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Revealing the Hidden Universe with Full-shell X-ray Optics at NASA MSFC
Oct 15, 2024
The study of X-ray emission from astronomical objects reveals secrets about the Universe at the largest and smallest spatial scales.
Celestial X-rays are produced by black holes consuming nearby stars, emitted by the million-degree gas that traces the structure between galaxies, and can be used to predict whether stars may be able to host planets hospitable to life.
X-ray observations have shown that most of the visible matter in the universe exists as hot gas between galaxies and have conclusively demonstrated that the presence of “dark matter” is needed to explain galaxy cluster dynamics, that dark matter dominates the mass of galaxy clusters, and that it governs the expansion of the cosmos.
X-ray observations also enable us to probe mysteries of the Universe on the smallest scales.
X-ray observations of compact objects such as white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes allow us to use the Universe as a physics laboratory to study conditions that are orders of magnitude more extreme in terms of density, pressure, temperature, and magnetic field strength than anything that can be produced on Earth.
In this astrophysical laboratory, researchers expect to reveal new physics at the subatomic scale by conducting investigations such as probing the neutron star equation of state and testing quantum electrodynamics with observations of neutron star atmospheres.
At NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, a team of scientists and engineers is building, testing, and flying innovative optics that bring the Universe’s X-ray mysteries into sharper focus.
Unlike optical telescopes that create images by reflecting or refracting light at near-90-degree angles (normal incidence), focusing X-ray optics must be designed to reflect light at very small angles (grazing incidence).
At normal incidence, X-rays are either absorbed by the surface of a mirror or penetrate it entirely. However, at grazing angles of incidence, X-rays reflect very efficiently due to an effect called total external reflection.
In grazing incidence, X-rays reflect off the surface of a mirror like rocks skipping on the surface of a pond.
A classic design for astronomical grazing incidence optics is the Wolter-I prescription, which consists of two reflecting surfaces, a parabola and hyperbola (see figure below).
This optical prescription is revolved around the optical axis to produce a full-shell mirror (i.e., the mirror spans the full circumference) that resembles a gently tapered cone.
To increase the light collecting area, multiple mirror shells with incrementally larger diameters and a common focus are fabricated and nested concentrically to comprise a mirror module assembly (MMA).
Focusing optics are critical to studying the X-ray universe because, in contrast to other optical systems like collimators or coded masks, they produce high signal-to-noise images with low background noise.
Two key metrics that characterize the performance of X-ray optics are angular resolution, which is the ability of an optical system to discriminate between closely spaced objects, and effective area, which is the light collecting area of the telescope, typically quoted in units of cm2.
Angular resolution is typically measured as the half-power diameter (HPD) of a focused spot in units of arcseconds.
The HPD encircles half of the incident photons in a focused spot and measures the sharpness of the final image; a smaller number is better.
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has been building and flying lightweight, full-shell, focusing X-ray optics for over three decades, always meeting or exceeding angular resolution and effective area requirements.
MSFC utilizes an electroformed nickel replication (ENR) technique to make these thin full-shell X-ray optics from nickel alloy.
X-ray optics development at MSFC began in the early 1990s with the fabrication of optics to support NASA’s Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF-S) and then continued via the Constellation-X technology development programs.
In 2001, MSFC launched a balloon payload that included two modules each with three mirrors, which produced the first focused hard X-ray (>10 keV) images of an astrophysical source by imaging Cygnus X-1, GRS 1915, and the Crab Nebula.
This initial effort resulted in several follow-up missions over the next 12 years, and became known as the High Energy Replicated Optics (HERO) balloon program.
cont.
https://science.nasa.gov/science-research/science-enabling-technology/revealing-the-hidden-universe-with-full-shell-x-ray-optics-at-nasa-msfc/
Zoom into the first page of ESA Euclid’s great cosmic atlas
15/10/2024
On 15 October 2024, ESA’s Euclid space mission revealed the first piece of its great map of the Universe, showing millions of stars and galaxies.
This first chunk of the map, which is a huge mosaic of 208 gigapixels, was revealed at the International Astronautical Congress in Milan, Italy, by ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher and Director of Science Carole Mundell.
