A sampling of links to recent space policy, politics, and government (US and international) related space news and resource items that I found of interest (find previous space policy roundups here):
** Episode 11 Russian DA-ASAT Test – Michael Listner
** Rise of the Space Age Millennials with Laura Forczyk – Weekly Space Hangout: April 15, 2020
This week we are please to welcome Laura Forczyk to the Weekly Space Hangout. Laura is the owner of space consulting firm Astralytical specializing in space science, industry, and policy, and offering space career coaching services. In January 2020, her new book Rise of the Space Age Millennials was published in which she explores how millennials working or studying to work in the space sector feel about space: priorities, opinions, goals, and motivations. It also looks at how the generations may differ and how that may effect future space priorities and missions. Laura is a NASA Subject Matter Expert for planetary science missions. She serves on the advisory boards for the Lifeboat Foundation and the Society of Women in Space Exploration. She serves as a mentor for the Brooke Owens Fellowship program. She is the author of Rise of the Space Age Millennials.
A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American rocket from American soil to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley will fly on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, lifting off on a Falcon 9 rocket at 4:32 p.m. EDT on May 27, from Launch Complex 39A in Florida, for an extended stay at the space station for the Demo-2 mission. The specific duration of the mission is to be determined.
As the final flight test for SpaceX, this mission will validate the company’s crew transportation system, including the launch pad, rocket, spacecraft, and operational capabilities. This also will be the first time NASA astronauts will test the spacecraft systems in orbit.
“The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft undergoes final processing at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, in preparation for the Demo-2 launch with NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Crew Dragon will carry Behnken and Hurley atop a Falcon 9 rocket, returning crew launches to the space station from U.S. soil for the first time since the Space Shuttle Program ended in 2011.” Credit: SpaceX
** Virgin Orbit completes final major test before first LauncherOne flight – Cryogenic Captive Carry Test:
Our recent cryogenic (LN2) captive carry flight represented the most realistic rehearsal of our launch system and procedures to date, and we couldn’t be happier with the results. Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart had a few words to share as we ready ourselves for an orbital launch demonstration next.
** Virgin Galactic is holding online STEM sessions regarding various aspects of suborbital spaceflight. This one dealt with how a suborbital spaceplane is designed.
Join this #ScienceWithVirginGalactic Spacechat as we explain how to design a spaceship so that it can successfully travel to space and back.
** More about catching an Electron booster. Tim Dodd, the Everyday Astronaut, interviews Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck: How To Catch A Rocket From Space With A Helicopter (Peter Beck Interview, April 2020)
Rocket Lab has been making some impressive progress on their efforts to recover the booster stage of their Electron Rockets. I caught up with Rocket Lab CEO and Founder, Peter Beck, and got a run down on some of the exciting things they’re working on! Need a rundown on how Rocket Lab will catch a rocket with a parachute and a helicopter, and why it hasn’t been done before? I’ve got you covered! – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIaDW…
Small launch vehicle startup Launcher has signed an agreement with the Stennis Space Center to test engines at the Mississippi facility.
The New York-based company signed a Space Act Agreement with Stennis at the end of March to use the E-1 test stand at the center for tests of its engine, coincidentally named E-2, it is developing for a small launch vehicle.
ANNOUNCEMENT: Launcher has signed a Space Act Agreement with @NASAStennis to locate our full-scale test fire facility at Stennis. The first campaign is expected this summer as part of our @AF_SBIR_STTR contract to test-fire our 22k lbf thrust E-2 engine.https://t.co/jmHxRsta0zpic.twitter.com/Q1SgCTULmN
The type of engines that will be tested at Stennis:
Launcher E-2 and Launcher E-2 Vacuum Edition side by side: Highest performance, low cost 3D printed liquid 🚀 engines for small orbital launch vehicle. https://t.co/DT2i7GhLskpic.twitter.com/0CXPpKcLuY
The largely automated produced products that will be integrated at the new facilities are designed for scalability to meet the growing demand for satellite constellation deployment. “With our new premises, we are increasing the space available to our company for engineering, production and testing to over 15,000 square metres”, says Daniel Metzler, CEO of Isar Aerospace. “In-house production is an important milestone on the way to our launch vehicle’s maiden flight within the next two years”.
