November 16, 2021

NASA Will Spend $93 Billion on Artemis Moon Program by 2025, Report Estimates (Source: Space.com)
Putting boots on the moon is an expensive proposition. NASA's spending on its Artemis program, which aims to establish a sustainable human presence on and around the moon by the end of the decade, is projected to reach a total of $93 billion by 2025, according to a new audit by the NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG).

"Moreover, while NASA has several initiatives underway aimed at increasing affordability, we project the current production cost of a single SLS/Orion system to be $4.1 billion per launch," the OIG report states, referring to the Orion crew capsule and Space Launch System rocket, which are core Artemis elements.

"Looking ahead, without capturing, accurately reporting and reducing the cost of future SLS/Orion missions, the Agency will face significant challenges to sustaining its Artemis program in its current configuration," adds the 73-page report. For comparison, the U.S. spent $28 billion on NASA's Apollo moon program between 1960 and 1973, according to the nonprofit Planetary Society. That's about $280 billion in today's dollars. (11/15)

Hydrosat Raises $10 Million Seed Round to Assess Climate Change From Space (Source: Parabolic Arc)
Hydrosat, the geospatial data and analytics company, announces a new Seed Round raising $10M to create its thermal infrared satellite constellation. Today’s funding brings Hydrosat’s total capital raised to over $15M. The oversubscribed venture round was led by OTB Ventures, a leading European venture firm with a dedicated space investment vehicle, OTB Space Program I. Freeflow Ventures, Cultivation Capital, Santa Barbara Venture Partners, and Expon Capital also participated in the round.

Hydrosat began as a satellite company monitoring the water cycle to rapidly detect environmental stress brought about by climate change. Recent climate disasters, ranging from drought on the West Coast to flash floods on the East Coast of the United States, illustrates the growing importance of this technology as the world’s major governments meet this month for the United Nations COP26 Climate Change Conference. (11/16)

Resetting Artemis (Source: Space Review)
The conclusion of a legal dispute involving the development of a human lunar landing system allows NASA to move forward with that aspect of the Artemis program, but with delays. Jeff Foust reports on the latest changes to the schedule for returning humans to the Moon, and whether that schedule can hold up. Click here. (11/16)
 
Musk Versus Bezos: a Real Fivalry or a Fake Feud? (Source: Space Review)
The rivalry between Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk in space is often considered one of the key competitions in the modern space industry. Ben Little ponders if that feud is genuine or if it’s played up to mask the fact their ventures are more complementary. Click here. (11/16)
 
An Assessment of EU Decarbonization Options Including Astroelectricity (Source: Space Review)
The European Union is seeking to “decarbonize” its energy supplies by the middle of the century. Mike Snead examines the role that space-based solar power could play to do so compared to alternative energy sources. Click here. (11/16)

Virgin Orbit's Begins Pre-Flight Prep Before its End of Year Flight (Source: Space Daily)
A fully assembled rocket that will carry both Department of Defense and Polish SatRevolution satellites to space has arrived at the Mojave Air and Space Port after departing Virgin Orbit's Long Beach rocket factory Monday. The rocket is now being mated to the customized 747 that serves as Virgin Orbit's flying and fully re-usable launch pad and mobile mission control, with expected launch before the end of the year. The mission, named Above the Clouds, would mark Virgin Orbit's third launch of 2021. (11/15)

Interstellar Probe Could be Successor to the Voyager Missions (Source: SpaceFlight Insider)
With Voyagers 1 and 2 set to run out of power in approximately a decade, NASA is considering a follow up interstellar probe that could last 50 to 100 years. The space agency asked a team of scientists and engineers at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) to explore a possible $1.5 billion mission to study the interstellar medium or region of space between the Sun and the closest nearby stars. Such a mission would require the involvement of multiple generations of scientists and engineers. A report by the JHUAPL group complete with spacecraft design is expected to be released in several weeks. (11/14)

Russian ASAT Test Imperils ISS Astronauts, Trashes Orbital Zone (Sources: SpaceFlight Insider, SPACErePORT)
Days after the four Crew-3 Dragon astronauts arrived at the ISS, the seven-person Expedition 66 crew was forced to shelter in place as the outpost passed near a debris field produced from an anti-satellite test. Multiple times over the course of the day, Nov. 15, 2021, the ISS passed near the debris field from a recent Russian anti-satellite missile test. This prompted the station astronauts to close many of the hatches between modules, mainly the axial modules, just in case a debris strike caused depressurization. The debris likely came from Kosmos-1408, a defunct Soviet satellite launched in 1982 that has been dead for decades.

