August 24, 2018

Forget “Manned” Missions—Females May Be More Mentally Resilient in Deep Space (Source: Scientific American)
Just past the confines of Earth’s geomagnetic field, deep space gets downright nasty. There, cosmic radiation from solar flares, supernovae, supermassive black holes and other powerful astrophysical phenomena could spark cancer, vision loss and impaired thinking in future astronauts voyaging to the moon, Mars or beyond.

But a new NASA-funded study published in Brain, Behavior and Immunity makes a bold claim: When exposed to cosmic radiation, women may have an innate biological capacity to stave off associated cognitive declines. A team of researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, (U.C.S.F.) and at Brookhaven National Laboratory found female mice somehow kept clear heads after dangerous doses of radiation whereas males developed obvious cognitive impairment. The group may have also discovered the reason why—which could help create “vaccines” to inoculate humans against radiation’s worst effects on the brain.

In the study Brookhaven scientists bombarded an equal number of male and female mice with a potent mix of radioactive particles mimicking those that suffuse deep space—such as high-energy atomic nuclei of oxygen, helium and hydrogen. These particles and others like them ping-pong through the void beyond Earth’s protective magnetic bubble, and some are even channeled into the Van Allen Belts—a zone of seething radiation that girdles our globe. Only 24 human beings have ever traversed this treacherous territory: the Apollo astronauts, who sped through the belts en route to the moon. (8/24)

Don’t Be Fooled by North Korea’s Dismantling of Rocket Test Site (Sources: Heritage Foundation, The Hill)
Satellite imagery indicates North Korea has begun to dismantle its Sohae rocket engine test facility and space vehicle launch stand. The dismantlement is a welcome, though limited, development, because Pyongyang indicated the site was no longer necessary after having successfully completed its missile and nuclear programs. In April, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared that “we no longer need any nuclear tests, midrange and intercontinental ballistic rocket tests, and the nuclear test site in the northern area has also completed its mission.”

In recent years, Pyongyang shifted its focus away from missiles requiring a fixed launch site, such as that at Sohae, and developed missiles launched from mobile vehicles. Mobile missiles, including two intercontinental ballistic missile variants that can reach the entire continental United States, are more difficult to track and target during hostilities. The apparent dismantlement, like the earlier destruction of the tunnel entrances to the nuclear test site, is being done without foreign on-site inspectors. More importantly, neither activity reduces the North Korean arsenal, nor diminishes missile or nuclear weapon production capabilities.

President Trump on Friday said he has asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to put off his planned visit to North Korea and accused Pyongyang of slow-walking efforts to dismantle its nuclear program. Trump wrote in a tweet that a high-level visit is not appropriate at “this time, because I feel we are not making sufficient progress with respect to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.” (8/24)

Senior Spaceport Jobs Available (Source: ADK)
ADK Executive Search has posted two career opportunities with at least a part-time focus on spaceport operations. A Chief Executive Officer is sought for the Jacksonville Aviation Authority, which includes responsibility for the Cecil Spaceport in northeast Florida. Another open position being recruited by ADK is the Director of Planning at California's Mojave Air & Space Port. Click here and here. (8/24)

Canadian Spaceport Construction Will be Delayed at Least Until Spring of 2019 (Source: SpaceQ)
The government of Nova Scotia did not approve or reject the Maritime Launch Services (MLS) Environmental Assessment report in its decision yesterday. Instead, it’s asking MLS for more information in the form of a “focus report.” The decision is one that MLS knew could happen. It will certainly delay their plans, at least until next spring.

In the decision, Margaret Miller, the Nova Scotia Minister of Environment stated “during the EA (environmental assessment) review, concerns were raised regarding the potential impacts of the Project on: water resources, soil, air quality, noise, flora and fauna, fish and fish habitat, protected areas and parks, human health and contingency planning. These concerns were raised through public and Mi’kmaq submissions, as well as submissions by Nova Scotia Environment, Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry, Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Health Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and Department of National Defense.”

