Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Archive for the ‘Space News’ Category

Testing is underway at the Wenchang Space Launch Center for launching China’s new-generation crewed spaceship. The prototype of the spacecraft is developed for the country’s space station and subsequent space missions.

According to China Central Television (CCTV), compared with the crew-carrying Shenzhou spacecraft, the new generation of piloted spacecraft is larger, can carry both astronauts and cargo, and can be reusable.

The un-crewed prototype spacecraft will appraise a range of technologies and lay the technical foundation for sending and carrying back Chinese astronauts to and from China’s space station in the future.

Unpiloted test flight

According to an earlier report on CCTV, the orbit height of the unpiloted test flight will be about 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) – an altitude never reached by China’s Shenzhou series manned spacecraft.

“The new spacecraft uses new heat-resistant material and structure, which is only a third in density compared to the Shenzhou spacecraft, but the heat resistance is three to four times greater,” said Huang Zhen, chief assistant designer of the new manned spacecraft.

“We also upgraded our control on the return trip, which means we will further improve the accuracy of the landing point, and at the same time make sure the astronauts can withstand the impact,” Huang told CCTV.

The test ship will be launched by the Long March-5B rocket. There will also be verification on a new landing method using grouped parachutes and airbags, as well as reusability-related technologies.

Epidemic prevention

Meanwhile, a leading group for epidemic prevention and control has also been set up to ensure that work standards are not lowered and development plans are not delayed while fully implementing the requirements for epidemic prevention and control and overcoming the difficulties in personnel and work caused by the COVID-19 epidemic.

Yang Qing, chief designer of the new-generation manned spacecraft of China Academy of Space Technology told CCTV: “We are now developing a new generation of prototype for manned spaceship. To cope with the epidemic outbreak, we have arranged minimum staff members to fulfill the task on the premise of guaranteeing the high work standards. All the work we carried out here will be notified and confirmed by other staff by telecommunication so as to ensure the work quality.”

For a CCTV video showing preparation of the new-generation spacecraft, go to:

http://pv.news.cctvplus.com/2020/0322/8138437_Preview_8442.mp4

A China Global Television Network (CGTN) detailing the core module and China’s space station plans can be viewed here at:

https://news.cgtn.com/news/33637a4e316b7a6333566d54/index.html

For a CCTV video on China’s new spaceship, go to:

https://youtu.be/ZWQEpIhJfmk

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now performing Sol 2710 tasks. The coronavirus pandemic has meant increased teleworking of Mars science teams to operate the robot on the Red Planet.

“In light of recent events, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has transitioned to teleworking for most employees. For the last few weeks, we have been making preparations so that our rover operations can be carried out with the JPL-based members of the team working remotely,” reports Rachel Kronyak, a planetary geologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “Luckily, most of the science team has been working remotely for years!”

So, for most of the Mars science team, “it’s business as usual, which has helped smooth our transition to full teleworking,” Kronyak adds.

Weekend plan

Recently the team planned a 3-sol weekend plan. Despite the ramp up to fully remote operations, a jam-packed plan of activities has been scripted, centering around drilling target “Edinburgh!”

The weekend plan for Sol 2710 is kicked off with a long science block full of both geological and environmental-focused observations.

During the science block, Curiosity is to perform a Mastcam multispectral observation of the “Eshaness” target. This target has previously been surveyed by the rover’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) and the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) and also underwent a buffing via the Dust Removal Tool (DRT).

Also scheduled is collecting Chemistry and Camera Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (ChemCam LIBS) data on two nearby targets including a soil target “Digg” and bedrock target “Eaglesham,” along with corresponding Mastcam documentation images.

Environmental observations

To wrap up the science block, Kronyak notes, Curiosity will make some standard atmospheric observations, including a Navcam dust devil survey, a Mastcam solar tau (observing aerosol (i.e. dust and such) scattering properties in the air), and a Mastcam crater rim extinction image.

“We have another science block in the early morning of Sol 2711, during which we’ll perform a similar suite of environmental observations as well as a Mastcam 360-degree mosaic,” Kronyak reports. “These hefty mosaics are especially useful during our drill campaigns, as they provide great context for our drilling operations and the broader geology around us.”

The current plan has the rest of Sol 2711 dedicated to drilling the target “Edinburgh.”

Drill tailings

Following a much-deserved night of sleep, Curiosity will wake up on Sol 2712 for the last science block of the weekend plan, Kronyak explains.

During the science block, the rover will take dust devil survey and line-of-sight images with its Navcam. Next, the rover will use ChemCam’s passive mode (no laser) to observe the Edinburgh drill tailings as well as use the Remote Micro Imager (RMI) telescope to take a long-distance mosaic of the target “Three Lochs,” an area further up the Greenheugh pediment.

