February 13, 2018

World Will Be Shocked by New Space Race (Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
This excitement about the value of space was palpable when I spoke at the International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide, seeing Australian start-ups such as FLEET rub shoulders with multinationals like Lockheed Martin, all with one thing in common - that our future prosperity as a species lies in space. Inspired by the activity of business I wanted to see the workshops of this new space race, and nowhere quite captures that spirit like the Mojave Spaceport in California. (2/13)

Florida Polytechnic Student Working to Improve Lives for Astronauts in Space (Source: Spectrum News 9)
A Florida Polytechnic University student is working to reduce depression and anxiety amongst astronauts in space. James Holland and his professor, Dr. Arman Sargolzaei, are working to create wireless sensors for astronaut spacesuits, hoping to make missions in space more enjoyable. They dubbed their product, Smart Sensory Skin, and said it’s much needed technology.

“Being in microgravity for extended periods of time has various effects on the human. The emptiness of space can cause mental wear and tear and just the stress of being in that environment,” explained James Holland. To help alleviate the mental wear and tear, the wireless sensors will detect emotional and physical deficiencies in the astronauts. “It monitors various vitals such as heart rate, temperature, pulse, oxygen consumption and saturation,” Holland said.

The sensors would then communicate with other smart technology to change the environment accordingly. “It could adjust lighting, sound, temperature, to make you more comfortable and less stressed,” Holland said. Sargolzaei said other technology exists but it’s passive, relaying the information to doctors on Earth who then make decisions on how to change the environment. These sensors would be more instantaneous. (2/13)

New Astronaut Training and Mars Base 1 at KSC Visitor Complex Offers Incredible Experience (Source: America Space)
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex (KSVC) recently opened its new Astronaut Training Experience (ATX) Center, giving the public a really fun and interesting interactive learning opportunity to not only train like an astronaut for Mars missions, but to also simulate what a day living and working on Mars would be like, while also helping with real NASA research along the way.

From floating in microgravity chairs simulating spacewalking activities, to conducting surface missions on Mars in Virtual Reality, strapping in to a full-motion Mars Landing and Rover Simulator, launching on NASA’s Orion Capsule for docking with a Mars Transfer Vehicle or conducting a full day of operations on the Red Planet, the new ATX and Mars Base 1 is well worth spending a couple days at for any space geek or aspiring astronaut, young and old. (2/13)

ISS After 2025: Is CASIS The Solution Or The Problem? (Source: NASA Watch)
Yesterday NASA held a briefing with Acting CFO Andrew Hunter. When asked about how NASA plans to operate the ISS after 2025 when funding by NASA will cease, Hunter had no answer. The only clue he offered was that CASIS would continue to be part of the NASA space station utilization plan until 2025. Somehow, between now and 2025, NASA claims that it will be handing over all of its operational responsibilities to some yet to be defined private sector entities.

It would seem, therefore, by default, that NASA intends to use CASIS to develop the multi-billion dollar customer base that will take over U.S. operations on the ISS and that NASA would be just another customer. How anyone can expect CASIS to complete a task several orders of magnitude greater than the one that they have failed to accomplish thus far is baffling in the extreme.

All you have to do is read recent GAO and NASA OIG reports to see that there is extreme doubt with regard to CASIS' abilities. Of course, NASA has still refused to deliver the ISS Transition Plan mandated by law and due last year. Based on this budget briefing NASA clearly has no plan and they have only begun to work on it. (2/13)

Jacksonville's Cecil Spaceport Plans First Commercial Launch This Year (Source: WJXT)
Hot on the heels of the Space-X launch last week, Cecil Airport is preparing for its first commercial space launch, which could happen as early as the end of the year. The launch was supposed to happen back in 2016, but didn't. The director of the Cecil Spaceport said a lot of details have to be finalized, but it could happen either later this year or early next year.

Construction on a new hangar will begin this month. It will be used for accommodating space operators, assembly and storage. But that's not the only project set to take off. "A new space operation mission control center which will be part of a new air traffic control tower that is going into construction probably later this year," Todd Lindner said.

Could the economy be impacted by commercial space operations? Lindner said a study was done on that exact issue. And while it's too early to see what the future holds, he is certain of one thing: The impact will be significant to Northeast Florida. Lindner also said an environmental assessment was completed on the noise levels. He said it shouldn't be a significant issue in the area. (2/13)

Nelson Raps Trump's NASA Budget, Plan to Privatize Space Station (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson came out swinging Monday against President Trump’s proposed NASA budget and plan to turn over the International Space Station to private hands. “The administration’s budget for NASA is a nonstarter,’’ said Nelson, D-Orlando, in a statement. “If we’re ever going to get to Mars with humans on board and return them safely, then we need a larger funding increase for NASA.

“The proposal would also end support for the International Space Station in 2025 and make deep cuts to popular education and science programs,’’ continued Nelson, a former astronaut who flew during the space shuttle era. “Turning off the lights and walking away from our sole outpost in space at a time when we’re pushing the frontiers of exploration makes no sense.” (2/12)

Pentagon Space Budget Shaped by Threats From Russia, China (Source: Space News)
The Trump administration’s budget request for the Defense Department includes $9.3 billion for space programs — $4.8 billion for satellites, $2.4 billion for launch vehicles and $2.1 billion for maintenance and support. The funds also cover space tests and classified programs. Officials said this budget marks a “pivot” in military space programs from systems that were built for an era when the United States was unchallenged in outer space to a future when adversaries like China and Russia could threaten U.S. access and freedom to operate in space.

