May 11, 2024

Archimedes 3D Printed Engine Will Send the Neutron Rocket Into Space at Least 20 Times (Source: Auto Evolution)
A single Archimedes engine is capable of developing 165,000 pounds of thrust. Given how no less than nine of these things will power the Neutron rocket's first stage alone, that's a total of 1.45 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. A version of the Archimedes will be used to power the rocket's second stage, the one meant to operate in space. Optimized for use in a vacuum, this powerplant can develop on its own 202,300 pounds of thrust.

The engines have been designed to be able to withstand multiple restarts. In the case of the vacuum version, for instance, power can be turned on and off for up to six times, allowing for the spacecraft to change its orbital position depending on needs. The stage one Archimedes, on the other hand, will allow for up to 20 launches to be performed using the same setup. That's because the rocket engine "is intentionally designed to operate within medium-range capability, a choice that lowers thermal and operational strains." (5/10)

NASA's Strategy for Space Sustainability (Source: Space News)
The risks posed by orbital debris and collisions in Earth orbit are not new: after all, the idea of the Kessler Syndrome, a runaway cascade of collisions that would render orbits unusable, is decades old. There have been many solutions posed over the years to deal with that debris, from lasers that would be at home in science fiction to concepts like nets and harpoons that instead seem like something from Moby Dick. Surely the right technology is out there somewhere.

But Melroy, in a speech unveiling NASA’s first Space Sustainability Strategy, argued the focus on technology is premature. “That’s the part everyone jumps to first. We think it comes third,” she said. What she and the agency offered was a more deliberative approach to the issue of space sustainability, one that argues that the problem needs to be better defined and understood before attempting to create any solutions for it. “I’m really picky about strategy,” she said in a later briefing. “I really wanted them to diagnose the problem in a way that got to why it’s so hard to do this.”

“NASA defines space sustainability as the ability to maintain the conduct of space activities indefinitely into the future in a manner that is safe, peaceful, and responsible to meet the needs of the present generations while preserving the outer space environment for future activities and limiting harm to terrestrial life,” the strategy states. (5/10)

Looking for Life on Enceladus: What Questions Should We Ask? (Source: Phys.org)
Does life exist beyond Earth? One of the most compelling places to consider this possibility is Enceladus, a moon of Saturn with a liquid water ocean encased in a frozen shell. There, plumes of water spray from ice fractures into space, and spacecraft observations of these geysers suggest that Enceladus has all the chemical building blocks necessary for life.

It is no surprise that robotic missions to search for life on Enceladus are in development. On the brink of this new era of space exploration, Davila and Eigenbrode propose a strategic research framework for studying Enceladus and similar ocean worlds. Instead of simply asking whether Enceladus is inhabited, the researchers propose asking, "What is the extent of organic chemical evolution in Enceladus's ocean?" This shift in focus could allow for deep learning regardless of whether Enceladus is currently inhabited, on its way to developing life, past a time when it held life, or on a path unlikely to lead to life. (5/9)

Dragonfly: The Billion-Mile Mission to Explore Saturn's Biggest Moon (Source: Big Think)
We’re sending a flying laboratory to an alien, haze-covered moon that’s about 1 billion miles away. This is nothing short of science fiction, yet the mission is well along already. It’s slated to launch in just four years and should arrive at Titan in 2034. At this stage, however, the technical challenges, the solutions NASA scientists are finding, and the possibilities of what Dragonfly will achieve are what left my head spinning. Click here. (5/10) https://bigthink.com/13-8/dragonfly-mission-to-titan/

A Skeptic’s Take on Beaming Power to Earth from Space (Source: IEEE Spectrum)
With the flurry of renewed attention, you might wonder: Has extraterrestrial solar power finally found its moment? As the recently retired head of space power systems at ESA—with more than 30 years of experience working on power generation, energy storage, and electrical systems design for dozens of missions, including evaluation of a power-beaming experiment proposed for the International Space Station—I think the answer is almost certainly no.

Despite mounting buzz around the concept, I and many of my former colleagues at ESA are deeply skeptical that these large and complex power systems could be deployed quickly enough and widely enough to make a meaningful contribution to the global energy transition. Among the many challenges on the long and formidable list of technical and societal obstacles: antennas so big that we cannot even simulate their behavior. (5/9)

Shining a Light on Untapped Lunar Resources (Source: Phys.org)
Near the moon's south pole lies a 13-mile wide, 2.5-mile-deep crater known as Shackleton, named for Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton. Shackleton—and craters like it—may contain untapped resources that can be accessed with lunar mining.

Solar energy is the optimal energy source to power lunar mining since it does not need to be transported from Earth, but rather is beamed straight from the sun. The problem with using solar energy within craters is that even during the lunar day, some craters may be in complete shadow. Researchers at Texas A&M have partnered with NASA Langley Research Center to engineer a solution using solar reflectors to get solar power to the bottom of lunar craters. (5/6)

The Moon's Far Side Has Scientists Interested (Source: INFORUM)
Because it faces out away from our planet, the other side of the moon has been struck by many more asteroids and other random space objects than the side we see. In fact, it likely has blocked asteroids from hitting Earth. A Chinese rocket mission recently launched is designed to gather rocks from the far side and return them to Earth for further study. (5/10)

In Race to Space, One Startup Is Betting on Candle Wax (Source: Bloomberg)
Companies are trying all kinds of things to find their way in the increasingly competitive space industry. A German startup is adding candle wax to that list. HyImpulse Technologies last week launched a sounding rocket powered by a combination of liquid oxygen and solid paraffin – a petroleum byproduct that’s a key ingredient in candles.

Mario Kobald, who co-founded the company in 2018, is taking this approach because he saw too many young companies trying to develop rockets similar to SpaceX, which uses liquid oxygen and kerosene to fuel its workhorse Falcon 9 rockets. Instead, HyImpulse says its mission is to make access to rocket trips more affordable and environmentally friendly with “space-grade candle wax” as a key part of its strategy. The material is “cheap compared to kerosene,” Kobald says.

Paraffin also is “non-toxic and very safe to handle,” he says. The material’s stability allowed the company to transport a rocket — complete with the paraffin fuel — as ordinary cargo on a container ship from Germany to Singapore to Australia, without the need for expensive restrictions to prevent explosions. (5/10)

Mysterious Objects in Space Could Be Giant Dyson Spheres, Scientists Say (Source: Science Alert)
One group of scientists thinks that we may already have detected technosignatures from a technological civilization's Dyson spheres, but the detection is hidden in our vast troves of astronomical data. A Dyson sphere is a hypothetical engineering project that only highly advanced civilizations could build. In this sense, 'advanced' means the kind of almost unimaginable technological prowess that would allow a civilization to build a structure around an entire star.

The research is titled "Project Hephaistos – II. Dyson sphere candidates from Gaia DR3, 2MASS, and WISE." This is the second paper presenting Project Hephaistos. The first one is here. "In this study, we present a comprehensive search for partial Dyson spheres by analyzing optical and infrared observations from Gaia, 2MASS, and WISE," the authors write. "This second paper examines the Gaia DR3, 2MASS, and WISE photometry of ~5 million sources to build a catalogue of potential Dyson spheres," they explain. (5/11)

China Raises Stakes in SpaceX Internet Rivalry, Claims Higher Orbit for SkyNet (Source: South China Morning Post)
The first satellite in China’s ambitious Smart SkyNet broadband internet constellation – part of an effor to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink – was launched into medium Earth orbit on Thursday. The satellite, known as Zhihui Tianwang-1 01 or Smart SkyNet-1 01, left the Xichang spaceport atop a Long March 3B rocket. CASC said the satellite will test high-speed, user-friendly communication technologies from 20,000km (12,400 miles) above the Earth. (5/10)

NASA's New Mobile Launcher Stacks Up for Future Artemis Missions (Source: NASA)
The foundation is set at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for launching crewed missions aboard the agency’s larger and more powerful SLS (Space Launch System) Block 1B rocket in support of Artemis IV and future missions. On May 9, 2024, teams with NASA’s EGS (Exploration Ground Systems) Program and contractor Bechtel National Inc. transferred the primary base structure of the mobile launcher 2 to its permanent mount mechanisms using the spaceport’s beast-mode transporter – the crawler. (5/10)

Don’t Panic—At Least, Not about a Nearby Supernova (Source: Scientific American)
There are quite a few ways a supernova can dish out cosmic catastrophe. The most dangerous is high-energy radiation such as x-rays or gamma rays. Although our planet’s atmosphere would act as a buffer to absorb some of the deadly blast, doing so would literally change the chemistry of Earth’s air—and not in a good way.

The ozone layer could be devastated by such an event, for example, allowing harmful ultraviolet light from our sun to reach Earth’s surface unfiltered for years. This may lead to increased cancer rates in animals and, even worse, more fundamentally disrupt ecosystems by killing off microbes at the base of the planet’s food chains. Smog could be another atmospheric side effect from a nearby supernova. Molecular nitrogen, the principal component of our air, can be broken down by high-energy radiation to then recombine with oxygen, forming nitrogen dioxide, a dark reddish-brown (and poisonous) gas.

