October 22, 2017

Air Force Adds More Than $40 Million to SpaceX Engine Contract (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Air Force has provided SpaceX with an additional $40.7 million to support continued development of the company’s Raptor engine. The contract announcement Oct. 19 stated that the Air Force was modifying an existing agreement with SpaceX, originally awarded in January 2016, by providing the company with $40.766 million “for the development of the Raptor rocket propulsion system prototype for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle program.”

The statement didn’t include additional information about the nature of the work other than that it would be completed by the end of April 2018. The work, according to the announcement, would be carried out at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, which hosts engine testing for the Raptor, as well as SpaceX’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California and Los Angeles Air Force Base, home to the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center. (10/21)

NASA Gives Dawn Mission Second Extension (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft, which has been orbiting Ceres since March 2015, has just been given a second mission extension, which will be used to bring the probe into the closest orbit yet around the dwarf planet. Mission scientists will study Ceres’ surface layer of ice as the dwarf planet approaches its April 2018 perihelion, the closest position to the Sun in its elliptical orbit.

In a challenging maneuver, mission engineers will spiral the probe to an elliptical orbit just 120 miles (200 kilometers) above the surface, a move they are still currently refining. The closest Dawn has ever been to the dwarf planet’s surface so far is 240 miles (385 kilometers). Once the spacecraft reaches its new low altitude, its visible light cameras will photograph Ceres’ surface geology. (10/21)

The 2 Steps Richard Branson is Taking to Prepare for His Trip to Space (Source: NBC)
Self-made billionaire Richard Branson recently said he expects to be in space in six months or else he'll be disappointed. Leading up to his upcoming travel with Virgin Galactic, a business he created to provide commercial flights to space, Branson said he's actually been taking two steps to make sure he's prepared for his trip: exercising on a daily basis and doing centrifuge training to simulate gravity.

"I wake up every morning and play a hard game of singles tennis and maybe go kite surfing," he said. "I play tennis again in the evenings." Even at 67, Branson's penchant for daily exercise not only prepare him for space travel, but it's also histrick to being more productive every day. Along with other activities like running and cycling, Branson has said working out helped him get where he is today.

The other step Branson said that he has been taking to prepare for his trip is centrifuge or "high-G" training. A human centrifuge spins at a high enough speed to simulate the feeling of gravity during a space mission and helps prevent future bodily damage. In 2009, he was seen training at the NASTAR Center, even pumping his fist while doing so. (10/18)

China Confidently Develops Independent Space Technology (Source: Global Times)
China's achievements in the aerospace industry in the past five years prove the nation can independently develop its own space strategy, and Western countries which used to prevent cooperation with China may think twice, experts said.

They said the breakthroughs in the aerospace industry include the heavy-lift rocket, lunar exploration, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, and Micius quantum satellite and space station. (10/20)

"These breakthroughs prove that China can develop its own independent space strategy and it's shortening the gap with the other two major space powers, US and Russia. In some areas China has even surpassed them," Song Zhongping, a military expert who served in the PLA Rocket Force, told the Global Times on Sunday. (10/21)

Stratolaunch Fires Up Its Engines (Source: Robb Report)
Stratolaunch, which is on track to be the world’s largest airplane, with a wingspan of 385 feet, has completed its first phase of engine testing, the company has announced. This puts the aircraft “one step closer to providing convenient, reliable, and routine access to low Earth orbit,” the company said. All six of the aircraft’s second-hand Pratt & Whitney turbofan engines, which previously powered Boeing 747s, were started up and tested.

The engineering team has checked the fuel system, confirming that all six of the airplane’s fuel tanks operate properly. They also have started work on testing the flight-control system. They will continue testing the engines, using more power and a variety of configurations, until they’re ready for taxi tests, which are expected to start by the end of the year. First flight is expected in 2019, and the airplane should start operations by 2020. (10/21)

These Headsets are Made for Walking Over Mars (Source: Space Daily)
When NASA scientists want to follow the path of the Curiosity rover on Mars, they can don a mixed-reality headset and virtually explore the Martian landscape.

Starting today, everyone can get a taste of what that feels like. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, collaborated with Google to produce Access Mars, a free immersive experience. It's available for use on all desktop and mobile devices and virtual reality/augmented reality (VR/AR) headsets. That includes mobile-based virtual reality devices on Apple and Android.

