In Today’s Deep Space Extra… NASA shuttle era astronauts David Leestma, Sandy Magnus, and Chris Ferguson have been selected for induction into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. Lockheed Martin to build several elements for the Mars Sample Return program.
Human Space Exploration
Final shuttle crewmates among three entering Astronaut Hall of Fame
Coalition Member in the News – Boeing
Collectspace.com (2/15): NASA shuttle era astronauts David Leestma, Sandy Magnus, and Chris Ferguson have been selected for induction into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, it was announced on Tuesday. Induction ceremonies are planned for June 11 at the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex (KSCVC) in Florida. Each launched three times on a variety of missions. Ferguson and Magnus were among the four crew aboard the final shuttle mission in July 2011. The trio also served in a variety of management roles while at NASA. They will join 102 others previously inducted into the Hall.
Space Science
NASA tabs Lockheed Martin to return Mars samples
Coalition Member in the News – Lockheed Martin
The Gazette (2/15): Earlier this month it was announced that NASA awarded a contract to Lockheed Martin Space to design and build a Mars Ascent Vehicle to bring samples back to Earth, one of three contracts the company secured to support the future mission. The other two contracts, announced yesterday in a news release by the company, involve an Earth Entry System that will bring the samples safely back through space, and a cruise stage that will power and steer the Mars-bound journey of the lander that retrieves Martian rock and soil samples from the Perseverance Rover.
A Chinese spacecraft is testing out a new orbit around the Moon
SpaceNews.com (2/15): The spacecraft service module that was part of China’s 2020 Chang’e 5 lunar sample return mission to the Moon has been tracked to a distant retrograde orbit around the Moon, according to amateur satellite trackers, based on months of observations. China has not updated the spacecraft’s status since May of 2021. It’s the same lunar orbit planned by NASA for Artemis I, the approaching uncrewed test flight of the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion crew capsule. The complex, three-week Chang’e-5 mission involving multiple spacecraft elements, launched in November 2020.
Other News
Lasers could send missions to Mars in only 45 days
Coalition Member in the News – Lockheed Martin
Universe Today (2/15): A study from McGill University in Montreal suggests that a laser-thermal propulsion system could reduce the time for reaching Mars to 45 days. Even when the Earth and Mars are most favorably aligned, the travel time is six to nine months using current propulsion technologies. The study, “Design of a Rapid Transit to Mars Mission Using Laser-Thermal Propulsion,” awaits publication in a scientific journal. The concept replaces a nuclear reactor that might be used as a nuclear thermal or nuclear electric propulsion source with a laser.
GAO: DoD has to step up efforts in space, cyber and artificial intelligence to compete with China
SpaceNews.com (2/15): A new report from the U.S. General Accountability Office (GAO) entitled “Challenges Facing DoD in Strategic Competition with China,” calls on the Department of Defense (DoD) to better prepare itself to contend with advances by China in the fields of space, cyberwarfare, and artificial intelligence. The Pentagon must be prepared to “maintain supply chains, gather intelligence, and responsibly leverage emerging space, cyber, and AI technologies in response to potential threats,” according to the audit. The report also calls on Congress to pay close attention to how urgently the DoD responds.
Space junk piece set to hit the Moon is likely from a Chinese rocket, not SpaceX
NPR.org (2/15): The Moon is a likely target for a piece of space junk forecast to impact in early March, possibly on March 4. Recent assessments of the trajectory have identified the source of the fragment as China’s Chang’e 5-T1 rocket, which launched in October 2014, rather than from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, as previously thought.
Virgin Galactic is reopening space tourist ticket sales for a limited time
Space.com (2/15): Starting Wednesday, Virgin Galactic is once again booking seats for suborbital space flights for a ticket price of $450,000 and a seat deposit of $150,000. “As of November 2021, Virgin Galactic had a reported 700 or so customers in its pool, with the plan to start flying them on commercial flights in late 2022,” Space.com reports. Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity has flown to suborbital space four times. The space plane has accommodations for six passengers, plus two pilots. The company is working on the assembly of two other spaceplanes.