May 11, 2021

OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Heads for Earth with Asteroid Sample (Source: Space Daily)
After nearly five years in space, NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft is on its way back to Earth with an abundance of rocks and dust from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu. On Monday, May 10, at 4:23 p.m. EDT the spacecraft fired its main engines full throttle for seven minutes - its most significant maneuver since it arrived at Bennu in 2018. This burn thrust the spacecraft away from the asteroid at 600 miles per hour (nearly 1,000 kilometers per hour), setting it on a 2.5-year cruise towards Earth.

After releasing the sample capsule, OSIRIS-REx will have completed its primary mission. It will fire its engines to fly by Earth safely, putting it on a trajectory to circle the sun inside of Venus' orbit. After orbiting the Sun twice, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is due to reach Earth Sept. 24, 2023. Upon return, the capsule containing pieces of Bennu will separate from the rest of the spacecraft and enter Earth's atmosphere. The capsule will parachute to the Utah Test and Training Range in Utah's West Desert, where scientists will be waiting to retrieve it. (5/11)

SpaceX, a Tesla for the Skies (Source: The Economist)
Like Tesla, SpaceX has taken an unloved technology and made drastic improvements, shaking up a complacent industry. While Tesla’s mission—“accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy”—is grand, SpaceX’s is even grander. Mr Musk used his appearance on SNL to reaffirm his plans to use its cheap rockets to make humanity a “multi-planetary space-faring civilisation” by establishing a colony on Mars. And like Tesla, SpaceX’s valuation has soared. According to Pitchbook, a data-analysis firm, SpaceX’s latest funding round, completed in April, valued it at $74bn, up from $44bn in August 2020. CB Insights, a firm of analysts, ranks SpaceX the third most valuable startup in the world. (5/10)

Want to Become a Space Tourist? (Source: Space Daily)
In theory, the opening up of a commercial spaceflight industry should make space more accessible and democratic. But this is only partly the case; what was once the domain of only the richest countries is now an industry headed predominantly by commercial entities. Adding to this, these companies are prepared to take more risks than government programs because they don't have to justify their spending - or failures - to the public. Blue Origin and SpaceX have seen many explosions in past tests, yet fans watch with excitement rather than dismay.

This has pushed the rapid development of space technologies. Reusable rockets - particularly SpaceX's Falcon 9, which just made its tenth successful launch - have reduced the cost of launching tenfold. Besides driving down costs, reusable technology is also working to solve the problem of sustainability. If we add more human spaceflight to this traffic, countries will need to adopt stricter requirements to de-orbit satellites at the end of their lives, so they burn up on reentry. Currently, it's acceptable to de-orbit after 25 years, or to put a satellite into an unused orbit. But this only delays the problem for the future. (5/11)

Spybirds: POPPY 8 and the Dawn of Satellite Ocean Surveillance (Source: Space Review)
A launch in 1969 represented a turning point in the use of American signals intelligence satellites. Dwayne Day examines how POPPY 8 marked the beginning of using such data in near realtime to support military forces. Click here. (5/10)
 
Retaining Both Space Policies and Processes (Source: Space Review)
The Biden Administration has made clear in its first months that it would retain key space policies of the Trump Administration, from Artemis to the Space Force. Jeff Foust reports it’s also embracing one of the ways the previous administration developed those policies, the National Space Council. Click here. (5/10)
 
Technical and Geopolitical Arguments for Autonomous On-Orbit Satellite Servicing (Source: Space Review)
The recent docking of a Northrop Grumman satellite life extension vehicle with an Intelsat spacecraft is another milestone for the emerging satellite servicing industry. Matthew Jenkins cautions that the field still needs to grapple with both technology and policy issues to be successful in the long term. Click here. (5/10)

UCF Developing Hypersonic Tech That Could Also Support Space Launches (Source: Space Daily)
University of Central Florida researchers are building technology that could pave the way for hypersonic flight. The researchers discovered a way to stabilize the detonation needed for hypersonic propulsion by creating a special hypersonic reaction chamber for jet engines. The system could allow for air travel at speeds of Mach 6 to 17, which is more than 4,600 to 13,000 miles per hour.

The technology harnesses the power of an oblique detonation wave, which they formed by using an angled ramp inside the reaction chamber to create a detonation-inducing shock wave for propulsion. Unlike rotating detonation waves that spin, oblique detonation waves are stationary and stabilized. The technology improves jet propulsion engine efficiency so that more power is generated while using less fuel than traditional propulsion engines, thus lightening the fuel load and reducing costs and emissions. In addition to faster air travel, the technology could also be used in rockets for space missions to make them lighter by requiring less fuel, travel farther and burn more cleanly. (5/11)

Current Systems Provide Only an Hour to Prepare for the Worst Solar Weather (Source: Space Daily)
An ability to predict space weather is an essential tool in providing warnings so that mitigation can be attempted, and to hopefully, in extreme cases, forestall a disaster. A magnetic cloud causing minor space weather effects usually takes about three days to come from the sun to Earth. A truly dangerous cloud, from a bigger solar explosion, may take as little as a day.