The experience was adapted from JPL's OnSight software, which assists scientists in planning rover drives and even holding meetings on Mars. Imagery from NASA's Curiosity rover provided the terrain, allowing users to wander the actual dunes and valleys explored by the spacecraft. (10/20)

SpaceX Mum About November Mystery Launch (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
While the Nov. 10 date has been bandied about, that’s only a “no-earlier-than” date and not a hard date. On Oct. 17, SpaceX released a launch announcement for the Zuma mission. The company, however, provided no details about the launch other than it is targeting no earlier than November.

In an update to its original report, NASASpaceflight.com confirmed that Northrup Grumman is the payload provider for Zuma. The mission is labeled as “government” and will be sent to low-Earth orbit. (10/20)

Strange Sensor Russia Sent to the ISS Is Baffling US Military Experts (Source: Motherboard)
A Russian spacecraft on a routine supply mission to the International Space Station apparently carried a surprise payload: a secretive sensor that experts said could be related to a controversial military initiative. Progress MS-07 carried a mysterious sensor, which Russian officials described as part of a "one-time scientific experiment." They otherwise declined to comment on the device's purpose. (10/20)

XCOR Running Out of Time to Find Investor (Source: Space News)
XCOR Aerospace has only weeks to find a new investor or partner, or else face liquidation, the company's CEO warns. In an interview, Michael Blum said XCOR has had talks with companies and investor groups interested in a deal, but that those negotiations have been going slowly. XCOR, which suffered a financial setback earlier this year with the loss of a contract, laid off all its employees, hiring a few back as contractors. Blum said the company likely has until early November to reach a deal to rebuild the company or else will likely have to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation. (10/20)

Mattis Opposes Space Corps (Source: Space Policy Online)
Secretary of Defense James Mattis has told Congress he opposes a plan to establish a Space Corps. In a letter to House and Senate conferees hashing out differences in their respective defense authorization bills, Mattis said he opposed creating a Space Corps that would result in "additional organizational layers" as a time the Pentagon is seeking to reduce overhead. The House version of the defense bill includes language creating a Space Corps, while the Senate bill does not. Mattis is also opposed to a provision in the Senate bill establishing a Chief Information Warfare Officer. (10/20)

NASA Awards Launches to ULA, SpaceX (Source: NASA)
SpaceX and ULA split a pair of NASA launch contracts Thursday. SpaceX won a $97 million contract for the launch of the Sentinel-6A satellite on a Falcon 9 in November 2020. Sentinel-6A, also known as Jason-CS, is the latest in a series of joint NASA-European missions to study ocean topography. ULA received a $153.8 milion contract for the Atlas 5 launch of Landsat 9 in mid-2021. Landsat 9 will continue the decades-long series of Landsat missions for Earth observation. (10/20)

Underwater Civilizations Might Be Out There (Source: Science)
We may not be hearing from alien civilizations because they're trapped within icy worlds. In a conference presentation this week, Alan Stern argued that the prevalence of icy ocean worlds in our solar system suggests that most life beyond Earth might live in oceans kilometers below the surface, and thus aren't transmitting radio waves that would be detected by SETI efforts. For those civilizations, he said, the equivalent of a "space program" might be drilling through that icy crust to reach the surface. (10/20)

Google Moon Shot Stands to Give Industrial 3-D Printing a Boost (Source: Bloomberg)
In what promises to be one small step for space travel, and one giant leap for the next generation of manufacturing, an Israeli startup is planning to land a vehicle on the moon that has crucial parts made using 3-D printing technology.

SpaceIL is among five teams vying for Google Inc.’s $30 million in prize money to get a spacecraft to the moon by the end of March. One of the startup’s suppliers, Zurich-based RUAG Space, advised turning to 3-D printing to manufacture the legs of its unmanned lunar lander. With financial stakes high and a tight deadline, SpaceIL engineers were at first deeply skeptical, according to RUAG executive Franck Mouriaux. They finally acquiesced after a lot of convincing. Click here. (10/21)

Starliner Spacesuit Tops PopSci's "Most Incredible Aerospace Inventions" List (Source: Popular Science)
Boeing's Starliner spacesuit topped the Popular Science list of the 10 "most incredible aerospace inventions" list for 2017. The Kratos UTAP-22 Mako, Aireon's space-based ADS-B and Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser also made the list. (10/17)

Branson Reveals Virgin Galactic's Latest Launch Plans (Source: NBC)
Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group, which includes spaceflight company Virgin Galactic, on Wednesday said that he expects the company to send its first astronauts into space “in about four months.” This comes after a more optimistic statement by Virgin Galactic President Mike Moses at the International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight last week. He said that he hopes for Virgin Galactic “to be in space by the end of this year.” (10/20)