July 11, 2020

Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Offers Virtual Camp for Students This Summer (Source: Florida Today)
The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is offering a "Virtual Camp KSC" for elementary-age students this summer. The visitor complex will launch its first three-day session July 28 with a three-hour Zoom conference from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. A second session will run from August 4-6 from 1 to 4 p.m. “Virtual Camp KSC allows us to connect with the next generation of space explorers, and share our love of science, technology, engineering and math,” said Therrin Protze. “We’re excited about this new opportunity for kids to learn and explore at home.” (7/9)

How Do We Keep the Moon Unspoiled? (Source: ASU)
Planetary protection is the protection of space and celestial bodies from contamination from terrestrial life forms (or from bringing back anything nasty to Earth; we’ve all seen the movies.) “We’re moving very, very rapidly,” NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said. “The key is keeping a pristine environment.” The discovery of hundreds of millions of tons of water ice on the moon a few years ago changed everything. NASA is changing its thinking on how to go to the moon. “Forward biological contamination” is what they want to prevent.

“With Mars we have to worry about backward contamination as well,” Bridenstine said. “All of a sudden it becomes more challenging to go to Mars with humans. … We as an agency need to strike a balance.” Humans need to go to Mars, but the planet must also be protected for scientific research. It would be a huge disappointment to go there and discover life, only to realize it hitched a ride from Earth. “As we learn more, we’re going to have to continue to make adjustments,” Bridenstine said.

The moon will be divided into two categories, he said. Category One will have very little requirements on contamination. That will cover most of the moon. Category Two will cover certain areas, namely the permanently shadowed regions — basically the poles — with lots of water ice that need to be protected. You can go there, but you have to be really careful to inventory all the biology that will be going along, including on the spacecraft. (7/9)

For the First Time in Eight Years, a Russian Woman Will Fly to the ISS. Who is She? (Source: RBTH)
In the fall of 2022, Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, plans to send Anna Kikina, Russia’s only current female cosmonaut, to the International Space Station (ISS). We give the lowdown on who she is and how she passed the selection process. 35-year-old Anna Kikina was born on Aug. 27, 1984, in Novosibirsk. At school, she excelled at sport. In 2005, she took a first aid instructor course under the Russian Ministry of Emergencies, and in 2006 graduated from the engineering faculty of the Novosibirsk State Academy of Water Transport with the specialization Protection in Emergency Situations.

Two years later, in 2008, she received another degree from the same university, this time in Economics and Management (Transport Industry). Later Anna decided to dabble in journalism and became a radio host on Radio Siberia. And in her free time she competed in multisport events and did white-water rafting, receiving the title of Master of Sport in both disciplines. Another hobby is parachuting, and Kikina already has 151 jumps under her belt. According to the online newspaper Lenta.ru, she loves books and films, especially The Lord of the Rings and Avatar. (7/9)

Republican Congressman Mike Waltz Shapes Military & Civilian Space Policy (Source: WMFE)
Republican Congressman Mike Waltz has been focusing a lot on space. Two of his House committees are working on budgets affecting both the military and civilian side of the industry. One committee helped move a National Defense Authorization Act which expands the newly created U.S. Space Force and the other committee is laying the groundwork for NASA’s next budget. Waltz represents Florida’s 6th congressional district. Click here. (7/10)

Australia and Japan Agreement to Grow Space Sector (Source: Manufacturers' Monthly)
Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzō Abe acknowledged the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) between the Australian Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) at the Australia-Japan Virtual Leaders Meeting. The MOC strengthens Australia’s long-standing space cooperation with Japan to grow the space industry and create new jobs.

The federal government is investing close to $700 million into Australian space sector as part of our goal to triple its size to $12 billion and create an extra 20,000 jobs by 2030. Minister for Industry, Science and Technology Karen Andrews said the signing would enable exciting opportunities to increase space collaboration across the two nations and support economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This significant international partnership will open the door for local innovators and help in Australia’s mission of growing our connected, respected and globally competitive space industry,” Andrews said. “This signing builds on already strong cooperation in space between Australia and Japan over more than 20 years, including the trials of the Japanese Automatic Landing Flight Experiment at Woomera in 1996, the launch of Australia’s FedSat in 2002 and the return of Hayabusa1 in 2010. (7/10)

Indian Space Sector Locked Down During the First Half of 2020 (Source: Outlook India)
What would have been an insipid first half of the calendar year 2020 for the Indian space agency turned a bit interesting towards the end, with the government announcing its decision to open up the sector to private participation.

At the start of 2020, ISRO Chairman and Secretary Department of Space K. Sivan said that the space agency was planning to have 25 launches -- including Aditya-L1 satellite, Geo Imaging Satellite (GISAT-1), realization of Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) or small rocket (carrying capacity 500 kg), navigation satellite with indigenous atomic clocks and Indian Data Relay Satellite System (IDRSS), and GSAT-20 satellite with electric propulsion. Sivan also said India will embark on its third moon mission ''Chandrayaan-3'' and attempt to land a lander on the lunar surface sometime in 2020-21.

All was going well for ISRO after the crashlanding of India''s moon lander Vikram on the lunar surface in 2019. The year began well ISRO with the launch of the 3,357 kg communication satellite GSAT-30 by the European space agency Arianespace rocket Ariane 5 on January 17. (7/10)

Eyes on the Stars: UAE's Mars Probe a First for the Arab World (Source: Phys.org)
The oil-rich United Arab Emirates has built a nuclear power programme and sent a man to space, and now plans to join another elite club by sending a probe to Mars. Only the United States, India, the former Soviet Union, and the European Space Agency have successfully sent missions to orbit the Red Planet, while China is preparing to launch its first Mars rover later this month.

The UAE—a collection of sheikhdoms better known for its skyscrapers, palm-shaped islands and mega attractions—is now pushing to join their ranks in what will be a first for the Arab world. It will mark the 50th anniversary of its unification with "Hope", an unmanned spacecraft expected to reach its target in February after being launched on July 15 from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center. (7/10)

Brevard Nominated to Host the Space Force’s U.S. Space Command Headquarters (Source: Florida Today)
Brevard County has officially thrown its hat into the ring to be chosen as the location for U.S. Space Command Headquarters. Last week Gov. Ron DeSantis endorsed a letter from Brevard County Commission Chairman Bryan Lober nominating the Space Coast for the highly coveted spot. “As home to the 45th Space Wing, Florida’s Space Coast has always valued its more than 70-year partnership with the U.S. Air Force and looks forward to building a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the U.S. Space Force,” Lober wrote in his letter. (7/9)