Russia Advances Lunar Robotic, Human Spaceflight Plans; Hosts SIRIUS 4-Month Moon Mission Simulation
Roscosmos continues planning Luna 25-27 missions with contributions from ESA, and recently announced potential for Luna 30-33. The first missions will verify technologies and concentrate on science at Moon South Pole: Luna-25 lander to Boguslavsky crater in 2021; Luna-26 orbiter in 2023; Luna-27 lander in 2024; Luna-28 sample return in 2027; and Luna-29 lander & rover in 2028. Luna 30-33 from 2031-2035 would deliver reusable cargo spacecraft, a heavy rover for mining and modules for a lunar base. Roscosmos Head Dmitry Rogozin announces plans to send 2 civilians to ISS in 2021, taking the “Gagarin Route” flight path. A private enterprise in Russia has also proposed ‘Selena Space Yachts’ which it hopes would be operational within 5 years. Beginning March 19 a crew of 4 Russians and 2 Americans will be part of Scientific International Research In Unique Terrestrial Situations (SIRIUS), a simulated lunar mission commanded by Evgeny Tarelkin. Data from NEK analog facility at Institute for Bio-Medical Problems (IBMP) in Moscow will be combined with data from HERA facility at NASA Johnson Space Center (R). NEK contains 4 experimental chambers of 50, 100, 150 and 250 cubic meters which can house up to 10 crew members. IBMP is experienced in conducting simulated missions of up to 520 days. This simulation will be followed by an 8-month mission and a yearlong mission. (Image Credits: Roscosmos, NEK, RT, NASA)
|
|
MONDAY
Highlights…
 Feb 25 — ISS, 405-km LEO: Expedition 58 installing equipment for Robotic Refueling Mission 3, updating hard drive for Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, servicing EMU spacesuits for planned EVAs in March, photographing terrestrial landmarks to document changes, and researching meteorology from ISS.
 Feb 25 — NewSpace: Ad Astra Rocket Co. developing VASIMR engine toward Technology Readiness Level 5, the step prior to space flight test, with upcoming 100-hr test fire; Made In Space preparing Archinaut robotic assembly machine for launch to ISS this year; data from successful 5th powered flight of VSS Unity and research payloads being studied.
Feb 25 — Solar System: InSight Mars Lander provides daily weather reports; ESA Mars Express radar observations suggest recent magma activity beneath planet surface; Akatsuki spacecraft observes bow-shaped waves in clouds of Venus; Neptune has newly-discovered moon named Hippocamp.
Feb 25 — Galaxy: Gaia spacecraft finds 1,300 light-year “River of Stars” passing through Milky Way; NuSTAR mission observes multiple black holes within M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy and its companion M51b; Exoplanet Exploration Program documents the nearly 4,000 discovered exoplanets with illustrations and data.
Feb 25 — Global: Israel Beresheet en route to Moon, will attempt landing ~Apr 11; ISRO planning Chandrayaan-2 launch end of March, and maiden flight of Small Satellite Launch Vehicle mid-year; IAU approves proposed Chang’e-4 landing site naming as Statio Tianhe “Milky Way Base”.
 Feb 25 — USA: Assembled Space Launch System Core Stage being readied to connect to the rest of the stage and carried to Final Assembly area later in 2019; Administrator Bridenstine says NASA has ‘big plans for Apollo 11 and wants to celebrate the future, not just the past’; SpaceX Crew Dragon could launch / dock this week to ISS with 180 kg of supplies.
Feb 25 — Hawai’i: ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center begins its 14th year in Hilo, continues Maunakea Skies and other astronomy talks; environmental assessment draft for proposed spaceport on Hawaii Island could be completed in next 3-6 months; Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope reveals images of Stephan’s Quintet, a group of five colliding galaxies.
|
= All times
for terrestrial events in local time unless noted.
= All times for international terrestrial events in local time unless noted.
= All times for space events, and…
= All times for international space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time’).
Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Mercury (W), Mars (WSW), Uranus (SW); Morning Planets: Venus (SE), Jupiter (SE), Saturn (SE).
IEEE Aerospace Conference 2019 Gathers 600+ Attendees in Big Sky MT
The 40th Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Aerospace Conference is being held in Big Sky, Montana at the Yellowstone Conference Center on March 2-9 with cosponsors AIAA, PHM Society and AESS. Working to promote interdisciplinary understanding of aerospace systems, cutting edge technologies and their applications, an estimated 600 people will participate during 6 days of presentations, 14 tracks, 175 hours of technical sessions and 20 hours of networking events. Highlighted plenary speakers include (T-B) Avi Goldfarb (Univ. of Toronto) speaking on economics of artificial intelligence, Julia Greer (Caltech) on 3D nano-architecture, George Ricker (MIT Kavli) on NASA TESS, Rob Knight (UC San Diego) on exploring microbiomes for Earth and beyond, and Janet Vertesi (Princeton) on lessons from Mars rover missions. The 2.5-hour Junior Conference allows students to present research findings to peers, adult engineers and scientists. Much focus will be given to Human spaceflight, future missions being planned, all phases of flight system / subsystem development and testing, ground and space communications, avionics, antennas and electronics. Most speakers represent USA organizations with some representation from Canada, Italy, Germany, UK and Australia. IEEE est. 1963 now has more than 422,000 members in over 160 countries, 339 Sections, 39 technical societies, and publishes ~200 journals, transactions, letters, and magazines. (Image Credits: IEEE, NASA, MSFC, Pat Rawlings)
|
Feb 25 — National Science Foundation Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory Committee, Online: Teleconference: Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory Committee (AAAC) Meeting.
Feb 25 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston TX: Seminar: Crater-hosted Deposits on Mars and Moon – Targets for Science and Exploration; by Sally Potter-McIntyre of Southern Illinois University, 15:30.
Feb 25-27 — Aix-Marseille University, JPL / Caltech, Observatoire de Paris, et al, Marseille, France: Workshop on In Situ Exploration of the Ice Giants.
Feb 25-27 — National Academies of Sciences, Irvine CA: Meeting: Near Earth Object Observations in the Infrared and Visible Wavelengths.
Feb 25 — Apollo Asteroid 2019 CJ: Near-Earth Flyby (0.019 AU)
Continued from…
Jan 2019 – Sep 2020 — New Horizons, Kuiper Belt: Full data from spacecraft 7 instruments during KBO Ultima Thule flyby to be transmitted to Earth over this time period.
Feb 20 – Mar 6 — University of Hawaii, ESA, ILEWG, International MoonBase Alliance, 2,400-meter elevation, Mauna Loa: International, mix gender, 6-person crew to perform 1st Moon simulation at HI-SEAS habitat.
Feb 24-26 — Space Exploration Alliance, NSS, AIAA, Moon Society, Federation of Galaxy Explorers, Planetary Society, SEDS, et al, Washington DC: SEA Legislative Blitz 2019; advocating for the exploration and development of Space.
TUESDAY
Feb 26 — Arianespace, Launch Soyuz / OneWeb Pilot, Sinnamary, French Guiana: Arianespace Soyuz rocket, designated VS21, to launch first 10 satellites into orbit for OneWeb. |
Feb 26-27 — Strauss Center for International, Security Law at University of Texas-Austin, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s College of Aviation, Austin TX: 5th Annual Space Traffic Management Conference: Progress through Collaboration.
Feb 26-28 — Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE), Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT), National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), Tucson AZ: Massively multiplexed spectroscopy with MSE: Science, Project and Vision.
Feb 26 – Mar 1 — Canaveral Council of Technical Societies, NASA Kennedy Space Center, Space Florida, Economic Development Commission of Florida Space Coast., Cape Canaveral FL: 46th Space Congress: Light the Fire; Postponed to June.
Feb 26 — Moon: At last quarter, 01:29; 8.3° NNE of Antares, 07:00.
