SpaceX already may have landed on “Mars.” Amid anticipation that Cameron County could be selected as the location for the world’s first private vertical launch site, SpaceX has developed a subdivision called “Mars Crossing.” It also continued to expand its property holdings into this new year, a Valley Morning Star investigation shows.
Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies, through Dogleg Park LLC, this year purchased 28 new lots surrounding the proposed complex at Boca Chica Beach, bringing the total number of lots it now owns to 88. The total land area purchased encompasses roughly 36 acres of land. In addition, SpaceX has leased 56.5 acres. (2/19)
Russian/Ukrainian Zenit Arrives in California Ahead of Satellite Launch (Source: Itar-Tass)
A Zenit rocket has arrived in Long Beach, California, ahead of an April 12-13 overnight launch taking a communications satellite into orbit. Lift-off from the Pacific Ocean launch platform will be the first this year following the failure and collapse of another Zenit carrier last February, a Russian space industry source told Itar-Tass.
The 3SL rocket and its accelerator block will lift satellite EUTELSAT-38 in the 36th project for the Sea Launch program, 32 of which have been successful. Long Beach-based Sea Launch is rated as the most direct and cost-effective route to geostationary orbit for heavy commercial communications satellites. The company was founded in 1995 to partner America's Boeing, Russia’s RKK space corporation, Norway's Quarner and Ukrainian enterprises Yuzhnoye and Yuzhmash. (2/19)
Astroscale Signs With Astrobotic to Deliver Lunar Dream Time Capsule (source: Astrobotic)
Singapore-based Astroscale has contracted with Astrobotic Technology to send the Lunar Dream time capsule on its October 2015 lunar mission. The time capsule contains the popular Japanese sports drink, Pocari Sweat, which is sold across Asia and in much of the Middle East. The first commercial beverage to be delivered to the Moon’s surface, the Lunar Dream time capsule will be placed on the lunar surface by Astrobotic’s Griffin lander after it touches down in the Lacus Mortis region of the Moon. (2/17)
The Next New (Commercial) Frontier (Source: Roanoke Times)
The cost of going to the moon and back will continue to drop into the hundreds of millions of dollars. Sustainability of a permanent base on the moon will largely depend on how the American government handles private property claims for moon minerals. To address the issue of private property on the moon, Bigelow Aerospace has made a submission to the FAA requesting guidance.
The FAA must address the needs of the commercial space launch sector - a charge given the agency in the wake of the loss of the Challenger. It is clear that viewing the world through the lens of the space shuttle fleet is no longer reality. The next hero remembered by school students will most likely be that of a commercial space astronaut, one launched from Wallops Island, Va., not Cape Canaveral.
An astronaut mission to the moon is now exceedingly more likely to gain financing from private corporate equity, not U.S. taxpayers. Private property on the moon and commercial astronauts are the next wave of reality, coming very soon. (2/19)
Chinese Space Program Inspires U.S. Scientists, Could Spur Competition (Source: The Collegian)
With the declining interest in space travel in the United States and the recent social media success of China's Yutu, some have contemplated whether the U.S. would benefit from a better social media strategy for its missions. “NASA has had some major problems with public relations in the recent past,” Frank Male said. “They should be looking at all options for improving their image. If personifying their rovers helps, then it should be the first step of many.”
Erik Stalcup, K-State alumnus and aerospace engineering graduate student at Case Western Reserve University, said the Chinese moon mission seemed to be making a lot of U.S. scientists happy. “It’s always good to have competition, but it isn’t as focused on militarization as it was before,” Stalcup said. Editor's Note: NASA "personified" its Mars rovers and other missions with Twitter accounts long before China did. (2/19)
Eutelsat Sees Steady Growth as Consumer Broadband Service Gains Traction (Source: Space News)
Satellite fleet operator Eutelsat on Feb. 14 said its consumer broadband service in Europe has maintained market traction and that the company is cautiously optimistic about satellite capacity-lease renewals in the coming weeks from the U.S. Defense Department.
Paris-based Eutelsat, which in the past year has extended its reach over the Pacific and in the Americas, reaffirmed its forecast that it will grow its revenue — aside from acquisition-related revenue — by 2.5 percent in the fiscal year ending next June 30, and 5 percent per year for the two subsequent years. (2/19)
Vega To Launch Two Israeli-built Earth observing Craft (Source: Space News)
Two Israeli-built satellites — one a high-resolution optical reconnaissance spacecraft for the Italian military — will be launched together in early 2016 aboard a European Vega rocket, launch services provider Arianespace said Feb. 19. Both will be placed into sun-synchronous orbits. (2/19)
EU Scientists Set Out to Tackle Radiation-Related Gender Issues in Space (Source: Cordis)
Why are there more men than women in space? The answer might not be as straightforward as you first think. According to physiological models used by NASA, female astronauts have a lower threshold for space radiation than their male counterparts, meaning opportunities for space exploration are more limited for them.
Radiation exposure from a long time spent in deep space or on the surface of certain planets is thought to cause an increase in the probability of developing cancer. According to NASA, the added risk of a male developing cancer on a 1 000-day Mars mission lies somewhere between 1 percent and 19 percent. The odds are worse for women. In fact, because of breasts and ovaries, the risk to female astronauts is nearly double the risk to males.
This means that while all astronauts are somewhat are limited in the missions they can fly, the limitations on female astronauts are far harsher. The work of the ongoing EU Project SR2S ('Space Radiation Superconductive Shield') may change this. Driven by the belief that technology can be sufficiently developed to allow both genders to withstand a long duration stay in space, SR2S aims to solve the issue of radiation protection for all astronauts within the next three years. (2/19)
Orion Underway Recovery Testing Begins off the Coast of California (Source: Space Daily)
About a hundred miles off the coast of San Diego, in the Pacific Ocean, a U.S. Navy ship's well deck filled with water as underway recovery operations began Feb. 18 on a test version of NASA's Orion crew module to prepare for its first mission, Exploration Flight Test-1, in September. Orion was undocked from its cradle and allowed to float out to sea.
Building on the knowledge gained from previous Orion recovery tests performed in calm waters near NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia, the agency's Ground Systems Development and Operations (GSDO) Program began the next phase, seeking turbulent water off the west coast in which to practice recovering the Orion. (2/19)
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