March 7, 2022

NASA’s Psyche Gets Huge Solar Arrays for Trip to Metal-Rich Asteroid (Source: NASA JPL)
NASA’s Psyche mission is almost ready for its moment in the Sun – a 1.5-billion-mile (2.4-billion-kilometer) solar-powered journey to a mysterious, metal-rich asteroid of the same name. Twin solar arrays have been attached to the spacecraft body, unfolded lengthwise, and then restowed. This test brings the craft that much closer to completion before its August launch.

At 800 square feet (75 square meters), the five-panel, cross-shaped solar arrays are the largest ever installed at JPL, which has built many spacecraft over the decades. When the arrays fully deploy in flight, the spacecraft will be about the size of a singles tennis court. After a 3 ½-year solar-powered cruise, the craft will arrive in 2026 at the asteroid Psyche, which is 173 miles (280 kilometers) at its widest point and thought to be unusually rich in metal. The spacecraft will spend nearly two years making increasingly close orbits of the asteroid to study it. (3/7)

Astra Space Details What Went Wrong with First Space Coast Launch (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Nearly a month since an Astra Space rocket made its first launch from the Space Coast that ultimately ended with it tumbling out of control, the company announced details from its investigation of the failure. The California-based company launched Rocket 3.3 from the Cape Canaveral Space Spaceport on Feb. 10, but two problems occurred during the stage separation process. “Our investigation verified that the payload fairing did not fully deploy prior to upper stage ignition due to an electrical issue,” Andrew Griggs said, although the company noted its investigation has not been finalized with the FAA.

He said the order in which the five separation mechanisms fired were out of order, causing the fairing movement to knock out the electrical connection, resulting in the final separation mechanism not firing. The upper stage still ignited as expected, but the fairing was not fully deployed. In addition, the investigation found a software issue that prevented the upper stage engine from using its thrust vector control system. (3/7)

China Wants its New Rocket for Astronaut Launches to be Reusable (Source: Space.com)
China is planning for its next-generation crew launch vehicle for missions to its space station and the moon to have a reusable first stage. The new rocket would allow a reusable launch option for sending astronauts or cargo to China's new Tiangong space station, while a larger version would allow China to send crew on lunar and deep space missions.

It will also be capable of carrying a new, larger spacecraft than the Shenzhou currently used by the China National Space Administration for crewed missions, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the country's main space contractor. The rocket currently goes by the cumbersome placeholder name of "New-Generation Manned Launch Vehicle." After completing its launch role, the first stage will restart its engines to help it decelerate, using grid fins for guidance, much like the pioneering Falcon 9 rockets flown by SpaceX. (3/6)

China Launches Test Sats for Broadband Constellation (Source: Space News)
China launched a set of technology demonstration satellites for a broadband constellation Saturday. A Long March 2C lifted off from the Xichang spaceport carrying six satellites for private firm Galaxy Space. The experimental satellite network has been nicknamed "Mini-spider Constellation" and is capable of data speeds of 40 gigabits per second. The satellites could play an important part in the development of China's plan to establish a national low Earth orbit broadband megaconstellation, overseen by a state-owned enterprise but involving players from the country's nascent commercial sector. The launch also placed the Xingyuan-2 remote sensing satellite into orbit for startup SpaceWish. (3/7)

Bahrain Signs Artemis Accords (Source: The National)
Bahrain has signed the Artemis Accords. The country announced its plans to sign the Accords during a visit by Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad to the United States last week, hoping that doing so will enable new opportunities for cooperation in space. Bahrain launched its first satellite, a cubesat jointly developed with the United Arab Emirates, last year. Bahrain became the 17th country to join the Accords, days after Romania signed on. (3/7)

SpaceX Moves to Address Starlink Jamming (Source: Space News)
Elon Musk said Saturday he is shifting SpaceX resources into "cyber defense" and countering jamming of Starlink signals in Ukraine. In a series of tweets, he said the company was "reprioritized" for those areas after Starlink signals were jammed in the region for several hours at a time. He said a recent software update overcomes the jamming, at least for now. That reprioritization, he said, will cause "slight delays" for the company's Starship launch vehicle and the next generation of Starlink satellites, but he didn't elaborate. The announcement came a week after SpaceX enabled Starlink service in Ukraine and started supplying terminals at the request of the Ukrainian government, although terrestrial lines of communications, like cell phone networks, remain largely operational in the country. (3/7)

