July 12, 2021

At 59, KSC Diversifies, Flourishes as Multi-User Spaceport (Source: Space Daily)
In 1962 when America was going to the Moon, NASA established Kennedy Space Center in Florida as its Launch Operations Center. This month, the modernized multi-user spaceport marks its 59th anniversary while working to send Americans back to the Moon, helping grow the commercial space industry, and performing research that benefits humanity. Click here. (7/12)

Daytona's Modularity Space and Orbital Transports Create Reusable Space Ecosystem (Source: Orbital Transports)
Daytona Beach-based Modularity Space and Orbital Transports announced a partnership to create a reusable ecosystem of suppliers, manufacturers, and rideshare opportunities for payloads. By combining mission planning and supply chain management services provided by Orbital Transports with reusable spacecraft engineering from Modularity Space, the companies can offer affordable opportunities for payloads to get to orbit with a full turn-key mission package.

The combined service provides an easy on-ramp to space for payload types ranging from technology demonstration and qualification missions to full constellation-scale deployments. With flights starting in 2022, Modularity Space is mass producing reusable satellites and renting them to space companies for use in hosting their technology. Customers pay a deposit before move-in and then pay monthly throughout the duration of their mission. Space companies can now benefit from rapid manufacturing timelines, affordable financing to get to space, and the reliability that comes from effective on-orbit satellite servicing. (7/12)

Branson Pleased With Flight, Offers Flight Sweepstakes (Source: Space News)
Branson said afterwards the flight was "beyond my wildest dreams." Both he and Virgin Galactic executives said SpaceShipTwo performed as expected  on its fourth flight beyond the 80-kilometer altitude the company defines as space. Branson flew in order to evaluate the experience for future customers and said he found only a handful of minor things he would like to change. Branson said before the flight he would make an announcement afterwards, which many thought would be to announce the reopening of ticket sales. Instead, he said the company was working with a fundraising platform, Omaze, for a sweepstakes that offers two seats on an early commercial SpaceShipTwo flight next year. Proceeds will go to a non-profit, Space for Humanity. (7/12)

Virgin Galactic Collects $80 Million in Sales/Deposits, Including From Elon Musk (Source: Wall Street Journal)
Elon Musk, a third billionaire pursuing space tourism, already has his own ticket—with Virgin Galactic. A spokesman for Galactic said Mr. Musk had bought a ticket for his own space ride. It is unclear how far up the waiting list Mr. Musk is for a seat. Virgin Galactic said its tickets have sold for $250,000 each, and the company has collected $80 million in sales and deposits. (7/11)

North Korean Hackers Breach South Korea Rocket Maker's Network (Source: Space News)
Hackers associated with the North Korean government broke into the network of a South Korean aerospace company working on launch vehicle technologies. The breach of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) took place in mid-June, according to a South Korean lawmaker. South Korean media reported that the hackers accessed information on the rocket propulsion technologies KAI is developing for the KSLV-2 launch vehicle. (7/12)

New Satellite Data Techniques Reveal Coastal Sea-Level Rise (Source: Space Daily)
For the hundreds of millions of people living in coastal regions around the world, rising seas driven by climate change pose a direct threat. In order for authorities to plan appropriate protection strategies, accurate information on sea-level rise close to the coast is imperative. For various reasons, these measurements are difficult to get from satellites. However, new ESA-funded research demonstrates how a specific way of processing satellite altimetry data now makes it possible to determine sea-level change in coastal areas with millimetre per year accuracy, and even if the sea is covered by ice.

As our atmosphere and oceans continue to warm because of climate change, sea levels are likely to continue to rise for many decades to come. The 2019 report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) paints a grave picture of the problems we face because of sea-level rise. The Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate states that global mean sea level is likely to rise between 0.29 m and 1.1 m by the end of this century. This is the worst projection of sea-level rise ever made by the IPCC. (7/12)

Four Ways Artificial Intelligence is Helping us Learn About the Universe (Source: Space.com)
Astronomy is all about data. The universe is getting bigger and so too is the amount of information we have about it. But some of the biggest challenges of the next generation of astronomy lie in just how we’re going to study all the data we’re collecting. To take on these challenges, astronomers are turning to machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to build new tools to rapidly search for the next big breakthroughs. Here are four ways AI is helping astronomers. Click here. (7/12)

Yusaku Maezawa: Cooking Japanese Food in Orbit (Source: RIA Novosti)
The first space tourist in 12 years will travel to the International Space Station in December 2021. It will be the Japanese businessman Yusaku Maezawa , who will fly on the Russian Soyuz MS-20 spacecraft together with his assistant Yozo Hirano. Experienced Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Misurkin has been appointed commander of the spacecraft . Crew training at the Cosmonaut Training Center has already begun and will be held in two stages, which will be devoted to the study of technology and preparation for the flight itself. Click here. (7/12)

The Coming Surge of Rocket Emissions (Source: EOS)
The global space industry is on the verge of a great increase in the number of rockets launched into Earth orbit. The global launch rate has already more than doubled in the past decade. As the number of launches increases, rocket engine emissions increase in proportion. Rocket engine exhaust contains gases and particles that can affect Earth’s climate and ozone layer. These emissions historically have been assumed to be not much of a threat to the global environment because the space industry was deemed small and unchanging.

