Short Takes – 8-22-24 – Space Geek Edition

An alternative Mars Sample Return program. TheSpaceReview.com article. Pull quote: “So, let’s deal a new deck of cards, abandon the current MSR architecture, and focus MSR on using Starship. The ability of Starship to land on a large planet has already been more extensively demonstrated (that is, a Starship has landed on the Earth) than any of the proposed MSR hardware, which exists only in PowerPoint slides. And the current NASA Artemis plan of record assumes rapid progress in Starship development, including multiple Moon landings.”

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket program reportedly faces failures during testing. GeekWire.com article. Pull quote: “No injuries were reported in either incident, according to Bloomberg. One incident was said to involve the crumpling of a section of a New Glenn rocket that was destined for the second launch, in part due to worker error. The other incident reportedly involved an upper rocket portion for the third scheduled launch that failed during stress testing, resulting in an explosion.”

Notice of Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee Meeting. Federal Register FAA meeting notice. Background: “The U.S. Department of Transportation created the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) in accordance with Public Law 92-463. Since its inception, industry-led COMSTAC has provided information, advice, and recommendations to the U.S. Department of Transportation through the FAA regarding technology, business, and policy issues relevant to oversight of the U.S. commercial space transportation sector.” Virtual meeting date: September 16^th, 2024.

Against all odds, an asteroid mining company appears to be making headway. ArsTechnica.com article. Pull quote: “After the original vehicle failed vibration testing, which ensures it can survive the rigors of launch, AstroForge decided to bring forward a spacecraft being developed internally for the company's third flight and use that for the Odin mission. To remain on track for a launch this year, the company had to complete vibration testing of the new, 100-kg Odin vehicle by August 1. AstroForge made that deadline but still must complete several other tests before shipping Odin to the launch pad.

Space mining startup AstroForge aims to launch historic asteroid-landing mission in 2025. Space.com article. Pull quote: “AstroForge's second mission, called Odin, is scheduled to launch later this year, as a secondary payload on Intuitive Machines' IM-2 moon mission. Odin will pave the way for Vestri, collecting imagery of the asteroid that Vestri will land on. (AstroForge has not yet announced the identity of the target space rock.)”

Japan's Astroscale wins contract for space junk harvesting robotic arm. TheRegister.com article. Phase II demonstration mission. Pull quote: “That satellite – ADRAS-J2 – will be equipped with a robotic arm to capture and deorbit the rocket parts. The debris [used JAXA H-IIA rocket] is categorized as a non-cooperative object, meaning it does not actively communicate or provide location data and may tumble or move unpredictably.

'Rocket flames began shooting sideways then the sound wave hit'. BBC.com article. Description of recent test-fire catastrophic failure. Pull quote: “The purpose of the test was, he said, was to ignite all nine helix engines simultaneously, make sure they ran in a stable manner and then shut them off in safe and controlled manner.”