In Today’s Deep Space Extra… Apollo 11 command module may tour U.S. to commemorate first human moon landing. Experts debate outcome of Oct. 19 Schiaparelli Mars landing attempt.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Apollo 11 moon ship may go on tour for 50th anniversary and stop by Seattle
Geek Wire (10/24): The Smithsonian Institution’s Air & Space Museum is making plans to take Apollo 11 command module hardware on a national tour as part of a celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the first human moon landing, NASA’s July 1969 Apollo 11 mission flown by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins.
Space Science
Why ESA’s Schiaparelli Mars can still be considered an overall success
The Space Review (10/25): Last week’s loss of the Schiaparelli lander, part of a joint European/Russian mission to Mars, has been assessed as a failure by some and a successful test flight by others. Imagery from Mars orbiting spacecraft suggests the lander crashed as it neared the Martian surface and thrusters shutdown. However, those in Europe who developed the mission believe the data gleaned from the Oct. 19 descent will help them succeed with a follow-on rover scheduled to reach Mars in 2020 that is designed to search for evidence of biological activity on the red planet.
Dark energy may not exist, new supernova analysis says
Cosmos (10/25): New research brings into question the existence of dark energy, the force responsible for the rapid expansion of the universe. The discovery of dark energy emerged in the late 1990s, earning its finders a Nobel Prize. New studies of more than 700 stars, however, suggest the cosmos is growing at a constant not frantic pace.
Violent volcanic eruptions on Jupiter moon Io mapped
Seeker (10/25): Scientists use ground-based observatories to track eruptive activity on Io, one of Jupiter’s moons. Experts credit adaptive optics within the Hawaiian telescopes for making the observations possible.
Low Earth Orbit
Another U.S. Air Force weather satellite just broke up in orbit
Space News (10/24): A U.S. military weather satellite, DMSP F-12, launched more than 20 years ago and long deactivated, has broken apart in Earth orbit. Experts believe the satellite’s battery was to blame. The decision to shut the spacecraft down in 2008 may have kept the breakup from creating dozens of debris fragments which is what happened in February 2015 with the breakup of DMSP F-13.
Children send birthday wishes to astronaut Jing Haipeng in space
Xinhuanet, of China (10/14): Launched in September, China’s Tiangong 2 space lab is currently home to Jing Haipeng, who turned 50 in orbit on Monday.
A wider-eyed watchdog of the clutter surrounding Earth
New York Times (10/24): The well-being of commercial and U.S. national security spacecraft in orbit around the Earth depends on constant surveillance to avoid destructive collisions.
Commercial to Low Earth Orbit
New approaches for managing space traffic
The Space Review (10/24): The FAA and Pentagon appear to have forged a consensus on the tracking of the growing numbers of satellites circling the Earth. The agreement grants the FAA authority to track and warn civilian satellite owners of possible collisions. Unburdening the Pentagon of the responsibility will permit the military to focus more attention on space national security concerns, writes TSR editor Jeff Foust in an essay.