November 22, 2021

Arianespace Challenges Itself to Accelerate Ariane 6 Schedule (Source: Space News)
ArianeGroup says it's working to launch the first Ariane 6 rocket "as soon as we can" next year. The first launch of the Ariane 6 is officially scheduled for the second quarter, but an ArianeGroup executive said that goal is "a challenging objective" and that the company would take more time if needed to ensure a successful launch. ArianeGroup says there is not a customer for that first launch yet, but that ESA is expected to soon publish a call for proposals for academic projects that could fly on the launch. (11/22)

Japan Loosens Requirements for Astronaut Candidates (Source: Mainichi Japan)
Japan is loosening its requirements for its next astronaut class. Prospective astronauts no longer need a college degree if they have sufficient work experience, and can be shorter than previously allowed. The Japanese space agency JAXA expects to select a "small number" of new astronauts at the end of this recruitment campaign in February 2023. (11/22)

Rocket Lab Signs Exclusive Deal to Use APL's Space Radio Technologies (Source: Space Daily)
Rocket Lab USA entered into an exclusive license agreement with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) to commercialize near and deep space capable small spacecraft telemetry and control radio technology. The Frontier-S by Rocket Lab software defined radio (SDR) enables affordable communications and radio navigation for planetary and other missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO), as well as communications and radio navigation for missions in GPS-denied environments.

The Frontier-S by Rocket Lab, based on the APL Frontier Radio that flew on missions like the Van Allen Probes, Parker Solar Probe, and the Emirates Mars Mission, packs Deep Space Network and other common waveforms into a single board package with up-screened commercial components and low power digital signal processing for high reliability applications. (11/19)

Blue Origin Hires Lobbyist After 'Space Tax' Proposed (Source: Sputnik)
This year, the company spent over $1.3 million on lobbying, in addition to $2 million in 2020. Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin hired Mac Campbell from Capitol Counsel - a lobbyist who had relations with the Obama administration, CBS reported. Campbell was an assistant US trade representative while working under Obama and then served as the general counsel and deputy staff director of the Senate Finance Committee.

According to a registration form, he was hired "to lobby on behalf of the company to "monitor and evaluate proposed changes to the Internal Revenue Code being considered by Congress as part of the budget reconciliation process". The company decided it needs the lobbyist's services after US representative Earl Blumenauer, proposed a tax on space exploration firms. The Democratic lawmaker made his statement on 20 July - the day when Bezos himself went to space in Blue Origin's first crewed flight. (11/19)

Looking for Habitable Planets Around Alpha Centauri (Source: Space Daily)
A mission to discover new planets potentially capable of sustaining life around Earth's nearest neighbor, Alpha Centauri, was announced this week by Sydney University. The proposed telescope project will look for planets in the 'Goldilocks' zone around the star system just four light years away, where temperatures could allow for liquid surface water on rocky planets.

Work on the project began in April of this year. Scientists from the University of Sydney, in partnership with the Breakthrough Initiatives in California, Saber Astronautics in Australia and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, have named the project TOLIMAN, the Arabic-derived name for Alpha Centauri from antiquity. (11/18)

Harvard Calls for More Comprehensive Research Into Solar Geoengineering (Source: Space Daily)
Two articles published in Science magazine's influential Policy Forum argue for more and better social science research into the potential use of solar geoengineering to offset some of the global warming from greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

In one article, David Keith, a professor at Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard's Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, calls for building a shared taxonomy that researchers could use to separate the overlapping concerns and opportunities raised by solar geoengineering, or SG. Keith is regarded as an early leader in thinking about public policy choices for those considering this climate-altering technology.

Keith notes that experts diverge on SG more sharply than any other area of climate policy. "As with other contested technologies, disagreement sometimes conflates divergent scientific and political judgments with divergent normative stances," he writes. "It is impossible to cleanly disentangle the technical, political, and ethical aspects of the debate." (11/16)

Alien Organisms - Hitchhikers of the Galaxy (Source: Space Daily)
Scientists warn that without good biosecurity measures 'alien organisms' on Earth may become a reality stranger than fiction. A team of scientists are calling for greater recognition of the biosecurity risks ahead of the space industry. "In addition to government-led space missions, the arrival of private companies such as SpaceX has meant there are now more players in space exploration than ever before," said Associate Professor Cassey. "We need to take action now to mitigate those risks."

Space biosecurity concerns itself with both the transfer of organisms from Earth to space (forward contamination) and vice-versa (backward contamination). While the research points out that at present the risk of alien organisms surviving the journey is low, it's not impossible. Dr Cassey said: "Risks that have low probability of occurrence, but have the potential for extreme consequences, are at the heart of biosecurity management. Because when things go wrong, they go really wrong."

