Space transport roundup – Mar.27.2020

April 27, 2020 TopSpacer

A sampling of recent articles, videos, and images dealing with space transport (find previous roundups here):

** Starship prototype SN4 heads for low altitude test flight after passing propellant tank pressure testing. According to Elon Musk, a single Raptor engine will be attached to SN4 this week. After a static firing test on the pad, they will attempt a 150 meter hop:

Snowing in Texas pic.twitter.com/0LKwIpnoPB

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 27, 2020

For details, see:

Find more SpaceX items below

** Major wing components for Sierra Nevada’s Dream Chaser delivered:

Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC), the global aerospace and national security leader owned by Eren and Fatih Ozmen, uncrated both wings for its Dream Chaser spaceplane this month at the company’s Louisville, Colorado production facility. The wings’ arrival kicks off the much-anticipated integration phase of a beautiful and critical differentiator for Dream Chaser, the world’s only spaceplane owned by a private company and under contract with NASA.

“The wings are here and now we truly have butterflies in anticipation of this integration phase for Dream Chaser,” said SNC President Eren Ozmen. “Our spaceplane looks and functions unlike anything else in space – more technologically advanced but with all the heritage of the space shuttle program in its design. Dream Chaser’s first flight will be a soaring moment for all of us.”

The arrival kicks off the integration of the complex Wing Deployment System (WDS) as part of the continued assembly and integration of the vehicle. With their innovative folding design, the wings are stowed in the fairing ahead of launch. After the launch vehicle separates, the WDS deploys the wings and locks them into place. Dream Chaser’s steeply angled wings function as stabilizers for the lift generated by the body of the vehicle.

“The wings for Dream Chaser presented an interesting design challenge,” said Dream Chaser program director John Curry. “Not only must they survive in low-Earth orbit like a satellite, but they need to be operational in Earth’s atmosphere, like an aircraft.” Just like the structural body for Dream Chaser, the wings were manufactured by Lockheed Martin in Texas, a subcontractor to SNC, and are single bonded composite structures. This state-of-the-art technology saves weight without compromising strength and stiffness.

Dream Chaser is under contract with NASA for at least six cargo resupply and return service missions to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS-2) contract. The Dream Chaser and attached Shooting Star transport vehicle can carry up to 12,000 pounds of supplies and other cargo, and returns delicate science to Earth with a gentle runway landing.

** Russian Soyuz rocket sends Progress cargo vehicle to the ISS on April 24th from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Rendezvous and docking happened just four hours after liftoff:

The unpiloted Russian ISS Progress 75 cargo ship launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on April 24 (April 25, Kazakhstan time) atop a Soyuz 2.1a booster, bound on a fast-track, two-orbit trip to deliver some three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the residents of the International Space Station. Less than four hours after launch, the Progress executed an automated docking to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module where it will remain until December.

** Virgin Galactic continues a series of STEM tutorials with an episode on “Testing a spaceship” – Virgin Galactic – YouTube

Join this #ScienceWithVirginGalactic Spacechat as we explain how we test a spaceship to get it ready for commercial service.

** Interview with Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck:

Welcome to IN DEPTH Episode 8 of What about it!? I’ve had a conversation with Peter Beck, CEO of Rocket Lab. We talked about Electrons mid-air recovery, Photon and why it will change the Small-Sat business and about his plans for the future, including a personal goal to explore Venus to find out, if life could exist in our neighbours atmosphere!

** “An Overview of Firefly Aerospace, Vehicles and Capabilities” – Eric Salwan, Firefly Aerospace – FISO presentation: Slides (pdf)

And another update here: This Rocket Company Is Staying Calm, Carrying On With Fresh Contract And A New Launch Date – Forbes

As of this week, there are roughly 300 employees in Firefly, and more hires are coming quickly on the production side, to prepare for the first flight. “The secret to success in this business is staying focused,” Markusic said of Firefly’s efforts to send its first rocket aloft, which has experienced a few delays along the way. (But as any space company will point out, hardware development is difficult and costly, especially when novel technology is involved.)

There have been challenges in developing the Alpha rocket, whose novel features include propellant tanks and structures are built with carbon fiber composites, to reduce cracks and leaks while storing supercooled liquid oxygen. Estimates for the first launch date have been pushed back a few times, and a fire broke out during testing of a rocket stage in January.

But the payoff should be worth it in the long run, chief revenue officer Brad Schneider said during the same interview. Firefly projects that once the rocket starts flying, the company should see a “ramp” in revenues as money flows in from paying customers. Providing the test launch in 2020 goes to plan, revenues should start flowing faster in 2021 and accelerate in 2022, getting to a break even point relatively quickly after the upfront $165 million cost in development, preparing for the first flight and building the first two vehicles.