Astronomers have done a lot of research into this possibility, and the good news—sort of—is that a supernova would have to be less than about 160 light-years from Earth to inflict this sort of damage. That’s decently close on the vast scale of our galaxy, but it’s vanishingly unlikely to happen over a human lifetime. Are there any stars close enough to affect us should they go kablooey? Well, kind of. Spica is one of the brightest stars in the sky, easily visible in the constellation Virgo, and it’s massive, probably a dozen or so times the sun’s heft, so it fits the bill. It’s just now starting to run out of fuel, beginning its long journey to becoming a red supergiant. (5/10)

Air Force Secretary Rebuffs Pleas From Governors over Space Force National Guard Plans (Source: Washington Examiner)
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall maintained his support for a proposal that would take some National Guard units and reassign them to the Space Force despite widespread opposition from the governors who have authority over those service members. The secretary refused to withdraw his support for the controversial proposal during a discussion with governors on Wednesday, according to Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT), who serves as the chairman of the National Governors Association. (5/10)

Good Progress Made on Building ‘Floating’ Road to Sutherland Spaceport Site (Source: Northern Times)
Good progress is being made on the construction of an access road to Sutherland Spaceport, according to developer Orbex. More than 600 metres of “floating road” have now been installed along with the first bridge over a watercourse. An Orbex spokesperson said: “With over 600 metres of road already completed, it won’t be long before it facilitates the movement of the launch vehicle and its payload to the launch pad.” (5/10)

ISRO Tests ‘Made-in-India’ 3D-Printed Rocket Engine (Source: Hundustan Times)
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) achieved a major feat on Thursday as it successfully tested a liquid rocket engine made with additive manufacturing technology. The test lasted 665 seconds and used the PS4 engine from the upper stage of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket, ‘the Workhorse of ISRO,’ which has a stellar track record of delivering satellites to Low-Earth Orbits. (5/11)

Mars is Blasting Plasma Out of its Atmosphere Into Space (Source: New Scientist)
Mars appears to be blasting material out of its atmosphere, much as the sun launches explosive coronal mass ejections, even though the Red Planet has no overall magnetic field. The Red Planet launches large bursts of plasma into space from its upper atmosphere, much like the sun’s coronal mass ejections, despite not having a global magnetic field. (5/9)

Plans for Las Vegas Spaceport in Desert Outskirts Move Forward (Source: News2LV)
Clark County has given the first stage of plans for the Las Vegas Spaceport in the desert outskirts a green light. Commissioners this week unanimously approved construction permits for the Las Vegas Executive Airport, which would be located at a 240-acre site near Pahrump, north of Highway 160. Developers say the executive airport would be the cornerstone of the ambitious Spaceport, a complex serving as a hub for both commercial and private space tourism. (5/10)

Musk Bashes Historic Boeing Astronaut Flight, SpaceX Did it First (Source: Business Insider)
Elon Musk soured the day of Boeing's first astronaut flight to space by lobbing criticism at the company on X. "SpaceX finished 4 years sooner." Boeing did not immediately respond.

NASA gave Boeing $4.2 billion to design, build, and test its spaceship. Not only did SpaceX do it faster — its spaceship was also cheaper, costing NASA just $2.6 billion. Since its first crewed flight in 2020, the company has flown seven astronaut crews to and from the ISS for NASA, with its eighth currently living on the station. It has also flown four private missions. (5/6)

Solstorm's Nimbus Could Drag Space Junk Down (Source: Bloomberg)
A satellite the size of a milk carton may show a way to prevent Earth’s neighborhood from turning into a junkyard. The Nimbus, scheduled to soar on an Elon Musk rocket 280 miles (450 kilometers) above the planet in late 2024, will have a lifespan of just a few months, after which it could join the collection of man-made objects that are still in orbit years — sometimes decades — after their sell-by dates. Norwegian startup Solstorm plans for tiny Nimbus to move itself out of the way by deploying a drag sail that will slow the satellite, helping it fall into the Earth’s atmosphere and burn up harmlessly within a year. (5/9)

Regulations Create Opportunities for Space Junk Cleanup (Source: Bloomberg)
The nascent space-junk industry is nearing a turning point as companies move their ideas beyond the drawing board and into space, taking advantage of a growing awareness of the dangers junk poses. The Biden administration has unveiled new regulations to reduce risks of unintentional collisions, with the FCC requiring operators deorbit their satellites within five years of their expiration dates. Previously there was no rule, just a non-enforceable guidance of 25 years.

In April 2023, the FCC created a new Space Bureau responsible for the regulation of satellites and space debris, and in October the FCC issued its first debris penalty, fining Dish Network Corp. $150,000 for leaving a retired satellite parked in the wrong orbit. The Federal Aviation Administration in September proposed rules for companies to dispose of discarded rocket parts, including moving them toward an orbital graveyard in less congested parts of space. (5/9)

NASA Stuck in the Middle of Starliner Contractors' Valve Fight (Source: Payload)
The loser of a court battle over valve designs went scorched earth this week, with ValveTech CEO Erin Faville publicly urging NASA to cancel the launch of Boeing’s crewed Starliner “due to the risk of a disaster.” NASA had already made the decision to delay the mission to replace a valve in the second stage of the ULA Atlas V rocket. Engineers determined that the valve, which had been “buzzing” before launch, exceeded the number of cyclings it had been qualified to perform.

ValveTech’s surprising allegations stem from a long-running court battle that came to an end this week. The dispute: In 2011, Aerojet Rocketdyne, a division of L3 Harris—hired ValveTech to build valves for the Starliner’s propulsion system. After disputes over design between the two firms, Aerojet ended the relationship in 2017; ValveTech sued the company for violating NDAs and misusing its trade secrets to design new valves.

After years of motions, depositions, and a trial, a jury found in November that Aerojet had violated NDAs with ValveTech, but hadn’t misappropriated any trade secrets. ValveTech was awarded $850,000 in damages, but it sought further restrictions on Aerojet and court fees. On May 6, a judge denied those motions and closed the case. Boeing said the valves “meet all NASA and Boeing requirements,” and "ValveTech’s speculation about the cause of the scrub on Monday night is inaccurate and irresponsible.” (5/10)

Satellite Images Show Progress at World's Biggest Construction Site (Source: Newsweek)
In the northwest corner of Saudi Arabia, construction is underway on a megaproject that promises to one day house more people than New York City, spread across a vertical skyscraper taller than the Empire State Building and stretching the length of Manhattan to Philadelphia. The project ultimately will include two 105-mile long skyscrapers housing nine million people. New satellite imagery shows the state of progess at Neom, the brainchild of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Click here. (5/10)

Invisible 'Dark Radiation' May Explain a Big Problem with Dark Energy (Source: New Scientist)
There are hints that the universe may be behaving unexpectedly, and astrophysicists are racing to explain why. Their ideas to account for the surprising result include allowing dark matter and dark energy to interact, and arguing for the existence of strange “dark radiation” that is similar in nature to regular light but invisible.

In April, researchers using the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) in Arizona released the biggest 3D map of the universe ever created, and it hinted that we may have been wrong about dark energy – the still-mysterious force causing the accelerating expansion of the universe. The data contained tentative indications that dark energy may be changing over time, meaning the rate of expansion of the universe isn't accelerating as smoothly as we thought. (5/9)

SpaceX Conducts a Successful Static Fire of Starship (Source: Teslarati)
SpaceX is moving rapidly with the Starship program. They have now conducted the first static fire of the Starship, which will be flying the fifth mission. Firing all 6 Raptor engines, Starship 30 began its test campaign. The company is waiting for approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to conduct the fourth flight of Starship, potentially in a month or so. (5/9)

Air Force Study Recommends Moving Guard Units to Space Force as Opposition Mounts (Source: FNN)
The Air Force’s in-depth report to Congress says moving all National Guard space units to the Space Force is the best path forward. But the Air National Guard, governors in all 55 states and territories and a bipartisan group of 85 lawmakers are pushing back against the Pentagon’s plan.

The study that’s been in the works for quite some time examines three possible courses of actions. It lays out the feasibility and advisability of giving the Space Force its own Guard component, leaving things as they currently are and moving Guard space functions and personnel to the Space Force. The study looks into risks, costs and benefits of each course of action.

The overall costs for all options are roughly the same, the study concludes, and the Air Force can execute any course of action if required. The study’s recommendation — transferring all space functions from the Guard into the Space Force. (5/9)

Virgin One Step Closer to Rolling the World's First Mass Production Line for Spaceships (Source: AutoEvolution)
Virgin Galactic is working on a new ship design called Delta class. It will be larger and capable of accommodating more people (six instead of four on the Unity), but more importantly, it will be tailored to support high-production volumes. Virgin plans to complete the Delta ships at a production facility in Phoenix, Arizona. In fact, plans were for the factory to be up and running back in 2023, but that, obviously, did not happen. The company did take a step in the right direction this week, opening a new system integration facility in Southern California.

The new facility will put Delta's main components through their paces before clearing them for flight. To do that the crews of engineers rely on a test platform known as the Iron Bird. The system allows elements such as avionics, feather actuation, pneumatics and hydraulics to be tested before going into the actual ships. Iron Bird's subsystems have already been installed and Virgin says the rest of the components will be added over the course of the year. But it's not the only test rig the company will use in the Delta program.

Another piece of hardware, a static test article, will be used to verify the structural integrity and load limits of the ships, but also to determine the final design. Using this method has the company's higher-ups confident that they'll shave “years off the development timeline" when compared to the VSS Unity. (5/9)

FAA to Begin Environmental Review of Starship Launches From Kennedy Space Center (Source: Space News)
The FAA is preparing to start an environmental review of SpaceX Starship launches from a pad at the Kennedy Space Center, reflecting changes in the vehicle since a 2019 assessment. In a notice published in the Federal Register May 10, the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation announced it was starting the process for an environmental impact statement (EIS) for Starship launches from KSC’s Launch Complex 39A.

