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Saudi Arabia plans space industry transformation
September 19, 2024
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund-backed Neo Space Group (NSG) is looking to lease multi-orbit capacity to bolster its foothold in the satellite market, ahead of likely owning and operating its own constellation.
“Our team is currently working hard to identify those areas in the market where it makes sense to deploy our own capital,” NSG’s newly appointed CEO Martijn Blanken told SpaceNews in an interview.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, created NSG in May as part of plans to become a major force in space and further diversify its economy from oil.
Blanken said NSG would be responsible for Saudi Arabia’s commercial satellite and space activities, focusing specifically on communications, geospatial services, navigation, and Internet of Things monitoring networks, though the company has provided few details about its long-term plans.
Meanwhile, the recently created Saudi Space Agency focuses on space activities that are not yet commercially viable.
The country’s Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) regulates and provides international representation on space issues.
Setting up
NSG is in the middle of taking over the commercial activities of Saudi Arabia’s share of the Saudi Geo Satellite 1/Hellas-Sat-4 satellite, a dual payload geostationary condosat built by Lockheed Martin and launched in 2019.
The other half of the spacecraft is held by Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-headquartered satellite fleet operator Arabasat, which is owned by 21 countries in the region.
While Saudi Arabia owns the largest share of Arabasat with a stake of nearly 37%, the country sees growing potential to expand its space capabilities.
“Our initial plan is to leverage Saudi Geo Satellite 1 (SGS-1) in combination with leased capacity from third-party multi-orbit satellite constellation providers as building blocks for a range of compelling communications services,” Blanken said via email.
“In parallel, we will expand our existing geospatial services business in Saudi Arabia,” pointing to NSG’s takeover of Earth imagery analytics provider Taqnia Space from PIF.
NSG, which is also setting up a satellite and space-focused venture capital fund for early-stage investments, plans to draw on PIF’s sizable financial resources to buy domestic and international businesses to expand its presence.
Meeting demand in the burgeoning market for inflight connectivity is a strategic priority for the company.
In May, multi-orbit operator SES said NSG was one of several regional satellite network operators to agree in principle to pool their capacity to offer seamless connectivity services to airlines worldwide.
Blanken said NSG is also planning to introduce an Earth Observation wholesaler platform with a partner early next year.
“The satcom and space tech sector poses unique challenges, including regulatory hurdles, cybersecurity, and high satellite costs,” he continued.
“However, NSG brings a fresh perspective, unburdened by legacy issues like declining broadcast revenues or debt. Backed by PIF, we’re poised to disrupt the industry by focusing on high-opportunity segments and delivering effective communication solutions through multi-orbit satellite technology and ground networks.”
Speaking at the World Satellite Business Week conference in Paris Sept. 17, Blanken said: “The market is about to be disrupted — let’s face it, not just from a technology perspective but also from a financial perspective.
“Capital is harder to [come] by nowadays. We are fortunate enough to be backed by an investor who has a bit of capital. It’s relatively cheap and relatively patient.”
CST published research last year predicting Saudi Arabia’s space industry would grow to $2.2 billion by 2030, compared with $400 million in 2022.
A recent forecast by McKinsey & Co. said the global space economy will triple in value to US$1.8 trillion by 2035, growing at twice the rate of global GDP.
https://spacenews.com/saudi-arabia-plots-space-industry-transformation/
China set to unveil long-term vision for space science
September 20, 2024
The Chinese Academy of Sciences is aiming to accelerate its progress in space science with a newly developed medium- and long-term roadmap for future missions.
The plan will see China’s space science efforts—marked in recent years by successful dark matter, quantum and space physics missions—transitioning into an accelerated development phase.
The long-term plan aims to solidify the country’s role in global space science.
The development is outlined in a paper recently published in the Chinese Journal of Space Sciences, authored by Wang Chi, director of the National Space Sciences Center (NSSC) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
It states that CAS instructed the Chinese space science community to create a national medium and long-term plan for space science.
The release of the plan is stated to be imminent. As part of the plan, five main scientific themes have been identified for future breakthroughs.
These are the extreme universe, space-time ripples, the panoramic view of the Sun and Earth, habitable planets, and biological and physical space science.
These are summarized as “One Black, Two Dark, Three Origins and Five Characterizations.”
