May 12, 2020

Here’s What the Space Development Agency Wants From its First 10 Satellites (Source: C4ISRnet)
The Space Development Agency is seeking proposals for its first batch of satellites, which will make up its initial transport layer — an on-orbit mesh network that will connect space-based sensors with terrestrial shooters. According to the May 1 solicitation, SDA is looking to award two contracts to build a total of 20 small satellites, which will comprise Tranche 0 of the National Security Space Architecture, a proliferated, low-Earth orbit constellation that will fulfill a multitude of military needs, including tracking hypersonic weapons; providing alternative position, navigation and timing data; delivering beyond-line-of-sight targeting; and more.

Ultimately, the agency envisions a constellation made up of hundreds of interconnected satellites. Ten of those Tranche 0 satellites will form the agency’s initial transport layer. Tranche 0 is anticipated to be on orbit in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, with the SDA adding new tranches of satellites every two years, increasing the constellation’s size and capabilities. Launch services will be acquired through the Orbital Services Program 4 contract or follow-on contracts. (5/6)

Commercial Astronaut Training Facility Eyed for Georgia's Spaceport Camden (Source: Spaceport Camden)
Opifex Global, a provider of aerospace training facilities and Camden County, Georgia have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to explore commercial astronaut training facilities near the proposed Spaceport Camden. Advised by three former NASA astronauts, Opifex Global utilizes the same quality curriculum, simulators, and training devices that people have come to expect from the space program and adapted them to train commercial astronauts.

Former Navy explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) diver, Barton Bollfrass founded Opifex Global with the mission of providing labor services for the commercial space industry. The curriculum couples classroom education with real world, hands-on experiences in simulators such as vacuum chambers, zero gravity flights, and gyro-seat spinners to recreate the environment in orbit. The centerpiece of the training facility is a three story, neutral-buoyancy tank with blackedout surfaces that allows trainees to practice repairing subsystems while wearing a pressurized spacesuit, underwater, in the dark. (5/11)

Branson Clears Path to Sell $1 Billion Stake in Virgin Galactic (Source: Financial Times)
Richard Branson is free to sell up to half his stake in his space tourism venture — potentially raising close to $1bn — after a little-noticed filing by Virgin Galactic lifted constraints on investors. The entrepreneur has come under fire for seeking state help for Virgin Group’s airlines businesses, which have been hammered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

But even as other parts of the empire have been paralysed, Virgin Galactic’s market value has almost doubled from $2.3bn at its initial public offering six months ago to $4.25bn, lifting the value of Virgin Group’s stake close to $2bn. A US securities filing last week clears the way for Virgin Group to sell up to half its holding and — coupled with the publication of first-quarter results this week — removes some barriers to insiders selling shares in the coming weeks. (5/8)

A 2024 Moon Landing May Sound Crazy, but NASA is Giving its Best Shot (Source: Ars Technica)
Though Bridenstine welcomed the challenge, there are many reasons this seemed an impossible assignment. Since Apollo, NASA has tried several times to return humans into deep space and failed. Little of the technology NASA needed for such a mission, from spacesuits to a lander, was close to ready. Far from working as one, the contentious mix of aerospace contractors vying for NASA funding had to be brought together. And finally, a recalcitrant Congress had to be convinced this endeavor was worth funding.

It was a very narrow needle to thread. And yet—and yet—with the recent award of Human Landing System contracts it seems like Bridenstine and his hand-picked chief of human spaceflight, Doug Loverro, are giving the agency its best possible chance to succeed. Here's a look at why. Click here. (5/11)

“Maybe You Were Put Here to Be the Answer”: Religious Overtones in the New Space Force Recruitment Video (Source: Space Review)
The US Space Force released its first recruitment ad last week, a 30-second commercial that said that, “Maybe your purpose on this planet isn’t on this planet.” Deana Weibel explores the imagery and language of the ad and its religious influences. Click here. (5/11)
 
Astronauts, Guns, and Butter: Charles Schultze and Paying for Apollo in a Time of Turmoil (Source: Space Review)
The budget director for President Johnson suggested delaying the Apollo landings into the 1970s as a way to cut spending. Dwayne Day provides an interview with Charles Schultze that offers insights into why Schultze sought to defer the landing. Click here. (5/11)
 
The Launch Showdown (Source: Space Review)
In the next few months, the US Air Force will award contracts to two companies to perform national security launches for the next five years. Jeff Foust reports on the assessments the Pentagon is using to justify awarding two contracts as four companies submit bids. Click here. (5/11)
 
Reinvigorating NASA’s Lunar Exploration Plans After the Pandemic (Source: Space Review)
NASA may face budget pressures in the coming years as Congress adjusts to massive spending required by the coronavirus pandemic. Ajay Kothari suggests that NASA’s exploration efforts can maintain funding if the agency revamps and recasts the program. Click here. (5/11)
 
Toward a Brighter Future: Continuity of the Artemis Program (Source: Space Review)
The coronavirus pandemic has slowed some elements of NASA’s Artemis program. Jamil Castillo argues that moving forward on the program can provide a message of hope in a difficult time. Click here. (5/11)

