Countdown to 500: Long March Rocket Nears Significant Achievement
|
MONDAY☆ Dec 4 — International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 70 seven-member crew working with cargo from newly arrived Progress 86P, planning event to mark the 25th anniversary of the mating of the Zarya and Unity Modules. ☆ Dec 4 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: China releases video of Shenzhou-16 returning to Earth, and image containing full view of TSS with all 3 modules (Tianhe, Wentian, Mengtian). Highlights… o NewSpace: Antares 330 progressing toward mid-2025 launch following Firefly Aerospace hot fire of Miranda first stage engine; Astra Space keeps operations running with US$2.7M in new funds as long-term financing sought; mu Space working out of head office and 3 factory locations for Thailand satellite development. ☆ Solar System: JHUAPL-led Dragonfly mission to Titan now working toward July 2028 launch following NASA Phase C authorization; Thales to build Multi-Purpose Habitat for Italian Space Agency and Artemis Program; India developing craft for Venus (Shukrayaan) and Mars (Mangalyaan-2), as well as Gaganyaan and other satellite missions. ☆ Galaxy: Rare harmonic resonance of 6-planet system around HD110067, 100 ly from Earth observed with TESS and Cheops advances formation theory; Ultrahigh-energy cosmic ray ‘Amaterasu’ may have originated in Centaurus A per new international study published in Science; First extragalactic accretion disc discovered via ALMA being studied by international team. o Global: ESA Ariane 6 on track for 2024 inaugural launch from Kourou, French Guiana after 426-second launch pad hot fire of Vulcain 2.1 main stage engine; Taikonauts, China aerospace experts deepen cooperation in space exploration with Hong Kong, Macao visits; JAXA launching full investigation into extent of network breach following summer cyberattack. ● USA: Starship integrated flight test 3 from TX to HI may occur in late Dec as SpaceX works on V2 successor prototype; USA and Saudi Arabia to hold technical discussion on space science and exploration per joint statement; Defense Innovation Unit soliciting second round of proposals for Hybrid Space Architecture allowing access to commercial infrastructure. ● Hawai’i: Hawaii Space Flight Laboratory spinoff company Mahina Aerospace offering 0.9-kg Hoku Sat 1U cubesat platform; NOIRLab aiming to reduce carbon footprint of Arizona, Chile & Hawai‘i facilities 50% by 2027 through increasing PV power and limiting travel; Cosmologist Michael Turner urges NSF to select either GMT or TMT proposed extremely large telescopes due to cost. |
 |
● = Terrestrial and… o = International terrestrial events
☾ = Moon activity ★ = Space and… ☆ = International space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time’). |
Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Mercury (SW), Jupiter (E), Saturn (SW), Uranus (E), Neptune (S); Morning Planets: Venus (SE).
Japan Forges Ahead with Ongoing Moon, Mercury and Venus Missions; Participation in MVA and ALMA Conferences
|
● Dec 4-7 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Universities Space Research Association, NASA, Hybrid / Houston TX and Online: 2nd International Orbital Debris Conference. o Dec 4-8 — ALMA, ESO, NAOJ, NRAO, Puerto Varas, Chile and Online: ALMA at 10 Years: Past, Present, and Future. ☾ Dec 4 — Moon: At apogee (distance 404,375 km), 09:00; at last quarter, 19:51. ☆ Dec 4 — Apollo Asteroid 2013 VX4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.013 AU). Ongoing… ☾ Sep 6 – NET Jan/March — Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), Lunar Landing Trajectory: SLIM Moon mission 4-6 month trajectory to soft land east of Shioli crater (13.2°S, 25.2°E) on Moon near side equatorial region. ☆ Sep 6 – NET Mar — X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM), ~550-km LEO: XRISM undergoing 6 month check out testing phase before start of science operations to study galactic plasma. o Nov 30 – Dec 12 — United Nations, Dubai, UAE: 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP28); NASA administrator Bill Nelson will attend, joining 70,000 participants from nearly 200 countries. o Dec 3-12 — National Space Foundation, NOIRLab, International Dark-Sky Association, AURA, Online / Global: Globe at Night December Campaign; campaign to raise awareness of light pollution by inviting citizen-scientists to measure & submit night sky brightness observations. ☆ NET Dec 3-4 — China Aerospace Science and Technology, Launch Long March 2C, Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China: Long March rocket with unconfirmed payload to launch from Jiuquan (would be Long March 499th rocket launch). TUESDAY☆ Dec 5 — China Rocket, China Aerospace Science and Technology, Launch Jielong-3, Converted Barge in Yellow Sea: Second flight of solid-fuel sea launch rocket, may be carrying Xianggang satellite, 17:30 UTC. ★ Dec 5 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink Group 6-32, SLC-40 Cape Canaveral SFS FL: Next batch of Starlink satellites to launch to LEO; first stage Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship ‘Just Read The Instructions’. ● Dec 5 — LPI, USRA, NASA, JPL, Online / Houston TX: Lunar Surface Science Workshop: Artemis Orbital Observation Science. |
● Dec 5 — SpaceNews, Washington DC: 6th SpaceNews Icon Awards; to honor space professionals, companies and organizations.
