October 22, 2018

White House Drafting Space Force Policy (Source: Space News)
The White House is drafting a policy directive on the next steps for establishing a Space Force. That policy, which would become Space Policy Directive-4, would direct the Defense Department to submit a legislative proposal to the White House Office of Management and Budget by Dec. 1 recommending that a Space Force be formed as a separate branch of the armed forces. The Defense Department would also include the Space Force in its fiscal year 2020 budget request. That policy would require the Space Force to be a "lean" organization that will "minimize duplication of effort and eliminate bureaucratic inefficiencies." The National Space Council is scheduled to meet Tuesday in Washington to discuss military space issues, but it's not clear if the policy will be announced or formally signed at the event. (10/22)

Russia Planning Near-Term Completion of Soyuz Investigation (Source: Space News)
Roscosmos announced Saturday that the investigation into the Soyuz launch accident this month will be completed by the end of the month. In a statement, Roscosmos said a state commission had completed a preliminary report into the failure, but did not disclose its findings. The final report, and recommendations to prevent a similar accident again, will be done by Oct. 30. Speculation on the failure has centered on a problem with the separation of one of four side boosters two minutes after liftoff, with one Russian report claiming that the booster was improperly installed, damaging a mounting lug. (10/22)

U.S. Sanction on Rogizin Temporarily Lifted for Travel to Meet with NASA (Source: Moscow Times)
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said that sanctions against his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Rogozin, will be temporarily lifted to allow him to visit the United States. Bridenstine told Russian media that a "workaround" to existing sanctions would allow Rogozin to come to the United States, but that no date has been set for a visit. Rogozin was banned from visiting the United States for his actions as deputy prime minister of Russia when it annexed Crimea in 2014. (10/22)

Japan Boosting Backing for Space Startups (Source: Space News)
The Japanese government is working to boost the country's space startups. Changes in national space policy have made it easier for startups to raise money and find customers, according to Japanese space entrepreneurs, as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledges to double the country's space industry by 2030. That change is driven by concerns that Japan's space industry is falling behind other nations. (10/22)

Airbus Partnering on Earth Observation (Source: Space News)
Airbus is forming partnerships with other companies and investing in new technologies in the field of Earth observation. Airbus Intelligence has partnered with Planet and Orbital Insight for access to other types of imagery and tools to analyze it. The company has also invested in the Zephyr high-altitude drone. In an interview, François Lombard, head of Airbus Intelligence, said the partnerships are part of an effort to "fight this perception that we could do everything" in Earth observation. "Through this kind of partnership, you can go faster and you can disrupt some parts of the market. We could do it alone but it goes faster and better if we do it this way." (10/22)

Bavarian Space Initiative's Backer Loses Majority (Source: The Verge)
A space initiative by the German state of Bavaria may be in jeopardy after a recent election. Markus Söder, prime minister of Bavaria, announced the "Bavaria One" project earlier this month, a project that includes investing in expanded research facilities and an Earth-observation satellite. The initiative, which features a logo with Söder's face, was ridiculed by many. Söder's party lost its majority in the Bavarian parliament in elections this month and will likely have to form a coalition government with another party whose leader was publicly critical of Bavaria One. (10/22)

Rising Oxygen Levels and What They Meant for Early Animal Life (Source: Air & Space)
About 450 million years ago, oxygen concentrations in Earth’s atmosphere increased from an average of less than five percent to more than 15 percent. Significantly, that was around the same time the first vascular land plants appeared on our planet. The oxygen increase may have been related to a rise in both the number of organisms and their diversity. And also to the appearance of large predatory fish, which would have required high oxygen levels for their energetic lifestyle.

If life on some other planet took a similar evolutionary trajectory as on Earth, it would mean that intelligent—and particularly technologically advanced—life would only be possible after a long, long time of planetary evolution. Thus, SETI programs may be advised to single out fairly old planets in their search for possible radio signals from a highly advanced alien species.

Photosynthesis by algae and marine organisms may not be sufficient to increase oxygen levels or stabilize them enough for the evolution of highly advanced animals. If so, land life may be a requirement for the evolution of intelligent, technologically advanced life. That, in turn, would mean that we would not expect to find such advanced life on ocean planets covered entirely by water. (10/19)

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Eyes Vandenberg Air Force Base Launch Site (Source: Noozhawk)
A competition to create new space boosters featuring U.S technology could bring to Vandenberg Air Force Base a rocket made by a company founded by billionaire entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com. The New Glenn rocket, by Bezos’ Blue Origin, was among three chosen by the U.S. Air Force in new launch service agreements for $2.3 billion.

“With this, we will pursue a Vandenberg launch site and gain certification for national security missions,” he said. “Thrilled to leverage our commercial heavy-lift #NewGlenn launch vehicle for these important missions.” It’s not known what launch site Blue Origin is eyeing for New Glenn missions at Vandenberg. (10/20)

Defectors From SpaceX and Blue Origin are Developing Printed Rockets (Source: Business Insider)
Upstart rocket company Relativity Space, which has backing from Mark Cuban, sees a vital opening for business. “We feel like it’s inevitable that if humanity is going out to colonize other planets, 3D-printing is really the only way to manufacture things like tools and replacement parts,” Tim Ellis, a co-founder of Relativity Space, told Business Insider. Ellis is a rocket-propulsion engineer who formerly worked at Blue Origin.

“So that’s what we’re working on: How to 3D-print an entire rocket,” he said. So far, spaceflight companies are only dipping their toes into the technology. “They’re only printing parts here and there and cannibalising launch systems from the bottom-up,” he said. “The problem with that approach is that there are close to 100,000 parts in a rocket.”

The startup also has a partnership with NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi to test rocket engines. In total, Relativity Space has about 40,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space, employs 35 full-time staff, and has 14 advisors and consultants. (10/22)