The letter further states “the focus report shall examine potential impacts of the Project on: water resources, soil, air quality, noise flora and fauna, fish and fish habitat, protected areas and parks, dangerous good management, waste management, human health and contingency planning. The EA Administrator will provide you with written terms of reference for the preparation of the focus report within 25 days. Maritime Launch Services Ltd. will have up to one year to submit the report. (8/24)

Brevard County's Plan to Borrow $8 Million for Blue Origin Denied by Court (Source: Florida Today)
A previously approved plan by Brevard County commissioners to borrow money and pay for $8 million in economic incentives to rocketry company Blue Origin was denied by a court this week. The 18th Judicial Circuit, which covers Brevard and Seminole counties, ruled that the county and North Brevard Development District were denied their plans to issue bonds to cover incentives initially designed in 2015 to attract Blue Origin and its New Glenn rocket factory to Kennedy Space Center's Exploration Park. The plan to borrow money to pay the company wasn't approved until December of last year.

Brevard County Attorney Eden Bentley said the opinion "means the county may not issue bonds to fund the North Brevard Development District economic incentive agreement with Blue Origin. The opinion does not prohibit the grant payment to Blue Origin, but does prohibit using a bond to obtain the funding to pay it." That means the North Brevard Development District likely now will be making annual payments over six years to Blue Origin without borrowing the money, leaving less in its budget for other economic development projects. (8/23)

Pence Was Against Moon Missions Before He Was For Them (Source: Space.com)
In his new role as our nation's uppermost space leader, Vice President Pence criticized the previous administration's cancelation of NASA's Constellation program to replace the Space Shuttles with new rockets for lunar exploration. But Phil Larson, a former White House advisor for space, points out that "Constellation was canceled because an independent, blue ribbon panel lead by former Lockheed Martin chairman Norm Augustine found it to be on an unsustainable trajectory."

Larson also says Pence was against Constellation before he was for it. A 2005 Space.com article describes how "a group of Republican lawmakers led by Mike Pence of Indiana last week said the $104 billion to replace the shuttles with a new spaceship and rockets to carry astronauts back to the moon ought to be canceled to help pay to rebuild the hurricane-wrecked Gulf Coast." (8/24)

DHS Taps Booz Allen for $1 Billion Suite of Cybersecurity Services, Including for NASA (Source: Defense One)
Booz Allen Hamilton has been selected by the Department of Homeland Security to provide cybersecurity services to the Treasury Department, General Services Administration, Health and Human Services Department, US Postal Service, Social Security Administration and NASA under a six-year, $1 billion contract. Homeland Security is selecting prime contractors for all phases of the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation program. (8/23)

How the White House Plans a Return to the Moon During a (Two-Term) Trump Presidency (Source: Ars Technica)
The Trump administration has established NASA’s main human spaceflight goal as a sustainable human return to the Moon, with eventual human missions to Mars. During what amounted to a pep talk at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Thursday, Vice President Mike Pence reiterated his commitment to this goal.

“We’re also renewing our national commitment to discovery and to exploration and to write the next great chapter of our nation’s journey into space,” Pence said. “NASA will awe the world with our daring heroes.” ... “Our administration is working tirelessly to put an American crew aboard the lunar orbital platform before the end of 2024,” Pence said.

Unfortunately for presidents who serve at most two four-year terms, government spaceflight during the modern era moves at a glacial pace. No astronauts will walk on Mars during Trump’s presidency or even on the Moon. Past presidents with ambitions for the Moon, Mars, or asteroids have faced similar conundrums because it takes so long to arrange funding for these plans, finalize designs, build and test, and finally to fly. Long before astronauts take flight, a new administration moves into the White House. (8/23)

DARPA Hopes for Budget Compromise on Satellite Servicing Mission (Source: Space News)
The launch of a robotic servicing spacecraft developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and satellite manufacturer SSL is at risk of being delayed amid congressional concerns that the Air Force is requesting funds to launch this mission earlier than needed. Senate appropriators cut $209 million from the Air Force launch budget for FY-2019 on grounds that the payload — DARPA’s Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites, or RSGS — will not be ready to fly to orbit as projected, by spring 2021.

