June 10, 2019

The Most Detailed Map of Galaxies, Black Holes, and Stars Ever Made (Source: TED)
Humans have been studying the stars for thousands of years, but astrophysicist Juna Kollmeier is on a special mission: creating the most detailed 3-D maps of the universe ever made. Journey across the cosmos as she shares her team's work on the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, imaging millions of stars, black holes and galaxies in unprecedented detail. If we maintain our pace, she says, we can map every large galaxy in the observable universe by 2060. "We've gone from arranging clamshells to general relativity in a few thousand years," she says. "If we hang on 40 more, we can map all the galaxies." Click here. (6/7)

Arizona's Role in Mapping the Moon (Source: Space Daily)
When the first humans stepped onto the Moon a half-century ago on July 20, 1969, they knew they were venturing into the unknown. Some had feared their lander would be swallowed up by bottomless layers of dust as almost nothing was known about the Moon's surface at the time. But they knew it wouldn't, thanks in large part to groundbreaking research being performed at the University of Arizona's then fledging Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.

When Gerard P. Kuiper founded the laboratory nine years earlier, in 1960, there was skepticism and a lack of interest in humans visiting the Moon. But reaching the Moon became a priority as the space race ramped up in the early '60s. Kuiper and his UA laboratory were suddenly in demand. Now, on the 50th anniversary of the first manned mission to the Moon marked by the Apollo 11 landing, UA scientists celebrate the pioneering and pivotal role the UA has held in the explosion of space science research, helping to shape what we know about our solar system and beyond. (6/6)

Ascent Abort-2 Preparations 'A Really Good Test Run' For Artemis 1 (Source: Space Daily)
NASA is gearing up for a test of the system that will help keep astronauts safe when traveling to the Moon aboard agency's Orion spacecraft. The Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) flight test will put Orion's launch abort system (LAS) to work in a high-flying, fast-paced trial without crew aboard. The test paves the way for Artemis 2, the first flight of astronauts aboard Orion and the powerful new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on a mission to carry humans around the Moon for the first time in half a century.

Following Artemis 2, NASA will send the first woman and next man to step foot on the Moon in 2024. For NASA's Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) and Jacobs Test and Operations Contract (TOSC) teams, preparations for AA-2 also have provided invaluable opportunities to prepare for Artemis 1, the uncrewed first flight of SLS and Orion. This process marked the first time both elements were prepared using the same sequence and procedures that will be used going forward, providing valuable experience for the team. (7/6)

NYC to Shanghai in 40 Minutes: SpaceX’s Goal for Point-to-Point Space Travel (Source: CNBC)
Sending everyday people to space has been a dream since the days of the Apollo missions but space travel has long been out of reach for all but a select few humans in history. However, space tourism is slowly coming closer to reality, with companies like Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin closing in on taking short trips up to the edge of space and back. But what if spaceships went farther — and faster?

A recent UBS report analyzed the market for what’s known as point-to-point space travel. It’s been touted by SpaceX as one of the business lines of the massive Starship rocket that Elon Musk’s company is developing. In essence, point-to-point space travel would be the equivalent of flying on an airplane across the world — but in less than an hour, rather than 16 hours. UBS believes that, if the obstacles to point-to-point space travel can be overcome, the service would represent an annual market of more than $20 billion.

But some disagree, saying the technology’s safety is nowhere close to being reliable or that the travel method doesn’t solve key logistical issues to long haul air travel. Click here. (6/8) https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/07/nyc-to-shanghai-in-40-minutes-spacexs-goal-for-point-to-point-travel.html

Space Companies Propose Ways to Fill Low Earth Orbit with Commercial Habitats (Source: CNBC)
The private space industry is giving NASA some ideas on how to turn low Earth orbit — where the International Space Station circulates above our planet — into an area filled with commercial habitats and platforms for future space travelers. Potentially, these “destinations” could be used as locations for in-space research and manufacturing to turn a profit. But such a commercial utopia in orbit won’t be easy until the cost of launching to space comes down, says NASA.

Today, NASA released short proposals from 12 commercial companies — such as Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and more — on how to create a viable commercial economy in low Earth orbit, or LEO. NASA wanted these ideas from the private space industry in order to figure out the best way to eventually transition the operation of the United States’ segment of the International Space Station off of the space agency’s dime. In 2018, the president’s budget request proposed ending direct government funding to the ISS by the end of 2024. NASA has said that by then, it wants to transition its operations and the domain of low Earth orbit to the commercial space industry.

Ultimately, NASA still wants to have access to some kind of human space station in low Earth orbit, which will let the space agency continue to conduct research in space. Agency officials have said they would conceivably pay to have access to a commercially run habitat in the future. The study summaries (released as a series of slides on NASA’s website) look at various ways commercial companies could take over operations in low Earth orbit. Click here. (6/8)