While a DoD statement on the orbital incident made no mention of Russia, CNN reported that two U.S. officials confirmed that a Russian anti-satellite test took place over the weekend, generating the debris event. At the time of the direct-ascent missile test, the two-ton Kosmos-1408 satellite was in an orbit of roughly 400 miles in an inclination of about 82 degrees relative to the equator. Fragments of now-destroyed spacecraft could now be stuck in orbit for years where they will intersect with the orbits of other functional spacecraft. (11/15)

Russia Rejects Accusations of Endangering ISS Astronauts (Source: Washington Post)
Russian officials on Tuesday rejected accusations that they endangered astronauts aboard the International Space Station by conducting a weapons test that created more than 1,500 pieces of space junk. U.S. officials on Monday accused Russia of destroying an old satellite with a missile in what they called a reckless and irresponsible strike. They said the debris could damage the space station, an assessment backed by NATO’s chief. The defunct Russian satellite was orbiting about 40 miles higher than the space station.

The test clearly demonstrates that Russia, “despite its claims of opposing the weaponization of outer space, is willing to ... imperil the exploration and use of outer space by all nations through its reckless and irresponsible behavior,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. Russia’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday confirmed carrying out an ASAT test, but insisted that “the U.S. knows for certain that the resulting fragments, in terms of test time and orbital parameters, did not and will not pose a threat to orbital stations, spacecraft and space activities.” It called remarks by U.S. officials “hypocritical.”

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the strike was carried out “with surgical precision” and posed no threat to the space station. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also charged that it is “hypocrisy” to say that Russia creates risks for peaceful activities in space. ISS astronauts and cosmonauts spent two hours in two docked capsules, finally emerging only to have to close and reopen hatches to the station’s individual labs on every orbit, or 1 1/2 hours, as they passed near or through the space debris. (11/16)

Starbase Prepares Future Starships (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
With a significant milestone under its belt, Ship 20 awaits the next steps in preparing for an orbital velocity flight test, likely watching on as Super Heavy Booster 4 undergoes a more ambitious ground test campaign.  The continued preparations with Ship 20 and Booster 4 continue amid a traffic jam of vehicles back at the Production Site, with parts for Booster 7 and Ship 23 being spotted. At the same time, the new “Wide Bay” – required for the increasing processing cadence – rises out of the ground.

While the test schedule hasn’t followed the highly ambitious timeline outlined at times by Elon Musk via various tweets, the progress of Starship continues to astound. Moreover, the vehicles are coming through the testing without the RUDs (Rapid Unplanned Disassembly) of old and appear to follow a successful design evolution, with more upgrades yet to come. To cater to all these new vehicles, SpaceX is already building a new “Wide Bay” set to be twice the width of the current High Bay.

The engines, which have been upgraded over time, are currently built at SpaceX’s main factory in Hawthorne, California, then transported to McGregor for testing. In addition, flight units meant for the Starship program are currently tested at McGregor before being driven to the Starbase launch facility. While Hawthorne will continue to build the RVac engines, in tandem with working on Raptor evolution designs, McGregor will soon become the hub for Raptor 2 production. Soon after Elon Musk revealed this forward path, groundbreaking occurred on the McGregor site, which has since seen a facility rise out of the ground in double-quick time. (11/14)

Possible ISS Leak Pinpointed on Russian Zvezda Module (Source: TASS)
Roscosmos cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov detected a possible air leak spot in the intermediate chamber of the Zvezda module aboard the International Space Station (ISS), the cosmonaut told the Flight Control Center during a communications session on Monday. The Russian cosmonaut said he had traced the possible spot of the continued air leak while inspecting the Zvezda module’s intermediate chamber at the weekend. (11/15)

Ex-SpaceX Engineer Accuses Company of Racial Discrimination, Company Says it Was for his Facial Expressions (Source: India Today)
Aformer SpaceX employee has accused the company of racial discrimination noting that other employees in the same role were given training and documentation that were unavailable to him. The employee, Ajay Reddy, filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk’s space exploration company in federal District Court in Orlando earlier this month. Reddy identifies himself as an Asian-American of Indian descent. He alleged that he was fired from his role as a fairing recovery engineer in May 2020. The lawsuit accused SpaceX of race discrimination, national origin discrimination, retaliation, and breach of contract.

