Archive for October, 2024
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October 31st, 2024
Image credit: CCTV/CNAS/Inside Outer Space screengrab
China’s Mars Sample Return – Ripple Effects at the Red Planet
It appears that China has moved up their agenda for rocketing collectibles from Mars, and ahead of any still-to-be scripted time period for the U.S. to achieve this same goal.
NASA’s Mars sample return plan, as originally orchestrated by the space agency and the European Space Agency, continues to be scrutinized.
China blueprint for Mars sample return mission.
Image credit: Kanyan Xu/COSPAR
The hoped for bottom line at NASA is a blueprint for the Red Planet, one that offers the highest chance of Mars samples on Earth before 2040 and doing so for under an $11 billion price tag.
Meanwhile, China is on an earlier flight path to achieve what scientists call the “holy grail” of Mars exploration.
Take a look at my new Space.com story that takes the pulse of several leading Mars researchers about their thoughts, concerns, and aspirations for hauling back the goods from the Red Planet.
Go to — Will China return Mars samples to Earth before the US does? – “If, as has been reported, China successfully executes even a ‘grab sample’ at Mars and returns it safely to Earth before the U.S., that would constitute a ‘Sputnik Moment'” – at:
https://www.space.com/the-universe/mars/will-china-return-mars-samples-to-earth-before-the-us-does
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Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer space screengrab
China’s Tiangong space station is now occupied by six astronauts following the rendezvous and docking of the Shenzhou-19 crew, commander Cai Xuzhe and colleagues Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze.
Following launch atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, the Shenzhou-19 craft made a fast automated rendezvous and docking with the space station’s Tianhe core module. The liftoff to docking process took about 6.5 hours.
The newcomers and the Shenzhou-18 crew of Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu will live and work together for about five days to complete planned tasks and handover work, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
Handover and departure
Starting their mission in April, the Shenzhou-18 crew are now slated for a November 4 return to the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region after completing an in-orbit handover with the newly arrived Shenzhou-19 crew.
High-definition images of China’s space station were taken by the departing Shenzhou-16 crew October 30, 2023.
Image credit: CMS
Due to the impact of typhoon Yagi on the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province, China’s next cargo mission to the Tiangong space station, the Tianzho- 8 supply ship has been rescheduled to launch in mid-November, according to Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the CMSA.
For video replay of the arrival of the space station newcomers, go to:
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
All systems for the crewed Shenzhou-19 are ready with weather conditions suitable for the liftoff of Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze.
The new trio of space flyers will launch at 04:27 Beijing Time on Wednesday (2027 GMT on Tuesday/4:27 p.m. Eastern Time) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the country’s northwest, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced Tuesday.
33rd flight mission
For the Shenzhou-19 crew, two of the space travelers, except Cai Xuzhe (mission commander) were born in the 1990s and are from the third batch of Chinese astronauts, reports China Central Television (CCTV).
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
The Shenzhou-19 is the 33rd flight mission of China’s human spaceflight program and the fourth crewed mission during the application and development stage of China’s Tiangong space station.
According to the CMSA, the Shenzhou-19 crew will carry out 86 scientific experiments in space after they enter the orbital outpost.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Space flight engineer
As reported by CCTV, Wang Haoze is billed as China’s first and only female space flight engineer who will embark on the Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceflight mission and “is set to make history as the country’s first rocket designer to ride one of her works into space.”
Wang holds a degree of engineering thermophysics and previously served as a senior engineer at the Academy of Aerospace Propulsion Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Enhanced Shenzhou craft
China’s Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceship features increased in-cabin loading space and enlarged carrying capacity, according to its developer, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC).
CASC said that the enhanced Shenzhou’s loading capacity was done by optimizing the spatial layout of the Shenzhou-19 orbital module.
“By optimizing the installations on and the layout of the orbital module, we have further enhanced the carrying capacity of the Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceship. This allows it to carry more spaceflight supplies for the astronauts and provide them with a more comfortable environment, therefore better supporting their mission throughout the entire spaceflight,” said Liu Qingbo, an aerospace engineer at the CASC.
