December 23, 2017

NASA Studies Human Body in Space for Future Missions to Mars (Source: NASA)
NASA’s Human Research Program is now soliciting proposals for research that, when combined with ongoing NASA studies, could enable safer and more effective travel to destinations beyond low-Earth orbit. NASA is seeking research proposals in seven topic areas.   Such research will help NASA establish a baseline for proposed deep space missions up to 400 days in length as well as understand, prevent, diagnose, treat, mitigate, and cure the potential health effects of prolonged spaceflight. (12/19)

Why the International Space Station Is the Single Best Thing Humanity Did (Source: WIRED)
There have been 53 expeditions to the ISS; 53 long-duration crews have called it home since Expedition 1 floated aboard in 2000. They’ve been mostly from America and Russia, the two principal and unlikely partners in one of the most expensive and challenging construction projects ever completed. Click here. (12/20)

Vector and Nexus Team Up to Bring Cryptocurrency to Space (Source: Vector)
Vector announced a partnership with Nexus to host its decentralized cryptocurrency in space using Vector's GalacticSky Software-Defined Satellite platform. Nexus will be the first company to deploy a cryptocurrency on a satellite orbiting the earth. This partnership between Vector and Nexus highlights the unique use cases for GalacticSky's technology and further proves the versatility of the platform. Additionally, the partnership allows future Vector customers to pay for launches using Nexus' cryptocurrency, NXS. (12/20)

SpaceX at 50 – From Taming Falcon 1 to Achieving Cadence in Falcon 9 (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com)
SpaceX initially envisioned a fleet of three differently-sized rockets: the smallest and simplest was the Falcon 1, with larger Falcon 5 and Falcon 9 vehicles being introduced later to accommodate heavier payloads. To keep costs down, most major components of the rockets would be built by SpaceX themselves. Falcon was named after the Millennium Falcon ship in the Star Wars films, with the numbers 1, 5 and 9 denoting the number of first-stage engines on each version of the rocket. Click here. (12/20)

Huntsville Hopes to Land Spaceport (Source: WAAY)
While the Alabama Space Authority has not outright said Huntsville will be the chosen city in the state, it is the front runner for the spaceport. Getting a space shuttle to land in Huntsville could get closer to becoming a reality. The Alabama Space Authority held its first meeting Tuesday. The committee was created earlier this year to work towards obtaining a federally licensed spaceport. State Senator Gerald Dial was selected as the new chairman.

“The technology is being developed here in Huntsville and we’ll have to launch that from somewhere. Why shouldn’t it be from Alabama?” Dial said. The federal government is expected to approve several licensed commercial spaceports across the United States. Huntsville hopes to be one of those cities to land one. The airport has already submitted some paperwork to begin the process. State leaders see the spaceport as a landing spot for the shuttle “Dream Chaser” and a gateway to the city becoming a hub for the commercial space industry. (12/19)

Blue Origin Opens Florida Factory, Begins Launchpad Construction (Source: Aviation Week)
Blue Origin has opened the doors on a 650,000-ft.2 rocket manufacturing complex located just outside the gates of the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and a few miles west of Launch Complex 36, a former Atlas pad the company is rebuilding for New Glenn’s planned 2020 debut. “We’re laying in the first fully integrated setup where you have raw stock arriving at a factory on the Space Coast, a rocket coming out and going to a launchpad on the Space Coast, landing, and being launched again. (12/22)

Continuing Resolution and Supplemental Spending Keep NASA Going (Source: Politico)
Congress has adjourned for the year after passing another short-term spending bill to keep the government operating. Both the House and the Senate passed Thursday a continuing resolution to fund the government at 2017 levels through Jan. 19. The House also passed a disaster relief supplemental spending bill that includes $81.3 million for NASA to repair hurricane damage to center facilities and $16.3 million for NSF to repair the Arecibo radio telescope damaged by Hurricane Maria. The Senate, though, did not take up the bill before adjourning Thursday night. The Senate also did not act on several key nominations, including for NASA and NOAA administrators and Ex-Im Bank board members. (12/21)

CSIS Argues Against Space-Based Missile Defense (Source: Space News)
A new report argues that a space-based missile defense remains infeasible. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) included space-based missile defense in a new report titled "Bad Ideas in National Security." Such systems made it into the report "because of their inefficiency and vulnerability," one CSIS expert said. Congress has asked the Pentagon to investigate space-based missile defense through a provision in the 2018 defense authorization act. (12/22)

UrtheCast and South Korea's SI Imaging Partner on Imagery (Source: Space News)
UrtheCast has signed an image distribution partnership with SI Imaging Service of South Korea. The agreement allows UrtheCast to distribute images from the Kompsat fleet of imaging satellites, UrtheCast said Thursday. The arrangement is similar to one the company announced earlier this month for imagery from Beijing Space View Technology's SuperView satellites, creating what UrtheCast calls a "virtual constellation." (12/22)

