December 31, 2024

NASA’s Artemis Program Needs a New Public Relations Angle (Source: Space News)
Why are we going to the moon in the first place? And why does this need to be a race? These are questions that we are once again facing as NASA’s Artemis program lurches forward and our return to the moon is increasingly framed as a new space race against China. But the societal elements that existed in the 1960s, ones that created the Space Race that pitted the U.S. against the Soviet Union, simply don’t exist today.

The goal to send humankind back to the moon’s surface cannot and should not be about a race to the finish. Instead, it must be centered on the technology that will get us there, the scientific discoveries that await us and the economic benefits that will follow. And it’s NASA’s job to convince Americans, who are currently skeptical of Artemis, of these benefits.

The problems of today are weighty, but the national context that Artemis finds itself in just isn’t the same as that of Project Apollo. And that is okay. This trip back to the moon and hopefully beyond shouldn’t be a public relations campaign for U.S. prominence. It should be a roadmap for humanitarian progress in terms of technology, and perhaps even international collaboration, as we journey deeper into the stars. (12/30)

Mars’ Small Mass Still Puzzles Planetary Scientists (Source: Forbes)
Mars remains a true puzzle, but not for the reasons most people would think. Sure, there's debate over whether it ever had surface water, oceans and life. But Mars’ small mass relative to earth and Venus have been a major conundrum that has plagued planetary scientists for decades. Because the red planet’s mass is roughly only a tenth that of earth, it prompted Carnegie Institution planetary scientist George Wetherill to dub it the ‘small Mars’ problem.

There have been several hypotheses to try and explain why Mars ended up so much smaller than earth and Venus. But when hard pressed, few planetary scientists are willing to go to the mat for any of them. If there is enough material in the disk to grow something the size of earth and Venus, it’s not clear why there also wasn’t the same amount of material near Mars so that it might grow to be the same size, Matthew Clement said. (12/30)

Musk’s Political Influence Wears Down Global Resistance to Starlink (Source: Bloomberg)
Elon Musk left South Africa aged 18 to seek his fortune in North America. Thirty-five years and $468 billion in net-worth later, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has come knocking for investments from Musk’s array of companies. The two share a country of birth, but that’s not all. Musk has crossed into the political sphere as a leading adviser to President-elect Donald Trump, and he wants something from Ramaphosa: dilution of a local Black ownership requirement for his Starlink satellite network. Musk's growing US political influence is causing global resistance to his Starlink satellite network to crumble. (12/29)

What Spaceflight Owes to Jimmy Carter: The President's Little-Known NASA Legacy (Source: NBC News)
The year was 1977 and then-President Jimmy Carter had a problem with NASA. In a diary entry from that June, Carter, who died Sunday at age 100, made clear his displeasure with the agency, which was in the midst of building the space shuttle but had fallen years behind schedule. “We continued our budget meetings. It’s obvious that the space shuttle is just a contrivance to keep NASA alive, and that no real need for the space shuttle was determined before the massive construction program was initiated,” Carter wrote.

Carter is hardly remembered as a champion of NASA. Unlike Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, he has no NASA center bearing his name, and his time in office wasn’t characterized by grand visions for astronomy or human spaceflight. Yet, it was Carter who ultimately saved NASA’s space shuttle program — giving the country perhaps its most iconic space vehicle. And it is Carter’s words that have been journeying aboard the Voyager probes for more than 45 years, carrying a message of peace and hope deep into the cosmos.

“In 1977, ‘78 and ‘79, NASA just wasn’t in a good place in terms of public opinion.” However, Carter rescued the shuttle by giving NASA the resources needed to see the project through to its inaugural launch in 1981. The president earmarked nearly $200 million in additional funds in 1979 and an extra $300 million the following fiscal year. At a time when inflation was sky-high and there was enormous pressure to tighten government spending, only the Defense Department and NASA saw their budgets increase in those years. (12/30)

Satellite Manufacturer for Chinese Megaconstellation Secures $137 Million (Source: Space News)
A satellite manufacturer for China’s Thousand Sails megaconstellation has raised over 1 billion yuan in Series A+ funding. Shanghai Gesi Aerospace Technology, also known as Genesat, announced the more than 1 billion yuan (approximately $137 million) funding round Dec. 30. The main investors include China’s National Manufacturing Transformation and Upgrading Fund, China Development Bank Science and Technology Innovation, Guosheng Capital, SIMIC Capital and Shanghai FTZ Fund. (12/30)

Australia’s Cosmic Journey: From The 1969 Moon Landing To A New Space Frontier (Source: Forbes)
In 1969, Australia etched its name into the history of space exploration. As the world watched Neil Armstrong take humanity’s first steps on the Moon, the Parkes Radio Telescope in New South Wales ensured those iconic moments were transmitted to millions around the globe. This collaboration showcased Australia’s scientific ingenuity and established its enduring connection to the cosmos.