Shenzhou-19’s loading space has also been expanded by 20 percent from earlier models, enabling the astronauts to carry more time-sensitive supplies and temporary necessities.
In-orbit handover
Now onboard China’s space station is the Shenzhou-18 crew Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu. They began their mission in April and are now slated for a November 4 return to the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region after completing in-orbit handover with the incoming Shenzhou-19 crew.
Shenzhou-18 crew: astronauts Li Guangsu, Ye Guangfu, Li Cong.
Due to the impact of typhoon Yagi on the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province, China’s next cargo mission to the Tiangong space station, the Tianzho- 8 supply ship has been rescheduled to launch in mid-November, according to Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency.
For live launch coverage, go to CCTV at:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1094035451998414/?ref=newsfeed
For pre-launch video of the new Chinese crew, go to:
High-speed return from lunar distance, the thermal protection system of Orion’s crew module must endure blistering temperatures to keep crew members safe. Measuring 16.5 feet in diameter, Orion’s heat shield is the largest of its kind developed for missions carrying astronauts.
Image credit: NASA
NASA remains in an ongoing test mode to determine what’s behind the ablative thermal protective material that chipped away unexpectedly from the Artemis 1 Orion heat shield during its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere back on December 11, 2022.
The Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission splashed down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5-day mission.
During the high-speed, 25,000 miles per hour return from lunar distance, the thermal protection system of Orion’s crew module must endure blistering temperatures to keep crew members safe. Measuring 16.5 feet in diameter, Orion’s heat shield is the largest of its kind developed for missions carrying astronauts.
Orion heat shield features ablative material, called Avcoat.
Image credit: Lockheed Martin
Root cause
But in a post-flight analysis of the Artemis 1 heat shield, NASA identified more than 100 locations where ablative thermal protective material was liberated during its speedy reentry.
Work to determine the root cause did conclude last summer, said NASA’s Lori Glaze Deputy Associate Administrator (Acting) Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
Speaking October 29 at the Annual Meeting of the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group being held in Houston, Texas, Glaze did not say what root cause was uncovered.
However, Glaze said that additional testing is ongoing before any final determination is made. That testing will conclude by the end of November, then provided to NASA chief, Bill Nelson, for a final decision.
Arc Jet Complex at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley has been used to study unexpected heat shield issues found after Orion capsule’s Artemis I flight in 2022.
Image credit: NASA Ames Research Center
Artemis II
Meanwhile, NASA is moving forward on readying the Artemis II hardware to support hurling a four-person crew to sojourn out beyond the Moon, then return to Earth.
The Artemis II crew is to depart Earth no earlier than September 2025 on a 10-day trek.
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
In classic “wait a minute” style, a NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) report was issued in May of this year – “NASA’s Readiness for the Artemis II Crewed Mission to Lunar Orbit” – calling attention to this issue and others before sending off the first human crew toward the Moon since 1972 – the Apollo 17 mission.
Image credit: NASA OIG
To ensure the safety of the crewed Artemis II mission, the OIG report recommended the Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate to ensure the root cause of Orion heat shield char liberation is well understood prior to launch of the Artemis II mission.
The OIG report called for analysis of Orion separation bolts using updated models that account for char loss, design modifications, and operational changes to Orion prior to the Artemis II launch.
The report by the NASA OIG also notes that “human space flight by its very nature is inherently risky, and the Artemis campaign is no exception. We urge NASA leadership to continue balancing the achievement of its mission objectives and schedule with prioritizing the safety of its astronauts and to take the time needed to avoid any undue risk.”
Engineers and technicians conduct inspections of the heat shield on the Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft after splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 11, 2022.
Image credit: NASA/Skip Williams
Avcoat changes
The heat shield features the same ablative material called Avcoat used in Apollo lunar outings and return-to-Earth missions. However, the building process has changed, according to Lockheed Martin that fashioned Orion’s thermal protection system.