The mosaic contains 260 observations made between 25 March and 8 April 2024. In just two weeks, Euclid covered 132 square degrees of the Southern Sky in pristine detail, more than 500 times the area of the full Moon.
This mosaic accounts for 1% of the wide survey that Euclid will capture over six years. During this survey, the telescope observes the shapes, distances and motions of billions of galaxies out to 10 billion light-years [1].
By doing this, it will create the largest cosmic 3D map ever made.
This first piece of the map already contains around 100 million sources: stars in our Milky Way and galaxies beyond. Some 14 million of these galaxies could be used to study the hidden influence of dark matter and dark energy on the Universe.[2]
“This stunning image is the first piece of a map that in six years will reveal more than one third of the sky.
This is just 1% of the map, and yet it is full of a variety of sources that will help scientists discover new ways to describe the Universe,” says Valeria Pettorino, Euclid Project Scientist at ESA.
The spacecraft’s sensitive cameras captured an incredible number of objects in great detail. Zooming very deep into the mosaic (this image is enlarged 600 times compared to the full view), we can still clearly see the intricate structure of a spiral galaxy.
A special feature visible in the mosaic are dim clouds in between the stars in our own galaxy, they appear in light blue against the black background of space.
They are a mix of gas and dust, also called “galactic cirrus” because they look like cirrus clouds.
Euclid is able to see these clouds with its super sensitive visible light camera because they reflect optical light from the Milky Way.
The clouds also shine in far-infrared light, as seen by ESA’s Planck mission.
The mosaic released today is a teaser for what’s to come from the Euclid mission. Since the mission started its routine science observations in February, 12% of the survey has been completed.
The release of 53 square degrees of the survey, including a preview the Euclid Deep Field areas, is planned for March 2025.
The mission’s first year of cosmology data will be released to the community in 2026.
Notes
[1] When we refer to distances in light-years, we refer to the time that the light has travelled in space to reach our telescopes (light travel time).
[2] The 14 million galaxies are galaxies that are bright enough for Euclid to measure their distorted shapes (gravitational lensing) and learn more about the dark matter distribution in our Universe. Euclid's map of the distribution of galaxies over cosmic time will also teach us about dark energy, which affects how quickly the Universe expands.
About Euclid
Euclid was launched in July 2023 and started its routine science observations on 14 February 2024. In November 2023 and May 2024, the world got its first glimpses of the quality of Euclid’s images.
Euclid is a European mission, built and operated by ESA, with contributions from NASA.
The Euclid Consortium – consisting of more than 2000 scientists from 300 institutes in 15 European countries, the USA, Canada and Japan – is responsible for providing the scientific instruments and scientific data analysis.
ESA selected Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor for the construction of the satellite and its service module, with Airbus Defence and Space chosen to develop the payload module, including the telescope.
NASA provided the detectors of the Near-Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer, NISP. Euclid is a medium-class mission in ESA’s Cosmic Vision Programme.
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid/Zoom_into_the_first_page_of_ESA_Euclid_s_great_cosmic_atlas
Zero Debris Charter goes intercontinental
14/10/2024
The problem of space debris is one that all space-faring nations must face together.
Today, New Zealand and Mexico were the first countries from outside Europe to sign the Zero Debris Charter, underlining the global nature of ensuring safety and sustainability in space.
“The Zero Debris Charter signals Europe’s unwavering commitment to be a world leader in reducing and remediating space debris, fostering collective action by a large community of space actors around the world,” says Dr. Salvador Landeros Ayala, General Director at the Mexican Space Agency.
“Mexico has not yet adopted a national regulatory framework on space debris mitigation.
However, Mexico has always expressed to the relevant high-level bodies its work to develop mechanisms that will materialize the sustainability of our future activities in outer space.”
Since its publication in November 2023, the Zero Debris Charter has quickly gathered around it a large, growing community of international actors committed to a sustainable future in space.
The momentum now continues with an additional 23 entities also signing the Charter at the 2024 International Astronautical Congress.
This brings the total number of signatories to fifteen countries and over a hundred companies, research centres and international organisations, with many more having stated their intent to follow suit.
The Zero Debris Charter represents a collaborative effort within the global space community, serving as a foundational document and the start of an initiative.
The community-driven charter covers overarching guiding principles and jointly defined targets to get to Zero Debris by 2030.
