November 2, 2018

Why DARPA Is Betting a Million Bucks on an "Impossible" Space Drive (Source: Popular Mechanics)
Here's how the EmDrive works. Imagine you have a truncated cone—a tube wider at one end than the other—made of copper. Seal it, then fill it with microwaves. Like other electromagnetic radiation, microwaves exert a tiny amount of pressure. But because of the shape of this device, they would exert slightly more force on one end than the other. So, even though it’s a closed system, the cone would experience a net thrust and, if you had enough microwaves, it would gradually accelerate. Build it to a large enough scale and you could revolutionize propulsion.

Many scientists still call the EmDrive impossible, but that hasn't stopped DARPA from putting serious money behind it. Undeterred by the fact that it would seem to be physically impossible, independent imitators testing the EmDrive theory have nonetheless reported small but measurable thrust from their own EmDrives. These include Chinese researchers at Northwestern Polytechnic in Xi’an, NASA’s Eagleworks, and the American company Cannae, which plans to launch a commercial version into space.

DARPA's new Nascent Light Matter Interactions (NLM) initiative will explore new and little-understood phenomena, such as the apparent thrust generated by the EmDrive. Mike Fiddy confirms that DARPA has previously funded work related to the EmDrive but says this is a fresh start. “The NLM program is new and is focused on Nascent Light Matter interactions where ‘Light’ implies electromagnetic waves and not only visible light,” Fiddy said. (11/2)

Regulation: an Enabler, not an Enemy for Emerging Space Companies (Source: Via Satellite)
Rather than being classed as red tape, regulation can play an enabling role to support satellite start-up companies in the satellite industry. Where regulation includes a credible licensing process,it strengthens investor and customer confidence, stimulates innovation, and encourages growth.

By the same token, excessive regulation, which is poorly tailored to the satellite industry and lacking in transparency, can stifle innovation and the growth of new businesses. Cubesats and smallsats have been catalysts for the implementation of new space laws as governments seek to regulate and transfer some of the responsibility down to the satellite operators. (11/2)

Industry: We Must Accommodate Commercial Space in the NAS — For Now (Source: Avionics International)
A panel of aviation industry members agreed that, because the technology is new, integrating commercial space operations into the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS) will require concessions — for now. “You wouldn’t want regulations on the Wright brothers,” said Aerospace Industry Association (AIA) VP Frank Slazer during the Air Traffic Controller Association and FAA's Commercial Space NAS Integration Conference in Washington, D.C. this week. “But that can’t continue forever.”

With more and more companies interested in commercial space operations, the government and industry are grappling with the prospect integrating those operations into an airspace which hinges on careful timing and management of flights — a challenge that also faces unmanned operations. Because rocket launches are fickle and sometimes get canceled, closing down airspace means issuing a six-hour temporary flight restriction (TFR) notice to airmen (NOTAM) for one launch that may or may not happen.

According to Slazer, that works right now because it will be a long time before launches are common enough or spread out enough that they truly hamper other operations. Even with companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin that are years into operation, there aren’t a lot of commercial launches each year, and the vast majority happen in a few specific, fairly remote locations, such as Cape Canaveral, Florida. “We have time to do this right, and we have time to look at what we did in aviation in terms of developing standards,” Slazer said. (10/30)

Musk Still Aims for 2024 Mars Mission (Source: GeekWire)
“We’re still aiming for 2024," said Musk. "I’m not sure if there’ll be people onboard or not. But there is a Mars rendezvous opportunity, ’cause you can only do a launch to Mars roughly every two years. So around the 2024 timeframe, there’s a rendezvous opportunity for Mars, which hopefully we can catch. … Hopefully, there are people on board. But I think there’s a pretty good chance of at least having an unmanned craft go to Mars.” (11/2)

Orion Capsule: Europe Delivers Astronaut Spaceship's First 'Powerhouse' (Source: BBC)
At a ceremony at Bremen airport in Germany, American officials accepted the first service module that will power an Orion capsule. Orion is the next-generation vehicle that the US is developing to carry astronauts to the Moon and on to Mars. A first flight of the trans-Atlantic spaceship combo is scheduled for 2020. Known as Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1), this will be an uncrewed demonstration outing. Astronauts are expected to climb aboard a second flight a couple of years later. (11/2)

Dawn Spacecraft Runs Out of Fuel, Mission Ends (Source: Space News)
NASA announced Thursday that the Dawn mission to the asteroid belt has come to an end. The agency said the spacecraft failed to make contact with the Earth as planned Wednesday and Thursday, leading controllers to conclude that the spacecraft had run out of hydrazine fuel needed for attitude control. Dawn was running low on hydrazine and mission officials expected it to run out of fuel this fall. Dawn launched in 2007 and went into orbit around Vesta, and later Ceres, where the spacecraft remains today. The end of Dawn comes two days after NASA announced the end of Kepler spacecraft operations, also because it ran out of fuel. (11/2)

Webb Telescope: Too Ambitious (Source: Space News)
The head of an independent review board that examined the James Webb Space Telescope believes that, in retrospect, the mission was too ambitious. Speaking at a committee meeting this week, Tom Young said that JWST "had too many inventions, too much risk, and was a step too far." He added, though, that his board believed that JWST should continue because of its scientific potential and demonstration of U.S. leadership in space. Young chaired the board that concluded the mission would not be ready for launch until March 2021 and provided NASA with more than 30 recommendations to improve the program. Agency officials said Thursday that they're working to implement all of those recommendations, and that the mission is still on schedule for a March 2021 launch. (11/2)

One of the Chinese Launch Startups You Haven't Heard Of Just Tested a Rocket Engine (Source: GB Times)
A low-key Chinese space startup named S-Motor tested a solid rocket engine on Thursday, giving a sense of the level of activity in China's nascent commercial launch sector. A press release from the company yesterday announced a fully successful firing of a test dual-pulse solid booster, following on from reaction control system tests in July.