Swedish Space Corporation, SSC, and German space tech company Isar Aerospace have signed a long-term contract for testing of a new generation of European rocket engines for minilaunchers at Esrange Space Center in Sweden. The agreement includes a rocket stand for vertical tests and the agreement can be extended to include rocket stage tests with multiple rocket engines.
The company team builds upon extensive experience in rocket engine and sounding rocket design and testing from Technical University Munich.
Now hosted at ESA Business Incubation Centre (BIC) Bavaria, Isar Aerospace is currently are working on developing high-performance technologies powered by a combination of hydrocarbon mixtures and liquid oxygen which could make conventional, toxic rocket fuels obsolete.
** Firefly cites progress towards first launch of the Alpha rocket this summer:
During these challenging times, Firefly continues to make substantial daily progress on the path to Alpha first flight this summer. Qualification testing of the world’s simplest high-performance rocket engine (“Reaver”) is progressing well. Crank it up! pic.twitter.com/bY5IUQuyU7
** The economics of reusable rocket vehicles continues to be disputed by management of companies looking for excuses not to pay for the development of their own reusable rockets.
** Northrop Grumman MEV-1 module provides station-keeping propulsion for an Intelsat satellite in geostationary orbit. The satellite is out of propellants for its own propulsion system so the MEV-1 attached itself to the satellites nozzle and will control it for about 5 years. Today the satellite was officially returned to full operation. Intelsat 901 Satellite Returns to Service Using Northrop Grumman’s Mission Extension Vehicle | Northrop Grumman
Intelsat (NYSE: I) today announced that Intelsat 901 has returned to service following the successful docking with the first Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV-1) from Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SpaceLogistics LLC, on February 25 – the first time that two commercial spacecraft docked in geostationary orbit.
Since the February rendezvous, MEV-1 has assumed navigation of the combined spacecraft stack reducing its inclination by 1.6° and relocating IS-901 to its new orbital location. Intelsat then transitioned roughly 30 of its commercial and government customers to the satellite on April 2. The transition of service took approximately six hours. IS-901 is now operating at the 332.5°E orbital slot and providing full service to Intelsat customers.
Intelsat views life-extension services, like MEV technology, as a cost-effective and efficient way to minimize service disruptions, enhance the overall flexibility of its satellite fleet and better support the evolving needs of its customers.
Intelsat’s IS-901 satellite returned to service this morning after Northrop Grumman’s MEV-1 life extension spacecraft successfully docked and relocated the satellite to its new orbit. $NOC$I
Photos from when MEV-1 approached IS-901, with Earth visible in the background: pic.twitter.com/TBuvzT6S1X
Capsule Waverider Idea Advanced – Leonard David – “This new waverider concept is part space capsule, part hypersonic glider that’s capable of surviving a fiery return from outer space before gliding like a surfer on its own shock wave.“
The first stage rocket booster supporting this mission previously supported Crew Dragon’s first flight to the @space_station, launch of the RADARSAT Constellation Mission, and the fourth Starlink mission pic.twitter.com/4IMk3kTTaG
SpaceX test-fired a Falcon 9 rocket with a previously-flown first stage booster Friday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, keeping pace for a launch scheduled next Thursday, April 23, with the next batch of 60 Starlink broadband Internet satellites. https://t.co/o6hKSpZgOOpic.twitter.com/5xOoXSK8zm
****** SpaceX has made rapid progress towards assembly of the SN4 Starship prototype. The stacking of all but the nosecone has been completed. Dates for closing the road that passes near the launch pad have been filed. If the vehicle survives the tank pressure tests, low altitude flights will follow.
Segments for the SN5 vehicle have been spotted in construction as well.
The following videos mark the day-by-day developments in the SN4 and SN5 construction:
****** April 13 – SpaceX Boca Chica – Preparing Launch Site for Starship SN4 – NASASpaceflight – YouTube
Preparations to ready SpaceX’s Boca Chica launch pad for the arrival of Starship SN4 are continuing as the engine section prepares for stacking. Video and Photos via Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer).
