November 9, 2024

NASA Astronauts on Readjusting to Life on Earth: ‘It’s Hard to Sit’ (Source: CNN)
Three of the astronauts who were unexpectedly hospitalized after returning from the International Space Station in late October discussed the SpaceX Crew-8 mission during a NASA news conference on Friday. The trio revealed some anecdotes about the trials of readjusting to life on Earth after spending more than 230 days in space.

The astronauts remained tight-lipped about the nature of the medical issue that had left an as-yet-undisclosed crew member hospitalized overnight. But they did discuss some of the symptoms they have experienced during the readjustment to life under the effects of gravity. “I’m a first-time flyer, and fascinated by the readaptation,” said NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, who served as mission commander. “The big things you expect — being disoriented, being dizzy. But the little things like just sitting in a hard chair … My backside has not really sat in a hard thing for (235) days.” (11/8)

Blue Origin Prepares for Milestone Test for New Rocket (Source: WFTV)
WFTV looks at preparations now underway for the upcoming New Glenn launch by Blue Origin at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. Click here. (11/9)

ESA Breaks its Silence on Themis (Source: Ars Technica)
The European Space Agency has provided a rare update on the progress of its Themis reusable booster demonstrator project, European Spaceflight reports. ESA is developing the Themis test vehicle for atmospheric flights to fine-tune technologies for a future European reusable rocket capable of vertical takeoffs and vertical landings. Themis started out as a project led by CNES, the French space agency, in 2018. ESA member states signed up to help fund the project in 2019, and the agency awarded ArianeGroup a contract to move forward with Themis in 2020. At the time, the first low-altitude hop test was expected to take place in 2022.

Some slow progress ... Now, the first low-altitude hop is scheduled for 2025 from Esrange Space Centre in Sweden, a three-year delay. This week, ESA said engineers have completed testing of the Themis vehicle's main systems, and assembly of the demonstrator is underway in France. A single methane-fueled Prometheus engine, also developed by ArianeGroup, has been installed on the rocket.

Teams are currently adding avionics, computers, electrical systems, and cable harnesses. Themis' stainless steel propellant tanks have been manufactured, tested, and cleaned and are now ready to be installed on the Themis demonstrator. Then, the rocket will travel by road from France to the test site in Sweden for its initial low-altitude hops. After those flights are complete, officials plan to add two more Prometheus engines to the rocket and ship it to French Guiana for high-altitude test flights. (11/8)

SpaceX Decommissions Tripod Test Stand at McGregor TX (Source: Ars Technica)
The large three-legged vertical test stand at SpaceX's engine test site in McGregor, Texas, is being decommissioned, NASA Spaceflight reports. Cranes have started removing propellant tanks from the test stand, nicknamed the tripod, towering above the Central Texas prairie. McGregor is home to SpaceX's propulsion test team and has 16 test cells to support firings of Merlin, Raptor, and Draco engines multiple times per day for the Falcon 9 rocket, Starship, and Dragon spacecraft.

Some history … The tripod might have been one of SpaceX's most important assets in the company's early years. It was built by Beal Aerospace for liquid-fueled rocket engine tests in the late 1990s. Beal Aerospace folded, and SpaceX took over the site in 2003. (11/8)

SpaceX Reports 270K+ Mobile Phones Connected to Starlink Cellular (Source: Teslarati)
SpaceX recently reported that 270,000 mobile phones connected to Starlink Direct-to-Cellular on the first day service was available in states impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. SpaceX recently replied to ISED (Innovation, Science, and Economic Development) Canada’s consultation inquiry. Canada is researching the potential benefits or drawbacks of supplemental mobile coverage by satellite (SMCS). SpaceX replied to Canada ISED’s inquiries about SMCS by providing evidence from Starlink Direct-to-Cellular’s (aka Starlink Cellular) temporary emergency authorization during Hurricanes Helene and Milton. (11/6)

SpaceX Announces Starship Flight 6 Launch and Landing Catch Date, FAA Approval Obtained (Source: Tesla Oracle)
SpaceX has announced the sixth Starship launch and landing catch test (IFT-6)date. According to Elon Musk’s spaceflight company, Starship Flight 6 test will commence on Monday 18th November with backup launch windows. Interestingly, this time, SpaceX did not mention the delays in regulatory approval by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). In our last Starship update, we reported that the leaked Elon Musk SpaceX meeting audio suggest that Flight 6 is not FAA license constrained.

Since the license is already granted to conduct the Starship IFT-6 — SpaceX announced the date for the launch and landing test. SpaceX announced the date on X and with a blog post on its official website explaining the objectives and possible outcomes of the Starship Flight 6 test. (11/7)

SpaceX Dragon Fires Thrusters to Boost ISS Orbit for the 1st Time (Source: Space.com)
The ISS is going a just tiny bit faster today, after receiving an orbital boost from SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft. SpaceX's 31st commercial resupply mission lifted off Nov. 4 and docked to the station's forward-facing port the next day. Today (Nov. 8), for the first time, Dragon performed an orbit-raising maneuver to stabilize the ISS's trajectory in low-Earth orbit. (11/8)

Mysterious 'Interstellar Tunnel' Found in Our Local Pocket of Space (Source: Science Alert)
The Solar System's little pocket of the Milky Way is, interestingly enough, exactly that. Our star resides in an unusually hot, low-density compartment in the galaxy's skirts, known as the Local Hot Bubble (LHB). Why it's not called the Local Hot Pocket is anyone's guess; but, because it's an anomaly, scientists want to know why the region exists.

Now a team of astronomers has mapped the bubble, revealing not just a strange asymmetry in the pocket's shape and temperature gradient, but the presence of a mysterious tunnel pointing towards the constellation Centaurus. The new data about the shape and heat of the bubble supports a previous interpretation that the LHB was excavated by exploding supernovae that expanded and heated the structure, while the tunnel suggests that it may be connected to another low-density bubble nearby. (11/8)

Billionaires Musk and Bezos Celebrate Trump Victory with Eyes on SpaceX, Blue Origin’s Future (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Donald Trump’s presidential win on Tuesday could mean an easier path forward for the dreams of billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos as they ramp up their space race with SpaceX and Blue Origin. Musk has been in Trump’s corner for months, and hinted at how his second presidency will benefit the likes of commercial space interests, pinning the statement, “America is a nation of builders Soon, you will be free to build,” to his account on X.

Bezos, whose Blue Origin rocket company is aiming for the first launch of its New Glenn rocket potentially before the end of the month, also chimed in his approval of Trump’s victory. “Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has bigger opportunities. Wishing @realDonaldTrump all success in leading and uniting the America we all love,” he said.

While the Space Launch System rocket did its job, the cost to develop it from prime contractor Boeing, has had its constant critics, with NASA’s Office of the Inspector General in 2023 raising the specter than NASA should consider using Blue Origin, SpaceX or other commercial providers to achieve what SLS is designed for. It suggested flexible contracts for future SLS acquisitions “that will allow NASA to pivot to other commercial alternatives.” (11/6)