The National Space Society (NSS) is a US-based non-profit organization dedicated to the creation of a spacefaring civilization. To that end, NSS has updated its Roadmap to Space Settlement, as will be publicly unveiled at the upcoming International Space Development Conference (ISDC) in California. The Roadmap has two major goals: First, to inspire — and having the entire sweep of [...]
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UK Astronaut Tim Peake Confirmed for ISS Duty
Timothy Peake, the former British Army Air Corps helicopter test pilot, was officially announced to be the UK’s first astronaut to visit the International Space Station (ISS), in a press conference held in London on 20th May. It was revealed that Peake will fly to the ISS in 2015, and spend 6 months onboard the station as part of Expedition [...]
Crew of Bion M1 Found Dead upon Landing
The Russian Space zoo capsule Bion M1 landed in early morning on Sunday, May 19, near Orenburg, Southern Russia, about 750 kilometers southeast of Moscow. Even though the reentry and landing had proceeded more or less as planned, it was reported that all 8 Mongolian gerbils and most of the 45 mice present onboard the capsule were found dead. Russian news agency [...]
The Plan to Save Skylab
By Ben Evans This article continues the history recounted in Part 1: The Fateful Launch of Skylab The month of May 1973 quickly turned from one of euphoria into, potentially, one of the darkest in NASA’s history. After closing out its Apollo lunar landing program in spectacular style, the space agency turned to the launch of the Skylab orbital station, a [...]
NASA Records Most Powerful Lunar Meteorite Impact
On March 17, NASA lunar observing telescopes detected a meteorite crashing into the Moon’s surface. The impact – later estimated at the equivalent of 5 tons of TNT – was bright enough to easily see with the naked eye. Scientists from NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office estimate the meteor was 40 kg, travelling at 90,000 km/hr. It left a 20 m [...]
As ATV Launch Approaches, Damage to Docking Sensor Still to be Assessed
While the fourth European ATV has been sitting on top of an Ariane 5 launcher set for launch to the International Space Station (ISS) on June 5, engineers are still analyzing a potential problem with a Laser Radar Reflector (LRR) which allows ATV’s autonomous approach to the station. On April 26, Progress M-19M cargo docked at the ISS with one [...]
Growing Plants in Lunar, Martian Soil
For long duration missions on the Moon and Mars, growing food on site will be advantageous, saving overall mass to be carried for the mission. The question is: Can we grow plants on Moon and Mars like we do here on Earth? Ecologist Wieger Wamelink at Alterra Wageningen UR plans to find out. Wamelink has proposed to study feasibility of plant growth in [...]
Kepler Telescope in Safe Mode After Reaction Wheel Failure
NASA’s Kepler space telescope has once again entered safe mode, most likely due to an attitude error. The spacecraft, during a scheduled semi-weekly contact, was found oriented with the solar panels facing the sun, slowly spinning in the Sun’s direction. The spin made it difficult to communicate with the space telescope. “This is something that we’ve been expecting for a [...]
A Week of Anniversaries
On May 15, 1958, the USSR succeeded in launching its third satellite, Sputnik 3, into orbit. Originally known as Object D, Sputnik 3 had been intended as the first artificial satellite, equipped with twelve instruments targeting the upper atmosphere and energetic particles. Alas, Object D’s instruments and telemetry system delayed its launch, so the simpler Sputnik 1 was launched in [...]
The Unpredictable End of Skylab
Putting all the information together, one might think Skylab’s destiny was to test NASA’s nerves and crisis management ability. Whereas the launch and onset of operations 40 years ago showed how dedicated NASA was to solving all the faults and glitches that threatened the project from the start, the final episodes of the station’s life were marked with planning and scheduling errors and [...]
