August 26, 2021

Groups Agree to Advance Infrastructure Projects for Point-to-Point Hight Speed Space Transport (Source: Foundation for the Future)
Tim Chrisman Executive Director of the Foundation for the Future (F4F) and Oscar Garcia, Chairman and CEO of InterFlight Global Corporation’s wholly owned subsidiary, the High-Speed Flight-FastForward Project (IFG-HSAT-FF) signed a strategic collaboration agreement to augment their respective groups activities. The F4F pioneers America’s success in space through visionary space transportation and infrastructure projects. The High-Speed Flight-FastForward project leads the world as a high-speed  space point to point transportation industry think-tank and collaboration group. (8/25)

Dawn Aerospace Flight Testing Commences – Five Flights Complete (Source: Dawn Aerospace)
Dawn Aerospace, a New Zealand-Dutch space transportation company, has conducted five flights of the company’s Mk-II Aurora suborbital spaceplane. The flights were to assess the airframe and avionics of the vehicle, and were conducted using surrogate jet engines. The campaign was run from Glentanner Aerodrome in New Zealand’s South Island. Taxi testing commenced in early July and five flights occurred between the 28th and 30th of July, reaching altitudes of 3,400 feet.

Dawn is creating reusable and sustainable space technologies – suborbital and orbital rocket-powered planes – that operate much like a fleet of aircraft, taking off and landing horizontally at airports. On December 9 2020, Dawn announced the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had granted Dawn a certificate to fly Mk-II Aurora spaceplane from a conventional airport without exclusive airspace restrictions. (8/26)

New Frontier Aerospace Awarded $750K DoD Contract (Source: New Frontier)
New Frontier Aerospace (NFA) has signed a $750K contract with National Security Innovation Capital (NSIC) to further develop NFA's 3D printed, Mach 8 hypersonic aircraft for delivering passengers and urgent cargo safely to any vertiport on Earth in two hours or less - no runway required - while emitting far fewer greenhouse gases than any existing jet.

More specifically, NSIC funding will support the development of the revolutionary Mjölnir rocket engine.  Its advanced architecture is focused on high-reliability operations with far less complexity and ten times more thrust to weight than comparable jet engines.  The goal is to build a revolutionary new class of rocket engine with the reliability and operational efficiencies of today's aircraft engines. (8/12)

‘Mini-Neptunes’ Beyond Solar System May Soon Yield Signs of Life (Source: Guardian)
Signs of life beyond our solar system may be detectable within two to three years, experts have said after rethinking the kinds of planets that may be habitable. Researchers have mostly looked for planets of a similar size, mass, temperature and atmospheric composition to Earth. But astronomers believe there may be more promising possibilities after recent work suggested that a “mini-Neptune” more than twice the radius of Earth and more than eight times as massive may also be habitable.

They have now identified a new class of habitable exoplanets, called hycean planets – hot, ocean-covered and with hydrogen-rich atmospheres – which are more numerous and observable than Earth-like planets. The mini-Neptune, known as K2-18b, is one and there could be many more in existence. “We are saying that within two to three years we may see the first biosignature detection if these planets host life,” he said, adding that the James Webb space telescope – due for launch in November – could aid the search. (8/25)

ISS Partners Agree to Operations Through 2030 (Source: Space News)
Space agency leaders backed an extension of the International Space Station through the end of the decade as NASA's administrator warned of a space race with China. Officials supported efforts to extend the ISS through the end of the decade, after which NASA wants to shift to commercial space stations. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said he was confident that Russia would continue to cooperate despite comments earlier this year about leaving the ISS for its own station. Nelson also warned of a space race with China, although he left the door open for cooperation. "But, China is very secretive," he added, "and part of the civilian space program is that you've got to be transparent." (8/26)