****** April 14 – SpaceX Boca Chica – Delivery Day in prep for Starship SN4 – NASASpaceflight – YouTube
Delivery Day at SpaceX Boca Chica, a very windy day too, possibly a reason there wasn’t the completion of Starship SN4 stacking today, but the stage is being set. Video and Photos via Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer).
****** April 15 – SpaceX Boca Chica – Starship SN4 Engine Section in the VAB for Stacking – NASASpaceflight – YouTube
Starship SN4 Aft and Engine Section lifted into the VAB/Windbreak for final stacking operations at SpaceX Boca Chica. Video and Photos via Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer).
Bonus video concentrating on the early stages of Starship SN5’s production, including three bulkheads and barrel sections in preparation at SpaceX Boca Chica. Video and Photos via Mary (@BocaChicaGal).
Starship SN4 has been stacked inside the SpaceX Boca Chica VAB/Windbreak, while Starship SN5’s top bulkhead stepped outside to watch. Video and Photos via Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer).
**** Video reports on Starship:
[ Update: New Marcus House report:
]
****** Marcus House: SpaceX Starship SN4 News, Goodbye Cargo Dragon 1 and Rocket Lab Mid-Air Recovery Demo
Today we cover SpaceX Starship SN4 News. We say goodbye to Cargo Dragon 1 and check out Rocket Lab Mid-Air Recovery Demo. After last week’s loss of the SN3 Starship we’ve been super surprised to see the SN4 come together very rapidly with many of the ship segments s needed for the new build. They really are pumping out these Starship prototypes now faster than what I had even expected. Along with that, we say goodbye to the very last Dragon 1 capsule with its return from the CRS-20 mission. We witnessed some amazing new unseen footage from SpaceX released fresh this week. Just incredible how close this landing was from 2017. Then on top of all that Rocketlab pulls out all the stops with this amazing mid-air recovery demonstration with an Electron test tank and two sleek-looking helicopters capturing it right out of the air.
****** mic of orion: SpaceX Starship SN 4 Progressing Fast
Remarkable progress on Starship SN-4, dayus after accident with Starship SNM-3 is something that demands respect. Starshi SN-04 isn’t even in testingh phase work on Starship SN-5 has already started with pre-fabricated rings, sections of the future fuel tanks and even engines will be ready
A sampling of recent articles, press releases, etc. related to student and amateur CubeSat / SmallSat projects and programs (find previous smallsat roundups here):
** A review of the Virginia Cubesat Constellation program in which a consortium of universities in the state built three cubesats: Virginia Cubesat Constellation, Mike McPherson, KQ9P
Three Virginia CubeSat Constellation spacecraft deployed from the ISS on July 9,2019.Three student members of the Virginia CubeSat Consortium show off the three program’s 3 CubeSats
Unfortunately, communications were only established with one of the three spacecraft. In the above video, McPherson discusses the communications problems.
** Staten Longo – I Am NASA Virginia Space Grant – Participation in the Virginia CubeSat program led to a career in aerospace
Staten Longo, graduate of the University of Virginia, participated in the Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars (VASTS) program as a high school student and then served as a program manager for the Virginia Cubesat Constellation project. This ‘I am NASA Space Grant’ video
New TQSL Version Provides Better LoTW Rover Support
AMSAT-EA Registering SanoSat-1 for AMSAT Nepal
ESA and LibreSpace Report: SDR’s for Small Satellites
Brazil Holds 430 and 1240 MHz Hearing
Upcoming Satellite Operations
ARISS News
Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
Satellite Shorts from All Over
General CubeSat/SmallSat info:
Exolaunch signs agreement with SpaceX for launch of small satellites on a Falcon 9 rideshare mission – Exolaunch – “Exolaunch, a German rideshare launch and deployment solutions provider, signed a Launch Services Agreement with SpaceX to launch small satellites on a Falcon 9 as part of SpaceX’s SmallSat Rideshare Program. Under the launch contract, Exolaunch accommodates multiple microsatellites and cubesats on the first Falcon 9 smallsat-dedicated rideshare mission to sun-synchronous orbit, targeted for launch in December 2020.
