TYB
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
May 22, 2024
Green Aurora over Sweden
It was bright and green and stretched across the sky. This striking aurora display was captured in 2016 just outside of Östersund, Sweden. Six photographic fields were merged to create the featured panorama spanning almost 180 degrees. Particularly striking aspects of this aurora include its sweeping arc-like shape and its stark definition. Lake Storsjön is seen in the foreground, while several familiar constellations and the star Polaris are visible through the aurora, far in the background. Coincidently, the aurora appears to avoid the Moon visible on the lower left. The aurora appeared a day after a large hole opened in the Sun's corona, allowing particularly energetic particles to flow out into the Solar System. The green color of the aurora is caused by oxygen atoms recombining with ambient electrons high in the Earth's atmosphere.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html?
Go Back to the Future with NASA at Comicpalooza 2024
MAY 21, 2024
Celebrate your pop-culture fandom and uncover the latest science, technology, and discoveries of human spaceflight and exploration with NASA’s Johnson Space Center at Comicpalooza 2024 from May 24 to 26 at George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston. Engage with a fully immersive NASA exhibit, touch the only mobile Moon rock in the world, join exclusive panels, meet a NASA astronaut, scientists, and experts, and hear about NASA’s plans for human exploration to the Moon and Mars.
NASA Showcase and Stage
NASA’s Johnson Space Center booth and exclusive panel stage is in Hall A of George R. Brown Convention Center! Stop by to talk with NASA experts and scientists from the Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility (EHP) Program, Exploration Architecture, Integration, and Science Directorate, Human Health and Performance Directorate, and STEM engagement programs.
Fans can take photos with numerous photo ops and artifacts including a full-size space suit, take the controls of a Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) in a state-of-the-art simulator, and discover how astronauts are training and preparing to return to the Moon.
cont.
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/johnson/go-back-to-the-future-with-nasa-at-comicpalooza-2024/
NASA Tool Gets Ready to Image Faraway Planets
MAY 21, 2024
A technology demo on the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will help increase the variety of distant planets scientists can directly image.
The Roman Coronagraph Instrument on NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will help pave the way in the search for habitable worlds outside our solar system by testing new tools that block starlight, revealing planets hidden by the glare of their parent stars.
The technology demonstration recently shipped from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California to the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where it has joined the rest of the space observatory in preparation for launch by May 2027.
Before its cross-country journey, the Roman Coronagraph underwent the most complete test of its starlight-blocking abilities yet — what engineers call “digging the dark hole.” In space, this process will enable astronomers to observe light directly from planets around other stars, or exoplanets.
Once demonstrated on Roman, similar technologies on a future mission could enable astronomers to use that light to identify chemicals in an exoplanet’s atmosphere, including ones that potentially indicate the presence of life.
Let the Testing Begin
For the dark hole test, the team placed the coronagraph in a sealed chamber designed to simulate the cold, dark vacuum of space. Using lasers and special optics, they replicated the light from a star as it would look when observed by the Roman telescope. When the light reaches the coronagraph, the instrument uses small circular obscurations called masks to effectively block out the star, like a car visor blocking the Sun or the Moon blocking the Sun during a total solar eclipse. This makes fainter objects near the star easier to see.
Coronagraphs with masks are already flying in space, but they can’t detect an Earth-like exoplanet. From another star system, our home planet would appear approximately 10 billion times dimmer than the Sun, and the two are relatively close to one another. So trying to directly image Earth would be like trying to see a speck of bioluminescent algae next to a lighthouse from 3,000 miles (about 5,000 kilometers) away. With previous coronagraphic technologies, even a masked star’s glare overwhelms an Earth-like planet.
The Roman Coronagraph will demonstrate techniques that can remove more unwanted starlight than past space coronagraphs by using several movable components. These moving parts will make it the first “active” coronagraph to fly in space. Its main tools are two deformable mirrors, each only 2 inches (5 centimeters) in diameter and backed by more than 2,000 tiny pistons that move up and down. The pistons work together to change the shape of the deformable mirrors so that they can compensate for the unwanted stray light that spills around the edges of the masks.
The deformable mirrors also help correct for imperfections in the Roman telescope’s other optics. Although they are too small to affect Roman’s other highly precise measurements, the imperfections can send stray starlight into the dark hole. Precise changes made to each deformable mirror’s shape, imperceptible to the naked eye, compensate for these imperfections.
“The flaws are so small and have such a minor effect that we had to do over 100 iterations to get it right,” said Feng Zhao, deputy project manager for the Roman Coronagraph at JPL.
