May 15, 2020

Government Support for China's Satellite Sector (Source: Space News)
China's commercial satellite sector is expecting new support from the government. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) added "satellite internet" to a list of new infrastructures in an April meeting, making eligible for additional government support. Since that decision, private firm Commsat this week announced it had raised $38 million in series B funding as it works to develop internet satellite platforms and automation production lines. That company's founder said the Chinese satellite industry is expecting to see explosive growth over next three to five years because of the new policy. (5/15)

Swarm Faces Launch Delays (Source: Space News)
Swarm, having overcome regulatory issues for its smallsat constellation, is now facing launch delays. The company has obtained the last regulatory approvals it needed from the FCC to start an internet-of-things service with its tiny Spacebee satellites. Swarm had hoped the majority of its planned 150-satellite constellation would be in low Earth orbit by the middle of this year, but delays by several launch vehicles means only nine satellites are in orbit right now. The company now hopes to have its full constellation in orbit by 2021. (5/15)

HawkEye 360 Uses Satellites for Italian Maritime Tracking (Source: Space News)
HawkEye 360 is using its satellites to monitor an increase in Italian maritime traffic as the pandemic ebbs there. The company has been tracking Italian maritime activity with satellites that identify and geolocate the source of radio frequency signals to gauge the impact of the novel coronavirus on the Italian economy. That traffic dropped dramatically during a lockdown imposed by the Italian government to combat the spread of COVID-19, but has grown as Italian factories and construction sites were allowed to resume work earlier this month. (5/15)

Hackers Compete in Space Cybersecurity Challenge (Source: Space News)
More than 900 hackers have registered for an upcoming military space cybersecurity competition. Participants in the Hack-A-Sat challenge will try to find security bugs in a military satellite and ground system. In the first round hackers and researchers will be allowed to hack electronic components of a "flat sat" on the ground. Those who make it to the final in August will attempt to hack a small satellite in orbit by taking down planted "flags" or software code. (5/15)

NASA Moves First SLS Launch to Late 2021 (Source: Space News)
NASA now expects the first launch of the Space Launch System to take place in late 2021. In a presentation at a NASA Advisory Council committee meeting Thursday, the agency said a formal estimate of the Artemis 1 launch date will come next week, but that the agency now expected it to be "towards the end of next year." One reason for the latest slip is the coronavirus pandemic that closed the Stennis Space Center, where the SLS core stage is being prepared for a static-fire test. That "Green Run" test is now expected to take place in the fall, potentially as late as Thanksgiving, as the center gradually starts to reopen. (5/15)

NASA Advisory Council Skeptical of 2024 Lunar Landing Goal (Source: Space News)
Members of the NASA Advisory Council are skeptical NASA can achieve its 2024 lunar landing goal. In discussions Thursday at the end of the two-day meeting, one committee member called the goal a "pipe dream" while others said they doubted NASA could make the 2024 deadline given the current schedule. NASA officials said earlier in the meeting that it was "absolutely possible" to make that date, citing the lack of new technology development and push to set requirements early to avoid costly changes later. (5/15)

Satellite Operators Sue FCC Over C-Band Plan (Source: Space News)
Three satellite operators are suing the FCC regarding being excluded from its C-band spectrum clearing plan. ABS, Arsat and Hispasat filed suit in federal court earlier this month, arguing the C-band auction plan the FCC adopted earlier this year robs them of their spectrum rights. The FCC excluded the companies from the C-band process because it concluded those operators did not have U.S. customers. The operators argue that either they have customers in the U.S. that the FCC didn't consider or that they were capable of providing service in the country. (5/15)

C-Band Issue Led to Intelsat Bankruptcy (Source: Space News)
Intelsat claims that the upfront costs of clearing C-band spectrum as part of the FCC order is a key reason why it filed for Chapter 11 this week. David Tolley, Intelsat's chief financial officer, said the company will need to spend around $1.6 billion on the manufacture and launch of new satellites as well as other equipment, with half of that money needing to be spend by next June, before receiving any FCC payments. That, he said, "created an even greater need" for financing, prompting the company's financial restructuring that included the Chapter 11 filing. The company has obtained $1 billion in financing to support continued operations and work to clear C-band spectrum. (5/15)

