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Today’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space related activities from across the globe. A Washington editorial urges a bipartisan commitment to Mars exploration. Russia moves to cut planned space spending over the decade ahead by 30 percent. Apollo 12’s Alan Bean brings his story of lunar exploration alive in fine art. Scientists study spectra from light generated by 51 Pegasi b, distinguished as the first exo-planet discovery. The Hubble Space Telescope will mark a quarter century in Earth orbit on Friday. Over 25 years, Hubble has gathered well over a million observations of 38,000 deep space objects. Hubble sorts through remnants of radiance from aging quasars. A U.S. House oversight panel seeks to expand military weather satellite coverage, ease near term restriction on imports of Russian RD-180 rocket engines. Experiments with 3-D printers may bring drastic cuts to space costs, according to report. NASA marathon astronaut Scott Kelly initiates a geology quiz as part of Earth Day. China aims for 2020 to take its satellite navigation system global. Russia seeks ground station support for its global navigation system.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Humans to Mars: Time to get on with it!
The Hill (4/22): Political not technical hurdles stand in the way of a U.S. national commitment to reach Mars with humans, writes Chris Carberry, CEO of Explore Mars, a nonprofit organization. “As we enter into the 2016 presidential campaign season, the emphasis must be on maintaining and growing momentum toward Mars in a bi-partisan manner rather than politicizing space and lobbying the next President to reinvent the space program yet again,” he writes.
Russia cuts space funding as economic crisis bites
Reuters (4/22): Russia will cut planned space spending over the next decade by a third, according to the report. As a result, Russia is putting aside plans to develop a super heavy lift rocket. The difficulties are attributed to falling oil prices, domestic fraud and Western sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s incursions into Crimea.
Capt. Alan Bean turns astronaut experience into art
Midland Reporter-Telegram, of Texas (4/22): Apollo 12’s Alan Bean has turned his experiences as the fourth human to walk on the moon into fine art through paintings with a unique realism. Bean will lecture Saturday as part of local International Astronomy Day festivities.
Unmanned Deep Space Exploration
First visible light detected directly from an exoplanet
Physics World.com (4/22): Scientists study light emissions from 51 Pegasi b, the first exo-planet discovered. Discovered in 1995, 51 Pegasi b lies 50 light years from Earth.
Low Earth Orbit
Hubble Space Telescope marks 25 years in orbit
Spaceflightnow.com (4/21): On Friday, the Hubble Space Telescope will mark its 25th anniversary in orbit. The observatory’s record of accomplishment required those behind Hubble to overcome repeated adversity.
PHOTOS: Hubble’s turn to smile, marks 25 years in orbit
Washington Post (4/22): After a quarter century in Earth orbit, the Hubble Space Telescope has logged 1.2 million observations of 38,000 celestial objects. “It really is the people’s telescope,” notes John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for science and a once NASA astronaut who walked in space to repair and upgrade Hubble.
Tales of Hubble repair tools, told by photographer | video
Space.com (4/22): Photographer Michael Soluri turns into art the highly specialized hand tools used by NASA shuttle astronauts to service the Hubble Space Telescope. Some of the images have appeared at the National Air & Space Museum.
Hubble investigates ghosts of quasars past
Sky & Telescope (4/22): Astronomers find more than one strange distant intergalactic gas blob. The blobs appears to be the remains of powerful quasars.
Proposed bill language puts brakes on weather satellite program, clarifies RD-180 ban
Space News (4/22): A U.S. House military oversight panel urges the Pentagon to re-think its future polar weather satellite plans by ensuring coverage of the Middle East and Afghanistan, areas currently covered by a European satellite soon to go out of service. The measure would also ease restrictions of the purchase of Russian RD-180 rocket engines for use by the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 to place U.S. national security satellites in orbit. Imports were restricted in response to Russian actions in Ukraine.
3-D printers to revolutionize space travel within two years
Newsweek (4/22): NASA’s interest in deploying 3-D printing technologies into space could help to reign in the costs of human deep space exploration, the publication reports.
NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly kicks off geography quiz from ISS
NBC News (4/22): Wednesday was Earth Day. And to commemorate, NASA International Space Station astronaut Scott Kelly initiated a geography contest from his long duration orbital home. Kelly will challenge Earthlings to identify terrestrial landmarks in photographs he posts on Twitter.
Commercial to Low Earth Orbit
China’s satellite navigation system to expand coverage globally by 2020
Xinhuanet, of China (4/23): China’s satellite space navigation network should achieve its goal of worldwide reach within five years, according to the deputy director of the country’s civil aviation administration. China’s Beidou network seeks to match the coverage of the U.S. GPS, Russian GLONASS and European Galileo satellite networks.
Russia negotiating placing GLONASS stations in China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Vietnam
TASS, or Russia (4/23): Russia reaches out to four countries for permission to establish ground “signal adjustment” stations for its GLONASS global navigation network.
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