Intelsat Restructuring Under Bankruptcy (Source: Space News)
A majority of Intelsat's debt holders have approved an amended version of a bankruptcy restructuring plan. Similar to the plan the satellite operator announced in February, the restructuring approach backed by nearly three quarters of debt holders would slash Intelsat's debt by more than half from nearly $15 billion to $7 billion. The new plan, though, would keep Intelsat private, with 95% of its shares going to unsecured creditors of subsidiary Intelsat Jackson. Intelsat is seeking approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia for the amended plan at a hearing next week. (8/26)

Rocket Lab Shares Fall in First Day of Trading (Source: Space News)
Shares in Rocket Lab fell in its debut on the Nasdaq. The company, which started trading Wednesday after completing its SPAC merger, had its shares close down nearly 10% on its first day. Rocket Lab raised $777 million in the deal, which the company will use for initiatives like its Neutron medium-class rocket. Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck added that being on the Nasdaq gives it "public currency" to do acquisitions.

Beck played down any drawbacks of going public, saying the company had always planned to go public at some point and that employees are focused enough on Rocket Lab's long-term plans to avoid distractions from the daily ups and downs in the share price. (8/26)

Astroscale Tests Satellite Capture (Source: Space News)
Astroscale performed the first test of its satellite capture technology in orbit Wednesday. The company's ELSA-d satellite, launched in March, released a small client satellite, then recaptured it with a magnetic mechanism. The test is the first in a series Astroscale plans over the next several months to demonstrate its ability to capture and deorbit objects in orbit. It's one of several projects by the company that also include in-space inspection of objects and life extension of GEO satellites. (8/26)

DoD's SDA Works with Combatant Commands to Gather Requirements (Source: Space News)
The Pentagon's Space Development Agency is working to address congressional concerns about its plans. In an interview, Paula Trimble, policy chief and legislative affairs director for the SDA, said the agency gets a lot of questions from Congress on how it determines its requirements and capabilities. The SDA has a "warfighter council" with representatives from combatant commands and military services who tell the agency what they need. The SDA is also working with Congress to keep its authorities to expedite its procurements once the agency is moved to the Space Force next year. (8/26)

Space Fence Funding Uncertain (Source: Breaking Defense)
A Space Force official said that funding for a second Space Fence tracking radar remains uncertain. Lt. Gen. Stephen Whiting, head of Space Operations Command, said at the Space Symposium that the Space Force wants to establish a second Space Fence radar in Australia but the service has "more requirements than dollars," which could delay its development. The first Space Fence radar, located on Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific, entered service last year and has increased the number of tracked objects by 22%. (8/26)

10 Things We Know About the Secret X-37B Space Plane (Source: Live Science)
The U.S. Department of Defense's uncrewed X-37B spy plane is one of the most intriguing spaceships in the world, flying regular covert missions whose purposes aren't fully known. But over the years, information about the craft, which is also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), has come to light in dribs and drabs. Here, we take a look at 10 things that can be definitively said about the secretive space plane. Click here. (8/24)

‘Space Junk’ is Greatest Shared Threat to Space Force and NASA, Says Administrator (Source: Air Force Magazine)
Low-earth orbit is too crowded, and not only with satellites from around the world, but also with debris created by “irresponsible” spacefaring nations, NASA administrator Ben Nelson said when describing the civilian agency’s greatest shared threat with the Space Force. “Space is a big place, but the biggest risk to all of our satellites right now is the space junk,” Nelson said at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs.

“We’ve had irresponsible folks that have launched and blown up assets and there are thousands of pieces of space junk that are flying around at 17,500 miles an hour,” he said referring to a 2007 Chinese anti-satellite test of a ground-based missile. “They’re in that altitude range where our space station is, indeed where the Chinese space station is as well.” Nelson declined to respond specifically to the threat that may now exist when military payloads share space with commercial and satellite payloads. He instead focused on areas of cooperation between the civilian and military space organizations. (8/24)

ULA Rolls Out Vulcan Pathfinder at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
ULA rolled out a pathfinder for its Vulcan rocket to a Cape Canaveral launch pad Wednesday. The Vulcan first stage is being used for tests and will be refitted for a future launch. Those tests on the pad will include filling its tanks with cryogenic propellants to validate new processes as well as upgrades to the launch facilities. [Spaceflight Now]