New Small Satellite Catalog Brings Supply Chain Online (Source: Orbital Transports)
 Orbital Transports, Inc. has debuted the Small Satellite Catalog on its website. By bringing the entire small satellite supply chain online, Orbital Transports is able to offer hardware, software, services, and engineering expertise in a single, searchable, structured catalog. The catalog offers a wide variety of small satellite hardware components, small satellite buses specialized for common space missions, ground station services, and mission operations software from more than a dozen partner companies. The catalog will also grow in the near future to include launch, legal, and regulatory services. Click here. (5/13)

L3Harris Lays Foundation for First Space-Based Gravitational Wave Observatory (Source: Space Daily)
Most space-based telescopes, like Hubble, are comprised of a single spacecraft that detects light and photons and relays images. Not LISA. Scheduled to launch in the 2030s, LISA is a constellation of three spacecraft in an equilateral triangle, 2.5 million kilometers apart, in the same orbit as the Earth around the Sun but trailing the Earth by 20 degrees in orbital phase. LISA detects gravitational waves by measuring the displacements between pairs of satellites with laser beams sent through optical telescopes on each satellite.

NASA is a major collaborator in the ESA-led mission and L3Harris was up for the exciting and complex challenge - design the Engineering Development Unit Telescope (EDUT) for LISA. Not surprisingly, the proposal came with a unique set of requirements, including maximum resiliency to thermal changes. This means no metal or composite materials can be used for the project. NASA Goddard gave L3Harris' proposal the highest rating possible on a multitude of factors, including technical acceptability, value added, schedule compliance and credibility, and cost realism and credibility. (5/13)

Maxar Picked to Build Multiple GEO Comsats (Source: Space News)
Maxar Technologies announced a contract for multiple GEO communications satellites May 11 from an unnamed customer. Analysts suspect the order is from Intelsat or SES, two operators who previously stated a need for C-band replacement satellites. Maxar reported a $48 million net loss on $381 million in total revenue for the first three months of 2020 as slow spacecraft manufacturing sales overshadowed rising satellite imagery and analytics revenues. Maxar said a problem with a commercial satellite program that surfaced in April will require $14 million of rework, but shouldn’t affect other satellites being built. (5/13)

French Space Agency Reopens Centers (Source: Space News)
The French space agency CNES is slowly returning employees to its four operational centers. The agency on May 11 began allowing employees, predominantly those working on “priority projects” that couldn’t be done remotely, to return. CNES said 25% of staff are returning to the Toulouse Space Centre and to the Guiana Space Center. Around 10% are returning to CNES’s Launch Vehicles Directorate in Daumesnil, and about 5% are returning to its head office in Paris. CNES said 90% of its staff have been teleworking since March 16. Employees returning to work will be given face masks, CNES said. (5/13)

Astrobotic to Develop New Commercial Payload Service for NASA Human Lunar Lander (Source: Space Daily)
Astrobotic proudly announces that it is has been selected to develop and lead a new commercial payload service onboard the Dynetics Human Landing System (HLS). Dynetics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Leidos, was recently announced as one of three awardees by NASA to develop a new commercial lunar lander for NASA's Artemis Program. The design and development of HLS for Artemis will land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024. With thisnew approach, the human lander will not only carry astronaut crews but also commercial payload shipments. (5/12)

Soyuz-7 for Sea Launch To Be Equipped With New Fregat-SBU Upper Stage (Source: Sputnik)
The Soyuz-7 rocket for blastoffs from the Sea Launch floating spaceport is planned to be equipped with the new Fregat-SBU upper stage, the director-general of the upper stage developer - Lavochkin Research and Production Association - Vladimir Kolmykov said. "The use of the Fregat-SBU upper stage as part of the Soyuz-7 space rocket from the Sea Launch complex owned by the S7 Space Transportation Systems company is being considered. At the end of 2020, the development of a preliminary design will be completed. The first launch of the Fregat-SBU upper stage using the Soyuz-7 launch vehicle is planned to be conducted in 2025," Kolmykov said. (5/13)

