May 2, 2022

Following a Successful October Launch, NASA Rewards SpaceWorks with an Encore in May 2022 (Source: SpaceWorks)
On the heels of SpaceWorks’ successful Suborbital Test Vehicle (STV-2) mission last October 2021 (pictured below) in Madras, Oregon, NASA awarded the company with another STV flight scheduled for May 2022 at the same location. “The October performance of our re-entry device (RED) exceeded our expectations. After dropping it from near space, our capsule landed within a football field of our intended location. That kind of accuracy is what the market needs for on-demand return of cargo and materials from space.” said Tyler Kunsa, Program Manager for the RED projects at SpaceWorks.

Partially funded through NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program, the October mission was featured on NASA’s website. “Building on the successes of the October mission, the May test will continue to lay our groundwork needed for a cost-effective system of bringing high-value cargo back to Earth,” said Dr. John R. Olds, CEO of SpaceWorks. (4/26)

Space Force to Build Classified Satellite Networks (Source: Space News)
The U.S. Space Force plans to request nearly $8 billion over the next five years to scale up development of classified communications satellite networks. The projected funding, outlined in Defense Department budget documents, is for two geostationary orbit constellations: one for military tactical communications and the other for strategic communications to connect nuclear forces with national command authorities. The new satellites will augment the current Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellites, the last of which was launched in 2020. (5/2)

ASAT Debris Will Impacts Will Limit Russian Tests (Source: Space News)
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) said he was not too worried about Russian ASATs even after a test last November, saying such tests are unlikely "to be a routine thing because they have to deal with this debris field as well." The White House announced last month that the U.S. would not conduct similar tests, a move criticized by Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) at the same event because "not all antisatellite testing is equal." Kelly said he regularly talks with NASA leadership about how Russia's invasion of Ukraine could affect the ISS partnership, noting it would be hard for either Russia or the U.S. to operate the station without the support of the other. (5/2)

NASA Selects Investigation Teams to Join Geospace Dynamics Mission (Source: Space Daily)
NASA has selected three investigation teams to join the agency's Geospace Dynamics Constellation (GDC) mission science team in studying Earth's upper atmosphere, as well as five additional investigations that will be under consideration for inclusion in the mission. GDC is a coordinated group of satellites that will provide the first direct global measurements of the dynamic and complex region of space enveloping Earth - known as the ionosphere and thermosphere (I-T) region. The constellation's ability to simultaneously study processes operating across a range of temporal and spatial scales will provide an unprecedented level of understanding of this region. (4/27)

Sierra Space in Final Phases of Dream Chaser Production (Source: Space News)
Sierra Space says it is making good progress on the first Dream Chaser vehicle. The company released new images of the vehicle as it enters the final phases of assembly and testing at its Colorado headquarters. Sierra Space plans to ship the vehicle to a NASA facility in August or September for thermal vacuum tests, after which it will go to Florida for launch early next year on a Vulcan Centaur rocket. The first Dream Chaser is designed for cargo transportation to and from the ISS, but the company is starting work on a crewed version that could fly as soon as 2026 and is studying another version that could be used for national security applications. (5/2)

NATO Considers Commercial Imagery Procurement (Source: Breaking Defense)
NATO is considering buying commercial satellite imagery, bypassing U.S. government agencies. NATO issued a request for information recently seeking data on commercial imagery capabilities, a step that could lead to a procurement of such imagery in the future. U.S. officials said publicly they back NATO's move towards "diverse imagery sources" but privately are reportedly less supportive, preferring that the alliance instead continue to rely on imagery from agencies like the NRO and NGA. (5/2)

Netflix Cancels Space Force (Source: Deadline)
Space Force — the Netflix series, not the military branch — has been canceled. Netflix announced Friday it would not pick up the show, starring Steve Carrell, for a third season. Netflix released the second season in February, but it did not do well in ratings and got mixed reviews. (5/2)

The Western Space Community Should Put Dmitry Rogozin on “Ignore” (Source: Ars Technica)
It happened again this weekend. Both Bloomberg and Axios reported that Russia is quitting the International Space Station due to sanctions imposed by the United States on Russia. Each of these stories garnered considerable attention. And each of these stories was also wrong. This has become a predictable pattern in recent weeks: Dmitry Rogozin, the voluble leader of Russia's space corporation, will give an interview to a Russian space publication, and then Western news outlets will pick up whatever Rogozin says and leap to conclusions that are simply incorrect.

Specifically, this is what Rogozin said on state television this weekend: "The decision has been taken already, we’re not obliged to talk about it publicly. I can say this only—in accordance with our obligations, we’ll inform our partners about the end of our work on the ISS with a year’s notice." This may sound ominous, but that is the wrong interpretation of Rogozin's words. There is actually some positive news in there, with Rogozin saying Russia will give NASA and its other partners a full year's notice before departing. This is more than enough time for NASA and its commercial partners, Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, and Boeing, to work together to salvage the larger Western segment of the space station. (5/2)

Space-Focused SPAC Withdraws Plans For $300M IPO (Source: Law360)
Blank-check company Space Acquisition Corp. I, which had plans to eventually combine with a business in the "space economy" and the commercialization of space travel, withdrew plans for its $300 million initial public offering Friday amid a broader cooldown in the market for special-purpose acquisition companies. (4/29)

Russia Launches First Orbital Angara 1.2 Rocket with Military Payload (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
Russia’s Angara 1.2 rocket has launched a payload for the Russian Aerospace Forces, the VKS RF. This is Angara 1.2’s first operational flight, after one suborbital test flight to verify that all systems worked and three test flights of the Angara-A5 variant to prove its ability to launch payloads to a geostationary orbit. Not much is known about the mission, with the identity of the payload yet to be uncovered and multiple potential payloads possibly onboard the rocket. All that is known is that the spacecraft has been designated Kosmos 2555 after successfully deploying from the rocket. (4/29)

