September 18, 2024

Intuitive Machines Wins $4.8 Billion NASA Contract for Lunar Comms and Navigation Support (Source: Space News)
Intuitive Machines has won a contract worth up to $4.8 billion to provide lunar communications and navigation services for NASA. The agency announced Tuesday it selected Intuitive Machines for the contract that will support the Artemis lunar exploration campaign. The contract has a maximum value of $4.82 billion over 10 years if all options are exercised. Neither NASA nor Intuitive Machines provided details about how the service will be operated, but the company has discussed plans to set up a constellation of satellites in lunar orbit for data relay services. (9/18)

Space Force Program Leverages Commercial Satellite Imagery and Data Analytics (Source: Space News)
The head of the U.S. Space Force strongly endorsed a program that leverages commercial satellite imagery and data analytics to support military operations. Gen. Chance Saltzman said the "tactical surveillance, reconnaissance, and tracking" (TacSRT) program proved its worth recently supporting the withdrawal of troops in Niger. TacSRT provided imagery to ground forces within one and a half hours of being taken in orbit by the end of the withdrawal, he said. "This is just positive proof that space makes a difference and makes the joint force better," he said. (9/18)

Musk Plans to Sue FAA Over Launch License Violation Fines (Source: Space News)
Elon Musk says he will sue the FAA after it proposed fines against SpaceX for launch license violations. The FAA said Tuesday it planned to fine SpaceX $633,009 for violating terms of licenses during two Falcon launches in June and July last year. In one launch, SpaceX used a new control center and countdown procedure without FAA approval, and in the other used a new propellant farm, again without FAA approval. Musk complained on social media that the fines were "lawfare" against his company and "improper, politically-motivated behavior," but offered no evidence to back his claim. (9/18)

Terran Orbital Acquisition is Good News for Rivada (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin's acquisition of Terran Orbital is good news for Rivada Space Networks. Declan Ganley, CEO of Rivada, said Tuesday that the acquisition announced last month was welcomed since it gives the smallsat manufacturer "a big balance sheet." He said plans are on track to start its SpaceX launch campaign next year to meet a mid-2026 regulatory deadline for deploying 300 satellites, or half the constellation, which Terran Orbital is building under a $2.4 billion contract. However, he offered few new details on how his company was financing the deal. Terran Orbital, before the Lockheed acquisition, had removed the contract from its backlog. (9/18)

ESA Chief Seeks Coordinated Space Spending (Source: Space News)
The head of ESA wants Europe to better coordinate public space spending. Josef Aschbacher said that Europe's far lower spending on space compared to the United States is exacerbated by "fragmentation" with ESA accounting for 60% of spending with the rest spread among the EU, national agencies and other organizations. He called for closer cooperation between ESA and the European Commission. A recent EU report also warned of fragmentation of European space spending but included additional recommendations, such as ending ESA's georeturn policy. (9/18)

France Steps Up Military Space Efforts (Source: Space News)
France plans to have an active capability to defend the space assets its armed forces rely upon by 2030. Eva Portier, space deputy in the French armament agency DGA, said at the Space Defense and Security Summit (SDSS) Tuesday that France is currently focused on strengthening military space capabilities including Earth observation, telecommunications, positioning and navigation, but also wants to better understand potential threats and respond to them. In 2019, France published a space defense strategy and established French Space Command.

Those French efforts include a new space surveillance program. The French Defense Innovation Agency and armament agency DGA unveiled a low Earth orbit space surveillance program Tuesday at SDSS. French startup U-space will work with multinational missile supplier MBDA to develop a pair of satellites to demonstrate spacecraft detection, characterization and targeting called Toutatis. Those satellites are scheduled to launch in the next few years. (9/18)

SpaceX Launches European Galileo NavSats at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
A Falcon 9 launched a second pair of Galileo navigation satellites Tuesday night. The Falcon 9 lifted off at 6:50 p.m. Eastern and deployed the two satellites into their planned orbits about three and a half hours later. This launch came after a similar one in April that launched two other satellites. While the Falcon 9 booster was expended on the earlier flight, the booster on this launch was able to make a droneship landing after SpaceX made what it called "subtle design and operational changes." (9/18)

Russia Launches Military Satellites on Angara Rocket (Source: RBC Ukraine)
An Angara rocket launched a pair of Russian military satellites Tuesday. The rocket lifted off from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at about 3 a.m. Eastern and placed the Cosmos 2577 and 2578 satellites into orbit. The Russian military did not disclose the purpose of the satellites, but they are believed to be carrying imaging payloads. (9/18)