NASA Estimates Having SpaceX and Boeing Build Spacecraft for Astronauts Saved $20 Billion to $30 Billion (Source: CNBC)
Under the Commercial Crew program, NASA awarded SpaceX about $3.1 billion and Boeing about $4.8 billion over the past decade to develop spacecraft to replace the Space Shuttle. “While not done yet, [Commercial Crew] is poised to save the Agency approximately $20B-$30B, and provide two, independent crew transportation systems,” NASA said. NASA savings come from its previously expected cost to develop and launch a program called Constellation, which a committee in 2009 estimated would cost $34.5 billion. (5/13)

EPA Opts Against Limits on Chemical Used in Rocket Fuel Tied to Fetal Damage (Source: New York Times)
The Trump administration will not impose any limits on perchlorate, a toxic chemical compound that contaminates water and has been linked to fetal and infant brain damage, according to two Environmental Protection Agency staff members familiar with the decision. The decision by Andrew Wheeler, the administrator of the E.P.A., appears to defy a court order that required the agency to establish a safe drinking-water standard for the chemical by the end of June.

The policy, which acknowledges that exposure to high levels of perchlorate can cause I.Q. damage but opts nevertheless not to limit it, could also set a precedent for the regulation of other chemicals, people familiar with the matter said. The chemical — which is used in rocket fuel, among other applications — has been under study for more than a decade, but because contamination is widespread, regulations have been difficult. In 2011, the Obama administration announced that it planned to regulate perchlorate for the first time, reversing a decision by the George W. Bush administration not to control it. But the Defense Department and military contractors such as Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman have waged aggressive efforts to block controls, and the fight has dragged on. (5/14)

How NASA Certifies New Spacecraft Safe Enough for Humans (Source: WIRED)
NASA routinely launches satellites worth billions of dollars into space. These launches are subject to strict engineering reviews to minimize the chance that something will go wrong and waste years of effort. It’s a rigorous process that can take months and has a lot of similarity with the certification process for a crewed mission, says Ed Mango, the former program manager for NASA’s commercial crew program. When NASA launches a satellite or a deep space probe, it’s entirely focused on mission success—making sure the spacecraft gets where it needs to go and does the job it was designed to do. “But with crew, it’s about mission success as well as crew safety,” says Mango. “You need to add that extra element to it.”

The last time NASA certified a new spacecraft for humans was in 1981, during the maiden flight of the space shuttle. The shuttle program came to an end in 2011, which was the last time American astronauts launched to space from US soil. For the past decade, all astronauts bound for the space station have hitched a ride on Russian rockets. NASA awarded SpaceX and Boeing contracts to certify their own crewed vehicles only a year after the last shuttle flight, but building a human-rated spacecraft has proven to be a long journey. Click here. (5/13)

Additional Incident Reports Detail US Navy's UFO Encounters (Source: CNN)
Newly released "hazard reports" detailing encounters between US Navy aircraft and "unidentified aerial phenomena" reveal details about incidents that were thrust into the spotlight when the Pentagon officially declassified and released videos of three encounters late last month. "The unknown aircraft appeared to be small in size, approximately the size of a suitcase, and silver in color," one report describing an incident from March 26, 2014, said. During that encounter one of the Navy F/A-18 jets "passed within 1000' of the object, but was unable to positively determine the identity of the aircraft," the report added, saying the US Navy pilot "attempted to regain visual contact with the aircraft, but was unable."

CNN on Wednesday obtained the Navy Safety Center documents, which were previously labeled "For Official Use Only." They follow the Pentagon's official release late last month of three short videos showing "unidentified aerial phenomena" that had previously been made public by a private company. The videos show what appear to be unidentified flying objects rapidly moving while recorded by infrared cameras. Two of the videos contain Naval aviators reacting in awe at how quickly the objects are moving. One voice speculates that it could be a drone.

