Articles by: SPC

Jun 5-11, 2017 / Vol 36, No 23 / Hawai`i Island, USA

IAF GLEX 2017 in Beijing Focuses on Global Space Exploration and Connecting All Space People

The International Astronautical Federation and Chinese Society of Astronautics are hosting 2017 Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX) at Beijing International Convention Center June 6-8. It features 329 papers from 22 different countries, 25 technical sessions and 100 posters presentations. Some of the 13 tracks are lunar exploration, NEAs, Mars, propulsion technology, life support systems, space law, international cooperation, small sats and space stations. Scientists, entrepreneurs, educators and agency representatives will discuss space exploration recent results, current challenges and innovative solutions including ExoMars missions, ESA Moon Village, UN UNISPACE+50, SLS / Orion, NASA NextSTEP program for cislunar orbital habitats, Tiangong-2, Chang’e-5, Buzz Aldrin’s Cycling Pathways to Mars concept, and China plans for Mars, asteroids, Jupiter and Human Lunar exploration before 2030. There is a plenary session on the 15 Space Agencies participating in International Space Exploration Coordination Group: ASI, CNES, CNSA, CSA, CSIRO, DLR, ESA, ISRO, JAXA, KARI, NASA, NSAU, Roscosmos, UAESA, UKSA. International Programme Committee co-chairs are Christian Sallaberger of Canadensys and Li Ming of China Academy of Space Technology. IPC members include Bernard Foing, Khaled Al Hashmi, Sandy Magnus, Masazumi Miyake, Gwynne Shotwell, Stephan Ulamec, Pete Worden, and Victor Vorontsov. On the eve of GLEX, the ILOA of Hawai`i is hosting Galaxy Forum Beijing with theme Astronomy from the Moon and International Human Moon Missions June 5 cosponsored by CSA and IAF. It will feature Wang Jing (NAOC), Hakim Malasan (ITB), Christian Lange (Canadian Space Agency), Andrew Aldrin (ShareSpace Foundation), and others. (Image Credit: IAF, IPC, ILOA, CAST, CAS, NAOC, ESA, DLR, Roscosmos)

MONDAY

Ongoing…
Jun 5 — ISS, 330-435-km LEO: Expedition 52 three member crew Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin, Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer transferring 2,708 kg of cargo and experiments from Dragon CRS-11 including Roll-Out Solar Array, Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer to be externally-mounted, Multiple User System for Earth Sensing, and 5 CubeSats for Japan Birds constellation initiative (3 are the first satellites for Bangladesh, Ghana & Mongolia).

Jun 5 — Solar System: Cassini produces image of Keeler Gap & rippling waves along the edge of Saturn rings; Juno at Jupiter observing clouds which likely producing snow, taking measurements of atmosphere, magnetic field; Parker Solar Probe set to launch 2018 & travel closer to sun than any previous spacecraft; LRO surface temp & reflectivity data shows new evidence of ice deposits at Moon South Pole.

Jun 5 — Galaxy: Keck Observatory working to determine whether there is ‘undiscovered 5th force of nature‘, plans observations of exoplanet SO-2 which will come near Sagittarius A* in 2018; Hawaii Pan-STARRS telescope data aids study of event horizon theory; antimatter survey finds convergence of 2 compact white dwarfs causes supernova explosions over millions of years which in turn produces antimatter / gamma rays.

Jun 5 — Global: Alberta first satellite Ex-Alta 1 in LEO taking high frequency measurements of Earth magnetosphere; Russia Soyuz-5 rocket under development, planned to be launched from Sea Launch platform ~2022; ESA finalizes report on ExoMars Schiaparelli crash landing; nSight1, South Africa 1st privately owned nanosatellite, conducting Earth observations.

Jun 5 — NewSpace: Bigelow BEAM completes first full year at ISS, withstood space debris impacts – radiation testing will be major focus moving forward; Rocket Lab 2nd vehicle is being manufactured, analyzing data from inaugural launch, states launch cost will be US$4.9M; Sierra Nevada Corporation Dream Chaser passes 3rd integration milestone for ISS Commercial Resupply Services program.

