The Space Review

[Orionid]

Back to the future
by Jeff Foust Monday, March 22, 2021


Bill Nelson, at the time a US senator from Florida, speaks at a September 2011 event unveiling the design of the Space Launch System, a vehicle established in a 2010 NASA authorization bill he helped author. Nelson was nominated Friday to be the agency’s next administrator. (credit: NASA/Paul E. Alers)

On Thursday afternoon, the core stage of the Space Launch System roared to life for a second time. Two months after its first test-firing was cut short after a little more than a minute because of what turned out to be “intentionally conservative” limits in software controlling the engines’ hydraulics (see “Green Run, yellow light”, The Space Review, January 18, 2021), the four RS-25 engines this time ignited and ran for a full 500 seconds. “Everything that we’ve seen in the test today looked nominal,” John Honeycutt, NASA SLS program manager, said in a briefing just after the test.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4146/1

[Orionid]

Review: Proxima
by Jeff Foust Monday, March 29, 2021



Proxima
directed by Alice Winocour
2019, 107 minutes
Streaming on Hulu
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7374926/

The European Space Agency is starting its search for a new class of astronauts. ESA will begin accepting applications Wednesday for that astronaut class, continuing through late May. That kicks off a selection process that will end in about 18 months with the agency selecting four to six new career astronauts, eligible for long-duration missions to the International Space Station or, eventually to the Moon. ESA will also select a larger number of “reserve” astronauts who could fly one-off missions, such as taking part in commercial flight opportunities, and will investigate the feasibility of so-called “parastronauts,” or people with physical limitations who would not otherwise ordinarily be considered.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4147/1

[Orionid]

Sustainable space manufacturing and design will help get us to the Moon, Mars, and beyond
by Dylan Taylor Monday, March 29, 2021


In-space manufacturing and assembly can be enabled by the use of technologies to repair and recycle materials. (credit: Made In Space)

Sustainability isn’t merely an initiative that supports life on Earth. It also holds the power to propel the future of the space industry forward. The NewSpace industry and government agencies like NASA are focused on developing the commercial space industry, where technologies and methodologies are lower cost and more accessible in a rapidly growing market.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4148/1

[Orionid]

Space Force sounds like a joke thanks to pop culture: how that could be a problem for an important military branch
by Wendy Whitman Cobb Monday, March 29, 2021


Mention “Space Force” to many members of the public, and they’ll think of the Netflix series starring Steve Carrell rather than the new military service. (credit: Netflix)

The US Space Force has a serious role to play in the modern world. Its stated mission is to train and equip personnel to defend US interests in space. Given the increasing military and economic importance of space, the Space Force is likely to grow in importance.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4149/1

[Orionid]

The growing case for active debris removal
by Jeff Foust Monday, March 29, 2021


Astroscale will use the ELSA-d spacecraft, launched March 22, to demonstrate technologies needed for active debris removal. (credit: Astroscale)

There are, unfortunately, plenty of reminders of the growing problem of orbital debris. On March 18, the Space Force’s 18th Space Control Squadron (18 SPCS), responsible for tracking objects in Earth orbit, announced that the retired NOAA-17 polar-orbiting weather satellite had broken up eight days earlier, creating 16 pieces being tracked (and likely more too small to be tracked.) On March 22, 18 SPCS reported that a Chinese satellite, Yunhai 1-02, had broken up four days earlier, creating 21 pieces being tracked.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4150/1

[Orionid]

Review: Lunar Outfitters
by Jeff Foust Monday, April 5, 2021


Lunar Outfitters: Making the Apollo Space Suit
by Bill Ayrey
Univ. Press of Florida, 2020
hardcover, 422 pp., illus.
ISBN 978-0-8130-6657-8
US$35.00
https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0813066573/spaceviews

Most of the attention NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration program has received has been on its biggest programs: the Space Launch System, Orion spacecraft, lunar Gateway, and the Human Landing System program to commercially develop crewed lunar landers. A smaller yet still critical element of getting boots on the Moon is literally those boots, and the rest of the spacesuits that astronauts walking on the lunar surface will wear. NASA’s Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU) program is developing that suit, building in part upon the lessons of the Apollo program.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4151/1

[Orionid]

NASA revises its low Earth orbit commercialization plans
by Jeff Foust Monday, April 5, 2021


Axiom Space plans to start with commercial modules attached to the International Space Station, but eventually undocking and adding elements to create a standalone commercial station. (credit: Axiom Space)

In June of 2019, NASA rolled out its new low Earth orbit commercialization initiative, an effort to build up both the supply of commercial capabilities in LEO as well as demand for them outside of NASA (see “NASA tries to commercialize the ISS, again”, The Space Review, June 10, 2019.) That initiative features several elements, from setting aside a fraction of International Space Station resources for commercial activities and allowing private astronaut missions to starting the process of supporting both commercial ISS modules and standalone commercial stations that could, eventually, succeed the ISS.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4152/1

[Orionid]

The Paper Chase: declassifying and releasing space history documents from the Cold War
by Dwayne A. Day and Asif Siddiqi Monday, April 5, 2021


A Soviet Lunokhod lunar rover. In 2020 Roscosmos released a new set of documents about this program, part of a series of document releases about their secretive space program. (credit: Roscosmos)

