Tiangong and International Space Stations Welcome New Crew Including Private Axiom-2 Mission
Tianzhou-6 cargo mission is set to launch May 10, from Wenchang Space Launch Center, Hainan Island, China, carrying ≤ LEO 7,400 kg new supplies to Tiangong Space Station reaching Shenzhou 15 crew. It will also carry propellant to TSS allowing it to maintain orbit before arrival of 3-member Shenzhou 16 launch which is targeted for May 25. The 3-member Shenzhou 16 crew will overlap with Shenzhou 15 crew for 5-7 days, and remain in space for ~6 months. Aboard ISS, Expedition 69 crewmembers Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin are to continue relocation of hardware from Rassvet module to new Nauka multipurpose laboratory during ~6.5-hour spacewalk on May 12. From inside the station, Andrey Fedyaev will assist the EVA by transferring a radiator and airlock utilizing ESA robotic arm on Nauka. Axiom 2 all private mission is planned to launch NET May 17 via SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center FL with Peggy Whitson, John Shoffner, Ali Alqarni and Rayyanah Barnawi. It will take ~37 hours to reach ISS. Expanding commercial space economy to science / tech markets, Axiom-2 team will also conduct >20 experiments aboard ISS during their 16-day mission. In various stages of development and R&D are Axiom Space Station, Starlab, Orbital Reef Station and Northrop Grumman Space Stations. Axiom first module, Hab One, is planned for a 2025 launch. (Image Credits: CNSA, CGNTV, CCTV, NASA, ISS, Axiom)
MONDAY
☆ May 8 — International Space Station,~415-km LEO: Expedition 69 seven-member crew continue EVA preparation and stowage work, experimenting with 3D biological printers, plan to see arrival of Progress 84P by end of month.
☆ May 8 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou-15 three-member crew to receive Tianzhou-6 and cargo this week; recently installed exterior platform soon to house experiments.
Highlights…
o NewSpace: AeroVironment to advance Ingenuity design to co-develop 2 Sample Recovery Helicopters for Mars under US$10M contract with NASA JPL; ispace expected to receive first lunar policy payout from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company; Astranis, now valued at $1.6B, to build out fleet of GEO comm sats with $200M funding.
☆ Solar System: High definition images of Deimos farside taken by UAE Hope orbiter casts doubt on captured-asteroid origin theory of Mars moons; Rocket Lab / MIT astrobiology mission to Venus now targeting Jan 2025 launch to catch March 23 inferior conjunction; LRO heading toward 14th full year at Moon continues eccentric polar mapping orbit.
☆ Galaxy: Astronomers working to verify whether water vapor signal detected by JWST NIRSpec is emanating from rocky exoplanet GJ 486 b (rather than its star) with MIRI; Univ of Mauritius / Manchester Univ models suggest ET living near Barnard’s star (6 ly distant) would have difficulty detecting Earth radio signals, given similar tech level.
o Global: OHB Czechspace conducting 11-month nuclear propulsion in space feasibility study for ESA Future Launchers Preparatory Programme; AIAA Fellow Carissa Christensen urges establishment of national space agencies in every country; ST Engineering of Singapore now operating TeLEOS-2 SAR Earth observation satellite in near-equatorial orbit (10° inclination).
●USA: UP Aerospace ground team working to identify cause of SpaceLoft XL launch failure (carrying Celestis Aurora mission) from Spaceport America in NM; Lawsuit alleges FAA failed to adequately vet Starship launch, SpaceX CEO insists debris cloud ‘not toxic’, promises improvements to launchpad & self destruct mechanism.
● Hawai’i: Univ of Reading planetary scientists to conduct study of Saturn rings life expectancy utilizing Keck observatory in conjunction with JWST; Palomar, Keck and NEOWISE observatories used by MIT team to record planetary engulfment, the same process which will in theory eventually destroy Earth.
● = 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’).