Exolaunch will provide comprehensive rideshare mission management, deployment and integration services for its customers participating in this launch. Core customers who signed up for this launch through Exolaunch’s services will be announced in the coming weeks.”
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson celebrate Hubble’s 30th birthday with Shuttle astronaut Kathy Sullivan, whose mission deployed the space telescope, and hear from NASA engineer Jerry Woodfill about his warning alarm system for Apollo 13, celebrating its 50th lucky escape anniversary. The Space Boffins also meet Craig Clark, founder of AAC Clyde Space, and are shown around the cubesat pioneer’s HQ in Glasgow. All this with bonus space-themed added music….
Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:
** Look Back at Earth with NASA Astronaut Andrew Morgan
On Friday, April 6, 2020, NASA Astronaut Andrew Morgan began his day by taking a peaceful look back at our planet, out of the International Space Station’s cupola. The cupola serves as a place for astronauts to gaze back at Earth, and take photographs as a part of the Crew Earth Observations investigation. Images like the ones Morgan is taking here, can help us monitor how our planet is changing over time, and inform important scientific research. https://go.nasa.gov/2Vk48xC
** Expedition 62 Inflight Interview with the State of Maine – April 13, 2020
Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 62 Flight Engineers Jessica Meir and Chris Cassidy of NASA, both natives of Maine, answered questions submitted by students from schools in Maine during an in-flight educational event April 13. Meir is completing a six-and-a-half month mission on the orbital outpost, heading for a landing in Kazakhstan aboard a Soyuz spacecraft April 17. Cassidy arrived on the station April 9 to begin a six-and-a-half month sojourn.
** Expedition 62 to 63 Change of Command Ceremony – April 15, 2020
Expedition 62 Crew Hands over Space Station to Expedition 63 Command of the International Space Station was passed from Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka of Roscosmos to Chris Cassidy of NASA during a ceremony on the orbital outpost on April 15. Skripochka is returning to Earth April 17 with Expedition 62 crewmates Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir in the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft for a landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan. Skripochka and Meir will have completed 205 days in space, while Morgan will have spent 272 in orbit. Cassidy remains on the station as commander of Expedition 63 with crewmates Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner of Roscosmos.
** Expedition 62 Landing – April 17, 2020
International Space Station’s Expedition 62 Crew Lands Safely in Kazakhstan Expedition 62 Commander Oleg Skripochka of Roscosmos and Flight Engineers Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan of NASA landed safely on Earth near the town of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, April 17 after bidding farewell to their colleagues on the complex and undocking their Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft from the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station. Skripochka and Meir completed 205 days in space, and Morgan wrapped up a 272-day mission on the orbital outpost.
Observations made with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) have revealed for the first time that a star orbiting the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way moves just as predicted by Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Its orbit is shaped like a rosette and not like an ellipse as predicted by Newton’s theory of gravity. This effect, known as Schwarzschild precession, had never before been measured for a star around a supermassive black hole. This artist’s impression illustrates the precession of the star’s orbit, with the effect exaggerated for easier visualisation.
Observations made with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) have revealed for the first time that a star orbiting the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way moves just as predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity. Its orbit is shaped like a rosette and not like an ellipse as predicted by Newton’s theory of gravity. This long-sought-after result was made possible by increasingly precise measurements over nearly 30 years, which have enabled scientists to unlock the mysteries of the behemoth lurking at the heart of our galaxy.
“Einstein’s General Relativity predicts that bound orbits of one object around another are not closed, as in Newtonian Gravity, but precess forwards in the plane of motion. This famous effect — first seen in the orbit of the planet Mercury around the Sun — was the first evidence in favour of General Relativity. One hundred years later we have now detected the same effect in the motion of a star orbiting the compact radio source Sagittarius A* at the centre of the Milky Way. This observational breakthrough strengthens the evidence that Sagittarius A* must be a supermassive black hole of 4 million times the mass of the Sun,”
says Reinhard Genzel, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE) in Garching, Germany and the architect of the 30-year-long programme that led to this result.
