Ad Luna and the Need to Persevere: Landing 1st Women, 1st Black Astronaut on the Moon
January 20, 2021 will mark a new dawn of American policy and direction with incoming USA President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Outgoing Administration supported NASA Artemis Program, starting with Space Policy Directive-1. Echoing JFK vision to explore a new frontier with pioneering spirit, SPD-1 outlines returning humans to the Moon, exploring its South Pole and sustaining a lunar base through private and international partnerships. Hopefully Harris, the 1st elected Black and Asian-American Woman VP, will help give full support and funding to see the 1st Woman and 1st Black Astronaut on the Moon ~2025 — which will be significant, inter-global, incredible occasions — expanding their sphere of influence and activity by nearly 1 Billion times. Celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan 18, AIAA Los Angeles-Las Vegas Section hosts a 3-hour talk discussing Black American and minorities in aerospace / STEM fields. Beyond lunar aspirations for change, hope and unification for a Multi World Civilization, the science return to be accomplished by lunar landings will be vast. Working on ‘Lunar Surface Science Workshop 7: Space Biology’ is the LPI, USRA, NASA group Jan 20-21, with Session 8 ‘Structuring Real-Time Science Support of Artemis Crewed Operations’ February 24-25. Keeping the urgency and ‘doing good’ in Space, on the Moon, Asteroids and Beyond will continue to employ, connect, inspire and educate more Americans, and humankind – regardless of gender, color or generation. (Image Credits: NASA, SPC, ILOA, C. Stoughton)
MONDAY
Highlights… Jan 18 — ISS, ~405-km LEO: Expedition 64 crew of 7 prepare for 3 potential EVAs starting next week; Astrobee robots’ future tasks in support of life support systems could include carrying carbon dioxide sensors, trapping space debris, testing adhesives to stick to surfaces.
Jan 18 — USA: SLS Artemis 1 launch could occur in November if test fire successful; Jim Bridenstine to step down, next NASA Administrator (who may be a woman) could work to keep Artemis landings on track for mid-decade / asap; executive order promotes increased utilization of small fission reactors for space.
Moon, Inner Planets, Gas Giants and Asteroid Belts: 21st Century Solar System Complete Exploration
2020s deep space mission planning by NASA and ESA, with respective New Frontiers and Cosmic Vision programs, lead the way to Jupiter and Saturn, which combined represent 90%+ Solar System planetary mass. Juno is now extended through September 2025, increasing orbit count from 34 to 76, enabling flybys of Galileo moons Ganymede (1,000 km / closest approach in mid-2021), Europa (320 km / late 2022) and Io (1,500 km / Late 2024). The first major mission of Cosmic Vision, JUICE is set for June 2022 launch aboard Ariane 5 – reaching Jupiter October 2029, where it is to investigate Ganymede, Callisto and Europa during 3.5-year nominal mission. New Frontiers will continue with Europa Clipper (now free to utilize commercial launch in lieu of delayed SLS) in 2024, Dragonfly mission to Saturn moon Titan in 2027, and ongoing extended mission of New Horizons past Pluto in Kuiper Belt expected to continue through 2021. Dragonfly is to be the first usage of multi-rotor (8) drone-like exploratory craft on another world, allowing extensive travels across 175 km in 8 km increments. Closer to home, exploration vehicles Hope, Perseverance and Tianwen-1 from UAE, USA, and China currently approach Mars, while Insight lander will continue seismic monitoring of the red planet until December 2022. Moon missions slated for 2020s both national and commercial abound, and asteroid missions DART, Lucy, NEA Scout, Psyche, Hera are scheduled to launch before 2025. (Image Credits: NASA, ESA)
Jan 18 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Starlink V1.0-L16,LC-39A, KSC FL: Falcon 9 to launch ~60 satellites for SpaceX Starlink broadband network; 08:45 EST.
