Archive for the ‘Wait a Minute!’ Category
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November 12th, 2025
Shenzhou-20 crew is seen in this pre-launch image.
(Image credit: China Manned Space Agency)
Due to a suspected impact from space debris, China’s Shenzhou-20 three-person crew are delayed in their return to Earth.
It has been a week since the re-entry wave-off on November 5th was called.
Meanwhile, the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO) stated on Tuesday that all preparatory work for ensuring the safe return of the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship has been progressing orderly.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Implementing the plan
Related contingency plans and measures have since been put in place to comprehensively conduct simulation analysis, tests and safety analysis for the Shenzhou-20 spaceship and study the plan for implementing the crew’s return to Earth, said the CMSEO.
All systems are conducting various tests and coordinated adjustments and tests in strict accordance with the procedures as well as assessing the status of key products and checking their quality, while the landing site is organizing comprehensive rehearsals for the return mission, CMSEO added.
The Shenzhou-20 crew has been conducting scientific experiments and tests together with the newly-arrived Shenzhou-21 crew.
Astronauts on the Shenzhou-21 manned spaceship were greeted by the Shenzhou-20 crew, who they will be replacing, after successfully docking with China’s Tiangong space station in orbit on November 1 to begin the handover of duties.
Image credit: CMSA/CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Safety first
Following the decision to rearrange the crew’s return, mission planners and engineers promptly started following emergency response measures based on the principle of “putting the safety of astronauts first”, the China Manned Space Agency said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
What is not known is where the space debris struck the Shenzhou-20 return craft.
There is the possibility that an uncrewed Shenzhou-22 may be flown to China’s space station.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
A just-issued China Central Television (CCTV) video seemingly shows ground crews working at the launch site under nighttime conditions, perhaps indicating the booster and spacecraft are being readied – although this is speculation.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Go to video at: https://www.facebook.com/reel/674928955688540
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Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Yet another wait-a-minute moment for NASA’s return to the Moon with humans program.
As it has repeatedly warned, panel members of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) – a group that reports to NASA and the U.S. Congress – have once again red-flagged the SpaceX Starship’s development tied to the space agency’s needs to return human boots to the Moon
A September 19th ASAP gathering underscored Starship’s longer than planned evolution to support the Artemis 3 mission to land a crew at the lunar south pole.
Image credit: ASAP
NASA officials are reportedly considering pushing off Artemis 3 to 2028 while other appraisals don’t see a Starship-aided Moon landing before 2032.
If so, the window of opportunity for China’s human exploration of the Moon by 2030 looms large.
Technical readiness level
The ASAP annual report for 2024 provides the backdrop of concern.
“Artemis III is planned as a crewed surface landing and exploration of the lunar south pole region. The Panel remains very concerned that, on the current schedule and with the current technical readiness level of some segments of the architecture, the Artemis III mission is oversubscribed.”
Image credit: ASAP
As the ASAP previously detailed in its 2023 Annual Report, “the aggregated risk associated with accomplishing so many ‘first-time’ milestones, including several critical prerequisite demonstrations, may be too high.”
Bottom line: Starship HLS remains a critical path item for the successful execution of Artemis III.
For details on the recent ASAP meeting, go to Marcia Smith’s detailed reporting on her Spacepolicyonline.com website at:
https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/nasa-safety-panel-estimates-significant-delays-for-starship-hls/
Hearing – anybody listening?
Angst regarding the status of Artemis 3 also penetrated U.S. Senator Ted Cruz’s Senate hearing back on September 3.
Image credit: Inside Outer Space screengrab
That hearing was titled: “There’s a Bad Moon on the Rise: Why Congress and NASA Must Thwart China in the Space Race.”
Among the witnesses testifying, former NASA chief, James Bridenstine stated in written testimony that the United States does not have a lunar lander.
“Unless something changes, it is highly unlikely the United States will beat China’s projected timeline to the Moon’s surface. Our complicated architecture requires a dozen or more launches in a short time frame, relies on very challenging technologies that have yet to be developed like cryogenic in-space refueling, and still needs to be human rated,” Bridenstine said.
Starship 10 departure.
Image credit: SpaceX/Inside Outer Space screengrab
“While the capability could be transformational over time if payload capacity increases (so far it has decreased), the complexity of the architecture precludes alacrity,” the former NASA chief added.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship team is making progress on the next flight test of the Super Heavy/Starship at the firm’s Starbase facility in Texas.