HawkEye 360 Detected Increased GPS Jamming in Ukraine (Source: Space News)
HawkEye 360 says it detected increased jamming of GPS signals in Ukraine leading up to Russia's invasion. The company, which operates a constellation of satellites that collect radio-frequency intelligence, said it detected GPS interference north of Chernobyl shortly before the invasion started and in pro-Russia separatist regions in eastern Ukraine months earlier. The company called the interference "representative of the tactics that Russian troops are deploying to degrade the effectiveness of space-based assets." (3/7)

Space Force Restructures Acquisitions to Focus on Countering China (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Space Force is restructuring its acquisition organization to re-energize the bureaucracy and bring fresh focus on the competition with China. Following a 90-day review, the head of Space Systems Command, Lt. Gen. Michael Guetlein, proposed a new structure built around five program executive offices, from launch to space sensing. Those offices will report directly to the assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration. Guetlein said his primary job will be "system of systems integration." The new structure comes just a few years after the Space and Missile Systems Center, the predecessor to Space Systems Command, reorganized program management with an approach Guetlein said created "a whole lot of artificial seams between programs." (3/7)

DoD Stresses Space Resiliency (Source: Space News)
The Defense Department is focused on making "resilient" space systems, but what that requires is still unclear. The military has emphasized its desire for "space superiority," ensuring that satellites can provide capabilities, such as communications, navigation, and intelligence to military forces on the ground. Resilience is one means of providing that superiority, but industry officials said at a conference last week that resilience can refer to satellites themselves or to the mission they provide. Resilience may involve incorporating more commercial capabilities, but that also creates issues regarding the level of reliance on non-government systems. (3/7)

Georgia County Rushes to Create Spaceport Authority Ahead of Anti-Spaceport Referendum (Source: The Current)
In a special called meeting late Friday afternoon, the Camden County Commission appointed members to the Spaceport Camden Authority, a move that spaceport opponents and a state representative fear may indicate an attempt to buy the land for the spaceport even if Camden voters object. The authority was created three years ago by the Georgia General Assembly, but no members had ever been named. The appointments came only after a Superior Court on Friday rejected the county’s effort to nullify the results of an ongoing referendum about the purchase of property for the planned spaceport.

In a 3-2 vote the commission appointed five members to the authority, two of whom are county commissioners as required by the legislature: County Commission Chairman Gary Blount, Commissioner Chuck Clark, former NASA official David Rainer, businessman C.B. Yadav and U.S. Airforce Major General (Retired) Robert S. Dickman.

Camden has spent seven years and over $10 million to develop a spaceport to launch up to 12 small commercial rockets per year from a 4,000 acre former munitions and pesticide manufacturing site currently owned by Union Carbide. The county promises the venture will create economic opportunity and bring jobs. Opponents say its proposed flight path over residential property plus the industrial contamination of the Union Carbide property make the project too risky for taxpayers. (3/6)

Sainz Sends Message to Commission on Spaceport Authority (Source: Brunswick News)
Tuesday's referendum asks voters if county commissioners should be allowed to spend any more taxpayer dollars to establish a spaceport. But if a spaceport authority was given the power to complete the transaction with Union Carbide to buy the 4,000-acre tract as the launch site, the referendum would be a meaningless straw vote regardless of the outcome.

State Rep. Steven Sainz, R-Woodbine, released a statement online Friday after the meeting in response to the county commission's decision to appoint members to the authority. Commission Chairman Gary Blount and commissioners Lannie Brant and Chuck Clark voted for the appointments. Commissioners Trevor Readdick and Ben Casey voted against the motion.

The legislation to create a spaceport authority was intended to be used if a company came into Camden County to operate an active venture, Sainz said. In response to the commission's vote at the special meeting, Sainz said he informed County Commission Chairman Gary Blount, "that if this is the case, it would be out of the intention of the legislation. (3/7)

Can SpaceX Save NASA's International Space Station? (Source: The Hill)
Russia and the other ISS partners need each other. Without Russia and their Soyuz rockets to provide reboost and altitude control, the space station could undergo an uncontrolled reentry. Without the ISS, though, Russia doesn’t have much of a space program. Talk of Russia building its own space station is just talk, considering the state of that nation’s finances. But Dimitry Rogozin took to Twitter anyway: “If you block cooperation with us, who will save the ISS from an unguided de-orbit to impact on the territory of the US or Europe? ...  The ISS doesn't fly over Russia, so all the risk is yours. Are you ready for it?"