That EIS is needed as part of FAA’s work to approve a launch license for Starship from that pad. The process will start with a series of in-person and virtual scoping meetings for the public, scheduled for June. Those meetings will allow the FAA to discuss their plans for the EIS and accept public comment on the issues they should consider in that environmental review.

The EIS will be the second environmental review involving SpaceX’s plans to use LC-39A for Starship launches. NASA completed an environmental assessment (EA) in 2019 of the company’s plans at the time to build launch infrastructure at LC-39A for Starship, finding it would have no significant impact. At the time SpaceX was planning up to 24 Starship launches from that pad annually. (5/10)

May 10, 2024

FAA Reauthorization Approaches Final Passage (Source: Politico)
On Thursday, the Senate passed a bill to reauthorize federal aviation programs for five years. The legislation, pending House approval, allocates over $105 billion to the Federal Aviation Administration and $738 million to the National Transportation Safety Board, with funding for technology programs and airport modernization, while also changing airline refund policies and creating policies for passengers with disabilities. (5/9)

Billionaire’s 2nd SpaceX Trip Featuring Spacewalk Aims for Early Summer Launch (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Billionaire Jared Isaacman, who flew to space once with SpaceX, is already set for launch No. 2 in early summer. The mission calls for new spacesuits introduced this past weekend designed so the crew can survive the plan to suck out all of the air of the spacecraft and allow Isaacman and a crewmate to make the first commercial spacewalk in history.

Flying on the Crew Dragon Resilience again, the mission dubbed Polaris Dawn is the first of up to three flights Isaacman wants to fly, culminating in what is supposed to be the first crewed mission of SpaceX’s Starship. For now, though, it has to use SpaceX’s existing rocket options, so he and his three crewmates will launch atop a Falcon 9 from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. It will mark Isaacman’s return after his Inspiration4 mission in 2021. (5/7)

Space Coast Economic Development Official Recognized with USAF Distinguished Public Service Award (Source: Space Coast EDC)
The Department of the Air Force presented its Distinguished Public Service Award, the highest award issued by the Air Force to a non-employee civilian, to Lynda L. Weatherman, President and CEO of the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast (EDC). To be considered by the Secretary of the Air Force for this honor, a civilian must have made a profound contribution at the national level that is representative of substantial progress in fulfilling the Air Force mission. (5/6)

Satellite Images Reveal Where Russian Nukes Could be Stored in Belarus (Source: New York Times)
The New York Times analyzed satellite imagery and photos, and spoke with nuclear weapons and arms control experts, to track the new construction, which started in March 2023. The site is 120 miles north of the Ukrainian border at a military depot next to the town of Asipovichy. Some of the recently built structures there have features that are unique to nuclear storage facilities at bases inside Russia. (5/10)

Starlink May Be Generating Billions (Source: Space News)
SpaceX is making money on Starlink today even as it continues to build out the constellation. A financial model of Starlink developed by Quility Space and discussed in a webinar Thursday calculated that SpaceX will generate $6.6 billion in revenue from Starlink this year, enough to generate positive free cash flow even when accounting for the costs to build and launch satellites.

Starlink has 2.7 million subscribers and is growing in 75 countries, making inroads primarily in wealthier markets as a "rich world service" rather than bridging the divide in developing countries. SpaceX is able to keep its costs down through aggressive vertical integration and high-volume production. (5/10)

Avio Diversifying Amid Diminished Ariane and Vega Business (Source: Space News)
Space propulsion company Avio is relying more on defense business during a lull in launches. The company reported this week net revenues of 78.8 million euros ($85 million) in the first quarter of 2024, a 32% increase from the same quarter a year ago. That increase was driven by increased work in defense markets, producing solid motors for missiles, while revenue from its work on Ariane 6 and Vega C remained flat.

Avio said in an earnings call Thursday it is planning a test of a redesigned motor for the second stage of the Vega C later this month, keeping that vehicle on track for a return to flight by the end of the year. Avio also expects Ariane 6, whose solid rocket boosters are built by Avio, to make its debut in July. (5/10)

Livermore Building Payload for Responsive Spae Mission (Source: Space News)
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) will provide a space imaging payload on an upcoming responsive space mission. The Victus Haze mission will include an advanced optical payload from LLNL on a spacecraft being built by Rocket Lab. That payload features a monolithic telescope built from a single piece of fused silica. Versions of the payload have flown previously, including on the GEOStare2 mission, but the one for Victus Haze will use a different design. (5/10)

SpaceX Launches Friday Starlink Mission From California (Source: Noozhawk)
SpaceX launched a set of Starlink satellites overnight after a one-day delay. The Falcon 9 lifted off at 12:30 a.m. Eastern from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California and placed 20 Starlink satellites into orbit. The launch was scheduled for Wednesday night but scrubbed for undisclosed reasons. The 20 Starlink satellites on this launch included 13 with direct-to-cell payloads. (5/10)

DoD Working with SpaceX to Limit Unauthorized Russian Use of Starlink (Source: Bloomberg)
The Pentagon has worked with SpaceX to reduce unauthorized use of Starlink by the Russian military. John Plumb, assistant secretary of defense for space policy, said in an interview that the Defense Department, in cooperation with SpaceX and the Ukrainian government, has "successfully countered" Russian use of Starlink. He did not go into details about how they stopped use of Starlink by the Russian military. Some members of Congress had raised concerns that the Pentagon and SpaceX were not doing enough to counter Russian efforts, using terminals obtained on the black market, to use Starlink in occupied Ukraine. (5/10)

Dragon Debris Likely Fell on Canadian Farm (Source: CTV)
Debris that fell on a Canadian farm may have come from a Dragon spacecraft. Farmers found several pieces of debris, one of which was a large object weighing about 45 kilograms and made of carbon fiber and aluminum honeycomb material. The objects may be debris from the trunk of the Crew Dragon spacecraft flown on the Ax-3 private astronaut mission. That trunk, jettisoned before the capsule returns to Earth, reentered over Saskatchewan in February. (5/10)

Strong Solar Storm Hits (Source: Washington Post)
A severe solar storm may produce auroral displays across much of the continental United States tonight. NOAA issued Thursday a warning for a geomagnetic storm rated four on a scale of one to five, the first storm to be rated a four since 2005. NOAA predicts that could result in aurora visible as far south as northern California and Alabama. Viewing the aurora requires clear, dark skies. The storm is linked to an active period of solar activity as the sun reaches the peak of its 11-year cycle. (5/10)

NSF Freezes Plan for Telescopes in Antarctica (Source: Science)
The National Science Foundation is putting plans for an astronomical facility in Antarctica on ice. The project, called CMB-S4, would have developed microwave telescopes to study the cosmic microwave background left over from the Big Bang to see if the early universe went through a sudden expansion called inflation. However, at a meeting this week, an NSF official said the agency could not afford the $900 million project now given the need to upgrade infrastructure at its South Pole facilities. The announcement took many astronomers by surprise, given that CMB-S4 was highly ranked in an astrophysics decadal survey as well as a similar long-term plan in particle physics. (5/10)

Unbelievable 50-Year Plan at Cape Canaveral! | KSC Flyover (Source: NSF)
This month, we look into the ongoing projects at Kennedy Space Center, including SpaceX's upgrades at Roberts Road and the preparations for Blue Origin's New Glenn at Exploration Park, the construction surge at LC-39A and the proposed expansions at Port Canaveral to support the increasing launch cadence. Click here. (5/8)

SpaceX Infrastructure Development Continues at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: NSF)
SpaceX has not only resumed work on the Starship pad at LC-39A but has also upgraded its current launch infrastructure for Falcon family vehicles. In addition, the SpaceX payload processing facility at the Cape has gotten a fresh coat of paint. The Roberts Road facilities, meanwhile, have been expanded even as the site still hosts some tower sections that are destined for the Starbase facility in Texas.

LC-39A’s Starship launch site recently had concrete legs removed that were supposed to be the base of the orbital launch pad. This points to work on the foundation underneath the pad. A new design for the Florida Starship pads as opposed to the current orbital launch pad at Starbase is possible, but it remains to be seen whether a new flame trench will be added to the complex.

Also happening at LC-39A is an upgrade of the Falcon family launch infrastructure there. New liquid oxygen tanks have been added to the complex to allow for more flexibility in recycling countdowns for Falcon Heavy missions in the event of scrubs. A second Starship launch pad is planned at the Florida spaceport. Current candidates are SLC-37B, which recently hosted the last ever Delta family flight, and a new complex named LC-50. Once the program’s additional launch facilities are built up, Starship’s launch cadence will substantially increase. (5/9)

Blue Origin Infrastructure Development Continues at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: NSF)
The sprawling Blue Origin facility at Exploration Park is seeing some new additions. The new Composite Assembly Building – now to become the Lunar Assembly Facility – on the south side has seen progress in building up its foundation, with rebar installation spotted along with workers and vehicles on the site.

Additional land near this building is also being prepared, with piles of sand having been spread out since April. A new parking lot on the north side has had its foundation laid out, and a new office building is to be constructed by that lot.