The Air Force said it would need to buy the launch during fiscal year 2019 to ensure RSGS can meet the schedule. DARPA is “working closely with the Air Force to answer any questions House and Senate appropriators may have as Congress goes forward in its budget deliberations.” Appropriations raised concerns about the schedule of the mission known as “Space Test Program-4” and justified the funding cut as “early to need.” Parrish said the RSGS vehicle is “on track for launch in 2021.” (8/23)

Luxembourg Space Startup Goes Public (Source: Space News)
A Luxembourg-based space startup has gone public on the Australian Stock Exchange. Kleos Space raised $8 million as its shares started trading Friday on the Sydney-based exchange. The company plans to develop a constellation of cubesats to provide commercial signals intelligence by tracking radio emissions from ships at sea. Its first satellite, built by Danish company GomSpace, is scheduled for launch in mid-2019. (8/23)

Reinvigorated Cape Canaveral Could Boost Senate Campaigns (Source: Florida Today)
The new Blue Origin factory in Florida and other developments at Cape Canaveral could factor in both sides of a key Senate race. Both incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson and his Republican challenger, Gov. Rick Scott, are expected to play up their roles in bringing new business to Florida's Space Coast in the campaign. Nelson has long been recognized as a key player in space issues, and has promoted various developments at the Cape, while Scott, as governor, worked to attract space businesses there in the post-shuttle era. (8/23)

Morgan Stanley Finds Lukewarm Interest in Space Investing (Source: CNBC)
Morgan Stanley is finding that its clients aren't that interested in investing in space. In an analysts' report Thursday, the financial firm emphasized events that "increase investor significance" in space, from the proposed Space Force to commercial spaceflight developments. "We believe Space is increasingly important and could emerge as a significant investment/capital markets theme over time," the company argued. However, it also acknowledged in the report that its customers have not been that interested in space to date, in part because of the limited investment opportunities. (8/23)

Japan Picks Asteroid Landing Site for Hayabusa Probe (Source: Space.com)
The Japanese space agency JAXA has selected a landing site for its Hayabusa2 asteroid mission. Scientists announced Thursday it picked a region in the southern hemisphere of the asteroid Ryugu as the place where the Hayabusa2 spacecraft will touch down and collect samples. That region won out over several alternative sites because of both scientific interest and accessibility, although project managers cautioned that the asteroid's surface is filled with boulders that could complicate any landing attempt. That landing is planned for early October. (8/23)

Aldrin-Focused Musical Opens Off-Broadway (Source: Space.com)
The life of Buzz Aldrin will be the subject of an off-off-Broadway musical. "1969: The Second Man" is billed as a "folk-rock fable for the runner-up in all of us" about Aldrin being the second person, and not the first, to walk on the moon. Aldrin has sometimes publicly bristled at being called the second man to walk on the moon. Previews for the musical open Friday in New York, with a limited run of performances through Sept. 8. (8/23)

NASA Studies Partnerships for Future Space Communications (Source: Space News)
NASA plans to solicit studies on the use of public-private partnerships to develop its next-generation space communications network. NASA said in a recent procurement synopsis that it will issue a formal request for proposals early next month for "trade studies and conceptual system designs and descriptions" for future radiofrequency and optical communications systems, including the study of hosting NASA laser communications payloads on commercial spacecraft. The agency, in its 2019 budget proposal and on other occasions, said that it was interested in the use of public-private partnerships in order to more affordably build future communications systems and help build other markets for those services. (8/23)

NASA Optimistic for Opportunity Rover Recovery (Source: CBS)
NASA remains optimistic the Opportunity Mars rover will reestablish contact with Earth after two and a half months of silence. Project manager John Callas said that a major dust storm that blocked sunlight from reaching the solar-powered rover is now subsiding, and conditions should be approaching a point where the rover can start generating power. "I think everyone is staying closer to their email and their cellphones right now because we think now's about when we'll start to hear something," he said. However, there are no guarantees that the rover, which has been on Mars for more than 14 years, will be able to come out of hibernation and resume operations. (8/23)
 