** Scott Manley reports on the latest Iranian launch of a satellite, achieving orbit successfully for the first time:

Earlier this week Iran made their first successful satellite launch in a long time using a new rocket design named ‘Qased’. What’s most striking is that this is a miliatry launch vehicle using new solid propellent motor which is more advanced than any they’ve flow before, and it might just be the first of many developments of the technology.

** The details of the BPM100 bi-propellant engine designed by the Copenhagen Suborbitals team are illustrated in this snazzy animation:

Follow developments of the engine and the Spica rocket, for which it is intended, on the Copenhagen Suborbitals blog.

** Briefs:

==================

Check out the
The Lurio Report
for news and analysis of key developments in NewSpace

The latest issue:
Starship Factory, Axiom’s Modules, Starliner Revelations
Vol. 15, No. 2, March 28, 2020

Space Frontier Foundation Award for NewSpace Journalism

==================

** SpaceX:

** Falcon 9 launched another batch of 60 Starlink satellites last week. First stage and both halves of the fairing nosecone were recovered. The number of Starlink satellites in operation now exceeds 400.

Over the weekend, the booster returned to Port Canaveral following its fourth flight:

B1051.4 Looks good. We are a US disabled veteran run, non-profit video production company whose mission is to bring other disabled US Veterans to witness a launch, experience US Space History and become part of our report. Our nonprofit 501(c)(3) is 100% tax deductible, just go to our webpage www.USLaunchReport.com which is merged with www.VeteransSpaceReport.com and find our Donate button. You can help change the life of a US Veteran.

And here is a video report on the return of the two ships with the fairings, which were scooped from the ocean. No attempt was made this time to catch the fairing shells in nets.

Join NSF’s Julia Bergeron (@Julia_bergeron) for an overview of the SpaceX Fleet recovery operations in Port Canaveral, including the return of the fairings from the seventh Starlink launch and JRTI update.

The Space Show this week – April.27.2020

April 27, 2020 TopSpacer

The guests and topics of discussion on The Space Show this week:

1. Monday, April 27, 2020; 7 pm PDT (9 pm CDT, 10 pm EDT: No special programming.

2. Tuesday, April 28, 2020; 7 pm PDT (9 pm CDT, 10 pm EDT): We welcome back Dr. Bruce Cordell for his Maslow Window for Space given our current virus situation.

3. Wednesday, April 29, 2020: Hotel Mars TBA pre-recorded. See upcoming show menu on the home page for program details.

4. Thursday, April 30, 2020; 7-8:30 pm PDT (9-10:30 pm CDT, 10-11:30 pm EDT): No special programming.

5. Friday, May 1, 2020; 9:30-11 am PDT (11:30 am-1 pm CDT, 12:30-2 pm EDT): We welcome Dr. Pekka Janhunem from Norway regarding his “Shielded Dumbbell L5 Settlement” concept

6. Sunday, May 3, 2020; 12-1:30 pm PDT (3-4:30 pm EDT, 2-3:30 pm CDT): We welcome back Dave Masten of Masten Space Systems.

Some recent shows:

** Sun, 04/26/2020– Dr. Ioana Cozmuta talked about her Silicon Valley business, Gravity Free, LLC.

** Fri, 04/24/2020 – Dr. Deana Weibel discussed “space tourism, all from the perspective of religion, spiritualism, faith, and anthropology”.

** Hotel Mars – Wed, 04/22/2020 – David Livingston and John Batchelor spoke with “Anatoly Zak of Russian Space Web to discuss Russian anti-satellite tests, the new super heavy rocket under constructions and related items”.

** Tue, 04/21/2020 – Christopher Richins of RBC Signals for updates, plus a report on how a global space company is dealing with the pandemic.

** Sun, 04/19/2020 – Dr. Doug Plata spoke about “Covid-19 pandemic here on Earth, looking at preventing pandemics and infections in space and on space settlements”.

The Space Show is a project of the One Giant Leap Foundation.

The Space Show - David Livingston — The Space Show – David Livingston

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Videos: “Space to Ground” ISS report – April.25.2020

April 25, 2020 TopSpacer

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** Down to Earth–Celebrating Earth Day from Above

In celebration of Earth Day’s 50th Anniversary, hear NASA and International Astronauts recount their experiences of Earth during their time working and living on the International Space Station as it turns 20 years old this year. #SpaceStation20th #EarthDay50th If you missed an episode of “Down to Earth”, watch other Astronauts describe their experiences in previous episodes of the series here. https://go.nasa.gov/2tkHsDf

** Expedition 63 ABC Earth Day with Chris Cassidy – April 22, 2020

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 63 Commander Chris Cassidy of NASA discussed the view of Earth from orbit and other issues related to the 50th anniversary of Earth Day during a downlink conversation April 22 with ABC News. Cassidy also took the opportunity to answer questions about Earth Day for NASA social media sites during the in-flight event. Cassidy arrived at the station April 9 for a six-and-a-half month mission.