“It’s kind of like when you go to see an optometrist and they put different lenses up and ask you, ‘Is this one better? How about this one?’ And the coronagraph performed even better than we’d hoped.”
During the test, the readouts from the coronagraph’s camera show a doughnut-shaped region around the central star that slowly gets darker as the team directs more starlight away from it — hence the nickname “digging the dark hole.”
In space, an exoplanet lurking in this dark region would slowly appear as the instrument does its work with its deformable mirrors.
cont.
https://www.nasa.gov/missions/roman-space-telescope/nasa-tool-gets-ready-to-image-faraway-planets/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyXfc-g2Oc4
‘Life beyond Earth’: top Nasa scientist in Cyprus
Wednesday 22 May | 14:29
Cyprus’ chief scientist for the deputy ministry of research Demetris Skourides on Tuesday met Nasa scientist Alexandra Lockwood ahead of her presentation of the latest findings from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in Nicosia on Wednesday.
During the meeting, Skourides presented Cyprus’ plans concerning research and innovation, with a focus on the country’s space strategy 2022-2027.
He stressed that Cyprus’ geographical location “is advantageous for the further development of its space sector, which currently includes around 50 entities, including 33 companies involved in robotics, earth observation, and navigation systems”.
Skourides highlighted key organisations with significant infrastructure, such as the ‘Eratosathenes’ Research Centre of Excellence, which focuses on earth observation and environmental impact, and the Cyprus Space Exploration Organisation (CSEO), which works on space engineering, micro-satellite production and solar storm modelling.
“Since 2016, the Research and Innovation Foundation (Idek) has funded 36 projects with a total of €17 million from national funds, reflecting a commitment to enhance earth and atmospheric observation, satellite communications, radiofrequency radiation, and geoinformatics,” Skourides said.
Skourides also mentioned the EU initiative ‘Horizon Europe’, noting the participation of five Cypriot companies with a total funding of €2.1 million in areas such as IT, robotics, earth observation and navigation systems.
Lockwood’s presentation on Wednesday was organised by the Cyprus Space Exploration Organisation (CSEO) and will be held at its Space Research Centre at 6.30pm.
CSEO president George Danos said Lockwood’s visit will shed light on recent Nasa discoveries and the potential for life beyond Earth.
“We are excited that Dr Lockwood will share the latest news from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), including its findings about life beyond Earth,” Danos said.
Lockwood, a project scientist for Nasa’s JWST at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, is currently serving as the strategic messaging and engagement lead for Nasa’s Science Mission Directorate.
Her visit to Cyprus was organised by the US embassy in Nicosia and the US department of state’s educational and cultural affairs bureau.
Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), Danos reminisced about the global excitement when the first images from the JWST were released two years ago.
“We eagerly anticipated the stunning images of the Carina Nebula, 7,000 light-years away, marking a new era in astronomy,” he said.
“It was a huge honour for the CSEO to simulcast those first images, as it was a significant moment for Cyprus.”
Ahead of her visit, in an interview with the CNA, Lockwood stressed the JWST’s contributions to our understanding of the universe, highlighting the telescope’s role in identifying the farthest galaxies, discovering atmospheres on rocky exoplanets, and providing new insights into star and planet formation.
“The Webb Telescope, with its large mirrors and sensitive infrared instruments, enables astronomers to understand the chemical compositions of new objects,” she said.
Regarding future milestones, she expressed excitement about Nasa’s blend of science and exploration.
“As we will likely return humans to the Moon and progressively collaborate with industry figureheads, we will learn new things about our solar system and ourselves as a species.”
She also said that ongoing efforts across various science disciplines are aiming to detect signs of life and relate them to our experiences on Earth.
“The discoveries in the next decade and beyond will offer a new perspective on our universe,” Lockwood concluded.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2024/05/22/life-beyond-earth-top-nasa-scientist-in-cyprus/
Starliner crewed test flight remains on hold
May 21, 2024
WASHINGTON — NASA and Boeing have further delayed the launch of a crewed test flight of the company’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, this time not offering a new launch date as work to resolve a helium leak continues.
In a statement issued on the evening of May 21, NASA said it, along with Boeing and United Launch Alliance, would not proceed with a planned May 25 launch of the spacecraft on the Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission with two NASA astronauts on board.
That launch has suffered several delays stemming from a helium leak in the spacecraft’s propulsion system.
Unlike previous delays, NASA did not announce a new launch date for the mission. “The team has been in meetings for two consecutive days, assessing flight rationale, system performance, and redundancy,” the agency stated.
“There is still forward work in these areas, and the next possible launch opportunity is still being discussed.”
“NASA will share more details once we have a clearer path forward,” the statement concluded.