Jun 5 — ISRO, Launch GSLV Mk. 3 D1 / GSAT 19, Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India: India Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk. 3 D1 to launch on first orbital test flight with GSAT 19E experimental communications satellite.

Jun 5 — International Lunar Observatory Association, Space Age Publishing Company, Beijing, China: Galaxy Forum China 2017 – Beijing: Astronomy From The Moon and International Human Moon Missions; 14:00-17:00 at Beijing International Convention Center.

Jun 5 — International Astronautical Federation (IAF), SpaceUp, Beijing, China: SpaceUp IFA-GLEX; space unconference, where participants decide the format, subject, presentations.

= 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;’ Greenwich, England).

Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Jupiter (SW), Saturn (SE); Morning Planets: Mercury (SE), Venus (E), Neptune (SE).

India Launching GSLV / GSAT 19, Working Towards Human Spaceflight

Indian Space Research Organization led by A. S. Kiran Kumar is set to launch the GSLV Mk 3 – D1 rocket carrying GSAT 19 communications and broadcast satellite on June 5 at 01:58 to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit from launch pad 2 at the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. Weighing 640,000 kg the 3-stage Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mark III with 2 solid rocket strap-ons (S200), a liquid fueled core stage (L110) and the indigenous cryogenic upper stage (C25), is the heaviest rocket launched by India. It is capable of lifting 4,000 kg to GTO and as much as 8,000 kg to LEO, enough capacity for a crewed module. This first developmental flight represents realization of a program spanning 25 years, 11 flights, over 200 tests on different components — and carries the hopes of future India human spaceflight. GSAT 19 is a 3,136-kg experimental mission designed to test several new technologies, such as the I-6K unified modular bus, deployable thermal radiators, electrical propulsion, fiber optic gyro, Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) accelerometer, and indigenous Li-Ion batteries. It also hosts the Geostationary Radiation Spectrometer (GRASP) payload to study charged particles and the interaction of space radiation with satellites and their electronic components. (Image Credit: ISRO)

 Jun 5 — Kennedy Space Center, NASA, KSC FL: Astronauts Scott Kelly and Jon McBride unveils Summer of Mars campaign and Mars rover concept vehicle.

Jun 5-8 — Keck Institute for Space Studies, Caltech/JPL, Pasadena CA: Workshop: Cryogenic Comet Sample Return – Compelling New Science vs. Technological Challenges.

Jun 5-9 — AIAA, Denver CO: AIAA Aviation and Aeronautics Forum and Exposition (AIAA AVIATION 2017); 9th AIAA Atmospheric and Space Environments Conference; AIAA Atmospheric Flight Mechanics Conference; at Sheraton Colorado.

Jun 5-9 — NASA Astrobiology Institute, ESLI Origins Network, Charlottesville VA: 2017 Astrobiology Graduate Conference.

Jun 5-9 — Sexten Center for Astrophysics, Sexten, Italy: Conference: Globular Cluster Systems and their Host Galaxies.

Continued from…

May 5 – Jun 19 — Johnson Space Center, NASA, Houston TX: Campaign 4: Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA 2017); 45 day analog spaceflight / Moon / Mars mission.

May 19 – Jun 14 — RR Auction, Amherst NH: Fine Autographs and Artifacts Auction featuring Carl Sagan Cosmos Collection, Apollo / Gemini artifacts.

May 28 – Jun 18 — Aspen Center for Physics, Aspen CO: Workshop: Quantum Gravity and New Moonshines; and Workshop: After Inflation.

May 29 – Jun 23 — Munich Institute for Astro- and Particle Physics, Garching, Germany: Workshop: Accretion and Early Differentiation of the Earth and Terrestrial Planets.

Jun 3-9 — ISTS, Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space Science, JAXA, Matsuyama, Japan: 31st ISTS (International Symposium on Space Technology and Science), 26th ISSFD (International Symposium on Space Flight Dynamics), 8th NSAT (Nano-satellite Symposium).