ULA Sets Oct 4 for Vulcan Centaur's Second Flight (Source: Florida Today)
United Launch Alliance has set an Oct. 4 launch date for the second Vulcan Centaur mission. The company announced the launch date Tuesday for the Cert-2 mission, which will carry an inert payload. Successful completion of Cert-2 will pave the way for Vulcan to be certified for national security launches. A ULA executive said at WSBW on Monday that the company expected to conduct two such launches later this year after Cert-2. (9/18)

Lockheed Martin Wins NOAA Lightning Mapper Contract (Source: Space News)
Lockheed Martin won a contract to provide a lightning mapper instrument for next-generation weather satellites. The $297.1 million contract, awarded by NASA on behalf of NOAA, covers two flight instruments and includes options for two additional lightning mappers. The instruments will be used on the GeoXO line of geostationary orbit weather satellites. Lockheed Martin also built lightning mappers for NOAA's current GOES satellites. (9/18)

Capella Wins USAF Contract for Sensor/Data Modernization (Source: Space News)
Capella Space won a $15 million contract by the U.S. Air Force to modernize its sensor and data collection capabilities for military applications. The Strategic Funding Increase (STRATFI) agreement was awarded by AFWERX, a U.S. Air Force organization that backs small businesses developing technologies with military applications. The funding will help Capella Space advance its next-generation synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor technology. (9/18)

Samara Wins SpaceWERX Contract for Satellite Pointing Tech (Source: Space News)
Startup Samara Aerospace won a SpaceWERX contract to develop a unique approach to satellite pointing. Samara Aerospace will work with an unnamed Earth-imaging company to improve pointing accuracy for a 200- to 500-kilogram spacecraft as part of a $1.25 million direct-to-phase two contract. The company, founded in 2022, recently opened an office in San Francisco for its staff, which is expected to double from 5 to 10 employees by the end of the year. (9/18)

Aerospace Corp. Working to Improve Satellite Reentry Observation (Source: Space News)
The Aerospace Corporation is working to improve observations of satellite reentries. Most reentries of space hardware are uncontrolled, so knowing where and when to observe a particular reentry is difficult. Aerospace has mounted reentry observation campaigns in some circumstances, and also uses tools like weather radar to track clouds of debris created by some reentering objects. Those efforts have taken on more importance given interest in potential contributions to atmospheric pollution caused by large numbers of satellite reentries. (9/18)

Axiom Layoffs Resulted From Cash Flow Problems (Source: Forbes)
Axiom Space has run into financial problems that led to layoffs. The company, working on commercial space stations and spacesuits, has encountered cash flow problems, according to a former executive, and also had to lay off about 100 employees. Kam Ghaffarian, the billionaire founder of Axiom, confirmed that the company has had some financial issues but said he was working to close a new round of funding by the end of the year. Failure to close the round, though, could lead to further cuts and jeopardize its work on space station modules or NASA lunar spacesuits. (9/18)

SpaceX, Blue Origin, and ULA: Here Are Space Sights You Can See Via Port Canaveral (Source: Florida Today)
While the Cape Canaveral launch pads may be off limits to everyday spectators, one way to get a closer look at all the launch activity happening on the Space Coast is by boat. FLORIDA TODAY bought a ticket and rode along with Star Fleet Tours on the boat "Sea Trident." "We have hosted people that traveled from Europe to see launches," said Steven Giraldo, director of operations for Star Fleet Tours. "For some people, (it) is a bucket list experience."

A boat ride out about 10 miles in the Atlantic Ocean can put one directly in sight of the action. And the viewing can begin as soon as the boat pulls away from the dock. Next to SpaceX's Falcon 9 parking spot, Blue Origin's support ship, Harvey Stone, may be spotted. Harvey Stone tows Blue Origin's landing platform, named Jacklyn, for its upcoming New Glenn orbital rocket. The United Launch Alliance (ULA) rocket ferrying vessel − known as Rocketship − may also be spotted along the Cape area. (9/17)

Starlink Has 2,500 Airplanes Under Contract After United Megadeal (Source: CNBC)
SpaceX nearly doubled its backlog of Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi orders with last week’s United Airlines  deal, a company director said Tuesday. “Very excited that we have about 2,500 aircraft under contract now, bringing what was effectively a startup to now what we think is a growing experience that’s going to resonate with all the passengers and the airlines worldwide,” said Nick Galano, SpaceX director of Starlink aviation sales. (9/17)

Polaris Dawn Spacewalk Proves Winning Design for Smaller Flexible Spacesuit (Source: Good News Network)
The Polaris Dawn mission tested the most recent iteration of the spacesuit. With the success of Isaacman and Gillis’ spacewalks came the success of the SpaceX new extravehicular activity (EVA) suit, which is incomparably more mobile than what the Apollo Program astronauts wore, allowing the Polaris crew to maneuver inside the Dragon capsule and exit into the hatch into space without any airlock chamber.