NASA first revealed the helium leak, linked to a flange in a thruster in the spacecraft’s service module, May 14.
At the time the agency said it would delay the CFT launch from May 17 to May 21 to given engineers time to characterize the leak and develop a flight rationale to fly the system as-is.
Late May 17, though, NASA said it would push back the launch to May 25.
While Boeing engineers determined the leak was stable and not a flight risk, NASA said the company was “working to develop operational procedures to ensure the system retains sufficient performance capability and appropriate redundancy during the flight.”
The latest NASA statement provided no other information about the helium leak or efforts to clear the vehicle for flight, including any specific concerns that may have triggered this latest, indefinite delay.
NASA and Boeing have limited updates about the mission’s status to brief statements and have not held any briefings since immediately after the scrubbed May 6 launch attempt. Boeing spokespersons did not answer questions last week about the helium leak.
It is unclear what an extended delay would mean for the mission.
NASA officials previously said they had cleared the International Space Station’s schedule until August to give them plenty of flexibility to schedule the arrival of Starliner, which would be docked to the station for a week or more.
However, it is less certain how long Starliner can remain stacked on its Atlas 5 rocket before needing refurbishment.
https://spacenews.com/starliner-crewed-test-flight-remains-on-hold/
SpaceX Launches
MAY 22, 2024
NROL-146 MISSION
On Wednesday, May 22 at 1:00 a.m. PT, Falcon 9 launched the NROL-146 mission from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
This was the 16th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched NROL-87, NROL-85, SARah-1, SWOT, Transporter-8, Transporter-9, and nine Starlink missions.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=nrol-146
STARLINK MISSION
SpaceX is targeting Wednesday, May 22 for a Falcon 9 launch of 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Liftoff is targeted for 10:35 p.m. ET, with backup opportunities available until 2:31 a.m. ET on Thursday, May 23. If needed, additional opportunities are also available on Thursday, May 23 starting at 10:06 p.m. ET.
A live webcast of this mission will begin on X @SpaceX about five minutes prior to liftoff. Watch live.
This is the eighth flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched ESA Euclid, Ax-2, Ax-3, CRS-30, and three Starlink missions. Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=sl-6-62
Airbus to build ESA’s Vigil space weather forecasting mission
22/05/2024
ESA has signed a contract with Airbus Defence & Space UK worth €340 million for the development of its Vigil satellite.
From its unique vantage point in deep space, Vigil will greatly improve our early warning of severe space weather events such as solar storms that may cause disruption on Earth.
Today, a declaration celebrating the concluding of the Vigil mission contract was signed by ESA, Airbus Defence & Space and the UK Minister of State for Science, Research and Innovation at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels.
“Vigil will be Europe’s first 24/7 operational space weather satellite, providing valuable time to protect critical infrastructure such as power grids or mobile communication networks on Earth as well as valuable satellites in Earth orbit, including the International Space Station ISS,” says ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher.
“Vigil will drastically improve both the lead time of space weather warnings as well as their level of detail from its unique vantage point in deep space.”
“Vigil is one of the most exciting and important space missions that will not only improve our understanding of the Sun’s behaviour but crucially provide us with earlier warning and greater precision about potentially damaging solar weather,” says Patrick Wood, Head of Space
Systems UK, Airbus Defence and Space.
“Space weather forecasters will be able to see what is coming from the Sun and provide more accurate alerts.”
“Space weather generates stunning phenomena like the recent displays of the ‘Northern lights’ over our skies - but it also presents a real risk to our way of life which is increasingly dependent on space and satellite services,” says Andrew Griffith MP, Minister for Space at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. “The Vigil mission will transform our understanding of the impact of potentially dangerous solar events and I congratulate Airbus here in the UK on taking the lead in this important mission.”
Vigil will continuously deliver near real-time data on potentially hazardous solar activity before it is detectable from Earth.
Vigil’s operational data from deep space will give operators of satellites, power grids and telecommunication systems time to take protective measures, and give human space explorers time to get to safety.
“Without warning, space weather storms can cause potentially serious health problems for astronauts and the economic impact of space weather can be extensive, especially as we come to rely more and more on critical technologies underlying navigation, banking, aviation, power grids and telecommunications,” says Holger Krag, Head of the Space Safety Programme at ESA.
“Depending on the severity of an event, damage estimates range from multiple billions up to three trillion euro in case of an event of comparable magnitude as the biggest one we know, the 1859 Carrington Event.”
Vigil: space weather forecaster
Vigil will keep constant watch of the Sun from the Lagrange point L5 in deep space.