Phase Four Wins USAF Contract for Green Propellant Thrusters (Source: Space News)
Spacecraft propulsion company Phase Four won an Air Force contract to test the use of green propellants on its plasma thruster. By fueling Maxwell engines with the green propellant, called Advanced Spacecraft Energetic Non-Toxic (ASCENT), Phase Four seeks to produce an engine that combines the high thrust of chemical engines and high efficiency of electric thrusters. The company's first Maxwell engines, including those flown on Capella Space satellites, use xenon, but the company has tested other propellants as well. (8/26)

South Korean Company Expanding Production of OneWeb Antennas (Source: Space News)
The South Korean company developing antennas for OneWeb plans to open a second factory. Intellian Technologies said it will spend more than $25 million to build a second plant near its headquarters that will more than double its manufacturing capacity. The plant, the company says, is intended to "ensure a stable supply to OneWeb" after the broadband constellation company selected Intellian to develop ground terminals for its system. (8/26)

Girl Scout Experiments to Launch on SpaceX Headed to the ISS (Source: Florida Today)
Marie Young, who grew up in Texas, has been part of the Girl Scout organization since she was four years old. She’s now 17 and lives in Orlando with her family. “Both states have huge space programs and I’ve always loved going to the space centers and seeing rocket launches,” she said. It’s no surprise that Young jumped at the chance to design a space-themed patch for a science-and-art competition called “Making Space for Girls” that will send science experiments, art and essays to space onboard the upcoming SpaceX cargo resupply mission to the ISS.

The “Making Space for Girls” challenge is a partnership between SpaceKids Global, a Florida-based, non-profit established to use space exploration to engage children in STEAM learning and the Girl Scouts of Citrus Council which represents nearly 11,000 girls in Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, and Volusia counties. Over 600 girls across the country registered to participate in the competition. A panel of judges, including astronaut Wendy Lawrence, selected 24 winners across different age groups in the three categories. (8/26)

New Shepard Rocket Model Available From Estes (Source: Gizmodo)
Model rocket maker Estes is releasing a 1/66th scale model of the Blue Origin rocket New Shepard, meaning that anyone will be able to launch their own version of the spacecraft 400 feet into the air. The new Estes rocket alone retails for $69.99, but if you don’t already have a launch pad you’re going to need to splurge for the starter set, which includes the rocket, a launch pad, an electronic launch controller, a pack of engines, and recovery wadding. (8/26)

Space Tourists Are In A Legal Vacuum (Source: Law360)
So now is a good time to consider some of the operational, safety and legal issues surrounding commercial space tourism in the 21st century. Somewhat surprisingly, given the level of public interest, the industry currently exists in regulatory and legal limbo. For our purposes, space tourism is paid flight beyond earth's atmosphere by nonprofessional individuals, without any particular scientific or governmental purpose. And it's worth remembering that space tourism is not new.

So what legal protections exist for commercial space tourists? The answer: None. Despite giving the FAA a statutory mandate to ensure aviation safety, Congress has precluded the agency from promulgating safety regulations to protect commercial spacecraft crew and passengers. The prohibition was originally enacted in 2004, when commercial spaceflight enterprises were in their infancy, and was set to expire in eight years.

Congress was persuaded that commercial spaceflight should be encouraged, and that governmental regulation at this early stage could be inhibiting. Congress assumed that the commercial spaceflight industry would develop rapidly, and accumulate sufficient experience by 2012 to permit the establishment of such regulations. But the fact that lives could be lost in the interim seems not to have influenced its thinking. Click here. (8/24)

Air Force Predicts Force Fields And Death Rays By 2060 (Source: Forbes)
Directed energy weapons conjure up images of the Death Star’s Superlaser or Optimus Prime’s Ion Blaster. Indeed, there are many examples of directed energy weapons across science fiction. In the real world, this class of weapons is fairly broad, incorporating any weapon that uses the electromagnetic spectrum. As such, most militaries have incorporated directed energy weapons into their arsenals. However, they are a far cry from the weapons imagined in science fiction.