Signing the Charter is just the start. The goals and guiding principles of the Zero Debris Charter are currently translated into actionable and measurable technical targets through crowdsourcing within the community.
New technologies will be developed that are necessary to achieve these realistic-yet-ambitious targets.
Learn more about Supporting the Zero Debris Charter.
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2024/10/Zero_Debris_Charter_goes_intercontinental
Solar Arrays on NASA’s Europa Clipper Fully Deployed in Space
October 14, 2024
Mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California have confirmed that the two solar arrays flanking the main body of the Europa Clipper spacecraft have fully unfolded.
This means that the spacecraft now has a reliable source of power for the rest of its journey to Jupiter and tour of the Jovian system.
The process began with the cutting of hold-downs keeping the solar arrays folded against the sides of the spacecraft and then the unfolding of one “wing” at a time.
With each wing measuring 46 ½-feet (14 meters) long, Europa Clipper’s solar arrays are the biggest NASA has ever developed for a planetary mission.
https://blogs.nasa.gov/europaclipper/2024/10/14/solar-arrays-on-nasas-europa-clipper-fully-deployed-in-space/
Blue Origin donates New Shepard rocket and crew capsule to Smithsonian
October 16, 2024
Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos once pledged that if his company's first rocket to reach space and land vertically back on Earth survived an abort test then he would "reward it for its service" by putting it into a museum.
Eight years later, Bezos has made good on that promise and then some.
"There is no better final landing pad for New Shepard than the Smithsonian," said Bezos in a statement. "We are honored and grateful."
The New Shepard booster that became the world's first launch vehicle to place a payload into space before landing upright on its legs has been delivered to the Smithsonian.
Further, a mockup of Blue Origin's crew capsule will go on display at the same time as the rocket at the National Air and Space Museum, to later be replaced by by the still-flying "RSS First Step," the spacecraft that has flown 43 people to space (to date), including Bezos himself.
The Blue Origin artifacts will debut to the public in two renovated and reimagined galleries opening in the museum's Washington, D.C. flagship building in 2026.
"The New Shepard rocket and capsule represent current spaceflight and future exploration," said Chris Browne, director of the museum, in a statement.
"A key component of the museum's ongoing transformation is having a rich collection and presentation of what's happening right now, in addition to celebrating incredible feats of the past."
Propulsion Module (PM) 4-2, or "Tail 2," as Blue Origin refers to its second New Shepard booster to be built and flown, will be exhibited in the museum's "missile pit," standing alongside a V-2, Minuteman II and a full-scale replica of the Jupiter-C launch vehicle that put the United States' first satellite into orbit. As part of the new "RTX Living in the Space Age" gallery, the five-time flown New Shepard rocket will help explain to visitors the "how, why and who of the ways in which the Space Age has transformed our lives."
The New Shepard crew capsule, which can seat up to six private astronauts for a 10-minute trip above the Kármán line and back, will join "Futures in Space," an exhibition themed around the "potential near- and long-term futures that may emerge with advances in space exploration technology and enterprise."
The Air and Space Museum is using the gallery to showcase developing technologies that are reducing the cost of access to space, beginning the era of commercial spaceflight and expanding robotic resource extraction to worlds beyond Earth.
"We are excited to welcome these milestone artifacts into our collection and display them in our upcoming galleries," said Browne.
Tail 2 did not launch people, but lifted off on four suborbital test flights between November 2015 and June 2016. Each time, it lofted the first New Shepard capsule, named the "RSS Jules Verne."
Since Oct. 5, 2016, when it beat the odds and survived a test of the crew cabin's escape system, Tail 2 has been exhibited by Blue Origin at various company functions, including an employee holiday party in 2016; at MARS 2017, Amazon's annual invite-only robotics-focused gathering; at the Space Foundation's Space Symposium in Colorado Springs; and at EAA Airventure, the Experimental Aircraft Association's fly-in in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in July 2017.
It then "landed" in the lobby of Blue Origin's New Glenn orbital rocket factory at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2018, where it has been until now.
"RSS First Step" is Blue Origin's first and, to date, only New Shepard capsule to launch passengers.
