MarsLatest International Spacecraft from UAE, PRC, USA to Surpass 1 Full Year at Red Planet
Soon entering their 2nd year at Mars will be UAE Hope Orbiter (February 9), China Tianwen-1 Orbiter (Feb 10), and USA Perseverance Rover + Ingenuity Helicopter (Feb 18). The current Mars international fleet – now at 8 orbiters, 2 landers, 3 rovers and a helicopter, may be joined by Russia Kazachok Lander and ESA Rosalind Franklin Rover by June 10, 2023 with launch scheduled September 20 by Arianespace from French Guiana. Psyche mission, en route to Main Asteroid Belt, will perform a gravity assist maneuver past Mars on 23 May 2023 if launch occurs Aug 1 as planned. Phobos Martian Moons eXploration (MMX), first sample return mission to a Mars moon, has been in development by JAXA with launch set for Sep 2024, Mars orbit insertion / observations commencing 2025, and Earth return July 2029. Also in various stages of R&D are 2 NASA orbiters launching Oct 2024, India Mars Orbiter Mission 2 (Mangalyaan 2) 2024, Japan Tera-hertz Explorer (TEREX) Orbiter and Lander 2025, and China ZhengHe flyby of Mars in 2027 for 311P/PANSTARRS asteroid sample return launching 2025 – and 15 other proposals for near-term Mars exploration including landers, impactors, hoppers, sample-returns. Though SpaceX ambitious timelines for landing Human on Mars (now shifted to 2025) might be achieved, perhaps private-public partnerships and adequate funding will see steps toward Mars settlements / Mars cities by 2030s. (Image Credits: NASA, CNSA, UAE)
MONDAY
Feb 7 – ISS, ~405-km LEO: Expedition 66 seven-member crew preparing for arrival of Progress 80P cargo craft next week, participating in in-flight events with Worthing Early College High School in Houston, Virginia Western Community College, Houston Chronicle, European Space Summit.
Feb 7 – Tiangong Space Station, ~370-km LEO: Shenzhou 13 crew Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping, Ye Guangfu are first Taikonauts to celebrate Lunar New Year / Spring Festival 2022 in space; continuing station upgrades, performing experiments and exercising.
Solar System: China 5-year development plan includes crewed lunar landing asap, Jupiter exploration, Mars human landing 2033; Study shows Saturn moon Mimas may have liquid ocean, which would make it a new class of ‘stealth’ ocean worlds; Trojan asteroid 2020 XL5 in elliptical orbit around Sun-Earth L4 likely to escape in ~ 4,000 years.
Galaxy: James Webb Telescope instruments being tested / calibrated, next phase will power on heaters; International team examines 65 pulsars while working to validate gravity wave detection within background “red noise” emitted from SMBHs.
Global: India Chandrayaan-3 now set to launch this Aug; North Korea shares picture of Earth / Korean Peninsula taken from 2,000 km via Hwasong-12 rocket; Radio Astronomers in Australia, Africa and South America striving to reduce carbon footprint with renewable energy, remote observing.
USA:Laurie Leshin to be first woman to lead Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Probe of Dragon parachute abnormality being conducted by NASA and SpaceX; wet dress rehearsal for SLS / Orion now set NET mid-March.
Growing Southeast Asia Space Scene Fostered by Global Space and Technology Convention (GSTC) and Regional Initiatives
Representing some ~675M people, the countries of Brunei, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam known collectively as ASEAN are increasingly moving attention and energy towards the space sector. Global Space and Technology Convention (GSTC) organized by Singapore Space & Technology Ltd convening Feb 8-10 with theme “Future World. Endless Possibilities” is the premiere venue for SEA space collaboration, bringing industry and academia together with space agency and regulatory leadership annually since 2008. GSTC 2022 panel on Asia Space Dialogue: Enhancing Regional Cooperation in Space to feature input from Head of Indonesia National Institute of Aeronautics and Space Erna Sri Adiningsih, Malaysia Space Agency Director General Azlikamil bin Napiah, and Vietnam National Space Centre Director General Pham Anh Tuan. Wider collaborative efforts have also borne fruit: China-ASEAN Satellite Information Offshore Service Platform is active. Europe industry leaders Airbus working with Vietnam on VNREDSat-2 climate monitoring Earth Observation satellite. Philippines Senator / Presidential candidate Manny Pacquiao urging SpaceX to study prospect of establishing space access on Mindanao island, located ~7° north of equator with clear eastern range. PIKOM, the National Tech Association of Malaysia SpaceTech Initiative working with UN International Telecommunications Union to ensure access to desirable orbits and radio spectra for emerging space nations. Going forward, establishment of regional cooperation through Astronomical Treaty Association of Asia and SouthEast Asia Space Agency may increase sophistication of ASEAN space activity. (Image Credits: SSTL, Airbus, Maxar, ST Engineering)
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.
Feb 8 — Aten Asteroid 2022 UY1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.036 AU)
WEDNESDAY
Feb 9 – Hope Orbiter, Mars Orbit: UAE Hope, studying Mars atmosphere and climate, reaches 1 full year / enters 2nd year in Mars orbit today; launched July 19, 2020 on JAXA H2A rocket.
Feb 9 — Moon: 3.8° SE of Pleiades, 02:00; 6.5° N of Aldebaran, 21:00.
Feb 9 — Venus: Brightest, magnitude -4.65°, 04:00.
THURSDAY
Feb 10 – Tianwen-1 Orbiter, Mars Orbit: China Tianwen-1 orbiter reaches 1 full year / enters 2nd year of operation in Mars orbit; Lander & Zhurong Rover touched down ~3 months after this date at Utopia Planitia 25.1°N, 109.9°E.
Feb 10 – Solar Orbiter (SolO),EllipticalHeliocentric Orbit: ESA / NASA craft to observe and measure solar phenomena reaches 1st full year / enters 2nd year in space, having launched 2020.
Feb 10 – Arianespace, Launch Soyuz / OneWeb 13, ELS, Sinnamary, French Guiana: Arianespace Soyuz rocket, designed VS27, to launch 34 satellites for OneWeb13; 13:09:37 EST.
Feb 12 — Venus: Shows greatest illuminated extent, 12:00.
SUNDAY
Feb 13 – Rocket Lab, Launch Electron / BlackSky 16 & 17, LC 1A, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand: Rocket Lab Electron rocket to launch 2 second-generation satellites for BlackSky, mission dubbed “Without Mission a Beat”.
Feb 13 — Moon: 6.1° S of Castor, 08:00; 2.55° S of Pollux, 14:00; 3.4° NNE of Beehive Cluster, 17:00.
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Solar System: China 
Galaxy: 
USA: 
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