March 23, 2020

Employee at Kennedy Space Center Tests Positive for Coronavirus (Source: Florida Today)
Kennedy Space Center's first positive coronavirus case was confirmed Monday, though officials believe circumstances surrounding the exposure likely mean the employee was not on-center when contagious. Tracy Young, a spokesperson for KSC, said employees were notified Sunday that a KSC team member tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

"This employee was last at the center more than 10 days ago," Young said. "Based on the circumstances and elapsed time since the employee was on site, we believe it was acquired after they had started teleworking and there is no additional risk at the center from this person." KSC is currently operating at "Stage 3" of NASA's Response Framework, which means mandatory telework, limited center access to mission-essential personnel, and limited travel. (3/23)

Workers Vs Investors: What Will Big Aerospace Do With Federal Bailouts? (Sources: NASA Watch, Aviation Week, CNBC)
"It is vital for governments, lawmakers and industry leaders to recognize that aviation will need help getting through such destructive upheaval. But in some cases, the optics will invite legitimate criticism. For example, Boeing has returned nearly $50 billion to its shareholders over the past five years while investing far less. Now it wants taxpayers to cough up tens of billions for a bailout? U.S. airlines are no better: They have sent 96% of free cash flow to shareholders over the last five years. And what about those airlines in Europe that should have been allowed to die long ago? Will they use this crisis as leverage for yet another government rescue?"

Trump says he is 'OK' with forbidding buybacks as condition of corporate bailouts. "President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would not oppose barring companies that receive federal assistance during the coronavirus pandemic from conducting stock buybacks." (3/22)

NASA Leadership Assessing Mission Impacts of Coronavirus (Source: NASA)
To protect the health and safety of the NASA workforce as the nation responds to coronavirus (COVID-19), agency leadership recently completed the first assessment of work underway across all missions, projects, and programs. The goal was to identify tasks that can be done remotely by employees at home, mission-essential work that must be performed on-site, and on-site work that will be paused.

“We are going to take care of our people. That’s our first priority,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “Technology allows us to do a lot of what we need to do remotely, but, where hands-on work is required, it is difficult or impossible to comply with CDC guidelines while processing spaceflight hardware, and where we can’t safely do that we’re going to have to suspend work and focus on the mission critical activities.”

The agency has defined mission-essential work as that which must be performed to maintain critical mission operations to ensure the schedule of time-sensitive mission-critical launches, or work to protect life and critical infrastructure. This includes work to support America’s national security and mission-essential functions for the nation. NASA leadership will continually assess all activities as the situation evolves. (3/20)

The Key to Future Mars Exploration? Precision Landing (Source: Air & Space)
Landing on an open plain is safer, but scientifically kind of dull. On past missions, Chen says, NASA wanted each site “to be a parking lot.” To turn Jezero, once a no-go, into a landing pad, the team is relying on terrain-relative navigation, or TRN. The technology, which JPL researchers have been working on since 2004, enables more precise landings by giving the vehicle a visual landing system. Using a camera, it scans the ground for landmarks, compares those images to onboard maps, and estimates its position. Tie this to related advances in hazard detection and avoidance, and now they have a better shot at not landing in a sand trap. Click here. (3/23)

Space in Uncertain Tmes (Source: Space Review)
Much of the space industry, like the broader economy and society, has ground to a halt in the last few weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic. Jeff Foust reports on what has shut down and what is continuing more or less as usual in spaceflight, at least for now. Click here. (3/23)
 
Capabilities on the Cusp: the Impact of a Responsive, Flexible Launch Challenge With No Winner (Source: Space Review)
The DARPA Launch Challenge ended earlier this month without a winner when the last remaining company scrubbed their final launch attempt. Todd Master, manager of the competition, explains how the DARPA Launch Challenge evolved and offers lessons learned for the future of responsive launch. Click here. (3/23)
 
Capsule on Fire: An Interview with Robert Seamans About the Apollo 1 Accident (Source: Space Review)
Robert Seamans was deputy administrator of NASA during the Apollo 1 fire in 1967, and was one of the officials who testified at a Senate hearing about it months later. Dwayne Day finds new insights about Seamans and his relationship with administrator James Webb in an interview from more than 20 years ago. Click here. (3/23)
 
Magnificent Isolation: What We Can Learn From Astronauts About Social Distancing and Sheltering in Space (Source: Space Review)
Calls for self-quarantine and “social distancing” in response to the pandemic have some people seeking to learn from the experience of explorers. Deana Weibel examines what astronauts, including the late Al Worden, can teach us about handling isolation in extreme circumstances. Click here. (3/23)
 
Another Look at The Vinyl Frontier (Source: Space Review)
Glen Swanson offers a more through examination of a recent book about the creation of the “golden records” that flew on the Voyager spacecraft with photos and sounds representing Earth. Click here. (3/23)

NASA Leadership Assessing Mission Impacts of Coronavirus (Source: Space Daily)
To protect the health and safety of the NASA workforce as the nation responds to coronavirus (COVID-19), agency leadership recently completed the first assessment of work underway across all missions, projects, and programs. The goal was to identify tasks that can be done remotely by employees at home, mission-essential work that must be performed on-site, and on-site work that will be paused.