Among its more notable crew members have been "Mercury 13" member Wally Funk; "Star Trek" actor William Shatner; and Laura Shepard Churchley, daughter of the first American in space Alan Shepard, for whom Blue Origin named the vehicle.
Blue Origin is now preparing for the first launch of its second human-rated vehicle, the "RSS Kármán Line," named after the internationally recognized boundary between Earth and space.
The vehicle is comprised of the fourth module and fifth propulsion module to fly.
In addition to Blue Origin's capsule and rocket donations, Bezos personally gifted the Smithsonian $200 million in 2021, in part to support the renovation of the National Air and Space Museum and to establish a new education center at the museum.
The Bezos Learning Center, to be housed in a separate facility on the east side of the museum's plaza on the National Mall, will feature programs aimed at engaging students in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics, as well as aid educators in better using the Smithsonian's collections across all of its museums.
https://www.space.com/blue-origin-new-shepard-smithsonian-museum
ISS leaks among 50 'areas of concern' for astronaut safety: report
October 16, 2024
NASA and its Russian counterpart have identified 50 "areas of concern" related to a long-running leak aboard the space station, a media report states.
The leak has been ongoing since 2019 in the Russian segment of the International Space Station (ISS) and was the focus of a new report from NASA's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) published in September.
While NASA and Roscosmos are addressing the leak, it remains a top "safety risk" for astronauts on board, the OIG report stated.
NASA officials, speaking in an exclusive with the Washington Post, said they are tracking four cracks and 50 other "areas of concern" on the ISS.
The cracks have "all been covered with a combination of sealant and patches" by Roscosmos, NASA noted in a statement to the newspaper, and fixes are ongoing.
Still, the leaking area is the top risk, at a 5 on a scale of 5, in NASA's internal risk assessments, the OIG stated.
"We have conveyed the seriousness of the leaks multiple times, including when I was in Russia earlier this year," associate administrator Jim Free added in an interview with the Post.
Since the leaks are adjacent to a hatch, Free added that Roscosmos acquiesced to a NASA request to close the hatch as much as possible: “We've come to a compromise that they close it in the evening."
NASA astronauts also remain on the U.S. side of the orbiting complex to be close to their escape vehicles, in case of the need of evacuation, the agency noted in its statement to the news outlet.
That said, NASA has stressed repeatedly that the leak poses no immediate threat to astronauts.
"Not an impact right now on the crew safety or vehicle operations, but something for everybody to be aware of," ISS program manager Joel Montalbano said in a news conference in February 2024 when the leak temporarily increased to 2.4 pounds per day, up from a historic low of 0.2 pounds per day.
The leak has been ongoing for five years and patches have been ongoing since it was first uncovered; agency officials noted in a Sept. 27 livestreamed briefing that repair work reduced the high leak observed in April 2024 by roughly a third.
The escaping air originated in a service module transfer tunnel in Russia's Zvezda module that launched in 2000.
Zvezda, along with the rest of the ISS, is aging and requires maintenance to keep going in orbit.
The ISS is supposed to last until 2030 to serve both NASA's staffing needs, and also to provide commercial low Earth orbit research.
In the following decade, NASA hopes to have a set of commercial space stations ready to take over operations.
NASA's OIG is tracking several other risks that could imperil keeping the ISS going that long, ranging from a sudden micrometeoroid strike to supply chain issues.
SpaceX has been tasked to build a large Dragon-type spacecraft to remove the ISS from orbit, in a contract awarded by NASA earlier this year.
The OIG stated it will be looking to learn more about the schedule, costs and risks associated with the new vehicle and the deorbiting plan.
https://www.space.com/iss-leak-50-areas-of-concern-nasa-report
Who’s in charge of preventing and responding to cyberattacks?
October 14, 2024
It’s not always clear which government agency is responsible for defending satellites against cyberattacks.
Research focused on France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States revealed a lack of clarity in some cases concerning responsibilities for addressing cyber threats to satellites and responding to attacks.
People working in the same institutions sometimes provided “completely different answers” about the roles of space and cyber commands in defending satellites, Clémence Poirier, senior cyberdefense researcher at the Center for Security Studies of the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, said Oct. 14 at the International Astronautical Congress here.
Since 2019, many countries have created space commands, expanded air commands to encompass space operations, and established cyber commands.
