Japan agrees to space station extension and Gateway contributions
Original Publication Date: 2022-11-18 12:30
Japan will provide components for several modules and a cargo resupply mission. NASA, in turn, will fly a Japanese astronaut to the Gateway on a future Artemis mission. Japan still seeking to land a Japanese astronaut on the moon as the first non-American astronaut. Japan is only the second country to agree to participate on the ISS beyond 2024.
NASA calls test of inflatable heat shield a success
Original Publication Date: 2022-11-18 09:51
NASA flew the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) It was a secondary payload on the Atlas 5 launch of a weather satellite Nov. 10. The payload inflated a heat shield six meters in diameter that reentered over the Pacific. Engineers are just beginning the process of analyzing data collected by LOFTID.
Skyrora working towards 2023 orbital launch after suborbital failure
Original Publication Date: 2022-11-18 09:46
Scotland-based launch startup Skyrora are focused on making a first orbital launch attempt late next year. Skyrora’s team took their 11-meter-long Skylark L single-stage suborbital launch vehicle to Iceland’s Langanes peninsula in October. The rocket however reached an altitude of only around 300 meters, due to an anomaly.
Tory Bruno: DoD should ‘block buy’ heavy launch services as supply is tight
Original Publication Date: 2022-11-17 23:49
U.S. Space Force advised to preemptively buy heavy launch services as rockets could be in short supply. Rise in commercial demand and Russian Soyuz rocket’s sudden exit from the global stage have created a “perfect storm’ U.S. National security launch program could be in a bind, U.S. Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno warned.
Boeing reorganizes defense unit, Kay Sears to lead space and launch business
Original Publication Date: 2022-11-17 20:24
Boeing announces reorganization of defense and space business. Defense, Space & Security will continue to be led by Ted Colbert. Space, Intelligence & Weapon Systems sector will be led by Kay Sears. BDS last month reported nearly $3 billion in losses in the third quarter.
NASASpaceFlight.com
OneWeb launches 36 satellites aboard India's GSLV Mk.III rocket. Mission marks the first commercial launch for the GSLV rocket. Launch took place at 12:07 AM local time on Sunday, Oct. 23 (18:37 UTC on Saturday, Oct. 22)
Commercial Archives
ABL Space Systems is preparing to launch the debut flight of the RS1 launch vehicle on Nov. 17, 2022. The daily three-hour launch window opens at 1:00 PM AKST (22:00 UTC) Onboard are two CubeSats built by OmniTeq, previously L2 Aerospace.
International Archives
NASA, Roscosmos, and the China National Space Administration (CNSA) performed spacewalks outside humankind’s two permanently-crewed space stations. NASA conducted its Extravehicular Activity, or EVA, on Tuesday, Nov. 15 on the International Space Station (ISS), with China following on Nov. 17 outside their Tiangong Space Station. Roscosmos rounded out the hat trick later on Nov. 17 back at the ISS.
News – Spaceflight101
Europe's Copernicus satellite fleet is gearing up for the arrival of its next addition on Wednesday. A Russian Rockot booster is set to blast off from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at 17:57 UTC with the Sentinel-3B multi-function satellite.
ISS Updates – Spaceflight101 – International Space Station
A veteran NASA spacewalker and an EVA rookie from Japan ended their week with nearly six hours of work outside the International Space Station. The restoration of the Station’s Mobile Servicing System started last year and continued in January to provide Canadarm2 with a new pair of grappling hands.
Featured – Spaceflight101
SpaceX Falcon 9 takes to the skies over Florida’s Cape Canaveral Monday afternoon. The flight-proven Dragon spacecraft will deliver science gear, supplies and maintenance hardware to the International Space Station. It is the first of at least six cargo ships inbound to the U.S. Segment of ISS this year.
Re-Entry: Long March 11 Rocket Body – Spaceflight101
The CZ-11 fourth stage used leftover propellant for a partial de-orbit maneuver, lowering its perigee to 120 Kilometers to significantly accelerate its orbital decay. It is reportedly built around a YF-50 main engine and conducts the orbital circularization after the three CZ-11 stages finish their job.
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Investigates Intriguing Martian Bedrock
After it collects a sample from Yori Pass, Perseverance will drive 745 feet (227 meters) southeast to a mega sand ripple. Located in the middle of a small dune field, the ripple will be where the rover collects its first samples of regolith, or crushed rock and dust.
NASA Study: Rising Sea Level Could Exceed Estimates for U.S. Coasts
Satellite measurements of sea surface height were compared with tide gauge records dating as far back as 1920. The researchers noted that the accelerating rate of sea level rise detected in satellite measurements from 1993 to 2020. The trends along the U.S. Southeast and Gulf coasts are substantially higher than for the Northeast and West coasts.
How NASA’s Deep Space Network Supports the Agency’s Missions
Deep Space Network (DSN) will support a constant flow of data with Artemis I’s uncrewed Orion capsule beyond low-Earth orbit after launch. To make sure the DSN can keep up with demand, it is undergoing a series of improvements to increase capacity.
5 Things to Know About How SWOT Will Look at the World’s Water
The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite will launch on Dec. 12. SWOT will survey water on more than 90% of the planet’s surface. The satellite will measure the height of water in Earth’s freshwater bodies and the ocean. SWOT will help researchers track Earth’s water budget.
NASA to Brief Media on First Earth Water-Monitoring Satellite Mission
NASA will host a virtual media briefing to discuss the upcoming launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite. SWOT will be the first satellite mission to observe nearly all water on Earth’s surface. The briefing will livestream on NASA Television, Facebook and YouTube, as well as the agency’s app and on its website.
Satellites Help Scientists Track Dramatic Wetlands Loss in Louisiana
NASA-funded researchers quantified those wetlands losses at nearly 21 square miles (54 square kilometers) per year since the early 1980s. Some of those wetlands were submerged by rising seas; others were disrupted by oil and gas infrastructure and hurricanes. But the primary driver of losses was coastal and river engineering.
As Psyche Mission Moves Forward, NASA Responds to Independent Review
NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) shared a response to the results of an independent review board convened to determine why the Psyche mission missed its planned 2022 launch opportunity. The review board – convened at the request of NASA and JPL – found a significant factor in the delay was an imbalance between the workload and the available workforce at JPL. The board recommended increasing staffing, establishing open communications and an improved reporting system.