October 23-29, 2023 / Vol 42, No 43 / Hawai`i Island, USA

China Working to Expand Footprint in LEO and Cislunar Space with Eye on Outer Solar System

The 6th crewed mission to Tiangong Space Station, Shenzhou-17, is set to lift off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center NET Oct 26. The yet to be announced 3-member crew will spend ~6 months on station, including a 5-day overlap with Shenzhou-16 Commander Jing Haipeng and Group 3 Taikonauts Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao. Composed of Tianhe (core module), Wentian and Mengtian (lab modules) with mass of 100,000 kg, Tiangong Space Station is slated to expand to a 3-module configuration, increasing mass to 180,000 kg. A deployable, inflatable module is also planned, which will serve as a technology demonstrator for lunar surface shelter for crewed human landings expected to take place in 2020s. CMSA is narrowing naming submissions for its new generation crew spacecraft and lunar lander, which will be selected from a shortlist. 100+ of ~1,000 approved Tiangong science experiments have been initiated, with 48 currently being conducted. 9 international proposals have been accepted, including POLAR-2 gamma-ray burst detector (Switzerland, Poland, Germany, China) to be mounted on Tiangong NET 2025. Hubble-class Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST) ‘Xuntian’, expected to launch Q4 2024, to operate from co-orbital trajectory. As the operation lifetime of the station is now projected at 15 years (extended from 10-year period), human habitation continuity in LEO should be maintained following the January 2031 deorbiting of the International Space Station to Point Nemo in the South Pacific. (Image Credits: CNSA, CMSA)

MONDAY 

☆ Oct 23 — International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 70 crew working with imaging Moon at specific points in lunar cycle to study changes in Earth’s albedo; Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara participate in ASCEND conference 12:20 EDT, live coverage available.

☆ Oct 23 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou 16 three-member crew to welcome Shenzhou 17 spacecraft and crew, while preparing for return to Earth after ~5 month mission.

☾ = Moon activity

★ = Space and… ☆ = International space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time’).

ASCEND and von Braun Gatherings Boost Lunar, Deep Space Future Vision

The AIAA Accelerating Space Commerce, Exploration, and New Discovery (ASCEND 2023) conference is being held in Las Vegas and online October 23-25. The packed program features Macro, Meta, Micro, Special and Technical Sessions each day, many ongoing simultaneously and many focusing on future workforce, technologies, science, policy and missions. Some of the speakers include Andy Aldrin (Florida Tech), Michelle Hanlon (Univ. of MS), Moriba Jah (Privateer Space), Janet Kavandi (NASA), and Mary Guenther (Commercial Spaceflight Federation). Madhu Thangavelu is one of five speakers in the ‘Artemis Efforts and Lessons Learned’ session. Diversity, inclusion, space resource stewardship, responsible operations, orbital debris and sustainability are also topic themes for sessions. the 16th Annual von Braun Symposium 2023 with theme ‘From LEO to Lunar and Beyond’ is planned for Oct 25-27 in Huntsville ‘Rocket City’ and sponsored by American Astronautical Society, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the University of Alabama. There will be sessions on Leading the Way from Moon to Mars, Artemis: Planning and Executing for Mission Success, Exploration Enabling Science, and Commercialization of Space. The panel on Cosmic Communicators: The Vital Role of Space Media features Marcia Dunn (Associated Press), Jeff Foust (SpaceNews) and Lee Roop (AL.com). CLPS providers Astrobotic (Dan Hendrickson), Intuitive Machines (Trent Martin) and Firefly Aerospace (Jana Spruce) will also participate. (Image Credits: AIAA, AAS, et al)

o Oct 23-24 — Arose, Curtain University, University of Western Australia, Fugro SpAARC, Gvnt of Western Australia, Perth, Australia: Indo-Pacific Space & Earth Conference 2023.

● Oct 23-25 — AIAA, Lockheed Martin, JPL, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, ULA, Hybrid / Las Vegas NV and Online: 2023 ASCEND (Accelerating Space Commerce, Exploration, and New Discovery).

● Oct 23-27— Caltech-IPAC, MIT, University of Wisconsin, Côte d’Azur Observatory, University of Sheffield, Gemini Observatory, et al, Pasadena CA: Surveying the Milky Way: The Universe in Our Own Backyard.

☆ Oct 23 — Apollo Asteroid 2023 TV4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.013 AU).

☆ Oct 23 — Apollo Asteroid 2023 TC6: Near-Earth Flyby (0.034 AU).

TUESDAY

★ Oct 24 — Mars Odyssey, Mars Orbit: NASA spacecraft reaches 22 full years / begins 23rd year in orbit around Mars today, holds record for longest-surviving continually active spacecraft in orbit around a planet other than Earth; launched 2001.

Oct 24-26 — Aix-Marseille University, Johns Hopkins APL, JPL, Aix-en-Provence, France: Workshop on the Origins and Habitability of the Galilean Moons.

☾ Oct 24 — Moon: 2.57° SE of Saturn, 01:00.

☆ Oct 24 — Aten Asteroid 2023 TX8: Near-Earth Flyby (0.008 AU).

☆ Oct 24 — Aten Asteroid 2019 HH4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.033 AU).