No target launch date has been announced as yet for Starship Flight 11.
Fly…learn…repeat…fingers-crossed…fly…learn…repeat…
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
There is continued concern regarding disclosure of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs).
So much so that next week the U.S. Congress will hold a hearing titled: “Restoring Public Trust Through UAP Transparency and Whistleblower Protection.”
To be explored on September 9 is reported information that’s being held by federal agencies on UAP and how best to examine transparency issues surrounding the Department of Defense (DoD) and the intelligence community.
Image credit: SCU
Also to be evaluated is the work and effectiveness of DoD’s congressionally mandated All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO).
It’s yet another wait-a-minute moment in probing UAPs.
Witness list
Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna will lead as Chairwoman of the House Declassification Task Force – a subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Witnesses are to be:
UAP have been reported by military pilots unlike anything they have ever witnessed.
Image credit: Enigma Labs/Lt. Cmdr. Alex Dietrich
Jeffrey Nuccetelli, U.S. Air Force Veteran
Chief Alexandro Wiggins, UAP Witness
Dylan Borland, UAP Witness, U.S. Air Force Veteran
George Knapp, UAP Journalist
Maximum transparency
Image credit: SOL/Inside Outer Space screengrab
“The American people deserve maximum transparency from the federal government on sightings, acquisitions, and examinations of UAPs and whether they pose a potential threat to Americans’ safety,” Congresswoman Luna said in a statement.
“Whistleblowers who provide details on spending information and policies and procedures regarding the classification and declassification of UAPs should be able to do so without retribution,” Luna added. “I look forward to hearing from witnesses on how the federal government can improve transparency and provide better answers on UAPs.”
To witness for yourself the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets hearing that starts at 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time — “Restoring Public Trust Through UAP Transparency and Whistleblower Protection” – go to this website at:
Wait-a- minute, Congress at work.
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Lagrange points are special locations in space where the gravitational forces from a pair of large celestial bodies interact in out of the ordinary ways.
Lagrange points are named in honor of Italian-French mathematician Josephy-Louis Lagrange.
They offer unique advantages for human-made space objects to loiter indefinitely with minimal expenditure of propulsive energy. These locales are increasingly populated by spacecraft of many nations.
Enter a legal question in wait-a-minute style: should those locations be treated as “the common heritage of mankind?”
Image credit: NASA
Professor David Koplow of the Georgetown University Law Center makes the case in an article just published by the Michigan Journal of International Law. The paper is titled “Pave Outer Space and Put Up A Parking Lot: Lagrange Points Should Be the Common Heritage of Mankind.”
L-point use
But first a few “pointers” about L-points.
For example, the L1 point of the Earth-Sun system affords a continuous view of the Sun and is home to the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite – a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).
Then there’s the outward looking James Webb Space Telescope nicely parked in Sun-Earth L2, roughly 1 million miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth.
Image credit: NASA, STScI, CSA
Also the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) is stationed at the Sun–Earth L1 Lagrange Point
Lastly, in the Earth-Moon system, five Lagrange points are numbered from L1 to L5. The L5 point was popularized by the late Gerard O’Neill and the L5 Society, seen as perfect for establishing a space colony.
Suitable rules
“Lagrange points are scarce and potentially very useful for commercial, civil, and military applications,” Koplow tells Inside Outer Space. “This is a rare opportunity for the international community to develop suitable rules in advance of the rush for the scarce ‘parking places’ in space.”
Lagrange points constitute a limited resource that is just beginning to be occupied, Koplow points out in the paper. “Existing international law is inadequate for optimal governance of their future occupation and use,” he states.
Koplow points out that not all sectors of space are equally valuable for all applications. The most desirable venues can become crowded, “affording a premium for those who gain access first and impeding the development of a fair and efficient all-inclusive international legal regime.”
Image credit: NASA Ames Research Center/Rick Guidice
First come, first served?
In Koplow’s view, space is a venue for multiple forms of competition, and some of that may spread to the Lagrange points. The question, to be resolved sooner or later, he adds, is what will be the rules for allocating access and use – first come, first served, or some more equitable system for sharing the benefits?
“The concept of the ‘common heritage of mankind’ refers to a system that allocates control over a scarce resource to the entire world, instead of to the countries and companies that happen to get there first,” Koplow told Inside Outer Space. “The concept has been applied – always with great controversy – in other shared spaces, and I argue that it should be extended to the Lagrange points,” he concludes.