These refer respectively to the study of dense celestial bodies such as black holes, the study of dark matter and dark energy, the origin of the universe, the solar system and life, and characterizing the near-Earth system, Earth-moon system, the solar system, and the extra-solar system, and the laws governing matter and life in the space environment.
Space science missions before 2030
Five missions already in development are highlighted to deliver major discoveries by 2030 as part of the vision.
These are DSL, eXTP, SPO, Taiji-2 and Earth 2.0. These gained approval earlier this year.
The Enhanced X-ray Timing and Polarimetry (eXTP) mission is an X-ray observatory to monitor the sky and enable multi-messenger studies for gravitational waves and neutrino sources.
Discovering the Sky at the Longest Wavelength (DSL) will be a combination of 10 spacecraft in lunar orbit. These will use the moon as a shield against Earthly electromagnetic interference.
In this radio quiet environment, the spacecraft will listen for faint, ultra-long wave signals from the early universe.
The Earth 2.0 (ET) observatory, scheduled to launch in 2028, will look for habitable planets from Sun-Earth Lagrange point 2.
The Solar Polar-orbit Observatory (SPO) aims to study poles of the Sun.
It will orbit at an inclination of greater than 80 degrees with respect to the plane of the ecliptic.
Finally Taiji-2, a three-satellite constellation in a 60-million-kilometer heliocentric orbit, will detect millihertz gravitational waves.
The paper notes that future missions, such as the Chang’e-7 lunar south polar landing mission, the 2025 Tianwen-2 near-Earth asteroid sample return and main-belt comet exploration mission, the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), and space science conducted aboard the Tiangong Space Station will contribute to the overall vision.
The five missions were selected from CAS’s earlier Strategic Priority Program (SPP) on Space Science.
Missions launched under SPP include the DAMPE dark matter probe, the QUESS quantum science satellite, the Advanced space-based Solar Observatory (ASO-S) and the Einstein Probe, launched in January.
The SPP is now set to be replaced by the national medium and long-term plan for space science.
Notably, none of the missions proposed for the SPP under planetary and Earth science appear to have gained approval.
These proposals included an E-type asteroid sample return and a Venus orbiter.
Chinese scientists have called for a strategic focus on asteroids and sample return missions.
International collaboration will also play a part in China’s space science plans.
This builds on extensive cooperation in the Einstein Probe and upcoming SMILE mission with ESA.
“In the future, China will actively initiate, propose and participate in international cooperation projects,” the paper reads.
“Space science in China is advancing from the initial stage into a new era of accelerated development,” the paper states.
“The release of the first national medium and long-term plan for space science is imminent, and a series of new space science satellite missions are about to be approved for implementation.”
https://spacenews.com/china-set-to-unveil-long-term-vision-for-space-science/
https://www.sciengine.com/CJSS/doi/10.11728/cjss2024.04.2024-yg19;JSESSIONID=0207c5a0-cf90-4f5a-9eab-705046a3c799
DLA, Space Force agree to new framework for logistics support
Sept. 19, 2024
Readiness-based support and a formal governance structure for aligning supply requirements are expected benefits of a new agreement between the Space Force and Defense Logistics Agency.
DLA Director Army Lt. Gen. Mark Simerly and Space Force Chief Operations Officer Lt. Gen. DeAnna Burt, signed the agreement Sept. 18 at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.
Simerly said DLA is committed to delivering responsive logistics support to the Space Force as it protects national security interests in space.
The agreement culminates 12 months of collaboration and sets standards for optimizing the effectiveness of DLA’s worldwide logistics support for the service, he added.
The Space Force and DLA will create metrics to measure performance in areas such as order response time and parts availability.
Greg Ogorek, DLA’s national account manager to the Space Force, said metrics will help the agency better meet supply needs, especially for parts that are in low demand or have no manufacturer.
“It’s those hard-to-get parts keeping weapons systems down that we need to better position ourselves from a stock perspective and predict what’s going to be needed to keep the mission going,” he said.
The agreement also establishes the Partnership Agreement Council for colonels and below and an Executive Steering Group for the general-officer level.
“With these working groups, we’ll bring together leaders from both sides and all the supporting actors to go over topics and work around emerging concerns as we agree on future endeavors,” Ogorek said.