According to another incident report from Nov. 2013 a Navy F/A-18 pilot "was able to visually acquire a small aircraft. The aircraft had an approximately 5 foot wingspan and was colored white with no other distinguishable features." The craft was considered to be a UAS, the report said. Another incident from June 2013 said the encountered "aircraft was white in color and approximately the size and shape of a drone or missile," according to the report. But the  military was unable to identify who was operating the drone, presenting safety and security challenges to the Navy jets training off the east coast of Virginia. (5/14)

This Planet Sucks. Good Thing We’re Looking Harder Than Ever for Life on New Ones (Source: Daily Beast)
A team of researchers from Harvard University, superconductor firm Plex Corporation, and science-supplier Bruker Scientific announced in February that they’d found evidence of a protein inside of a meteorite that plummeted to Earth in what is now Algeria. Proteins are the “workhorse molecules of life,” to borrow NASA’s phrasing. They form the structure of organic tissue and make up the enzymes that regulate chemical reactions in living bodies.

Meanwhile, astrobiologists Dirk Schulze‑Makuch and Jacob Heinz revealed in a March paper that they’d found, on Mars, oil-like compounds called thiopenes. And where there’s oil, there’s usually life. Oh—and NASA’s InSight probe found evidence of seismic activity under Mars’ surface, which could point to ongoing volcanism on the Red Planet. Volcanoes can kick-start the evolutionary process. These are encouraging signs for the growing number of scientists who are comfortable saying that finding alien life isn’t a matter of if, but when. But Roush, in writing his book and in an interview with The Daily Beast, was more cautious. (5/11)

Intelsat Files for Bankruptcy (Source: Bloomberg)
Satellite operator Intelsat filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy overnight as part of a financial restructuring. The company said it had lined up $1 billion of new financing, along with existing cash, that will fund ongoing operations and allow it to make new investments. Intelsat said it doesn't expect any changes to its day-to-day operations or its workforce. The company said the Chapter 11 filing and restructuring are intended to allow the company to participate in an accelerated clearing of satellite C-band spectrum by the FCC for 5G services. (5/14)

Is Intelsat Maxar's Multi-Satellite Customer? (Source: Space News)
Intelsat might be the customer of a multi-satellite order Maxar disclosed this week. Maxar said in its quarterly earnings call that it received a contract worth several hundred million dollars to build multiple GEO communications satellites for an undisclosed customer. While Maxar did not disclose the customer, analysts believe it is either Intelsat or SES, based on their need to deploy new satellites as part of efforts to clear C-band spectrum.

If Intelsat is the customer, the company could convince creditors to keep the contract in order to receive $4.86 billion in accelerated clearing payments the company stands to receive from the FCC for rapidly exiting C-band. Maxar overall reported a $48 million loss for the quarter, which it blamed on the lingering effects of a sluggish GEO manufacturing market and productivity losses from the coronavirus pandemic. (5/14)

NASA Refines Artemis Architecture (Source: Space News)
NASA is refining elements of its Artemis architecture for getting humans to the moon by 2024 to reduce both cost and risk. In presentations Wednesday at a meeting of a NASA Advisory Council committee, agency officials confirmed plans to combine the first two elements of the lunar Gateway, launching them on a single rocket rather than launching them individually and then docking them in lunar orbit. Doing so, they said, can save significant money and simplify the design of those two modules. The Gateway won't be used for the first lunar landing mission, Artemis 3, but NASA reiterated it will be vital to later, sustained missions. NASA is also considering adding a "rendezvous and proximity operations" demonstration on Artemis 2, the first crewed Orion flight, to reduce risks for the dockings needed for Artemis 3 and later missions. (5/14)

Roscosmos: Musk Will Need More Than 10,000 Missiles to Nuke Mars (Source: TASS)
Billionaire entrepreneur and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s plan to bombard the Martian polar caps to terraform the planet through release of carbon dioxide will require launching more than 10,000 nuclear warheads, Russia’s space agency Roscosmos Executive Director for Science and Long-Term Programs Alexander Bloshenko said in an interview with TASS.

