The physical and mental health required of astronauts to meet the demands of long space missions will be the focus of the ‘Mars500 International Symposium’ in Moscow, Russia on April 23-25. Participants at this year’s event, which is sponsored by the Russian Federal Space Agency and the Russian Academy of Sciences, will evaluate the findings from the Mars500 mission which recently took place between 2007-2011 at the Institute of Biomedical Problems in Moscow. The crew consisting of 6 ‘astronauts,’ Alexander Smoleyevsky, Roman Charles, Alexei Sitev, Sukhrob Kamolov, Diego Urbina, and Wang Yueh, spent 520 days on a simulated mission to Mars of which 240 were spent en route to the Red Planet, 10 days of surface exploration, and 245 days on return to Earth. Communications with mission control were purposely delayed between 8 and 736 seconds to mimic natural delays that would take place on a real Mars flight. During the ‘flight,’ more than 100 experiments were performed to test the work capability of the crew under prolonged isolation. Russia cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev (CR) still holds the record for the longest time in space, with 803 days, 9 hours and 39 minutes. Scientists at the event will discuss establishing criteria needed for future candidate selections, biomedical support and sanitary-hygienic factors in a pressurized environment. RSA, ESA and NASA are in talks to perform another simulated mission to Mars aboard the ISS. (Image Credit: ESA, NASA, pcworld.com, zdnet.co.uk)
SpaceX Dragon Launch to Mark Another First in Commercial Spaceflight; NASA Social Looks to Build the Buzz
The SpaceX Dragon C2 has an instantaneous launch opportunity at 12:22 EDT on April 30 to fly on a pioneering demonstration to ISS with 521kg of cargo. The craft will need to align with centimeters-level accuracy while orbiting at 27,000kph. ISS astronauts Don Pettit and Andre Kuipers will then use Canadarm2 to capture and maneuver Dragon for docking. The privately built spacecraft also has the rare potential for returning science payloads intact to researchers on Earth. Elon Musk of SpaceX is fully aware of the challenges faced by his team and equipment, giving the mission only 60% chance of total success. If everything works, it will represent a critical step towards the $1.6 billion contract SpaceX has for 12 ISS resupply missions. The NASA Social event on 29-30 April is a 2-day informal meeting for 50 pre-registered participants who use social networking sites. The group will share with their online communities, a unique perspective on the build up to launch. Activities will include discussions with representatives from both organizations as well as tours of NASA KSC facilities and the SpaceX launch pad. (Image Credit: SpaceX, NASA, Twitter, Facebook, Google)
= 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;’ Greenwich, England).
Apr 23 — International Space Station, LEO: E-30 crew members to begin unloading Progress 47 delivery, consisting of 2.8 tons of food, fuel and supplies, including 500kg of propellant, 50kg of gases, 421kg of water and 1228kg of spare parts, resupply items and experiment hardware.
Apr 23 — Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), Lunar Orbit: NASA LRO functioning nominally in its 50±15 km near-circular orbit as it makes digital elevation and surface maps that will be a fundamental reference for future human exploration.
Apr 23 — Jupiter Juno Mission, In Transit to Jupiter: The Juno spacecraft is in excellent health and is operating nominally on its 260th day.
NET Apr 23 — ILS, Launch Proton / Yahsat 1B, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan: An ILS Proton rocket with a Breeze M upper stage set to deploy the Yahsat 1B satellite to provide commercial and government services to the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Southwest Asia.
Apr 24-25 — American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, SpaceOps, Space Operations and Support Technical Committee, Pasadena CA: ‘18th Improving Space Operations Workshop.’
Apr 24-27 — National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, Boulder CO: ‘2012 Space Weather Workshop,’ event addresses the remarkably diverse impacts of space weather including communications, navigation, spacecraft operations, aviation, and electric power.
Apr 26 — Asteroid 2074 Shoemaker: Closest Approach to Earth (0.950 AU).
FRIDAY
NET Apr 27 — ISRO PSLV / RISAT-1, Sriharikota, India: An ISRO Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle set to launch RISAT-1 Earth observation satellite which carries a radar payload for all-weather, day and night observations for national security and environmental applications.
Apr 27 — Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation, Houston TX: ‘Rotary Space Gala,’ featuring 2012 Nation Space Trophy Recipient NASA JSC Director Michael Coats.
Apr 28 — Kennedy Space Center, SpaceX, Cape Canaveral FL:Media invited for photo opportunity of the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule on the launch pad at 09:30 EDT.
Apr 29-30 — Kennedy Space Center, SpaceX, Cape Canaveral FL: ‘NASA Social,’ a 2-day event for 50 social media followers to watch the Launch of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Rocket and Dragon Spacecraft at NASA KSC.
