September 20, 2019

Northrop Grumman Concludes Investigation Into Omega Rocket's Test Fire Anomaly (Source: Florida Today)
Northrop Grumman's investigation into what caused an Omega solid rocket booster's nozzle to break apart during a May test in Utah has concluded, the company said on Wednesday. “The nozzle exit cone break up that occurred at motor shut down was caused by a ground test phenomenon that would not have occurred in flight," the company said in a statement. "We have worked closely with the Air Force to study the issue and we are confident the Omega rocket will perform in flight as expected.”

Northrop Grumman wouldn’t go into further detail on what the ground test phenomenon was but noted the motor did fire for the full planned duration. The full-scale static test fire took place on May 30 at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Promontory, Utah. Producing 2 million pounds of thrust, the solid rocket fired successfully for 2 minutes before the nozzle at the end of the first stage blew apart in different directions.

A similar test for the second stage was scheduled for this fall but has been pushed to early next year to “incorporate the lessons learned from the first stage test,” a spokesperson said. The company is still on schedule for the first flight of Omega in 2021, which will be a certification flight launching from Kennedy Space Center. Once certified, the rocket will begin national security missions for the Air Force starting in 2022. Northrop Grumman is also building the side-mounted solid motors for NASA’s future Space Launch System rocket but doesn’t anticipate any issues with the nozzle for that system. (9/19)

AT&T May Shed DirecTV (Source: Wall Street Journal)
AT&T is considering divesting satellite TV operator DirecTV, less than five years after acquiring it. DirecTV is suffering from a drop in subscribers as consumers shift to streaming video services. AT&T is considering spinning off DirecTV into a standalone company or even merging it with the other major satellite TV company in the U.S., Dish, a move that would require regulatory approvals. AT&T bought DirecTV in 2015 for $49 billion. (9/19)

China Launches Remote Sensing Satellites (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com)
China launched five small remote sensing satellites Thursday. A Long March 11 rocket lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 2:42 a.m. Eastern and placed the five Zhuhai-1 Group 3 satellites into orbit. The five satellites, four with hyperspectral sensors and one with a video system, will join a system operated by Zhuhai Orbita Aerospace Science and Technology Company. (9/19)

Embry-Riddle Graduate Student's Work Advances Space Communication Systems (Source: ERAU)
When Noemí Miguélez Gómez came to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University two years ago, she found the best of all worlds. She’s been able to work toward her master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering, take part in several amazing engineering projects and also polish her skills in English, a language that’s fascinated her since she was a young girl growing up in her native Spain.

As she enters the home stretch in her Embry-Riddle education, Miguélez Gómez is now helping to create a new kind of communications antenna for CubeSats, miniature satellites designed for specific types of space research. In addition, she will soon play a key role in studying how 3D printed materials perform in radio-frequency communication systems aboard the International Space Station (ISS) — work outlined in a newly inked memorandum of understanding between Embry-Riddle and L3Harris Technologies (L3Harris). (9/12)

Time Is Running Out for India to Save Its Silent Moon Lander (Source: Space.com)
Even as its orbiter settles into work, India's hopes of resurrecting its moon lander are quickly evaporating as the country marks two weeks from its attempt to softly touch down on the lunar surface.

The Chandrayaan-2 mission's lander, Vikram, began its descent near the south pole of the moon on Sept. 6. For many minutes, everything seemed to go smoothly. At mission control for India's Space Research Organization (ISRO), which runs the project, the numbers on screens displaying the spacecraft's altitude and speed ticked downward as planned during the livestreamed procedure.

Then, the numbers froze and the room fell silent. It was a brief foreshadowing of the two weeks of silence that have followed as ISRO attempted to make contact with the Vikram lander. Since initial statements about anomalies during the landing, ISRO has been nearly as silent. As of this morning (Sept. 19), the sun is setting over Vikram's planned landing site, marking the end of reasonable hopes of reviving the robot. (9/19)

Editorial: NASA's Mission Should Not Be Whittled Down (Source: The Hill)
As I stood on the National Mall in July in a joyous crowd watching the projection of the Saturn V rocket onto the Washington Monument, I was struck by the wonder and awe that the space program can still inspire. The celebration drew over 500,000 people, despite temperatures in the 90s well past 9 p.m. ET. Why? Why did the 50th anniversary of Apollo resonate with people, most of whom were not born before the last steps on the moon were taken?

Because space inspires. Yes, the Apollo program influenced a spike in advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math. Yes, the Apollo program inspired many of today’s tech entrepreneurs. Yes, technology spinoffs from Apollo enriched our economy and standard of living. More importantly, I would argue, it inspired the world. It let humans see what we are capable of when we are shown the sky is no longer the limit. (9/18)

Australian Launch Site Given Major Project Status (Source: The Lead)
The South Australian government has granted major project status to a venture which aims to become Australia’s first commercial rocket launch site. Southern Launch is aiming for its Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex “to get off the ground in 2020”. The declaration takes the South Australian company to the next stage that will allow it to undertake a comprehensive assessment and submit a formal development application.

Southern Launch announced in December it had found a site at Whalers Way on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula for its launch pad, just days before the new Australian Space Agency declared it would establish headquarters in the state’s capital Adelaide. The multi-user rocket launch facility will allow micro- and small-lift rocket manufacturers to launch satellites into polar orbits using cutting edge technology, further reinforcing South Australia’s contribution to the nation’s space sector. (9/19)

China, Russia to Cooperate on Lunar Orbiter, Landing Missions (Source: Space News)
Russia and China have agreed to joint exploration of the moon following at meeting of heads of government. The agreements will see cooperation in Russia’s Luna-26 orbiter spacecraft and Chang’e-7 polar landing mission, according to Roscosmos, which could involve contributions of science payloads to the respective spacecraft. Both missions are currently scheduled for the early-to-mid 2020s. The two sides also committed to previously announced plans to create a joint lunar and deep space data center, which will consist of hubs in both Russia and China. (9/18)