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk responded to Rogozin’s question by posting the logo of his company, suggesting that he would step in and save the ISS from being crashed into the Earth. How that could happen has been a matter of some discussion. A thread has been posted on Twitter that shows a truncated ISS, without the Russian modules, with two Cargo Dragons and a Cygnus cargo spacecraft attached to provide both reboost and altitude control capabilities. The idea is that NASA and the other partners can maintain the ISS without Russian help.

At least one member of Congress has stated his enthusiastic support for booting the Russians from the ISS. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) tweeted, “Time to replace the Russians on the International Space Station. Kick them out of the program, train up some Ukrainian cosmonauts, and see if @elonmusk can replace the Russian half of the station with something that’s not falling apart.” (3/6)

Dreaming of Suitcases in Space (Source: New York Times)
The mission to turn space into the next frontier for express deliveries took off from a modest propeller plane above a remote airstrip in the shadow of the Santa Ana mountains. Shortly after sunrise on a recent Saturday, an engineer for Inversion Space, a start-up that’s barely a year old, tossed a capsule resembling a flying saucer out the open door of an aircraft flying at 3,000 feet. The capsule, 20 inches in diameter, somersaulted in the air for a few seconds before a parachute deployed and snapped the container upright for a slow descent.

“It was slow to open,” said Justin Fiaschetti, Inversion’s 23-year-old chief executive, who anxiously watched the parachute through the viewfinder of a camera with a long lens. The exercise looked like the work of amateur rocketry enthusiasts. But, in fact, it was a test run for something more fantastical. Inversion is building earth-orbiting capsules to deliver goods anywhere in the world from outer space. To make that a reality, Inversion’s capsule will come through the earth’s atmosphere at about 25 times as fast as the speed of sound, making the parachute essential for a soft landing and undisturbed cargo. (3/7)

How Much Training Do You Need to Visit Space? Private Astronaut Training Facility May Come to Space Coast (Source: Florida Today)
For half a century there was only one way to fly to space: Be one of the few lucky individuals chosen by national space programs like NASA or Russia's Roscosmos. Being chosen to be an astronaut or cosmonaut meant facing years of training before even being considered for a flight on a space shuttle or Soyuz rocket. But with space tourism becoming a reality, hundreds, if not thousands, of would-be "astronauts" will need to be trained for spaceflight over the next few years.

But where exactly does one go to get astronaut training? It could very well end up being a $270 million facility just outside Kennedy Space Center. Space Florida has been working with a company to build a "human spaceflight service center" near the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. As is typical with these deals, Space Florida isn't naming the company planning the facility, which the agency has dubbed "Project Beach House." Space Florida documents indicate that the facility would employ at least 200 people with an average annual wage of $50,000 by 2025.

For folks taking quick suborbital hops like those being offered by Blue Origin, minimal training is needed since the flights last less than an hour and are fully automated. Longer flights will require additional training, if for no other reason than to learn to use special toilets that work in low-gravity environments. Jared Isaacman and his crewmates were whirled on a centrifuge, learned to recognize the signs of low oxygen in an altitude chamber and climbed Mt. Rainier together as a team-building exercise over several months of training. (2/6)

Space Ethics: A New Morality for a New Age (Sourc: Israel Hayom)
Ever since the first satellite launched into orbit over 60 years ago, space exploration has meant more than traveling among the cosmos just to say it's been done. In our current age, it means chasing a deeper understanding of the many unknowns. But the mystery of space comes with the challenge of ethically exploring it.

As our scientific capabilities progress, space ethics considers two important debates: First, can we justify the allocation of resources for space exploration? And second, what values should we bear in mind when exploring space? "Questioning our presence in space facilitates ethical reflection, which is extremely important," said Dr. Zachary Goldberg, ethics innovation manager at Trilateral Research.

Several ethicists over the years have brought up the challenge of balancing our fascination with the sky and our attention to the rock that we live on. With the heavy burden of social, economic, and humanitarian problems on Earth, why not direct more resources to better help our planet? (3/7)

A Dead Rocket Just Crashed Into the Moon, and Scientists Are Thrilled (Source: C/net)
A big hunk of space junk met an explosive end on Friday when it collided with the moon, and astronomers are excited to view the fallout. An old rocket booster once thought to be the upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9, but now believed to be from the Chinese Chang'e 5-T1 mission (although China denies this), slammed into the moon's far side at over 5,000 miles per hour around 4:25 a.m. PT.

