Articles by: SPC

January 17-23, 2022 / Vol 41, No 3 / Hawai`i Island, USA

New Horizons @16 Outbound on Interstellar Trajectory, 21st Century Solar System Complete Exploration

On January 19 deep space explorer New Horizons (NH) is set to begin its 17th year since launch in 2006 after successfully flying by asteroid 132524 APL, Jupiter, Pluto and TNO 486958 Arrokoth in the Kuiper Belt – the Solar System ‘Third Zone’. NH instruments should have sufficient power until 2030s to collect data on the heliosphere environment and take pictures of celestial objects. It is set to cross 100 AU in 2038, and enter Interstellar Space ~122 AU in 2040s. Closer to home, inner Solar System exploration is expanding rapidly as Sol received its first close encounters with Parker Solar Probe, Mercury dual-orbiter mission BepiColombo will arrive December 2025, Venus has Akatsuki, there are 5 ongoing Luna missions, Mars has 8 orbiters, 2 landers, 3 rovers and a helicopter, while OSIRIS-Rex is on a return path from NEA Bennu with a sample of ≥60 grams. In the Outer Solar System: Juno is studying Jupiter which makes up ~71% of Solar System planetary mass and has 80 known / unexplored moons. Saturn with ~21% of SS planetary mass and 82 moons currently has no current spacecraft; and Uranus and Neptune have never had a dedicated mission. International and commercial enterprises are focusing on the Moon with 6 landers and 3 orbiters planned this year, which could support humans to Mars 2030s, asteroids 2040s, Gas Giant moons 2050s, and Galaxy Beyond. (Image Credits: NASA, ESO, M. Kornmesser, IBEX, Adler Planetarium, KARI)

MONDAY

Jan 17 — ISS, ~405-km LEO: This week Expedition 66 seven-member crew to conduct 1st EVA (of 6 planned) in 2022 – which will add to tally of 245 completed so far (187 in USA spacesuits, 58 in Russia suits).

Jan 17 — Tiangong Space Station, ~370-km LEO: Shenzhou 13 Taikonauts to work in space for ~3 more months; CMSA Director Hao Chun states 20+ cabinets will be reserved for international experiments and “foreign astronauts will definitely work on the station”.

Highlights…

NewSpace: Astroscale partnering with Orbital Fab on GEO servicing / refueling; Rocket Lab may increase footprint at Wallops Flight Facility to support Neutron launches NET 2024; Blue Origin expanding into Kent WA 19,510m2 warehouse, spinoffs Starfish and Stoke Space have nearby HQs.

Solar System: Intuitive Machines and MSU establishing 1st commercial lunar communication network with LRO; Astrodynamics experts dispute LEO capacity claims advanced by Elon Musk; Chang’e-5 lunar sample data shows 120-180 ppm water content.

Galaxy: NASA / Italian Space Agency Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer measuring Cassiopeia A magnetic fields; Harvard study suggests regional stellar formation (<500 LY distant) taking place on ‘surface’ of supernovae-created local cavity.

Global: Euroconsult report predicts US$1T government space budgets by end of decade, estimates $92B spent last year; S. Somanath succeeds K Sivan to become 10th ISRO Chair; UAE Astronauts Mohammad Al-Mulla & Nora Al-Matrooshi training with NASA 2021 class at JSC.

USA: Katherine Calvin to serve as both NASA Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor; Starship launch & catch ‘chopsticks’ tower ready for test pending SN20 FAA launch clearance; Slingshot Aerospace to utilize commercial LEO constellation telemetry data to identify RF interference under $2M USSF contract.

Hawai’i: First imaging of stellar supernova in progress with UH Pan-STARRS on Haleakalā; IfA aiding understanding of exoplanet systems evolution with 3 newly discovered planets to be absorbed by host star within 1M years.

= Terrestrial events, and…

= International terrestrial events in local time.

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

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

University of Hawai‘i Board of Regents to Consider Maunakea Science Reserve Governance Plan

The future of the most scientifically productive complex of optical, infrared and millimeter/submillimeter telescopes in the northern hemisphere, collectively known as Mauna Kea Observatories, is to be taken up by 11-member UH Board of Regents at their first in-person meeting of the year, to be held January 20 on UH Mānoa campus. Since announcement Dec 16, the Mauna Kea Master Plan draft has been available for public input via US mail, email, phone and commercial outreach platform (Konveio). The plan calls for limits on development, commitment to <10 astronomy sites NLT Dec 31, 2033, contingencies Mauna Kea management changes, and preserving astronomy in the scenario that an ELT is not constructed in Hawaii. Meanwhile, the Hawaii Legislature (HR No. 33) established 15-member Mauna Kea Working Group consisting of state congressional Representatives (Chair Mark Nakashima (T), Kohala Rep David Tarnas), Native Hawaiians, and representation from Mauna Kea Observatories and Office of Hawaiian Affairs, has expressed recommendations in a Dec 17 draft report. The working group suggests a new Mauna Kea (Mauna a Wākea) governing entity be established, remediation of decommissioned astronomy sites, and restriction of commercial activity. With the successful deployment of JWST space observatory on route to Earth-Sun L2 carrying HAWAII-2RG sensors and the International Lunar Observatory Association Hawaii precursor mission ILO-X slated for 2022, Hawaii astronomy will continue even if Mauna Kea were to be restricted. (Image Credits: MKO, UH, Gemini, CFHT, Keck, Subaru, NASA, SMA, TMT)

 Jan 17-21 -Chilean Astronomical Society (SOCHIAS), Online / Chile: 2022 Meeting of the Chilean Astronomical Society.