Since our monitoring satellites are relatively close to Earth, we only know about the crucial magnetic field direction at most one hour in advance of impact. This is not much time to prepare vulnerable infrastructure, like power and communication networks and satellites, to best survive. Since the fleets of satellites needed to give better warning are not even on the drawing boards, we must rely on luck in the face of space weather. It may be a small comfort that the coming solar maximum - when the surface of the sun is at its most active during a cycle and is expected to peak in 2025 - is predicted to be mild. (5/11)

Virgin Galactic Finds Another Flight Readiness Issue (Source: Space News)
Virgin Galactic said a potential issue with the aircraft used to carry its SpaceShipTwo suborbital spaceplane could delay the resumption of test flights. In an earnings call Monday, company executives said they believe they have corrected the electromagnetic interference problem that aborted a test flight of the vehicle five months ago. However, the company said "a potential wear-and-tear issue" found after a recent flight of the WhiteKnightTwo aircraft could require repairs. The company had planned to do that work during a maintenance period this fall, but may need to move that work up, delaying a series of four SpaceShipTwo flights that had been scheduled to begin this month. Virgin Galactic will provide an update next week on its test flight schedule. The company reported a net loss of $130 million in the first quarter of 2021. (5/11)

Pentagon: Chinese Rocket Re-Entry "Irresponsible" (Source: Space News)
The Pentagon criticized the uncontrolled reentry of a Chinese Long March 5B stage as "irresponsible behavior." At a briefing Monday, Defense Department spokesman John Kirby called on countries to operate in space in "a responsible, deliberate way that's mindful of the safety of all our citizens here on Earth." His comments came two days after the 30-meter-long booster reentered over the Indian Ocean, out of harm's way. At a separate event Monday, former NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said the Long March 5B episode is another reminder that the United States needs to step up diplomatic efforts to compel China to change its behavior. (5/11)

Orbcomm Acquisition by GI Partners Moves Forward (Source: Space News)
Orbcomm will move ahead with being acquired by a private equity firm after failing to get any alternative proposals. The satellite operator said Monday it concluded a 30-day "go-shop" period, allowing it to solicit alternatives to a proposed acquisition by GI Partners for $1.1 billion. Orbcomm said it received no offers, and now goes into a "no-shop" period where it is restricted from soliciting other offers. The sale to GI Partners is expected to close in the second half of this year, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals. (5/11)

Inmarsat Seeks to Block Dutch Spectrum Auction (Source: Space News)
Inmarsat is turning to an administrative court to block a Dutch effort to auction spectrum the company uses. Inmarsat had sought an injunction in a civil court to stop the Dutch government's plan to sell the 3.5 gigahertz spectrum, which it uses for maritime safety services, to terrestrial 5G providers next year. However, the company switched to an administrative court after the Dutch government published a national frequency plan last month. Inmarsat says it will have to move a ground station in Burum, in the northern part of the Netherlands, if the country gives wireless operators full use of the frequencies. (5/11)
 
Interest Growing for Tourism Flights to ISS (Source: Space News)
Demand for private astronaut missions to the International Space Station is exceeding the available flight opportunities. NASA announced Monday it finalized an agreement with Axiom Space for that company's first private mission to the station, Ax-1, launching next January. Axiom plans to fly a series of such missions, and NASA officials said they are seeing interest from other companies as well. The current ISS "traffic model" of spacecraft going to the station can only accommodate two private astronaut missions a year, and the agency said demand is greater than that. (5/11)

Cabana Departing KSC for NASA HQ (Source: Space News)
Bob Cabana will succeed Steve Jurczyk as NASA's associate administrator. NASA announced Monday that Jurczyk will retire from NASA this Friday after 32 years at the agency, a tenure that included serving for nearly three and a half months this year as acting administrator. Bob Cabana, a former astronaut and longtime director of the Kennedy Space Center, will take over the job, the highest-ranking civil service position at NASA, next week. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Cabana "has the vision and management skills to bring NASA to even higher heights." (5/11)

South Korea's Space Chief Promotes Commercialization, Long-Term Focus (Source: Space News)
The head of South Korea's space agency wants to focus on long-term programs that may take decades to pay off. Lee Sang-ryool, president of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) since March, said last week that near-term applications of space should be handed over to the private sector. He wants KARI to devote its resources on "developing core technologies with far-reaching impact or truly futuristic technologies that can be realized 30 years later." He said nothing had been decided yet as to what the agency will choose to explore as a long-term project and what to yield to the private sector. (5/11)

Iceye Broadens Imagery Offering (Source: Space News)
Synthetic aperture radar company Iceye has released a new wide-field imaging product. The company's new Scan imaging capability captures areas as large as 10,000 square kilometers.The company expects the wide-field mode to appeal to maritime customers, allowing them to track ships in the open ocean and along coastlines. (5/11)

Australia Assigns Military Space Chief (Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
The Australian military has selected its first commander responsible for space activities. Air Vice-Marshal Catherine Roberts will oversee space activities in the Australian armed forces in the newly created Head of Space Division position, starting in January. Roberts, who has served in the Royal Australian Air Force for 35 years, is currently the Head of Air Force Capability for the service. (5/11)