June 20, 2020

Houston Pitched as New Home of U.S. Space Command (Source: Houston Chronicle)
A group of Houston-area U.S. Representatives is pitching the nation’s fourth largest city to become home of the U.S. Space Command. In a letter sent this week to U.S. Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett, members of the Houston delegation emphasized that the city is home to Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base — which has Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air National Guard and Coast Guard stationed there — and NASA’s Johnson Space Center.

“Texas has a long, proud history of supporting our military,” the letter said. “We also have the resources, universities, and human capital to support something as important as the nation’s U.S. Space Command and the U.S. Space Force. Houston has supported the aerospace, aviation, and defense industries for decades, giving it a workforce that can contribute to the mission of the U.S. Space Command and the U.S. Space Force.” (6/19)

Florida's Cecil Spaceport Will Also Host Balloon Missions (Source: Jacksonville Business Journal)
Space Perspective, a space flight company, announced plans to fly passengers and research payloads to the edge of space with Spaceship Neptune — and will conduct some launches at Cecil Spaceport. The launch will take place at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. However, Space Perspective announced plans to launch from Cecil Spaceport as well. The first un-crewed test flight is scheduled for early 2021, which will include a suite of research payloads. (6/20)

How the White House Agenda for Managing Space Traffic Got Jammed Up (Source: Politico)
Little progress has been made in the two years since President Trump issued directive ordering federal agencies to update the process for tracking objects in space, says Andrew D’Uva, the president of Providence Access Company, a technology and satellite consulting firm, and an expert on satellite regulations. Trump signed Space Policy Directive-3 in June 2018 to improve the technology used to track objects in space and update the guidelines for how to handle space junk.

The most significant step sought to put the Commerce Department in charge of tracking objects in space and sharing the data with the public, a responsibility that now resides in the Department of Defense. But that's effectively at a standstill. “The Department of Commerce, despite doing all this planning work, hasn’t been given full authority and resources from Congress to move out on the mission,” D’Uva says. “They had no budget for fiscal 2020.” Reforming space traffic management remains a pressing policy challenge as space launch gets less expensive, orbits become crowded, and maneuvering a satellite can cause a major accident. (6/19)

Canadian State Takes Stake in GHGSat (Source: SpaceQ)
Quebec Minister of Economy and Innovation Pierre Fitzgibbon announced that the Government of Quebec was providing a $14 million equity investment in GHGSat. Fitzgibbon said it was “to strengthen Québec’s position among the major aerospace companies around the world and to preserve its business environment favorable to investment” and that “we must support the realization of new promising projects like that of GHGSat.” With the announcement GHGSat will move forward with building two new satellites in its bid to build a constellation of 10 satellites to track global greenhouse gas emissions. GHGSat is also planning on deploying three airborne sensors on planes and this funding will allow them to proceed with one additional sensor. (6/19)

See 14 Mind-Blowing Places in Our Solar System (Source: Gizmodo)
Our solar system is an undeniably fascinating place, featuring an assortment of celestial oddities and wonders. Between the planets, moons, comets, and asteroids, there’s no shortage of places for us to explore. Slowly but very surely, we’re finding all sorts of incredible—and sometimes unexplainable—phenomena. In this slideshow, we present to you some of the most dramatic and enigmatic places within our home star system. Click here. (6/19)

Trump Says He’s Heard ‘Interesting’ Things About UFO Mecca Roswell (Source: New York Post)
President Donald Trump says he’s heard some interesting things about Roswell, but he’s not sharing even with his eldest child. Don Jr. asked his Dad/President if he would ever divulge more information about Roswell, the New Mexico city known for its proximity to the arguably most famous UFO event — “and let us know what’s really going on.” Trump responded, “I won’t talk to you about what I know about it, but it’s very interesting.”

