October 28, 2017

Pope Asks Spacemen Life's Big Questions in ISS Live Chat (Source: Space Daily)
Pope Francis chatted with six astronauts at the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, kicking off the rare interview with a philosophical question on "man's place in the universe." Italian Paolo Nespoli, 60, admitted that despite the bird's eye view of Earth he too remained "perplexed," while American Mark Vande Hei said seeing the planet from space made them "realize how fragile we are."

The Argentine pontiff sat at a Vatican desk, facing a wide-screen television on which the astronauts from America, Russia and Italy could be seen floating together in their blue suits. "Good afternoon... or good evening. I imagine time passes differently at the space station, right?" the pope quipped. "Astronomy makes us think about the universe's boundless horizons, and prompts questions such as 'where do we come from, where are we going?'" he mused. (10/27)

Instrument Detects Interstellar Object Entered Solar System (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
An asteroid or comet recently discovered in an extreme orbit originated beyond the solar system in interstellar space, astronomers noted in a recent report. Initially discovered with the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope at the University of Hawaii on October 19, the object is the first such detected by scientists. (10/27)

VP Mike Pence Tours Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Again Promises U.S. Leadership (Source: Denver Post)
From orbiting around the world to a spot on the White House’s wall, one American flag has had quite a journey. Vice President Mike Pence was presented with a flag originally flown during the first test flight for Orion after he finished a tour of Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Jefferson County on Thursday.

“America is going to lead in space once again,” Pence said to a corralled pool of national and local media after receiving the gift from Lockheed President and CEO Marillyn Hewson. Lockheed Martin held on as the No.1 recipient of government contracts in 2016, receiving $43 billion, according to federal procurement data. The company has 8,600 employees in Colorado, 4,000 of whom are based out of the Jefferson County facility. (10/27)

NASA Awards Contract to Deploy Miniature Payloads (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
NASA has tapped Spaceflight Inc. for integration and launch services for so-called “U-Class payloads.” These tiny space research satellites. This contract, one with a firm-fixed-price, is for base launch services in 2018 for 24 payloads.

Up to 24 more payloads could be launched in 2019 and 2020, with a total possible contract value of some $5,484,000. Both integration and launch services are to be provided under this contract. This class of payloads are normally produced using “off-the-shelf” electronic parts. NASA typically flies these payloads on behalf of educational and government entities. (10/13)

Iran Space Agency Provides Update on Status of Satellites (Source: SpaceWatch Middle East)
During a press conference marking World Space Week, the head of the Iran Space Agency (ISA), Mohsen Bahrami, provided an update to the status of the five indigenously built satellites awaiting launch in Iran. The satellites (Doosti, Amir Kabir, Nahid 1, Zafar, and Pars 1) are all “on the agenda and their launch contracts have been signed.”

Designed and built by the Sharif University, the Doosti satellite is fully complete and only awaits a launch date. Designed to engage in remote sensing activity, it is a micro-sized satellite that weighs 50kg. Built by the ISA’s Remote Sensing Laboratory, Doosti has long been assumed to be the first payload of the Simorgh space launch vehicle (SLV), and the successful test of the SLV in July may indicate Doosti will be ready for launch sooner than originally thought. The satellite’s launch has been delayed multiple times, and has been ready for launch for over a year.

The Amir Kabir and Nahid 1 satellites are in the final stages of their development, with both flight and engineering models near completion. The Amir Kabir will be a remote sensing satellite weighing 70-80kg, and have a predicted resolution of about 80 meters. The satellite will be used primarily to provide post-disaster relief information for incidents such as earthquakes. The Nahid-1 is a communications satellite originally scheduled for launch in 2012. (10/26)

Boeing Starliner Gets Drop Tests at NASA Langley (Source: Daily Press)
A Starliner test capsule is hoisted high on the gantry at NASA Langley Research Center, six plump airbags secured to its underbelly. Week after week, it’s dropped to the ground, the airbags absorbing the weight of the spacecraft and cushioning the thud for the two test dummies strapped inside.

Soon enough, there will be real astronauts aboard a real Starliner, returning to Earth after a spell aboard the International Space Station. They could even be veteran astronauts Sunita “Suni” Williams and Eric Boe, who flew to Hampton Roads from Johnson Space Center to observe their first drop test. “There’s actually two test dummies inside the spacecraft today for part of the test,” Williams said Wednesday, “and we were joking around that we should jump in there.” (10/26)