New Glenn preparations for its first flight, scheduled by the end of this calendar year, are proceeding, with some hardware being seen for the new heavy-lift rocket. A second stage, thought to be flight hardware, was spotted being tested in the 2CAT building. This stage does not have its paint job or presumably its engines yet but seemed to be undergoing pressure testing. (5/9)

Airbus Expanding Satellite Factory at Cape Canaveral Spaceport (Source: NSF)
Airbus U.S. Space & Defense has bought out Eutelsat OneWeb’s 50 percent stake in the Airbus OneWeb Satellites (AOS) joint venture and is now the sole owner of the AOS satellite factory at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport. This factory is currently capable of building two satellites per day, having finished over 600 satellites for OneWeb, and is now equipped to build the Arrow line of satellites. Airbus is currently conducting foundation work to expand the AOS factory to respond to increased demand for small satellites, and the facility will eventually cover a footprint of 4,500 square meters. (5/9)

New Air-Breathing VLEO Spacecraft Enhances Earth Observation and Communication Capabilities (Source: Space Daily)
The University of Surrey is pioneering a novel approach for powering low-orbit spacecraft using air as a propellant. Funded by the UK Space Agency, this initiative at the Surrey Space Centre aims to facilitate spacecraft operations at extremely low altitudes within the upper atmosphere. This innovative spacecraft design is expected to advance Earth observation, climate monitoring, and satellite communications. (5/10)

NASA Chooses UF Mission to Monitor Earth's Water and Ice (Source: Space Daily)
NASA has awarded the University of Florida a $12 million mission called GRATTIS (Gravitational Reference Advanced Technology Test in Space), aimed at enhancing how we monitor Earth's water and ice movements. This was the only project selected from a national call for submissions. "GRATTIS will utilize advanced sensors to measure minute gravitational variations from space, aiding in the tracking of surface and subsurface shifts," explained John Conklin, Ph.D. Scheduled for a 2027 launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, the project is currently in the sensor technology finalization and spacecraft integration phase, managed by UF's mission operations team. (5/10)

NASA Grants Licenses for Advanced 3D-Printable Superalloy to American Firms (Source: Space Daily)
NASA has entered a new phase of economic impact by licensing an advanced superalloy, named GRX-810, to four US companies. This move leverages NASA's research and development investments funded by taxpayers. GRX-810, a superalloy designed for the demanding conditions of aerospace environments, promises enhanced durability and strength for parts used in airplanes and spacecraft, potentially extending their operational lifespan. (5/10)

NASA Field Geology Training Enhances Artemis Mission Support (Source: Space Daily)
In preparation for the Artemis missions, NASA staff including engineers, managers, and flight directors, recently engaged in a field geology course in Northern Arizona's volcanic terrain. This training is designed to equip the Artemis mission support teams with a practical understanding of lunar geology. The two-and-a-half-day program mirrors aspects of the intensive training that astronauts undergo for missions to the Moon's South Pole, aiming to develop a shared language and operational knowledge among the various NASA teams. (5/10)

Senators Call for Defense Budget Increase (Source: Breaking Defense)
Leaders of the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee have declared their intention to increase the Pentagon's 2025 budget beyond the $850 billion requested by the Biden administration, citing the need for investment in future technologies and the necessity to exceed current inflation levels and operational costs. "We must be clear eyed that this defense budget would represent a real cut for the Department of Defense as it fails to keep pace with inflation," said Sen. Susan Collins, R-ME. (5/9)

Exploring Asteroid Apophis Using Miniature Satellites (Source: Space Daily)
European researchers are assessing three small satellite mission concepts derived from the 2023 SATEX project, which evaluated the capabilities of small satellites for interplanetary tasks. The first concept involves a national mission where a small satellite would trail Apophis as it approaches Earth, documenting any changes through photographs and measurements. This mission faces numerous technical challenges due to the distance and autonomy required.

The second concept involves collaboration on the European RAMSES mission, which would employ a larger satellite equipped with smaller satellites, telescopes, and other instruments to monitor Apophis. Here, a satellite from Wurzburg would participate, potentially enhancing the scientific yield and reducing the technical demands on JMU's team. The third concept proposes a brief encounter where a JMU-built satellite would pass close to Apophis to capture photographs. This mission would require minimal resources but offer limited observation time and potentially less scientific data. (5/9)

NASA OTPS Calls for Community Feedback to Shape Lunar Non-Interference Policies (Source: Space Daily)
NASA's Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy (OTPS) is soliciting input from the lunar community through a new Lunar Non-Interference Questionnaire to aid in developing a framework for managing lunar activities without interference. No funding or solicitations are expected to follow this survey. Established in November 2021 within the NASA Administrator's office, OTPS collaborates across NASA and with the space community to supply NASA leaders with options to develop policies, strategies, and technologies.

With multiple countries and private entities planning lunar operations by the decade's end, especially at the lunar South Pole, OTPS recognizes the critical need to address potential interference and contamination. The Artemis Accords' Section 11 highlights the importance of deconfliction, a topic gaining relevance with the increasing number of lunar actors. (5/9)

Redwire Announces Second VLEO Satellite Platform (Source: Space News)
Redwire Space is doubling down on interest in the emerging market for very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellites. Redwire announced a VLEO satellite platform called Phantom, developed by the company’s European business unit in Belgium. Phantom is being developed for the European Space Agency’s Skimsat mission, on which Redwire is partnered with Thales Alenia Space, and is now being offered for European and international customers.

Phantom joins SabreSat, a VLEO satellite Redwire announced in its previous earnings call in March that is being developed by the company in the United States. The two designs use different technologies. “SabreSat and Phantom do not share a common technological baseline. They are two different platforms with different underlying technologies and performance parameters,” said Peter Cannito. “Different approaches reduce risk and enable us to cover a broader set of customer requirements.” (5/9)

Boeing's Starliner Raises Stakes for Company's Reputation (Source: USA Today)
After Boeing's Starliner mission was scrubbed due to technical difficulties, the company is betting on a relaunch of the rocket to revitalize the brand amid safety concerns and scrutiny. Click here. (5/7)

Galileo: World’s Most Precise Satellite Navigation System Expands (Source: SciTech Daily)
Galileo, the world’s most precise satellite navigation system, expanded its constellation to 30 with two new satellites launched by SpaceX, enhancing its reliability and precision. The European system's additional satellites increase its reliability, robustness and, ultimately, the precision, benefiting billions of users worldwide. (5/4)

May 9, 2024

Space Council Tackles Control and Access to Space Intelligence Among Agencies (Source: Space News)
The National Space Council will reevaluate national security space roles and responsibilities among various players. Chirag Parikh, the council's executive secretary, said the council will examine the ongoing tug-of-war between military leaders concerned with speedy access to imagery and data and intelligence agency leaders who emphasize the need to verify information and gather insights. The National Space Council will consider solutions ranging from policies, authorities and processes to funding, advocacy and communications.

That debate about roles and responsibilities includes questions about who will control a planned satellite constellation for tracking moving targets. The military and intelligence community are working together on the Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) constellation, but are debating who will control and task those satellites. Lt. Gen. David Miller, head of the U.S. Space Force's Space Operations Command, said he was concerned that having data from the GMTI system go through intelligence agencies could delay getting information to frontline forces. An NRO official, though, said the NRO should have control of the GMTI system. (5/9)

NRO Works Toward Flexibility for Commercial Data Contracting (Source: Space News)
The NRO is developing a more flexible contracting approach to acquiring commercial data. Pete Muend, head of the NRO's commercial space office, said at the GEOINT Symposium that the office plans to roll out a new contracting vehicle with an "open-ended rolling environment" that is not restricted to any single type of imagery like electro-optical or synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The NRO is also finalizing plans for a large procurement exclusively for commercial SAR imagery that will be similar to contract vehicle for optical imagery but at a smaller scale. (5/9)

NATO Turns to Industry to Speed Intelligence Exploitation (Source: Space News)
NATO is looking to industry for help speeding up intelligence exploitation and understanding. Scott Bray, NATO assistant secretary general for intelligence and security, said that while NATO countries do a good job sharing intelligence, they need help analyzing that intelligence. He encouraged companies with those capabilities to work with NATO's Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) program. (5/9)

House Members Urge NASA Science Budget Increase (Source: Space News)
More than 40 House members have signed a letter asking appropriators to increase NASA's science budget. The letter to the leaders of the House appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA, signed by 44 House members, seeks $9 billion for NASA science, more than $1.4 billion above the agency's request for fiscal year 2025. The additional funding, the letter argues, is needed to keep missions identified as top priorities in recent decadal surveys on track while also supporting existing missions. Any increase will be a challenge given budget caps that remain in place for 2025, likely meaning cuts elsewhere at NASA or in other agencies. (5/9)

Dream Chaser Ready for Trip to Florida (Source: Space News)
Sierra Space says it is ready to ship its Dream Chaser vehicle to Florida. The company announced Thursday it wrapped up environmental testing of the cargo spaceplane at NASA's Armstrong Test Facility in Ohio, putting it through shock, vibration and thermal vacuum tests. The spacecraft will go to Florida for a final round of tests at the Kennedy Space Center and payload integration work ahead of a launch later this year on a ULA Vulcan. (5/9)

China Launches MEO Broadband Satellites (Source: Space News)
China launched a pair of medium Earth orbit broadband satellites late Wednesday. A Long March 3B rocket lifted off at 9:43 p.m. Eastern from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. Only after the launch did China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation disclose the payloads as Smart Skynet-1 (01) satellites A and B. The satellites are the first in a constellation of at least eight satellites in medium Earth orbit to provide broadband services, possibly working with future low Earth orbit megaconstellations. (5/9)