Collaboration will also begin the path to an inaugural Space Force Service Day, an annual forum DLA hosts for the other services to discuss challenges and explore new opportunities for support.
Ogorek said the agreement places DLA’s support to the Space Force on equal footing with the other services.
“It puts extra emphasis on our commitment and shows our dedication to providing stellar support to the Space Force,” he added.
“This is important because everything is tied to space, from communications to GPS.”
Enduring support
Although the Space Force was only recently created in December 2019, DLA supported space efforts of the Air Force, Army and Navy that were previously led by Air Force Space Command.
“Organizing the Space Force into a separate service was largely a shift in command and control, but we’ve been providing logistics support for space initiatives all along,” Ogorek said.
As part of DLA’s Nuclear and Space Enterprise Support Office, Ogorek helps determine ongoing logistics requirements with the sustainment team at Space Force Headquarters.
Additional liaison officers at DLA major subordinate commands partner weekly with counterparts at lower supply levels.
Tony Duren, a DLA LNO collocated with Space Force members in Colorado, and Darryl Hall, a weapons system program manager at DLA Aviation, help work through support issues at maintenance sites throughout the country.
When one unit recently pointed out issues getting a critical transistor for radar sites, Duren and Hall worked with the manufacturer to increase quantities and resolve issues with the technical data package.
“Because of their help, the vendor accelerated production of 1,249 transistors to clear all of the Space Force’s back orders, and we now have positive stock on hand,” Ogorek said.
Steve Nichols, director of customer operations for DLA Energy Aerospace, also ensures the service has fuel to launch systems and move satellites in orbit.
The Space Force typically relies on contracted logistics support when brining new systems online, but DLA provides cataloging support by ensuring parts have stock numbers and technical data.
It also stores parts, offers disposal support and can help plan sustainment.
“We have folks who monitor the process and explain how it’s beneficial to have DLA as a source of supply for some of those items, especially those that are common across systems that we already manage for the other services,” Ogorek said.
Since the Space Force’s creation, DLA has also provided service flags and uniforms.
https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3911718/
https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3912581/
SpOC AFA conference recap: Great Power Competition, joint exercises, Space Force Generation
Sept. 20, 2024
Lt. Gen. David N. Miller, Jr., Space Operations Command’s commander and Chief Master Sgt. Caleb Lloyd, SpOC senior enlisted leader, updated thousands of participants on SpOC’s progress toward meeting rising threats at the Air and Space Forces Association’s annual Air, Space and Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Sept. 19.
Miller joined leaders from multiple Department of the Air Force organizations for a panel entitled, “Exercising for Great Power Competition.”
Miller brought the Guardian’s perspective to the panel, which also included Air Force Gen. Kevin Schneider, Pacific Air Forces commander, Air Force Gen. John D. Lamontagne, commander of Air Mobility Command and Air Force Lt. Gen. John P. Healy, chief of Air Force Reserve and commander of Air Force Reserve Command.
“This is our asymmetric advantage,” Miller said, talking about increased synchronization with the other branches of service and allies,
“The United States does not fight alone. If we don't have embedded integration from the tactical level all the way through the strategic level, you're not going to surge awesome at the end. We've got to baseline that capability from day one.”
Miller explained that SpOC is stepping up training exercises with different branches of service and international partners, an effort that ties directly to SpOC’s role as force provider for both United States Space Command and joint combatant commands around the globe.
In the near future, SpOC will host a sourcing and prioritization conference where representatives of all the organizations who need space forces for operations or training exercises will be able to get on the calendar.
Once requests are accepted, SpOC will be able to project and prioritize that support for the next few years.
Miller was also asked about the progress SpOC is making toward integrating space mission deltas into diverse, joint training exercises.
“There's actually places where this is already happening, where the tactical units themselves have the initiative,” Miller said.
“They've built time into their calendar, and they're beginning to build out their specific training and force generation plans tied to outcomes that they need across these platforms, whether that's space, cyber, special operations, air, sea or land.”
That forward-looking approach is at the heart of the Space Force Generation (SPAFORGEN) model. All SpOC mission deltas began unified implementation of the new model July 1st.
SPAFORGEN mandates semi-annual training periods for crews of space operators, allowing them to participate in exercises they might not be able to take part in when working shifts for day-to-day operations.
