January 22, 2019

Waves in Saturn's Rings Give Precise Measurement of Planet's Rotation Rate (Source: Space Daily)
Saturn's distinctive rings were observed in unprecedented detail by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, and scientists have now used those observations to probe the interior of the giant planet and obtain the first precise determination of its rotation rate. The length of a day on Saturn, according to their calculations, is 10 hours 33 minutes and 38 seconds.

The researchers studied wave patterns created within Saturn's rings by the planet's internal vibrations. In effect, the rings act as an extremely sensitive seismograph by responding to vibrations within the planet itself.

Similar to Earth's vibrations from an earthquake, Saturn responds to perturbations by vibrating at frequencies determined by its internal structure. Heat-driven convection in the interior is the most likely source of the vibrations. These internal oscillations cause the density at any particular place within the planet to fluctuate, which makes the gravitational field outside the planet oscillate at the same frequencies. (1/21)

Russia to Launch Arctic Weather Satellite (Source: Sputnik)
The first Russian satellite for weather forecasting and monitoring climate and environment in the Arctic region, Arktika-M, is planned to be sent to near-earth orbit in June 2019, a source in the Russian space industry told Sputnik on Sunday. "The launch of the Soyuz-2.1b launch vehicle from the Baikonur cosmodrome with Fregat booster and the first hydrometeorological satellite Arktika-M is scheduled for June 2019", the source said.

The equipment installed on Arktika-M satellite will be similar to the geostationary meteorological satellites of the Elektro-L series. Arktika-M will be placed in a highly elliptical orbit, which will allow it to collect meteorological and hydrological information about the state of the Earth's polar regions that are poorly covered by Electro-L. Arktika-M will periodically move away from the Earth's surface and shoot multi-scale images. It will have a rotation speed different from the Earth's, so that its shooting angle will change continuously. (1/21)

Russia Ready to Design New Super Heavy Rocket (Source: Sputnik)
Russia's space industry corporation Roscosmos is ready to design a new super heavy-lift rocket launcher, its director announced Saturday. Dmitry Rogozin, the head of Roscosmos posted photos from a meeting at the agency's leading research institute for machine-building (Tsniimash) near Moscow, where the announcement was made. A Roscosmos spokesperson told Sputnik last month that the rocket concept would be presented to the Russian government by January 15. The new rocket will be called Yenisei.

Earlier Russia's space agency has proposed the creation of a constellation of remote sensing satellites dubbed the Sovereign's Eye ('Gosudarevo Oko'). "Today, we have presented a new project, which I consider extremely promising... On December 27, with the successful launch from the Vostochny Cosmodrome, we strengthened the constellation of Earth remote sensing satellites. We are now proposing a project called 'Sovereign's Eye', which would allow us to see the dynamics of any changes on Earth," Rogozin said, speaking to reporters on 18 December. (1/21)

Russia Talks Up Backup Manned Vehicle for Moon Without NASA Funding (Source: Sputnik)
Russia's State Space Corporation Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin has said that NASA had asked Roscosmos to create a lunar version of the Soyuz spacecraft as a backup manned space transport system for flights to the Moon. A senior Russian space industry source told Sputnik that Moscow will develop an ugraded Soyuz version at its own expense, and no funding from NASA is expected.

"NASA will not pay, it is planned to carry out all the work at own expense," the source said. To ensure the capability of the Soyuz spacecraft to fly to the Moon, an accelerating unit and a new thermal protection that will allow the ship to return to the Earth's atmosphere at the second cosmic velocity (11.2 kilometers per second, or 6.95 miles per second) are needed. (1/21)

Missile Tracking System Put on Fast Track (Source: Space News)
The Pentagon is promising "rapid progress" on new missile-tracking satellites included in its Missile Defense Review. The Pentagon views the Space Sensor Layer, a constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit, as a necessary military response to Russia's and China's looming deployment of hypersonic missiles. The program already has $73 million to start work on the project in the Defense Department's 2019 appropriations act. The Missile Defense Agency is evaluating nine proposals for space sensor architectures, three of which will be selected this year to continue working on the project for another six to nine months using those funds. (1/22)