The Michigan Journal of International Law (MJIL) article — “Pave Outer Space and Put Up a Parking Lot: Lagrange Points Should Be the Common Heritage of Mankind” — is available (for free) on-line at:
https://repository.law.umich.edu/mjil/
MJIL is a student-run law journal published by the University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Call it an SOSS message – a Save Our Solar System planetary science community communiqué.
It is unquestionably a “wait-a-minute” concern running through the space science research groups.
Given the considerable uncertainty about the future NASA Science budget given projected Trump Administration funding considerations, the chairs of analysis/assessment groups (AGs), linked to the space agency’s Planetary Science Division, issued a statement today.
The statement has been stirred up by the President’s top-level recommendations on discretionary funding levels for fiscal year (FY) 2026, or so-called “skinny budget.”
Image credit: White House
Budget specificity
The term skinny budget means that the document contains brief descriptions of programs and recommended financial reductions or increases.
Still to come is the “Full Monty” of budget specificity that’s expected shortly.
That skinny budget was released on May 2 and noted major cuts to NASA’s Science Mission Directorate budget, such as cancelling the top Decadal priority flagship mission, Mars Sample Return.
NASA’s Perseverance rover has been busy at work collecting Mars samples at Jezero Crater. A projected Mars Sample Return program would bring those specimens to Earth for state-of-the-art analysis.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
“The extent of the proposed cuts to, or cancellation of, missions and programs, including research and analysis, will not be known until the full budget is released,” the statement observes. “That budget will make its way through Congress, where changes of unknown magnitude are likely to be made and we won’t know the final FY26 budget for some time to come.”
Image credit: NASA/Jenny Mottar
Impacts of NASA science
As reiterated in the statement, the positive impact of science at NASA and crucial role it plays in broad societal terms include:
- Exploration and research in planetary science enables us to better understand the history of the Solar System, as well as our planet and origins;
- Deep space exploration is a tremendous source of innovation in science and technology having applications well beyond space science research, including in the commercial sector, where over 60 years of investment and development have placed the US at the forefront of research and technological advancements in general;
- Planetary and space science research has served as an inspiration for generations of present and future scientists and engineers. NASA’s science and exploration contribute to our national posture, where US leadership in planetary science is a source of geopolitical soft power;
- NASA’s spaceflight missions and associated scientific research are thoughtfully developed and carefully prioritized, being guided by reports from the independent National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine; these reports are written by top scientists and engineers and represent the consensus view of their respective communities as to the activities that will be of greatest value to science and the American taxpayer over decadal timespans;
- Science at NASA engages some of the brightest minds of the nation to develop solutions to problems of human survival and growth based on fact-based inquiry and analysis – although life and civilization are robust, the geologic record shows the Earth’s and the Solar System’s history of catastrophe and global change, from extinction-level impacts to solar storms to ice ages and hot-houses and science enables us to understand these better; and
- At the broadest level, science everywhere represents fundamental human curiosity, helping us to understand the world around us and develop innovative solutions to problems, enabling us to become more productive, and make informed decisions about societal concerns.
Eating the seed corn
In closing, the statement signed by AG officials reminds the reader of an observation of noted space scientist, Carl Sagan:
Astronomer Carl Sagan poses with a model of a NASA Viking lander in Death Valley, California.
Image credit: NASA
“Cutting off fundamental, curiosity-driven science is like eating the seed corn,” Sagan advised. “We may have a little more to eat next winter but what will we plant so we and our children will have enough to get through the winters to come?”
The letter explains that by abandoning our most ambitious efforts, such as Mars Sample Return, which already have substantial investment, “will cede this position of leadership to other nations, such as China.”
Lastly, the communiqué concludes that science at NASA deserves “full-throated support from our community and the public.”
For their part, the AG chairs are working diligently to represent the PSD community in this time of change, “but we encourage you to make your voice heard, and the more voices, the more powerful the impact will be.”
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
A U.S. Senate committee is set to vote tomorrow on Jared Isaacman, the Trump Administration’s selectee for NASA administrator.
That’s one small step for Isaacman in true wait-a-minute style deliberation.
On Wednesday, April 30, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a full committee Executive Session to vote on whether to advance Isaacman’s nomination to lead NASA.
Entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, President Trump’s nominee to be NASA administrator, appears April 9 before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and testifies that NASA is a “force multiplier for science.”
NASA / Bill Ingalls
Isaacman appeared before the committee on April 9. In written answers to questions, Isaacman revealed more of his views regarding his handling of NASA issues.
Isaacman did call the projected Trump administration’s planned cuts to NASA not “an optimal outcome.”
REPUBLICAN QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD – Go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/services/files/5C22B600-2AAB-4ACF-AE89-FA78A04E602D
DEMOCRATIC QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD – Go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/services/files/13EEBAAD-3523-45C8-BB97-EB1031A01741
Image credit: NASA
What now?
As for taking over NASA, there’s still some question as to when Isaacman does get confirmed – and what space agency decision-making is still to come.
“Tomorrow is just a committee vote. It could be days, weeks or months before the full Senate votes. We’ll see what the issues are then,” said Marcia Smith, founder and editor of the informative SpacePolicyOnline.com at: https://spacepolicyonline.com/
If days, Smith added, the top job will be seeing if it’s too late for Isaacman to have any influence on the budget request. “Once Trump sends it to Congress he’ll have to support whatever it says.”
To watch the livestream on Wednesday, April 30, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/
Meanwhile, take a look at this just-issued NASA release, “NASA Soars to New Heights in First 100 Days of Trump Administration.” Go to:
Wait-a- minute, Congress at work.
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
It’s a wait-a-minute moment as featured in a new issue of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
“Mars Attacks: How Elon Musk’s plans to colonize Mars threaten Earth” is the work of Kelly Weinersmith and Zach Weinersmith, adapted from their book A City on Mars
Can we settle space, should we settle space, and have we really thought this through? (Penguin Press).
This fully-illustrated comic explores the implications of space colonization.
“If the world’s most powerful nation, helped along by history’s most powerful rocket company, were to scrap international space law, it would have consequences that may echo for centuries,” writes Kelly Weinersmith, adjunct faculty member at Rice University, and Zach Weinersmith, creator of the popular webcomic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal.
Artwork credit: Zach Weinersmith
Signing of Outer Space Treaty.
Image credit: United Nations
Outer Space Treaty
“Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, is intent on creating a one-million-person colony on Mars. As the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, Musk also seems content to break anything that stands in his way—including potentially a Cold War era treaty that has kept humanity safe for over 50 years, the Outer Space Treaty (OST),” they write. “Musk’s rejection of international governance could have lasting implications for life on earth, and could augur a new era of geopolitical conflict.”
To read the full story, go to:
“Wait-a-minute”
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Call it a pre-emptive strike, as well as a “wait-a-minute” moment in U.S. rocketry.
A Boeing-backed website is in full-advocacy mode for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS).
Image credit: Watch U.S. Fly
On one hand, pundits are poking at the Boeing SLS contract, at a time of internal and external looks at NASA’s budgetary condition.
For good measure, toss in SpaceX’s Elon Musk and his Trump-supported Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) campaign. And then there’s the upshot from Musk’s Starship program.
Image credit: SpaceX
There’s even discussion of skipping the Moon and heading for Mars – a scenario that would question the ongoing NASA Artemis “rebooting” of the Moon with human expeditions.
Critical component
SLS is a powerful rocket that’s “irreplaceable” to our nation’s long-term space strategy, the website states. “Congress must prioritize its continued funding to establish America’s leadership role in space.”
Space Launch System (SLS) Credit: NASA/MSFC
SLS is the centerpiece of the Artemis missions, argues the website, “and a critical component for America’s continuing dominance in space. Importantly, it’s the only rocket that can lift the Orion spacecraft, astronauts, and supplies to the Moon in a single mission.”
“Adversarial nations like Russia and China are investing heavily in space exploration, which puts America’s role as the global space leader in jeopardy,” states a communique, adding that “NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) is the answer to this threat.”
Letter-writing campaign
A letter-writing campaign for “SLS Will Deliver US Dominance in Space” is at:
For more details, go to:
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
There is increasing angst in the ranks of NASA space explorers about the overall future health and vitality of the agency.
For example, The Planetary Society recently put out a 911 emergency dispatch about reported cuts to NASA that “would amount to an ‘extinction event’ for space science and exploration.
“The Planetary Society is deeply alarmed by reports that the White House will propose a 50% cut to NASA’s science activities in the upcoming agency budget request.”
