The latest Space to Ground weekly report from NASA on activities related to the International Space Station:
A profile of astronaut Christina Kcoh
It may not look like mountain climbing has much to do with being an astronaut, even though both involve great heights and special equipment. But NASA’s Christina Koch says the concentration and control she learned in climbing helped her prepare to be an astronaut and to make the climb to space for her first mission to the International Space Station.
Here is the latest episode of NASA’s weekly Space to Ground report on activities related to the International Space Station:
** A recent interview with ISS crew member Anne McClain:
Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 58 Flight Engineer Anne McClain of NASA discussed life and research on the outpost and her thoughts on the Apollo program fifty years after humankind’s first landing on the moon during a pair of in-flight interviews Feb. 15 with CNN and National Public Radio’s “Weekend Edition”. McClain is in the third month of a planned six-and-a-half month mission on the complex.
Using state of the art robotics and their proprietary polymer, AI SpaceFactory is contending for the final top prize of $500,000 given to the highest scoring team to print a sub-scale habitat in the third and final phase of the construction competition. The 1:3 scale prototype will be printed in front of a live audience at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, from April 29 to May 4.
AI SpaceFactory was one of only four teams awarded among six who submitted entries, placing 2nd overall on the basis of 3D-printed samples that were tested for strength, impact resistance, and durability in extreme temperatures. In contrast to other teams, which used concrete as their construction material, AI SpaceFactory formulated their own material – a “Martian polymer” that can be made from matter found or grown on Mars. The polymer was validated by a third-party lab and proven to outperform concrete in every important way: superior tensile and compressive strength, extreme durability in freeze-thaw cycles, and enhanced ductility. The polymer also provides superior cosmic radiation absorption and thermal resistance (insulation) and can be made without water: essential characteristics in the construction of off-world habitats
In five weeks, AI SpaceFactory progressed from basic tests to an autonomously-printed large-area slab validated by NASA in November 2018. Four weeks later the team successfully printed, in only 24 hours, a large cylinder designed to hold twelve-hundred gallons of water complete with prefabricated wall penetrations robotically placed and sealed “on the fly”.
AI SpaceFactory describes MARHSA as a first-principles rethinking of what a Martian habitat could be — not another low-lying dome or confined half-buried structure, but an airy, multi-level environment filled with diffuse light. This innovation challenges the conventional image of “space age” architecture by focusing on the creation of highly habitable spaces tuned to the demands of a Mars mission.
My first reaction was, “Whoa! That tiny pit is at the head of an increasingly growing canyon!” To a caver on Earth, this instantly implies that water has flowed out of that pit and down the canyon, carving it out as it flowed. It also implied that the possible underground passage under the pit’s north rim might conceivably be extensive.
Reinforcing this first impression were the numerous dark streaks flowing down the canyon’s cliff walls to the south. They all seemed to originate at about the same elevation as the pit itself, suggesting they all come from the same contact between two geological layers, a contact where water tends to gather. On Earth, when water seeps downward through water-soluble limestone and then gets blocked at a contact of more resistant material, it then starts to flow horizontally, creating a cave at that contact. The Martian dark streaks and pit in the image to the right suggest a similar process is occurring here.
Bob goes on to discuss the region around the above canyon and what role water may have played in forming the features there.
Nonetheless, the data illustrated by these images makes that tiny pit most enticing. It not only appears to be relatively easy to access its interior, there is visual evidence that suggests the presence of water.
If I was a future settler of Mars, I would give this pit a very high priority for exploration. In fact, I think someone (maybe Elon Musk?) should already be considering a probe to delve its depths.
** Rotating in-space habitats can provide artificial gravity and don’t require that space transports go in and out of deep gravity wells. The Gateway Foundation initiative aims to develop a wheel-shaped station as the first large in-space habitat. This video lays out some of the design features: SpaceX Starship and The Von Braun Rotating Space Station –
Scott Manley gives a brief critique of the Gateway group’s approach: A Realistic Look At The Gateway Foundation & Von Braun Station –
Manley emphasizes that funding is the biggest challenge. I agree and believe that the only viable financial approach to such an orbital facility is one that allows for incremental growth. That is, devise a design that can start small and simple and grows step-by-step, just as happened with most towns on earth. For example, start with two Bigelow habitats connected with a tether and rotating. Prove that this works technically and then show it works commercially by attracting a constant stream of paying visitors. This will then provide the basis to attract more investment to expand to more modules and a more elaborate structure.
A sampling of recent items related to traveling to and through space:
** Second suborbital space flight of Virgin Galactic‘s SpaceShipTwo is expected within the next few days. Here is a new video from VG about preparations for the flight:
With the usual caveats that apply to all test flights, and with the added uncertainties of weather at this time of year in Mojave, the window for our fifth supersonic powered test flight opens on February 20, 2019, and our test flight is planned for the morning of Wednesday, February 20.
Although we passed a major milestone in December, we still have a way to go in testing the many factors that can affect a flight. So, for this flight, we will be expanding the envelope to gather new and vital data essential to future tests and operations, including vehicle center of gravity.
We are proud to be flying NASA Flight Opportunity program research payloads again. The spaceship will be a little heavier than last time, and very close to a full commercial weight.
We are now at the stage where we can confirm some of the aspects of the customer cabin and this will be a continuing theme as we enter this final stage of flight test. It is of paramount importance to our future business success that we not only give our future astronauts a safe ride, but an experience which exceeds expectations. We know, as part of a Group that has led the way in commercial aviation customer experience, cabin design is fundamental to that objective and so this element is an integral part of our flight test program.
** SEOPS deployed 2 CubeSats from Northrop-Grumman’s Cygnus cargo vehicle after it departed from the ISS on February 8th. These were the first satellite deployments from the Cygnus for SEOPS™, LLC., a new company based in Houston. SEOPS joins NanoRacks as a provider of satellite deployments from the Cygnus and ISS. NanoRacks also deployed three smallsats from the Cygnus using deployers attached to the side of the Cygnus (see earlier posting).
SEOPS uses a deployer called SlingShot, which is attached to the hatch of the Cygnus by ISS crew members (see two gold colored boxes in image below).
Click for time lapse GIF. “SS Crew members David Saint-Jacques and Anne Mcclain installed two Slingshot deployables, SEOPS-Quantum Radar -1 and -2s, onto the outer hatch of the Cygnus Spacecraft. Also installed in a deployable slot is the UbiquityLink-1 orbit to ground communications hardware. The two passive optical reflector satellites will be released after Cygnus moves away from the ISS.” Credits: NASA
The deployers can also be seen in this image of the Cygnus during its unberthing from the station:
****A Falcon 9 launch is set for Thursday at Cape Canaveral following a successful static firing test on Monday. Liftoff time is 8:45 pm. EST (0145 GMT on 22nd). The payloads include the PSN 6 communications satellite for Indonesia, a USAF technology demo smallsat, and the Beresheet lunar lander built by the non-profit group SpaceIL of Israel.
Will SpaceX Shut Europe Out of the Space Launch Market? – Motley Fool – The throwaway Ariane 6 may offer flights at half the price of the Ariane 5 but that may not be sufficient to keep payload owners from moving to the SpaceX Falcon 9 and Blue Origin New Glenn, which can be cheaper still because of their reusable first stages.
Rise of the Rockets – NOVA/PBS – A recent NOVA science program episode looked at the boom in development of new rockets. The complete 54 minute video is currently available for viewing at the link.
