Astronomy from L2, from the Moon and from Hawai’i

2022 may be the year of Astronomy and the Moon, as 2021 was for Human Spaceflight and Mars. JWST is successfully on its way to Sun-Earth L2, where ESA Gaia ‘Galaxy Mapper’ and Russia / Germany high-energy astrophysics observatory Spektr-RG reside. There are 8 future missions planned for L2 including Euclid (launching Q1 2023), Roman Space Telescope and Plato. Slated to launch to Moon surface and cislunar space this year are 9 missions: Artemis 1, CAPSTONE, Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (with JAXA satellite X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission to LEO), Intuitive Machines 1 and 2, Astrobotic Peregrine 1, Luna-25, ispace Hakuto-R and Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter. IM-1 carries Radiowave Observations at the Lunar Surface of the photoElectron Sheath (ROLSES) from Univ. of CO – Boulder and precursor ILO-X dual-lens astronomy instruments for ILOA Hawai’i. Among 28 payloads on Peregrine 1 there are 5 NASA spectrometers. Chang’e-4 and Yutu-2 spectrometers are collecting data from the lunar farside. United Kingdom Royal Astronomical Society celebrates its 202nd year on January 13 and will hold its 2022 RAS Ordinary meeting on Jan 14. Chilean Astronomical Society 2022 meeting will be Jan 17-21 online. While in Hawai’i on Mauna Kea, the best Earth-based astronomical observing site in the northern hemisphere, the master plan draft for future use of lands and a proposed management board is under review. (Image Credits: ESA, NASA, IM, ILOA, CSYS, Astrobotic, IfA, UH Hilo, KARI, Roscosmos)

MONDAY

Jan 10 — ISS, ~405-km LEO: Expedition 66 crew Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, Kayla Barron, Mark Vande Hei (NASA), Matthias Maurer (ESA) and Anton Shkaplerov, Pytor Dubrov (Roscosmos) continue genetic, agronomic and robotic experiments; Cosmonauts preparing for spacewalk to finish Nauka integration.

Jan 10 — Tiangong Space Station, ~370-km LEO: Shenzhou 13 crew Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu maintain station ahead of 6 planned launches in 2022 including: Tianzhou 4, Shenzhou 14 / 15, Wentian and Mengtian lab modules.

SpaceCom Expo 2022 / 48th Spaceport Summit Bringing Industry & Government Leaders Together in Florida

Over 3,000 attendees representing 30+ countries / 250+ companies are to gather for SpaceCom Global Commercial Space Conference & Exposition and Spaceport Summit, now to be held jointly in Orlando at Rosen Shingle Creek Resort near Florida’s Space Coast January 10-12. The Global Spaceport Alliance, a trade group composed of 30+ spaceports / initiatives, will also hold its Membership Caucus chaired by George Nield (Commercial Space Technologies) Jan 10 at the same venue. With theme ‘Off-Planet for the Planet’, the utility of space for life on Earth will be emphasized throughout the 3-day event in 4 tracks: Space Exploration, with sessions on Return to the Moon, Getting to Mars, Venus and Beyond, Maximizing Human Performance in Space and Cleaning Up Space Junk; On-Planet Industry Applications panelists to discuss Climate Change, Satellite-as-a-Service, Smart Cities, Innovation, and Doing Business with Government; Off-Planet Commercialization topics include 2022 Commercial Space Investment Outlook, Future of the Space Station (ISS), Clearing the Way for Maximum Launch Cadence; Enabling Space Commerce track consists of Aerospace Workforce Development, Spaceport Legislation & Licensing, Spaceports Around the Nation (USA), International Cooperation Initiatives and an update from National Space Council user’s advisory group. Featured speakers include (L-R) NASA SOMD Associate Administrator Kathy Leuders, NASA HQ Associate Administrator Bob Cabana, Former NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, Virgin Orbit Director of Strategy Monica Jan and AWS Head of Space Strategy Amanda Price. (Image Credits: GSA, NASA, NG, Paragon, ITA, et al)

Jan 10 — LPI, USRA, NASA,

Jan 10-12 — SpaceCom, Canaveral Council of Technical Societies, NASA, Kennedy Space Center, Orlando FL: SpaceCom 2022: Off-Planet For The Planet; in conjunction with 48th Spaceport Summit.

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 — 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 9-13 — American Astronomical Society, Salt Lake City UT: 239th Meeting of the AAS; Cancelled; refocus for AAS 240 in Pasadena CA.

TUESDAY

Jan 11 — JPL, NASA, Online: Neptune/Triton System Seminar Series: Single-Pass Subsurface Ocean Detection at Triton using Magnetometric Measurements; by Corey Cochrane of JPL.

Jan 11 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, USRA, NASA, Online / Pasadena CA: Abstracts Due: 53rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC 2022); being held March 7-11.

Jan 11-13 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Pasadena CA: Low-Cost Science Mission Concepts for Mars Exploration Workshop.