November 4, 2024

$7 Billion Project to Create Australian Military Satellites Axed Amid Defense Spending Review (Source: ABC.net)
A $7 billion program to create an Australian military-grade satellite communications system has been cancelled, with the prime minister insisting the government is busy "prioritizing" all defense purchases. Eighteen months ago, US defense giant Lockheed Martin was selected to deliver a hardened network of three to five satellites to provide high-level protection against cyber and electronic warfare attacks in what would have been Australia's largest-ever defense space contract. (11/3)

UK Intel-Gathering Boosted as Space Command Gets Second Surveillance Satellite (Source: BFBS Forces News)
Armed Forces personnel are to be given access to the latest surveillance data after a deal was signed to launch a new satellite. The Juno satellite will have advanced imagery sensors to capture daytime images of the Earth's surface. It is expected to launch in 2027 and will build on the capabilities of Tyche, UK Space Command's first satellite, which successfully launched in August this year.

Both satellites form part of the MOD's space-based Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance program, which will deliver a constellation of satellites and supporting ground systems by 2031. (11/4)

Would Donald Trump Bring Space Command to Huntsville? What His Presidency Would Mean for Alabama (Source: AL.com)
Alabama can count on one specific benefit if Donald Trump wins Tuesday’s election - moving the headquarters of the Space Command headquarters to Huntsville, Republicans say. Trump supported the Air Force’s decision in January 2021 to pick Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville for the headquarters. But Biden overturned that decision last year and said the headquarters should be in Colorado Springs. Winning the base will mean at least 1,600 new jobs for Alabama and more as the command and its missions grow. (11/3)

Spaceport Approved for Southern Australia (Source: ABC.net)
South Australia's planning minister has granted the final government approval required for a proposed rocket launching complex on the Eyre Peninsula. The Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex has been in the making for the past five years and has drawn significant opposition from environmental groups and some local residents, with a number of protests taking place. Approval from Planning Minister Nick Champion was the final hurdle for the Adelaide-based space launch provider Southern Launch project. The company's chief executive Lloyd Damp said he wanted to be launching rockets out of Whalers Way by the end of next year. (11/3)

Gilmour Space Technologies Given Green Light to Launch Australia's First Commercial Orbital Rocket (Source: ABC.net)
A Queensland space company is set to make history after being given the green light to launch Australia's first commercial orbital rocket. Adam Gilmour, CEO of Gilmour Space Technologies, said he was notified by the Australian Space Agency (ASA) earlier on Monday that the permit to launch their 25-meter rocket from Bowen, a small north Queensland town, into low Earth orbit had been granted.

"I got a call from the head of the regulatory department of the space agency, and then about five minutes later, I got an email from the space agency saying that Minister [Ed] Husic had approved the permit today," Mr Gilmour said. (11/4)

Space Resources Challenge Seeks Innovators for Lunar Technologies (Source: Space Daily)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has launched the latest Space Resources Challenge, inviting participants to help develop technologies that will enable humanity to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon. The competition is open to a wide range of innovators, from students to space technology start-ups, and is organized in collaboration with the Luxembourg Space Agency and the European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC), with Exotopic providing support as a Team Partner.

The challenge aims to advance in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) technologies, enabling the extraction and use of resources directly from the lunar surface. These technologies are crucial to reduce reliance on Earth-supplied resources and foster sustainability in space exploration. Lunar regolith, the Moon's surface soil, can be processed to extract oxygen and metals such as silicon, iron, and aluminum, which could be used for construction. (11/3)

How Space Helps Us Approach Problems Differently (Source; TEDx Talks)
In this talk, Erika Wagner explores how breaking down barriers to space can unlock unprecedented opportunities for innovation and creativity across diverse fields. From pioneering initiatives to collaborations, looking towards her dream of going to space, Erika will share her vision of a future where space is not only a frontier for exploration but also a platform for advancing knowledge, fostering creativity, and driving entrepreneurial success.

Dr. Erika Wagner, serves as Senior Director of Emerging Market Development for Blue Origin. Previously, Dr. Wagner worked with the XPRIZE Foundation as Senior Director of Exploration Prize Development and founding Executive Director of the XPRIZE Lab at MIT. She is a trustee of the Museum of Flight, an honoree of the Space Camp Hall of Fame. Click here. (10/7)

Vega Star System Discovery Forces Us to Rethink Planet Formation (Source: Earth.com)
It appears the Vega disk is phenomenally smooth. The characteristic churning and plowing seen in other stellar disks, usually caused by planets, is absent here. In fact, the Vega disk seems almost as flat as a pancake, showing no evidence of any planets. This challenges our previous understanding and calls for a reassessment of the variety of planetary systems. “Our observations of Vega surprise us at every turn, and force us to rethink our understanding of exoplanetary systems,” said study lead author Kate Su. (11/2)

SpaceX Wants to Test Refueling Starships in Space Early Next Year (Source: Tech Crunch)
SpaceX will attempt to transfer propellant from one orbiting Starship to another as early as next March, a technical milestone that will pave the way for an uncrewed landing demonstration of a Starship on the moon, a NASA official said this week.