Small Satellites Now Big Business (Source: Space News)
Small satellites are increasingly moving into the aerospace mainstream. The growth in the small satellite market, including companies that are planning constellations of hundreds or thousands of such spacecraft, is creating a "different mindset" for manufacturers of satellites or satellite components, including those not traditionally associated with smallsats. In one example, Harris is harnessing the expertise it gained building 230 hosted payloads for Iridium Next communications satellites to address the small satellite market. (8/23)

SSTL's Satellite for Orbital Debris Removal Readies for Tests (Source: SSTL)
A satellite designed to test orbital-debris-removal techniques has completed its on-orbit commissioning. Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) said Thursday that its RemoveDEBRIS satellite, deployed from the ISS two months ago, has completed tests to confirm that the spacecraft is operating as planned. SSTL now plans to begin the mission's experimental phase, which will involve tests of technologies that include a net and a harpoon that could be used to capture and deorbit debris. (8/23)

US Military Branches Work Together on Hypersonic Weapon (Source: Breaking Defense)
The Army's Alternate Re-Entry System warhead could arm future hypersonic weapons, as all major military branches work toward development of hypersonic technology. "[W]e're going to take the Army warhead, put it on an Air Force booster, launch it off of a B-52, while the Army is developing on the ground and the Navy wants to put it on the deck of a ship," said US Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson. (8/22)

NASA Seeks Framework for Partnering with Industry Players (Source: Space News)
NASA plans to issue a request for proposals regarding the development of communications satellite technology via public-private partnerships. "These new capabilities may help foster the growth of the commercial satellite communications relay services market (from low Earth orbit to the Moon and beyond) and provide benefits to future NASA missions," NASA said. (8/22)

New Galaxy Found? (Source: Case Western Reserve University)
Last summer, Case Western Reserve University undergraduate student Chris Carr spotted what looked like a "smudge" on deep sky images taken from the university's Burrell Schmidt telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in southwest Arizona. It was so faint he hardly saw it. But he flagged it for Astronomy Professor Chris Mihos, with whom he'd been working the past two weeks, and explored the coordinates further. What they found pointed to the detection of a new galaxy about 37 million lightyears away. (8/22)

Group of NASA Veterans Wants to Build Their Own Space Station (Source: Air & Space Magazine)
As a NASA astronaut for 20 years, Michael Lopez-Alegria conducted 10 spacewalks and set a U.S. record for total spacewalking time (67 hours and 40 minutes) that still stands. Now he heads business development for Houston-based Axiom Space, which aims to send private “spaceflight participants” up to the space station (for $55 million a seat), then to attach its own commercial module to the International Space Station, followed eventually by a free-flying commercial station of its own. Click here. (8/23)

ISRO Awaits Advanced Materials (Source: The Hindu)
A national effort is needed to develop and produce advanced materials to drive the future space programme, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman K. Sivan said. Along with high propulsion systems for its launch vehicles, the ISRO is pursuing materials that have extraordinary properties, such as aluminium and beryllium alloys and carbon nanotubes.

These are needed for the upcoming high-profile national missions such as the Human Space Programme (HSP), the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV), re-entering crew capsules, fuel-saving scramjet missions and the distant single-stage launchers. Locally made materials will also help to cut imports and also lower mission costs, Dr. Sivan said. (8/23)

Why We Can't Depend on Robots to Find Life on Mars (Source: Space.com)
A Senate subcommittee asked for reasons to support sending humans to Mars, and, boy, did they get one from Ellen Stofan, NASA's former chief scientist. Stofan, who now leads the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, argued that if we truly want to find and understand any potential traces of ancient life on the Red Planet, robots can't do it alone — we'll need humans on the ground.

"While I'm optimistic that life did evolve on Mars, I'm not optimistic that it got very complex, so we're talking about finding fossil microbes," Stofan told a Senate subcommittee devoted to science issues on Aug. 1, adding that those fossils would be incredibly hard to find.

