Category Archives: Advanced Technology

Friday / 21 June 2019

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JFK Space Summit Looks To Future Lunar Missions And Why “We Choose To Go To The Moon”

Summit At John F. Kennedy Library In Boston MA Features Caroline Kennedy, Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins, Astronauts Ellen Ochoa, Chris Cassidy, Tracy Caldwell Dyson, Koichi Wakata, Paolo Nespoli, Oleg Kotov, And Jeff Bezos Of Blue Origin; USA Celebrating Apollo@50 Hopes To Land 1st Women At Moon South Pole 2024; Lunar Base Will Advance Science, Secure Resources & Support Long-Term Survival Of Species; Bezos States ‘We Need To Go To Space, It’s Not Optional’, Has Vision Of Trillions Living & Working In Space And Moving Heavy Industry Off Earth

Credits: J.F.K. Library, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 22-25 Mar 2019

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2019 Moon Landers: Operational, Projected

Chang’e-3 Lander Station Collecting Science Data With LUT On Lunar Near Side; Chang’e-4 Operating At Statio Tianhe (Milky Way Base) On Far Side; SpaceIL / IAI Beresheet Lander Is On Track To Enter Lunar Orbit 4 April, Attempt Soft Landing At 33° N, 17° E On 11 April; India Chandrayaan-2 Vikram Lander Likely Launching End Of April To 70°S, Between Craters Manzinus C & Simpelius N; PTScientists Lander Could Launch On Falcon 9 In Second Half Of 2019; Wu Weiren, China Lunar Exploration Program Chief Designer, Confirms Chang’e-5 Sample Return Mission To Launch Dec 2019 To Mons Rümker Region 40.8° N, 58.1° W

Credits: SpaceIL, IAI, CNSA, CCTV, ISRO, PTScientists

Friday / 8 Feb 2019

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CNSA-NASA First Lunar Collaboration Could Initiate Future Breakthroughs

USA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) In Eccentric Polar Mapping Orbit (20-km Altitude South Pole, 165-km North Pole) Since 2015, Captures Image Of China Chang’e-4 On Moon Far Side In Von Kármán Crater On 30 Jan 2019; Information Sharing Between The 2 Countries Amidst Restrictions Highlights Potential To Expand Upon Mutually Beneficial Cooperation, Combine 21st Century Technologies Of Leading Spacefaring Nations – Both Of Which Plan Human Moon Missions, Lunar Bases

Pictured: NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and CNSA Administrator Zhang Kejian 

Credits: NASA, GSFC, Arizona State University, CNSA, NAOC-CSA

Friday / 21 Dec 2018

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SpaceIL ‘Genesis’ Lunar Lander Ready For February SpaceX Launch, May-June 2019 Touchdown At Mare Serenitatis

Genesis “Beresheet” בְּרֵאשִׁית)‬) Is Scheduled For Falcon 9 Launch From Cape Canaveral AFS NET 13 Feb As Secondary Payload With PSN-6 Satellite; After Launch, Lander (Dry Mass ~200 kg, Wet 585 kg) Will Orbit Earth 3 Times, Perform Orbit ‘Raising’ Over 2.5 Months To Maneuver Into Lunar Orbit, And Take 2-4 Weeks To Soft Land Near “Sea of Serenity” 28.0°N, 17.5°E; Reported US$95M Mission Carries Digital Time Capsule, Magnetometer, Laser Retroreflector Array; Israel Aerospace Industries Located SE Of Tel Aviv Is Mission Control; Could Be 5th Entity To Land On Moon After India NET Feb

Credits: SpaceIL, IAI

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 9-12 Nov 2018

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Surviving Lunar Night Becomes Focus For International, Sustainable Return To Moon Planning

Global Public / Private Interest In Moon Surface Missions Highlighted By ‘Survive & Operate Through The Lunar Night Workshop’ 13 Nov In Maryland, Preceding Annual Lunar Exploration Analysis Group Meeting On ‘Progress & Preparation Toward Exploring The Surface Of The Moon’ 14-15 Nov; Noah Petro, Sam Lawrence, Renee Weber, James Carpenter, Alison Zuniga, Clive Neal And Others Will Cover Surviving 14-Day Lunar Night At Temperatures As Low As -180°C, Various Latitudes, Polar Regions, Permanently Shadowed Regions, Peaks of Eternal Light, Power & Thermal Management Systems; Successful Missions Which Survived Lunar Night Include Chang’e-3, Surveyor, ALSEP, Lunokhod