** Commercial Crew Program: What’s It All About?

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is working with Boeing and SpaceX on launches to and from the International Space Station. Join NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Mike Hopkins as they explore the ins and outs of the Commercial Crew Program. This video will guide you through NASA’s partnerships with commercial companies and how these rockets will return American astronauts to launching from American soil for the first time since 2011. Learn about what will happen as the rocket heads toward the space station and how the crew capsule will safely return astronauts home. Be sure to visit https://www.nasa.gov/stem/ccp for more STEM educational resources to build on the excitement of the Commercial Crew launches with your students. Commercial Crew Next Gen STEM through NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement offers a way for K-12 students to learn more about this exciting moment in American history through engineering design challenges, coding activity, digital badging, virtual reality and more.

** #NASAatHome: Spaceport Series Episode 8: The future of plants in space. Matt Romeyn and Ralph Fritsche talked

about the Advanced Plant Habitat and the future of space crop production. Find out why one of the new crops slated to grow in space is Hatch Chile Pepper, and we’ll check in on the popcorn challenge.

** Why an NFL Quarterback Interned at NASA – NASA’s Kennedy Space Center

What do NFL quarterbacks do in the offseason? Well, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Joshua Dobbs spent part of his time away from the football field at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Dobbs, who played his college football for the University of Tennessee Volunteers before being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers, recently completed an internship as an aerospace engineer at Kennedy.

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Roundup

Space policy roundup – April.24.2020

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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):

Webcasts:

** Episode 12 Vancouver Recommendations on Space Mining – Michael Listner, Space Law & Policy Solutions

** Episode 13 Iran Military Satellite Launch – Michael Listner, Space Law & Policy Solutions

** Space Startups, New Commercial Opportunities and Early Industry Pioneers | Kratos

Rick Tumlinson, Founding Partner, SpaceFund Venture Capital: As the space industry experiences a revolution in technology, new, high growth startups are discovering visionary ways to tackle the challenges faced in the market. Listen to Rick Tumlison, the Founding Partner of SpaceFund Venture Capital and a space activist, describe his fund’s investment philosophy and his advice to start-ups in the industry. Some of the exciting topics we will cover in this episode of Constellations are settlements in space and creating commercial opportunities at the Russian Mir space station and at the international space station. Learn about pioneers in the industry and how they influenced and shaped the way we approach the space industry today. Find out how space transport is the first step in building an ecosystem of sustainable companies that work in space and help the planet as a whole, including the importance of terrestrial revenue streams and how they are influencing this new frontier.

** The Space Show – Tue, 04/21/2020 – Christopher Richins of RBC Signals for updates, plus a report on how a global space company is dealing with the pandemic.

** Space Café WebTalk Recap: “33 minutes with Dr. Brian Weeden” – SpaceWatch.Global

This week’s Space Café WebTalk took place on 21 April 2020, featuring Dr. Brian Weeden, Director of Program Planning for Secure World Foundation in conversation with Torsten Kriening, co-publisher of SpaceWatch.Global and COO of ThorGroup GmbH. Dr. Brian Weeden gave a briefing about key elements from the newly released 2020 Global Counterspace Threat Report, published by the Secure World Foundation. Following his remarks, the online audience had the opportunity to ask Dr. Weeden questions.

** Space Force Gets Down to Business presented by Lockheed Martin – Space News webinar panel discussion.

Since its creation just four months ago, the U.S. Space Force has been working to define its priorities, capabilities and culture. As planning continues to stand up new organizations and recruit talent, one key effort has been the development of an acquisition strategy to build the next generation of military space systems.

Questions explored in this free webinar:
– What are the Space Force’s next steps in its organization?
– What has been the impact of COVID-19 on Space Force planning and operations?
– What are the Space Force’s proposals to change the acquisition system?
– What personnel, resource and budget challenges does the Space Force face going forward?
– With growing threats in space, what does the Space Force have to do to build more resilient and defendable space systems?