"If briefly analyzed, certain plans put forward by SpaceX simply cannot be implemented taking into account the short-term technological developments. For example, for a thermonuclear explosion on Mars’ pole, one of the plans of SpaceX, to have tangible results, more than 10,000 launches of missiles that can carry the largest payloads and are being developed now are needed," he noted. (5/12)

Space Force Offers Specialized Training for Officers (Source: Space News)
The Space Force will soon offer specialized training related to space activities for new officers. Starting this year, graduates of the Air Force undergraduate space training school who transition to the Space Force will have the option to pursue specialized career tracks such as orbital warfare, space electronic warfare, space battle management, and space access and sustainment. Officers in the Space Force will have their own career tracks focused on space missions, Brig. Gen. DeAnna Burt, director of Space Force operations and communications, said in a recent interview. (5/14)

Colorado Expects to Retain Space Command Headquarters (Source: CBS Denver)
Colorado's governor says he is "cautiously optimistic" that the headquarters for U.S. Space Command will remain in the state. Gov. Jared Polis said he briefly discussed the issue with President Trump during a White House meeting Wednesday devoted primarily to the pandemic. Space Command is temporarily headquartered at Peterson Air Force Base in the state, but the Pentagon is considering several potential locations in Colorado and other states as the combatant command's permanent home. Trump, Polis said, "spoke very highly of Colorado's bid, and then mentioned that the generals think very highly of Colorado, as the site for Space Command." (5/14)

Capella Offers Airborne Radar Imagery as Steppingstone to Satellites (Source: Space News)
Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite company Capella will provide airborne radar imagery for the U.S. Navy. The contract, announced Wednesday, is intended to be a "steppingstone" toward later deals for SAR imagery from satellites. Capella is using airborne SAR campaigns to test its radar, data processing and delivery services. Capella had intended to launch seven SAR satellites this year but expects some launches to be delayed to 2021 because of the pandemic. (5/14)

Chinese Rocket Pieces May Have Fallen in Africa (Source: The Verge)
Debris from a Chinese rocket may have landed in Africa. The core stage of the Long March 5B satellite reentered over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of west Africa Monday, but there have been reports from Côte d'Ivoire of finding metallic debris that appears to have come from the rocket. The debris was found along the trajectory the rocket followed, suggesting it survived re-entry and made it to the ground. (5/14)

Space Force Commander Dies Unexpectedly (Source: Stars and Stripes)
The commander of the Space Force's 21st Space Wing unexpectedly died Tuesday. Col. Thomas Falzarano had led the wing, based in Colorado, since July. He was found dead in his home Tuesday, apparently of natural causes. An Air Force statement said there was no sign his death was linked to the coronavirus. The wing is responsible for missile warning and other space control operations. (5/14)

NASA Resumes SLS Test Work (Source: GCAC)
NASA resumed Green Run testing activities this week on the first flight stage of its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, with the return of limited crews to perform work at Stennis Space Center (SSC), Miss. Stennis moved to Stage 4 on March 20, with only personnel needed to perform mission-essential activities related to the safety and security of the center allowed on site. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and its Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, which are building SLS, also are in Stage 4. Re-establishing, or “waking up,” the SSC B-2 Test Stand systems in the days ahead includes restoring facility power and controls, as well as ensuring pressurized gas systems are at proper levels for SLS operators to proceed with testing activities.

According to Julie Bassler, SLS stages project manager responsible for the core stage work at SSC, Michoud and Marshall, Marshall also is resuming critical flight software and hardware testing. SSC plans for 30 days of limited crew activity on site in anticipation of the center’s transition from Stage 4 to Stage 3. Once that transition occurs, increases to on-site work will continue slowly. The focus then will shift to preparing for the avionics power-up test – the next in a series of core stage Green Run testing milestones.

According to Robinson, it’s too early to calculate a precise schedule for the various test milestones. Green Run represents the first top-to-bottom integrated test of all flight core stage systems prior to its maiden Artemis I flight. All testing will be conducted on the B-2 Test Stand in the coming months and will culminate with an eight-minute, full-duration hot fire of the core stage with its four RS-25 engines, as during an actual launch. (5/14)