HASC Wants FCC to Reconsider Ligado 5G Decision (Source: Space News)
The House Armed Services Committee is asking the FCC to reconsider its approval of Ligado's 5G network because of GPS interference concerns. In a letter last week, the chair and ranking member of the committee argued that the FCC's decision in April ran afoul of a provision of the 2017 defense authorization act that prevents the FCC from approving commercial terrestrial operations in certain portions of the L-band spectrum until 90 days after the commission resolves concerns of harmful interference to GPS devices. The committee plans to hold a classified hearing to discuss the results of Defense Department testing that identified GPS interference caused by the system. The FCC continues to defend its decision, and that it "will not be dissuaded by baseless fear mongering." (5/11)

KSC VAB NASA Logo Gets Touch-Up (Source: CollectSpace)
A giant version of the NASA logo it getting a touch-up ahead of this month's commercial crew launch. Workers at the Kennedy Space Center are applying a fresh coat of paint to the logo on the side of the Vehicle Assembly Building, which was added to the building in 1998. The logo is 34 by 40 meters across, and was last repainted in 2007. (5/11)

NASA Hires NOAA Official to Lead Earth Science Division (Source: Space News)
NASA has hired a NOAA official to be the next director of its Earth science division. NASA announced last week that Karen St. Germain will take over as director of the division in June. She is currently the deputy assistant administrator for systems at NOAA, overseeing development of current and future weather satellite programs. The NASA position had been held on an acting basis by the division's deputy director, Sandra Cauffman, since early last year after longtime director Michael Freilich retired. NASA's first attempt to hire a permanent director last spring failed to find a suitable candidate. (5/11)

Virtual "State of the Space Industrial Base" Conference Planned (Source: Space News)
A virtual conference plans to produce recommendations for shoring up the U.S. space industrial base. The four-day "State of the Space Industrial Base 2020" program was led by the Defense Innovation Unit, the Air Force Research Laboratory and the U.S. Space Force. Participants in the conference, which included people form other government agencies as well as the private sector and academia, plan to issue a report in June recommending "whole-of-government policies and actions" to stimulate public and private investments in the space sector. (5/11)

Space Force Pays SpaceX for Launch Operations Insights (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Space Force has awarded a contract to SpaceX to gain insights on its launch operations. The $8.9 million "fleet surveillance" contract from the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) will give the service engineering information about nonmilitary launches of SpaceX vehicles through November. The SpaceX contract gives SMC visibility into the company's operations during an especially active launch period as SpaceX deploys its Starlink broadband internet constellation with its fleet of Falcon 9 rockets. The $8.9 million is an addition to an existing $297 million contract awarded to SpaceX in February 2019 for three national security launches. (5/11)

Chinese Rocket Making Uncontrolled Reentry From Orbit (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
The giant core stage of a Chinese rocket launched last week will make an uncontrolled re-entry today. The core stage from the Long March 5B rocket is predicted to reenter around 11:30 a.m. Eastern, with a margin of error of two hours, according to the latest estimates by U.S. Space Command. The core stage, about 30 meters long and 5 meters in diameter, is the largest object to perform an uncontrolled re-entry since the Salyut 7 space station reentered nearly 30 years ago. The stage's orbit takes it between 41.1 degrees north and south latitude, although the large margin of error makes it impossible to predict a specific re-entry location. (5/11)

Chinese Rocket Stage Falls Harmlessly in Atlantic (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
A giant Chinese rocket stage reentered harmlessly over the Atlantic Ocean Monday. The Long March 5B core stage reentered at 11:33 a.m. Eastern over the Atlantic off the coast of west Africa. The stage was left in a low orbit after a launch last week, and was the largest object to make an uncontrolled re-entry since the Salyut 7 space station in 1991. It's not known if future Long March 5B launches will leave core stages in low orbits for uncontrolled re-entries, or of this was a one-time event linked to the first launch of the heavy-lift rocket. (5/12)

Russian Rocket Stage Breaks Into Fragments in Orbit (Source: TASS)
Russia confirmed that a rocket stage from an earlier launch broke up in orbit. Roscosmos said Sunday that tanks from a Fregat upper stage launched in 2011 broke up Friday. The U.S. military's 18th Space Control Squadron, responsible for space situational awareness activities, announced Saturday that it was tracking 65 objects from a breakup of that object, and that there was no evidence that the breakup was caused by a collision. The stage, in an elliptical orbit, was part of a Zenit-3 rocket used to launch the Spektr-R radio astronomy satellite. (5/11)

NPO Energomash Accelerator Identifies 10 Projects for Development (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Experts from NPO Energomash (part of Roscosmos State Corporation) and integrated enterprises completed the first stage of the corporate accelerator, selecting the top 10 projects in three areas: IT technologies, civilian products, and rocket propulsion. In total, 167 applications were submitted for the competition.