Reddy noted that he also filed a complaint with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Florida Commission on Human Relations in June 2020. SpaceX in its statement to the EEOC noted that Reddy’s final Manager, Robert Hill terminated his employment based on claims that during a group interview Reddy made facial expressions in response to answers the candidate provided. SpaceX claimed that these alleged expressions made the candidate feel uncomfortable. (11/15)

SpaceX Wants India's New Satcom Policy to Focus on Access, Not Pricing (Source: Economic Times)
Elon Musk’s SpaceX wants India's government to ensure that the upcoming satcom policy “focuses more on access and less on pricing” of internet-from-space services to attract top dollars from global investors and boost satellite broadband penetration across rural India. This is since new-age broadband from space technology via numerous low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites is likely to be at least 7-to-8 times more expensive than terrestrial broadband services. (11/15)

Blue Origin Teaches Space Tourists Who Land in the Desert What to Do if Their Rocket Lands Next to a Cactus (Source: Business Insider)
Jeff Bezos' aerospace company, Blue Origin, teaches its space tourists how to get out of the rocket capsule if there's a cactus in the way of the door, passenger Chris Boshuizen told Insider. It was part of the training that the four-person crew completed before they launched to the edge of space in Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket, said Boshuizen, who was onboard the company's spaceflight on October 13.

"We practiced what to do if the capsule lands ... and there's a cactus in front of us," said the entrepreneur and former NASA engineer. The astronauts must wait in the rocket's capsule for the ground crew to come over, Boshuizen said. They will wear steel-toed boots to help push the cactus out of the way, he said. (11/14)

US Buyer of British Broadband Satellites Battles National Security Fears (Source: The Telegraph)
The US satellite company behind the £5.5bn takeover of Britain’s Inmarsat is offering to set up an international headquarters in London to get the deal past regulators. Viasat is in initial discussions with ministers over making legally binding undertakings alongside the deal announced last week, which combines two of the world’s biggest satellite internet operators.

While New York-listed Viasat will keep the US as its headquarters, the company is understood to have raised the possibility of establishing the UK as a base for its global mobility division, which focused on providing satellite internet for flights and ships outside the US. In addition, it has said it is prepared to extend pledges to continue working with the Ministry of Defence, made when the company was bought by private equity firms in 2019. (11/14)

Fusion Reactors Used to Test Spacecraft Heat Shields (Source: Space Daily)
Spacecraft have long used heat shields for protection during entry into planetary atmospheres. Future missions to the outer solar system will need more sophisticated materials than currently exist. The extreme heating conditions needed to study new shield materials are, however, very difficult to achieve experimentally on Earth.

Scientists working at the DIII-D National Fusion Facility at General Atomics (GA) recently developed an innovative approach that uses the conditions inside a fusion reactor for testing heat shield materials.

During high-speed atmospheric entries of up to 100,000 miles per hour, such as those required in missions to the Solar System's gas giants, the atmospheric gas surrounding the spacecraft turns into plasma (a mixture of ions and electrons) and spacecraft temperatures increase to more than 10,000 F. To protect the scientific payload, the heat shield material burns (or ablates) in a controlled manner, which pulls the excess heat away from the core of the spacecraft. (11/15)

NASA IG Warns of More Artemis Delays (Source: Space News)
NASA's inspector general warned of further delays in NASA's Artemis program to return humans to the moon. In a report Monday, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) said that development of the Human Landing System lunar lander will likely take far longer than what NASA and SpaceX project. Based on the experience from other recent spaceflight systems, OIG estimated a delay of up to to 3.4 years from the original date of late 2024 for the first crewed landing.

NASA last week pushed back that landing to no earlier than 2025. The report also called on NASA to improve cost accounting for the overall Artemis program, projecting that NASA will spend $93 billion on it from 2012 through 2025. The report also pegged the cost of a single SLS/Orion mission at $4.1 billion. (11/16)

USU SDL Wins Huge AFRL Space Contract (Source: Space News)
Utah State University's Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL) has won a billion-dollar contract from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The five-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covers work on "space and nuclear advanced prototypes, experiments and technology," according to a statement. AFRL said the contract "solidifies the long-term strategic partnership" between the lab and SDL. (11/16)

Rocket Lab Acquiring Planetary Systems Corp. (Source: Space News)
Rocket Lab is acquiring Planetary Systems Corporation (PSC), a manufacturer of satellite separation systems. Rocket Lab said Monday it is paying $42 million plus 1.72 million shares of stock for PSC, with up to an additional 956,000 shares depending on PSC's financial performance in 2022 and 2023. PSC makes systems to allow the deployment of satellites from launch vehicles, including the Lightband system and its Canisterized Satellite Dispenser for deploying small satellites. Rocket Lab announced the deal along with its third quarter financial results, where it reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of $17.5 million on $5.3 million in revenue. It is targeting its next Electron launch for Wednesday evening. (11/16)

Intelsat and OneWeb Test Broadband Service to US Army (Source: Space News)
Intelsat and OneWeb provided broadband internet service to U.S. Army users via satellites in low Earth orbit and in geostationary orbit in a test this month. The event at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland was an attempt to show Army buyers that satellite communications from LEO and GEO is not an either-or proposition, and both can be seamlessly integrated. The test gave the end user a single interface to operate four terminals communicating with OneWeb satellites in LEO and Intelsat GEO satellites. The intent of this demonstration was to give the Army a taste of managed satcom services, although the Army has yet to articulate specifically what it needs or what it plans to buy. (11/16)