The moves reflect increasing military reliance on space systems and growing recognition of cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
At the same time, “states started to adopt counter-offensive and offensive doctrines in both space and cyberspace,” Poirier said.
Some of the new organizations are quite small and still taking shape.
As a result, it’s sometimes unclear who is in charge of cybersecurity, particularly if the threat involves a commercial satellite that supports military operations.
It is clear, though, that a lack of defined roles and responsibilities could pose problems.
“Threat actors can exploit technical vulnerabilities to try to get into a network,” Poirier said.
“But if you have companies or governments that are completely disorganized, that can make you waste time in your recovery in case of a cyberattack or it might make the attack worse.”
France
The French Cybersecurity Agency ANSI protects critical infrastructure including space systems.
ANSI has delegated the cyber defense of military satellites to the France’s Cyber Defense Command, which is responsible for diagnosing attacks, attribution, system recovery and repair.
“Everything goes to the Cyber Command, but the Space Command is informed,” Poirier said.
For cyberattacks on commercial satellites, the Cyber Command may get involved if there is a link with a military weapon system or if the satellite is used by the armed forces, Poirier said.
In that case, Space Command likely would be informed of the cyber-related activity by the company that owns the satellite. “This is something that they do by practice, but this is not compulsory,” she added.
French Space Command, meanwhile, identifies cyber vulnerabilities of satellites, mapping them, patching them and monitoring systems.
Germany and the U.K.
In Germany, the Cyber and Information Domain Service defends military satellites from cyberattack.
The same organization performs “many cyber-related activities” including operating satellite payloads.
In the event of a cyberattack on military, civil or commercial satellites used by the German military, the Cyber and Information Domain Service handles the national response.
In contrast, the cyber defense of military satellites in the U.K. is handled by the National Cyber Force, a partnership that involves defense and intelligence agencies.
If a U.K. commercial satellite is attacked, the private sector “is completely responsible,” Poirier said.
United States
The U.S. Space Force’s Space Delta 6 oversees cybersecurity for military satellites. Within Space Delta 6, eight squadrons defend systems against cyberattack.
One squadron, for example, defends missile-warning satellites while another safeguards launch operations.
In addition, the Space Training and Readiness Command operates cyber ranges and conducts cybersecurity exercises for the Space Force.
The National Reconnaissance Office also has an organization focused on cybersecurity.
When Russia invaded Ukraine, hackers infiltrated Viasat’s KA-SAT satellite internet network, disabling modems that provide internet links for tens of thousands of customers.
At the time, there did not appear to be a “dedicated agency for cyber-incident response and coordination,” Poirier said. “Viasat decided to involve the [National Security Agency] to deal with all the governments.
They delegated this aspect of the incident response to them.”
https://spacenews.com/whos-in-charge-of-preventing-and-responding-to-cyberattacks/
Army’s space tech roadmap emphasizes secure navigation, satcom, intelligence
October 15, 2024
The U.S. Army is accelerating investments in space-based technologies in an effort to outpace threats from adversaries like Russia and China, officials said Oct. 15.
Speaking at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference, Col. Peter Atkinson highlighted key priorities, including new satellite navigation receivers designed to resist jamming, as well as multi-orbit communication systems and increased use of commercial satellite imagery.
Atkinson, who is Army Space Division chief at the Pentagon, said secure GPS receivers, which incorporate M-code anti-jamming tech and additional sensor data, will be rolled out across Army units by 2025.
These advanced receivers, manufactured by BAE Systems, are designed to work with the GPS M-code signal, a military-grade system with enhanced security.
Another priority for the Army are hybrid satellite communication terminals that give users access to geostationary, medium, and low-Earth orbit satellites, enhancing connectivity.
Atkinson said commercial multi-orbit systems were tested during a recent pilot program, the results of which will inform future procurement decisions.
A focus on space technologies has been accelerated by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, where Russian forces have deployed sophisticated jammers to disrupt Ukraine’s use of GPS-guided weapons and drones.
This real-world scenario has underscored the critical importance of resilient space-based technologies in modern warfare, officials said at the conference.
The Army’s emphasis on space is part of a broader Pentagon strategy known as “multi-domain operations,” which envisions seamless coordination across land, sea, air, and space.