☆ Dec 5 — Apollo Asteroid 2023 WW: Near-Earth Flyby (0.019 AU).
☆ Dec 5 — Aten Asteroid 2012 XN55: Near-Earth Flyby (0.067 AU).
WEDNESDAY
☾ Dec 6 — Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), Lunar Orbit Trajectory: Earliest possible date for JAXA SLIM Moon mission to reach lunar orbit.
☆ Dec 6 — LandSpace, Launch Zhuque-2, Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China: LandSpace third flight of methane-fueled rocket Zhuque-2, set for 23:30 UTC.
o Dec 6 — The Andy Thomas Space Foundation, Australian Space Agency, South Australian Space Industry Centre, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia: 16th Australian Space Forum.
o Dec 6-10 — Moon Village Association, Kurashiki and Tottori, Japan: 7th Global Moon Village Workshop & Symposium.
THURSDAY
☆ Dec 7 — Akatsuki, Venus Orbit: JAXA first successful planetary orbiter imaging Venus atmosphere, monitoring weather changes reaches 8 full years / enters 9th year at Venus today, reached Venus 2015.
★ Dec 7 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon Heavy / X-37B Spaceplane, LC39-A, Kennedy Space Center FL: Seventh mission of X-37B, designated USSF-52, to undergo new orbital regimes, experiment with space domain awareness tech, and investigate radiation effects on materials provided by NASA.
● Dec 7 — Apollo 17, 51st Observation, Nationwide USA: Eleventh and final crewed Apollo mission, Astronauts Ronald E. Evans, Harrison H. Schmitt and Eugene A. Cernan – the “Last Man on the Moon” – are honored today as international and commercial efforts for lunar return are well underway.
● Dec 7 — Network Researchers on the Chemical Emergence of Life, Institute for Nuclear Research, American University of the Middle East, et al, Online: International Cosmology, Astronomy and Astrophysics Conference 2023.
● Dec 7 — Gemini North, NOIRLab, Mauna Kea HI: Public Visits to Gemini Observatory atop Mauna Kea; 14:00-16:00 HST, 2-10 people per tour.
FRIDAY
● Dec 8 — Next Generation Lunar Scientists and Engineers, Online: Lunar Workforce Series: The Road Ahead of Endurance – A Long-Range Rover to Explore the Farside of the Moon; with James Tuttle Keane, 09:00 PST.
● Dec 8-11 — Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, KSC FL: Meet Astronaut Don Thomas.
☾ Dec 8 — Moon: 2.01° NNE of Spica, 07:00.
☆ Dec 8 — Mars: 4.3° N of Antares, 04:00.
SATURDAY
☆ Dec 9 — 1P / Halley’s Comet: At aphelion, 35.14 AU; comet is ~5×8 kilometers, with albedo of 0.03; closest approach to Sun will occur Jul 27, 2061.
☆ Dec 9 — Roscosmos, Launch Soyuz-2 / Ionosfera-M 1 & 2, Vostochny Cosmodrome, Russia: Soyuz rocket to launch Ionosfera ionospheric and magnetospheric research satellites for Roscosmos.
● Dec 9 — AIAA San Francisco Section, Oakland CA: 2023 AIAA Banquet; featuring Shannah Withrow-Maser speaking on Mars Ingenuity helicopter; at Oakland Aviation Museum.
● Dec 9 — AIAA LA-LV Section, Artesia CA and Online: Commercialization of Space Biomedicine: How SpaceBox Accelerates Drug Screening in Microgravity; 09:00-10:30.
☾ Dec 9 — Moon: 3.3° SSW of Venus, 05:00.
SUNDAY
☆ Dec 10 — XMM-Newton, Very Eccentric Elliptical LEO: ESA craft studying X-ray emissions, star-forming regions, galaxy clusters, environment of supermassive black holes, mapping dark matter, reaches 24 full years / begins 25th year in space today, launched 1999.
☆ Dec 10 — Apollo Asteroid 2020 HX3: Near-Earth Flyby (0.025 AU).