The research provides clear evidence of how humans have spread organisms to the remotest regions of the earth and sea, and even into space. To address the risks of invasive species from space travel, the authors suggest the emerging field of 'invasion science', which deals with the causes and consequences of introducing organisms into new environments, could offer valuable learnings. This includes the fact that insular systems such as islands, lakes, and remote habitats, are most vulnerable to invasion threats. (11/18)

Voyager Space and Space Micro Inc. Announce Strategic Agreement (Source: Voyager Space)
Voyager Space announced its intent to acquire a majority stake in Space Micro. Space Micro is focused on advancing high-performance satellite communications, digital, and electro-optical systems with over 2.7 million hours of space flight heritage. Voyager's long-term mission is to create a vertically integrated, publicly traded NewSpace company capable of delivering any space mission humans can conceive. Space Micro developed the world's highest data rate Laser Communications Terminal in orbit. As part of the agreement, Voyager intends to provide strategic operations support to help advance Space Micro's technology throughput to civil, commercial, and defense customers. (11/21)

ESA Issues Call for Companies to Develop Agency’s Patents (Source: Parabolic Arc)
ESA develops a vast array of innovative technologies and applications to make Europe’s space endeavours happen. Many of these inventions are protected by patents, resulting in a portfolio of around 580 patents or patent applications. ESA is now offering you the opportunity to find and mature real-world applications of these inventions.

Innovation is at ESA’s core. Through devising new inventions, the Agency becomes more than a mere procurement body: it delivers real technical added value to improve Europe’s competitive edge. The innovation process often starts with new ideas in the heads of ESA technical experts, which go on to be implemented by European industry. (11/21)

ESA and CNES Collaborate on Creation of New European Space Transport Hub (Source: Parabolic Arc)
In order to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness in its space access policy, CNES and ESA are working together to create a new European space transport hub. Last August, the two agencies formalized their wish to continue the co-location of their launch teams while giving the possibility to any public or private entity in the European space transport sector to join. This hub would thus become an emblematic space and launch vehicle center, it would serve as a pole of attractiveness and influence for the sector.

This grouping of the main players in the field would promote synergies and innovation by sharing means, resources and skills in order to ensure the successful operation of the Ariane and Vega launchers, while actively preparing future generations of systems. launch.

This hub project is of strategic interest to the actors concerned. A call for expressions of interest is launched from November 16 to December 31, 2021 by ESA and CNES in order to identify the actors interested in this project and to size it. The scope of this project is Paris and the inner suburbs. Final approval of the project will be taken at the end of 2022. (11/21)

Collision Avoided! NASA Craft Almost Crashed Into India's Chandrayaan 2 Moon Orbiter (Source: Hindustan Times)
Space research organizations keep on sending human made objects into space in order to know what is happening out in space to something new as well as keep track of what is happening on Earth. But, now there are so many man-made objects floating in space that even the Moon’s orbit is becoming cluttered. As per the latest information provided by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), the lunar orbiter of the Chandrayaan-2 mission was moved from its 100-km circular, polar orbit in October 2021 to avoid colliding with NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).

The two orbiters got too close on October 20, 2021 and the close conjunction between both the orbiters was expected to occur at 11:15 am. According to ISRO, “the radial separation between the two spacecraft would be less than 100 meters (328 feet) and the closest approach distance would be only about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles)” at the time, as quoted by futurism.com. Observing the situation, both NASA and ISRO mutually agreed to have their orbiters perform maneuvers to avoid a collision on October 18 at 8:22 pm. (11/21)

Cygnus Cargo Ship Departs ISS to Conduct Experiment in Orbit (Source: Space.com)
The latest Cygnus cargo ship departed the ISS Saturday. The Northrop Grumman NG-16 resupply vessel was released from the grip of the station's robotic arm by a command from NASA's Mission Control Center in Houston as both spacecraft sailed high over the South Pacific Ocean. The Cygnus spacecraft floated away from the International Space Station under the supervision of Matthias Maurer, an astronaut of the European Space Agency on the station's Expedition 66 crew.

Cygnus will spend several weeks in space before being directed to re-enter the atmosphere on Dec. 15. During that time, ground controllers will deploy the Kentucky Re-Entry Probe Experiment, the latest in a series of autonomous experiments that run during the last few weeks of Cygnus missions. This new experiment will "demonstrate a thermal protection system for spacecraft and their contents during re-entry in Earth's atmosphere. (11/20)

Space Tourism by 2024 a Growing Possibility in China (Source: CNA)
In China, where space operations are largely government-run, a commercial spinoff from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), called CAS Space, is already developing rockets for commercial satellite launches. The company has also announced plans to take space tourists as early as 2024. This trip to the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space can take as many as seven passengers but will first require CAS Space carry out a full suborbital flight in 2023 and a demo flight in 2022.