Jan 18-19 — Euroconsult, Innovatech, MDA, Thales, et al, Online / Montreal, Quebec, Canada:AIxSPACE – The First Event Dedicated to AI Applied to Space; featuring President of Canadian Space Agency Lisa Campbell, President of CNES Jean-Yves Le Gall, and representatives of MDA, Skywatch, University of Calgary, Lockheed Martin, others.
Jan 19 — ISS, Expedition 64 U.S. ESA #69, ~405-km LEO: Crew members Hopkins and Glover to perform ~6.5-hour spacewalk for Columbus upgrades, starts 07:05 EST, live coverage available.
Jan 19 — The Space Show,Online / Tiburon CA: Dr. David Livingston talks with Deana Weibel, an anthropologist who studies intersection of religion and outer space.
Jan 20 — SETI Institute, Online / Mountain View CA: Birth of the New Giant Telescopes; with Rebecca Bernstein (Chief Scientist for GMTO) and Christophe Dumas (Observatory Scientist and Head of Operations at TMT); 19:00 PST.
Jan 20-21 — LPI, USRA, NASA, Online / Houston TX: Lunar Surface Science Workshop 7: Space Biology; series will continue to solicit input from the community on the potential for new scientific research that could be enabled by human exploration near the lunar south pole.
Jan 21 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / Transporter 1, SLC-40, Cape Canaveral SFS FL: Falcon rocket to carry Transporter 1 mission rideshare flight to SSO with dozens of micro- and nanosatellites for commercial and government customers.
Jan 22 — Apollo Asteroid 2020 YE5: Near Earth Flyby (0.005 AU)
Jan 22 — Apollo Asteroid 2020 XB7: Near Earth Flyby (0.018 AU)
Jan 22 — Aten Asteroid 2018 BX: Near Earth Flyby (0.023 AU)
Jan 22 — Apollo Asteroid 2020 PP: Near Earth Flyby (0.050 AU)
SATURDAY
Jan 23 — Glenn Research Center,Cleveland OH: Supporting critical testing to prepare for Artemis / Moon Missions, GRC celebrates 80th anniversary today since its founding 1941.
Jan 23 — Moon: 5.7° SE of the Pleiades, 00:00; 4.6° N of Aldebaran, 18:00.
Jan 23 — Mercury: At easternmost elongation, 16:00.
Jan 23 — Saturn: At conjunction with Sun, 0.968 AU from Earth, 17:00.
SUNDAY
Jan 24 — The Space Show,Online / Tiburon CA: Dr. David Livingston talks with Professor Avi Loeb about his latest book Extraterrestrial: The First Sign of Intelligent Life Beyond Earth.
Jan 24 — Apollo Asteroid 2021 AW5: Near Earth Flyby (0.022 AU)
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Occurring 31 October from 09:00-11:00 local time (16:00-18:00 HST, 19:00-21:00 PDT, 22:00-24:00 EDT on 30 October), this Galaxy Forum will be in hybrid format...
Originally planned around this date for Wenchang, China -- TBC (to be confirmed); As the only professional association for astronauts, ASE supports the advancement of...
Coordinating Division Division C Education, Outreach and Heritage The IAU Symposium on Innovative Research and Techniques in Astronomy Communication will take place from November...
Change clocks back 1 hour from Daylight Saving to Standard Time; does not include Hawai’i, Arizona (except the Navajo Nation), American Samoa, Guam, Northern...
ESWW is the main annual event in the European Space Weather and Space Climate calendar. It is an international meeting organised annually within the...
IAU Symposium: IAUS409 - A Journey Towards Effective Astronomy Communication; online and at National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, 2-21-2 Osawa Mitaka, Tokyo. Topics include:...
Launch Complex 1, ~39°S, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand
iQPS Launch 9, an Earth observation satellite with Synthetic aperture radar for Japan-based imaging company iQPS, to launch on "The Sea God Surveys" mission...
Launch window 10:34am - 2:34pm local time for the 15th batch of classified satellites for a reconnaissance constellation built by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman...
