In Today’s Deep Space Extra… Eugene Cernan, who commanded Apollo 17, the final human mission to the Moon, has died. The retired NASA astronaut and U.S. Navy aviator urged a return to the lunar surface to start an inspiring new era of human deep space exploration. He was 82.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Eugene Cernan, last human to walk on moon, dies at 82
New York Times (1/16): Gene Cernan, who commanded Apollo 17, NASA’s final human moon landing mission in December 1972, died Monday afternoon, in a Houston hospital following ongoing health issues. Cernan made the lunar journey twice, serving first as lunar module pilot aboard the May 1969 Apollo 10 mission, an orbital precursor to the historic Apollo 11 moon landing by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on July 20, 1969. Cernan, who retired from the U.S. Navy, was also the second American to carry out a spacewalk, while in Earth orbit aboard the Gemini IX mission in 1966.
The passing of Gene Cernan reminds us how far we haven’t come
Ars Technica (1/16): Though it inspired the title of his autobiography and a moving documentary on his life, NASA Apollo 17 commander Gene Cernan was never comfortable with the title, “last man to walk on the moon.” “Too many years have passed for me to still be the last man to have walked on the Moon,” wrote Cernan in his 1999 book. “Somewhere on Earth today is the young girl or boy, the possessor of indomitable courage, who will lift that dubious honor from me and take it us back out there where we belong.”
A human spaceflight program for the new administration
The Space Review (1/16): The current “snail’s pace” advance of space development cannot accelerate without commercial space investment, according to a trio of board members from the Alliance for Space Development. They urge that the development and settlement of space become a goal of NASA’s human space flight program and that lawmakers pursue favorable policies overseeing private sector activities. The authors of the op-ed back NASA’s transition of low Earth orbit operations to the commercial sector.
9 prominent early astronauts carrying on U.S. space history
Associated Press via Washington Post (1/16): The recent deaths of NASA astronauts Eugene Cernan, the last human to walk on the moon in 1972, and John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, serve as a reminder that the early days of U.S. space exploration are fading. Nine of the nation’s earliest space explorers, however, continue to make contributions.
Space Science
Benjamin Friedman to be acting NOAA Administrator
Spacepolicyonline.com (1/16): Presidential appointee, Kathy Sullivan, the former NASA astronaut, will step away from the top administrative post at NOAA this week. Benjamin Friedman, NOAA’s Deputy Under Secretary for Operations, will serve as acting NOAA Administrator as President-elect Trump takes office on Friday at noon.
Cold case: The unsolved mystery of what lit Kepler’s supernova
New Scientist (1/16): It was October 1604, when sky-watchers noticed a new star in a region of the night sky shared by more common objects like Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. Among those observing was Johannes Kepler, the German astronomer. The object now known as Kepler’s Supernova Remnant would grow in brightness for 20 years. It marked the death of a star, or stars, but the full explanation remains a mystery.
Mars Curiosity rolls up to potential new meteorite
Universe Today (1/16): Currently makings its way up Mt. Sharp in Mars Gale Crater, NASA’s Curiosity rover has encountered what appears to be its third meteorite since landing in August 2012. The shiny rock has received laser blasts from the rover in order to study its composition.
Proxima Centauri b likely a desert world
Sky and Telescope (1/16): Proxima b, a rocky planet circling within the habitable zone of the next star over, appears quite desert-like. The exo-planet’s discovery was announced last August. Its host star, a red dwarf, is known to flare radioactive bursts.
Low Earth Orbit
Russia’s space agency to replace Soyuz spacecraft that will be launched to ISS in March
TASS of Russia (1/16): Roscosmos, the Russian federal space corporation, will change out the Soyuz spacecraft assigned to the MS-04 crew transport mission to the International Space Station planned for late March. The swap is related to a contract matter involving NASA, not a technical issue, according to the report. NASA’s Jack Fischer and Russia’s Fyodor Yurchikhin are scheduled to launch aboard the spacecraft.
PBS to document Scott Kelly after historic Space Station stay in ‘Beyond a Year in Space’
Dateline Hollywood (1/15): PBS plans a follow-on documentary detailing NASA astronaut Scott Kelly’s return to Earth, following a 340-day mission to the International Space Station in 2015-16. Beyond a Year in Space promises to look into the health challenges of a long mission to Mars and introduce some of the astronauts who are making preparations.