In 1947, a rancher discovered unidentifiable debris in his sheep pasture outside Roswell. Air Force officials said it was a crashed weather balloon, but skeptics questioned whether it was in fact at extraterrestrial flying saucer. Decades later the US military acknowledged the debris was related to a top-secret atomic project. Still, the UFO theory has flourished. The president in the past has spoken skeptically about the possibility that there is something out there. Last year Trump said he received a short briefing on UFO sightings, but also offered: “People are saying they’re seeing UFOs. Do I believe it? Not particularly.” Trump Jr. asked if the president might declassify that information someday. “Well, I’ll have to think about that one,” the president responded. (6/19)

Climate Change Alert: First-Time 100 Degrees Above Arctic Circle (Source: @mikarantane, @scottduncanwx)
Verhojansk, a Russian town in East Siberia known for its exceptionally cold winters, just broke its all-time heat record with a whopping 38.0°C (100.4°F)! Records kept since 1885. This is possibly the highest temperature ever recorded within the Arctic Circle. Temperatures will comfortably exceed + 30 °C within the Arctic Circle over the next 10 days at least. It is a staggering + 20-25 °C warmer than it should be. (6/20)

Gen. Thomas S. Moorman Jr., 1940-2020 (Source: Air Force Magazine)
Retired Gen. Thomas S. Moorman Jr., a key leader in the formation of Air Force space organizations and the first Air Force vice chief of staff who was not a rated pilot, died June 17 at age 79. Gen. Jay Raymond, U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations and head of U.S. Space Command, described Moorman as “a friend and long-time mentor” whose legacy will be “forever … etched in the establishment of U.S. Air Force Space Command.” Raymond said Moorman “played a pivotal role in establishing both national and Defense Department space programs, while laying the foundation for today’s U.S. Space Force.” (6/20)

America Must Build Critical National Security Foundation for Space Force (Source: The Hill)
As the Space Force is built as a service branch of the military, it is critical that the foundation is based on all of space and not only the constituent parts. The Space Force has a significant opportunity to make its mark on intelligence, national security, and the American space enterprise. Space fuels economic prosperity as much as it fuels military dominance. This fact is often lost in talks about the Space Force.

We would not have the prosperity that we have enjoyed over the years without space. From the global positioning system to weather forecasting, every facet of our daily lives is touched by space. Getting all this right for the 21st century means getting the government approach right from the very start.

The Space Force must become first among equals in the constellation of the American space enterprise. This may be uncomfortable for some, but much as the frontier was pioneered by the military establishing outposts and facilitating growth prior to the arrival of civilian infrastructure, it will also have a key role in space. In order to achieve success for its mission, the Space Force must work closely with the other government agencies with a space mission. This includes NASA, NOAA, State Department, Commerce Department, and other agencies. (6/19)

NanoAvionics Selected by Thales Alenia Space to Build the First Two Satellite Buses for Omnispace Constellation (Source: NanoAvionics)
Mission integrator NanoAvionics was contracted by Thales Alenia Space to build the initial two satellite buses for Omnispace’s satellite-based Internet of Things (IoT) infrastructure. NanoAvionics’ two satellite buses will host the payload which is being developed by prime contractor Thales Alenia Space, in partnership with Syrlinks.

The flight-proven performance, lower cost NanoAvionics’ M12P satellite buses are optimised for IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) communications. Omnispace is reinventing mobile communications by delivering the world’s first global hybrid 5G non-terrestrial network based on 3GPP standards. These initial satellites, for operation in non-geostationary orbit (NGSO), will support the development and implementation of Omnispace’s global hybrid network.

In addition to the satellite buses, NanoAvionics will provide launch support and in-orbit operations. The launch of these first two satellites of the Omnispace constellation is scheduled for 2021. The contract with Thales Alenia Space follows a recent co-operation agreement between NanoAvionics and Thales Alenia Space France. Both companies agreed to work together delivering a ‘high technology space asset’ as well as preparing and submitting technical solutions for nanosatellites. (6/19)

Proposed NASA Mission Would Visit Neptune's Curious Moon Triton (Source: NASA)
A new mission competing for selection under NASA's Discovery Program aims to untangle the mysteries of Triton. Called Trident, like the three-pronged spear carried by the ancient Roman sea god Neptune, the team is one of four that is developing concept studies for new missions. Up to two will be selected by summer 2021 to become a full-fledged mission and will launch later in the decade.

Investigating how Triton has changed over time would give scientists a better understanding of how solar system bodies evolve and work. The oddities of Triton could fill an almanac: As Neptune rotates, Triton orbits in the opposite direction. No other large moon in the solar system does that. And Triton's orbit lies at an extreme tilt, offset from Neptune's equator by 23 degrees. About three-quarters the diameter of our own Moon, Triton isn't where it used to be, either. It likely migrated from the Kuiper Belt, a region beyond Neptune of icy bodies left over from the early solar system. (6/16)