S-Motor is apparently in the process of developing an unnamed three-stage solid-propellant launch vehicle capable of delivering 160 kg of payload to a Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) at an unspecified altitude, according to its web pages, with no tentative time frame for launch offered as yet. Established in March 2017, S-Motor is one of at least ten launch companies to spring up following a 2014 government decision to open up the space to private capital, with the goal of fostering innovation. (11/2)

Company Gains Ownership Stake in Moon Express, By Court Order (Source: Space News)
Intuitive Machines now owns a stake in Moon Express as a result of a court judgment. Intuitive Machines received more than 590,000 shares in Moon Express, valued at $2.25 million, as ordered Oct. 15 by a federal judge in Delaware. The conflict stems from work Moon Express hired Intuitive Machines to perform related to flight software and a terrestrial return vehicle. Moon Express is appealing the verdict in the case. (11/2)

Pegasus Launch From Space Coast Delayed Again (Source: NASA)
The launch of a NASA space science satellite has been rescheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, Nov. 7. NASA said Thursday it will hold a launch readiness review for the Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) early next week after examining data regarding its Pegasus XL rocket. Technical issues with the launch vehicle have delayed the launch, previously scheduled for a week ago from Cape Canaveral. If the launch is rescheduled for Wednesday, it would take place during a 90-minute window that opens at 3 a.m. Eastern. (11/2)

ISS Supercomputer Open for Business (Source: Space News)
A Hewlett-Packard supercomputer currently on the ISS will soon be available to researchers. The computer was delivered to the ISS last year and, after testing, HP concluded the commercial off-the-shelf supercomputer can survive and function reliably in orbit despite surprise power outages and fluctuating radiation levels. The computer could be used by scientists who want to process in space the data their experiments on the station collect rather than waiting for it to be transmitted back to Earth. (11/2)

3D Printing Changing the Shape of Rocket Parts (Source: Space News)
Spacecraft engineers are beginning to see the true potential of additive manufacturing.  A manager for one company said that engineers are changing their mindset about using 3D printing solely to reduce the size and weight of conventional parts. Now, designers are more willing to "throw out the rule books" and develop entirely new parts with organic shapes intended for 3D printing. Space Systems Loral is making increasing use of that technology, with more than 1,000 additively manufactured parts in orbit on 15 spacecraft. Lockheed Martin has expanded its use of 3D printing and recently opened an Additive Design and Manufacturing Center to bridge the gap between materials research and manufacturing. (11/2)

Milky Way Devoured a Smaller Galaxy (Source: Science News)
Astronomers have detected evidence that the Milky Way devoured a smaller galaxy 10 billion years ago. The aftermath of the galaxy merger can be seen in a population of stars from that smaller galaxy that are now part of the Milky Way, but moving in different directions from the rest of the Milky Way's stars. Those stars also have compositions that indicate they are older than stars like the sun. Astronomers used computer simulations to demonstrate that this group of stars can be explained by a galaxy 20 to 25 percent the size of the Milky Way colliding with the Milky Way 10 billion years ago. (11/2)

New Vans Shoes Feature NASA Logos (Source: Collect Space)
Vans is the latest company to produce clothing with the NASA logo. The company best known for its skateboarding shoes unveiled its Space Voyager Collection, which includes shoes and other apparel with NASA logos on them. The company said the apparel line is intended to honor NASA's 60th anniversary, as well as next year's Apollo 11 50th anniversary. (11/2)

Airbus Plans Tech School Planned in Alabama (Source: GCAC)
Airbus is working toward creating a technical school of its own that would help provide it with the larger workforce it expects it will need with the ramp up of the A320 production line and the new A220 production line. Stephanie Burt, director of Human Resources for the Airbus U.S. Manufacturing Facility in Alabama, said Airbus currently has 480 direct employees and will be hiring 400 to 500 workers for the new A220 assembly line and another 150 for the A320 line as production ramps up to meet customer demand.

She said that at this point Airbus has enough qualified applicants, “but we know with 700 jobs that are going to saturate the market by us alone, we’re not going to be able to fill those jobs with the local population.” Airbus plans to create a technical school of its own, not to keep people away from four-year or two-year colleges, but to create more opportunities for the local and extended community who may not take the traditional college path.

It would open next year. She said it’s not going to be a technical school in the traditional sense of a two-year college, but rather a place where someone who went to a two-year school could come and be assessed over a three- to five-week program to determine their skill level before being put in a position at the plant. Or, she said, “you come to us with nothing and in 12 weeks we have you capable to go out and do some OJT (on-the-job-training)." (11/2)