“Instead of having workers fill 300,000 honeycomb cells one by one with ablative material, then heat-cure the material and machine it to the proper shape, the team now manufactures Avcoat blocks – just fewer than 200 – that are pre-machined to fit into their positions and bonded in place on the heat shield’s carbon fiber skin,” the aerospace firm’s website explains. That process is a timesaver in putting on the Avcoat – about a quarter of the time.
So here’s the lingering and nagging question: Is it possible that changes in the Avcoat may be needed? If so, that decision would seemingly necessitate de-coupling the heat shield from the Artemis II Orion capsule.
Credit: Lockheed Martin
Heat shield hiccups
When the heat shield issue first came to light, Inside Outer Space contacted the Orion program office at NASA Johnson Space Center for comment regarding the heat shield hiccups.
“During Artemis I post-flight inspection, engineers observed variations of Avcoat material across the appearance of Orion’s heat shield. Some areas of expected charred material ablated away differently than computer modeling and ground testing predicted, and there was slightly more liberation of the charred material during re-entry than anticipated,” the program office stated.
“We expect the material to ablate with the 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit the spacecraft encounters on a re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere, and to see charring of the material through a chemical reaction, but we didn’t expect the small pieces that came off, versus being ablated,” the NASA statements adds.
Healthy margin
“We don’t know yet exactly how much was liberated, which is why we’re analyzing the data, but there was a healthy margin remaining of virgin Avcoat, and temperature data inside the cabin remained at expected levels, so if crew were on board they would not have been in danger,” explains the program office statement.
Image credit: NASA OIG
“It’s still too early in our testing and analysis to arrive at any potential recommendations or solutions that address additional char liberation,” NASA responded. “It’s possible the phenomenon may just [be] part of what the heat shield is, and what we would expect as we return from the Moon, but we’ll let the data inform us.”
Lastly, the NASA Orion program office stated: “We’ll continue to protect for variations that could happen during re-entry as we want to ensure we have significant margin against the various types of uncertainties that might occur as the spacecraft re-enters the atmosphere. Our teams want the confidence that we have the best heat shield possible to fly humans going forward.”
In double-checking with the NASA Orion program office today, Inside Outer Space was advised “we have not made any decisions yet, but NASA will provide an update on our plans after the completion of the investigation, and we have determined a forward path.”
Earlier reporting
In earlier reporting, here’s my take on the situation, as posted on Space.com:
“NASA still investigating Orion heat shield issues from Artemis 1 moon mission” at:
https://www.space.com/nasa-investigate-orion-heat-shield-artemis-1-mission
For a full read of the NASA OIG report, go to:
https://oig.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/ig-24-011.pdf
For an informative Lockheed Martin video on Orion’s re-entry, go to:
Nine candidate landing regions for NASA’s Artemis III mission The background image of the lunar South Pole terrain within the nine regions is a mosaic of LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) WAC (Wide Angle Camera) images.
Image credit: NASA
NASA has released an updated set of nine potential landing regions near the lunar South Pole for its Artemis III mission.
The refined candidate Artemis III lunar landing regions are, in no priority order:
— Peak near Cabeus B
— Haworth
— Malapert Massif
— Mons Mouton Plateau
— Mons Mouton
— Nobile Rim 1
— Nobile Rim 2
— de Gerlache Rim 2
— Slater Plain
Criteria used
According to NASA, these regions contain diverse geological characteristics and offer flexibility for mission availability.
Rendering of Artemis astronauts exploring a lunar south pole crater. A water ice-rich resource ready for processing?
Image credit: NASA
Criteria used to pick these regions: Science potential, launch window availability, terrain suitability, communication capabilities with Earth, and lighting conditions.
Additionally, the multidisciplinary team assessed the combined trajectory capabilities of NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the SpaceX Starship Human Landing System to ensure safe and accessible landing sites.
The lunar South Pole has never been explored by a crewed mission and contains permanently shadowed areas that can preserve resources, including water, NASA explains.
