July 15-21, 2019 / Vol 38, No 28 / Hawai’i Island, USA

Apollo11@50 Space Exploration Day Observing Humanity’s Greatest Advance The Apollo 11 era, program and 400,000+ people who helped achieve the first human Moon landing are honored this 50th year starting with July 16 launch date, July 20 Armstrong and Aldrin first footsteps on another world, and July 24 return to Earth splashdown. Andrew Aldrin and the Aldrin Family Foundation are hosting Apollo 50th Gala at Kennedy Space Center FL on July 15-17, followed by July 20 event to ‘transform NYC Times Square into Tranquility Base’ in support of People’s Moon project. Lunar and Planetary Institute is hosting Lunar ISRU 2019 Workshop in Columbia MD July 15-17 with LEAG and USRA associates Stephen Mackwell, Clive Neal, Ben Bussey, and Chris Pestak. Space Center Houston has events July 16-24 including Lunch with 16 Apollo Flight Controllers, tours of JSC, Lunch with Children of Apollo (Jeff and Barbara Lovell, Amy Bean, Tracy Cernan Woolie), Lessons from Mission Control with NASA flight director Gene Kranz, and Apollo Anniversary Celebration. Perhaps the best way to observe the accomplishment of Apollo 11 is for USA Administration to give true commit / real support to the Artemis program with 0.1% increase of NASA federal budget annually, totaling 1% by 2024. Visionary ambitions to realize the first women and men landing at Moon South Pole 2024 and fulfill Moon to Mars vision with ‘sense of urgency’ advocated by USA and NASA Administration needs to align with necessary funding to succeed. (Image Credits: NASA, KSC, GSFC, Arizona State University, USPS, ILOA)

MONDAY Highlights… Jul 15 — ISS, 405-km LEO: Expedition 60 crew preparing for July 20 launch of NASA Drew Morgan, ESA Luca Parmitano, Roscosmos Aleksandr Skvortsov; assembling HD camera to be mounted externally during next EVA, installing communication cables for upcoming crewed vehicles, configuring hardware to monitor brain blood flow, and radiation exposure. Jul 15 — NewSpace: Next CLPS providers could be chosen in next couple months while Orbit Beyond, Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines proceed with lunar landers development; SpaceX Starship prepares for untethered flight, commercial launches planned for 2021; Firefly Aerospace partners with Israel Aerospace Industries to build lander based on Beresheet design. Jul 15 — Solar System: UK physicist speculates that Venus may have harbored life; Mars ‘Tissint’ meteorite found in Morocco contains evidence of fluids similar to seawater; Palomar Observatory finds Atira asteroid 2019 LF6, kilometer in size with shortest known orbital period (151 days). Jul 15 — Galaxy: Spitzer and Hubble telescopes identify chemicals in atmosphere of exoplanet GJ 3470 b; Hubble collects images of star formation regions in galaxy NGC 972; supercomputer simulation suggests MWG could have formed under different laws of gravity. Jul 15 — Global: China plans launch of over 100 satellites by 2025, Chang’e-5 to Moon by end of 2019, Mars lander mid-2020, Jupiter probe ~2029; Russia continues to aim for human Moon landings before 2030; Western Australia to receive AU$6M (~US$4.2M) to expand robotics / AI space industry. Jul 15 — USA: National Agency Centers and global entities celebrate Apollo11@50, plan next 50-year commitments for Moon, Solar System exploration; SLS surpasses halfway point of structural testing; Crew Dragon astronauts prepare for potential launch in Nov. Jul 15 — Hawai’i: Hawaiian naming of celestial objects to promote culture / spread Aloha could be lesson for proposed “TMT”; Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope awards US$10K undergraduate scholarship; underwater gripper tech for future space missions being tested at research vessel Nautilus off coast of Hawaii.

= All times

for terrestrial events in local time unless noted.

= 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’).

---

Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Jupiter (S), Saturn (SE); Morning Planets: Uranus (E), Neptune (S).

Russia SIRIUS Crew Emerges As Chandrayaan-2 Prepares For Launch And Chang’e-4 Operates on Lunar Farside Scientific International Research in Unique Terrestrial Station completes 120-day SIRIUS-19 simulation of a space Gateway mission at Institute of Biomedical Problems in Moscow. 6-person international crew is commanded by cosmonaut Evgeny Tarelkin, with three additional Russian crewmembers and two Americans. At midpoint of mission, 4 crewmembers conduct simulated lunar landing and spacesuited EVAs to prepare for a settlement. Chang’e-4 lander and rover are in dormant mode after seventh lunar day at Statio Tianhe in South Pole Aitken Basin. Yutu-2 rover overcomes electrical issue blamed on cosmic ray particle, has traveled over 213 meters. Rover has design lifetime of 3 months, but Liu Dianfu of Beijing Institute of Spacecraft Environment Engineering hopes that it can operate for one year. Chang’e-3 reported to be still functioning at Mare Imbrium with Lunar Ultraviolet Telescope payload. India Chandrayaan-2 is scheduled for launch July 15 atop Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III. Landing is planned September 6 between Manzinus C and Simpelius craters at 70° south latitude, first mission to valuable south polar region. 2,380-kg orbiter expected to operate for one year. Chandrayaan-2 carries 8 science payloads in orbiter, 4 in lander, and 2 in rover. Vikram 1,470-kg lander and Pragyan 27-kg rover have design lifetime of 15 days and are not expected to survive lunar night. (Image Credits: ISRO, IBMP, CNSA, NASA)

