February 15-21, 2021 / Vol 40, No 7 / Hawai`i Island, USA

ISS Plans Numerous Activities for Early 2020s, Future Unclear After ~2025 Artemis Landings

International Space Station is currently housing Expedition 64 seven-member crew, 3 spaceships (Progress 75P, Soyuz MS-17, SpaceX Crew Dragon), and looking forward to Progress 77P arrival February 17 followed by Cygnus NG-15 S.S. Katherine Johnson (BL) Feb 22. In its 23rd year since first module Unity launch and 20th year of continuous human occupation, ISS lays claim to 3,000+ science experiments, countless education and exploration projects, and exceptional international cooperation in space. Boeing Starliner will attempt 2nd uncrewed flight March 25 with crewed flight of Michael Fincke, Nicole Aunapu Mann and Butch Wilmore on September 29. Crew Dragon 2 is set to launch NET April 20, carrying Megan McArthur, Shane Kimbrough, Akihiko Hoshide and Thomas Pesquet. Nauka ‘Science’ Multipurpose Laboratory Module with European Robotic Arm to replace Russia PIRS module is being readied for flight NET April. ISS commercialization opportunities are also becoming more frequent: 2 feature films may be recorded aboard this year, Axiom private space station is being designed for attachment, Bigelow BEAM is still under study and Nanoracks hosts many payloads. At an annual cost of US$3-4B for USA, and contributions from its 14 partners, ISS will be supported through 2024 – at which time Artemis 3 mission, which requires full funding to stay on track, is planned to land the first woman and next man at the Moon South Pole. (Pictured: Current Active NASA Women Astronauts; Image Credits: NASA, Boeing, SpaceX, NG, Roscosmos)

MONDAY

Feb 15 — Galileo Day, Global: Celebrating renowned scientist Galileo Galilei and many accomplishments with events ranging from science talks to stargazing events.

Perseverance Nears Mars Landing as Hope and Tianwen-1 Maintain Orbits, PSP Approaches Venus, Juno Flybys Jupiter

Perseverance Rover and Ingenuity helicopter are preparing for final trajectory correction TCM-5 on February 16 with backup maneuver TCM-5X the following day if required, landing on the Red Planet NET Feb 18. During atmospheric entry it will reach 1,300° C as heat shield slows vessel from 20,000 to 1,600 kph, at which point 21.5-m diameter parachute deploys, slowing to 320 kph. Final descent to Jezero Crater is to be controlled by 8 boosters activated at 2,100 m. Powered by multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator, Perseverance will search for life signs and collect geologic samples for future return, while Ingenuity will scout areas of interest with 300 m. In cis-Martian space, UAE Hope maintains capture orbit (999 x 49,380 km) until mid-May, when it will enter equatorial orbit. China Tianwen-1 is in an elliptical orbit with perigee of 400 km and 10° inclination. Descent of lander / yet-to-be-named rover to Utopia Planitia planned for May/June – marking the 3rd nation to land on Mars, and the first combined orbiter/lander/rover planetary mission if successful. Parker Solar Probe will make 4th Venus flyby at 2,392 km altitude before reaching 8th perihelion just 11.1 Gm distant from the Sun. Juno will make its 31st Jupiter science flyby Feb 21. With mission extended to at least September 2025, Juno will observe Galileo moons Ganymede, Europa and Io, starting with Ganymede on June 7. (Image Credits: NASA, Lockheed Martin, CNSA, MBRSC)

Feb 15-28 — NI Science Festival Team, Belfast City Council, Queen’s University, Open University, et al,

Feb 15 — Mercury: 3.9° NNW of Jupiter, 04:00.

Feb 15 — Apollo Asteroid 2021 CU: Near Earth Flyby (0.013 AU)

Feb 15 — Apollo Asteroid 2021 CO1: Near Earth Flyby (0.014 AU)

Feb 15 — Apollo Asteroid 2021 CL4: Near Earth Flyby (0.015 AU)

Continued From…

Nov 4, 2020 – Feb 28, 2021 — International Astronautical Federation, Online: Abstracts Submission Open: 72nd International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2021); being held Oct 25-29.

Jan 20 – Feb 28 — CNSA Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center, Online / Beijing, China: Global Campaign soliciting nominations for the name of Tianwen-1 Mars rover.

TUESDAY

Feb 16 — ISS, Expedition 64 U.S. EVA #71, ~405-km LEO: Kathleen Rubins and Soichi Noguchi to perform ~6.5-hour spacewalk for additional external upgrades and Kibo module platform work, live coverage available.

Feb 16 — Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Trajectory Correction Maneuver #5 (TCM-5), Mars Trajectory: NASA craft to refine flight path to arrive at correct location in Mars atmosphere; 2.6 days before landing.

Feb 16 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink V1.0-L17, LC-39A, KSC FL: Falcon 9 to launch next batch of ~60 satellites for SpaceX Starlink broadband network.

Feb 16 — ESA, Online: ESA press conference discussing new Astronaut class, 13:00-14:00 CET; applications being accepted March 31 – May 28.

Feb 16-18 — ESA, ESTEC, Online / Noordwijk, The Netherlands: Space Mechanisms Final Presentation Days.

Feb 16-18 — Swiss École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), SGAC, Secure World Foundation, et al, Online: First Sustainable Space Logistics Digital Symposium.