The impact took place on the far side of the moon out of view of any telescopes or spacecraft, but NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will be in a position to start taking photos of the impact site in mid-March. Modeling software company AGI developed this animation of how the crash may have appeared from a point above the moon. Paul Hayne expects the impact obliterated the rocket instantly, creating a white flash that could be visible if any spacecraft were in place with a vantage point. "It will be the moon's newest archaeological site," writes space archaeologist Alice Gorman. (3/6)

Tiangong Scheduled for Completion This Year (Source: Space Daily)
China's Tiangong space station is scheduled to be completed before the end of this year and will become a massive spacecraft stack with a combined weight of nearly 100 metric tons, according to a program leader. Zhou Jianping, chief designer of the nation's manned space program, said the assembly phase of the Tiangong program will begin in May and will involve the launch of two astronaut crews, two space labs and two cargo ships. (3/6)

Australian Startups Join Forces to Test AI Computing in Space (Source: Space Daily)
Two emerging Australian space startups - AICRAFT and Antaris Space Space - have signed of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to test new Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) models in space, with the goal of developing and space-qualifying new computational capabilities for satellite-based applications.

Under the MoU the two startups, who are both members of the SmartSAT CRC-backed Aurora Space Cluster, will include an AICRAFT space-computing module as a part of the payload for Antaris' three-year demonstrator mission launching to Low Earth Orbit in Q3 2022. This will provide an opportunity for Antaris Space and its collaborators to test out the module, and demonstrate the ability for on-orbit autonomous satellite navigation and control. (3/2)

Space Force Reveals New Structure for Acquisition Command (Source: C4ISRnet)
The Space Force is changing the structure of its acquisition field command to improve integration between its programs and position the command to counter growing threats in space. Chief of Space Operations Gen. Raymond announced the change Friday, though space acquisition leaders have teased the realignment in recent months. Under the realigned structure, Space Systems Command now has five program executive offices: Assured Access to Space; Battle Management Command and Control; Space Domain Awareness and Combat Power; Communications and Positioning, Navigation and Timing; and Space Sensing. (3/4)

Huge, Mysterious Blast Detected in Deep Space (Source: Mashable)
Astronomers can detect powerful bursts of energy from the deep, deep cosmos. Sometimes, the source of these bursts is mysterious. Scientists recently observed a giant blast some 130 million light-years from Earth. Previously, they detected a colossal collision here from a well-known merger between two neutron stars — collapsed stars that are perhaps the densest objects in the universe. But that dramatic event, which produced a potent stream of energy, began to fade. Around three and a half years later, something else, something new, created another curious blast or release of energy. (3/5)

NASA SLS Manager John Honeycutt Pushes Back Against Audit (Source: AL.com)
NASA Space Launch System Manager John Honeycutt pushed back in Huntsville Friday against the NASA auditor who told Congress the first four Artemis moon missions will cost $4.1 billion each – an “unsustainable” amount for the program’s future. Artemis is the name for NASA’s program to return to the moon, land “the first person of color and first woman” on the lunar surface and use lunar exploration as a testing ground for a trip to Mars.

“I will certainly say that the SLS rocket is not going to come at a cost of $4 billion a shot,” Honeycutt told an SLS media briefing at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. Honeycutt spoke along with Marshall Director Jody Singer and other program leads. NASA Inspector General Paul Martin told the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics Tuesday that his office’s Nov. 15, 2021, audit showed the $4 billion price tag “that strikes us as unsustainable.” (3/4)

Anonymous-Linked Group Hacks Russian Space Research Site, Claims to Leak Mission Files (Source: The Verge)
In the latest salvo from hacktivists working in support of Ukraine, an Anonymous-linked group has defaced a website belonging to Russia’s Space Research Institute (IKI) and leaked files that allegedly belong to the Russian space agency Roscosmos. As reported by Vice, hackers appear to have breached one subdomain of the IKI website, although other subdomains remain online. The compromised part of the site relates to the World Space Observatory Ultraviolet project (WSO-UV), a project similar to the Hubble Space Telescope and planned for launch in 2025. (3/3)

Sanctions on Russia Add to Troubles Facing Global Helium Industry (Source: Space Daily)
Helium is the second most-abundant element in the known universe, but to the semiconductor fabricators and doctors who rely on it for their businesses, it is better known as the latest raw material to grow scarce -- and the war in Ukraine could make the shortage worse. Russia is expected to eventually begin producing the equivalent of a third of the world's current helium production from a massive gas plant in its Far East, but with Western nations cutting off the country's financial flows over its invasion of Ukraine, experts worry that gas won't reach the global market. (3/3)