UAE Devising New Plan for Space Investment (Source: Space News)
The United Arab Emirates is seeking to encourage investment in the space industry under a new plan. The National Plan for the Promotion of Space Investment announced last week will encourage both investment into space companies in the country as well as investment by funds based in the country into the broader space economy. The country's space agency, which announced the plan, said that more details about it will be announced in the coming months. The UAE has sought to take a bigger role in space in recent years, from the formation of a national space agency and development of a Mars orbiter mission to flying its first astronaut on a Soyuz mission to the International Space Station later this year. (1/22)

Facebook Planning Laser Comm with Satellites? (Source: IEEE Spectrum)
Facebook may be experimenting with lasers to provide satellite broadband services. A company previously linked to Facebook, PointView Tech, received building permits for two "detached observatories" atop Mount Wilson near Los Angeles. Those facilities could be used to support experiments using lasers for communications services, something that company researchers said in the past that they are interested in developing. (1/22)

Europe Planning Event to Grow Space Investment (Source: Delano)
The European Investment Bank is planning an event to support investment in the space industry. The initial forum, which may take place in Luxembourg in the next several months, is intended to bring together emerging space companies along with financial officials and policymakers to study ways to grow Europe's space industry. The forum was one of several recommendations of a report for the bank on the future of the European space sector. (1/22)

UK's Black Arrow Returns Home (Source: BBC)
A stage from the first, and to date only, British rocket to place a satellite in orbit is coming back the United Kingdom. The Black Arrow first stage used in the 1971 launch of the Prospero satellite from Australia, which had been lying in the South Australian outback since the launch, was recently shipped to Scotland, where it will go on public display later this month. Skyrora, a British small launch vehicle developer, led the project to return the Black Arrow stage to the U.K. and also commissioned a plaque that will be displayed where the stage landed in Australia. (1/22)

China Protects Radio Telescope With Regulations (Source: Xinhua)
China is enacting new regulations to reduce interference at the site of the world's largest radio telescope. The new regulations prohibit the use of mobile phones, digital cameras and other wearable electronics in the vicinity of the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), a radio telescope 500 meters in diameter in the province of Guizhou. The regulations are intended to reduce radio interference at the telescope, which has seen a surge in tourism since it opened in 2016. (1/22)

SpinLaunch Developing Kinetic Energy Space Launch System, Starting Up In New Mexico (Source: Clean Technica)
SpinLaunch, a startup company that aims to electrify space launches, chose Spaceport America in New Mexico for its initial operations. Spaceport America announced that this would bring additional jobs to the region. Unlike most spacelaunch companies, SpinLaunch hopes to stop relying on fossil fuels or other chemical rockets to launch objects into space.

With its abundant sunshine and, in some areas, abundant wind, an electric launch system placed in southern New Mexico could greatly reduce the environmental and climatological impacts of space launches. Not many details have been released, but according to the company’s press release, the system would place loads onto a rapidly spinning centrifuge, not unlike an ancient sling weapon, and release the load toward space at over 5,000 miles per hour. It is unclear whether chemical rockets would then be used to achieve escape velocity and then orbit. (1/17)

Silicon Valley Company Announces Investment at Spaceport America (Source: Albuquerque Business First)
Spaceport America has landed another tenant, signing a multi-year lease with a Silicon Valley firm called SpinLaunch. The California company is leasing acreage from the commercial space hub near Truth or Consequences and will build a facility employing at least 20 people, according to spokeswoman Diane Murphy. It will include a launch site that Murphy said will serve as a testing grounds for its launching technology.

Spaceport CEO Dan Hicks said there was potential for a lease extension. SpinLaunch will invest $7 million in facility construction and $1 million in infrastructure development. The deal is important for the $220 million taxpayer-subsidized Spaceport, which has struggled in the past to secure tenants. The group has raised a total of $40 million from a series of investors including Airbus Ventures, GV and Kleiner Perkins, and expects to conduct its first launch by 2022. Murphy also said the company considered several locations for the test site, but that Spaceport provided the best mix of affordability and location. New Mexico's renewable energy potential, universities and young labor pool were also considered assets. (1/16)