Includes ~150 meetings covering the fields of COSPAR Scientific Commissions / Panels / Task Groups, such as SC B: The Earth-Moon System, Planets, and...
At the Palais des Nations and online. Outer space is entering a renewed phase of strategic importance, defined by rapid innovation, growing competition and deepening...
This international lunar science meeting has two objectives: to provide a platform for leading experts to review recent advances across lunar research, from the...
At CSIR International Convention Centre. Key topics are Earth Observation, Developing Space Tourism, Space Supply Manufacturing. Cultural tours are offered.
(No earlier than 10 Aug) Japan to launch the MICHIBIKI No. 7 | Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZS-7) navigation satellite. Launch window remains open through...
Participants will receive theoretical and hands-on training in electron imaging and X-ray spectroscopy for application to planetary samples. This training opportunity is targeted at...
"Leading Australia’s Space Future for Our Strategic Advantage". Southern Space 2026 brings together decision-makers who set the direction for Australia’s space sector. It is...
The second test launch of LandSpace's ZQ-3 rocket with undisclosed test payloads. Zhuque-3 first stage booster will attempt to land on its downrange landing...
A total solar eclipse with a magnitude of 1.0386 (greatest eclipse 17:47:06 UTC) will be visible in parts of Greenland, Iceland, northern Russia, the Atlantic...
Includes presentation of the Neil Armstrong Award of Excellence, activities for the new class of Astronaut Scholars, 2-day Technical Conference where Scholars present their...
During U.S. spacewalk 97, two astronauts will replace a Space-to-Ground antenna on the orbital complex. The antenna is a critical communication system NASA uses...
Key themes include: Characterizing exoplanet-host solar-like stars; Star-planet interactions; Planet populations around solar-like stars. At University of Liège.
The physical and mental health required of astronauts to meet the demands of long space missions will be the focus of the ‘Mars500 International Symposium’ in Moscow, Russia on April 23-25. Participants at this year’s event, which is sponsored by the Russian Federal Space Agency and the Russian Academy of Sciences, will evaluate the findings from the Mars500 mission which recently took place between 2007-2011 at the Institute of Biomedical Problems in Moscow. The crew consisting of 6 ‘astronauts,’ Alexander Smoleyevsky, Roman Charles, Alexei Sitev, Sukhrob Kamolov, Diego Urbina, and Wang Yueh, spent 520 days on a simulated mission to Mars of which 240 were spent en route to the Red Planet, 10 days of surface exploration, and 245 days on return to Earth. Communications with mission control were purposely delayed between 8 and 736 seconds to mimic natural delays that would take place on a real Mars flight. During the ‘flight,’ more than 100 experiments were performed to test the work capability of the crew under prolonged isolation. Russia cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev (CR) still holds the record for the longest time in space, with 803 days, 9 hours and 39 minutes. Scientists at the event will discuss establishing criteria needed for future candidate selections, biomedical support and sanitary-hygienic factors in a pressurized environment. RSA, ESA and NASA are in talks to perform another simulated mission to Mars aboard the ISS. (Image Credit: ESA, NASA, pcworld.com, zdnet.co.uk)
The SpaceX Dragon C2 has an instantaneous launch opportunity at 12:22 EDT on April 30 to fly on a pioneering demonstration to ISS with 521kg of cargo. The craft will need to align with centimeters-level accuracy while orbiting at 27,000kph. ISS astronauts Don Pettit and Andre Kuipers will then use Canadarm2 to capture and maneuver Dragon for docking. The privately built spacecraft also has the rare potential for returning science payloads intact to researchers on Earth. Elon Musk of SpaceX is fully aware of the challenges faced by his team and equipment, giving the mission only 60% chance of total success. If everything works, it will represent a critical step towards the $1.6 billion contract SpaceX has for 12 ISS resupply missions. The NASA Social event on 29-30 April is a 2-day informal meeting for 50 pre-registered participants who use social networking sites. The group will share with their online communities, a unique perspective on the build up to launch. Activities will include discussions with representatives from both organizations as well as tours of NASA KSC facilities and the SpaceX launch pad. (Image Credit: SpaceX, NASA, Twitter, Facebook, Google)
= 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;’ Greenwich, England).
Apr 23 — International Space Station, LEO: E-30 crew members to begin unloading Progress 47 delivery, consisting of 2.8 tons of food, fuel and supplies, including 500kg of propellant, 50kg of gases, 421kg of water and 1228kg of spare parts, resupply items and experiment hardware.