Sweden's AAC Microtec Plans Acquisition of Scotland's Clyde Space (Source: The Herald)
A Swedish company has announced plans to acquire Scottish cubesat manufacturer Clyde Space. AAC Microtec is offering about $35 million in cash and stock for Glasgow-based Clyde Space, a company that sells cubesats and components for them, as well as launch and communications services. Clyde Space will remain in the city, where it employs more than 75 people. (12/22)  

Chair of Key Committee Faces Reelection Fight (Source: Roll Call)
The chairman of the House appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA and NOAA may be in the reelection fight of his career in 2018. A new analysis changed the rating of the 7th congressional district in Texas from "Leans Republican" to "Tilts Republican," making it closer to a tossup. That district is currently held by Rep. John Culberson, a Republican who won 56 percent of the vote in his 2016 reelection but one that Hillary Clinton carried for president. Several Democrats are considering running for the seat and have raised more funds than Culberson. (12/22)

Brazil Seeks U.S. Launchers for Alcantara Spaceport (Source: Defense News)
Brazil's defense minister said that discussions with the U.S. continue to allow American rockets to launch from a spaceport in his country. Raul Jungmann said that negotiations continue about a technology safeguard agreement required to allow the export of U.S. rockets for launch from the Alcantara site near the Equator in Brazil. A lack of such an agreement in the past blocked proposals to use the site. It's not clear what U.S. vehicles are interested in launching from the site. (12/22)

Russia Considers Hotel Module for Space Station (Source: Popular Mechanics)
Russia is reportedly considering a "luxury hotel" on the International Space Station. A proposal being considered by Roscosmos would add a module to the station's Russian segment based on the Science and Power Module under development to accommodate visiting tourists. The module would cost up to $450 million to build and need seven years of tourists flights to recoup that cost — something that would require an extension of ISS operations well past 2024. (12/22)

NASA Selects Finalists for Next New Frontiers Mission (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
Choosing from a field of twelve proposals, NASA has recently whittled the group down to two finalists for the agency’s next New Frontiers mission. Receiving the nod to receive additional funding and study in 2018 were missions to Saturn’s moon Titan and the recent European Space Agency (ESA) target, Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.

One of the two finalists is a flying robotic explorer for Titan, Saturn’s largest moon. Normally, surface explorers would be stationary landers or slow-moving rovers that will remain within tens of miles (kilometers) of their touchdown sites. Titan, however, is unique in the Solar System – it is the only moon known to have a dense atmosphere. With a surface pressure 45 percent greater than Earth’s, the Saturnian satellite is well-suited for exploration by a flying vehicle. (12/22)

Will Space Tourism Ever Happen? (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
What is preventing regular, everyday people from achieving orbit? After all, we’ve sent astronauts to the Moon and the International Space Station, so why aren’t more people looking into taking a holiday in space? Well, there seem to be two main reasons: first, the prospects and logistics of space tourism aren’t actually looking that great. So far, most of the proposed tourist flights are only flights into suborbital space, which would provide most likely only a few minutes of weightlessness. Click here. (12/22) 

Musk’s Tesla Roadster Readied for Launch (Source: Electrek)
There have been a lot of doubts and confusion around Elon Musk’s claim that the first payload of SpaceX’s new Falcon Heavy will be his own original Tesla Roadster. But now it looks more real than ever as we get to see the first image of the electric vehicle being turned into a payload. Earlier this month, Musk announced on Twitter that he plans to send his Roadster to Mars as the first payload on the inaugural demo flight of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy. Click here. (12/22)

New Study Finds 'Winking' Star May be Devouring Wrecked Planets (Source: Phys.org)
A team of U.S. astronomers studying the star RZ Piscium has found evidence suggesting its strange, unpredictable dimming episodes may be caused by vast orbiting clouds of gas and dust, the remains of one or more destroyed planets.

RZ Piscium is located about 550 light-years away in the constellation Pisces. During its erratic dimming episodes, which can last as long as two days, the star becomes as much as 10 times fainter. It produces far more energy at infrared wavelengths than emitted by stars like our Sun, which indicates the star is surrounded by a disk of warm dust. In fact, about 8 percent of its total luminosity is in the infrared, a level matched by only a few of the thousands of nearby stars studied over the past 40 years. This implies enormous quantities of dust. (12/21)

Coast Guard Planning Launch Of First Satellites (Source: Defense Daily Network)
The Coast Guard in 2018, with the help of other government partners, is planning to launch its first ever satellites, which will be used to demonstrate the use of the platforms for search and rescue mission in the Arctic region. One of the Coast Guard’s partners, the Science and Technology branch of the Department of Homeland Security, is taking advantage of “rideshare opportunities” for launching the two 10-centimeter cubesats in the third quarter of 2018, a service spokesman said. (12/18)

Italy’s Sitael Gets Platino Contract for Vega-Optimised Small Satellites (Source: Space News)
The Italian Space Agency on Dec. 19 signed Sitael as the prime contractor for a new 200-kilogram small satellite line called Platino, meant to pair Italy’s strength in light launch with an aptly designed product. Platino is an all-electric satellite platform for high-performance missions in telecommunications, remote sensing or science missions, optimized to launch on Vega, the light-lift rocket Colleferro, Italy-based Avio produces.

