"A new Space Race has begun!" | SpaceX to Rescue ISS Astronauts? | (Top 5 in Space Today)

In this episode, I'll explain NASA Administrator Bill Nelson's declaration of a space race with China.  I'll also break down NASA's backup backup plan to help return stranded astronauts from the International Space Station.  Welcome to the Undiscovered Country.

5.  Space Race!

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson has officially declared that we are in a race for space with China.  In a recent statement to Politico, he said "It is a fact: we’re in a space race.  And it is true that we better watch out that they don’t get to a place on the moon under the guise of scientific research. And it is not beyond the realm of possibility that they say, ‘Keep out, we’re here, this is our territory.’”

What is preventing China from doing this is Article II of the Outer Space Treaty of 1968.   The Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, also known as the Outer Space Treaty, has become the bedrock of international law concerning space.  Article II of that treaty states that no part of a celestial body can be claimed or sovereignty established, to include the Moon.   Mr. Nelson seems to believe that even though China signed the treaty, that they might not agree with that legal prohibition anymore.

Beijing has rejected some US interpretations of the motives behind China’s space push. Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, told Politico that “Outer space is not a wrestling ground,” and that US officials had “spoken irresponsibly to misrepresent the normal and legitimate space endeavors of China.”

But what do you think?  Are we in another space race?  And if so, is that a bad thing? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/jan/02/china-moon-nasa-space-race

4.  Caltech set to Launch Solar Power Project

Scientists at Caltech are launching a Space Solar Power Demonstrator prototype into orbit today as part of an effort to harvest solar power in space and beam that energy back to Earth.

It being sent into space represents a major milestone in Caltech’s Space Solar Power Project, which aims to deploy a constellation of spacecraft that collect sunlight, transform it into electricity, then transmit that over long distances wherever it is needed.

According to Caltech, “Space solar power provides a way to tap into the practically unlimited supply of solar energy in outer space, where the energy is constantly available without being subjected to the cycles of day and night, seasons and cloud cover."

SSPP Co-Director Ali Hajimiri, who is also Caltech’s Bren professor of electrical engineering and medical engineering told reporters that “No matter what happens, this prototype is a major step forward. . . It works here on Earth, and has passed the rigorous steps required of anything launched into space. There are still many risks, but having gone through the whole process has taught us valuable lessons. We believe the space experiments will provide us with plenty of additional useful information that will guide the project as we continue to move forward.”

https://www.dailynews.com/2023/01/02/caltech-spacex-plan-launch-of-space-solar-power-project/

3.  US Space Allocations Signed

President Biden has signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act into law and finalized funding for the 2023 financial year. The Act will see the disbursement of $1.7 trillion to fund the departments and agencies executing space programs.

Of this disbursement, the U.S. Space Force received $26.3 billion. This tranche represents an increase from its $18.1 billion allocation for FY2022 and is also more than the $24.5 billion the service branch requested. However, while NASA also saw an increase in allocation from its previous $24.0 billion, the $25.4 billion it received for the 2023 financial year was still less than the $25.9 billion the Agency requested.

Likewise, the Department of Transportation’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation, part of the FAA (FAA/AST), received $37.9 million in the Operations account, the primary source of funds for personnel who conduct licensing and other regulatory activities. This represents $5.4 million more than the previous financial year but less than the $42.5 million requested.

The Department of Commerce’s Office of Space Commerce, part of NOAA, also received $70.0 million, a significant increase from its $16.0 million FY2022 tranche but less than the $87.7 million requested.

 

https://spacewatch.global/2023/01/president-biden-signs-fy2023-allocations-to-us-space-programs/?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=president-biden-signs-fy2023-allocations-to-us-space-programs

2.  Lunar Water Mapper Fails to Enter Orbit

It was announced yesterday that the NASA-funded Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper, also known as the LunaH-Map spacecraft did not make it into orbit around the moon due to a problem with the propulsion system. LunaH-Map is a cubesat that was a released payload that rode with the Artemis I spacecraft that sent an Orion test spacecraft around the Moon in November.  Engineers are currently trying to fix the problem to try to insert the cubesat into its designated orbit around Moon.

The six-unit cubesat was designed to orbit the moon with the aim to determine the amount of water ice in the permanently shadowed polar craters.  Communication attempts to ignite the propulsion system failed, most likely due to a partially stuck valve.  Although all other spacecraft systems are working well.  

The identification of water ice, especially at the poles where it is likely that large amounts are located, is a vital mission for the future of lunar exploration and utilization.  Not only is water vital for human life and heavy to transport from Earth, it also can be broken down to hydrogen and oxygen to form rocket fuel, which would turn the moon into a vital waystation to the further exploration of the solar system.

 

https://spacewatch.global/2023/01/lunar-water-mapping-satellite-struggles-to-get-into-orbit-due-to-faulty-propulsion-system/?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=lunar-water-mapping-satellite-struggles-to-get-into-orbit-due-to-faulty-propulsion-system

1.  SpaceX to the Rescue?

NASA is reportedly in talks with SpaceX about borrowing a Crew Dragon ship to ferry three people currently on the International Space Station back to Earth.

The Soyuz MS-22 craft docked to the ISS sprung a leak in December, derailing a planned spacewalk and possibly the return trip of two Russian cosmonauts and one US astronaut.

The craft, which carried cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, as well as NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, into space in September, was slated to take the trio back home in March. If it's still out of order by then, Roscosmos says that it intends to launch its Soyuz MS-23 to rescue them.  NASA, meanwhile, has a backup backup plan.

an agency spokeswoman told Reporters yesterday that "We have asked SpaceX a few questions on their capability to return additional crew members on Dragon if necessary, but that is not our prime focus at this time."  It's unclear if NASA asked SpaceX about increasing the crew capacity of the Dragon currently docked to the ISS, or launching an empty capsule for the crew's rescue.

What do you think?  Is this another demonstration of SpaceX superiority?  Or is the US starting to rely too much on a single access point to space?  Let me know your thoughts.

 

https://www.pcmag.com/news/after-soyuz-leak-nasa-talks-to-spacex-about-getting-iss-crew-back-to-earth

Thank you for joining me. Links to all the stories are in the description.  Keep ahead of all of the most important things happening by watching the other recent episodes I have put together for you. I would love to hear your thoughts on everything I talked about here today.  I am honored to be a part of this community of citizens in this Undiscovered Country of ours. I’ll see you again next time.