June 7, 2021

SpaceX Estabishes Lithuanian Subsidiary for Starlink (Source: Delfi)
Starlink Lithuania was registered on Wednesday with Starlink Holdings Netherlands as its sole shareholder and Lauren Dreye, SpaceX's director of human resources and business operations, as its CEO, according to information from the Lithuanian Center of Registers. SpaceX's specific investment plans in Lithuania are not clear yet, but the arrival of Starlink internet will be good for residents and startups. "Being one of the first to have the Starlink connection, we can create technology by using this platform. That's a huge thing, I believe, it’s a very good opportunity for a small country to be a leader in this area," the businessman said. (6/5)

Bezos Plans to Fly on Next Blue Origin Suborbital Mission (Source: Space News)
Jeff Bezos will be on the first crewed flight of Blue Origin's New Shepard suborbital vehicle next month. In an Instagram post early Monday, Bezos announced that he will be on the flight along with his younger brother, Mark. That launch is currently scheduled for July 20 from Blue Origin's West Texas test site. A third seat on the vehicle will be filled by the winner of an online auction scheduled to conclude Saturday. (6/7)

Astra to Acquire Apollo Fusion for Smallsat Thrusters (Source: Space News)
Small launch vehicle developer is acquiring electric propulsion company Apollo Fusion. Astra announced early Monday it was buying Apollo Fusion for $50 million in cash and stock, with an additional $95 million in earn-out incentives if Apollo Fusion hits revenue and technical milestones. Astra says it will incorporate the Apollo Constellation Engine thruster in its future line of smallsats as part of its effort to offer customers a complete space solution. It will continue to offer those thrusters to other customers as well. (6/7)

Virgin Galactic Adds Research and Astronaut Training as Business Targets (Source: Space News)
Virgin Galactic announced a deal last week for a suborbital research flight. The company said it will fly Kellie Gerardi, affiliated with the International Institute of Astronautical Sciences, on a future SpaceShipTwo dedicated research flight. She will carry out a series of investigations on the flight, testing biomedical sensors and conducting a fluids experiment. Virgin Galactic has emphasized research and astronaut training as new lines of business alongside its suborbital space tourism market. Virgin Galactic did not disclose the terms of the deal, but company officials previously said they were entering into agreements for research flights at about $600,000 per seat. (6/7)

Mars Ascent Vehicle From Northrop Grumman Takes Shape for Mars Sample Return Mission (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
All of the sample analysis on Mars has had to rely on the robotic laboratories and the data streams beamed back to Earth. Now, NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) are seeking to change that with the Mars Sample Return mission — for which a rocket launched from Earth and landed on Mars will be needed to bring Martian samples up to a waiting Earth Return Orbiter.

The complex mission — which will carry a fully-fueled, 3 meter long rocket — will require the recently-landed Perseverance rover to collect and bottle Martian surface samples for later collection by a Sample Fetch Rover that will be launched and landed with the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). NASA has formally awarded the MAV contract to Northrop Grumman. “This mission, because of the trajectory that we’re going to Mars on, will be about three years going outbound from Earth to Mars.  It’s a different kind of trajectory.  And then once we’re on the surface, we’re going to be there about a [Martian] year before the samples […] are collected, put into the rocket, and then launched,” said David McGrath. (6/4)

EchoStar Puts Faith in Third Nanosatellite for Global S-Band Plan (Source: Space News)
EchoStar hopes the third time will be a charm for the U.S. satellite operator racing to secure global non-geostationary S-band rights this summer. The company plans to lock down these spectrum rights ahead of an Aug. 10 deadline with a nanosatellite launching before the end of June, EchoStar Satellite Services president Anders Johnson said.

Its last two nanosatellites suffered post-launch propulsion system failures that prevented them from reaching an orbit where EchoStar must provide services before the August deadline to keep the license. EchoStar previously had until the beginning of April to secure the license, but got an extension from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to make its third attempt. (6/7)

Yahsat IPO Expected to Raise $500+ Million (Source: Reuters)
Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala has hired banks for the planned initial public offering of Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat) which could raise over $500 million, three sources said. Yahsat has five satellites that serve more than 150 countries, information on its website shows. It also owns satellite phone operator Thuraya. (6/2)

Dragonfly Aerospace Launches Award Program (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Dragonfly Aerospace is pleased to announce an Award Program for young innovative projects, working on Earth observation. One of the key elements  in establishing an Earth observation system is the imaging payload. Dragonfly is prepared to offer one of its compact high resolution Caiman imagers for the upcoming satellite mission which aims to monitor and protect our shared global natural resources.