NASA’s Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) has been worn by ISS astronauts since 1981 but weighs over 100 pounds without life support systems, and comes in only a few different sizes, meaning astronauts have to select which size of glove, for example, is the closest approximation to their hand size. It includes several rigid components like the upper torso and rear-entry hatch. By contrast, the Polaris suits are designed to be almost entirely soft, with thermal insulation and radiation-proof textile designs salvaged from the spacecraft itself.

A new heads-up display inside the helmet allows astronauts to view data about their suits’ internal temperature, humidity, and pressure; the display also exhibits a mission clock to monitor the durations of particular EVA tasks. (9/16)

Astronomers Discover New Feature in Exoplanet Distribution That's Between the Neptunian Desert and Savanna (Source: Phys.org)
Astronomers have uncovered the "Neptunian Ridge," a newly identified feature in the distribution of exoplanets. This discovery, led by an international team, highlights the complex dynamics within the Neptunian Desert, a region with a scarcity of hot Neptunes, and the Neptunian Savanna, where these planets are more commonly found. (9/17)

A Wobble From Mars Could be Sign of Dark Matter (Source: Phys.org)
In a new study, MIT physicists propose that if most of the dark matter in the universe is made up of microscopic primordial black holes—an idea first proposed in the 1970s—then these gravitational dwarfs should zoom through our solar system at least once per decade. A flyby like this, the researchers predict, would introduce a wobble into Mars' orbit, to a degree that today's technology could actually detect. Such a detection could lend support to the idea that primordial black holes are a primary source of dark matter throughout the universe. (9/17)

SpaceX Demos Military Standard Laser Communication Between Satellites (Source: Next Big Future)
SpaceX satellites built for the US Space Development Agency demonstrated direct satellite to satellite laser communications in space using optical terminals compliant with military standards. U.S. Space Development Agency (SDA) director Derek Tournear said Sept. 4. that two SpaceX-built satellites successfully exchanged data using optical communications terminals. The satellites, part of SDA’s Tranche 0 experimental spacecraft in low Earth orbit. (9/16)

FAA Plans to Fine SpaceX $630,000 for Alleged Launch Violations at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: Space.com)
The FAA plans to fine SpaceX more than $630,000 for allegedly failing to comply with regulations on two launches last year. The first launch cited by the FAA is PSN SATRIA, which lofted an Indonesian communications satellite from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport atop a Falcon 9 rocket on June 18, 2023.

That May, SpaceX "submitted a request to revise its communications plan related to" its license to launch from the site, according to the FAA's statement. There were two proposed revisions — adding a new launch control room at one of the facility's hangars and removing a readiness poll previously taken two hours before liftoff. SpaceX launched PSN SATRIA with those revisions before the FAA had approved the request, according to the agency, which is proposing a $175,000 fine for each of the two alleged infractions.

The second launch in question is that of Jupiter 3, a giant telecom satellite that rode to orbit on a Falcon Heavy rocket on July 28, 2023 from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. For that mission, SpaceX used a newly built rocket propellant farm that the FAA had not yet approved; according to the agency, the company submitted a revision request concerning the propellant farm earlier that same month. The FAA is proposing a $283,009 penalty for this alleged violation, bringing the fine total for the two missions to $633,009. (9/17)

499 Million Years Ago, Earth Potentially Had A Ring System That Impacted Its Climate (Source: IFL Science)
New research challenges what we know of our planet’s ancient past, suggesting that a ring formed around the Earth around 466 million years ago. Not only could this hypothesis explain an unusually high period of impacts captured in the geological record, but it may have also influenced the planet’s climate. (9/17)

Lessons from Amazon and FedEx Can Inform Complex Satellite and Spacecraft Management in Orbit (Source: Space.com)
Space mission designers plan their routes in order to deliver their payloads to the Moon or Mars, or orbit efficiently within a set of cost, timeline and capacity constraints. But when they need to coordinate multiple space vehicles working together, route planning can get complicated. Logistics companies on the ground solve similar problems every day and transport goods and commodities across the globe. So, researchers can study how these companies manage their logistics to help space companies and agencies figure out how to successfully plan their mission operations. (9/17)

Innovative Instrument Reveals Hidden Features Deep Inside the Van Allen Radiation Belts (Source: NASA)
A new instrument is using advanced detection techniques and leveraging an orbit with specific characteristics to increase our understanding of the Van Allen belts—regions surrounding Earth that contain energetic particles that can endanger both robotic and human space missions. Recently, the instrument provided a unique view of changes to this region that were brought on by an intense magnetic storm in May 2024. (9/17)