Image credit: NASA
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
In the coming few days left of the month, China’s Shenzhou-19 crew will depart Earth for a rendezvous and docking with the country’s space station.
The now-orbiting Shenzhou-18 crew aboard the Tiangong space station is preparing for their return mission while wrapping up remaining experiments. Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu were sent into space for a six-month mission in April this year.
China’s Shenzhou-18 crew.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space
They are expected to hand over operation of the orbiting outpost with the Shenzhou-19 members in late October.
The measurement and control system for the launch of China’s Shenzhou-19 piloted spaceship is set to for liftoff later this month, according to engineers at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.
A Long March 2F carrier rocket, topped with the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft, now sits on its pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Comprehensive drill
At the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, crews carried out on Saturday a comprehensive drill, involving all launch systems and units, to test their readiness for the upcoming mission.
The drill simulated the whole launch process from functional checks of the launch tower, the carrier rocket and the spaceship, to flight preparations, rocket blastoff and rocket-spaceship separation.
According to China Central Television (CCTV) the three Shenzhou-19 crew members — whose names are yet to be revealed — also participated in the drill, during which they completed equipment checks and finished the key flight maneuvers by cooperating with the ground personnel.
“The collaboration between the ground control personnel and the crew, as well as the collaboration among the crew members were quite good,” said Xing Lei, a staff member of the Beijing-based China Astronaut Research and Training Center.
“After the drill, the three astronauts will make final preparations for the launch, during which they will receive close medical monitoring and continue to conduct skill trainings,” Xing told CCTV.
For a video of launch preparations, go to:
Map of Mars with the tropics (±25°) shaded. With sufficient greenhouse warming, the first tree on Mars grows outside the tropics in Hellas Basin.
Image credit: Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data/Olszewski, et al.
What is the amount of greenhouse warming required to heat up the cold climes of Mars enough so that trees can grow on the Red Planet?
New research points to how much you’ve got to jack up the carbon dioxide (CO2) on Mars to support plant growth, to raise the planet’s temperatures just enough for trees to grow.
Surprisingly, the conditions that would allow plant growth on the Red Planet do not occur first in the “tropics” of the planet.
Energy balance
This futuristic plant growing scenario is led by Robert Olszewski, a professor at Warsaw University of Technology in Poland. He and research associates have led a look at the surface energy balance at Mars, such as the diffusive exchange of heat between carbon dioxide condensation and evaporation, heat exchange with the subsurface, and the transport of heat by atmospheric circulation.
NASA Viking missions to Mars of the 1970s.
Credit: NASA
“Surprisingly, the conditions that allow plant growth do not occur first within the tropics (±25°) but in the Hellas Basin region. A further increase in the greenhouse effect expands the area suitable for plant growth in the southern hemisphere,” a new research paper explains.
Using in part Viking Mars lander temperature and pressure datasets gleaned in the 1970s, Olszewski and research team members have simulated a variety of processes on Mars, both at present and in past/future epochs.
“Here, we use the baseline model to investigate the greenhouse effect caused by an increase in CO2 plus artificial greenhouse warming,” Olszewski notes in a paper presented at an “Astrobiology and the Future of Life Meeting” held recently at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas.
Pressure cooker
Olszewski and colleagues assessed the total pressure on Mars needed, the high percentage of acceptable CO2, the O2 needed, amount of water available, and the range of temperatures necessary for tree growth.
Mosaic of the Valles Marineris hemisphere of Mars composed of 102 Viking Orbiter images of this huge feature on the Red Planet.
Credit: NASA, USGS, Viking Project
The atmospheric conditions existing on Mars today make the existence of life impossible,” Olszewski points out. “The requirements for plant growth on Mars have been considered in the context of terraforming and for low-pressure greenhouses.”
The research focused on temperature “as this is the fundamental environmental variable that changes during terraforming and it controls the CO2 cycle and the formation of liquid water,” Olszewski adds. Oxygen levels in a thick warmer atmosphere remain an important separate concern.