Jan 17 — Moon: 6.2° S of Castor, 01:00; 2.62° S of Pollux, 06:00; Full (Wolf Moon), 13:50.

Continued From…

Nov 4 – Jun 29 — Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Biomedical Problems, NASA Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA), Moscow, Russia: Mixed gender crew of 6 participating in 8-month space / lunar simulation mission SIRIUS-21 (Scientific International Research In Unique Terrestrial Station).

Dec 6 – Jan 20 — STEAMSPACE, Enterprise in Space, Janet’s Planet, Online / Austin TX: Registration Open: Cities in Space Micro Challenge; 9 week challenge open to 3rd and 4th grade students, globally; free to participate.

Dec 20 – Mar 4 — JAXA, Online / Tokyo, Japan: Accepting applications for Japan Astronaut Candidates.

NET Jan 15 — Astra, Launch Rocket 3 LV0009 / S4 Crossover, Pacific Spaceport Complex, Kodiak Island AK: Astra to launch S4 Crossover (attached to the second stage) technology demo mission by NearSpace Launch to obtain flight heritage testing for a prototype payload host platform.

TUESDAY

Jan 18 — Astra, Launch Rocket 3 LV0008 / VCLS Demo-2A, SLC-46, Cape Canaveral SFS FL: First launch from CCSFS, Astra to launch Venture Class Launch Services 2 Mission One, VCLS Demo-2A for NASA with ELaNa 41 five CubeSats.

Jan 18 — Moon: 3.4° NNE of Beehive Cluster, 10:00.

Jan 18 — Apollo Asteroid 7482 (1994 PC1): Near-Earth Flyby (0.013 AU)

WEDNESDAY

Jan 19 – ISS, Russia EVA #51, ~405-km LEO: Expedition 66 Cosmonauts Shkaplerov and Dubrov to perform 7.5-hour spacewalk to outfit Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module, begins 07:00 EST, live coverage available.

Jan 19 – New Horizons, Kuiper Belt Trajectory: Spacecraft reaches 16 full years / enters 17th in space today, launched Jan 19, 2006 – flew by Pluto July 2015; expected to encounter at least 1 more Kuiper Belt Object and operate until at least 2030.

Jan 19 – British Interplanetary Society, Online / London, United Kingdom: Lecture: SSTL – Past, present and to the Moon; by Marc Casson.

THURSDAY

Jan 20 – University of Hawaii Board of Regents, Online / Hawai’i: UH Board of Regents Meeting with public input on Mauna Kea Master Plan draft.

Jan 20 – American Astronautical Society, Online: AAS Future in Space Hangouts: Public Private Partnerships in Space; featuring Jamil Castillo, Tom Colvin, Mary Lynne Dittmar, Alex MacDonald; 15:00 EST.

Jan 20 — Moon: 4.6° NNE of Regulus, 05:00.

FRIDAY

Jan 21 — United Launch Alliance, Launch Atlas 5 / USSF 8 (GSSAP 5 & 6), SLC-41, Cape Canaveral SFS FL: ULA to launch Atlas 5 rocket carrying USSF 8 mission with Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program satellites.

Jan 21 – ISS, SpaceX Dragon CRS-24 Undocking / Return to Earth, ~405-km LEO: Dragon resupply ship to undock 10:40 EST (live coverage available) from ISS and return to Earth with gear and experiments.

Jan 21 — Aten Asteroid 2018 PN22: Near-Earth Flyby (0.029 AU)

SATURDAY

Jan 23 – First Exoplanet Discovery / 30th Observation: While space probe TESS, project LBTI and others continue search – so far 4,905 exoplanets in 3,629 planetary systems have been confirmed in the 30 years since the 1st exoplanet discovery was made on this day in 1992.

Jan 22-23 – Gordon Research Conference, Galveston TX: Gordon Research Seminar: Origins of Life – Challenging Paradigms in Prebiotic Chemistry; Postponed.

Jan 22 — Venus: At perihelion, 0.7184 AU from Sun, 20:00.

Jan 22 — Atira Asteroid 2017 YH : Near-Earth Flyby (0.120 AU)

SUNDAY

Jan 23-27 – American Meteorological Society (AMS) , Online / Houston TX: 102nd AMS Annual Meeting.

Jan 23-28 – Gordon Research Conference, Oxnard CA: Gordon Research Conference: Environments for the Origins of Life and Habitability; Postponed.

Jan 23-30 – CNRS, LPNHE, National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS), La Thuile, Italy: 56th Rencontres de Moriond on Cosmology (Moriond 2022 Cosmology).

Jan 23 — Mercury: At inferior conjunction with Sun; 0.663 AU from Earth, 00:00.