SpaceX Launches Wednesday Starlink Mission From Florida (Source: SpaceFlight Now)
SpaceX launched one set of Starlink satellites from Florida Wednesday while delaying another launch from California. A Falcon 9 lifted off from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport at 2:42 p.m. Eastern and placed 23 Starlink satellites into orbit. SpaceX has now conducted 83 Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches from LC-39A, exceeding the number of shuttle launches from that pad over three decades. (5/9)

ULA Procuring Another Maritime Ship for Rocket Transport (Source: ULA)
ULA is getting a SpaceShip, but one that won't go to space. The company said Wednesday it signed contracts with Bollinger Shipyards and Bristol Harbor Group to design and build a new ship that will be used for maritime transport of rockets from ULA's Alabama factory to launch sites. That ship, dubbed SpaceShip, will join the existing RocketShip vessel for transporting rocket stages. ULA is acquiring the second ship as part of efforts to scale up infrastructure needed for a higher launch rate in support of Amazon's Project Kuiper and other customers. (5/9)

Blinded by the Light: How Bad are Satellite Megaconstellations for Astronomy? (Source: Space.com)
Over the past few years, our planet has become increasingly encircled by Starlink, OneWeb and other "megaconstellation" satellites. Yes, the emergence of those megaconstellations offers great benefits for humanity. But there are also substantial costs, including a growing imposition on astronomy. "The world has mostly been assuming that the relevant international law basically allows the satellite companies to do whatever they want in space, while forcing the observatories to adapt as well as they can," David Koplow said.

But in reality, the legal regime is not so one-sided, according to Koplow: "Astronomers also have legal rights to free use of space, and they need not stand by idly while their profession is damaged." The astronomical community has related that the time and the financial costs of conducting effective astronomy will rise considerably, Koplow said, "and that some important data will simply be irretrievable, with concomitant losses for science and the future exploration and use of space." (5/9)

Breakthrough Method Pierces Ionosphere to Reveal Radio Universe in Stunning Clarity (Source: Science Alert)
The very lowest frequencies of the radio Universe have just been revealed in spectacular clarity. A team of astronomers has used a new calibration technique to give us the first sharp images of the radio Universe in the frequency range of 16-30 megahertz – an achievement previously thought impossible, due to the turbulent interference generated by Earth's ionosphere. (5/9)

Astronomers Detect Earth-Sized Planet (Source: AP)
Astronomers have detected a rocky planet with an atmosphere, although that world is not exactly Earth-like. Observations of the exoplanet 55 Cancri e by the James Webb Space Telescope show that the planet, about twice the size of Earth, has a dense atmosphere of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. The planet, through, has temperatures as high as 2,300 degrees Celsius, likely making it inhospitable for life. (5/9)

We're About to Witness a Once-in-a-Lifetime Star Explosion (Source: BBC)
A star in the Corona Borealis constellation is about to explode. The recurrent nova, T Coronae Borealis, has an outburst every 80 years. The next one is expected between now and September. What can we expect to see when looking up at the night sky? And what should we know about watching this rare event? Click here. (5/8)

Mysterious Space Signals May Come From a Dead Star With a Planet (Source: New Scientist)
One of the most puzzling phenomena in space may finally have an explanation. It might be caused by the interactions between a “dead” neutron star and a planet in tight orbit around it. The strange phenomenon in question is a repeating fast radio burst (FRB). These are series of powerful radio waves blasting at us from distant galaxies. (5/3)

Seven Rare High-Energy Neutrinos Detected in a Gigaton of Clear Ice (Source: Science Alert)
About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these "relic" neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they can't harm you. In fact, only one of them is likely to lightly tap an atom in your body in your entire lifetime. Most neutrinos produced by objects such as black holes have much more energy than the relic neutrinos floating through space.

While much rarer, these energetic neutrinos are more likely to crash into something and create a signal that physicists can detect. But to detect them, neutrino physicists have had to build very large experiments. IceCube, one such experiment, documented an especially rare type of particularly energetic astrophysical neutrino in a study published in April 2024. These energetic neutrinos often masquerade as other, more common types of neutrino. But for the first time, my colleagues and I managed to detect them, pulling out a few from almost 10 years of data. (5/3)

Xona Raises $19 Million for Satellite Navigation Service (Source: Space News)
Xona Space Systems, a California-based startup developing a satellite-based navigation service, has raised $19 million in a Series A funding round, the company announced May 8. Xona is developing a commercial positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) service through a constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites. The company plans to offer the service as an alternative or backup to the Global Positioning System. (5/8)

US Military Plan Base on Moon by 2030 (Source: Times of India)
The United States is considering the construction of a lunar base within the next few years. US Rep. Ken Calvert, chair of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, believes the US military, including the Space Force, will be crucial in securing a lunar presence. "Space Force will be actively involved in, I think, in going to the Moon at some point and that discussion is ongoing... Obviously, China is probably going to militarize the Moon... so I suspect we will have a base on the boon also." (5/8)

Boeing Confirms Attempted $200 Million Ransomware Extortion Attempt (Source: Cyberscoop)
The cybercriminals who targeted Boeing using the LockBit ransomware platform in October 2023 demanded a $200 million extortion payment, the company said Wednesday. Boeing confirmed to CyberScoop that it is the unnamed multinational aeronautical and defense corporation referenced in an indictment unsealed Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The indictment, which identified Dmitry Yuryevich Khoroshev as the main administrator and developer behind the LockBit ransomware operation, was part of a sweeping international array of actions against the Russian national that included sanctions in the U.S., the U.K. and Australia. Boeing reportedly did not pay any ransom to LockBit after roughly 43 gigabytes of company data was posted to LockBit’s website in early November. (5/8)

Safety Concerns Show Urgent Need to Stop NASA Starliner Launch, Warns ValveTech (Source: Hastings Law)
NASA should immediately halt the Starliner launch due to serious safety risks demonstrated by a leaking valve, according to the professional opinion of ValveTech Inc. The launch was scrubbed due to a leaking regulator valve in an oxygen tank, yet NASA is considering trying another launch soon.

"As a valued NASA partner and as valve experts, we strongly urge them not to attempt a second launch due to the risk of a disaster occurring on the launchpad," said ValveTech President Erin Faville. "According to media reports, a buzzing sound indicating the leaking valve was noticed by someone walking by the Starliner minutes before launch. This sound could indicate that the valve has passed its lifecycle."

"NASA needs to re-double safety checks and re-examine safety protocols to make sure the Starliner is safe before something catastrophic happens to the astronauts and to the people on the ground," Faville added. (5/8)

Boeing's Starliner Problem Is Far From Its Crisis (Source: Newsweek)
Boeing has been dealing with a PR nightmare following a series of safety issues with its planes this year. There were 29 incidents, accidents and occurrences involving Boeing planes globally from January 1 to April 7, according to data available from the National Transportation Safety Board's online case analysis and reporting tool. Despite Boeing's ongoing crisis, an aerospace expert said the scrubbed Starliner launch should not be conflated with issues with their airplanes. "This is a totally different team at Boeing. Boeing is a gigantic company, their commercial airplane business is quite separate from their launch vehicle business." (5/8)

Space Force Now Boasts Three ‘Space Cowboys’ (Source: National Review)
Space cowboys: They were born on this rock, and they may be soon traveling through space. A combination of Army training and Space Force personnel was required to produce such a fantastic trio. The three Space Force Guardians traveled to Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, to complete an Army Cavalry Spur Ride, a series of arduous combat tests and physical training exercises in which service members often ruck-march in between challenges — the first members of the military’s newest and smallest service to do so. (5/8)

US Space Force Insignia Designs Have Sci-Fi Fans in Hysterics (Source: Creative Bloq)
The US Space Force's mission is to secure the US's "interests in, from, and to space". And how's it supposed to do that without some classic science-fiction inspired visual design? We've already reported on the similarity of the Space Force logos to motifs from Star Trek. It turns out the influence also extends to its various insignia. Reddit users are poring over the details of 13 designs that look like they could have been taken straight from several sci-fi series. Perhaps Space Force would always have come up with these designs; it's just that sci-fi got there first. (5/9)

Remembering James Dean, Founder of the NASA Art Program (Source: NASA)
In March 1962, NASA Administrator James Webb addressed a two-paragraph memorandum to NASA Public Affairs Director Hiden T. Cox about the possibility of bringing in artists to highlight the agency’s achievements in a new way. In it, he wrote, “We should consider in a deliberate way just what NASA should do in the field of fine arts to commemorate the … historic events” of America’s initial steps into space. 

Shortly thereafter, NASA employee and artist James Dean was tasked with implementing NASA’s brand-new art program. Working alongside National Art Gallery Curator of Painting H. Lester Cooke, he created a framework to give artists unparalleled access to NASA missions at every step along the way, such as suit-up, launch and landing activities, and meetings with scientists and astronauts. (5/6)

Military Surveillance Constellation Fuels Debate Over Who Calls the Shots (Source: Space News)
The U.S. military and the intelligence community are developing an ambitious new constellation of satellites designed to track moving targets on the ground. Meanwhile, a debate is unfolding over who should control and task these sensors once they become operational. Lt. Gen. David Miller, who leads the U.S. Space Force’s Space Operations Command, said the new program known as Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) will be essential in future battles, as troops engaged in frontline combat need direct and unfiltered access to targeting data provided by these space-based sensors.