Jul 15 — ISRO, Launch GSLV Mk. 2 / Chandrayaan-2, Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India: Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk. 2 (nicknamed Bahubali), flying on GSLV-F10 mission, to launch India 2nd Moon mission with orbiter, Vikram lander & Pragyan rover weighing 3,290 kg at 02:51 local time; will attempt to land at 70° S latitude ~600 km from lunar South Pole between craters Manzinus C and Simpelius N perhaps by Sep 6; plans for Chandrayaan-3 and -4 are underway. Jul 15 — Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Titusville FL: Apollo / Saturn V Center Transformation Celebration; tours of remodeled Apollo / Saturn V Center and Apollo 8 Firing Room with KSC Director Robert Cabana, beginning 10:30. Jul 15 — North Kohala Public Library, W. M. Keck Observatory, Kapaau HI: Astronomy on Mauna Kea. Jul 15-17 — Aldrin Family Foundation, Kennedy Space Center, NASA, KSC FL: Featuring Events: Apollo 50th Gala @ Apollo/Saturn V Center; Apollo 50 After-Show; Heroes & Legends Exhibition Space Dinner; Apollo 50th VIP Breakfast. Jul 15-17 — LPI, Universities Space Research Association Headquarters, Columbia MD: Lunar ISRU 2019: Developing a New Space Economy Through Lunar Resources and Their Utilization. Jul 15-18 — International Big History Association, Grand Valley State University, San Marino, Italy: Life in the Universe 2019: Big History, SETI and the Future of Humankind. Jul 15-26 — University of Hawai’i, Hilo HI: Software Systems for Astronomy summer school. Jul 15 — Moon: 0.44° ESE of Saturn, 22:00, Moon will occult Saturn visible from South America. Continued from… Jun 24 – Aug 23 — International Space University, ESA, Strasbourg, France: ISU 32nd Space Studies Program (SSP 2019). Jul 13-20 — Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum, Apogeo Spatial, SpaceNews, Denver CO: ApolloPalooza 2019.

Jul 13-20 — University of Arizona, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, Tucson AZ: Moon Week; starting with Hello Moon Night and ending with One Giant Leap Day!

Jul 14-18 — Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel MD: Conference: The Pluto System After New Horizons.

TUESDAY

NET Jul 16 — Hayabusa2, Asteroid 1999 JU3: JAXA Hayabusa2 to deploy final Minerva-2 rover to Ryugu surface.

Jul 16 — National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC: Opening of Neil Armstrong Apollo 11 spacesuit display shown for first time in 13 years, Saturn V rocket projected on Washington Monument.

Jul 16 — Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Titusville FL: Apollo 11 Launch Flashback Event; reenacting launch of Apollo 11 at KSC using archival video footage, tour of Apollo / Saturn V Center, viewing of historic cars including Neil Armstrong’s Chevrolet Corvette.

Jul 16-18 — Space Frontier Foundation, Kent WA: NewSpace 2019: The NewSpace Evolution.

Jul 16 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX: Lunch with Apollo Flight Controllers; starting 12:00 followed by presentation from NASA historian Jennifer Ross-Nazzal and special screening of documentary Chasing the Moon.

Jul 16-18 — Heritage Auctions, Houston TX / Online: Heritage Auctions’ Neil Armstrong Auction of Personal Archives.

Jul 16 — Moon: Full (Buck Moon) and partial eclipse, 11:38.

Jul 16 — Partial Lunar Eclipse: Visible over most of Asia, Australia, Africa, Europe, and South America; Moon should be about half-covered by Earth umbral shadow at maximum eclipse 21:30:44 UTC.

WEDNESDAY

Jul 17 — Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon’s Interaction with the Sun (ARTEMIS) P2, Moon Orbit: NASA craft reaches 8 full years / enters 9th year in Moon orbit today; originally launched with constellation of 5 satellites in 2007, now collecting data on Moon interaction with Sun.

Jul 17 — British Interplanetary Society, London, United Kingdom: Lecture: Apollo 11 – The First Men on the Moon; by Jerry Stone, 19:00.

Jul 17 — Aten Asteroid 2019 NF1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.049 AU)

THURSDAY

Jul 18 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX: Lunch with the Children of Apollo; featuring Jeff and Barbara Lovell, Amy Bean, Tracy Cernan Woolie and Gwen Griffin, starting 12:00.