"We are going to take care of our people. That's our first priority," said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. "Technology allows us to do a lot of what we need to do remotely, but, where hands-on work is required, it is difficult or impossible to comply with CDC guidelines while processing spaceflight hardware, and where we can't safely do that we're going to have to suspend work and focus on the mission critical activities." (3/23)

New Satellite-Bbased Algorithm Pinpoints Crop Water Use (Source: Space Daily)
The growing threat of drought and rising water demand have made accurate forecasts of crop water use critical for farmland water management and sustainability. But limitations in existing models and satellite data pose challenges for precise estimates of evapotranspiration - a combination of evaporation from soil and transpiration from plants. The process is complex and difficult to model, and existing remote-sensing data can't provide accurate, high-resolution information on a daily basis.

A new high-resolution mapping framework called BESS-STAIR promises to do just that, around the globe. BESS-STAIR is composed of a satellite-driven biophysical model integrating plants' water, carbon and energy cycles - the Breathing Earth System Simulator (BESS) - with a generic and fully automated fusion algorithm called STAIR (SaTellite dAta IntegRation). (3/23)

NASA Halts JWST Work During Pandemic (Source: Space News)
NASA has halted work on the James Webb Space Telescope as it prioritizes essential activities during the coronavirus pandemic. NASA announced late Friday that it was suspending work on integration and testing of the telescope at a Northrop Grumman facility in California, with agency officials acknowledging that this will likely cause more delays for the mission. NASA is continuing to work on the Mars 2020 mission, which it considers a high priority because of its narrow launch window that opens in mid-July for only a few weeks. International Space Station operations and commercial crew development are also being prioritized. (3/23)

India Planning Launch of 10 Earth Observation Satellites by March 2021 (Source: Sputnik)
In 2019, India launched four earth observation satellites, from a target of six. For the next financial year, the plan is to add a further eight. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is planning to launch 10 earth observation satellites by March 2021, space minister Jitendra Singh said in Parliament.

The earth observation satellites are used mainly in land and agriculture but their images are also important to the military, for border observation. ISRO is also planning to launch 26 missions, including unmanned orbital spacecraft Gaganyaan. The 26 missions will also include three communication satellites, two navigation satellite, three space science satellite, a technology demonstration, 10 PSLV, three GSLV II, a GSLV III and two small satellite launch vehicles. (3/23)

Observing Phytoplankton Via Satellite (Source: Space Daily)
Thanks to a new algorithm, researchers at the AWI can now use satellite data to determine in which parts of the ocean certain types of phytoplankton are dominant. In addition, they can identify toxic algal blooms and assess the effects of global warming on marine plankton, allowing them to draw conclusions regarding water quality and the ramifications for the fishing industry.

The tiny phytoplankton found in the world's oceans are tremendously productive, and create half the oxygen we need to breathe. Just like land-based plants, they use photosynthesis to produce carbohydrate, which they use as an energy source. They grow, divide and produce enormous quantities of biomass, the basis of all marine life. In addition, they are an essential food source for small crustaceans, fish and mussel larvae, which are themselves staples for larger fish. When phytoplankton are in short supply, it jeopardises the food web for all other marine organisms. (3/23)

China Develops New System to Quickly find Fallen Rocket Debris (Source: Space Daily)
China's Xichang Satellite Launch Center Wednesday announced the development of a new positioning system that can greatly shorten the time searching for rocket debris. The system has proved efficient in seeking out fallen rocket pieces after the center launched the 54th BeiDou satellite into space on March 9. The satellite was sent into space by a Long March-3B carrier rocket. With the guidance of the system, the center staff just spent 25 minutes finding the rocket boosters, while in the past, it would take them several hours or even half a month to complete such a task. (3/19)

NASA Satellites Help Forecast Yellowstone Wildlife Migration (Source: Space Daily)
The bison population has really exploded over the last two decades in Yellowstone National Park. This creates complex situations for wildlife managers when the animals follow good grazing opportunities beyond the boundaries of the park and come into contact with surrounding communities. A NASA study has now found a link between climate change effects on the productivity of grasslands and the proliferation of bison in Yellowstone, by compiling 20 years of data from two NASA Earth science satellites.

The work also shows how the same data, available in near-real time, can aid the park's conservation efforts by providing daily maps of green grass cover that help forecast the movements of bison. The research project looked specifically at how long the growing season lasts in Yellowstone, from snowmelt in spring to first snowfall in autumn, and the vegetation that covers the land in between. The satellite data revealed that the season for vegetation growth has been getting longer, likely a result of climate change decreasing the severity of winters and warming average temperatures overall. (3/13)

Help NASA Design a Robot to Dig on the Moon (Source: Space Daily)
Digging on the Moon is a hard job for a robot. It has to be able to collect and move lunar soil, or regolith, but anything launching to the Moon needs to be lightweight. The problem is excavators rely on their weight and traction to dig on Earth. NASA has a solution, but is looking for ideas to make it better. Once matured, robotic excavators could help NASA establish a sustainable presence on the Moon under the Artemis lunar exploration program, a few years after landing astronauts on the surface.