The Dragonfly Aerospace Award Program will be held from June 1, 2021 to October 31, 2021. The contest is open to commercial start-ups as well as non-profit, non-commercial organizations, including university programs. The winning team needs to have an existing funded mission that  will launch before December 31, 2022. (6/7)

Nelson and Rogozin Agree to More Talks (Source: Space Policy Online)
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and his Russian counterpart talked Friday, and agreed to talk some more. Nelson and Dmitry Rogozin, head of Roscosmos, talked by phone Friday, and NASA said later that the two had a "productive" conversation. Roscosmos, though, said that Rogozin complained about sanctions against Russian companies. The two agreed to continue discussions on the future of the ISS, and Rogozin invited Nelson to visit Russia. (6/7)

Spacetime Crystals: New Mathematical Formula May Solve Old Problem in Understanding the Fabric of the Universe (Source: SciTech Daily)
A scientist studying crystal structures has developed a new mathematical formula that may solve a decades-old problem in understanding spacetime, the fabric of the universe proposed in Einstein’s theories of relativity. “Relativity tells us space and time can mix to form a single entity called spacetime, which is four-dimensional: three space-axes and one time-axis,” said Venkatraman Gopalan. “However, something about the time-axis sticks out like sore thumb.”

For calculations to work within relativity, scientists must insert a negative sign on time values that they do not have to place on space values. Physicists have learned to work with the negative values, but it means that spacetime cannot be dealt with using traditional Euclidean geometry and instead must be viewed with the more complex hyperbolic geometry. Gopalan developed a two-step mathematical approach that allows the differences between space and time to be blurred, removing the negative sign problem and serving as a bridge between the two geometries. (6/5)

Craig Technologies Founder/CEO Carol Craig Joins Board of Directors of Vaya Space (Source: Florida Today)
Vaya Space recently announced that Carol Craig, founder and chief executive officer of Craig Technologies and Craig Technologies Aerospace Solutions, joined its board of directors. "Carol Craig is an accomplished business leader, innovator and entrepreneur," said Sid Gutierrez, retired NASA astronaut and Vaya Space chairman of the board. "Her extensive experience and expertise growing tech startups into successful companies will help us take Vaya Space to the next level." (6/4)

Rogozin Says Russia Agreed with US Requirement That Sea Launch Not Compete Against SpaceX (Source: RIA Novosti)
The United States agreed to transfer Russian space rocket complex "Sea Launch" under the condition that it will not compete with the US company SpaceX  Elon Musk , said General Director of " Roscosmos " Dmitry Rogozin. "Specific strict restrictions were introduced when signing this contract for the transfer of two Sea Launch vessels to a Russian company - an obligation that we do not have the right to use this Sea Launch in competition with Elon Musk," he said during parliamentary hearings in the State Duma .

"Okay? That is, the US government, government lawyers act as a client of, in fact, a private company [SpaceX]. Or maybe it is not a private company in this case, if with the help of state sanctions we are limited to compete with SpaceX?" "- added Rogozin. Moreover, he noted, before the transfer, the Americans "pulled out and cut out all the equipment on these ships," so tens of billions of rubles would be needed to restore them.

Editor's Note: Maybe Roscosmos doesn't want Sea Launch to succeed and is finding a way to blame the US. They might be more concerned that commercial Sea Launch will compete against Russia's new state-sponsored launch programs. (6/7)

NASA's New $23 Million Space Commode System is More Than Just a Toilet (Source: UPI)
Going to the bathroom at the International Space Station is about to get easier and cleaner with a new toilet system that cost NASA $23 million to develop. Astronauts are connecting and checking out the toilet, which actually is a high-tech improvement to the space station's water recycling system. The multimillion-dollar budget for the project includes another unit installed inside the Orion space capsule for longer deep-space missions.

"The project is nearing completion after six years of work and is the first U.S.-developed toilet since the shuttle program," Melissa McKinley, NASA's project manager for the new system, said. "It follows on the lessons learned of the early days of space exploration and aims to improve the experience for the female crew. The urine funnel and commode seat were configured along with the commode structure to better suit the female anatomy," she said. (6/7)

National Space Club Florida Committee Opens Nominations for Annual Awards (Source: NSCFL)
Nominations for the National Space Club Florida Committee 2021 Lifetime Achievement, Rising Star, Kolcum News & Communications, and Space Worker Hall of Fame awards are now open. The deadline is July 6. The Lifetime Achievement Award honors those with lifelong service. The Rising Star Award seeks to honor someone who is very early in his or her career.

The Kolcum News & Communications Awards honor news media and communications professionals for excellence in telling the space story. The Space Worker Hall of Fame Awards honor workers in Space Launch Technology, Space Flight Support, Human Spaceflight Advancement, and Space Flight Advocacy and Education. Click here for information and to submit nominations. (6/7)