To support this vision, the service plans to invest an estimated $1.5 billion over the next five years in ground stations developed by data analytics firm Palantir.
These stations, known as Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN), will leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning to process data from satellites, high-altitude aerial platforms, and terrestrial sensors, providing soldiers with real-time, actionable intelligence.
Army officials insist that space-based capabilities are no longer seen as mere support functions but as essential tools for warfighters.
The service’s space push also includes a boost in human capital, with plans to add nine companies and 27 platoons specializing in space-based systems and capabilities, Atkinson said.
Command Sgt. Maj. Maurice Tucker, the top enlisted leader of the Colorado-based Army 1st Space Brigade, said space expertise is needed to improve combat readiness.
“You would assume that they’re sitting in a nice building behind a computer, but my personnel are forward in the fight,” Tucker said.
“We train and certify the Colorado National Guard to do space operations,” he said.
“Our primary focus, on top of building this exquisite space capability, is building soldiers able to shoot, move and communicate,” he added.
“We are your ‘boots in the dirt’ when it comes to the Army’s role in space.”
While the U.S. Space Force has the lead in military space programs, officials stressed that the two branches work in partnership.
“We’re not trying to replicate what Space Force does,” Tucker said, emphasizing that the Army’s goal is to better understand how space technologies can be leveraged to support ground operations.
https://spacenews.com/armys-space-tech-roadmap-emphasizes-secure-navigation-satcom-intelligence/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13947493/Joe-Rogan-shock-whistleblower-reveals-military-mastered-alien-anti-gravity-technology.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK3HK5Yy1AI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjiP-uSGfoY
>>21776077
Joe Rogan in shock as whistleblower reveals US military has mastered 'alien anti-gravity' technology
Updated: 09:28 EDT, 16 October 2024
Joe Rogan voiced 'genuine fear' after hearing whistleblower claims that the US military has mastered 'alien' anti-gravity technology.
The celebrity podcaster was joined by investigative journalist Michael Shellenberger, who said he has spoken to insiders with 'direct evidence' about the Pentagon's long-rumored UFO 'crash retrieval' and 'reverse engineering' programs.
A staple of UFO lore dating back to the Roswell crash of 1947, these alleged efforts to reproduce the propulsion system of an alleged extraterrestrial spacecraft have long been linked to the US Air Force's 70-year effort to crack 'anti-gravity' power.
Faced with his guests' claims, Rogan worried aloud about the potential ramifications, or what would happen if such Earth-shattering revelations were confirmed publicly.
'Society collapses because we're faced with [the] illusion anyone of human race is in control,' Rogan opined, 'in the face of this overwhelming force from another planet.'
On Rogan's broadcast Wednesday, Shellenberger divulged that a few of his sources claim to have 'direct evidence' that America has covertly 'mastered anti-gravity.'
But Shellenberger — who is also an academic and a two-time candidate for California governor — also noted that he, himself, found the very notion of man-made anti-gravity propulsion hard to believe.
'I'm a little skeptical that we've mastered anti-gravity, because that would just be so game-changing,' he told Rogan. 'I think it would take a huge amount of effort.'
'On the other hand, I have interviewed people who are not comfortable coming forward yet that say that we have,' the independent journalist confessed, 'and claim direct evidence of that.'
'These are folks that want stronger whistleblower protections to be able to come forward,' Shellenberger emphasized.
Luis Elizondo, the former Pentagon counterintelligence official who has made a name for himself as an 'on the record' UFO whistleblower, has also spoken out recently claiming that the UFOs seen by military witnesses deploy anti-gravity tech.
In his new memoir, Imminent: Inside the Pentagon's Hunt for UFOs, Elizondo specifically cited the Gimabl UFO video caught on infrared by Navy pilots off the Eastern seaboard in 2015.
'The GIMBAL was a great, glittering mystery,' Elizondo writes in his memoir 'It was clearly an antigravity device.'
The object's heat signature, lack of flight surfaces, distance from shore and its odd, non-aerodynamic movements, in his view, were all dead giveaways.
'Imagine you were able to enclose your aircraft in a bubble that renders it immune from the effects of gravity,' as he explained the physics implications.
'The way we experience time on Earth would no longer be relevant because you would be insulated from Earth's time and gravity,' Elizondo wrote.