"That's why I do think it will take humans on the planet, breaking open a lot of rocks to try to actually find this evidence of past life," Stofan said. "And finding one sample is not good enough; you need multiple samples to understand the diversity." (8/23)

New Office of Space Commerce Director to Focus on Advocacy and Regulatory Issues (Source: Space News)
The new director of the Office of Space Commerce, a long-neglected entity set to gain more influence under the Trump administration’s space policy reforms, says his initial priorities are on engaging with and advocating for industry and dealing with regulatory issues.

In an Aug. 20 speech at a space conference at Arizona State University, Kevin O’Connell, who started as director of the office six weeks earlier, outlined a four-pronged strategy for the small office as its influence under the administration’s space policy grows.

“Our initial strategy for the Office of Space Commerce involves four basic elements: advocacy, moving regulatory barriers, industry engagement and improving our understanding” of the space industry’s benefits, he said. The advocacy role, he said, has two “very complex” elements, international and domestic. The international aspect is intended to ensure American companies “have fair market access and are able to compete freely” as other countries develop their own space regulatory systems. (8/23)

The Galaxy is Full of ‘Water World’ Exoplanets Where Life Could Evolve (Source: New Scientist)
Planets rich in water, with atmospheres of steam, oceans of liquid water and cores of rock surrounded by solid ice, may be abundant around distant stars. An analysis of the almost 4000 known exoplanets estimates that about 1400 are water-rich worlds, potentially increasing the chances that some harbor life. “Life could develop in certain near-surface layers on these water worlds, if the pressures, temperatures and chemical conditions are appropriate,” says Li Zeng. (8/22)

Will Stratolaunch Operate at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport? (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Stratolaunch is planning to integrate its launch vehicles at its current facility at the Mojave Air & Space Port in California and to manufacture in the Seattle area, said spokesman Alex Moji. But the aircraft could potentially launch from any runway that would accommodate it — including Kennedy Space Center’s 15,000-foot-long runway at the Shuttle Landing Facility, which was home to space shuttle arrivals until the program was retired in 2011.

Space Florida, state’s aerospace economic development arm, declined to comment on any plans to lure Stratolaunch to Cape Canaveral. Stratolaunch’s mission to increase space access is similar to that of its competitors: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Virgin Group founder Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, which also plans to use space planes. (8/23)

Does Stratolaunch Have a Top Secret Purpose? (Source: Popular Mechanics)
Stratolaunch's appeal lies in the fact that it can use smaller, cheaper rockets to reach orbit. As an airplane, Stratolaunch can also fly around the bad weather that might ground a rocket taking off from a stationary pad. But commercial satellites are typically not on a strict timeline and can wait for weather to improve. This has led to some speculation that Stratolaunch is in fact a Department of Defense project hiding in plain sight.

Quartz compares the airplane to the Glomar Explorer, a deep sea drilling ship ostensibly designed to harvest manganese ore from the ocean floor. In reality, it was meant to salvage a sunken Soviet nuclear-armed submarine on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. The ship was so large and unusual that it was impossible to construct in secret, so it was simply built with a cover story. Could Stratolaunch be similar project?

VPOTUS Mike Pence and SECAF Heather Wilson have both visited the company’s facilities. Stratolaunch, the theory goes, could discretely fly specialized payloads into space without the extensive preparation necessary for ground-based rockets. The giant plane could be optimized for unique payloads, including anti-satellite weapons, launching them into space with little or no notice. Fixed rocket launch pads in California, Florida, and elsewhere are vulnerable to sabotage and other forms of attack, but Stratolaunch could operate from many secure military air bases. (8/23)

Aireon Pre-registering Users For Satellite Tracking (Source: Aviation Week)
Satellite-based surveillance system developer Aireon and the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) have started preregistration for the Aircraft Locating and Emergency Response Tracking (Alert) service-—a means of providing the last known position of an aircraft. Editor's Note: Aireon provides this service with instruments installed as secondary payloads aboard Iridium NEXT satellites. The Aireon instruments were developed and integrated by Space Coast-based Harris Corp. (8/22)