The Platino project “foresees the production of two satellites, each with different payloads, in order to validate the platform itself,” said Nicola Zaccheo, Sitael’s CEO. “The first will be launched Q3 2019 [followed by] the second one 18 months later.” Not unlike Vega, which the Italian Space Agency (ASI) promoted for years with the European Space Agency before becoming a reality, Platino is part of Italy’s quest to develop and ensure a domestic space industry with a meaningful place on the international stage. (12/19)

Budweiser Hopes SpaceX Launch Leads to Mars Brewery (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
The brewery sent about 20 barley seeds to the International Space Station in two separate experiments Friday to see if they can survive exposure to space conditions. In mid-November, Budweiser officials confirmed that the company planned to start testing the intergalactic brewery process. Budweiser Vice President Ricardo Marques said that the business was “inspired by the collective American dream to get to Mars.”

The seedlings will be in orbit for about 30 days, when they will return to earth for a team from the brewery to analyze — a sampling will be evaluated to see whether they have any mutations, adaptations or other responses to the conditions. The company first announced its intention to brew beer on Mars at the South by Southwest gathering in Austin, Texas, this year. (12/15)

First Commercial Payloads Onboard New Shepard (Source: Blue Origin)
On Dec. 12, 2017, New Shepard flew again for the seventh time. Known as Mission 7 (M7), the flight featured our next-generation booster and the first flight of Crew Capsule 2.0. While our primary objective was to progress testing this new system for human spaceflight, we also achieved an exciting milestone with suborbital research in space by sending 12 commercial, research and education payloads under full FAA license for the first time. Click here. (12/21) 

Brevard Clerk Sues to Stop $8 Million Rocket Factory Deal (Source: WESH)
A court battle is brewing over whether Brevard County taxpayers should hand millions of dollars to a billionaire. The first rocket factory on the Space Coast is about finished, with workers moving in the office furniture this week. Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos did his part by building it to produce the huge New Glenn rocket. It's now up to the Brevard County Commission to live up to its part of the deal by giving Bezos $8 million.

Most county leaders said the money, offered as an incentive to create jobs, is well worth it. "We think that this will allow other similar manufacturers to come to the area and help build up the workforce," Troy Post, of North Brevard Economic Development Zone, said. But Scott Ellis, the elected clerk of the court, wants to block a deal that he said gives taxpayer money to someone who’s already making around $8 million every five minutes. "I don’t believe you should give people that cash on the barrelhead deal," Ellis said. (12/20)

Some Good News for GPS 3, But Trouble Looms (Source: Space News)
As 2017 winds down, the GPS 3 constellation finally has a string of victories for the Air Force to celebrate. The first satellite is on track for a 2018 launch. The digital navigation payload has been fixed after earlier setbacks, and units are in production. And the ground-control software is starting to recover from years of schedule delays.

To top it off, the Government Accountability Office this month gave the new constellation some schedule breathing room. It projected that the current constellation of 31 GPS 2 satellites will remain operational until 2021 — two years longer than previously estimated. The Air Force is on a path to start operating the GPS 3 constellation by June 2021 as there are seven satellites planned to be launched by then.

But there’s also bad news. Government auditors have warned that the GPS 3 program increasingly is becoming harder to manage because of the complexity and scope of the upgrades required to military weapon systems to receive the encrypted signals. The satellites might be up and running by 2021 but it could take many more years to get the ground infrastructure and equipment terminals in synch with the new satellites. (12/19)

Some Think An Alien Space Probe Just Passed Earth And Deliberately Ignored Us (Source: HuffPost)
If ’Oumuamua is an alien probe or spacecraft, it’s doing a pretty good job of hiding it. Breakthrough Listen, which has been scanning the first-known interstellar asteroid for signs of alien technology, said it hasn’t found anything yet. “Breakthrough Listen’s first analysis of ’Oumuamua, the mysterious cigar-shaped object speeding through the solar system, finds no evidence of intelligent life,” the organization said on Facebook. “But observations continue.” That silence has people more than a little suspicious. (12/20)

Dawn Provides a New Perspective on Ceres’ Occator Crater (Source: Astronomy Now)
This simulated perspective view shows Occator Crater, measuring 92 kilometres (57 miles) across and 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) deep, which contains the brightest area on Ceres. This region has been the subject of intense interest since Dawn’s approach to the dwarf planet in early 2015. This view, which faces north, was made using images from Dawn’s low-altitude mapping orbit, 385 kilometres (240 miles) above Ceres.

Dawn’s close-up view reveals a dome in a smooth-walled pit in the bright center of the crater. Numerous linear features and fractures crisscross the top and flanks of this dome. Prominent fractures also surround the dome and run through smaller, bright regions found within the crater. The central dome area is called Cerealia Facula and the dimmer bright areas are called Vinalia Faculae. (12/19)