Feb 26 — Amor Asteroid 2019 CF4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.040 AU)
Feb 26 — Apollo Asteroid 2017 DR109: Near-Earth Flyby (0.058 AU)
WEDNESDAY
Feb 27 — NASA, Online: Request for Proposals due: Step Two: Lunar Surface Instrument and Technology Payloads.
Feb 27 — Foothill College, Los Altos Hills CA: Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series: The Worlds Under Our Feet: Caves from Earth to Mars and Beyond; by Penelope Boston from NASA Ames, 19:00.
Feb 27 – Mar 1 — University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany: Workshop: Planet Formation and Evolution 2019.
Feb 27 — Moon: 2.31° NNE of Jupiter, 06:00.
Feb 27 — Apollo Asteroid 2016 FU12: Near-Earth Flyby (0.040 AU)
Feb 27 — Apollo Asteroid 2018 DE1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.051 AU)
THURSDAY
Feb 28 — Cornell University, Ithaca NY: Colloquium: As Worlds Turn: Planetary Spin, Climate, and Life; by Caleb Scharf from Columbia University.
FRIDAY
NET Mar — SpaceX, Launch Falcon Heavy / Arabsat 6A, Cape Canaveral AFS FL: SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket to launch Arabsat 6A communications satellite for Arabsat of Saudi Arabia to GTO.
NET Mar — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Radarsat Constellation Mission, SLC 4E, Vandenberg AFB CA: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch Radarsat Constellation Mission for Canadian Space Agency and MDA.
NET Mar-Apr — Hayabusa2, Asteroid 1999 JU3: JAXA Hayabusa2 planning to drop explosive small carry-on impactor (SCI) to generate a crater in order to gather subsurface material in its 2nd touchdown of Asteroid.
Mar 1 — San Mateo County Astronomical Society, San Mateo CA: Lecture: Near Earth Asteroid Hazards, Research and Space Missions; by Michael Busch, SETI Research Scientist, 19:00.
Mar 1-3 — SEDS Canada, University of Alberta, AlbertaSat, Undergraduate Astronomy Society, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada: Ascension
Mar 1 — Moon: 0.40° NE of Saturn, 09:00; with Saturn and Pluto within circle of diameter 4.67°, 17:00.
Mar 1 — Aten Asteroid 2016 EO84: Near-Earth Flyby (0.056 AU)
SATURDAY
Mar 2 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Dragon V2 (Crew Dragon) Demo 1, LC-39A, KSC FL: SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft uncrewed test flight to launch to ISS for NASA Commercial Crew Program, 02:48 ET and dock at ISS in less than 24 hours; if successful Crew Dragon could carry astronauts to ISS later this year, perhaps as early as July.
Mar 2-9 — Gemini Observatory, UH Hilo, IfA, CFHT, ‘Imiloa, Mauna Kea Observatories, NOAO, PISCES, Subaru Telescope, NAOJ, et al, Hilo HI: Journey through the Universe Week.
Mar 2-9 — IEEE, Big Sky MT: 2019 IEEE Aerospace Conference (40th).
Mar 2 — Moon: 1.23° SSE of Venus, 13:00.
Mar 2 — Apollo Asteroid 2019 CT4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.016 AU)
SUNDAY
Mar 3 — Apollo 9 50th Observation, Nationwide USA: Third crewed Apollo mission with Astronauts James A. McDivitt, David R. Scott, Russell L. Schweickart to test Command/Service Module, Lunar Module & critical technologies for landing on Moon, are celebrated today as NASA prepares SLS / Orion crew module and allocates funding for Moon payloads, commercial partnerships.
Mar 3-9 — Leibniz-Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP), JHU, University of California at Santa Cruz, et al, Aspen CO: Conference: Into the Starlight – The End of the Cosmic Dark Ages.
Mar 3-9 — University of KwaZulu-Natal, National Research Foundation, Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: Conference: Cosmology on Safari 2019.