He insisted that military commanders, rather than intelligence officials, should be in charge of controlling and tasking the sensors. “We cannot have it so that the information goes back through a headquarters, gets filtered and then gets sent out,” he cautioned. “The ‘kill webs’ that our adversaries are building don’t do that.” (5/8)

SSC Partners with Perigee Aerospace for Satellite Launches From Sweden (Source: Space Daily)
SSC has teamed up with South Korean company Perigee Aerospace Inc. to initiate satellite launches from Esrange Space Center in Sweden beginning in 2025. This partnership marks the first time an orbital rocket, Perigee's Blue Whale 1 microlauncher, will be launched from Esrange.
"I'm very pleased to announce this historic collaboration, our first orbital launch partnership. The market demand for this service is huge and it's needed now, by both European and international satellite owners.

Perigee's Blue Whale 1 rocket is an ideal match for our orbital launch complex at Esrange. With this partnership, SSC will be able to offer a competitive commercial European orbital launch service at our spaceport in Sweden. This is exciting news for us, and for the global space market," says Charlotta Sund, CEO of SSC. The collaboration involves a two-stage launch vehicle capable of delivering payloads up to 200 kg into a 500 km Sun-Synchronous Orbit. Together, SSC and Perigee will develop a shared payload space concept for the rocket, aiming to accommodate both companies' customer bases. (5/8)

South Australian Space Companies Embark on Growth Mission with New UniSA Program (Source: Space Daily)
The University of South Australia (UniSA) has launched a new business growth program aimed at assisting early-stage space companies in South Australia. The program includes a six-month initiative called the Growth Ramp space pathway, hosting its first cohort of six companies.

The participating companies-AICRAFT, ESpy Ocean, HEX20, Orbital Blue, ResearchSat, and Robinson Aerospace Systems-are engaging in a program managed by UniSA's Australian Centre for Business Growth (AUCBG) and the Innovation and Collaboration Centre (ICC). The South Australian Space Industry Centre (SASIC), supported by state government funding, also backs the initiative as part of the Venture Catalyst Space Program. (5/8)

Starfish Space and D-Orbit Successfully Conduct Satellite Rendezvous (Source: Space Daily)
Starfish Space and D-Orbit have successfully completed an on-orbit rendezvous between Starfish's Otter Pup and D-Orbit's ION SCV006 satellite. The coordinated effort involved precise maneuvering by the ION satellite, culminating in a close approach where Otter Pup captured detailed images of the ION spacecraft. The mission began with recovery from initial technical challenges, including high rotation rates and a thruster issue. These were overcome to test and validate the core technologies of Otter Pup, leading to the decision in January to attempt this complex rendezvous. (5/8)

USSPACECOM Represents at NATO's Inaugural Space Symposium (Source: Space Daily)
Lt. Gen. Thomas James, deputy commander of the U.S. Space Command, and RAF Air Commodore Darren Whiteley, deputy director of USSPACECOM Strategy, Policy and Plans, attended NATO's first Space Symposium held in France on April 29-30.  The symposium, organized by NATO Headquarters International Military Staff and Allied Command Transformation, aimed to enhance the integration of space capabilities into NATO operations, capitalize on the evolving space sector, and define a long-term space strategy for NATO.

The event attracted about 300 participants from allied nations, covering defense, industry, and academia, and focused on "Deterrence, Defense and Resilience in and through the Space Domain." (5/7)

ICEYE Launches New APIs for Direct Satellite Tasking and Data Access (Source: Space Daily)
ICEYE, a leader in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite technology, has introduced two new application programming interfaces (APIs) that provide customers quicker access to its extensive SAR satellite imagery. These APIs allow for automated interactions and seamless integration with ICEYE's space and ground systems, eliminating the need for manual oversight. The first of these APIs is designed to automate the satellite tasking process, streamlining operations for customers with their own access platforms. The second API offers a simplified method for requesting imagery from ICEYE's vast archive, which contains over 60,000 images. (5/8)

Japan Captures 1st Image of Space Debris From Orbit (Source: Live Science)
A private Japanese company has taken the world's first close-up photo of an individual piece of space debris, by parking another satellite next to it in orbit. This orbital photo op is the first step in an ongoing mission to capture and destroy potentially hazardous pieces of space junk that are clogging up our sky.

It's easy to imagine space as a vast, empty frontier. But since the first satellite launched in 1957, the space surrounding our planet has gotten more and more crowded. Human-made space junk — including used rocket stages, decommissioned satellites, frozen fuel and flecks of paint — has been steadily accumulating in Earth's orbit over the past seven or so decades. Now, the space industry is trying to find ways to remove it. (5//6)

China's Military Satellites Are Watching America's Every Move (Source: Newsweek)
China has added over 400 satellites in the past two years, from which more than half have the capability to track objects on Earth, Gagnon said at the Mitchell Institute. Major General Gregory Gagnon explained that China can now track U.S. military assets even when they are mobile, challenging U.S. monopoly on long-range targeting. The data collected by China's satellites can provide a precise location of military vessels on the move at sea, making their subsequent targeting during conflict easier, according to Gagnon. (5/8)

Russia Reveals New China Nuclear Moon Base Details (Source: Newsweek)
Details about joint plans between Moscow and Beijing to put a lunar nuclear reactor within the next decade have been revealed by the head of Russia's space agency. In March, Roscosmos announced plans to work with China to build an automated nuclear reactor to power a proposed lunar base that the two countries would operate together within the next decade.

To construct the site, Roscosmos director general Yury Borisov said two months ago it was looking at using nuclear-powered rockets to transfer cargo to the moon, but had not yet figured out how to build these spacecraft safely. Borisov said that development of the plant was underway and the countries were working on creating experimental and research facilities as part of the project.

Borisov added that the creation of the International Scientific Lunar Station (ILRS) is planned to be deployed in two stages from 2025 to 2035 and consist of several modules. (5/8)

NASA's Proposed Plasma Rocket Would Get Us to Mars in 2 Months (Source: Gizmodo)
The future of space travel depends on our ability to reach celestial pit stops faster and more efficiently. As such, NASA is working with a technology development company on a new propulsion system that could drop off humans on Mars in a relatively speedy two months’ time rather than the current nine month journey required to reach the Red Planet.

NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program recently selected six promising projects for additional funding and development, allowing them to graduate to the second stage of development. The new “science fiction-like concepts,” as described by John Nelson, NIAC program executive at NASA, include a lunar railway system and fluid-based telescopes, as well as a pulsed plasma rocket. (5/8)

Axiom Space Eyes the Moon While Continuing to Dream Big in Earth Orbit (Source: Space.com)
Axiom's fourth mission, Ax-4, is scheduled to launch no earlier than this October and will send another crew to the ISS for up to two weeks. Such missions, Axiom says, will continue to build knowledge and skills that contribute to the company's goal of building and operating the world's first commercial space station.

Axiom is also building and testing the spacesuit that astronauts will wear on the surface of the moon during NASA's Artemis 3 mission, which is scheduled to launch in September 2026. A prototype of this suit, known as the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), was revealed in March. Like any other space technology, the prototype has to be evaluated and undergo continued alterations before the critical review phase begins in June.

Axiom Space could contribute to Artemis missions in additional ways as well; the company is partnering with Astrolab and Odyssey Space Research on the FLEX lunar rover project, one of three private efforts that just received NASA funding for development work. One of these three private designs is expected to become the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV), which Artemis astronauts will use to drive around on the moon. (5/8)

Why Some Physicists Think We Are Living Inside A Black Hole (Source: IFL Science)
Black holes are strange objects which (though we have learned plenty about them) confound our understanding of physics. In an attempt to reconcile some of the paradoxes discovered when studying them, physicists have proposed stranger hypotheses still, with one suggesting that they imply we live in a holographic universe, where all of what we see and perceive is in fact encoded at our universe's boundary, a 3D (plus time) representation of a two-dimensional (plus time) universe. Further than that, some have suggested that it could imply that our universe is within a black hole of a larger universe. Click here. (5/8)

Existence of Dark Matter Confirmed by New Study (Source: Earth.com)
In the realm of astrophysics, the existence of dark matter has been a prevailing theory used to explain the anomalies observed in the universe. Unlike ordinary matter, dark matter does not emit, absorb, or reflect light, making it invisible and detectable only through its gravitational effects. Recent computer simulations conducted by a team of astronomers, including those from the University of California, Irvine, provide compelling support for this elusive component of our universe.

“Our paper shows how we can use real, observed relationships as a basis to test two different models to describe the universe. We put forth a powerful test to discriminate between the two models,” said Francisco Mercado. The team’s approach involved running simulations that incorporated both normal matter and dark matter. These simulations aimed to recreate the features observed in real galaxies, which are challenging to explain without the presence of dark matter. The findings reveal that these features indeed match those expected in a dark matter universe. (5/8)

Dogged Dark Matter Hunters Find New Hiding Places to Check (Source: Quanta)
In 2019, the Department of Energy launched its Dark Matter New Initiatives program to fund research into experiments that could reach their conclusions quickly — in years instead of the decades required by traditional dark matter detection efforts. Today, a number of these projects are ready to begin construction. Click here. (5/8)

Nuclear Clock Breakthrough Could Revolutionize Study of the Universe's Fundamental Forces (Source: Live Science)
Scientists have made a major breakthrough that takes us a step closer to developing a nuclear clock — a device that keeps time based on the inner workings of atoms. For the first time, physicists have used laser light to bump the nucleus of a thorium atom up to a higher energy level. The discovery paves the way for the development of a new clock whose ticks are not only more precise but can probe the most fundamental forces in the universe.