Growing season
“Focusing on the temperature, it must be several tens of degrees higher, while the diurnal fluctuations should be much lower. For the growth of trees, the growing season must last at least 110 sols (Martian days),” the research shows, given a certain minimum temperature, average temperature, and maximum temperature that could be reached on the Red Planet.
Olszewski and research colleagues point out that, on Earth , the highest elevation treelines are primarily found in the tropics – but modulated by the location of the thermal equator. “Thus, it may be expected that equatorial regions of Mars would be the location of the first tree.”
A future Mars protected from the direct solar wind should come to a new equilibrium allowing an extensive atmosphere to support liquid water on its surface.
Credit: J.L.Green, et al.
But due to Mars’ relatively large orbital eccentricity, the southern hemisphere, which has summer near perihelion, has relatively warm summers, the researchers observe. In addition, the orbital period of Mars is 1.9 Earth years.
Therefore, the long warm southern summer provides the first growing season suitable for trees,” Olszewski reports. “Specifically, we find that the low elevation of the Hellas Basin allows the creation of the first conditions favorable to tree growth,” the researchers conclude.
Image credit: Leonard David Space Archives
Going once, going twice…got a bid?
I’m pleased to take part in today’s RR Auction focused on space items – one of which is from my archives, a letter from Neil Armstrong, the first human on the Moon.
Go to:
For detailed information on the auction today, go to:
https://www.rrauction.com/auctions/details/702-space/
Special thanks to Scott Sacknoff of the Space 3.0 Foundation, Inc. for his invaluable expertise and assistance in culling through over 60 years of my space collections, with more items going up for sale in the near future.
Image credit: Leonard David
For an early story on my extensive space archives, go to:
Leonard David’s Space Archives: Work in Progress at:
https://www.leonarddavid.com/leonard-davids-space-archives-work-in-progress/
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
In case you missed this unidentified flying opportunity – there’s a disclosure movement underway!
Billed as a first-of-its-kind event, a wide range of speakers and specialists took part in “Global Disclosure Day” that was held on October 20.
The thrust of the occasion is that there’s a “major sea change” in the history of the UFO, now tied to the term (rightly or wrongly) as Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, or UAP.
“Up until very recently, the onus was on the movement to prove UFOs were real. Now, so much information has come out at such high levels of the U.S. Government that the burden is now on those who tried to keep UFOs a secret to prove that they are NOT real. We are in a new time,” contend event organizers at the New Paradigm Institute.
Image credit: SCU
Global citizen action
Global Disclosure Day was convened in the spirit of Earth Day and seeks to celebrate UAP Disclosure and the importance of global citizen action on the subject at hand…and in the skies.
Credit: Orbitz
The video is worth a watch as it is a “Wait-a-Minute” rendezvous with the true-believer community, who’s who, and also I think sheds light on what’s still missing in all of this – specifically, more conversation about the consequences of contact in terms of active SETI projects contrasted to “they’re here” advocates.
Let me know what you think!
Go to:
https://youtu.be/dabo3BrInng?si=lrHl5NCHZ91grHdM
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
The prestigious National Academies has taken a hard look at the NASA of today and what’s ahead.
And for a space agency that has been a leader in exploring our planet and other worlds, it is in a world of hurt.
That’s the thrust of a hard-hitting report from an Academies blue-ribbon committee.
Norm Augustine, committee chair and former Lockheed Martin CEO, details report findings during a webinar.
Image credit: National Academies/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Core issues
The report released last month is titled “NASA at a Crossroads: Maintaining Workforce, Infrastructure, and Technology Preeminence in the Coming Decades.”
Out-of-date infrastructure, pressures to prioritize short-term objectives, budget mismatches, inefficient management practices, and nonstrategic reliance on commercial partners are spotlighted as core issues needing attention.
For an inside look at the report itself, and reactions to its findings, go to my new Space.com story — “NASA at a crossroads: Budget woes, aging infrastructure and hard choices ahead – ‘This is not a time for business as usual'” – at:
https://www.space.com/nasa-crossroads-budget-issues-national-academies-report
Image credit: NASA
