March 26, 2019

FAA Rule Would Streamline Commercial Space Launch and Reentry Requirements (Source: FAA)
A new proposed FAA rule would streamline federal commercial space transportation requirements for launch, reentry, and launch-site providers, and maintain safety during launches and reentries. The proposed rule would provide a safe, performance-based regulatory approach to commercial space transportation. It would promote safety practices by creating flexibility for operators to meet safety requirements, and by enhancing collaboration among stakeholders.

The rule would also improve efficiency by encouraging potential and current launch site and reentry operators to suggest and implement design and operation solutions. The proposed rule advances proposals by the Streamlined Launch and Reentry Licensing Requirements Aviation Rulemaking Committee, which is made up of commercial space and aviation leaders from government and industry. Editor's Note: It would be nice if this official FAA announcement provided a detail or two about what this rule entails. (3/26)

China’s Space Program Soars (Source: Asia Times)
From its relatively humble beginnings 60 years ago, the Chinese program has come to be one of the biggest contenders in the modern-day space race. Between its inception in the late 1950s and the turn of the century, the program experienced a gradual buildup in terms of technology, infrastructure and capability. In time, this would set the stage for China becoming an official major power in space. By 2003, the first crewed mission to Earth orbit was successfully launched.

That same year, the China National Space Agency (CNSA) inaugurated the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, which envisaged sending a series of robotic missions to the moon in preparation for an eventual crewed mission. Early this year, China became the first country to land a probe on the far side of the moon. It is a technical achievement that neither the United States nor Russia has pursued.

It is symbolic of the growth of the Chinese space program and the capabilities it has amassed, and the consequences extend to the US as that country’s government considers global competition in the future of space exploration. If China’s successes continue to accumulate, could the US find itself engaged in a new space race? What will the capabilities and accomplishments of China’s space program mean for NASA? (3/26)

Taking it Slow: SpaceX Working Up to Initial Hopper Tests at Boca Chica (Source: Brownsville Herald)
After years of development, a flurry of activity at SpaceX’s Boca Chica facility since late last year has culminated in the construction and imminent initial testing of the Starship Hopper, the first prototype of the spacecraft the Hawthorne, Calif.-based company intends to take humans to Mars some day.

All eyes are on Boca Chica since authorities began closing State Highway 4 to traffic last week. However, again Monday, the hopper’s single liquid-oxygen-methane-fueled Raptor engine apparently wasn’t ignited. The plumes of vapor emanating from the hopper were accompanied by venting from a vertical fuel tank, or tanks, and the flaring of methane from a vertical pipe some distance from the launch pad. (3/26)

Looking Up: Texas Valley on the Verge of Promising New Era (Source: Valley Morning Star)
The light shines at the end of the tunnel. That light illuminates a stadium called the world of tomorrow. Inside the tunnel the excitement mounts among the players — the people of the Rio Grande Valley — who anxiously await running out to face great challenge and achievement. The game is about to begin.

In the past week aeronautic giant SpaceX has begun testing systems at its new launch facility on Boca Chica Beach; the FAA has issued aircraft advisories regarding launch tests planned for this week. It appears the Valley will be home base for real space missions in the very near future. Also last week, officials at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley officially launched STARGATE — Spacecraft Tracking and Astronomical Research into Giga-hertz Astrophysical Transient Emission — to support our new extraterrestrial industry.

The UTRGV Center for Gravitational Wave Astronomy, STARGATE’s base, already is well known in scientific circles. It is one of the nation’s leading centers for the study of exploding stars and black holes, and it contributed research that confirmed the existence of gravitational waves — ripples in the fabric of spacetime — that received the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics. (3/25)

The Universe's Dark Secret: Where Did All the Antimatter Go? (Source: Space.com)
So there's this stuff called "antimatter." You may have heard of it. It's just like normal matter, with all the same properties and all the same abilities to make up atoms and molecules, except for one crucial difference: It has an opposite charge. Take the humble electron, for example. Mass of 9.11 x 10^-31 kg. Quantum spin of 1/2. Charge of -1.6 x 10^-9 coulombs.

It has an antimatter evil twin, the positron. The positron has a mass of 9.11 x 10^-31 kg. Quantum spin of 1/2. Charge of … 1.6 x 10^-9 coulombs. It's the same for every other particle out there. There's a dark-side twin for the top quark, the neutrino, the muon and on and on and on. All the fundamental particles that make up our daily lives have a partner, living just on the other side of the charge fence.

