May 9, 2021

Astronomers Chart Invisible Ocean of Dark Matter Swirling Outside the Milky Way (Source: Live Science)
A mysterious wake of stars, stirred up by a small galaxy that is set to collide with the Milky Way, could be about to unlock the mysteries of dark matter. The trail of stars, located outside the star-flecked spiral arms of the Milky Way's central disk in a region called the galactic halo, is being carried along in the cosmic slipstream of a dwarf galaxy in orbit around the Milky Way, according to a new sky map created by astronomers.

The galaxy, called the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), is orbiting some 130,000 light-years away from Earth and stirring up the wake of cosmic material behind it. At first glance, the LMC’s trail appears to consist solely of stars, but the researchers know that the stars are just along for the ride. They are suspended inside a far larger, completely invisible presence. (5/6)

NASA Criticizes China's Handling of Rocket Re-Entry as Debris Lands Near Maldives (Source: CNN)
NASA has lambasted China for its failure to "meet responsible standards" after debris from its out-of-control rocket likely plunged into the Indian Ocean Saturday night. "Spacefaring nations must minimize the risks to people and property on Earth of re-entries of space objects and maximize transparency regarding those operations," said NASA Administrator Sen. Bill Nelson. "China is failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris," he added. (5/9)

The Growing Problem of Space Junk (Source: CNN)
What humans discard is fodder for archaeologists, but it's also an environmental problem that is becoming interplanetary. The Soviet satellite Sputnik 1, which launched on October 4, 1957, was the first human-made object in space. It kick-started the space race and inspired dreams of holidays on the moon and Martian colonies. But the satellite's orbit decayed just three months later, and it burned up as it reentered Earth's atmosphere. It was the first piece of space trash.

Nothing survived of the basketball-sized aluminum sphere with distinctive antennas. That's not likely to be the case for the Long March 5B rocket, fell back to Earth this weekend after delivering the Tianhe module of the new Chinese space station to orbit in April. It's one of the largest uncontrolled space objects to fall out of orbit. The rocket uses cryogenic fuel, so its fuel tanks are extremely robust to contain liquid oxygen and hydrogen under high pressure. Based on my observations, fuel system components are the most common rocket element to make it back to Earth.

Most concerns about the uncontrolled reentry of the 22-ton rocket are about how much remained intact and the potential damage to life and property on Earth. But we shouldn't just focus on what makes its way back to the ground. Old satellites, rocket bodies, fragments and particles make up an estimated 9,000 tons of material circling Earth, from a few hundred kilometers to more than 35,000 kilometers in altitude. (5/8)

Musk, Bezos, and Branson Each Have a Different Plan for Space. Here's How They Stack Up (Source: Business Insider)
Elon Musk's SpaceX may be the buzziest name in private space exploration, but the Tesla CEO isn't the only mega-rich entrepreneur with grand visions for humanity's future beyond Earth's atmosphere. Amazon founder and fellow centi-billionaire Jeff Bezos has his own space company — Blue Origin — and he sells around $1 billion worth of Amazon stock each year to fund it. Richard Branson, whose Virgin Group dabbles in everything from airlines to healthcare, launched a commercial spaceflight company of his own called Virgin Galactic.

These three companies were all founded within a few years of one another in the early 2000s, but each has its own unique business model and plans for a space-faring future. Here's what Musk, Bezos, and Branson are each trying to accomplish, and where their efforts stand today. Click here. (5/9)

The Man the Soviet Union Left in Space (Source: The New European)
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Sergei Krikalev in a bit of a pickle. As the hammer and sickle was removed from above the Kremlin he orbited the Earth in the Mir space Station at 7.7km a second. Mir was smelly, noisy and cramped. “Sweat and alcohol were the predominant odors,” says Doug Millard. “And the noise from fans and machinery was persistent.” Most cosmonauts experienced tinnitus. There was also mould. Tests later found 140 species of micoorganisms aboard. Krikalev thouht he'd be recalled to Earth, but the opposite occurred. There was no money to bring him back. He was instructed to remain patient.

He had a nine-month-old daughter and in weekly conversations with his wife Elena who worked in Mission Control he realized things were changing for them. Gorbachev’s market reforms had caused rampant inflation. Krikalev’s once comfortable cosmonaut’s salary had become almost worthless and his family was struggling to eat. As was Krikalev. When he requested honey and lemons in advance of a relief flight to raise his morale, none could be found. Eventually the lemons were bought from a hard-currency tourist shop but there was no honey. When the flight eventually arrived, he received a jar of horseradish instead.