Whether that assumption holds true for today’s rapidly growing space is an important question that needs scientific attention. The various rocket engine propellants produce different emissions. The most common gaseous emissions are water vapor and carbon dioxide from liquid and solid fuels, as well as hydrochloric acid from only solid fuels. The global quantities of these gas emissions from rockets, even at increased launch rates, do not significantly affect the global climate or ozone layer, and they are dwarfed by atmospheric inputs from other sources [Larson et al., 2017].

Rocket engines emit various amounts of submicrometer-sized particles of soot (or black carbon, BC) and alumina (aluminum oxide) directly into the stratosphere. Because of the unique nature of their combustion chemistry, rocket engines emit large amounts of BC when compared to, for example, a modern jet engine. During flight through the stratosphere, BC can account for as much as several percent of the rocket emissions [Simmons, 2000]; the equivalent measure for a modern jet engine is smaller by a factor of 100. (Sep. 2019)

Israel's SpaceIL Raises Enough for Second Lunar Landing Attempt (Source: AP)
The Israeli group that tried unsuccessfully to land a spacecraft on the moon in 2019 says it's raised funding for a second attempt. SpaceIL said Sunday it raised $70 million from several donors, including billionaire Morris Kahn, who funded much of SpaceIL's first lander mission, Beresheet. That lander, built by Israel Aerospace Industries, crashed attempting to land on the moon in April 2019. SpaceIL says that, with these funds, it now has nearly all of the $100 million needed for a second Beresheet lander mission in 2024. (7/12)

Demand Outpacing Capacity for NASA Deep Space Network (Source: Space News)
Increasing demand from both robotic spacecraft and future Artemis missions are putting new pressure on NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN). At a meeting last week, the manager of the DSN said that while the network is making upgrades at its three sites in Australia, California and Spain, it can't keep up with demand from missions. Requirements to use the DSN to support aspects of the Artemis program may further strain the network, reducing the amount of data missions can return. The DSN is looking to move into higher Ka-band frequencies to improve bandwidth, as well as optical communications. (7/12)

Indian imaging Satellite Ready for August Launch (Source: Republic World)
A long-delayed Indian imaging satellite may finally launch next month. The Indian space agency ISRO says the Gisat-1 satellite will launch on a GSLV rocket Aug. 12. The spacecraft, which will take imagery of the Indian subcontinent from geostationary orbit, was to launch in March 2020 but was postponed by an unspecified technical issue. The first wave of the pandemic further delayed the launch to March of this year. Another technical issue, followed by the second wave of the pandemic in India, again delayed the launch. (7/12)

SpaceX Plans Raptor Factory in Texas (Source: Waco Tribune Herald)
Elon Musk says SpaceX will build a second Raptor engine factory in Texas. Musk tweeted Saturday that SpaceX will build a Raptor factory in McGregor, Texas, where the company currently tests engines and rocket stages. The factory will ultimately be able to produce 800 to 1,000 Raptor engines a year, something he suggested could take 10 years to complete. SpaceX currently makes Raptor engines for its Starship and Super Heavy vehicles at its Hawthorne, California, headquarters, and Musk said that the Hawthorne factory would instead work on the vacuum version of Raptor and experimental designs. (7/12)

Georgia Officials Back Controversial Spaceport Effort (Source: Georgia Recorder)
A controversial proposed Georgia spaceport now has the backing of state officials. The state's Department of Natural Resources issued a letter last week stating that they had worked with the FAA and the government of Camden County to minimize the environmental impacts of the proposed Spaceport Camden. Launches from the site, the agency concluded, would not violate environmental laws. The FAA is scheduled to issue its "record of decision" on the county's spaceport license application later this month. (7/12)

German Startups Seek Government Support (Source: Defense News)
German space startups are hoping to gain attention, and funding, from the country's military. Companies developing small launch vehicles and other space technologies say the German government is focused more on supporting the country's automotive and other manufacturing industries. Space companies warn that if the German government, in particular the military that could benefit from those technologies, won't offer more contracts and funding for space startups, they could move out of the country. (7/12)