“We’ll round out the plan by using Mastcam to take a multispectral observation of the Edinburgh drill tailings and take a stereo mosaic to expand our coverage of the ‘Hilltop’ area, first imaged on Sol 2705,” Kronyak says.

“We managed to plan a very full weekend plan for Curiosity, and had a very smooth day of planning for Curiosity’s operations team,” Kronyak concludes. “It’s full steam (or rather, drill) ahead! Stay safe, and continue to explore Mars with us!”

A common hypersonic glide body (C-HGB) test was conducted from the Pacific Missile Range Facility, Kauai, Hawaii on March 19.

The U.S. Navy and U.S. Army jointly executed the launch of, which flew at hypersonic speed to a designated impact point.

Also taking part in the experiment, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) monitored and gathered tracking data from the flight experiment to help in developing systems designed to defend against adversary hypersonic weapons.

This event is considered a major milestone towards the Department of Defense goal of fielding hypersonic warfighting capabilities in the early- to mid-2020s.

Next phase

“Today we validated our design and are now ready to move to the next phase towards fielding a hypersonic strike capability,” said Vice Adm. Johnny R. Wolfe, Director, Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs, which is the lead designer for the C-HGB.

The test built upon the successful Flight Experiment 1 in October 2017, in which the C-HGB achieved sustained hypersonic glide at its target distance, according to a Department of Defense (DoD) statement.

Strike range

Hypersonic weapons, capable of flying at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5), are highly maneuverable and operate at varying altitudes.

“This provides the warfighter with an ability to strike targets hundreds and even thousands of miles away, in a matter of minutes, to defeat a wide range of high-value targets. Delivering hypersonic weapons is one of the department’s highest technical research and engineering priorities,” the DoD statement explains.

The C-HGB – when fully fielded – will comprise the weapon’s conventional warhead, guidance system, cabling, and thermal protection shield. The Navy and Army are working closely with industry to develop the C-HGB. Each service will use the C-HGB, while developing individual weapon systems and launchers tailored for launch from sea or land.

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now carrying out Sol 2709 duties.

A sampling of recent imagery from the robot spotlights its surroundings:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Road map

A recently released map shows the route driven by NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity through the 2702 Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission on Mars (March 13, 2020).

Numbering of the dots along the line indicate the sol number of each drive. North is up. The scale bar is 1 kilometer (~0.62 mile).

From Sol 2700 to Sol 2702, Curiosity had driven a straight line distance of about 9.93 feet (3.03 meters), bringing the rover’s total odometry for the mission to 13.62 miles (21.93 kilometers).

The base image from the map is from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment Camera (HiRISE) in NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Not only did Apollo landing crews get fogged out by the blown dust making touchdowns troublesome, substantial amounts of rock and debris was sent flying during the rocket-powered landings.

New experiments suggest there’s an issue of coming and going lunar traffic, but what to do about the problem? Scientists are working on the workarounds that appear needed if operating and living on the Moon is to become routine.

Take a read about this issue in my new Space.com story:

How will NASA deal with the moon dust problem for Artemis lunar landings?

The Apollo experience holds many lessons

https://www.space.com/nasa-moon-landing-dust-concerns.html

 

 

This year, public space travel appears on the horizon. Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, the work of the Jeff Bezos-backed Blue Origin, and the go-getting goals of Elon Musk and his ambitious SpaceX Starship plans – all pioneering efforts.

It has been a long haul to realize space voyaging by the public.

See You In Orbit? – Our Dream Of Spaceflight has been authored by Alan Ladwig, a former manager of both the Shuttle Student Involvement Program and the Spaceflight Participant Program, which included the Teacher in Space and Journalist in Space competitions. He is now chief of To Orbit Productions, LLC, a consulting and art company.

 

 

 

 

Go to my new Q & A featured on Space.com:

‘See you in orbit?’ New book tackles the enduring dream of public spaceflight

https://www.space.com/see-you-in-orbit-alan-ladwig-public-spaceflight-book.html

 

 

Go to: ‘See you in orbit?’ New book tackles the enduring dream of public spaceflight

https://www.space.com/see-you-in-orbit-alan-ladwig-public-spaceflight-book.html

Curiosity is “go” for drilling reports Ken Herkenhoff, a planetary geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center at Flagstaff, Arizona.

During the acquisition of Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) images on Sol 2705, an arm hiccup prevented the sequence from completing.

“But enough images were successfully acquired that it’s not necessary to repeat the MAHLI sequence, and the arm issue is well understood so that no special recovery activities were required,” Herkenhoff adds.

Hilltop mosaic

A recent plan scripts use of the robot’s Dust Removal Tool to brush of a bedrock target named “Eshaness.”

Curiosity’s Navcam will be used to search for dust devils and clouds, and Mastcam will take stereo image pairs to extend the mosaic of the hilltop.

Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) planned a horizontal Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) raster on a bedrock block dubbed “Corstorphine Hill” and another vertical raster on Glen Finglas using tighter point spacing.

The Right Mastcam is slated to take images of both ChemCam targets and of Glen Feshie, which was obscured by the arm when it was imaged on Sol 2705.

Afternoon nap

After an afternoon nap, MAHLI will acquire a full suite of images of the Eshaness brush spot and images from 25 and 5 cm of a soil patch named “Balliekine.”

 

 

The rover’s Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) will then hover over Balliekine for an evening integration before the instrument is placed on Eshaness for an overnight integration.

Finally, early on the morning of Sol 2707, Chemistry & Mineralogy X-Ray Diffraction/X-Ray Fluorescence Instrument (CheMin) is slated to perform “funnel piezo” and wheel move activities in preparation for the next drill target.

 

 

During recent discussions, the science team concluded that the Mars machinery should go ahead and drill the Edinburgh bedrock target in the next plan.

“Now you can help win the Space Race with the United States Space Force action figures. Build your own Space Force Red or Space Force Blue team OR combine forces to defeat Putin and make space great again!,” explains AMAZO Toys.

 

According to the group, Commander Trump & Commander Obama join forces along with a highly trained army of Space Force Troopers as they race Vladimir Putin and his team of Russian Space Agency Soldiers to the far side of Mars.

 

 

Interchangeable heads

Each 4” United States Space Force action figure has over 14 points of articulation, including multiple accessories and 3 interchangeable heads.

According to AMAZO Toys, if they exceed their funding goal, the group will unlock stretch goals and will add more members to the Space Force Team!

“We’re very excited to finally be able to bring this fun and exciting project to light, and are super eager to begin manufacturing and get Space Force in your hands,” explains the group.

Strategic partners

“We are not a large toy manufacturer like Hasbro or Mattel, but we feel this allows us to be creative and a bit tongue-in-cheek with our projects. And although this is the 1st project from AMAZO and D13 Toys, we also want to make sure you know they have over 15 years in the toy business in a variety of roles, including designers, sculptors, engineers, and project and production managers,” AMAZO points out.

AMAZO and D13 TOYS are collaborating closely with The Four Horseman and other strategic partners to help Space Force get off the ground by advising them on Kickstarter and providing 3D models & assets. 

“Once we have final quantity totals in, we will set up a timeline with the factory and let you know exactly when you can expect these soldiers to be shipping from China,” AMAZO toys explains.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information, go to:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/amazotoys/united-states-space-force-action-figures?

NASA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) released today, March 17, 2020: Audit of NASA’s Development of Its Mobile Launchers

In May 2019, NASA announced the Artemis program with the goal to return U.S. astronauts to the Moon by 2024 using the Space Launch System (SLS), the Agency’s new heavy-lift rocket. The Agency is developing two mobile launchers at Kennedy Space Center that will serve as the ground structure to assemble, process, transport, and launch the SLS.

The first mobile launcher (ML-1)—originally constructed in 2010 for the since-cancelled Constellation Program’s Ares I launch vehicle at a cost of $234 million—required large-scale modifications to support the SLS.

Cost and schedule

The OIG report flags the fact that NASA has greatly exceeded its cost and schedule targets in developing ML-1.

As of January 2020, modification of ML-1 to accommodate the SLS has cost $693 million—$308 million more than the Agency’s March 2014 budget estimate—and is running more than 3 years behind schedule.

To improve potential outcomes for ML-2 development, the OIG report makes four recommendations to NASA’s Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate:

To read the report — Audit of NASA’s Development of Its Mobile Launchers — go to:

https://oig.nasa.gov/docs/IG-20-013.pdf

 

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover recently made a small bump, moving into position to examine “Edinburgh” – a potential drill target.

Over last weekend, the plan called for use of the Dust Removal Tool on Edinburgh and observe the target with Curiosity’s Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam), the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS), the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), and Mastcam’s multispectral filters.

 

 

Full drill or move on?

“We will analyze these observations to help make a decision on Monday about whether we want to continue with a full drill in this area or move on,” reports Abigail Fraeman, a planetary geologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

 

 

Other last weekend planning involved other geology-focused activities, including ChemCam observations of targets named “Tentsmuir,” “Glen Finglas,” and “Glen Feshie,” along with a 19×2 Mastcam mosaic of the robot’s surroundings.

Measuring argon

“We will also conduct a series of environmental science investigations that include a measure of the amount of argon in the atmosphere using APXS, a dust devil survey, and several Navcam observations of far-away targets to characterize the amount of dust in the atmosphere,” Fraeman adds.

Lastly, the rover will take of number of MAHLI images of the surface in front of the Mars machinery at different angles in order to understand how reflected light behaves with different viewing geometries, Fraeman concludes.