A nuclear clock would use the energy transitions of nuclei inside the heart of an atom, so they are shielded from outside interference. But many of the gaps between nuclei energy levels are thousands of times greater than those for electrons — meaning they are too large to be crossed with the energy of a laser. But in the 1970s, scientists found that one isotope, or version, of the element thorium (thorium-229) seemed to have an energy level that could be spanned by laser light.

But finding this precise energy gap has been no simple task. Initially, researchers excited thorium-229 to an energy level far above the two that physicists were actually interested in. They then measured the subtle differences in the energy of light emitted when it fell back down to the higher one compared to the one just below it. (5/8)

Warp Speed Possible! Scientists Discover Loophole Making Faster-Than-Light Travel Achievable (Source: Study Finds)
The traditional sci-fi concept of a warp drive involves distorting spacetime in a very specific way: compressing it in front of the ship and expanding it behind. In theory, this would allow the ship to effectively travel faster than light without actually exceeding the speed limit locally. It’s almost like a cheat code for bypassing the laws of physics!

However, previous studies of this idea suggested that it would require exotic forms of matter with “negative energy density.” In our everyday experience, energy is always positive – even in a vacuum, there’s a small positive energy called the “vacuum energy.” Negative energy density, in physics terms, means having less energy than a pure vacuum. This is problematic because the known laws of physics suggest that such negative energy cannot exist in large enough quantities to make a warp drive possible.

This is where the new study comes in. The researchers decided to approach the problem from a different angle. Instead of starting with a preconceived notion of what a warp drive should look like, they asked: what kind of spacetime geometry could transport a ship faster than light while obeying the known laws of physics? The answer, they found, involves a concept called a “shell of regular matter.” Click here. (5/8)

NASA Video Shows What Would Happen if You Fell Into a Black Hole (Source: Newsweek)
In a new video straight out of the movie Interstellar, NASA has revealed what it might look like to fall into a black hole. The simulation was created using a NASA supercomputer, and imagines what a person might see as they plummet past a black hole's event horizon into the abyss beyond. Another simulation shows what a person flying past a black hole would see, with space appearing to bend and twist as the viewer zooms past. (5/8)

NASA Director Is Glad Elon Musk Isn't Running SpaceX (Source: Gizmodo)
NASA plays nicely with privately owned SpaceX, but is that something to be concerned about? In an interview with NPR, NASA director Bill Nelson assuages any fears of an unsupervised Elon Musk running a space agency by reminding us that SpaceX is actually run by its president Gwynne Shotwell. Nelson trusts Shotwell to protect SpaceX from Elon Musk’s often irrational fever dreams, and thus to protect the billions of American tax dollars granted to SpaceX in government contracts from his wayward spending, too. (5/8)

Scientists Announce Discovery of a Planet Twice as Big as Earth with a Thick Atmosphere (Source: PBS)
A thick atmosphere has been detected around a planet that’s twice as big as Earth in a nearby solar system, researchers reported Wednesday. The so-called super Earth — known as 55 Cancri e — is among the few rocky planets outside our solar system with a significant atmosphere, wrapped a blanket of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. The exact amounts are unclear. Earth’s atmosphere is a blend of nitrogen, oxygen, argon and other gases. (5/8)

NASA Challenge Gives Artemis Generation Coders a Chance to Shine (Source: NASA)
NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement selected seven student teams to participate in a culminating event for the 2024 App Development Challenge (ADC), one of the agency’s Artemis Student Challenges, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston from April 15-18, 2024. The coding challenge, celebrating its fifth year and a part of NASA’s Next Generation STEM project, invites middle and high school student teams to create an application visualizing the Moon’s South Pole region and display essential information for navigating the lunar surface. (5/8)

This Spy Satellite, Lost in Space for 25 Years, Reappears on Radar (Source: WECB)
The IRCB S73-7, launched in 1974, was presumed lost for decades before unexpectedly resurfacing on radar in April 2024. Originally deployed to calibrate equipment for the KH-9 “Big Bird” spy satellite program during the Cold War, it ended up classified as space debris following a critical deployment failure. Despite its disappearance, the U.S. Space Force eventually rediscovered it among the estimated 55,000 pieces of tracked debris orbiting Earth. (5/8)

The Geologists Discover a Mysterious Volcanic Activity on the Far Side of the Moon (Source: Softonic)
A group of Chinese geologists has discovered a mysterious volcanic activity in the Apollo lunar basin, located on the far side of the Moon and the next landing area for the Chinese Chang’e-6 mission. This finding could redefine our understanding of lunar volcanism and shed light on the enigmatic asymmetry of the Moon. (5/8)

May 8, 2024

White Sands Propulsion Team Evaluates 3D-Printed Engine Component for Orion (Source: Space Daily)
The Orion spacecraft, designated to transport Artemis mission crews to the Moon, will be powered by a European Service Module from ESA. This module is critical for providing power, propulsion, thermal regulation, and storing essentials until its detachment from the crew module upon reentry.
For the initial Artemis missions, Artemis I to Artemis VI, a repurposed Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) engine from the retired space shuttle fleet will serve as the primary propulsion. However, post-Artemis VI, a new propulsion system will be required for Orion. (5/8)

Moriba Jah is Paving the Way for Sustainable Space Exploration (Source: National Geographic)
Satellites go up, die in space, and stay there for a long time. They become hazardous junk that threatens to smash into other objects, generating more debris. And at thousands of miles an hour, even something as small as a paint chip could cause significant damage. Moriba Jah of Privateer has been working on sounding the alarm. Guided by Indigenous and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK)—and a series of thematic epiphanies—he’s forging a new path for sustainable space exploration. Click here. (5/7)

Starliner Crew Flight Slips to May 17 (Source: Space Policy Online)
The launch of Boeing’s Starliner Crew Flight Test has slipped to at least May 17. The United Launch Alliance, which builds and operates the Atlas V rocket, determined that the malfunctioning valve that scrubbed last night’s attempt needs to be replaced. That means rolling the rocket back to ULA’s Vertical Integration Facility. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Willams will remain in quarantine in crew quarters at Kennedy Space Center awaiting the next chance for a “go for launch.” (5/7)

Virgin Galactic Opens Test Facility in Irvine (Source: Orange County Business Journal)
Virgin Galactic Holdings said it has opened a testing site in Irvine. The company (NYSE: SPCE) will use the facility to test its Delta spaceship before it’s even built, greatly cutting down on the need for extended flight testing. The site is located in an industrial park near the Santa Ana Freeway and the San Diego Freeway, Virgin Galatic said. Shares in Virgin Galactic jumped 10% to $1.05 apiece for a market cap of $428 million after the announcement. (5/6)

Virgin Galactic Revenue Falls Short as Launch Pause Looms (Source: Bloomberg)
Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc.’s revenue missed Wall Street expectations in the first quarter as the space tourism company prepares for its second and final launch of the year. Revenue came to $1.99 million, the company said Tuesday, below analysts’ consensus estimate for $2.09 million and also lower than the $2.81 million it posted last quarter. (5/8)

Virgin Galactic to Increase Flights at Spaceport America (Source: Albuquerque Journal)
Virgin Galactic plans to fly to space 125 times per year beginning in 2026 while scaling up its operations at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico. (5/7)

Rocket Lab Plans More Launches This Year (Source: LA Business Journal)
Rocket Lab USA Inc. has been busy of late with several launches completed and more planned for the future. The next Electron launch from New Zealand – named “Ready, Aim, PREFIRE” – will take place no earlier than May 22. The second mission for NASA – named “PREFIRE And Ice” – will take place within three weeks of the successful deployment of the first. The missions will be Rocket Lab’s 48th and 49th Electron launches overall and its sixth and seventh launches so far this year. (5/6)

Rocket Lab Delays First Flight of Neutron Rocket to Mid-2025 (Source: Bloomberg)
Rocket Lab USA pushed back the first launch of its larger Neutron rocket by several months to mid-2025 at the earliest, as the small satellite-launch company works through engine development. The reusable Neutron booster is designed to compete against SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9. Long Beach, California-based Rocket Lab had previously been targeting a 2024 launch. (5/6)

Rocket Lab Posts Strong First Quarter with Significant Revenue and Growth Projections (Source: Space Daily)
Rocket Lab shared its financial results for the first quarter ending March 31, 2024. Peter Beck highlighted the progress in the company's Space Systems business, including a $515 million contract with the Space Development Agency for a constellation of 18 satellites. Other notable achievements included significant progress on several spacecraft programs and major developments in Rocket Lab's Neutron rocket program.

Second Quarter 2024 guidance includes anticipated revenue between $105 million and $110 million. Projected Space Systems revenue between $77 million and $81 million. Expected Launch Services revenue between $28 million and $29 million. Operating expenses are expected to range from $62 million to $76 million across different metrics. (5/7)

Rocket Lab Initiates Archimedes Engine Testing Phase Following Build Completion (Source: Space Daily)
Rocket Lab has announced the completion of its first Archimedes engine assembly, the new 3D printed, reusable engine for the Neutron medium lift launch vehicle. The company has launched an intensive test campaign with several engine system activations leading up to the initial Archimedes hot-fire. Testing will occur at Rocket Lab's engine test stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. Archimedes, powered by liquid oxygen and methane, is designed for high reusability with a stress-minimized operation and a reuse target of 20 launches per engine. (5/7)

Inred and SES Expand Satellite Internet Coverage in Colombia's Amazonas (Source: Space Daily)
INRED, a Colombian local connectivity service provider, in collaboration with SES, has announced the expansion of high-throughput connectivity services to remote areas in the Amazonas department using SES's Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites. This initiative aims to connect over 500 homes, schools, government entities, and thousands of residents, significantly enhancing digital inclusion under the Amazonas Digital initiative.

