February 22, 2019

Falcon-9 Launches Satellites and Israeli Lunar Rover (Source: Space News)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 successfully launched a communications satellite and lunar lander Thursday night. The Falcon 9 lifted off on schedule at 8:45 p.m. Eastern from Cape Canaveral, Florida, with its primary payload the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesian operator Pasifik Satelit Nusantara. That satellite, along with an experimental Air Force Research Lab smallsat called S5, separated from the rocket's upper stage about 45 minutes after liftoff.

Beresheet, the lunar lander developed by Israeli organization SpaceIL, separated from the upper stage earlier, and is on track to attempt a lunar landing in April. The Falcon 9's first stage, making its third launch, successfully landed on a droneship despite what SpaceX said were "challenging" conditions. Elon Musk said after the launch that the stage will fly again in April to perform an in-flight abort test for the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft. (2/22)

Soyuz Launches Egyptian Satellite, Despite Third-Stage Issue (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
An Egyptian satellite made it to orbit Thursday despite an apparent problem with its Soyuz rocket. The Soyuz-2.1b rocket launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 11:47 a.m. Eastern, placing the EgyptSat-A remote sensing satellite into orbit. Russian media reported that there was a problem with the rocket's Fregat upper stage during the flight, but that the upper stage compensated for the problem with a longer second burn.

Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël tweeted that the Soyuz launch of the first set of OneWeb satellites, which was scheduled for Feb. 26, will be delayed because of the "non-nominal third-stage behavior" on Thursday's launch. A new launch date has not been announced. (2/22)

Virgin Galactic Sends First Test Passenger on Spaceflight (Source: CNBC)
Virgin Galactic flew astronaut trainer Beth Moses on the company's spacecraft Unity, along with the two pilots. "Beth Moses is on board as a crew member," a Virgin Galactic spokeswoman told CNBC. "She will be doing validation of some of the cabin design elements." This is the first time Virgin Galactic will carry three human beings on its ride to the edge of space. In previous test flights, the two pilots were the only ones inside of the spacecraft.

The successful test flight reached an altitude of 55.85 miles (89.9km) above the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. Virgin Galactic's spacecraft Unity holds up to six passengers along with the two pilots. As the company has more than 600 would-be astronauts signed on to launch, Moses' work is key to preparing Virgin Galactic for commercial operations. Tickets for Virgin Galactic's flights are priced at $250,000 each. (2/22)

Firefly Planning a Major Rocket Assembly and Launch Facility in Florida (Source: Ars Technica)
Texas-based Firefly announced that it has reached an agreement to develop manufacturing facilities and a launch site at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport in Florida. The new facility will support the production of up to 24 Alpha rockets a year, with the ability to scale from there, company officials said. These are sizable plans. Over an unspecified period of time, the company said it will invest $52 million into the facilities. Florida’s spaceport development authority, Space Florida, will also provide an additional $18.9 million in infrastructure investments.

It will build an expansive facility to assemble its Alpha (and eventually the larger Beta) rockets, near the large Blue Origin plant in Florida's Exploration Park area. The aerospace company has made a remarkable comeback since 2016, when its founder Tom Markusic could no longer raise the funds needed to keep the firm going. It has since retooled with stable financing from Ukrainian businessman Max Polyakov and increased the capacity of its Alpha vehicle to 1 ton to low-Earth orbit. (2/22)

World View Not Meeting Arizona Job Creation Targets Laid Out in Incentive Agreement (Source: Tucson Sentinel)
World View is falling short of the number of jobs required under a lease agreement for its headquarters. The Tucson, Arizona-based company, which makes high-altitude balloons for applications that otherwise require satellites, is supposed to have created 100 jobs at an average salary of $50,000 by now under terms of its lease agreement with Pima County, which funded the construction of the facility. However, the company only has 83 employees, plus several contract workers. County officials, though, said they're not considering revoking the lease, noting that the average salary paid by the company is significantly higher than $50,000, and that new management at World View will push the company to grow. (2/22)