Miller explained that SpOC unit commanders are being empowered to not participate in exercises that they don’t view as readiness-generating.
That same day, Lloyd participated in a think tank event that covered similar topics, SPAFORGEN included.
“From a space operations community perspective, we talked about how we generate capability and our force generation model, which ultimately is focused on developing people,” Lloyd said.
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“The major change in that whole model is not the day-to-day operations, necessarily. It's about how [we] take time out of their day-to-day and put them in a scenario where they have to fight through a threat that's real.”
Guardians participate in those training exercises during the “Ready” phase of the SPAFORGEN cycle, during which space operators focus on training instead of doing regular operations.
This time allows them to work through scenarios as a team, allowing them to improve teamwork and problem solving in a training environment that is low threat, as opposed to learning during real-world operations.
Although the Space Force will soon turn five years old, it is still new compared to the other branches of service.
Lloyd said Guardian culture is still developing, but that it’s not being done from the top down.
“We shape climate, not necessarily culture,” Lloyd said, referring to SpOC leadership. “That will evolve as we define our roles and responsibilities.”
Lloyd said he’s seeing considerable growth among enlisted Guardians, who he says are much more mindful of threats than they have been in the past.
He also explained SpOC intends to hand more responsibility to enlisted Guardians in the future, making them the primary warfighters of the Space Force.
Lloyd also stressed the importance of Guardians to the rest of the armed forces and allies.
“I would say that we are arguably the most joint of the services, because every other service is dependent on the capabilities, both to ensure that they have the capabilities they need and that we are protecting them from space,” Lloyd said.
The Air, Space and Cyber Conference provides professional military development, facilitates sharing of emerging requirements and technologies, and helps fuel connections that advance the cause of air and spacepower.
This year’s theme was “Achieving Decisive Advantage in an Age of Growing Threats.”
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Retired NASA Astronaut Urges Government to Investigate "Compelling" UFO Claims
Sep 19, 4:10 PM EDT
In a new interview, retired NASA astronaut and current Arizona senator Mark Kelly insisted that the US government could be doing much more to investigate credible claims about unidentified flying objects.
Speaking to GZero founder Ian Bremmer, the former twin astronaut didn't scoff at the idea that the truth may be out there.
"I've seen some compelling testimony from navy fighter pilots who… in a position of leadership in a squadron, have seen something very compelling," Kelly said.
As video from the GZero interview suggests, the senator and prior commander of the Space Shuttle was likely referencing ex-Naval pilot Ryan Graves' Congressional testimony last summer in which he described seeing a craft so strange while flying off the coast of Virginia a decade ago that his flight commander "immediately" called the mission off.
As Bremmer noted, that pilot was convinced that the unexplained object he saw flying over the water near Virginia Beach was "technologically not possible" by any known American or adversarial craft.
A member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, the Arizona senator said that he feels Congress has an "obligation" to study what the government now refers to as "unidentified aerial phenomena" or UAPs — though as Kelly noted, there's virtually no distinction between UAPs and UFOs.
He will soon meet that obligation given that his committee just confirmed to The Hill that it will be holding its first UFO hearing since the headline-grabbing testimonies it heard last summer that involved, among other things, an ex-Pentagon whistleblower who claimed to have knowledge of the government reverse-engineering alien tech.
Sen. Kristen Gillibrand, who chairs the subcommittee on emerging threats and capabilities and who helped establish the Pentagon's UFO-hunting office, told the website that the hearing would likely be held in November.
When it comes to his own beliefs about or experiences with extraterrestrials, the one-time contender for Kamala Harris' running mate fell short of answering definitively.
"I get these questions all the time," Kelly said. "People think as I've been to space, maybe I have this special insight, or maybe I've seen something."
"While I've spent time orbiting the Earth," he continued, "I haven't."
It's far from a smoking gun, but a senator and former astronaut saying the US should be paying closer attention to UFOs almost certainly carries more credibility than an ex-military official who claims the Department of Defense is hoarding alien tech.
https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-astronaut-mark-kelly-ufo-claims
Thousands see UFO hovering eerily over city in the middle of the day
September 19, 2024
Hundreds of residents were left in awe when they spotted a mysterious object hovering over their city.
Normally, such objects are spotted in the dead of night, but this one in the western Mexican city of Guadalajara was in broad daylight.