Credits: NASA, CNSA, NAOC, CSA

Friday / 12 Oct 2018

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ispace Joins Draper And 2 Other Companies To Pursue NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services Contract

One Of Many Teams Competing On CLPS Contracts Releases Details On Moon Mission Planning: ispace Of Japan For Artemis-7 Lander Design, Draper Lab For Guidance & Nav System, General Atomics For Manufacturing & Testing, Spaceflight Industries To Broker USA Rocket Rideshare; Teams To Be Notified By End Of 2018 If Initial Proposals Qualify Them As Finalists; CLPS Contract Value Could Reach US$2.6B Total Over 10 Years For Multiple Providers; Public List Of CLPS ‘Interested Parties‘ Includes 29 Companies

Pictured: CLPS Interested Parties Point of Contacts for ispace, Draper, Spaceflight Industries; Credits: ispace, SEC, AIAA / UTU, KARI

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 5-8 Oct 2018

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Lockheed Martin Unveils Lunar Lander Concept, Joins Multiple Nations And Enterprises Planning Moon Missions

Lockheed Martin Releases Detailed Concept For 62,000 Kg Reusable Human Lunar Lander, Launching From Lunar Orbital Platform To Support 4-Person Crew For 2 Weeks On The Surface; Also Soliciting Proposals For Payloads To Fly On Orion; Russia And China Express Interest In Joint Projects, Including Space Center On Hainan Island To Heavy-Lift Launch Vehicles; India Chandrayaan-2 And Israel SpaceIL Planning Moon Landings In Early 2019; Private Companies Aiming For Moon Include Blue Origin, Bigelow Aerospace, Astrobotic, Moon Express, ispace Japan, Golden Spike Company.

Credits: Lockheed Martin, Airbus

Friday / 5 Oct 2018

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IAC 2018 Generating ‘Moon Rush’ Of Mission Agreements, MoUs, Collaborations

International Astronautical Congress 69th General Assembly Providing Major Opportunities For Lunar Advances: Moon Express & Canadian Space Agency MoU Establishes Potential Collaboration On Moon Landers, Orbiters, Payloads; Blue Origin Signs Letter Of Letter With Germany Companies OHB & MT Aerospace; Astrobotic Announces Deal With Space Agencies Of Ecuador (EXA) & Colombia (AEC) For Lunar Exploration Campaign Using Multiple Peregrine Missions; Tech Development Competition 2024 “Moon Race” To Be Detailed Soon; NASA Declares Intent To Contribute Laser Retroreflector Array To Israel 2019 Moon Lander

Credits: Moon Express, Blue Origin, Astrobotic, EXA, AEC, NASA, SpaceIL, Moon Race / Airbus, et al,

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 7-10 Sep 2018

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JAXA, ANA Holdings AVATAR X Program Aims For Remote Robotic Lunar Base Construction

JAXA And ANA Holdings Partner On AVATAR X Program To Develop Robotic Avatars To Remotely Build Lunar Camps, Support Long-Term Missions & Deep Space Exploration; Aims For Remote Lunar & Mars Construction, Space Station Operation & Maintenance, Space Entertainment & Public Travel; Consortium Phase Begins In 2018, Opening Construction Designs To Interested Space Industry Companies; Phase Two 2019 Building Of “AVATAR X Lab@OITA” In Oita, Japan To House Infrastructure, Telecommunication Hardware, Testing Facilities; Early 2020s Phase Three To Test In LEO, Leading To Final Phase On Moon, Beyond

Credits: JAXA, ANA Holdings, Inc.

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 31 Aug – 3 Sep 2018

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Roscosmos, ESA Collaborate On Luna 27 Payload For Moon South Pole Resource Investigation

ESA Developing In-Situ Drill / Sample-Analysis Payload ‘PROSPECT’ To Reach Moon South Pole-Aitken Basin 2022-23 Aboard Roscosmos Luna 27 Lander; Design Phase Scheduled Early 2019; ProSEED Drill To Probe Lunar Ice Where Subsurface Temperatures Could Reach -200° C; ProSPA Onboard Laboratory To Heat Ice Sample To 1,000° C For Volatile Extraction; ESA May Participate On Luna 25 Lander Aiming For Boguslavsky Crater Near South Pole NET 2019-20

Credits: Roscosmos, ESA, NASA, L. David