Chang Zheng 11 Sea-Launches Five Earth Observation Satellites (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) has launched the 13th Chang Zheng 11 (CZ-11) to deliver five Jilin-1 Gaofen Earth observation satellites to a Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). This launch is the third CZ-11 (CZ-11H) to be launched from an offshore launch platform off the coast of China. CZ-11H Y3 launched on April 30 at 03:30 UTC from the Tai Rui launch platform just offshore of China. This was the 13th launch from China in 2022 and the 418th overall launch of the Chang Zheng series of rockets. CZ-11 is the first and only all-solid Chang Zheng rocket currently in operation. (4/30)

NASA Selects USNC for Ultra-High Temperature Component Testing Facility (Source: Space Daily)
USNC Advanced Technologies, a division of Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC), announces it has been selected by NASA to receive a Phase II SBIR contract to develop a proposed ultra-high temperature material testing facility. The specialized equipment could provide an essential terrestrial environment for testing the performance of materials planned for use in space-based nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) systems.

The demanding requirements for NTP systems necessitate development of breakthrough refractory and ceramic materials capable of performing in extremely high temperatures. Phase II of the SBIR will enable USNC-Tech to construct and operate a system capable of conducting sophisticated tests to verify the performances of key materials in a prototypical environment. (4/29)

UAE to Send Astronaut on Six-Month ISS Mission (Source: Space Daily)
The United Arab Emirates announced Friday it will send an astronaut on a six-month mission to space, as it seeks to become a major player in the industry. The wealthy Gulf country signed "a new agreement to send the first Arab astronaut on a long 180-day mission to the International Space Station", tweeted UAE's vice president, Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. (4/29)

NASA Chooses Small Businesses to Continue Exploration Tech Eevelopment (Source: Space Daily)
NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program has chosen 110 U.S. small businesses for Phase II continued technology development. The range of projects support space exploration and improvements to life on Earth - from foldable solar array technology that could help power astronauts' work on the Moon to antenna technology that could improve satellite internet service.

NASA's SBIR program provides early-stage funding and other non-monetary support to small businesses with pioneering ideas to help advance NASA's missions, as well as the aerospace ecosystem. The new round of awards gives almost $95 million to small businesses across 123 projects. Editor's Note: Four of the winning firms are in Florida, including Gainesville's Interdisciplinary Consulting Corp.; Melbourne's Mainstream Engineering; Gainesville's SurfPlasma; and Orlando's Truventic'. (4/29)

AFRL is Developing Green Power for Satellites (Source: Space Daily)
The Air Force Research Laboratory, or AFRL, Space Vehicles Directorate is developing a new "green energy" fuel cell technology, that will allow thruster equipped spacecraft to convert chemical energy in its bipropellant into electrical power. This technology, called BEEPS for Bipropellant Enabled Electrical Power Supply, is being developed by a three-year Seedlings for Disruptive Capabilities Program effort that recently completed its 18th month of work. (4/22)

Nanoavionics Builds First Nanosatellite for Promethee's EO Constellation (Source: Space Daily)
Satellite operator Promethee has contracted mission integrator NanoAvionics to build the first nanosatellite for the French company's planned constellation of Earth observation nanosatellites and image analysis platform. "ProtoMethee-1" will be based on NanoAvionics' flight-proven 16U nanosatellite bus M16P.

In addition to the satellite with onboard camera and propulsion, NanoAvionics will also provide Promethee with full mission services - testing, integration, launch, licensing, and initial satellite operations. The "ProtoMethee-1" satellite is intended to be launched towards the end of 2023 in low Earth orbit (LEO). The company's service demonstrator will be based on a high revisit rate constellation (20 times more passes per day) and offering hyper-reactivity through inter-constellation connectivity. (4/29)

HyPrSpace Raises 1M Euro in Seed Funding to Develop Reusable Hybrid Micro-Launcher (Source: Space Daily)
HyPrSpace, a startup specializing in the design of space launchers, has announced that it has raised euro 1.1 million from the Geodesic fund, the French Tech Seed fund managed on behalf of the French government by Bpifrance as part of France 2030, and private investors. This funding will allow the startup to strengthen its teams to accelerate the development of its OB-1 reusable launcher, and to offer a fast, economical, sovereign and more environmentally friendly orbiting service!

Founded in 2019 by Alexandre Mangeot, Sylvain Bataillard and Vincent Rocher, HyPrSpace aims to develop a launcher using a propulsion technology that facilitates access to space: Hybrid propulsion. This technology is reliable, inexpensive and has a lower carbon footprint, but until now it has suffered from a technological lock-in that makes the engines unusable for launch applications.

HyPrSpace is developing an innovative, patented architecture that removes the hybrid propulsion lock. This technological breakthrough makes it usable for launchers, which then benefit from the simplicity and reliability of these engines, thus lowering launch costs and access to space. OB-1 is a reusable rocket using hybrid propulsion, which halves the cost of access to space, while reducing the carbon impact of the space industry. (4/29)

Discovery of 30 Exocomets in a Young Planetary System (Source: Space Daily)
For the past thirty years, the star ss Pictoris has fascinated astronomers because it enables them to observe a planetary system in the process of formation. It is made up of at least two young planets, and also contains comets, which were detected as early as 1987. These were the first comets ever observed around a star other than the Sun. Now, an international research team has discovered 30 such exocomets and determined the size of their nuclei2 , which vary between 3 and 14 kilometers in diameter. The scientists were also able to estimate the size distribution of the objects, i.e. the proportion of small comets to large ones. (4/29)