'Here comes my flying saucer customer,' Eduardo Chavez, the owner of a rims and tire shop, could be heard saying in the background in one video showing it hovering over his shop that's had 6.3 million views
'He's coming for rims and tires… At your service. Take a look at whatever you like.'
A second video with more than 1.7 million views showed what appeared to be the same object flying at a lower altitude under a white patch of clouds.
The wild videos sparked the never-ending conversation of whether life exists outside Earth.
'There is another UFO that passes very fast behind the one that is still,' one TikToker commented. 'You have to pause the video a couple of times till you see it. It's way too fast.'
'Every civilization evolves at the precipice of destruction,' another TikTok user said. 'Maybe the influx in sightings means we're either almost completely wiped out or on the verge of a species wide evolution.'
'There are a few flying around in the clouds in background moving like gravity doesn't exist pulling insane maneuvers!' another person added.
Some TikTokers thought the video was a clever way to promote in his small business.
'The people studying Marketing for years and this guy blew them away,' one person quipped.
'The street is the best school,' Chávez replied.
'Is he aware that if the UFO is real it made a very possibly unbeatable commercial?' another commented.
One TikToker joked: 'He said they took the wheels off the UFOs when they came to ask for directions.'
https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/thousands-see-ufo-hovering-eerily-over-city-in-the-middle-of-the-day/ar-AA1qQSNO
Mexican ufologist Jaime Maussan offering an ‘out of this world’ Airbnb experience
September 19, 2024
The Mexican paranormal investigator Jaime Maussan, host of a UFO-themed television show that airs in several Spanish-speaking countries, is offering a free, one-night stay in his forest cabin that Airbnb says will be “out of this world.”
In a deal promoted through the booking platform, Maussan will welcome two guests, preferably UFO enthusiasts, into his home for an overnight stay on Oct. 5 — a Saturday night during World Space Week from Oct. 4-10.
Among other perks, the guests will get to enter the bunker where Maussan keeps evidence of his research on extraterrestrials, unidentified flying objects and undiscovered planets.
“After years of exploring the unknown, I want to invite the most passionate to share my most personal retreat: my house,” the host of the TV program “Tercer Milenio” (“Third Millennium”) posted this week on social media.
The booking process — which will commence on Sept. 25 at 11 a.m. — “is not a contest,” Airbnb wrote in announcing the promotion.
However, Maussan will determine the “winner” by reviewing and assessing each application. The booking does not include transportation.
Maussan, 71, is a journalist and self-described ufologist whose long list of discoveries and claims includes a startling presentation to the Chamber of Deputies — Mexico’s lower house of Congress — last year: two tiny bodies that he claimed were 1,000-year-old corpses of extraterrestrials.
His cabin, which is touted as having a great view of the heavens, is located in the Desierto de los Leones National Park, a 1,500-hectare woodland reserve in the southwestern area greater Mexico City.
Tucked into a verdant natural landscape, the cabin includes a bedroom with a queen bed for the visitors, plus a sky-viewing room with a telescope.
It is in this home that Maussan spent a lot of time doing research.
“Here I connect with nature and find inspiration to look up at the sky and wonder what lies beyond,” Maussan said.
“To celebrate Space Week, I decided to open the doors of my home to two lucky visitors who are ready to face the mysteries that are beyond the scope of our understanding while enjoying this place, which is my lair within this dimension and on this planet.”
He said the cabin “is the perfect place to explore and reflect on the enigmas of the cosmos. I advise [you] to be ready to live a truly extraordinary experience.”
In addition to the researcher chatting with the guests about his theories, there will also be “an ancestral meal prepared by Maussan himself.”
Airbnb calls this new type of booking “Icons,” experiences that are hosted by entertainment and sports stars, world-class museums and other entities.
Several months ago, Airbnb announced its first 11 “Icons.”
The list included sleeping in a “floating” house from the Disney-Pixar movie “Up,” spending a night in the Ferrari Museum in Italy, joining a living room session with singer Doja Cat and staying in Prince’s Purple Rain house in Minnesota.
To see the property, visit the Airbnb listing for “An out of this world stay, by Jaime Maussan.”
https://mexiconewsdaily.com/travel/mexican-ufologist-jaime-maussan-airbnb-experience/
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1226948452764924038