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Today’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space related activities from across the globe. New feature film Interstellar challenges humanity’s resolve to confront tough issues. ESA names landing site for Rosetta comet mission lander. Moon Express to test lunar lander technologies with NASA. Veil lifts on mysterious object at heart of the Milky Way galaxy. Taurid meteor shower peaks. International Space Station member nations reaffirm operating plans through 2020, agree to consider 2024 extension. Astronauts and quilts. Op-eds urge Virgin Galactic, Orbital Sciences, NASA on in the exploration of space despite accidents. Is more flight testing part of future development? Former NASA shuttle manager joins Antares investigation team. NTSB corrects statement regarding SpaceShipTwo pilot actions. Virgin Galactic will continue assembly of second SpaceShipTwo vehicle. Former test pilot questions SpaceShipTwo propulsion choices. Richard Branson, the businessman.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Off to the Stars, With Grief, Dread and Regret
New York Times (11/5): New feature film Interstellar raises the question: Does humanity deserve another chance to confront the major issues?
Unmanned Deep Space Exploration
ESA Announces Landing Site Name for Rosetta’s Bold Comet Lander – AGILKIA!
AmericaSpace (11/4): The European Space Agency selects Agilkia as the name of the landing site on Comet 67P/ChuryumovGerasimenko selected for Philae. Philae is the small lander aboard ESA’s Rosetta comet mission. Agilkia is named for an island of the Nile River in Egypt. ESA is to attempt the first ever spacecraft landing on a comet on Nov. 12. Rosetta, which rendezvoused with the comet in August, and Philae were designed to accompany the comet on its journey around the sun.
Moon Express Prepares to Test Hardware at NASA’s Shuttle Landing Facility
Spaceflight Insider (11/4): Google Lunar X-Prize contestant Mars Express prepares for test activities at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Both Mars Express and NASA seek data on the handling qualities of the donut shaped spacecraft.
Astronomers identify mysterious object at heart of Milky Way
Science News (11/4): A strange object at the center of the Milky Way galaxy is just now inviting definition. It may be a pair of merged stars.
Taurid Meteor Shower Peaks Soon, But Moon Will Dampen Display
Space.com (11/4): The Taurids are near their November peak. Visibility is predicted to improve after Thursday’s full moon.
Low Earth Orbit
ISS member countries seek to operate station at least till 2020
TASS of Russia (11/4): The major partner agencies involved in the International Space Station, the space agencies of the U.S., Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada, affirm plans to operate the six person orbiting science laboratory through 2020 during a Paris meeting this week. The representatives also acknowledged a U.S. proposal to continue with operations through at least 2024. Russian officials have issued conflicting statements in the past on their post-2020 intentions.
Astronaut’s sewn-in-space star shines at quilt festival
Collectspace.com (11/4): NASA astronaut and recent International Space Station crew member Karen Nyberg receives a warm reception at the recent International Quilt Show in Houston. Nyberg, a crafter, has inspired hundreds of star themed quilt blocks.
Commercial to Orbit
Exploration is always costly. But the prize is worth the labor and loss.
Newsweek (11/4): Human space exploration, publicly and privately, will continue despite losses like those of the SpaceShipTwo and Antares, writes David Weber, science fiction author. The lure of new space resources and habitats is too great to turn away, according to Weber.
Antares and SpaceShipTwo: A Wake up Call for Lots More Test Flights
Huffington Post (11/4): The Antares and SpaceShipTwo crashes point to the need for more test flights, according to Marco Caceres, a senior analyst with the Teal Group. “Perhaps we feel like we’ve already gone through the most difficult part of the learning curve when it comes to rocketry, and that now it’s just a matter of perfecting a few minor technical issues,” writes Caceres. “Judging by last week’s twin failures, I’m not so sure that’s true.”
Antares Investigation Board Includes Former NASA Shuttle Program Manager
Space News (11/5): Wayne Hale, a former NASA shuttle program manager, is among those selected by Orbital Sciences Corp. to investigate the Oct. 28 post launch loss of the Antares rocket on a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
NTSB Corrects Correction — It Was SS2 Co-Pilot Who Moved Lever
Spacepolicyonline.com (11/4): The National Transportation Safety Board corrects a correction with regard to its investigation into the fatal Oct. 31 breakup of Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo. Co-pilot Michael Alsbury prematurely unlocked the rocket ship’s feathering tail section, not pilot Peter Siebold. Alsbury perished in the breakup. Siebold remains hospitalized with injuries after he parachuted from the stricken spacecraft.
Investigators scrutinize pilot actions in Virgin Galactic crash
Los Angeles Times (11/4): The National Transportation Safety Board forms a human factors panel to help address the Oct. 31 loss of Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo. The panel will take a closer look at pilot error, the newspaper reports. One pilot perished in the accident, another was hospitalized with serious injuries after parachuting to the ground.
Virgin Galactic Chides Premature Speculation, Continues Work on Second SS2 – UPDATE
Spacepolicyonline.com (11/4): In a statement, Virgin Galactic says the early phase of the investigation into the Oct. 31 fatal breakup of SpaceShipTwo suggests the propulsion system was not at fault. The company says it will continue with the assembly of a second rocketship, which is 65 percent complete.
Ex-SpaceShipOne test pilot critical of hybrid motor in new video
Flightglobal.com (11/3): Former SpaceShipOne test pilot Brian Binnie levels criticism at his former employers in a recent address before the Explorers Club of New York City. Binnie points to changes in the rocket’s propulsion system, an early suspect in the fatal Oct. 31 breakup of the rocket ship. Binnie has since joined XCOR.
What Richard Branson Can Learn From the Virgin Galactic Tragedy
The Daily Beast (11/4): In his business history, Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Galactic, has proven adept at finding new enterprise and shedding the endeavors that flagged, according to a Daily Beast assessment.
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