From there it can see the ‘side’ of the Sun and observe activity on the surface of the Sun days before it rotates into view from Earth.
“Vigil will continuously feed data into operational space weather services and further solar science at the same time.
Vigil is also equipped with scientific instruments that will bring its own space weather services to a new level as they fuel further improvement of its forecasting abilities.” explains Giuseppe Mandorlo, Vigil Project Manager at ESA.
“Data from Vigil can give us an unprecedented notice of up to four to five days for certain space weather effects traveling to Earth.
And from its vantage point from the ‘side’, Vigil can also observe much more clearly the speed, direction and chance of impact of coronal mass ejections (CMEs).”
The data collected by Vigil will feed into the ESA Space Weather Service Network, maintained by ESA’s Space Weather Office, part of the agency’s ambitious Space Safety Programme.
“The need and appetite for space weather services is growing as the potential impact of space weather events becomes more critical with our increased dependence on satellites in space.” says Alexi Glover, Space Weather Service Coordinator at ESA.
“The data from Vigil at L5 will be combined with available data from the Sun-Earth line, resulting in more detailed and precise forecasts for our end users across many industries.
This enables them to respond as early as possible to protect Earth’s infrastructure, satellites, inhabitants and astronauts.”
Vigil spacecraft and instruments
The spacecraft has been designed to thrive in the harsh environment of deep space, including the ability to withstand severe space weather itself, up to the size of the Carrington Event.
cont.
https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Vigil/Airbus_to_build_ESA_s_Vigil_space_weather_forecasting_mission
ESA signs contracts for commercial space cargo return service
22/05/2024
Today, at the Space Council in Brussels, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher signed contracts with Hélène Huby from The Exploration Company based in Germany, and Massimo Comparini from Thales Alenia Space based in Italy, to develop a low Earth orbit (LEO) cargo return service.
Member States of ESA decided to launch this competition for European industry at the Space Summit in November, asking companies to propose a first step towards a cargo service to and from space stations in low Earth orbit, such as the International Space Station. Just six months later, after evaluating several proposals from European companies, ESA has selected two projects that will go ahead in the competition, awarding 25 million euros of funding to each to support them in developing the cargo service.
Today, Europe relies on its international partners to bring its cargo and crew to space, providing in exchange key contributions to international space projects, such as the Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station, or the European Service Modules which power the Orion vehicles for Artemis missions.
This competition to build a cargo service to space stations in low Earth orbit, both to the International Space Station and space stations after its lifetime, will enable ESA to continue its exploration endeavours, as well as strengthen European industry’s independence in the future low Earth orbit economy.
Next steps
The selected companies will continue working on their projects with ESA’s support in the first phase of this competition. At the Ministerial Council in 2025, ESA will present its proposal for the remaining phases of the competition to its Member States for approval.
“The LEO Cargo Return Service project exemplifies ESA’s commitment to ensuring Europe’s prominent role in space exploration. It prepares us for the post-ISS era, strengthening European industry’s competitiveness in low Earth orbit operations, as well as being a test case for the ESA transformation and working differently,” says ESA Director of Human and Robotic Exploration, Daniel Neuenschwander.
Selected companies
Thales Alenia Space, a French-Italian company, has a long history in the space industry, with pressure shells for components being machined at their premises from Turin, from Space Shuttle’s Spacelab over 40 years ago, to ESA’s Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station, to modules for the future lunar Gateway station.
The Exploration Company, a French-German company established in 2021, has quickly become a known name in the space industry.
The company has been developing its Nyx capsule, aiming for a first demonstration flight this summer.
ESA has already awarded a contract to the company to study European solutions for the future of the space transportation sector.
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/ESA_signs_contracts_for_commercial_space_cargo_return_service
Pentagon working with SpaceX to cut off Russian military’s illicit use of Starlink internet
May 21, 2024
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is coordinating with SpaceX to identify and disable Starlink satellite internet terminals that have been illicitly acquired by Russian forces for use in their invasion of Ukraine, a senior U.S. defense official told Congress.
During a May 21 hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s strategic forces subcommittee, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) pressed John Hill, the Pentagon’s deputy chief of space policy, on whether SpaceX has been cooperating to ensure Russian troops do not operate Starlink terminals obtained from black markets in violation of U.S. sanctions.
Hill said SpaceX, which is owned by Elon Musk, has been “more than cooperative” and “forward leaning” in working to identify terminals in Russian hands and turn them off.
“Not only has SpaceX been very cooperative with the entire United States government and the government of Ukraine, they’ve been forward leaning in identifying and providing information to us,” Hill told lawmakers.