In recent years, the Russian space agency Roscosmos has begun releasing documents from the history of the Soviet civilian space program, usually corresponding with anniversaries of key achievements in their long history. These have included document releases on the Lunokhod rovers, the Luna 16 mission that returned samples from the Moon, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, and most recently, the Luna-9 mission, which became the first spacecraft to soft land on the Moon in February 1966. (See: “Handshakes and histories: The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, 45 years later,” The Space Review, July 20, 2020.)
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4153/1

[Orionid]

The status of Russia’s signals intelligence satellites
by Bart Hendrickx Monday, April 5, 2021


Lotos signals intelligence satellite, part of the Liana project. (source)

In early February, Russia launched the latest in a series of signals intelligence satellites that are part of a project called Liana. Initiated shortly after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the project has suffered significant technical problems and delays over the years and has so far failed to live up to expectations. A new generation of signals intelligence satellites is currently under development, but may take at least several more years to become fully operational.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4154/1

[Orionid]

Review: Institutions That Shaped Modern India: ISRO
by Jeff Foust Monday, April 12, 2021



Institutions That Shaped Modern India: ISRO
by Ajey Lele
Rupa Publications India, 2021
ebook, 152 pp.
ISBN 9390356563
US$13.00
https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B08RMWKP2K/spaceviews

Since Yuri Gagarin flew to space 60 years ago today, people from dozens of countries have followed on suborbital or orbital missions. Yet, to this day, only three countries have developed human spaceflight capabilities: the United States and the former Soviet Union 60 years ago, and China more than 40 years later. All the space travelers from other countries have flown on American or Russian vehicles.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4155/1

[Orionid]

Why venture? A memo for the Biden Administration
by Derek Webber
Monday, April 12, 2021


NASA is expected to continue the Artemis program of human lunar exploration under Biden Administration, which could eventually support efforts to utilize space resources for the benefit of humanity. (credit: NASA)

It’s that time again. A new administration reassesses the funding, rationale, and specific projects being undertaken by the various space related departments. This is an inevitable consequence of the political vicissitudes that operate on a four-year time horizon as compared with the much longer timescales involved in space development, at least in these still-early years, when most of the funding still comes from government sources. Of course, there will always be geopolitical and even military considerations, which will vary with the tides of world affairs, but maybe it would be a good idea to re-state those basic rationales that transcend the politics of the moment. Why did Gagarin, Glenn, Armstrong, et al., risk their lives at the onset of the Space Age, and why do today’s astronauts line up for the challenges of the future? Space, above all else, is a global endeavor, and we should therefore be able to understand those common perspectives that all occupants of the planet share about the rationale of space exploration, whether it involves robots or people. In particular, it can be helpful to do this to get a handle on the timescales involved in developing space policy.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4156/1

[Orionid]

A Moonshot to inspire: Building back better in space
by Alan Stern Monday, April 12, 2021
[Editor’s Note: A version of this essay was previous published by The Hill, and is republished here with permission.]


President Joe Biden watching the landing of NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover from the White House in February. (credit: White House)

Recent Democratic presidents have supported and initiated important, bold, and sustainable robotic and commercial space efforts. But no Democrat since John F. Kennedy has set this nation onto a bold course that resulted in humans exploring new worlds.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4157/1

[Orionid]

For human spaceflight, better late than never
by Jeff Foust Monday, April 12, 2021


SpaceX says the Crew Dragon that will fly the Inspiration4 private mission in September will be equipped with a cupola in place of the docking adapter on the nose of the capsule. (credit: SpaceX)

Anniversaries with nice round numbers tend to serve as prompts for reflection of the past and contemplation of potential futures. But some round numbers are more potent than others, so 40 and 60 tend to lose out to 50 in terms of significance. That means the commemorations today of the 60th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s flight and the 40th anniversary of the first Space Shuttle launch won’t have the impact of, say, Gagarin’s anniversary 10 years ago or, perhaps, the shuttle’s anniversary 10 years from now.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4158/1

[Orionid]

Review: The High Frontier
by Jeff Foust Monday, April 19, 2021



The High Frontier: The Untold Story of Gerard K. O’Neill
directed by Ryan Stuit
2021, 90 mins., unrated
https://thehighfrontiermovie.com/

Among many space enthusiasts, Gerard K. O’Neill has achieved something akin to sainthood. More than 50 years ago, the Princeton physics professor first asked his students there if the surface of a planet was the best place for a technological civilization, a thought experiment that evolved over the course of several years into space colonies. It inspired a generation of space advocates, some of whom dubbed themselves “Gerry’s kids,” to carry forward his vision.
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4159/1

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Putting SpaceX’s Starship program in the proper context
by Wayne Eleazer Monday, April 19, 2021


A SpaceX Starship prototype at the company’s Boca Chica, Texas, test site before a recent test flight. (credit: SpaceX)

Where does the SpaceX Starship vehicle fit, anyway? It came out of nowhere, in response to no government RFP or recognized industry-wide need. There is no established market for its capabilities and apparently is being constructed for much the same reasons that people build little airplanes in their garage. It has been created based on the vision of one man. But perhaps the real question is, “Where should the Starship fit in the launch industry?”
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4160/1