Jun 4-8 — American Astronomical Society, Austin TX: 230th Meeting of the AAS; at JW Marriott Austin, in conjunction with the Laboratory Astrophysics Division Annual Meeting.

TUESDAY

Jun 6-8 — International Astronautical Federation (IAF), Chinese Society of Astronautics (CSA), Beijing, China: 2017 Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX 2017); at Beijing International Convention Center.

Jun 6-9 — ESA, XMM-Newton Science Operations Centre, Astronomical Observatory of Rome, INAF-IAPS, ASI, Rome, Italy: Symposium: The X-ray Universe 2017.

Jun 6 — Mercury: 5.3° S of Pleiades, 17:19.

Jun 6 — Apollo Asteroid 2017 KQ27: Near-Earth Flyby (0.003 AU).

Jun 6 — Apollo Asteroid 2017 KR27: Near-Earth Flyby (0.018 AU).

Jun 6 — Apollo Asteroid 2012 HN13: Near-Earth Flyby (0.073 AU).

WEDNESDAY

Jun 7 — Johnson Space Center, NASA, Houston TX: Acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot, Ellen Ochoa and Brian Kelly to announce new Astronaut candidates chosen from more than 18,300 people; live coverage available, 14:00 EDT.

Jun 7-9 — Challenger Center, Kapolei HI: Teacher Training for Rendezvous With Comet Halley; for teachers interested in bringing their class on a simulated space mission.

Jun 7-16 — UNOOSA, Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, Vienna, Austria: 60th session of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

THURSDAY

Jun 8 — International Launch Services, Launch Proton / EchoStar 21, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan: Proton rocket with a Breeze M upper stage to launch EchoStar 21 communications satellite, formerly known as TerreStar 2.

Jun 8 — Ames Research Center, NASA, Moffett Field CA: Media Day for Small Spacecraft Technology and Announcement of Cube Quest Challenge Winners.

Jun 8 — Moon: At apogee (distance 406,402 km), 12:22.

Jun 8 — Comet 73P-BS/Schwassmann-Wachmann: Near-Earth Flyby (0.056 AU).

Jun 8 — Apollo Asteroid 2011 PU1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.061 AU).

FRIDAY

Jun 9-11 — National Radio Astronomy Observatory, American Astronomical Society, National Science Foundation, Austin TX: Women in Astronomy IV: The Many Faces of Women Astronomers.

Jun 9-24 — British Interplanetary Society, Wells & Mendip Astronomers, Somerset, United Kingdom: WMA/BIS Space Art Show: Visions of Space 2.

Jun 9 — Moon: Full (Strawberry Moon), 03:10; 3.1° N of Saturn, 15:25.

SATURDAY

Jun 10 — Cassini, Saturn Orbit: Flyby of Pan scheduled at 84,000-km altitude; Janus at 104,000-km.

Jun 10 — PsiStar – Queen Mary University of London, The Planetary Society, SpaceUp, London, United Kingdom: SpaceUp London 2017; space unconference, where participants decide the format, subject, presentations.

Jun 10 – Sep 10 — EuroChem, TransTelekom, DHL, General Electric, Samsung, Siemens, Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Astana, Kazakhstan: Expo 2017 Astana: Future Energy.

Jun 10 — Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana, Kazakhstan: Expo 2017 “Future Energy”.

Jun 10 — Amor Asteroid 2017 HV4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.050 AU).

SUNDAY

Jun 11 — Fermi Gamma-ray Telescope, LEO: Spacecraft with Large Area Telescope & Gamma-ray Burst Monitor instruments begins 10th year of operations in Space; launched 2008.

Jun 11-15 — American Astronomical Society, Royal Astronomical Society, London, United Kingdom: 2017 AAS Division of Dynamical Astronomy Meeting (AAS-DDA).

Jun 11-16 — Advanced Simulation and Computing Program, Center for Nonlinear Studies, Center for Space and Earth Science, IOP Publishing, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Santa Fe NM: Workshop: Current Challenges in the Physics of White Dwarf Stars.