On Rogan, Shellenberger took pains to distinguish between these long-rumored UFO 'crash retrieval' and 'reverse engineering' programs and the new, top secret and illegal Pentagon UFO program that he brought to light last week.
Shellenberger went viral last Tuesday after publishing one of his anonymous whistleblower's accounts of an alleged UFO data collection program.
That classified UFO data retrieval effort, dubbed 'Immaculate Constellation,' was established in 2017 to 'detect' and 'quarantine' the military's best UFO imagery, as well as its best videos, witness testimonies and electronic sensor evidence.
His anonymous source alleged that decades of deceptions were now occurring on the issues of non-human intelligence (NHI) and unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP).
The phrases are the broader and more careful terms of art used by experts investigating these incidents, once said to involve 'aliens' and 'flying saucers.'
'The Executive Branch has been managing UAP/NHI issues without Congressional knowledge, oversight, or authorization for some time, quite possibly decades,' this anonymous whistleblower wrote in their alleged classified report to Congress.
But few outside US national security circles and cleared legislators on Capitol Hill, have seen this alleged, approximately 20-page report on 'Immaculate Constellation.'
This Monday night, however, Las Vegas-based KLAS-TV new reporter George Knapp and documentary filmmaker Jeremy Corbell claimed they had read the report.
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Corbell said that he is now facing 'specific and direct and detailed threats' to his own life for his knowledge of the 'Immaculate Constellation' report.
Knapp described he and Corbell's plans to come forward as 'our insurance policy.'
The duo told the listeners of their own podcast, Weaponized, that more whistleblower testimony related to 'Immaculate Constellation' would surface at new open hearings in Congress this November.
'We need to have those protections for whistleblowers. They need to pass this disclosure legislation.' Shellenberger told Rogan on Wednesday.
'Congress needs to do more,' the reporter and academic said, hoping such legislation will allow his own sources to go public.
Shellenberger was less worried than Rogan about a possible 'collapse of rules and society' that UFO disclosure might bring, but he did not think it was impossible.
'The problem,' as he put it, 'is that there's so many possibilities of what's going on.'
For over a year, Congress has fiercely debated the issue of more robust, federally mandated protections for US intelligence and military officials who have direct knowledge of highly classified UFO programs that have been illegally hidden from congressional oversight.
Members of both houses of Congress have expressed frustration over the watered-down nature of the last version of the UFO disclosure amendment signed into law in 2024.
'We got ripped off. We got completely hosed. They stripped out every part,' said Representative Tim Burchett, one of the lawmakers who had been in favor the act.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who co-sponsored the bill with Republican Senator Mike Rounds, hoped to impanel and independent 'review board' with the power to grant 'witness immunity' to key sources.
'The Review Board shall be considered to be an agency of the United States,' their amendment stated in 2023.
'Witnesses, close observers, and whistleblowers providing information directly to the Review Board shall also be afforded the protections provided to such persons under section 1673(b) of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023.'
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who sponsored the bill, told The New York Times: 'It is really an outrage the House didn't work with us on adopting our proposal for a review board.'
'It means that declassification of UAP records will be largely up to the same entities that have blocked and obfuscated their disclosure for decades,' Sen. Schumer said.
Congressional Representative Mike Turner (R-Ohio), Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) are said to be among those who pushed back on the bill.
And David Grusch, the former high-ranking intelligence official who testified under oath about his knowledge of a UFO crash retrieval program, also named Rogers and Turner during his own interview on Rogan's podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience.
Grusch's accounts, like Shellenberger's new sources, echo claims made by both Elizondo and Elizondo's one-time attorney Daniel Sheehan, who handled his own whistleblower complaint against US military officials.
Sheehan told DailyMail.com last year that one alleged recovery, recounted to him by a supposed crash retrieval program insider, involved a 30-foot saucer partially embedded in the earth, causing 'all kinds of time distortion and space distortion.'
'He staggered back out [of the saucer] after being in there a couple of minutes,' Sheehan said, 'and outside it was four hours later.'
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New Paradigm Institute Announces Livestream of Inaugural UFOs/UAP Global Disclosure Day on October 20th
October 15, 2024, 12:00 GMT
The New Paradigm Institute (NPI) is set to host the first-ever Global Disclosure Day on Sunday, October 20, 2024, with a two-hour livestreamed event that promises to bring together advocates and experts dedicated to advancing the cause of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) disclosure.