Expecting senior government and executives from NASA, Firefly, Blue Origin to discuss innovation, competitive advantages and a "space industrial revolution in LEO". Capped at...
Launch Complex 1, ~39°S, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand
iQPS Launch 10, an Earth observation satellite with Synthetic aperture radar for Japan-based imaging company iQPS, to launch on “The Mountain God Rises” mission...
Promoting the New Space Economy: The first major national meeting of the space, technology and scientific industries. Three days to connect science, industry and...
Major international forum in space hardware environmental testing for research and development and qualification. It provides a unique opportunity for engineers, technicians and scientists...
At the Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo) Kemayoran. This event represents one of Southeast Asia’s most significant aerospace gatherings, connecting industry leaders, innovators, policymakers, and...
NASA interstellar craft set to reach 16.1 billion miles today, marking one full light-day of communication delays. Craft is operating with only 2 science...
January 20, 2021 will mark a new dawn of American policy and direction with incoming USA President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Outgoing Administration supported NASA Artemis Program, starting with Space Policy Directive-1. Echoing JFK vision to explore a new frontier with pioneering spirit, SPD-1 outlines returning humans to the Moon, exploring its South Pole and sustaining a lunar base through private and international partnerships. Hopefully Harris, the 1st elected Black and Asian-American Woman VP, will help give full support and funding to see the 1st Woman and 1st Black Astronaut on the Moon ~2025 — which will be significant, inter-global, incredible occasions — expanding their sphere of influence and activity by nearly 1 Billion times. Celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan 18, AIAA Los Angeles-Las Vegas Section hosts a 3-hour talk discussing Black American and minorities in aerospace / STEM fields. Beyond lunar aspirations for change, hope and unification for a Multi World Civilization, the science return to be accomplished by lunar landings will be vast. Working on ‘Lunar Surface Science Workshop 7: Space Biology’ is the LPI, USRA, NASA group Jan 20-21, with Session 8 ‘Structuring Real-Time Science Support of Artemis Crewed Operations’ February 24-25. Keeping the urgency and ‘doing good’ in Space, on the Moon, Asteroids and Beyond will continue to employ, connect, inspire and educate more Americans, and humankind – regardless of gender, color or generation. (Image Credits: NASA, SPC, ILOA, C. Stoughton)
Jan 18 — 
Jan 18 — NewSpace: 
Jan 18 — USA: 
= All times
= 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’).
2020s deep space mission planning by NASA and ESA, with respective New Frontiers and Cosmic Vision programs, lead the way to Jupiter and Saturn, which combined represent 90%+ Solar System planetary mass. Juno is now extended through September 2025, increasing orbit count from 34 to 76, enabling flybys of Galileo moons Ganymede (1,000 km / closest approach in mid-2021), Europa (320 km / late 2022) and Io (1,500 km / Late 2024). The first major mission of Cosmic Vision, JUICE is set for June 2022 launch aboard Ariane 5 – reaching Jupiter October 2029, where it is to investigate Ganymede, Callisto and Europa during 3.5-year nominal mission. New Frontiers will continue with Europa Clipper (now free to utilize commercial launch in lieu of delayed SLS) in 2024, Dragonfly mission to Saturn moon Titan in 2027, and ongoing extended mission of New Horizons past Pluto in Kuiper Belt expected to continue through 2021. Dragonfly is to be the first usage of multi-rotor (8) drone-like exploratory craft on another world, allowing extensive travels across 175 km in 8 km increments. Closer to home, exploration vehicles Hope, Perseverance and Tianwen-1 from UAE, USA, and China currently approach Mars, while Insight lander will continue seismic monitoring of the red planet until December 2022. Moon missions slated for 2020s both national and commercial abound, and asteroid missions DART, Lucy, NEA Scout, Psyche, Hera are scheduled to launch before 2025. (Image Credits: NASA, ESA)