“We are in a more dangerous security environment than we have seen in a generation,” said Maj. Gen. John Pletcher, the Air Force budget director. “Global trends are eroding our advantage in the air and space,” Pletcher told reporters on Monday. He said the new mantra is “defendable space.” The 2019 space budget is 1.5 percent larger than the $7.8 billion request for fiscal year 2018. Overall, the president is proposing a $686 billion budget for the Defense Department, of which $236.7 billion is for research, development and procurement of weapon systems. (2/12)

NASA Budget Plan Cancels WFIRST Telescope (Source: Space News)
The administration's 2019 budget proposal for NASA includes plans to cancel a major space telescope. The budget proposal, released Monday, included the cancellation of the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), the next flagship astronomy mission after the James Webb Space Telescope. Agency officials cited the need to free up funding in a budget that is projected to remain flat for several years to support growing exploration programs as a reason to end WFIRST, which had been working to rein in its growing costs.

The proposal also seeks to cancel five Earth science missions and close NASA's Office of Education, as in last year's request. The proposal provides $19.9 billion for NASA, including several new programs for lunar exploration and low Earth orbit commercialization to support an end of NASA operations of the International Space Station in 2025. However, one key member of Congress, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), declared the budget proposal a "nonstarter" on Capitol Hill. (2/12)

DOD Budget Plan Includes $9.3 Billion for Space (Source: Space News)
The space portion of the Defense Department's 2019 budget proposal marks a "pivot" that reflects the more contested nature of space. The proposal includes $9.3 billion for space programs and makes changes to account for increasing threats to space assets from Russia and China. The budget ends plans to procure SBIRS missile warning satellites after the sixth satellite, currently under construction, and instead proposes an "evolved SBIRS" intended to be responsive to new threats. The budget also includes funding for a space-based kill assessment experiment for the Missile Defense Agency. (2/12)

Soyuz Launches More Cargo to ISS (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
A Soyuz rocket launched a Progress cargo spacecraft early this morning after a two-day delay. The Soyuz-2.1a rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 3:13 a.m. Eastern and placed the Progress MS-08 spacecraft into orbit. The launch was scheduled for Sunday but scrubbed in the final minute of the countdown due to a technical issue with the rocket. The Progress is now scheduled to dock with the ISS on Thursday, which will delay a spacewalk by astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Norishige Kanai from Thursday to Friday. (2/12)

New Mexico Senate Passes Spaceport Confidentiality Bill (Source: Albuquerque Journal)
The New Mexico Senate passed a bill restricting public access to some spaceport records. The Senate voted 35–5 to approve the bill, which backers of Spaceport America say is necessary to protect private company information and keep the facility competitive with those in other states. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, which must pass the bill before the legislative session ends on Thursday. (2/12)

India Planning Heavy-Lift Rocket (Source: The Hindu)
Spurred by SpaceX, India is working on its own design for a heavy-lift launch vehicle. K. Sivan, chairman of the Indian space agency ISRO, said that his agency has "on the drawing board" designs for a vehicle that could place 50 to 60 metric tons into orbit. The agency doesn't yet have a schedule, or budget, for developing such a vehicle. (2/13)

Satellites Detect Accelerating Sea-Level Rise (Source: AP)
Satellite data indicate the rise in sea levels caused by climate change is accelerating. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences, used 25 years of ocean topography satellite data to conclude that the rate of sea level rise was increasing because of both warming waters and melting ice. Scientists said sea levels could rise by 60 centimeters by the end of the century. (2/13)

Musk Offers to Eat Hat if Vulcan Flies DOD Payload by 2023 (Source: Ars Technica)
Elon Musk made an unusual wager about the prospects of a competitor's launch vehicle Monday. Musk, engaged in a discussion on Twitter about the costs of ULA's Delta 4 Heavy and its upcoming Vulcan rocket, said he was skeptical the Vulcan would be certified to launch national security payloads by 2023. "I will seriously eat my hat with a side of mustard if that rocket flies a national security spacecraft before 2023," Musk said. The reply by ULA's Tory Bruno: "Wow." (2/13)

Tesla Launch Boosts Hot Wheels Sales (Source: CollectSpace)
SpaceX's launch last week of a Tesla Roadster has boosted the sales of a toy replica. Included on the actual Roadster launched on a Falcon Heavy was a Hot Wheels version of the car, sitting on the dashboard. The Hot Wheels Roadster sold for $1.09 when it was introduced in toy stores in 2016, but today is selling for upwards of $100 on eBay. The models for sale, though, lack something in the model flown last week: a miniature version of the spacesuit-wearing mannequin sitting in the front seat. (2/13)

It’s Not a Plane, It’s Not a Star – It’s a Satellite (Source: ERAU)
Soon you will see a new, bright light in the night sky. However, it is not a star or even a plane. According to Popular Mechanics, it’s a satellite sent to orbit by New Zealand company Rocket Lab. The small satellite, called the Humanity Star, is a carbon fiber, geodesic sphere made of 65 highly reflective panels. As it orbits, the Humanity Star spins rapidly and reflects sunlight back to Earth. (2/13)

SpaceX Gets Set to Launch Prototype Starlink Internet Satellites (Source: GeekWire)
The first test satellites for SpaceX’s global internet constellation are being prepped for launch as early as this week — three years after SpaceX CEO Elon Musk unveiled the project in Seattle. The prototype spacecraft, known as Microsat 2a and 2b, are reportedly to be included as secondary payloads on a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, due for launch on Saturday. The primary payload is a 3,000-pound Spanish radar observation satellite called Paz. (2/11)