He got his news from an amateur radio enthusiast, circumventing Soviet state broadcasts which at times were economical with political reality. Krikalev later said “without her I would not have known why I wasn’t being allowed home.” As the relief flight's launch time approached, the Kazakhstan declared sovereignty. Baikonur and the landing ground were no longer Soviet territory. The fees asked by the Kazakhs to let Moscow use the cosmodrome meant, once again, a hole in the budget. The Kazakh government demanded its own cosmonaut, Toktar Aubakirov, fly to Mir to replace Krikalev. The Kazakhs paid for the privilege and preparations continued. But it soon became clear Aubakirov's training was inadequate. Krikalev had little option but to volunteer to stay on longer. Click here. (5/9)

Democratizing Space, One Billionaire at a Time: The Return of Space Tourism (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Democratization has a set of fundamental elements to it. It involves giving the people the power to choose their leaders. It means making a political system accountable to those people. It’s creating a government and culture that respect the freedoms laid out in the First Amendment: speech, assembly, religion, press and the right to peacefully petition the government for change. It’s not just changing how the government operates, but how the society functions.

The last thing I ever expected democratization to include are joy rides into space by millionaires and billionaires. But, that’s what NewSpace spinmeisters would have us believe as space tourism returns this year after a 12-year hiatus. They really should stop. Their argument is that access to space will no longer be limited to highly qualified, competitively selected astronauts pushing back the frontiers of space on behalf of the people, but anyone who can get there.

Well, not exactly anyone. You have to be at least a millionaire to afford even a several minutes in space. Virgin Galactic is charging its 600 or so customers $200,000 or $250,000 for tickets on its SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle. The company raised seat prices by $50,000 in 2013 as founder Richard Branson was predicting commercial flights by the end of that year. Eight years later, they still haven’t begun. (5/8)

We Don’t Need Elon Musk to Explore the Solar System (Source: Jacobin)
A democratic and public redirection of Elon Musk’s billions might be spent differently. One might further assert that, given the non-identity of the set of all things that are beneficial and the set of all things that are profitable, space colonization will be a public-sector endeavor, or it will not happen — as such a private space travel has no near-term, medium-term, or even long-term prospect of any return on financial investment beyond servicing low-earth, medium-earth, or geostationary orbit. And, finally, we might denounce the union-busting at Musk’s factories or even argue that his “accumulation of resources” is less the product of his own efforts than it is primarily an upward redistribution of value created by his workers.

But space exploration is one of the grandest tasks humanity has ever set for itself. It is a false dichotomy — and an austerian one at that — to say that we do not have enough money for both a space program and social justice or environmental protection. We can more than afford to do both. NASA’s budget is but a fraction of the Pentagon’s. It should not be difficult to imagine a democratic socialist economy, or even just one a little less neoliberal, that permits much more space and much less war. We can have public health care and science. We can end homelessness and explore the cosmos. We can have unionized, family-supporting jobs for all and, one day, almost certainly some considerable time from now, colonies on other worlds. (5/9)

Historic Cape Launch Pad Observes 125th Launch With First 10x-Flown Falcon 9 (Source: America Space)
SpaceX has achieved its long-sought-after goal of at least ten missions for a single Falcon 9 booster, following Sunday’s pre-dawn liftoff of the veteran B1051 core from storied Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. The launch occurred on time at 2:42 a.m. EDT and saw B1051 deliver the initial push uphill for another 60 Starlink satellites, bringing its personal tally of these low-orbiting internet providers to 417. Sunday’s flight also marked the 125th launch from SLC-40 since June 1965, a complex whose heritage extends back almost six decades across the Titan III and Titan IV rocket families. (5/9)

Orbex Boss Says He Probably Wouldn't Want UK Spaceport Close to His Home (Source: Northern Times)
The head of a company building rockets for a controversial spaceport in Sutherland has admitted he probably would not want it close to his home. Chris Larmour of Moray-based aerospace engineering firm Orbex has outraged opponents of Britain's first vertical launch spaceport on the A’Mhoine Peninsula near Melness with his comments. But his spokesman said he was "empathising" with those affected.

Mr Larmour was taking part in a recent panel-based space industry event when he said to the viewing audience: "It's in the backyard of some people and some people don't like that – and fair enough, you know, I wouldn't probably either." He added that there are not many places in Europe to build such a facility and finding the right balance involved various factors including taking into account the people who lived there and "acceptability to the local population is quite a tricky thing". (5/7)

At Cape Canaveral Spaceport, National Memorial Honoring Fallen Astronauts Commemorates 30 Years (Source: AMF)
It was a balmy morning on May 9, 1991, when close to two-thousand attendees paid their respects to fallen astronauts at the dedication of a new national memorial: the Space Mirror. Those present included honoree’s family; along with astronaut legends Alan Shepard, Neil Armstrong & Gene Cernan; then former Congressman and now current NASA Administrator Bill Nelson; and, Vice President Dan Quayle. Thirty years later, the current Astronauts Memorial Foundation (AMF) Chair and foundation progenitors share their memories of the organization, as well as hopes for the future of space exploration. Click here. (5/9)