Maritime Launch Services to Deliver NSE Focus Report by the Third Week of March (Source: SpaceQ)
Maritime Launch Services (MLS), the Halifax based startup wanting to build a spaceport in Nova Scotia, plans on submitting its mandated Nova Scotia Environment Focus Report by the third week of March. Last summer Nova Scotia Environment (NSE) in reviewing MLS’s environmental assessment report deemed it necessary to proceed with what it calls a Focus Report. That report would provide more information and answer additional questions the Province put forward. It is not an uncommon request, but did delay MLS’s plans. MLS has one year to submit the Focus Report upon receiving the Terms of Reference. (2/22)

Firefly to Launch and Manufacture Rockets at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Florida Today)
A new rocket will fly from the Space Coast, and be built here, too, state officials are expected to announce Friday morning at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Texas-based Firefly Aerospace, which is developing rockets to launch small satellites, would set up a manufacturing facility in Kennedy Space Center’s Exploration Park and launch as soon as next year from a pad at Launch Complex 20. The work would bring about 240 jobs.

Firefly has already secured a California launch pad and has been targeting a first launch of the two-stage, 95-foot Alpha rocket before the end of this year. The more powerful Beta rocket, featuring three Alpha core stages strapped together, is in design. Charging $15 million per launch, the company hopes to fly monthly by 2021, and eventually twice a month. Owned by Silicon Valley-based Noosphere Ventures, Firefly Aerospace emerged from the 2017 bankruptcy of Firefly Space Systems, founded in 2014.

The company has at least one contract for up to six launches, and recently was selected by NASA as one of nine companies that could deliver small landers to the moon. Firefly would be the second small satellite launcher to confirm plans to launch from Florida. Relativity Space recently won preliminary Air Force approval to fly Terran 1 rockets from Launch Complex 16, possibly by late next year. Rocket Lab, which launches Electron rockets from New Zealand, last year chose Virginia over Florida for its U.S. launch site. Firefly is potentially a bigger win for Space Florida because of the additional manufacturing work. (2/21)

NASA is Testing a Submarine to Hunt for Undiscovered Sea Life — Scientists Eventually Want it to Look for Aliens on Europa (Source: Business Insider)
Scientists from NASA and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have teamed up on a $1.2 million, privately funded effort to research, design, and build a new robot to explore the hadal zone. The group aptly named the new drone Orpheus, after the mythic Greek hero who dove to the depths of hell and serenaded Hades, the king of the underworld. Scientists hope that similarly, this Orpheus will one day find new bottom-dwelling sea creatures and snap photos of deep-sea life.

"They're almost totally unexplored and it's a very, very inhospitable environment for doing exploration," NASA robot engineer John Leichty, who helped design and build the Orpheus drone, told Business Insider. "But there's a lot of creatures that live there." Diving that deep is hard. Scientists at WHOI thought their Nereus deep-ocean vehicle could get there in 2014, but the remote-operated machine was lost some six miles under the sea after just six weeks of exploration. So for this project, engineers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab (like Leichty) are lending a hand.

Their goal is to create a drone submersible so small and so light that they'll one day be able to shoot it into space to explore other oceans. Orpheus is the first step in that direction. The Orpheus drone is about the size of a backyard grill and weighs 600 pounds. The team completed the first untethered, autonomous test of the new drone in September, just outside Cape Cod Bay. The robot went 176 meters (roughly 577 feet) below the surface, which is still far above the hadal zone, so it's clear Orpheus isn't ready for prime time yet. (2/21)

Rep. Sirois Announces Launch of Space Caucus At Florida Capitol (Source: Space Coast Daily)
Representative Tyler Sirois (R- Cocoa) announced the launch of the Space Caucus during his remarks yesterday to aerospace industry leaders visiting the Florida Capitol in celebration of the annual “Florida Space Day” at the Capitol. The caucus will be co-chaired by Representative Sirois and Senator Tom Wright (R- New Smyrna Beach), who is also Chairman of the Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs and Space.