Space Perspective Sends Balloon and Capsule up 100K Feet During Gulf of Mexico Test Flight (Source: Florida Today)
Space Perspective, the Titusville-based company building hydrogen-balloon-powered capsules to lift tourists to the brink of space, just completed an uncrewed flight test from the deck of a customized ship off the St. Petersburg coast. The company's Spaceship Neptune pressurized capsule took flight Sunday from the deck of 294-foot-long MS Voyager in the Gulf of Mexico, embarking on a six-hour journey to about 100,000 feet above the Earth's surface before descending for a splashdown. (9/16)

Why Is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? (Source: Scientific American)
NASA is preparing to send people back to the moon on the Artemis II flight, scheduled to lift off in the fall of 2025. Why has it been so difficult? This new mission is similar to the Apollo 8 flight of 1968, when three people circled the moon without landing and then traveled back to Earth. Artemis II will send four astronauts on a 10-day trip around the moon on the first crewed test of NASA’s new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion space capsule. Although the U.S. has had decades to get better at such journeys, the upcoming trip resembles its mid-century cousin in that it will be far from easy.

The Artemis program, barely off the ground, has already seen long delays, and the program faces significant problems, laid out in a recent audit from NASA’s office of the inspector general. First, it will have devoured $93 billion by 2025, billions more than anticipated. Second, the Artemis I adventure revealed “critical issues that need to be addressed before placing crew on the Artemis II mission,” according to the audit.

Problems identified after the Artemis I mission “pose significant risks to the safety of the crew,” according to the report. And they came on top of other hardware, data and communications challenges. Furthermore, the inspector general found that the initial launch caused unforeseen damage to the system, resulting in repairs to the tune of more than $26 million, a much heftier bill than the team had budgeted for. That’s a lot of hitches and a lot of money—especially for a mission that won’t accomplish many firsts we didn’t achieve back in the 1960s. (9/17)

France Kicks Off Space Surveillance Program for LEO (Source: Space News)
The French Defense Innovation Agency and armament agency DGA unveiled a low-Earth orbit space surveillance program. French startup U-space will work with multinational missile supplier MBDA to develop a pair of satellites to demonstrate spacecraft detection, characterization and targeting. The program, known as Toutatis, includes a 12-unit “Spotter” cubesat and a smaller target cubesat. (9/17)

Leanspace Secures €10.5 Million French Investment to Champion Next-Gen Satellite Constellation Operations (Source: Space News)
Leanspace, a leading provider of ground segment solutions, has won the France 2030 “UMBRELLA” Project, valued at €10.5 million, along with partners CySec and Constellation Technologies & Operations (CTO). This significant investment, backed by the French government, positions Leanspace as critical infrastructure to manage large-scale, dynamic, and highly secure satellite constellations, boosting France’s role as a major supplier of space technology. (9/17)

SpaceX to FCC: Loosen Rules or Cellular Starlink Tech Risks Becoming Text-Only (Source: PC Magazine)
SpaceX is warning that its cellular Starlink system won't be able to provide real-time calling to consumers unless the FCC loosens rules on satellite radio emissions. "This out-of-band emission restriction will be most detrimental for real-time communications such as voice and video, rendering such communications unreliable both in critical and in common circumstances, increasing risk in emergency situations,” SpaceX told the FCC on Friday.

The company made the statement when AT&T and Verizon — two companies backing a competing satellite provider— have been urging the US regulator to reject SpaceX’s petitions to operate its cellular Starlink tech beyond the normal radio frequency limits. Although SpaceX’s technology promises to help users receive a signal in cellular dead zones, a key question is whether the Starlink satellites risk generating radio interference. (9/16)

A $5 Billion NASA Mission Looked Doomed. Could Engineers Save It? (Source: New York Times)
People at NASA headquarters take deep breaths when the words “First Story” appear in their email. Late this spring, Curt Niebur, the lead scientist for flight programs, received such a message. “You open that email right away,” Dr. Niebur said. “You read it, and then you reply, ‘Thank you for sharing,’ and then you bury your face in a pillow and you howl in terror.”