Much has been made of Starship’s potential to transform the commercial space industry, but NASA is also hanging its hopes that the vehicle will return humans to the moon under the Artemis program. The space agency awarded the company a $4.05 billion contract for two human-rated Starship vehicles, with the upper stage (also called Starship) landing astronauts on the surface of the moon for the first time since the Apollo era. The crewed landing is currently scheduled for September 2026. (11/1)

SpaceX’s $2.9 Billion NASA Ship To Land Astronauts On Moon Revealed (Source: WCCF Tech)
SpaceX's multi billion dollar Starship Human Landing System (HLS) rocket for NASA's Artemis program to land the first humans on the Moon since the Apollo program will have at least two floors and be capable of carrying a crew of 20 astronauts suggest fresh details on X. While SpaceX has been busy testing the full Starship test in Boca Chica, Texas, the firm has shared little details about the $2.9 billion contract that NASA awarded it in 2021 to build the HLS.

Now, according to an educator who recently visited SpaceX's Texas facilities, Starship HLS' early design mock ups include two floors and space sufficient to support 20 astronauts in a space with a 40 feet high ceiling. The Starship prototype Tom Blackmore viewed during his visit to SpaceX's Boca Chica, Texas facilities, is a subscale variant of the final HLS ship. Since HLS is in the early stages of design and SpaceX has yet to manufacture the ship, the firm is working with NASA and astronauts to fine-tune its design.

According to Blackmore, the prototype he visited had two floors. The first floor is on top of the ship's tanks and has a curved floor. This floor houses the life support equipment for the crew housing on the floor above, and the curve is big enough to be barely noticeable, according to the educator. At the center of the room is a four feet wide ladder that goes up to the second floor of the Starship HLS prototype. (11/2)

NASA Urges Continuity in Space Programs in Transition to New Administration (Source: Space News)
NASA is urging continuity in its human spaceflight plans in the next administration. In a talk last week, NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free said the agency needed "consistency in purpose" in its human spaceflight efforts, currently focused on the Artemis campaign to return humans to the moon, warning that a change in destinations could result in a loss of U.S. leadership.

He did not discuss any specific concerns about changes in Artemis, and both the Harris and Trump campaigns, in formal documents like party platforms, have endorsed a human return to the moon. However, in recent campaign speeches Trump has suggested an accelerated program of human missions to Mars using SpaceX, after Elon Musk said his company could be ready for crewed Starship missions to Mars as soon as the 2028 launch window. Most in industry are highly skeptical of that timeline. (11/4)

Airbus Keeping Options Open for Consolidation (Source: Space News)
The CEO of Airbus said he is keeping his options open about consolidating part or all of his company's space business with other European firms. In an earnings call last week, Guillaume Faury said improving the space business at Airbus Defence and Space "starts with ourselves" through internal changes.

He acknowledged, though, that there is "potential for consolidation in Europe" that could involve merging the entire Airbus space business with another company, like Thales Alenia Space, or only parts of it. Airbus, which took a charge against earnings of nearly $1 billion earlier this year on space programs, said it is still auditing one unnamed space program in the company, a process that should be completed by the end of the year. (11/4)

China's TSS Crew Returns to Earth (Source: Xinhua)
Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth Sunday after six months on the Tiangong space station. The Shenzhou-18 spacecraft landed in Inner Mongolia at 12:24 p.m. Eastern, several hours after undocking from Tiangong. The spacecraft returned Chinese astronauts Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu after 192 days in space. A new crew for Tiangong arrived last week on the Shenzhou-19 mission. (11/4)

Japan Launches Military Satellite (Source: Space News)
Japan launched a military communications satellite early Monday. An H3 rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center at 1:48 a.m. Eastern and deployed the Kirameki 3 satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit nearly a half-hour later. The satellite will provide military communications services. The launch was the fourth for the H3 and the third successful one after a failure on its inaugural flight in 2023. (11/4)

SpaceX Scrubs Florida Starlink Launch for Helium Pressurization Issue (Source: Florida Today)
SpaceX scrubbed a Falcon 9 launch Sunday because of a technical problem. The company called off the launch from Cape Canaveral because of an issue with the helium pressurization system on the rocket's first stage identified about two and a half minutes before the scheduled 4:57 p.m. Eastern liftoff. SpaceX said both the rocket and its payload of Starlink satellites are healthy but did immediately not announce a new launch date but is expected to slip to at least Tuesday. (11/4)

Dragon Capsule Relocated on ISS by Starliner Astronauts (Source: Space.com)
A Crew Dragon spacecraft moved from one docking port to another on the International Space Station Sunday. The Crew-9 Crew Dragon spacecraft undocked from the forward port on the Harmony module at 6:35 a.m. Eastern, docking with the zenith port of the module 50 minutes later. The relocation frees up the forward port for the next cargo Dragon spacecraft, scheduled to launch Monday night and dock with the station Tuesday morning. (11/4)

NEOWISE Science Satellite Reenters (Source: AsteroidWatch)
NASA's NEOWISE spacecraft has reentered. NASA said Saturday that the spacecraft reentered at 8:49 p.m. Eastern Friday, three months after its mission formally ended. NASA launched the spacecraft in 2009 as WISE, for Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and repurposed it in 2013 as NEOWISE, a space telescope to look for near Earth objects. NASA used the experience from NEOWISE to guide the development of a larger mission, NEO Surveyor, that will launch by mid-2028 to continue space-based searchers of potentially hazardous asteroids. (11/4)