Jul 18 — SETI Institute, Menlo Park CA: Lecture: Back to the Moon – For Science and Exploration; featuring Bruce Pittman, Pascal Lee, Doug Caldwell, 19:00-20:00.

Jul 18-20 — National Air and Space Museum, Boeing Co., Raytheon, Washington DC: Apollo 50th Celebration on the National Mall; with Astronauts, scientists, exhibits and activities.

Jul 18-21 — Jodrell Bank Observatory, From the Fields, BBC Media, Bruntwood, New Scientist, et al, Cheshire, United Kingdom: Bluedot Event; featuring Helen Sharman, music, science, cosmic culture and more beneath the Lovell Telescope.

Jul 18 — Apollo Asteroid 2014 MJ6: Near-Earth Flyby (0.091 AU)

FRIDAY

Jul 19 — Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Biomedical Problems, Moscow, Russia: End of 4-month mission for mixed gender crew of 6 participating in space / lunar simulation mission SIRIUS (Scientific International Research In Unique Terrestrial Station).

Jul 19 — National Air and Space Museum, Boeing Co., Raytheon, Washington DC: Discover the Moon Day; featuring lunar exploration, research, missions, LRO imagery, 3D Moon.

Jul 19 — USPS, Nationwide / KSC FL: Apollo 11 First Moon Landing Forever Stamps to be issued today starting 11:00 EDT at event being held at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Center.

Jul 19, 20 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX: Lunch with an Astronaut, Brian Duffy, adult US$69.95, child $35.95.

Jul 19 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX: Lessons from Mission Control; dinner and presentation with legendary NASA flight director Gene Kranz.

Jul 19 — Apollo Asteroid 2019 NJ2: Near-Earth Flyby (0.034 AU)

SATURDAY

Jul 20 — Roscosmos State Corporation, Launch Soyuz MS-13 / ISS 59S, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan: An RSA Soyuz rocket set to launch Skvortsov, Parmitano, Morgan of Expedition 60/61 to ISS.

Jul 20 — Apollo 11 50th Observation, Nationwide USA / Global: First Human mission to land on Moon in 1969; 1st steps by humans on another World taken by Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin.

Jul 20 — Aldrin Family Foundation, Peoples Moon Project, New York NY: Times Square to transform into Tranquility Base for free family celebration with Giant Moon Map, Mars Map, astronaut meet and greet, plus other activities.

Jul 20 — Viking 1 Mars Lander 43rd Observation, Nationwide USA / Global: First USA spacecraft to successfully land on another planet; originally scheduled for July 4, landing was delayed until this day in 1976 due to rough landing site.

Jul 20 — Space Exploration Day, Global: Widely observed as one the greatest achievements in Human History, proposed International Holiday to celebrate the first people walking on the Moon / another celestial body.

Jul 20 — Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Titusville FL: One Giant Leap Celebration; viewing of historic video footage and cars including Neil Armstrong’s Chevrolet Corvette.

Jul 20 — Maryland Space Business Roundtable, NARHAMS model rocket club, NASA Goddard Visitor Center, Greenbelt MD: Apollo 11 50th Anniversary Moon Landing Contest; celebrating historic Moon landing, participants attempt to land rockets nearest the center of a Moon drawn on the ground.

Jul 20 — National Air and Space Museum, Boeing Co., Raytheon, Washington DC: “The Eagle Has Landed” Late-Night Celebration; featuring science demonstrations, Apollo presentations, activities, stargazing; from 20:00-02:00 with special countdown at 22:56 ET to celebrate exact time Neil Armstrong first set foot on Moon.

Jul 20 — Space Center Houston, Houston TX: Apollo Anniversary Celebration; all-day event featuring special presentations by Apollo-era flight controllers, book signings and evening outdoor concert.

Jul 20 — Frontiers of Flight Museum, The Moon Society, National Space Society of North Texas, Dallas TX: Moon Day 2019.

Jul 20 — British Interplanetary Society, London, United Kingdom: Event: Apollo 11 50th Celebration; 15:00-22:00 at BIS HQ.

Jul 20 — Virgin Galactic, Spaceport America NM: Planned first passenger launch of SpaceShipTwo from WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft.

Jul 20 — Moon: At apogee (distance 405,523 km), 14:00.

SUNDAY

Jul 21 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / CRS 18, Cape Canaveral AFS FL: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket set to launch 20th Dragon spacecraft on 18th operational cargo delivery mission to ISS.

Jul 21 — Macarthur Astronomical Society (MAS), One Giant Leap Australia, Sydney, Australia: Apollo 11 to STEM and The Next Giant Leap; featuring scientists Tom Nolan, Shannon McConnell, Debra Brice, Rachel Zimmerman Brachman, Christine Fuller, Dr. Mike Malaska.

Jul 21 — British Interplanetary Society, London, United Kingdom: Event: Apollo 11 50th Anniversary: Open Day.

Jul 21 — Moon: 3.6° SSE of Neptune, 01:00.

Jul 21 — Aten Asteroid 2016 KO: Near-Earth Flyby (0.095 AU)