** April 22, 2020 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast | Behind The Black

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Student and amateur CubeSat news roundup -April.24.2020

April 24, 2020 TopSpacer

A sampling of recent articles, press releases, etc. related to student and amateur CubeSat / SmallSat projects and programs (find previous smallsat roundups here):

** Mexico university students to build CubeSat in collaboration with NanoAvionics and the Mexian Space Agency: NanoAvionics and Mexican Space Agency Introduce a Nanosatellite Pilot Project for Future Space Missions | NanoAvionics

Nanosatellite manufacturer and mission integrator NanoAvionics, together with the Mexican Space Agency (AEM) and students from the Polytechnic University of Atlacomulco will develop the first nanosatellite for the State of Mexico, (one of most important states of the country), the AtlaCom-1. Building the nanosatellite is part of a pilot project to establish a nanosatellite infrastructure for future space missions designed and built by Mexico’s youth.

The project, starting in September 2020, is a testimony to the importance of space applications enabled by nanosatellites, which are rapidly becoming essential to national economies. Together, the Mexican Space Agency, led by Dr. Salvador Landeros, appointed director general of AEM in 2019, and NanoAvionics are fostering the advanced skills that Mexican youth will need to bring the country’s space industry forward.

…

NanoAvionics’ engineers will share their space mission experience and help the students and faculty at the Polytechnic University of Atlacomulco to develop the ATLA-1. The company’s multi-purpose nanosatellite buses are pre-configured and pre-qualified, allowing mission teams to focus on their payloads. As a result, technology development missions can produce results quicker and satellite constellations can enter commercial service much faster. The project is further supported by the Mayor of Atlacomulco, Roberto Téllez-Monroy, an engineer with a passion for space technology.

** AzTechSat-1 was the first Mexican university student built CubeSat to reach orbit. See the posting here from last December about the project and a February post about the deployment of the satellite from the ISS.

The AzTechSat-1 mission is led by the Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla, or UPAEP, in Puebla, Mexico. It is providing students and professors an opportunity to lead and participate in their first spaceflight mission. The multidisciplinary team of students at UPAEP was mentored by engineers and project managers at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. They learned to use NASA methodologies for spaceflight project management and systems engineering. The students designed, built, tested and delivered a flight-certified CubeSat.

Communications were establish with AzTechSat-1 after its deployment. The primary mission for the satellite is to demonstrate satellite-to-satellite communications by contacting a GlobalStar satellite.

“Jose Cortez of NASA Ames (left) and Joel Contreras of UPAEP (right), conduct final integration of AzTechSat-1 into the Nanoracks CubeSat Deployer (NRCSD) in preparation for launch to the International Space Station. Credits: NASA”

** AMSAT news on student and amateur CubeSat/smallsat projects: ANS-110AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin

ARRL, AMSAT Seek Changes in FCC Orbital Debris Mitigation Proposals
House Committee Leaders Request FCC Delay Rulemaking on Space Debris
3D Printed Cubesat Simulator Frame Design Posted
New OSCAR T-Shirt Available from AMSAT Zazzle Store
Receiving SMOG-P and ATL-1 Nano Satellites With an RTL-SDR
Commercial Blogs Feature Introductions to Satellite Operations
Upcoming Satellite Operations
ARISS News
Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
Satellite Shorts From All Over

General CubeSat/SmallSat info:

Resources:
- CubeSat Communications: Recent Advances and Future Challenges, Nasir Saeed et al, IEEE
- Direct Multipixel Imaging and Spectroscopy of an Exoplanet | NASA – System of smallsats would take advantage of the solar gravitational lens (SGL) effect to form images of a distant exoplanet.
Projects:
- [ Update:
  - ThinSat pushes students to reach for the stars | STEMx
  - Ghana Grows Its Space Economy – ModernGhana.com – Mentions GhanaSat-1 CubeSat currently operating in orbit.
  - “Nanocardboard” picosats:
    - Penn Engineers’ ‘Nanocardboard’ Flyers Could Serve as Martian Atmospheric Probes – Medium.com
    - A new way to fly, built up from the nanoscale | Penn Today ]
- The QUBIK Project: The progress so far – Libre Space Foundation
- NanoAvionics to build two signal-mapping cubesats for Dutch-Norwegian program – SpaceNews.co
- Millennium Space delivers smallsat for upcoming U.S. Space Force rideshare mission – SpaceNews.com

** Low cost CubeSat design:

Why are CubeSats / Cube Satellites so expensive? Entry level 1U satellites for basic science missions often cost at least $10 or $20K, and I figure that they shouldn’t, given how cheap consumer electronics are. 2U / 3U and above satellites are even more expensive, not to mention the much much larger launch cost. Is the high cost justified by the unique operating environment and market demand for CubeSats?