During the formal examination, 96 projects were initially selected, of which 29 were allowed for in-person evaluation. However, due to the difficult epidemiological situation, the leadership of NPO Energomash together with the Skolkovo Foundation decided to transfer the in-person selection to the remote mode. According to the results of the hearings of the projects, which lasted three weeks, the accelerator experts identified 10 most interesting projects for Energomash: three in the IT direction, three in the direction of civilian products and four in engine building. (5/12)

EchoStar Launch Awaits Delayed Manufacture (Source: Space News)
EchoStar says it's not clear when it will be able to launch a new broadband internet satellite because of the pandemic. The company wants to launch the Jupiter-3 satellite in 2021 to add capacity over North and South America, but has yet to arrange a launch for the satellite because of uncertainty of when it will be completed. Maxar, the satellite manufacturer, had notified EchoStar and other customers that the coronavirus pandemic may delay spacecraft production. EchoStar's best guess at when Jupiter-3 will launch is now the second half of 2021, a schedule that could also be affected by the status of new launch vehicles entering service around that time. (5/12)

China Launches Small Satellites on Small Rocket (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
China launched a pair of smallsats Monday that will be a part of an internet of things constellation. A Kuhaizhou-1A small launch vehicle lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 9:16 p.m. Eastern Monday night and placed the first two Xingyun-2 satellites into orbit. The satellites carry L-band payloads to provide communications services for devices, and are the beginning of a constellation expected to reach 80 satellites by 2023. One of the satellites was named Wuhan, after the Chinese city where the coronavirus pandemic started. (5/12)

DARPA Blackjack Satellites May Launch Before 2021 (Source: Space News)
DARPA expects to start launching Blackjack satellites as soon as late this year. The first Backjack demo satellite mission, Mandrake 1, is a cubesat that will carry supercomputer processing chips. The second, Mandrake 2, is a pair of small satellites that will carry optical inter-satellite links for broadband data. Those satellites will launch in late 2020 or early 2021, DARPA said Monday. DARPA started the Blackjack program in 2018 to show the military utility of low Earth orbit constellations and mesh networks of low-cost satellites. (5/12)

Cygnus Gargo Pod Detatches From ISS to Perform Experiments, Deploy Satellites, Re-Enter (Source: Space.com)
A Cygnus cargo spacecraft left the International Space Station Monday. The spacecraft was unberthed by the station's robotic arm and released at 12:09 p.m. Eastern. The Cygnus, launched in February on the NG-13 cargo mission to the station, will remain in orbit until late this month to perform combustion experiments and deploy smallsats. A Japanese cargo spacecraft will launch later this month to the station, ahead of the May 27 Demo-2 commercial crew mission. (5/12)

UAW to Pick Two New Astronauts (Source: Space News)
The United Arab Emirates will select two new astronauts early next year. The country's space agency said this week that it received more than 4,300 applications for its second astronaut selection round, and will go through a screening process to narrow that down to a small number of finalists before selecting two in January. The new astronauts will join the UAE's two current astronauts, one of whom, Hazzaa AlMansoori, flew to the ISS last year. The UAE is in discussions with ISS partners about new flight opportunities. (5/12)

Small Launchers: Who Will Survive? (Source: Space News)
A shakeout in the small launch vehicle market is coming, but there's no consensus on how many companies will survive. Peter Beck, CEO of Rocket Lab, said that the next six months will be the "peak of failure" for small launch companies, and estimated there was only enough demand to support two companies. Fred Kennedy, a former Pentagon official who works for small launch vehicle company Astra, agrees a shakeout is coming but that no one knows just how many companies will make it. (5/12)

University Professor Arrested for Not Disclosing China Ties in NASA Grant (Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
A professor at the University of Arkansas has been arrested on charges of failing to disclose ties to the Chinese government in a NASA grant application. Simon Saw-Teong Ang, a professor of electrical engineering at the university, was charged with wire fraud for failing to disclose in an application for a NASA grant that he has worked with Chinese companies and the Chinese government. The announcement by the FBI and the Justice Department Monday did not disclose the details of the NASA grant that Ang had received. (5/12)

Mars Salt Water Too Cold for Life (Source: Science News)
A new study concludes that while salty liquid water could exist on the surface of Mars, it would be too cold to support life. The study, published Monday, found that liquid water, mixed with salts to form brines, could exist for hours at a time, and could explain some features seen on the surface. However, the brines would be no warmer than — 48 degrees Celsius, 25 degrees colder that any conditions on the Earth where life exists. Researchers said the findings could ease some planetary protection concerns for future exploration of the planet. (5/12)

US Defense Firms Hiring Thousands Amid Record Unemployment (Source: Defense One)
Pentagon spending on missiles, satellites, and nuclear weapons fuels a production boom, as firms fight off commercial aerospace downturn. As U.S. unemployment reached its highest level since the Great Depression amid the coronavirus pandemic, some of America’s largest defense firms are hiring thousands of workers to build fast-flying missiles, satellites and nuclear weapons.

Even amid nationwide social distancing practices, companies are interviewing job candidates through video conferencing and other technology as they look to fill positions on national security projects that Pentagon leaders want to keep on schedule. (5/8)