That's all well and dandy and no big deal at all, except for one thing, which is a tiny bit of a big deal. As far as we can understand the theory and see in the observations, not only are matter and antimatter paired up like this, they're symmetric. Every particle of normal matter produced in a reaction comes paired with its antimatter sibling. The only conclusion: Our universe ought to be swimming with antimatter, existing in equal parts with normal matter. (3/25)

Canada’s Mars on Earth Featured in Google Earth, Street View and a New Documentary (Source: SpaceQ)
The Haughton Crater on Devon Island in Canada’s high Arctic is home to the only known impact crater in a polar desert. This makes it an ideal analog for a Mars on Earth research station. The Haughton-Mars Project (HMP) is managed by the Mars Institute and SETI Institute and who work in collaboration with NASA and other partners to conduct exploration and science research each summer.

Today the Mars Institute and SETI Institute announced a new ongoing collaboration with Google. The new collaboration includes a guided tour of Mars on Earth in Google Earth along with new Google Street Views in Google Maps, and a new short documentary. (3/26)

On Capitol Hill, Smallsat Industry Makes Push for Government Funding (Source: Space News)
The trade association that represents small satellite manufacturers is making a fresh push on Capitol Hill to ensure funds are included in the Pentagon’s budget for smallsat technologies. Specifically, the SmallSat Alliance is asking lawmakers to put additional money in the Air Force’s budget to develop “hybrid architectures that combine legacy military and intelligence satellites with proliferated government and commercial smallsat capabilities,” the group's president Steve Nixon said. (3/26)

NASA Files Paperwork for New KSC Launch Complex (Source: Orlando Business Journal)
NASA filed a permit application on March 18 to introduce a new launchpad at Kennedy Space Center, which is expected to impact the local space industry with more jobs and other business opportunities. The plans are for Launch Complex 48, a brand new complex that will sit between the active Launch Complex 39A and Launch Complex 41.

A timeline for when the work will begin on the new launch pad has not been given and KSC was not available for comment. Although LC-48 has been in KSC's 20-year master plan that runs through 2032, the permit application is the first document filed toward starting design plans. Having another active launch complex likely will boost Florida's Space Coast and the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, as it will be yet another area for rocket companies to use, and those companies may build rockets here as well.

Editor's Note: Space Florida's proposed Shiloh launch complex, north of the spaceport's existing launch pads, remains in the state agency's long-term plans but no longer seems to be a high priority. The handful of new launch companies that might soon require launch pads have already found sites on the Cape and in other states. Relativity Space, Firefly, and Vector have settled on existing unused launch pads in Florida. If NASA intends to make this LC-48 investment, Space Florida can avoid pouring state taxpayer money into Shiloh's development. (3/26)

New NASA Launch Pad Could Host Boeing Spaceplane (Source: Orlando Business Journal)
If Boeing were to build and launch its proposed XS-1 spaceplane at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport it would create 254 jobs paying an average salary of $80,000, according to Space Florida. The state agency is in talks with Boeing to lure in work for the XS-1 and believes LC-48 might be a good fit for the small spacecraft. Florida currently has nine active launch complexes, with seven being renovated to accommodate more rockets and other space-related activity. (3/26)

Three Michigan Sites Considered for Spaceport (Sources: Presque Isle County Advance, K102.5)
Planners with the Michigan Launch Initiative (MLI) are in the very early stages, but Rogers City, Oscoda and Alpena are being considered for a new space launch facility. The MLI was unveiled during the 2018 Space Symposium conducted last fall. The spaceport site could be selected as soon as this summer and when operational could launch 25 times per year. A command center for the launches is also being sought with Battle Creek's Fort Custer in the running for that.

Over the next decade more than 7,000 small satellite launches are planned, if sufficient launch capacity exists, said Gavin Brown, Michigan Aerospace Manufacturers Association executive director, the organization that organized the symposium, October 2018. o specific sites in each respective community have been released; however, the launch facility site selection is supposed to be concluded in the second quarter of 2019.

Editor's Note: This is from a Feb. 14 article: "In a setback to the budding NewSpace industry in Michigan, newly-elected Governor Whitmer of Michigan has nixed a $2.5 million grant to develop a rocket launch pad. Originally backed by Governor Snyder and state Republicans, they hoped it would help spur investment in the state’s aerospace sector." (3/26)

Human Spaceflight, Exploration and the Jobs Specter (Source: Space Review)
Human spaceflight is often promoted as an expression of humanity’s innate desire to explore, but it’s not how such programs are truly funded. Roger Handberg argues that, ultimately, it comes down to economic benefits, notably jobs. Click here. (3/25)
 
Cost Challenges Continue for NASA Science Missions (Source: Space Review)
While recent attention devoted to NASA’s fiscal year 2020 budget proposal focused on SLS, science programs are also facing scrutiny. Jeff Foust reports on those issues, including yet another attempt to cancel a major astrophysics mission and cost growth for planetary science missions. Click here. (3/25)
 
Could Suborbital Point-to-Point Really Be Worth $20 Billion a Year in 2030? (Source: Space Review)
A recent report by UBS projects that point-to-point suborbital space travel will be a $20 billion a year market in 2030. Sam Dinkin examines their assumptions and offers an alternative analysis. Click here. (3/25)