Given the potential of directed energy weapons, the United States does not want to fall behind other countries, as happened with hypersonic weapons. Recently, the U.S. Air Force assembled a panel of experts to evaluate the future of these weapons, forecasting out to 2060, with their final report being released last month. The report predicts an important future for directed energy weapons, potentially including both space-based weapon systems and “force fields.”

The study focused on the evolution of three types of directed energy weapons, the first being laser systems. Though used commercially for a variety of applications, they are used primarily by the military for measuring distances and tracking targets. Additionally, high power lasers can burn holes in a target and ignite fires. There are numerous laser systems already commercially available that can burn through a missile-size target in a few seconds at a distance of a few kilometers. (8/3)

Mars Helicopter Sees Potential Rover Road Ahead (Source: Space Daily)
Ask any space explorer, and they'll have a favorite photograph or two from their mission. For Ken Farley, the project scientist for NASA's Perseverance rover, one of his current favorites is a color image of "South Seitah," an area the mission's science team had considered potentially worthy of a rover visit. The agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took the image during its 12th and most recent flight, on Aug. 16.

Prior to Ingenuity's latest flight, the majority of what the Perseverance science team knew of the southern portion of the Seitah feature came from orbiter images. Based on that data, they believed the site could possibly be a treasure trove of complex geology, providing information that could play a valuable role as the rover team searches for signs of ancient microbial life and attempts to characterize the geology of the area and to understand the area's history. (8/26)

China to Build Satellite Constellation for Natural Disaster Observation (Source: Space Daily)
China has initiated a project of building a constellation of 36 low-orbit satellites to gather information for forecasting natural disasters and monitoring urban emergencies. The project undertaken by the Tianjin Satcom Geohe Technologies Co., Ltd. was inaugurated on Tuesday in China's spacecraft launch center of Wenchang, in South China's Hainan province.

Guo Jianqiang, president of the tech firm based in North China's Tianjin municipality, said the first satellite will be launched and commissioned in space in June 2022. All 36 satellites will have been launched by the end of May in 2023 to complete the constellation. The satellite network will provide high-resolution images to help observers identify millimeter-level geological deformations in order to gauge the possibilities of geological disasters, such as landslide, subsidence and collapse, said Guo, also an official with China Geological Survey. (8/26)

Unveiling Vehicles and Technologies for Future Space Transportation (Source: Space Daily)
ESA safeguards Europe's guaranteed access to space through its Future Launchers Preparatory Program, FLPP. FLPP oversees system studies and research activities to foster new and disruptive technologies which have the potential to reduce cost, improve performance, improve reliability, or on their ability to fulfil the specific needs of an identified service, system, demonstrator or mission.

Within FLPP, demonstrators and studies hone emerging technologies to give Europe's space transportation a valuable head-start as they begin the demanding work of turning the chosen design into reality. Integrated demonstrators are built by combining multiple technologies into one system or subsystem so that industry can use the technology with confidence. FLPP carries out projects in propulsion, materials and processes, reusability, structures and mechanisms, avionics and Guidance Navigation Control (GNC), and future end-to-end systems and missions. (8/26)

Russia Postpones Lunar Mission Over 'Problems During Testing' (Source: Space Daily)
Russia revealed Tuesday it postponed its first mission to the moon's surface in decades as a result of "problems" encountered during tests of the Luna-25 spacecraft. The country's space agency Roscosmos announced last week that the mission -- originally scheduled for October 1 -- from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Far East had been moved to May 2022.

The Luna-25 mission to the Moon's south pole aims to probe ice deposits there. It is set to be Russia's first mission to the moon's surface in 45 years and the first in its post-Soviet history. The chief engineer of Russia's state NPO Lavochkin design bureau explained the delay Tuesday saying that "more time" was needed to complete successful trials. (8/24)