“The Space Caucus will be instrumental in educating members of the Florida Legislature about the importance of space and Florida remaining the launch pad to America’s future in space exploration,” said Representative Sirois. “Florida’s Space Coast is seeing unprecedented growth as the aerospace industry is making a comeback since the end of the Space Shuttle program in 2011,” said Senator Wright. “In 2017, spaceport operations in my district attributed to nearly 24,000 jobs with a total economic impact of $3.9 billion to the State of Florida.” (2/21)

New (Lunar) Simulation Takes Off at HI-SEAS Habitat on Mauna Loa (Source: Hawaii Tribune Herald)
A new two-week mission launched Wednesday at the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation habitat located on the slopes of Mauna Loa. Crew members will perform scientific experiments and test instruments needed for future explorations of the moon or Mars. The crew of six is under the command of UH-Manoa’s Michaela Musilova, chief investigator for HI-SEAS and the International MoonBase Alliance.

The mission is part of the EuroMoonMars initiative, led by the International Lunar Exploration Working Group of the European Space Agency in collaboration with the International MoonBase Alliance, European Space Research and Technology Centre, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and HI-SEAS. For the past several years, the habitat was used as a Mars simulation. “This mission is a moon mission rather than a Mars mission,” said Henk Rogers. (2/21)

Growing ASAT Threat Behind New Space Force (Source: Washington Free Beacon)
The growing threat to American satellites from Chinese and Russian anti-satellite weaponry was a key driver behind President Trump's directive creating a new space military force. Trump on Tuesday signed Space Policy Directive-4 ordering creation of a new U.S. Space Force to be a separate service within the Air Force —the military leader for national security space operations.

"America must be fully equipped to defend our vital interests," Trump said in signing the directive. "Our adversaries are training forces and developing technology to undermine our security in space, and they're working very hard at that." The action follows the creation a Space Command in December that will coordinate space activities for all military services. (2/21)

Space Florida Envisions the State as the World’s Commercial Spaceport (Source: Florida Politics)
Space Florida President Frank DiBello told a Florida Senate committee Wednesday that the Earth’s space industry already is at $345 billion a year and growing rapidly and his organization aims to make Cape Canaveral the global leader as a commercial spaceport. Cape Canaveral, in part through deals Space Florida helped arrange between NASA, the Department of Defense and private-launch rocket companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, already is rapidly transitioning from being a government rocket launch center to one that handles both government and private space interests.

But there are at least 38 other launch sites worldwide, and the number is growing. So being competitive is key as the industry expects to soon start commercializing space in a number of ways, DiBello told the Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs and Space on Tuesday. “We want to be able to do things using the powers that we have not only on the ground but in space. So that where we’re headed from a visionary point of view is to view Florida in the future as a global space commerce trade port, not unlike the way London served for several centuries past, opening up world trade from its port activities, ” DiBello said.

“We want Florida to be the leading global enabler of this new era of commercial space, whether it’s for research, manufacturing, or services, bringing things out there and bringing value back,” he said. (2/20)

New Space Company to Facilitate ISRO Tech Transfer to Industry (Source: Times of India)
The Union Cabinet has approved the setting up of a new company under the department of space to commercially exploit the research and development work of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). "The main objective of this new company will be to act as a mediator or link between ISRO and the industry, and facilitate the transfer of ISRO technologies to private companies. (2/21)

Critics Line Up to Oppose Spaceport Authority (Source: Brunswick News)
The crowd that attended the first of two public hearings Tuesday to provide input about the creation of an authority to oversee a proposed spaceport in Camden County wanted to send a message to elected officials. Unfortunately, only one Camden County Commission member, Ben Casey, was there to hear what the public had to say. And what he heard didn’t show support for the proposed Spaceport Camden or an authority to oversee operations.

The authority, according to the proposal, would have the responsibility of “acquiring, constructing, equipping, maintaining, and operating” the proposed spaceport, including acquiring parking facilities and other things determined to be necessary for the development and operation of the facility. Nobody spoke in favor of the creation of an authority at the morning meeting. Instead, those who spoke make it clear a proposal to launch rockets over occupied areas of Cumberland and Little Cumberland islands doesn’t fly, whatsoever. (2/20)

Japan Spacecraft Touches Down on Asteroid (Source: BBC News)
A Japanese spacecraft has touched down on an asteroid in an attempt to collect a sample of rock from the surface. The Hayabusa-2 probe was trying to grab the sample from a pre-chosen site on the asteroid Ryugu just before 23:00 GMT on 21 February. The spacecraft reached asteroid Ryugu in June 2018 after a three-and-a-half-year journey from Earth.

