In Today’s Deep Space Extra… Mars comes to Earth with help of Augmented Reality.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Mars Comes to Earth: Scientists ‘Visit’ Red Planet with Augmented Reality
Space.com (4/27): NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has partnered with Microsoft for the use of HoloLens eye ware to assist scientists in their virtual exploration and research activities on Mars.
Two Pro-NASA House Members Lose Primaries
Spacepolicyonline.com (4/27): Two U.S. House veterans who have participated in the shaping of NASA priorities and appropriations lost in Democratic primary elections earlier this week. Donna Edwards, of Maryland, was seeking the U.S. Senate seat long held by Barbara Mikulski, who is retiring. Congressman Chaka Fattah, of Pennsylvania, who until recently was the ranking Democrat on the House appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over NASA, lost his re-election bid.
Space Science
Titan’s great lakes appear to be filled with clear, colorless methane
ArsTechnica (4/26): The long running U.S., European Cassini mission spacecraft has detected liquid lakes of methane on Saturn’s moon Titan. In some regions the methane depth extends to a depth of 160 meters. Only the Earth and Titan are known to have open bodies of liquid on their surfaces.
NASA views China as “potential partner” in civilian space
Xinhuanet, of China (4/28): NASA Administrator Charles Bolden characterized China as a potential partner in future U.S. civil space activities, though the agency is currently prohibited from doing so bilaterally by Congress. Bolden spoke before the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank. “So there are potential areas of partnerships there, but because of congressional restrictions right now, we are limited to merely multilateral activities,” said Bolden.
NASA’s Historic Countdown Clock is Ticking Again for Launch Spectators
Space.com (4/27): An iconic countdown clock that once stood outside the public affairs complex at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center has been relocated to Kennedy’s visitor center and re-activated. The timer’s first mission was Apollo 12.
Low Earth Orbit
Indian launch rounds out domestic navigation network
Spaceflightnow.com (4/28): Early Thursday, India launched the seventh and final satellite for the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, an independent regional “GPS” space navigation constellation.
Commercial to Orbit
Vostochny – Second Time’s a Charm, But Putin Critical of Rocket Industry
Spacepolicyonline.com (4/27): Russia carried out the inaugural space launch from its new Vostochny Cosmodrome early Thursday, or Wednesday at 10:01 p.m., EDT, with President Vladimir Putin in attendance. Putin urged Russia’s launch industry to become more proactive with technical challenges, and he noted the scandals swirling around the construction of the new launch complex. The lift off was postponed a day by a technical issue. Vostochny is intended to lessen Russian reliance on the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
House Passes Major DOD Policy Bill for 2017
Defense News (4/28): The U.S. House Armed Services Committee’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2017, passed early Thursday, includes a provision permitting United Launch Alliance to increase from nine to 18 the number of Russian RD-180 rocket engine imports for the Atlas V launch vehicle. The AtlasV is the primary launch system for U.S. national security payloads. Though politically unpopular, the imports buy time for policy makers to settle on domestic alternatives.