The use of SES's MEO satellites, orbiting 8,000 km above Earth, is critical in providing low-latency, high-capacity internet services to Leticia and other rural locales in Amazonas. These satellites are essential in complementing the Colombian government's efforts to ensure comprehensive access to educational, social, and economic opportunities across difficult-to-reach areas. (5/7)

Musk Says AI Has No 'Use' at SpaceX — At Least For Now (Source: Business Insider)
Elon Musk revealed that SpaceX "basically uses no AI." The SpaceX CEO said that although he's open to using it, he hasn't found a use for it yet. "There's still a long way to go," he said.

Musk continued, saying that he's been testing improved AI language models by asking them questions about space — and the results have been disappointing. "With any given variant of or improvements in AI, I mean, I'll ask it questions about the Fermi paradox, about rocket engine design, about electrochemistry — and so far, the AI has been terrible at all those questions," Musk said. (5/6)

I Worked at SpaceX. It Was the Most Ruthlessly Efficient Company I've Ever Worked For (Source: Business Insider)
SpaceX is the most efficient company I've ever worked for. Instead of having a manager and a list of tasks, I was asked to sit in on meetings and add value to projects aligned with my interests or expertise. I thought I would get fired every day during the first six months. There was no one there to tell you what to do. In the military, there was a change of command. At SpaceX, you ask yourself, "How do we do this thing? How do we do it safely? How do we do it so that it's a good value for our customers?" Then you figure it out.

There were no boundaries in my role as long as I was adding value to whatever I was working on. For example, someone would ask if I was interested in flight software, and if I were, I'd be invited to attend those meetings. The directive was if I was in a meeting and it was adding value to what I did daily, stay, or if I was adding value based on my expertise, stay — but if neither of those things were happening, you should get up and respectfully walk out. (5/8)

SpaceX May Extend Starlink Connectivity to Botswana (Source: Bloomberg)
Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi met with executives from SpaceX’s Starlink unit, who expressed an interest in obtaining a license to operate in the southern African nation, according to the presidency. Masisi held a meeting with the Elon Musk-owned company’s director of global licensing and activation while in the US for a business summit. (5/8)

SabreSat: Redwire’s Vehicle to Dart Through VLEO (Source: Space News)
SabreSat, Redwire Space’s satellite for very low Earth orbit, looks more like a dart than a traditional spacecraft. “As you think about aerodynamics, you want the dart to be skinny and long, not stubby and fat,” said Spence Wise, Redwire senior vice president for missions and platforms. Redwire is designing SabreSat for government intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. (5/7)

Eutelsat Is Said to Weigh Sale of Ground Station Network (Source: Bloomberg)
Eutelsat is exploring options for its ground station network, including a sale, that could value the portfolio at more than €800 million ($850 million), according to people familiar with the matter. The company is working with advisers to seek a buyer for the assets, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. The unit is drawing interest from infrastructure investment firms, the people said. (5/3)

Senate Scrambles to Move Amendment-Laden FAA Bill (Source: Simple Flying)
Senators are urgently working to pass a comprehensive Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, including $105 billion for FAA programs and $738 million for National Transportation Safety Board initiatives, before the current temporary authorization expires this week. The bill, which includes amendments to address a national shortage of air traffic controllers and new safety technologies, faces challenges in maintaining bipartisan support amid numerous new amendments. (5/7)

China's Latest Lunar Mission Enters Moon Orbit (Source: Space News)
China's Chang'e-6 lunar sample return mission has entered orbit around the moon. The spacecraft completed a braking burn at 10:21 p.m. Eastern Tuesday, placing the spacecraft into an elliptical orbit with a low point of about 200 kilometers. The spacecraft's lander will separate to attempt to touch down in the Apollo crater on the far side of the moon likely in early June, collecting up to two kilograms of samples for return to Earth. If successful, Chang'e-6 will be the first mission to return samples from the lunar farside.

UN General Assembly Debates Russia Space Nuclear Weapons Veto (Source: AP)
Russia's veto of a U.N. Security Council resolution banning nuclear weapons in space was the subject of a General Assembly debate Monday. In the debate, required when any U.N. Security Council permanent member vetoes a resolution, Russia said it was instead seeking a resolution banning weapons of all kinds in space, calling the resolution's sponsors, Japan and the United States, guilty of "hypocrisy and double standards." The U.S. countered that Russia has tested conventional anti-satellite weapons and that there is "credible information" it is developing a nuclear ASAT. (5/8)

NASA's TESS Back Online (Source: NASA)
NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission has returned to normal operations after its second safe mode in a month. NASA said Tuesday that the spacecraft had resumed science observations last Friday after going into a safe mode April 23. The cause of this safe mode, the second in a month, was linked to a failure to unload momentum from reaction wheels used for attitude control. That failure was, in turn, caused by a propulsion system that was not properly repressurized when the spacecraft came out of an earlier safe mode. NASA says engineers are still investigating what caused TESS to go into the first safe mode earlier last month. (5/8)

NASA Increases Funding for Railway on the Moon (Source: The Telegraph)
NASA has increased funding for a magnet-powered lunar railway that could move materials around the moon’s surface as part of a scheme exploring various sci-fi-style innovations. Float (Flexible Levitation on a Track) is a project run by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and has been advanced to phase two of NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts program (NIAC) studies. (5/7)

Venus and Earth Used to Look Like 'Twin' Planets. What Happened? (Source: NPR)
Ask which planet in the solar system is Earth's closest sibling, and many people might point to Mars. It orbits nearby, just a little farther from the Sun. It was born at the same time and with the same stuff as Earth. And it is thought to have once had rivers and lakes, even oceans. NASA has sent rovers to its surface to help us learn whether the 'red planet' could have once hosted life.

Scientists who study Venus affectionately call themselves Venusians. They like to refer to Venus as Earth's twin. Martha Gilmore is a proud Venusian and a professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Wesleyan University. She says that in the past, our planet would not have looked so different from its two neighbors. "If you were an alien visiting our solar system 4 billion years ago, you would see three rocky planets, each of which had oceans," Gilmore says. (5/8)

Stingy Intel-Sharing a ‘Recipe for Losing,’ Space Force’s Miller Says (Source: C4ISRnet)
Overly restrictive handling of U.S. intelligence and battlefield insights that boxes out allied forces is a failing move, according to the leader of Space Operations Command. DoD and the intelligence community increasingly view a successful fight with Russia and China as requiring teammates: France in a battle for Europe, for example, or Australia in the Indo-Pacific. Hesitancy to share data between countries could translate to disjointed operations and confusion on the front lines. (5/7)

NRO Should Concentrate on Bigger, Badder ‘Tripwire’ ISR Birds (Source: Breaking Defense)
Rather than fixating on large constellations of small satellites, the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) should be looking to build satellites even bigger and more capable of pinpointing targets than today’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance birds to stay ahead of China and Russia, according to a new report. (5/8)

Bipartisan Opposition Builds to Biden’s Plan for Military Space Personnel (Source: Politico)
A bipartisan group of 85 House and Senate members is lining up against the Biden administration’s push to shift space-focused Air National Guardsmen into the Space Force. The lawmakers urged leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services committees in a letter Monday to reject the Pentagon push when their panels consider annual defense policy legislation in the coming weeks. (5/7)

Space Force Taps Commercial Satellites to Fill Demand for Global Insights (Source: Space News)
A Space Force online marketplace that taps into commercial satellite data has executed around $8 million worth of contracts over the past four months. About 25 defense, intelligence, and civilian federal agencies are now buying data and analytic services from the Space Force-run marketplace, said Col. Richard Kniseley, senior materiel leader of the Space Systems Command’s Commercial Space Office. The marketplace was created to support a new program run by the Space Systems Command called Tactical Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Tracking (TacSRT). (5/7)

Air Force Museum Adds Restored Atlas Rocket to Collection (Source: Dayton Daily News)
The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Ohio has welcomed a restored replica to its permanent collection, and you can see it today after three years of preparation by museum personnel. The museum added an LV-3B / SM-65D Atlas rocket for permanent display in the Missile Gallery collection. (5/8)

Coming to Chicago Museums: SpaceX Dragon at MSI (Source: Chicago Tribune)
A SpaceX Dragon and a biofeedback belt worn by astronaut Mae Jemison will go on display May 19 as part of the newly renovated Henry Crown Space Center at the Museum of Science and Industry. Jemison, who was raised in Chicago, was the first Black woman astronaut in space. (5/8)

Hilton Chocolate Chip Cookie – First Food Ever Baked in Space – Touches Down in New Display at the Smithsonian (Source: Hilton)
DoubleTree by Hilton made history when its signature, warm chocolate chip cookie became the first-ever food baked in space, in experiments designed to make long-duration space travel more welcoming and hospitable. Today, the famous chocolate chip cookie baked aboard the International Space Station (ISS) has landed at the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.  (5/8)