In Today’s Deep Space Extra… NASA issued a final call on Monday for commercial lunar lander proposals in order to accelerate a return to the surface of the Moon with human explorers in 2024. The agency announces a familiar face will be the new lead for solar system exploration at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Russia plans to increase funding for its space program, including space research.
Human Space Exploration
NASA issues call for proposals for human lunar landers
SpaceNews.com (9/30): After a pair of calls for draft responses on July 19 and August 30 to obtain feedback, NASA on Monday issued a final call for lunar lander proposals from commercial companies. The submissions are due on November 1 and are to outline strategies to leverage NASA’s lunar orbiting, human tended Gateway with descent, ascent and transfer vehicles to transport astronauts to and from the lunar surface as part of the Artemis initiative to accelerate a human return to 2024. NASA would like to select two companies. The final call for proposals lifts a requirement to link to the Gateway for the 2024 mission and for the lander hardware to ultimately be reusable.
Russia to halve number of piloted missions to ISS in 2020
Sputnik News (10/1): Russia’s space agency plans to reduce from four to two the number of Soyuz missions it launches to the International Space Station (ISS) with three person crews in 2020. Four missions annually has been the norm since 2009. Three Progress re-supply missions to the Space Station are planned in 2020 as well.
Tons of water in asteroids could fuel satellites, space exploration
Space.com (9/29): Relatively nearby, water rich asteroids may hold commercial space promise as a raw material for the in space production of rocket fuels to refuel satellites and for human deep space exploration, according to a recent study led by Andrew Rivkin, an asteroid researcher at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Research Laboratory (APL) in Maryland.
Space Science
NASA signals openness to change with new Solar System exploration hire
Ars Technica (9/30): Bobby Braun, of the University of Colorado, Boulder, is returning to NASA and at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to lead the Solar System Exploration Program. During 2010-11, Braun was the agency’s chief technologist. He joins JPL as the space agency revs up for future missions to Mars and Jupiter’s moon Europa, two destinations that may host habitable environments.
Funding for Russian space industry to be expanded
Tass of Russia (10/1): Roscosmos plans to expand funding for the Russian space industry by expanding space research and diversification of programs, Head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin told reporters on Tuesday.
Shapeshifter robots could explore volcanoes and caves on Saturn’s moon Titan
Space.com (9/27): NASA envisions shape shifting robots that can roll, fly, float and swim in order to explore challenging planetary surfaces. And achieving the flexibility with one design that can do all of those and work with similar creations as a team of what are called “cobots.” The evaluations are underway at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
NASA satellite watches as black hole rips apart a star
Orlando Sentinel (9/27): In a first, NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has spotted a distant black hole shredding a nearby star. The black hole is 375 million light years away and has a mass estimated at six million times that of the sun. The star that was destroyed may have been about the mass of the sun. TESS was launched in 2018 to look for extra solar planets orbiting the nearest stars in the habitable zone.
Other News
Air Force awards ULA $1.18 billion contract to complete five Delta 4 Heavy NRO missions
Coalition Member in the News – United Launch Alliance
SpaceNews.com (9/30): The U.S. Air Force Monday awarded United Launch Alliance (ULA) a $1.18 billion contract for the launch operations portion of five classified Delta 4 Heavy National Reconnaissance Office missions planned for 2022 through 2024 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.