Scientists Witness New Spot on Neptune (Source: Space.com)
Planetary scientists have witnessed for the first time the birth of a new "dark spot" on Neptune. Scientists captured the creation of the spot, a powerful storm in the planet's atmosphere, in images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. The storm, first seen as an area of bright clouds in 2015 observations of Neptune, had turned into a dark spot the size of the Earth by last year. Unlike Jupiter's Great Red Spot, which has been seen for centuries, dark spots on Neptune last for only a few years before dissipating. (3/26)

NASA Appropriator Nixes Re-Election Plans (Source: Space News)
The chairman of the House appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA and NOAA announced Monday he will not run for reelection in 2020. Rep. José Serrano (D-NY), chairman of the commerce, justice and science (CJS) subcommittee, said he decided not to run for reelection after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Serrano said he plans to complete the rest of his term, and that the disease has not affected his work in Congress so far. Serrano's announcement comes as his subcommittee is planning a series of hearings this week on budget proposals, including one Wednesday afternoon about NASA's fiscal year 2020 budget request. (3/26)

Russia to Lower Proton Price to Compete with SpaceX (Source: TASS)
Russia plans to lower the price of the Proton-M rocket to make it competitive with the Falcon 9. Dmitry Rogozin, head of Roscosmos, said that it is cutting costs in ground infrastructure so that it can offer the rocket for the same price as the Falcon 9. The Proton had long been a mainstay of the commercial launch industry, but a sharp drop in geostationary satellite orders, coupled with a number of Proton failures linked to quality control issues, has reduced demand for the vehicle. (3/26)

HASC Chairman Opposes Space Force Plan (Source: Space News)
The chairman of the House Armed Services Committees said Monday he's opposed to the administration's Space Force proposal. Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) said in a statement that the Pentagon's plan to establish a Space Force within the Air Force is "highly problematic," citing concerns such as growth in bureaucracy, "almost unlimited" personnel transfers and waivers to civil service regulations. Smith said he will consider "other potential legislative options" for the Space Force, which could be part of the next defense authorization act or in stand-alone legislation. Smith's comments come on the eve of a hearing later this morning by his committee on the Defense Department's budget request. (3/26)

NASA Nixes All-Female Spacewalk Plan Over Spacesuit Size Issue (Source: Space News)
NASA has changed assignments for upcoming spacewalks at the International Space Station, canceling what would have been the first all-female EVA. NASA said Monday that Nick Hague will replace Anne McClain on Friday's spacewalk with Christina Koch. McClain, who performed a spacewalk with Hague on Friday, found she would be more comfortable using a spacesuit with a medium-sized torso rather than the large-sized torso she used Friday. Only one such suit is ready for use on the station now, and Koch will wear it. McClain will instead perform a spacewalk with Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques April 8. Had the earlier schedule held up, the Koch-McCain spacewalk would have been the first all-woman spacewalk in the history of spaceflight. (3/26)

April's Falcon Heavy Commercial Launch to Support Air Force Certification (Source: Space News)
The Air Force will be closely following the commercial launch of a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket next month. That launch, of the Arabsat-6A satellite, is scheduled for no earlier than April 7 from the Kennedy Space Center. Air Force officials said they'll use data from the launch to help complete work certifying the rocket for national security payloads as well as becoming more comfortable with the use of previously flown boosters. While the three booster cores on the upcoming launch are new, the side boosters will be reflown on the following Falcon Heavy mission, tentatively scheduled for June. (3/26)

Space Flights From UAE to Take Research Projects Onboard (Sourced: Khaleej Times)
Virgin Galactic's commercial flights from the UAE could potentially create several breakthrough scientific discoveries for the country as the firm will take experiments and research projects onboard as well. George Whitesides, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said that it took an experiment by Nasa on its second test flight in February. He added that they are in talks with the UAE Space Agency on carrying research projects onboard, alongside humans, who will pay $250,000 each for a seat on the sub-orbital flight. (3/20)

Are Aliens Ignoring Us? Maybe We're Already Their Captives in a 'Galactic Zoo' (Source: Live Science)
Why hasn't Earth received any messages from extraterrestrials yet? Perhaps because we're already unwitting inhabitants in a so-called galactic zoo. This was one of the scenarios a group of international researchers explored on March 18 at a meeting organized by the nonprofit organization Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence (METI).

The gathering, which took place at the City of Science and Industry museum in Paris (Cité), brought together about 60 scientists who research the possibility of communication with hypothetical intelligent extraterrestrials. There, they debated "The Great Silence" — why aliens haven't contacted us — exploring one possibility known as the "zoo hypothesis." First proposed in the 1970s, it describes Earth as a planet that is already under observation by "galactic zookeepers" who are deliberately concealing themselves from human detection. (3/25)