May 29, 2018

The Summer of Small Launchers (Source: Space Review)
Several companies developing small launch vehicles plan to perform their first commercial missions, or first launches overall, during the next few months. Jeff Foust provides an update on those companies’ plans and concerns about a “glut” of such vehicles on the market. Click here. (5/29)
 
Does the Gateway Make Sense? (Source: Space Review)
As NASA refines its plans for the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway, or simply the Gateway, some question whether that effort to create a human-tended facility in cislunar space makes sense. Eric Hedman lays out the arguments for and against it. Click here. (5/29) 
 
A Step Toward a “One-Stop Shop” for Commercial Space Regulations (Source: Space Review)
Last week, President Trump signed his second space policy directive, one addressing commercial space regulatory reform. Jeff Foust reports on what the policy does as a step towards creation of a single office responsible for commercial space issues. Click here. (5/29)

Military Report: UFOs May Have Attempted Rendezvous With Giant Undersea Object (Source: Huffington Post)
New details are emerging about a UFO sighting recorded by the U.S. military in the waters off the coast of California 14 years ago. The 2004 incident involving the “Tic Tac” UFO, named because it was a fast-moving white object that resembled one of the mints, was first revealed publicly late last year. A report “prepared by and for the military” in 2009 that details multiple interactions with anomalous aerial vehicles (AAVs) over two weeks in late 2004. The report also discussed the high speed and advanced cloaking capabilities that allowed the AAVs to evade observation and detection.

Pilots indicated there may have been something in the water as well. One pilot detailed a disturbance up to the size of a football field: “The disturbance appeared to be 50 to 100 meters in diameter and close to round. It was the only area and type of whitewater activity that could be seen and reminded him of images of something rapidly submerging from the surface like a submarine or a ship sinking.”

The disturbed area also resembled shoal water around “a barely submerged reef or island,” but as the pilot flew away, he could see that the disturbance had cleared and seas calmed. Although he never made visual contact with whatever caused the disturbance, the report stated that it may have been caused by an AAV, which was unseen due to cloaking “or invisible to the human eye.” (5/29)

Astronaut Don Peterson Dies at 84 (Source: CollectSpace)
Don Peterson, a NASA astronaut who performed the first spacewalk of the shuttle program, died Sunday at the age of 84. Peterson was originally selected as an astronaut by the U.S. Air Force for its Manned Orbiting Laboratory program, and was one of several who transferred to NASA when that program was cancelled. Peterson flew on one shuttle mission, STS-6 in 1983, the inaugural flight of the shuttle Challenger. Peterson and Story Musgrave performed a four-hour spacewalk on that mission, the first of the shuttle program. (5/28)

ISS Schedule Frees Margin for Commercial Crew Programs (Source: Space News)
Updated plans for missions to the International Space Station give NASA a little more schedule margin for commercial crew. Crew assignments announced last week by the agency show that at least one NASA astronaut will be on the station until early 2020. Previously, NASA officials said their access to Soyuz seats to the station ended in the fall of 2019, but NASA's station manager said last week NASA worked to extend "to the maximum extent possible" upcoming missions. While emphasizing that getting at least one commercial crew vehicle certified by late 2019 was the agency's top priority, NASA continues to look at other, unidentified backup plans to maintain access to the station should there be further commercial crew delays. (5/29)

Bezos Committed to Moon-First (Source: Space News)
Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos says he's committed to establishing a permanent human presence on the moon. Speaking Friday night at the International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles, Bezos said that going to Mars without first setting up a base on the moon would end up like Apollo, with a successful mission followed by "50 years of nothing." Bezos said he is open to working with other nations on such plans, and another company official, speaking at a conference in Australia last week, suggested an announcement along those lines may be in the works for the International Astronautical Congress in Germany in early October. (5/29)

Mixed Success for China's Lunar Microsats (Source: GB Times)
One of two microsatellites launched to the moon on a Chinese mission may have failed. Longjiang-1 and 2, a pair of astronomy and amateur radio satellites, flew to the moon as secondary payloads on the May 20 launch of the Queqiao communications relay satellite. While Longjiang-2 has entered orbit around the moon, contact has been lost with Longjiang-1 and some fear that satellite has been lost. Queqiao performed a close flyby of the moon Friday and performed a maneuver to put it on track to enter a halo orbit around the Earth-moon L-2 Lagrange point. (5/29)

Astronaut Joins Space Nation (Source: Space News)
A former astronaut is the new "chief space officer" of Space Nation. Greg "Box" Johnson will advise Space Nation, a Finnish startup company backing a competition to send people into space. Space Nation has developed an app where people perform a series of challenges to qualify for astronaut training competitions, with the winner going on suborbital spaceflights. Johnson, who flew on two shuttle missions, later served as president and executive director of the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), the nonprofit managing the national lab portion of the ISS. (5/29)

