In Today’s Deep Space Extra… Researchers detect a new region of the Milky Way that could provide hints about the galaxy’s past. The UAE plans to send its Rashid rover to the Moon in 2022.
Space Science
UAE to send Emirati-made lunar rover ‘Rashid’ to the Moon next year
Gulf News (4/14): The UAE will work with Japanese company iSpace to launch a lunar rover, Rashid, to an unexplored region of the Moon to study lunar dust and rocks in 2022, two years ahead of schedule. The mission aims to demonstrate a range of advanced technologies, including a 3-D imager, microscope camera, and thermal imager.
Fireball meteor burns up over South Florida
Space.com (4/13): A fireball appeared in the skies over West Palm Beach, Florida, late Monday night. The object may have come from the asteroid 2021 GW4 that was projected to pass the Earth that night.
Astronomers detect a bright-blue bridge of stars, and it’s about to blow
Space.com (4/14): Astrophysicists have found a new region of the Milky Way that is filled with extremely hot, bright-blue stars that are about to explode. Located between the Orion Arm and the constellation Perseus, the “Cepheus spur” is a belt between two spiral arms filled with stars three times the mass of the sun. The researchers suggest that looking at the spur’s position, which is slightly above the galactic disk, could provide hints about the Milky Way’s past.
Other News
L3Harris and Raytheon win contracts to define future geostationary imagers
Coalition Member in the News – L3Harris
SpaceNews.com (4/12): L3Harris Technologies and Raytheon Intelligence & Space won NASA contracts for studies of next-generation imagers for NOAA satellites. The one-year contracts are worth about $6 million each and set the stage for the two weather sensor leaders to compete to build infrared and visible-imaging instruments for the NOAA satellites to follow the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite R (GOES-R) series.
Billionaire-owned Sierra Nevada Corp. creating new space company to bet on a low-Earth orbit economy
CNBC (4/14): Sierra Nevada has announced their space business area will transition to become an independent, commercial space company. “Sierra Space” will remain part of Sierra Nevada Corporation as a subsidiary. The new company will continue the development of the Dream Chaser space plane, which is currently contracted with NASA to conduct six cargo resupply missions to the International Space Station (ISS) and is expected to launch next year.
Korea Aerospace Industries to invest $880 million to expand space business
SpaceNews.com (4/13): Korea Aerospace Industries plans an $880 million (U.S.) investment in the aerospace industry over the next five years to expand its space business, including satellite production, the development of electric and hydrogen aircraft, air defense electronics, simulations and software. The company played a key role in developing South Korea’s recently launched CAS500-1 remote sensing satellite that launched in March.
Blue Origin to rehearse for human passengers on suborbital flight
Spaceflightnow.com (4/13): Blue Origin’s next New Shepard suborbital test flight, planned for Wednesday from West Texas, will include pre-launch and post-launch activities that would accompany those for actual passenger missions. Wednesday’s launch target is 11:15 a.m., EDT.