Satcom Jammer by L3Harris Passes Space Force Review (Source: Space News)
A satellite communications jammer developed for the Space Force will allow the service to "dominate the electromagnetic spectrum." The Counter-Communications Systems (CCS) Block 10.2 was developed by L3Harris under a U.S. Space Force contract valued at $284 million to date. The upgraded jammer has passed a critical design review, the company said, with plans to produce 16 units by 2025. (11/16)

NASA’s Trippy Thought: Build Space Homes Out of Mushrooms (Source: Daily Beast)
When we think of NASA, we tend to think big, like enormous rockets, sprawling space stations, and massive telescopes that allow us to peer billions of light-years into the vastness of space. Currently, however, NASA is experimenting with a technology that starts out microscopically small, but that may have a huge impact on humanity’s future forays into the final frontier: fungus.

Taking its inspiration from the emerging field of “mycotecture” (a portmanteau that fuses architecture with mycology, the study of fungi), a research team at NASA Ames Research Center is looking at how fungi like mushrooms can be used to grow habitats and other structures in extraterrestrial environments. It’s not magic—it’s science. Evolutionary biologist and astrobiologist Lynn Rothschild leads this unusual shroom-inspired mission. Her best way of describing the work is through the word “cool,” and it’s hard to disagree.

Using mushrooms to build structures capable of withstanding the rigors of space exploration might seem far-fetched, but it turns out that they are well suited for the task. Blocks made of reishi mushrooms, for example, are strong enough to bear thousands of PSI. Thanks to their high concentration of carbon fibers, they have the potential to function as storage batteries. And according to Rothschild, fungi are also well-suited for creating structures in space because transporting their spores is so efficient in terms of cost, mass, and effort. (11/16)

European Vega Rocket Launches French Satellites (Source: Arianespace)
A Vega rocket successfully launched three French military smallsats Tuesday. The Vega lifted off from Kourou, French Guiana, at 4:27 a.m. Eastern and deployed three CERES satellites into low Earth orbit. The CERES, or CapacitÉ de Renseignement Électromagnétique Spatiale, satellites will collect signals intelligence data for the French military. The launch was the 300th by Arianespace from French Guiana. (11/16)

NGA Seeks Analysis of Non-Classified Imagery, Data (Source: Space News)
The National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) is interested not just in unclassified data, but unclassified analysis of that data. Dave Gauthier, director of NGA's Commercial and Business Operations Group, said his agency was looking at ways to take unclassified data, such as commercial imagery, and instead of combining it with classified data, "leave the data in that unclassified domain, and then exploit it there organically." Another option, he said, is to have companies do the analysis themselves and provide analytics services to NGA. (11/16)

Blockchain Space Applications Explored (Source: Space News)
The space community is exploring various applications of blockchain technology. Blockchain could provide tools, for example, to help an individual task a commercial satellite to collect imagery of a remote location, receive the imagery with confidence in the integrity of every pixel and transfer payment securely to the satellite operator. It could also be the foundation for an international space traffic management system with organizations around the world supplying information on the location of orbital assets along with planned maneuvers. Advocates of blockchain technology acknowledge there is significant hype about it, particularly when it comes to cryptocurrencies, but that the technology can provide accountability and decentralization. (11/16)

Japan to Establish Second Space Defense Unit (Source: Space News)
Japan will launch a second space defense unit within the next 18 months to monitor electromagnetic threats to its satellites. The second Space Operations Squadron will be located at an air base in the western part of Japan as part of efforts "to secure the stable use of outer space," the country's defense minister said. The second squadron's establishment indicates that Japan would further deepen its cooperation with the United States on space security issues. (11/16)

Space Command Reorganization Planned (Source: Breaking Defense)
U.S. Space Command is planning a reorganization to streamline how it operates. The proposed reorganization, which may not be formally announced until next spring, would create a Joint Force Space Component Command that would be a "central hub" for the command's missions. The new command is intended to streamline convoluted chains of command. (11/16)

FAA Hopes to Finish Boca Chica Environmental Assessment Before 2022 (Source: Reuters)
The FAA hopes to complete an environmental review of SpaceX Starship launches from Boca Chica, Texas, by the end of the year. The agency said Monday that it has a target date of Dec. 31 to complete that environmental review, a key milestone towards licensing Starship/Super Heavy orbital launches from Boca Chica. The FAA said it received more than 17,000 public comments on a draft version of that review released in September. (11/16)