Electric Propulsion Startup Inks Deals for Microsat Thrusters (Source: Space News)
An electric propulsion startup announced deals last week with NASA and a satellite developer. Phase Four said last week that NASA has agreed to purchase one of its smallsat propulsion units for testing, ultimately on a spacecraft. In a separate deal, Astro Digital will buy thrusters for use on its own Earth-imaging spacecraft as well as spacecraft it provides to other customers. Phase Four has developed a plasma propulsion system that makes use of radiofrequency technology, rather than electrodes, to generate the plasma, which it argues provides the performance of alternative systems with less cost and complexity. (5/29)

Richard Branson Says Virgin Galactic is '2 or 3' Flights Away From Taking People to Space (Source: CNBC)
Virgin Galactic reached nearly halfway to space in the second powered flight of its Unity spacecraft Tuesday, putting the company only months away from launching its first commercial passengers. "It will be something like two or three more flights before we're actually in space," founder Richard Branson told CNBC after the second test flight, which he called "a tremendous step in the right direction toward accomplishing our goals."

Branson's space company has "a step-by-step cautious approach" in its testing program, he said, doing "whatever it takes to make absolutely certain that we've put everything to bed" before trying to send humans into space. Tuesday's flight was its second rocket-powered launch since the fatal crash of its Enterprise spacecraft on Oct. 31, 2014. Unity underwent extensive engine testing and seven glide tests before Virgin Galactic said it was ready to make another rocket-powered flight. (5/29)

China Welcomes All UN Member States to Jointly Utilize its Space Station (Source: Xinhua)
China announced Monday that all member states of the United Nations are welcome to cooperate with China to jointly utilize its future China Space Station (CSS). "CSS belongs not only to China, but also to the world," said Shi Zhongjun, China's Ambassador to UN and other international organizations in Vienna.

"All countries, regardless of their size and level of development, can participate in the cooperation on an equal footing," he said in a statement. CSS is expected to be launched by 2019, and complete and brought into operation by 2022. (5/28)

First Motor Segment for New OmegA Rocket Produced (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
The first inert motor segment produced for tests of Orbital ATK’s new OmegA rocket has been completed. This new segment has been designed as part of the Common Boost Segment (CBS) program. This is the latest step in efforts designed to produce new launch vehicles. Production of the new CASTOR 600 rocket motor segment was the “largest solid motor casting campaign in Orbital ATK’s history.”

“I’m proud of our team for the tremendous accomplishment in meeting this milestone for our OmegA rocket,” said Charlie Precourt, Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATK’s Propulsion Systems Division said via a company-issued release. “We look forward to our ground tests next year and flight tests in 2021.”

The casting process involves the rocket motor being filled with propellants, the CASTOR 600 underwent and completed this process last month (April 2018). The CASTOR® 600 CBS motor segments contain 55 propellant mixes each weighing 600 gallons. The aft portion measures an estimated 12 feet (3.7 meters) in diameter. (5/23)

Scotland Can Boldly Go in New Space Race (Source: Scotsman)
Scotland punches well above its weight in science and innovation. As the UK Minister responsible for these areas, I want Scotland to continue pushing the boundaries of what is possible. Scottish innovators can claim credit for inventing everything from penicillin to the rainmac. These discoveries have changed the world and, as we look to the future, I want Scotland to lead the race for the next game-changing discovery.

Today marks the official opening of the Higgs Center for Innovation in the heart of Edinburgh. It will be part of the hugely successful UK Astronomy Technology Center that has created many of the world’s major telescopes, and whose world-leading scientists have been instrumental in answering questions around the origins of planets and galaxies.

The new centre will offer start-up businesses direct access to experts in space technology and big data. Up to 12 companies will be based in the Centre which will be home to state of the art facilities such as laboratories, working spaces and a Business Incubation Center. Space technology supports a massive £250 billion of wider business activity across the UK – from telecommunications to meteorology. The space sector in Scotland is rapidly growing, and Glasgow is now building more satellites than any other European city. (5/25)

Bezos Details Moon Colony Ambitions (Source: Tech Crunch)
Jeff Bezos  has big plans for the moon, if he can just get there. With a little elbow grease our trusty satellite could become a platform from which to build out the space industry — and while a partnership with NASA, the ESA and others would be best, Blue Origin  will do it solo if it has to. Speaking at the Space Development Conference in Los Angeles with the inimitable Alan Boyle, Bezos chatted about the idea of making the moon a center for heavy industry, which he thinks will help conserve resources here on Earth.

“In the not-too-distant future — I’m talking decades, maybe 100 years,” he said, “it’ll start to be easier to do a lot of the things that we currently do on Earth in space, because we’ll have so much energy. We will have to leave this planet. We’re going to leave it, and it’s going to make this planet better.” There’s plenty that Earth will still have to provide — minerals and resources that can’t be sourced from the moon — but in other ways a lunar manufacturing base is a no-brainer, he explained. Click here. (5/25)