Trump’s pick to run NASA
It’s a wait-a-minute moment given President Trump’s pick to run NASA – Jared Isaacman, an American entrepreneur, philanthropist and commander of two SpaceX Dragon capsule sojourns into Earth orbit.
Piloting his way to NASA, Jared Isaacman.
Image credit: Jared Isaacman
Back in early December 2024, Isaacman “X-tolled” President Trump’s nomination to serve as the next Administrator of NASA. “Having been fortunate to see our amazing planet from space, I am passionate about America leading the most incredible adventure in human history,” he posted.
A February 18 communiqué from the nominee had him flying himself back to Washington, D.C. to “continue NASA confirmation prep” that night. “I am grateful to President Trump for this chance to give back to the nation that enabled me to live the American dream.”
Image credit: White House
Work in progress
Meanwhile, the ongoing steps taken by President Trump’s administration to transform and reduce in size the federal workforce is work in progress.
The topsy-turvy action plan includes the work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an advisory group to modernize and perk up the effectiveness of the federal government. DOGE is led by billionaire Elon Musk, the SpaceX chief rocketeer, with DOGE seen by some as controversial and confusing.
NASA’s Acting Administrator, Janet Petro, has requested space agency employees “to lean into this opportunity” as the DOGE seeks to maximize efficiencies. She is a former director of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida.
Image credit: NASA
Travel allowance
So Isaacman’s confirmation to get decision-making underway at NASA appears to be urgent.
SpaceX Starships exploding, Artemis rebooting of the Moon plans pending, Mars sample return decision-making, Earth climate change investigation, as well as other NASA agenda items in flux – things are stacking up.
On March 12, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a full committee Executive Session to consider nominations and legislation – but as of this writing, an appearance by Isaacman is not listed as there’s need to hold a nomination hearing before voting on whether to confirm him.
Go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/2025/3/executive-session-7
In that upcoming Executive Session, along with other lawmaker Acts — such as a Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act of 2025 and a Romance Scam Prevention Act — Cruz is to back his Astronaut Ground Travel Support Act. That legislation would provide transportation of government astronauts before they receive medical clearance to drive.
Perhaps the Act might have a proviso to move Isaacman into NASA’s driver’s seat in short-order?
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
Enter the “wait-a-minute” world of space stations.
Early this morning I saw the International Space Station slip across my Colorado mountain skyline.
I waved, but I don’t think they saw me.
But I did ponder the early demise of this huge human outpost in Earth orbit.
Incremental utility?
“It is time to begin preparations for deorbiting the Space Station,” recently explained SpaceX chief rocketeer Elon Musk on an X posting.
Sprawling but aging International Space Station.
Image credit: NASA
“It has served its purpose. There is very little incremental utility. Let’s go to Mars,” Musk said. “The decision is up to the President, but my recommendation is as soon as possible. I recommend two years from now,” Musk advised.
SpaceX has a NASA contract to junk the orbiting outpost into the ocean in coming years.
SpaceX-provided deorbiting of the International Space Station under NASA contract.
Image credit: SpaceX
Inclination “eternal”
But no need to worry. The Russian’s will soon fill the missing in action ISS void.
The first module of the Russian Orbital Station (ROS) is being prepared for hurling into polar orbit in less than three years.
Projected Russian orbiting station.
Image credit: Roscosmos/Inside Outer Space screengrab
That’s the word from RSC Energia’s Ilya Zheleznov, a lead engineer in the ROS design department.
In a recent Pro Kosmos interview, Zheleznov said that ROS will become the base for assembling and sending ships into deep space. The high orbital inclination of ROS will not only allow advancement in the development of radiation protection, but its modular design will extend the service life indefinitely.
“It could be eternal,” Zheleznov advised.
Image credit: Roscosmos/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Nose-dive
To nose-dive into the International Space Station discussion, go to:
NASA Responds to Musk Statements about Deorbiting ISS, Butch and Suni by space policy analyst Marcia Smith at:
Also, go to:
Ocean experts raise concerns over deorbiting the International Space Station at:
https://spacenews.com/ocean-experts-raise-concerns-over-deorbiting-the-international-space-station/
Lastly, check out the informative Pro Kosmos interview (in Russian) with Ilya Zheleznov at:
https://vkvideo.ru/video-219699195_456241129?ref_domain=prokosmos.ru
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