Citizens for Disclosure (CfD), NPI’s grassroots initiative launched in February 2024, will spearhead the event, with CfD chapters across 43 states and several countries hosting local watch parties to amplify the message.
Inspired by the establishment of Earth Day in 1970, the event intends to celebrate humanity’s Cosmic Moment — the reality that we are not alone and that nonhuman intelligence exists and has been interacting with our planet for some time.
The event will showcase an impressive lineup of speakers, video presentations, and testimonials from government whistleblowers, experts, and grassroots activists, aiming to highlight the latest developments in the movement for UAP transparency.
“We are at a pivotal moment in the history of the UFOs/UAP movement,” said Dr. Jim Garrison, Director of NPI’s Washington, D.C. Office, who is coordinating the event.
“The burden of proof has shifted. It’s no longer about proving that UAP exist; it’s now up to those who kept this information secret for so long to prove that UAP don’t exist. We are entering a new era.”
The Global Disclosure Day event is specifically timed to coincide with an important deadline mandated by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (NDAA).
The NDAA requires federal agencies to gather their UAP-related records by October 20, 2024, for review and potential transmission to the UAP Records Collection at the National Archives and Records Administration by September 30, 2025.
Global Disclosure Day aims to celebrate the progress made toward revealing what various U.S. government agencies have discovered about UAP after decades of investigation.
The event also serves as a rallying call for continued action, urging people worldwide to advocate for full transparency.
“Public involvement is crucial for achieving comprehensive disclosure,” said Danny Sheehan, NPI’s General Counsel.
“We want to remind everyone that the journey is far from over, and the fight for truth is just beginning.”
Details:
Global Disclosure Day will begin livestream at 1:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time (North America) on October 20, 2024.
Go to https://newparadigminstitute.org/take-action/global-disclosure-day/ to sign up for the livestream.
Featured Speakers for Global Disclosure Day:
Ross Coulthart: Investigative journalist on UAP and author of In Plain Sight
Lue Elizondo: Former senior official at the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) and author of Imminent
Karl Nell: Executive in the aerospace and defense industry
Birdie Jaworski: Founder of ABQ UFOs, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Danny Sheehan: General Counsel, New Paradigm Institute
Dr. Beatriz Villarroel: Astronomer at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics and leader of the VASCO and EXOPROBE projects
Rich Hoffman: Co-founder of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU) and Senior IT Systems Engineering Analyst, Army Materiel Command
Julia Mossbridge, PhD: Founder and Director of the Mossbridge Institute
Chrissy Newton: Host of “Alien Encounters: Fact or Fiction” and PR Director for The Debrief
Steve Bassett: Founder of Paradigm Research Institute and co-founder of Hollywood Disclosure Alliance
Ron James: Filmmaker, researcher, and host of “Spacetime”; Media Relations Director at MUFON
Lester Nare: Founder of the UAP Caucus
Nick Gold: Founder of Declassify UAP
Kosta Makreas: Founder of ET Let’s Talk
Chris Sharp: Editor-in-Chief of Liberation Times
Julio Cesar Acosta-Navarro, PhD: Latin American Academy of Scientific Ufology (LAASU)
Ryan Purkey: Director, Citizens for Disclosure Hong Kong
Victor Viggiani: Zland Communications New Network
Giorgio Piacenza: Director, Citizens for Disclosure Peru
Chris Gaffney: Founder, NHIDisclosure Ireland
Mark Crewson: Director, Citizens for Disclosure Southern California
Sabir Hussain: Founder-Director, Indian Society for UFO Studies
Stan Ho: Founder, Orbs Research & Bio-Conscious Study, Hong Kong
Thiago Luiz Tichetti: Editor da Revista UFO, Diretor de Relações Internacionais da Comissão Brasileira de Ufólogos (CBU), Diretor Nacional da MUFON no Brasil
https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/751701518/new-paradigm-institute-announces-livestream-of-inaugural-ufos-uap-global-disclosure-day-on-october-20th
https://newparadigminstitute.org/take-action/global-disclosure-day/