In the decades since, Australia has emerged as a bold and innovative player in the global space community. From launching its first satellite in 1967 to founding the Australian Space Agency (ASA) in 2018, the nation has transformed its space aspirations into a thriving ecosystem. Today, Australia is at the forefront of satellite technology, advanced research, and ambitious partnerships, blending its unique geographical advantages with an entrepreneurial spirit to lead humanity’s exploration of the stars. (12/30)

The Remote Kazakh Steppe That Became a Gateway to Space (Source: CNN)
Space travel’s documentarians have long been preoccupied by departures — launchpads engulfed in billowing smoke and flames shooting from ascendant rocket boosters. But after seeing footage of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft crash down on the remote Kazakh Steppe 10 years ago, photographer Andrew McConnell became more enraptured by astronauts’ unceremonious return to Earth. Click here. (12/30)

NASA’s Micro-Mission Lunar Trailblazer Will Make Macro-Measurements of the Lunar Surface in 2025 (Source: The Conversation)
Before Artemis II, NASA will send two missions to scout the surface of the lunar south pole for resources that could sustain human space travel and enable new scientific discoveries. Planetary geologists like me are interested in data from Lunar Trailblazer, one of these two scouting missions. The data from this mission will help us understand how water forms and behaves on rocky planets and moons.

PRIME-1, or the Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment, will be mounted on a lunar lander. It’s scheduled for launch in January 2025. Aboard the lander are two instruments: The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrain, TRIDENT, and the Mass Spectrometer for Observing Lunar Operations, MSOLO. TRIDENT will dig down up to 3 feet (1 meter) and extract samples of lunar soil, and MSOLO will evaluate the soil’s chemical composition and water content. Joining the lunar mining experiment is Lunar Trailblazer, a satellite launching on the same Falcon 9 rocket. (12/29)

Priceless Moon Rock Gifted to Ireland by NASA Destroyed in Observatory Fire (Source: Irish Independent)
Irish officials were left red-faced after it emerged a priceless piece of moon rock donated by the US and Nasa had lain in a government basement for more than three years before it was later destroyed in an accidental fire at the Dunsink Observatory.

Confidential government documents revealed the plight of the moon rock was highlighted to embarrassed Irish officials only when Washington offered to donate a second piece of lunar rock to Ireland in 1973 following another successful Apollo mission – and government officials were urgently trying to clarify what had happened to the first piece of moon rock. (12/29)

Space Force Sets Partner Integration Strategy (Source: ExecutiveGov)
The US Space Force is creating a strategy to integrate international allies and partners in early concept development and planning of programs. Air Marshal Paul Godfrey is leading the effort, focusing on seamless collaboration and addressing data-sharing challenges. (12/30)

Space Coast Marks 93rd Rocket Launch with SpaceX New Year's Eve Liftoff (Source: Florida Today)
A record-setting year for rocket launches wrapped up on New Year's Eve with the Space Coast's 93rd and final liftoff of 2024, shattering the short-lived annual mark. SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket in post-midnight darkness at 12:39 a.m. EST Tuesday from LC-39A at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, lifting 21 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit.

The final 2024 tally of 93 orbital launches represents a 29% leap over the previous yearly record of 72, which was just established in 2023. And officials expect the Cape's cadence to continue speeding up. "Space Florida estimates the state must prepare to support transporting 5,000 metric tons of cargo annually to space by 2035. This scale equates to 219 Falcon 9 launches, 40 Starship launches, 194 ULA Vulcan launches, or 111 New Glenn launches — a testament to the immense growth trajectory of the industry," the agency said. (12/31)

Brevard's Haridopolos to Serve on House Science/Space Committee (Source: Florida Today)
The Space Coast's incoming congressman, Mike Haridopolos, has been appointed to serve on two high-profile committees — the House Financial Services Committee and the House Science, Space and Technology Committee. Haridopolos, a Republican from Indian Harbour Beach, will take office on Jan. 3, succeeding Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, who is retiring after eight two-year terms in the House. (12/30)