Space travel could open up an industry of luxury experiences in Hong Kong, especially after Hong Kong-based Miramar Travel was appointed by Virgin Galactic as its exclusive accredited space agent in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia and Taiwan, giving it a first-mover advantage. Space tourism is also set to create new job opportunities. Beyond the core professions that include astronauts, rocket engineers, guides and travel agents, new roles like food engineers, architects, space lawyers and doctors may open up fresh career opportunities for Hong Kong youth. (11/21)

Whose Job is it to Prevent Armageddon? (Source: Politico)
NASA is preparing to slam a spacecraft into an asteroid at 16,000 miles per hour, in a pioneering attempt to nudge it off course. But the yearlong mission scheduled to begin on Nov. 24 is raising an existential question for scientists and security experts: whose job is it to defend the planet against a possibly life-ending space rock if one was headed our way? The answer right now is no one.

NASA maintains the likelihood of a large asteroid striking Earth is a “once a millennium type of event.” But the space agency is also using new telescopes and other star-gazing techniques to locate thousands of previously undiscovered “near-Earth objects” each year with orbits that will eventually take them into our galactic neighborhood. No agency or international body is in charge of deflecting an asteroid that might be on a path of destruction, either by pushing it ever-so-slightly off course to change its orbit, or blasting it with a barrage of missiles. (11/20)

Japanese Billionaire Yusaku Maezawa Begins Training Sessions for Upcoming Spaceflight at Baikonur (Source: Parabolic Arc)
The beginning of the final stage of preparation for a flight into space is prelaunch training of crews at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Today is the first day of training sessions for cosmonauts and space flight participants of the 20th visiting crew to the ISS. On the morning of November 20, 2021, the main and backup crews arrived to undergo the first training in the Soyuz MS-20 spacecraft.

Under the supervision of specialists from the State Corporation Roscosmos, they tried on the Sokol KV-2 flight suits, tested them for tightness and took their places in the ship. After that, we got acquainted with the locations of the cargoes in the utility compartment and the descent vehicle, performed work with the equipment that was to be operated on board the International Space Station.

Further exercises at Baikonur include training on manual docking of the Soyuz MS manned spacecraft to the Russian segment of the ISS, control of laying with scientific equipment for space experiments, ballistic operations testing and other preparatory procedures. The launch is scheduled for December 8, 2021 from the Vostok launch complex of the Baikonur cosmodrome. (11/21)

UAE's New Astronauts to Begin NASA’s 2-Year Training Program in Houston (Source: The National)
The UAE’s two new astronauts are heading to Houston next week for a two-year training program. Mohammed Al Mulla, a former Dubai Police helicopter pilot, and Nora Al Matrooshi, a mechanical engineer, will begin their training in January at the Johnson Space Center. They will be trained alongside NASA’s new class of astronaut candidates, who will become eligible for space missions once they graduate, including to the International Space Station and future missions to the Moon under the Artemis program. (11/21)

After NASA's DART Comes ESA's Hera (Source: Space Daily)
The world will be watching the milestone launch of NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test, DART, spacecraft on 24 November intended to alter one small part of the Solar System forever. DART will collide with the small moon of an asteroid in order to shift its orbit around its parent body - to test the concept of diverting threatening objects away from Earth.

ESA will provide crucial ground station support to DART as it departs for deep space, helping relay signals from the ambitious mission immediately following launch. Furthermore, one group of Europeans is following DART's launch campaign particularly closely: the team developing ESA's Hera spacecraft, designed to undertake a close-up survey of the consequences of DART's collision. (11/19)

We Must Reaffirm America’s Leadership in Space (Source: TownHall)
Buzz Aldrin is right – America’s civilian and national security depends on space exploration. To ensure this type of American exceptionalism continues into the future, we should follow the advice and guidance that he provided in a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed entitled “Now, Go Where No Man Has Gone Before” where he discusses the importance of space tourism and reasserting broader American leadership in space. 

We are making small steps, and now need to make bigger ones. In the past few weeks, America’s space leadership received a major boost with the successful launch, orbit, and safe return of civilians to Earth on an extraordinary effort of national importance. It proved our nation’s resolve, strengthened our faith in the idea that we Americans can accomplish anything we set our minds to, and ushered in a new era of space tourism.

As Aldrin would say, now we must look towards the future but also remember to apply lessons of the past. It is time to look beyond Earth’s orbit and again towards the Moon and Mars. In all of this, one basic truth is clear: If America cannot freely operate in space – for civilian and military purposes – much of what we do on Earth becomes impossible, will be compromised, or perhaps unreliable. That is why prioritizing and reaffirming America’s leadership in space is, in effect, an act of proactive national defense. Space matters. (11/20)