The matter prompting Dr. Niebur’s apprehension involved Europa Clipper, one of NASA’s most scientifically important missions. The agency’s science division created the “First Story” process to encourage science project staff members to communicate potentially bad news without fear of overreaction by leadership. This news seemed exceptionally bad. If what Dr. Niebur was reading was true, Europa Clipper was cooked. Click here. (9/17)

Space Force Seeking Commercial Maneuverable GEO-based Systems (Source: Aviation Week)
The Space Force’s Commercial Space Office wants commercial options for maneuverable satellites that can operate in geostationary orbit (GEO). The service plans to award an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract for such systems within the next year, Col. Richard Kniseley, senior materiel leader at the Commercial Space Office, said Sep. 16. The effort takes inspiration from the Office’s ongoing contract to provide satellite communications services in a proliferated low-Earth-orbit constellation. (9/16)

USSF Intel Boss: China Now Has 1,000 Satellites on Orbit (Source: Air and Space Forces)
The People’s Republic of China recently launched its 1,000th satellite into orbit, said Maj. Gen. Gregory J. Gagnon, the Space Force’s chief intelligence officer on Sep. 16.  Gagnon said China had put about 200 satellites in orbit in the past year. “Probably three weeks ago, the PRC surpassed 1,000 satellites in outer space,” he said. “And if you went back 10 years, in 2014, they only put 24 satellites up that year. So you can see the rate of change is rapidly progressing.” (9/16)

Space Force Missile Tracking Constellation Faces ‘Critical’ Demo (Source: National Defense)
The first tranche of the Space Development Agency’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture is performing well in orbit, but the crucial capability of getting satellites built by different vendors to talk to one another has yet to be demonstrated, the organization’s director said Sept. 16.

The Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture is a constellation of proliferated low-Earth orbit satellites designed to provide missile warning and tracking of advanced weapons such as hypersonic missiles. The constellation’s initial set of demonstration satellites, known as Tranche 0, is already in orbit, with the first group of operational systems, known as Tranche 1, set to be launched in 2025. (9/16)

Texas Space Commission Offering $150M in its First-Ever Grants for Space-Related Projects (Source: San Antonio Express-News)
The newly created Texas Space Commission is looking for applicants for its first-ever grants from the $150 million Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund. The call for applications is one of the first tangible actions of the agency created for the purpose of expanding the state’s space business. Government entities, higher-learning institutions, businesses and nonprofits can apply for funds to use on projects tied to new spaceflight technologies, space-related research or workforce training, curation of materials involved in space exploration or spaceport development. (9/16)

Return to Key West? Solving the DoD Spacepower Roles and Missions Debate (Source: Breaking Defense)
A debate is ongoing regarding whether the Army should have its own space forces or whether all space forces should reside within the US Space Force. Emotions run high when military services fight over roles and missions, but it’s important to remember that these fights are part of a longstanding clash between services over capabilities. The good news is that there is a historical solution we can draw from in order to resolve the question which service should control what spacepower functions and capabilities: A new Key West agreement.

In the late 1940s, then-Secretary of Defense James Forrestal directed that the Joint Chiefs meet in Key West, Florida, to work out the issues between the Navy, Army, and Air Force, or else, as he warned, “I shall have to make my own decisions.” This conference was necessary because the National Security Act of 1947, which had recently become law, created a separate Air Force pulled from the Army — but did not fully sort out whether the Navy’s air arm should be moved over as well.

The Key West conference decided on keeping a naval air arm for fleet-related matters and maritime campaigns, and that the Air Force would lead most every other major airpower function, such as airlift and strategic bombardment. This arrangement, as imperfect as some may find it, has remained for the last seven decades. (9/16)

EU Report Advocates for Scrapping ESA Geo-Return Policy (Source: European Spaceflight)
In a report commissioned by the European Union, former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi called for ESA to scrap its geographical return policy to ensure the continent’s space industry remains competitive in the global market. Published on 9 September, Draghi’s The Future of European Competitiveness report offers in-depth analysis and recommendations on the future of key European industries, including space.

It notes that while sales to European public entities have seen growth, the space industry’s commercial and export sales have suffered a notable downturn. The report states that the industry’s combined sales have decreased from €8.6 billion in 2021 to €8.3 billion in 2022. In a historical context, Europe’s 2022 results represent a figure not seen since 2009 and have been on a steady decline since 2017. According to the report, the primary source of the losses in revenue comes from launcher systems and satellite application systems.

A significant factor identified in the report limiting the potential future competitiveness of the European space industry is financing. It highlights insufficient investment in research and development and limited access to public and private funding. The report provides a set of ten recommendations split into short, medium, and long-term timeframes. In the short term, it recommends doing away with ESA’s geographical return policy, establishing a European single market for space with a common legislative framework, improving access to funding for startups and small to medium enterprises, creating targeted European preference rules, and defining an EU policy framework for launchers to ensure autonomous access to space. (9/14)