Engineers have tested various configurations of a Moon-digging robot called RASSOR - short for Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot - in a large lunar simulant sand box at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, NASA is asking the public to help design a new bucket drum, the portion of the robot that captures the regolith and keeps it from falling out. The regolith can then be transported to a designated location where reverse rotation of the drum allows it to fall back out. (3/17)

DoD Urges Contractors to Keep Working (Source: Space News)
The Defense Department is asking its contractors, including those in aerospace, to continue working during the pandemic. Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen Lord said in a memo Friday that companies that are considered part of the defense industrial base "have a special responsibility" to maintain normal work schedules. Industry groups such as the Aerospace Industries Association and Commercial Spaceflight Federation have called upon the administration and Congress to support their companies as they continue to work. In response, the Pentagon has ordered contracting officers to increase so-called progress payments to suppliers amid concerns that many small businesses are running out of cash. (3/23)

Maxar: COVID-19 May Slow Satellite Deliveries (Source: Space News)
Satellite manufacturer Maxar says the pandemic may slow spacecraft deliveries. The company said in a SEC filing Friday that the company temporarily closed satellite manufacturing facilities in California in compliance with "stay at home" directives from local officials last week, but reopened them after determining it was considered an "essential business" and could thus still operate. The company has sent "force majeure" notices to its customers, though, warning that the pandemic could cause delays in the completion of satellites being built there. (3/23)

Virgin Orbit Work Deemed Essential (Source: Space News)
Virgin Orbit will continue work during the pandemic after being deemed essential. The company said Friday that it will pause work at its Long Beach, California, headquarters for a week, with staff unable to work remotely to be paid in full. The company said its development of the LaunchOne rocket, with U.S. government customers, qualified it to continue operating after that one-week pause. Rocket Lab said it would continue work at its U.S. headquarters, also in Long Beach, with a "significantly reduced number of mission critical personnel" working on site, because it was considered an essential business. (3/23)

Space Council Meeting Postponed (Source: Space News)
The White House has postponed the National Space Council meeting that had been scheduled for Tuesday. The White House announced Saturday the meeting would be rescheduled for a date to be announced. It offered no reason for the delay, but the chair of the council, Vice President Mike Pence, is also leading the White House's task force responding to the coronavirus pandemic. The meeting was originally scheduled to take place at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, but them moved to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington. (3/23)

Farnborough Air Show Canceled (Source: FIA)
Other coronavirus updates: The Farnborough International Airshow 2020 has been canceled. Event organizers said Friday it reached the decision to cancel the event, scheduled for July 20-24, because of "the unprecedented impact" of the pandemic that "make it impossible for us to create and host the Airshow this July." The event is one of the biggest of the year in the aerospace industry, and one where space has taken on increased prominence in recent years. (3/23)

NASA Offers Supercomputing Support for Pandemic Response (Source: OSTP)
NASA is part of a new consortium announced Sunday by the Office of Science and Technology Policy to provide supercomputing resources for researchers responding to the pandemic. NASA will offer its High-End Computing Capability at the Ames Research Center to the consortium, which also includes the Department of Energy, NSF, industry and academia. (3/23)

Aerojet Recommends Artemis Lunar Lander Changes (Source: Space News)
An Aerojet Rocketdyne study recommends minimizing the number of launches needed for an Artemis lunar lander and using storable, rather than cryogenic, propellants. The study, performed as part of a NASA contract last year, initially found that two-element landers, with an ascent and descent stage launched separately, were preferable to three-element landers that required a transfer module in addition to the ascent and descent stages.

Later work found that the best approach to achieving a 2024 landing it to launch the two-element lander as an integrated vehicle on an SLS, which would also eliminate the need for the lunar Gateway for that initial mission. The Aerojet study also recommended using storable propellants for the lander's propulsion system because of concerns about the lack of maturity of cryogenic fluid management technologies needed for propellants like liquid hydrogen. (3/23)

SEAKR to Build Satcomm Payload for Space Force (Source: Space News)
SEAKR Engineering will help develop a satellite communications payload for the U.S. Space Force. Lockheed Martin selected Colorado-based SEAKR as part of Lockheed's team for the Protected Tactical Satcom (PTS) program, a partnership expected to be formally announced this week. Lockheed is one of three companies with PTS awards from the Space and Missile Systems Center under Other Transaction Authority agreements that require prime contractors to either co-invest in the program or partner with nontraditional suppliers, like SEAKR. (3/23)

FCC Approves 1 Million Terminals for SpaceX Starlink (Source: Space News)
The FCC has granted SpaceX a license for up to 1 million user terminals. The terminals would be used as part of SpaceX's Starlink broadband megaconstellation. SpaceX has disclosed few details about those terminals, although Elon Musk described them as a "thin, flat, round UFO on a stick" that can be simply pointed at the sky and plugged in. (3/23)