Lunar Landings Pose Major Challenge for Robotic and Human Exploration of Moon
As Intuitive Machines and Astrobotic strive to carry out first commercial Moon landings this summer, Roscosmos is focused on resumption of lunar exploration after a 47-year gap with Luna-25, launching NET July 13. In light of ispace Hakuto-R recent failure and a string of unsuccessful attempts (SpaceIL Beresheet, Chandrayaan-2), it is worth recalling that prior to the first successful soft landing, Luna 9 (1966), 11 missions were lost. CNSA is currently the only 21st Century lunar surface operator, serving as a model for aspirants. Aside from the inherent difficulty of conducting remotely controlled maneuvers in space, the Moon presents unique challenges – counterintuitively, being the Earth’s closest celestial neighbor. For instance, the near-total lack of atmosphere on the Moon prevents utilization of aerobraking, a technique used for landings on planetary bodies (Mars, Venus, Titan), necessitating significantly greater onboard fuel capacity for propulsive braking. The relatively strong gravity (1/6 that of Earth) imposes more technical challenge than landing on asteroids (Eros, Itokawa, Ryugu, Bennu), where gravity is negligible. Human Landing Systems have a much better record, with 6 successes out of 7 attempts. The next HLS set to continue humanity’s multi-world progression is SpaceX Starship, which is to launch for a second attempt at transatmospheric orbit in preparation for at least 3 lunar landings under NextSTEP-2 contract – an uncrewed demonstration and 2-member crewed landings during Artemis 3 (NLT Dec 2025) and 4 (NLT 2028) – in 6-8 weeks. (Image Credits: Intuitive Machines, Astrobotic, SpaceX, CNSA, Roscosmos, NASA)
☆ May 8 — Rocket Lab, Launch Electron / TROPICS 3 & 4, Launch Complex 1B, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand: Rocket Lab Electron rocket to launch second pair of Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats (TROPICS) for NASA.
● May 9 — Space Transportation Association,Washington DC: STA Luncheon with Matt Mountain; President of Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) to give update on James Webb Space Telescope, 11:30-13:00 EDT.
☆ May 9 — Venus: 1.76° N of M35 cluster, 07:00.
☆ May 9 — Uranus: At conjunction with the Sun, 10:00.
☆ May 9 — Apollo Asteroid 2023 HG1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.027 AU).
WEDNESDAY
☆ May 10 — CNSA, Launch Long March 7 / Tianzhou 6, Wenchang Space Launch Center, Hainan Island, China (19° N): Next cargo craft set to launch to Tiangong Space Station reaching Shenzhou 15 crew, before arrival of Shenzhou 16 crew launch in about 2 weeks.
o May 10-12 — Air and Space Academy (AAE), Italian Association of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIDAA), Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), Turin, Italy: Space Exploration International Conference 2023.
o May 10-12 — WTA, Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union, Via Satellite, et al, Dubai, United Arab Emirates:CABSAT 2023; at Dubai World Trade Centre.
THURSDAY
★ May 11 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink 5-9,SLC-40, Cape Canaveral SFS FL: Falcon 9 to launch next batch of Starlink V1.5 internet satellites for SpaceX; first stage to land on drone ship in Atlantic Ocean.
o May 11 — MundoGEO, Space Show BR, Ideia Space, São Paulo, Brazil: Space Education Summit; focused on K-12 education.
● May 11 — Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI),Online / Washington DC: A New Era in Launch Services.
☆ May 11 — Moon: At perigee (distance 369,359 km), 19:07.
FRIDAY
☆ May 12 — International Space Station, Expedition 69 Russia EVA #58,~415-km LEO: Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin to continue relocation of hardware from Rassvet module to new Nauka multipurpose laboratory module during ~6.5-hour spacewalk in Orlan spacesuits; live coverage available.
☆ May 12 — Moon: At last quarter, 04:28.
☆ May 12 — Apollo Asteroid 2023 HT4: Near-Earth Flyby (0.040 AU).
☆ May 14 — Tianwen-1 Lander,Utopia Planitia, Mars Surface: China Tianwen-1 Lander reaches 2 full years / enters 3rd year of Mars surface operations at / near 25.1°N, 109.9°E; landed 2021 with Zhurong Rover.
☆ May 14 — Mercury: At aphelion; 0.4667 AU from Sun, 09:00.
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