Located 26 000 light-years from the Sun, Sagittarius A* and the dense cluster of stars around it provide a unique laboratory for testing physics in an otherwise unexplored and extreme regime of gravity. One of these stars, S2, sweeps in towards the supermassive black hole to a closest distance less than 20 billion kilometres (one hundred and twenty times the distance between the Sun and Earth), making it one of the closest stars ever found in orbit around the massive giant. At its closest approach to the black hole, S2 is hurtling through space at almost three percent of the speed of light, completing an orbit once every 16 years.
“After following the star in its orbit for over two and a half decades, our exquisite measurements robustly detect S2’s Schwarzschild precession in its path around Sagittarius A*,”
says Stefan Gillessen of the MPE, who led the analysis of the measurements published today in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.
Most stars and planets have a non-circular orbit and therefore move closer to and further away from the object they are rotating around. S2’s orbit precesses, meaning that the location of its closest point to the supermassive black hole changes with each turn, such that the next orbit is rotated with regard to the previous one, creating a rosette shape. General Relativity provides a precise prediction of how much its orbit changes and the latest measurements from this research exactly match the theory. This effect, known as Schwarzschild precession, had never before been measured for a star around a supermassive black hole.
This simulation shows the orbits of stars very close to the supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way. One of these stars, named S2, orbits every 16 years and is passing very close to the black hole in May 2018. This is a perfect laboratory to test gravitational physics and specifically Einstein’s general theory of relativity. Research into S2’s orbit was presented in a paper entitled “Detection of the Gravitational Redshift in the Orbit of the Star S2 near the Galactic Centre Massive Black Hole“, by the GRAVITY Collaboration, which appeared in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics on 26 July 2018.
The study with ESO’s VLT also helps scientists learn more about the vicinity of the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy.
“Because the S2 measurements follow General Relativity so well, we can set stringent limits on how much invisible material, such as distributed dark matter or possible smaller black holes, is present around Sagittarius A*. This is of great interest for understanding the formation and evolution of supermassive black holes,”
say Guy Perrin and Karine Perraut, the French lead scientists of the project.
This result is the culmination of 27 years of observations of the S2 star using, for the best part of this time, a fleet of instruments at ESO’s VLT, located in the Atacama Desert in Chile. The number of data points marking the star’s position and velocity attests to the thoroughness and accuracy of the new research: the team made over 330 measurements in total, using the GRAVITY, SINFONI and NACO instruments. Because S2 takes years to orbit the supermassive black hole, it was crucial to follow the star for close to three decades, to unravel the intricacies of its orbital movement.
The research was conducted by an international team led by Frank Eisenhauer of the MPE with collaborators from France, Portugal, Germany and ESO. The team make up the GRAVITY collaboration, named after the instrument they developed for the VLT Interferometer, which combines the light of all four 8-metre VLT telescopes into a super-telescope (with a resolution equivalent to that of a telescope 130 metres in diameter). The same team reported in 2018 another effect predicted by General Relativity: they saw the light received from S2 being stretched to longer wavelengths as the star passed close to Sagittarius A*.
“Our previous result has shown that the light emitted from the star experiences General Relativity. Now we have shown that the star itself senses the effects of General Relativity,”
says Paulo Garcia, a researcher at Portugal’s Centre for Astrophysics and Gravitation and one of the lead scientists of the GRAVITY project.
With ESO’s upcoming Extremely Large Telescope, the team believes that they would be able to see much fainter stars orbiting even closer to the supermassive black hole.
“If we are lucky, we might capture stars close enough that they actually feel the rotation, the spin, of the black hole,”
says Andreas Eckart from Cologne University, another of the lead scientists of the project. This would mean astronomers would be able to measure the two quantities, spin and mass, that characterise Sagittarius A* and define space and time around it.
“That would be again a completely different level of testing relativity,” says Eckart.