It is expected to return to Earth with the rocky material it has cached in 2020. During sample collection, the spacecraft was set to approach the 1km-wide asteroid with an instrument called the sampler horn. On touchdown, a 5g projectile made of the metal tantalum should have been fired into the rocky surface at 300m/s. (2/21)

Here's How A National Space Lottery Might Solve NASA's Funding Problems (Source: Forbes)
Funding the search for alien technology, Mars rovers, or ailing ground-based telescopes with two-dollar lottery tickets may sound as nutty as staring into the face of the Sun. But is it time for a national ‘space’ lottery? A lottery not unlike those used by individual states to fund education and other causes could also be geared to fund space and astronomy exploration and research. Administered by a non-profit organization sanctioned by the U.S. government, such a national space lottery would operate independently.

How the money was spent would be based on recommendations of a non-profit review board made up of a rotating team of academics and aerospace leaders who would voluntarily give their time in awarding grant monies. This is a system that already works well in academia and that NASA itself uses to dole out money to individual researchers within academia for everything from Earth sciences to the search for extrasolar planets.

People who normally buy lottery tickets would at least be assured that their money is going towards our collective space future. And people who never buy lottery tickets could do so with the knowledge that they were contributing to viable space projects. To sweeten the pot, the tickets could be made to be tax deductible. (2/21)

How Ted Cruz, NASA and SpaceX Could Get America Back to the Moon (Source: Daily Caller)
Senate Space and Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Ted Cruz has promised to write and pass a new NASA authorization bill as well as new commercial space legislation. The NASA bill would allow Cruz to fix a huge problem facing NASA’s efforts to take Americans back to the moon as well as to take advantage of SpaceX’s latest project in South Texas.

The problem is that NASA’s moon program is dependent on a hugely expensive rocket called the Space Launch System and a similarly expensive Orion spacecraft. NASA has spent $30 billion on both vehicles and may well spend almost as much before human beings approach the moon about five years hence. Combined with the Lunar Gateway space station, the current return-to-the-moon program promises to be awesomely expensive.

Ironically, the uncrewed side of the return-to-the-moon program is being run lean and mean, using commercial partners. NASA is pushing its commercial partners to start landing on the moon this year and certainly by 2020. In effect, NASA has two return-to-the-moon programs: the nimble, commercial-heavy uncrewed one and the bloated, expensive one that is supposed to lead to the first footsteps on the lunar surface in 2028. Click here. (2/21)

Bruno: Straight Talk Regarding Air Force Launch Contract (Source: Space News)
There has been a tremendous amount of rhetoric and misinformation regarding a contract my company has with the Air Force, commonly referred to as “ELC.” The Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) Launch Capability contract ensures safe, reliable and on-time launch services for our country’s most critical national security space satellites. Critics have asserted that ULA receives $800 million per year in a contract “for doing nothing,” stating that it was a “retainer” or “subsidy” for ULA to “stay in business” for the Air Force. This is untrue and reveals a fundamental lack of understanding of this innovative contracting mechanism.

Critics have asserted that ULA receives $800 million per year in a contract “for doing nothing,” stating that it was a “retainer” or “subsidy” for ULA to “stay in business” for the Air Force. This is untrue and reveals a fundamental lack of understanding of this innovative contracting mechanism. In the past, when the government contracted to launch satellites individually and then experienced delays in satellite delivery, significant disruptions to the manifest were experienced, accompanied by cost increases and delays. ELC avoids these penalty costs and disruptions.

While this approach has served the nation well for the past decade, both ULA and the Air Force recognize a need to address the current approach for future launch services. However, changing that structure is complex and requires a thoughtful and strategic transition plan. Ending this contract early would create a substantial bill for the Air Force because they would have to fully fund, in a single year, the launch costs for all 78 rockets ULA is under contract to manufacture. (2/18)