In Today’s Deep Space Extra… Those who have helped set the stage point to Mars as the preferred destination for U.S. led human deep space exploration and 2033 as an achievable date for the first landing.
Human Deep Space Exploration
Put people on Mars by 2033 for the good of the nation
Wired News (1/28): In an op-ed, veteran U.S. space policy expert Norm Augustine, former NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, and former NASA executive Scott Hubbard urge policymakers to commit to a human Mars landing by 2033. The goal is an important part of U.S. global leadership, economic development and an essential part of addressing the scientific question of whether there is life beyond Earth, they write.
Legislation would require strategic plan for NASA human spaceflight
Space News (1/29): Introduced January 24, by U.S. Senator John Cornyn and U.S. Representative John Culberson, the Mapping a New and Innovative Focus on our Exploration Strategy (MANIFEST) for Human Spaceflight Act would require NASA to establish a detailed strategic plan for reaching the Martian surface with human explorers. The legislation would also commit NASA to establishing a continuing human presence on the red planet. The Space Launch System, Orion, International Space Station, the U.S. private sector and international partnerships would figure prominently in the strategy.
Johnson reintroduces Apollo 1 memorial legislation as NASA honors the crew
Spacepolicyonline.com (1/28): U.S. Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas re-introduced legislation Friday establishing a memorial at the Arlington National Cemetery near Washington in honor of NASA’s Apollo 1 crew. Astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee perished aboard the Apollo 1 capsule during a launch pad test when a fire broke out on January 27, 1967.
50 years after Apollo disaster, memorial for 3 men, and for era
New York Times (1/28): Friday marked the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 1 fire that claimed the lives of NASA astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee during a test of the capsule they were to board for its first orbital test flight a few weeks later. A memorial at the site of the Apollo blaze drew 150 people, including family members, among them Betty Grissom, the commander’s wife, now 89. “We need heroes today, and these were heroes,” said Robert Pearlman, an American space historian, who was present. NASA’s annual Day of Remembrance, on Tuesday, will honor the Apollo 1 astronauts as well as the crews of the shuttle Columbia and Challenger, who perished in shuttle accidents on January 28, 1986 and February 3, 2003.
Model of giant SLS rocket gets wind tunnel-tested by NASA Langley
Hampton Roads Daily Press of Virginia (1/27): NASA’s Transonic Dynamics Tunnel at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, is the site for ongoing wind tunnel tests of a scaled Space Launch System rocket. The full-sized version of the 364-foot-long SLS is to make its first test flight in late 2018, carrying an unpiloted Orion capsule around the moon and back to Earth for a splashdown and ocean recovery. The SLS is a crucial part of NASA’s plans to resume human deep space exploration.
Space Science
China looks to Mars, Jupiter exploration
Xinhuanet (1/30): China, an emergent space power, is planning a pair of Mars missions, one structured to return samples of the red planet to Earth, as well as a mission to the Jovian system, according to the China National Space Administration’s vice director. Beijing’s first Mars mission is planned for 2020.
Planet Earth makes its own water from scratch deep in the mantle
New Scientist (1/27): New modeling suggests an alternative process for origins of the Earth’s water. Chemical reactions within the Earth’s mantle involving silicon could have produced water and perhaps triggered seismic activity. Most theories hold that the water on Earth came from comet and asteroid impacts.
A proposal for Juno to observe the volcanoes of Io
Universe Today (1/29): A polar orbiting spacecraft at Jupiter would provide surprising views of volcanic activity underway on the moon Io. Though modest in size, Io is the most volcanically active planetary body in the solar system.
Low Earth Orbit
Japanese cargo craft departs Space Station
Spaceflightnow.com (1/27): Japan’s sixth cargo mission spacecraft, launched December 9, 2016 and berthed four days later, departed the International Space Station on Friday. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency HTV-6 will spend a week in orbit for a solo demonstration of a long tether to generate an electrical current that might one day mature a technology to deorbit the largest pieces of orbiting manmade space debris. Accumulating debris poses a collision threat to operational satellites as well as the space station and future manned spacecraft.
Commercial to Low Earth Orbit
SpaceX delays first flight from NASA shuttle launch pad
Seeker (1/29): On Sunday, SpaceX announced a delay in plans for a launch Thursday of the EchoStar communications satellite from launch pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The delay places the mission behind plans for SpaceX’s 10th resupply mission to the International Space Station possibly in mid-February from the same launch site. 39A, recently leased from NASA by SpaceX has been inactive since NASA’s shuttle fleet was retired in 2011.
A first look at the path NASA astronauts will walk when the U.S. launches humans into space again
Washington Post (1/27): At Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, efforts by Boeing to re-start the launch of astronauts from U.S. soil for the first time since NASA’s space shuttle fleet was retired in 2011 are coming together. Boeing’s launch site facilities supporting the company’s CST-100 Starliner include stair and entry ways. Boeing has also unveiled distinctive blue space suits for Starliner crews. Boeing and SpaceX are working on competing spacecraft for astronauts under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
Private space station coming soon? Company aiming for 2020 Launch
Space.com (1/29): Houston-based Axiom is well into discussions to develop a commercial successor to the NASA led 15-nation International Space Station. The Axiom International Commercial Space Station would start first with elements parked on the ISS, then depart for an independent existence once the Space Station partnership is ready to deorbit its six person orbiting lab. Axiom is aiming for a partnership that includes sovereign as well as commercial astronauts.
European Soyuz launches SmallGEO satellite for Hispasat
Space News (1/28): As part of a commercial mission, a Russian Soyuz launched the Hispasat-36W-1 satellite on Friday from French Guiana. It was the first launch of a payload to geosynchronous orbit for a Soyuz rocket. The spacecraft is owned by Spanish satellite operator Hispasat.
Spaceport plans delayed by Brexit
BBC of Britain (1/28): British lawmakers delay plans to develop the UK’s first commercial spaceports in Scotland. Officials blame Brexit for the delay. Backers were eager to enter a growing market for small satellites.
Major Space Related Activities for the Week
Major space related activities for the week of January 30 – February 3, 2017
Spacepolicyonline.com (1/29): Tuesday will mark NASA’s official annual Day of Remembrance, a tribute to those who perished in three U.S. tragedies: the January 27, 1967 Apollo 1 fire; the January 28, 1986 shuttle Challenger launch breakup; and the February 1, 2003 breakup on descent of the shuttle Columbia. In all, 17 astronauts died. A wreath laying is planned for the Arlington National Cemetery as well as memorial events at NASA’s field centers.