March 8, 2019

Bigger Implications: Florida Splashdown Could Be First of Many (Source: SPACErePORT)
SpaceX has successfully demonstrated its capability for on-target capsule splashdowns in the Atlantic off the coast of Florida. With its Go Searcher recovery ship docked at Port Canaveral, SpaceX now seems poised to recover future crew and cargo Dragon capsules off the state's Space Coast. This could mean more SpaceX and NASA-oriented jobs and investment at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.

The Dragon capsules will deliver astronauts and ISS experiment materials that will benefit from timely access to laboratories, researchers, and medical personnel at the spaceport, including the same labs where the experiments were prepared for launch. Florida-based landing and recovery operations would also reduce SpaceX and NASA costs for capsule and cargo transportation and operations on the West Coast. (3/8)

California's Vandenberg AFB Spaceport Has One 2019 Launch Planned (Source: Lompoc Record)
It could be a quiet year for launches at Vandenberg Air Force Base, a base official says. Col. Michael Hough, commander of the 30th Space Wing there, told a local audience that there is only one launch currently on the manifest for the base for the rest of 2019, which he did not disclose. Hough said this lull should be temporary, with an increase in launch activities there in the next two to three years, in part as new companies set up launch facilities there.

Editor's Note: Vandenberg could see a sustained decline in launch demand if the Air Force's 45th Space Wing continues its efforts toward establishing a polar launch corridor for launches from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. (3/8)

Russia Casts Shade on SpaceX, a Sign of Concern for Soyuz's Future (Source: Ars Technica)
A "passive-aggressive" reaction by Russia to the Crew Dragon mission may be a sign of deeper insecurities about its own capabilities. Various statements by Roscosmos before and after the docking appeared to cast shade at SpaceX, including one statement in English where Roscosmos congratulated NASA, but not SpaceX, for the docking. A Russian space expert, speaking on Russian television earlier this week, suggested the reactions underscore the fact that Crew Dragon is a more capable vehicle than Russia's Soyuz spacecraft and that, with the introduction of commercial crew services, Russia will soon be without a major source of revenue as NASA will no longer buy seats on Russian spacecraft. (3/8)

Air Force Prepares to Launch WGS-10 as Negotiations with Boeing Continue Over Future Satellites (Source: Space News)
As the Air Force prepares to launch one communications satellite, it's having to figure out how to launch two others it didn't ask for. The Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) 10 satellite is ready for launch March 13 on a Delta 4 from Cape Canaveral. WGS-10 was planned to be the final satellite in the WGS system, with the Air Force examining options such as procuring commercial satellite services.

But Congress inserted $600 million into the final 2018 spending bill last March for building WGS-11 and 12. That bill, though, didn't include funding for launching those satellites, and the Air Force and Boeing remain in negotiations over the contract to build those satellites. One option might be to build and launch a single satellite for $600 million with at least twice the capacity of existing WGS spacecraft. (3/7)

What if It's Not Dark Matter Making The Universe's Extra 'Gravity', But Light? (Source: Science Alert)
We've been looking for decades for dark matter, yet the mysterious stuff remains undetectable to our instruments. Now, astrophysicists have explored an intriguing possibility: what if it's not dark matter that's affecting galactic rotation after all. What if it's the mass of light instead? We don't know what dark matter is, and we can't detect it directly. But unless all our current understanding about the physical Universe (and all the data we've collected on the phenomenon is wrong), something out there is definitely making extra gravity.

But that something might not be dark matter, according to a team of researchers – specifically, plasma physicist Dmitri Ryutov, who recently retired from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, and Dmitry Budker and Victor Flambaum of the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz in Germany. In a new paper, they lay out an argument that light particles (photons) are at least partially the source of the phenomenon - causing an effect that isn't gravity, but behaves a heck of a lot like it.

"By assuming a certain photon mass, much smaller than the current upper limit, we can show that this mass would be sufficient to generate additional forces in a galaxy and that these forces would be roughly large enough to explain the rotation curves. This conclusion is extremely exciting." The effect they describe is a sort of "negative pressure" caused by electromagnetic stresses related to the photon mass. (3/7)

Elon Musk’s Security Clearance Under Review Over Pot Use (Source: Bloomberg)
The Pentagon is reviewing Elon Musk’s federal security clearance following the billionaire’s marijuana toke on a California comedian’s podcast in September, according to a U.S. official. Musk has refiled his SF-86 security form, which requires a federal employee or contractor seeking a clearance to acknowledge any illegal drug use over the previous seven years, according to the official, who asked not to be identified. The entrepreneur has a secret-level clearance because of his role as founder and CEO of SpaceX, which is certified to launch military spy satellites.

A SpaceX official, who asked not to be identified, said the review hasn’t had an impact on the company. SpaceX’s day-to-day operations are run by President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell. The company has won contracts for national security space launches since Musk’s podcast incident, including one for three launches on Feb. 19 for $297 million. But the refiling and review underscore the continuing ramifications from the chief executive officer’s decision last year to smoke marijuana on the podcast, which quickly went viral. And it highlights the legal discrepancies between federal and state policy on marijuana use. (3/7)

Aerospace Students Looking Beyond NASA for Life Goals (Source: Spectrum News 13)
The rise of SpaceX is inspiring a new generation to reach for the stars. "SpaceX was a big inspiration for me in high school," said Nick Lopac, an Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University student enrolled in the school's spaceflight operations program. "They're doing a lot of innovative stuff, and I'd love to be a part of their team, maybe one day," Lopac says.

Daniel Byrnes became fascinated with SpaceX from more than 5,000 miles away in Naples, Italy, where his family lived during his high school days. "SpaceX drove me to this university, Embry-Riddle," said Byrnes, who is also in the spaceflight operations program at the Daytona Beach university. "It would be midnight, and I'd be cheering from my room. My parents would be like, 'What are you doing?' and I’d be watching the live streams of the launches," he said.

ERAU professor Erik Seedhouse says from launching small satellites to sending tourists into orbit, there is a demand. "There's lots of opportunities. Twenty years ago, there was just one opportunity — it was NASA or nothing," Seedhouse said. The Daytona Beach school had just a handful of students in the program five years ago. Now, 120 students want to be a part of the space industry, and the university says that number is growing. (3/6)

Wife of NASA Scientist Jailed in Turkey 'Frustrated' by Trump's Focus on Pastor's Case (Source: NBC)
The Trump administration has repeatedly threatened to impose sanctions on NATO ally Turkey unless it frees an evangelical Christian pastor detained on terrorism and spying charges. But North Carolina native Andrew Brunson isn't the only American detained in the country. The wife of NASA scientist Serkan Golge says she feels like the U.S. government "is paying less attention" to his case. “When I read the newspapers, I feel frustrated sometimes like they’re only trying to save Brunson but not us,” said his wife, Kubra Golge, who like her husband is a dual U.S.-Turkish citizen.

In February, Serkan Golge was convicted of terrorism charges that the U.S. says are “without credible evidence.” He was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison. Turkey's foreign ministry has said Serkan Golge "was tried by an independent Turkish court and sentenced after a fair trial.” Serkan and Kubra Golge were visiting Turkey with their two sons in July 2016 when the scientist was detained by police amid accusations he was involved in a failed coup. (3/6)