Warren said it has been “concerning” that Ukrainian forces have reported Russia obtaining and using the SpaceX satellite internet terminals in occupied areas of Ukraine, despite sweeping U.S. sanctions aimed at crippling Russia’s military capabilities.
Musk denied selling terminals to Russia, but lawmakers want to know SpaceX’s policies for complying with sanctions.
The Massachusetts senator insisted that the use of Starlink internet services by Russian troops “poses a serious threat to Ukraine.”
Warren asked Hill whether the Defense Department can identify all illicit Russian use of Starlink and completely shut down that capability.
Cat-and-mouse game
While the U.S. government and SpaceX have had some success working together to cut off identified terminals being used by Russian forces, Hill acknowledged it is an endless cat-and-mouse game because Russia keeps acquiring more terminals through black market channels as quickly as existing ones are turned off.
“I think we can continue to identify them or turn them off but I think Russia will not stop” trying to obtain more terminals illicitly, Hill said.
Warren questioned whether the Pentagon’s next contract for Starlink services should specify requirements for SpaceX to prevent Russia’s illicit use of the satellite internet network.
Hill said those operational details would be better addressed through a private briefing rather than in an open congressional hearing, citing the sensitive nature of the capabilities involved.
The back-and-forth highlighted the role of Starlink’s satellite internet, which can connect from anywhere on the battlefield. It has been crucial for Ukraine’s command-and-control and intelligence sharing.
“Russia’s outdated communications have been a major contributor to their failures in Ukraine,” Warren said. “Starlink obviously would be enormously valuable to the Russians.
It would provide Russia with secure communications that they sorely need, which would significantly erode Ukraine’s advantage on the battlefield.”
Hill said a lot of the information about Russia’s use of Starlink has been shared by SpaceX via U.S. Space Command’s “commercial Integration cell,” a group of commercial satellite companies that work with the U.S. government. “We share information, including company proprietary information and classified information,” said Hill. “As we share information, we can develop strategies to identify all the terminals which should be left on or which ones should be turned off.”
https://spacenews.com/pentagon-working-with-spacex-to-cut-off-russian-militarys-illicit-use-of-starlink-internet/
4th TES Cyber Team recognized as Space Force’s best for 2023
May 21, 2024
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States Space Force recently recognized the 4th Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) as the Cyber Operations Team of the Year for 2023.
This accolade is part of the Space and Cyber Operations Functional Awards, announced by U.S. Space Force Lt. Gen. DeAnna Burt, Deputy Chief of Space Operations for Operations, Cyber, and Nuclear.
The 4th TES is composed of Guardians from diverse backgrounds who leverage their unique expertise to conduct critical test and evaluation missions.
These missions aim to evaluate space, missile, and missile defense capabilities in operationally realistic environments, which ultimately inform warfighters and influence national resource allocations.
The 4th TES Cyber Operations Team is responsible for coordinating and executing cyber operational risk and penetration assessments.
These assessments directly contribute to the cyber resiliency of combat-ready Electronic Warfare (EW), Tactical Satellite Communications, and GPS weapon systems, supporting national security.
According to U.S. Space Force Lt. Col. Benjamin Szutar, the squadron commander, “Our 4 TES Cyber Guardians work diligently to engineer technical solutions which support the 4th TES integrated test mission worldwide.”
“Our team's ability to anticipate, identify, and counteract cyber threats has directly contributed to the operational readiness of the Space Force,” he added.
“Their innovative approaches in solving these complex problems ensure that we are delivering combat-credible weapon systems to joint warfighters.”
Throughout the year, the Cyber Operations Team, operating under Space Delta 12 at Peterson Space Force Base, Colo., demonstrated exceptional skill and innovation in their field, resulting in the awarded citation for improving the cyber resiliency of multiple capabilities across the force.
According to the award citation, from January 1 to December 31, 2023, the team led a series of red and blue team test events, successfully identifying potential vulnerabilities within a portfolio of programs valued at $161 billion.
One of the team’s significant achievements included engineering a transportable Command and Control suite that facilitated operations between government agencies and aircraft.
This system played a crucial role in coordinating Air Traffic Control operations during a live-fire Electronic Warfare test, ensuring the safety and effectiveness of the operations.
Additionally, the squadron conducted the unit’s first National Security Agency adversarial assessment, which involved simulated cyber-attacks on a system that supports a critical wartime communication system.
In a memorandum to the Space Force, Burt praised the award recipients, stating, “These Guardians are recognized for their outstanding contributions to the space and cyber operations missions of the Space Force.”
https://www.starcom.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3783554/4th-tes-cyber-team-recognized-as-space-forces-best-for-2023/