperatures in the lunar interior, devoid of water. The result runs counter to a study published last month that concluded that there was significant amounts of water in the interior of the moon, based on the composition of glass beads found on the lunar surface. (8/21)

Small Rockets, New and Renewed (Source: Space Review)
Growing interest in small satellites continues to fuel development of small launch vehicles. Jeff Foust reports on two such efforts, one from a company that appeared all but dead several months ago, and another from a company still keeping a low profile. Click here. (8/22)

Space Exploration as Religious Experience: Evangelical Astronauts (Source: Space Review)
A number of astronauts have strong religious views, often enhanced by the experience of spaceflight. Deana L. Weibel examines these views and how they compare with the pessimism about space exploration shared by many evangelicals. Click here. (8/22)

Privilege of a Lifetime (Source: Space Review)
One of the highlights of last month’s EAA AirVenture show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, was a panel discussion involving several Apollo-era astronauts. Eric Hedman recounts what the astronauts said about their missions and their legacy. Click here. (8/22)

Billionaire Moguls Join Musk, Bezos in Race to Outer Space (Source: Bloomberg)
Think billionaires and outer space and three names quickly come to mind: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson. It turns out, though, that they have plenty of company. There are 13 others among the world’s 500 richest people who have an investment in a space enterprise, according to data compiled by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index and consulting firm Bryce Space & Technology.

While technology tycoons dominate, the list also includes casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who’s backing a lunar mission, and Mexican retail and banking billionaire Ricardo Salinas, an investor in satellite network OneWeb. Click here. (8/21)

Series on Spaceport America Looks on the Bright Side (Source: Parabolic Arc)
NMPolitics.net began a five-part series on Spaceport America today. Is Spaceport America taking flight? is the first installment. The piece is fairly optimistic on the financial front, perhaps too much so. It examines positive financial impact on the local economy to date and projects forward to when Virgin Galactic begins flying commercially from the facility, possibly next year. Click here. (8/21)

Firefly Down But Not Out, Looking to Hire 40 (Source: Firefly)
Firefly's Twitter feed, which shows silence since Nov. 2016, came alive on Aug. 21 with a 'Now Hiring' notice and a website link with six engineering and technical jobs near Austin, Texas. A presumed company insider re-tweeted the post with a note that Firefly "is looking to add 40 people to its already talented staff." Click here.

The company has been out of the news since it's assets were auctioned off earlier this year, presumably to a mysterious EOS Launcher Inc., in the aftermath of legal and financial troubles. Among those legal troubles was a claim that the company's senior leadership stole intellectual property from Virgin Galactic. An EOS-affiliated investment firm, Noosphere Ventures now has a controlling interest in Firefly. (8/21) 

Firefly's Planned Resurrection Follows a Year of Intrigue (Source: SPACErePORT)
Firefly Aerospace was widely believed to be dead after a furlough of its staff and an auction of most of its assets in July 2017. According to Space News, Firefly had raised about $70 million, including $1 million from Space Florida as an incentive for launching at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Other incentives were provided in Texas for manufacturing operations.

Then there was also a 2016 lawsuit filed by Virgin Galactic against Firefly's senior executives, claiming they had stolen some designs for their rocket. The lawsuit likely spooked investors and led to the layoffs. The auction of Firefly's assets was organized by EOS Launcher Inc. -- a 'secured party' in a loan to Firefly -- and featured some unusual terms that appeared to limit access to other potential buyers. EOS had earlier agreed to buy the promissory note from Space Florida, a sign that the company intended a takeover rather than a liquidation of Firefly.

EOS is a U.S.-incorporated venture led by Ukrainian Max Polyakov, whose controversial past is detailed in an 'unofficial fan website.' The site claims "Polyakov secured the deal to buy [Firefly] within a closed ‘auction’ where the only buyer was...EOS Launcher." The site also describes Polyakov's "shadowy past" which includes running a pornography studio in Ukraine. As a Ukrainian national, the site alleges, Polyakov's takeover of Firefly did not pass muster with U.S. ITAR regulations designed to prevent the transfer of sensitive U.S. technologies abroad. Polyakov remains involved as a managing partner in Noosphere Ventures, which now has a controlling interest in Firefly. (8/21)