Tim's Space Diary. Straight and to the point

30 May (30 May 2008)

The National Space Society in the USA and Virgin Galactic have introduced a NSS Space Ambassadors Program to carry a person aboard a Virgin Galactic SpaceShip Two suborbital spaceflight.

As STS 124 Discovery is poised for its launch to the International Space Station tomorrow, the main discussion is about the toilet facilities aboard the orbitial space base. Crewmembers on the ISS spend an hour or more more to flush the toilet. Hopefully, another toilet being delivered by STS 124 but NASA has no proof that the new toilet is free of the same problem and there will be 10 people or more. They may have to queue round the corner for a long time.

The UK’s Surrey Satellite Technology company has been awarded a contract from Astrium to develop a multispectral imager (MSI) for ESA’s EarthCARE mission, the third Earth Explorer Core Mission, to understand the Earth’s radiation balance. The launch will be in 2013.

Russia’s Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Centre has acquired the major shareholding in the International Launch Services company. The joint US-Soviet enterprise was formed 15 years ago at the Paris Air Show and originally operated Atlas and Proton boosters. Now, only Protons are used, with the possibility of Russia’s enigmatic Angara being added. However, the booster still hasn’t materialised after many years of hype. ILS has a backlog of 22 orders worth $2 billion, has flown 45 ILS Proton missions since 1996.

40 years ago 30 May 1968

The Soviet Union launched a Kosmos booster from Plesetsk, carrying Cosmos 222, a 325kg military spacecraft into a 285-488km, 70deg inclination orbit for an air and space defence technology pathfinder mission.

29 May (29 May 2008)

Russia’s space debris monitoring system has detected 9,000 pieces of large debris in low Earth orbit with a size of 30cm and above. The capacity of monitoring systems will need to be increased in 2012-2015 to detect objects 3cm and above. Russia Space Troops detected 70 instances of debris close to the International Space Station in 2007.

Arianespace will launch an Ariane 5 booster from Kourou, French Guiana tomorrow, carrying the military British Skynet 5C comsat and Turkey’s commercial communications satellite, Turksat 3A.

The robotic arm of the recently landed NASA Phoenix spacecraft is being slowly deployed and will soon be fully operational, digging soil and placing samples into the onboard laboratory. The mission uses the UHF link on the Mars Odyssey orbiter.

Aerojet has completed 250 hot-fire tests of the 100lb thrust R4D bipropellant engine, with 20,000 starts for the Orion Service Module. The engine was used on the Apollo Service Module and provides precise in-space propulsion for the Japanese and European HTV and ATV cargo craft for the International Space Station.

NASA is poised to launch STS 124 Discovery from the Kennedy Space Centre on 31 May to the International Space Station (ISS) with the Japanese Kibo laboratory. The mission will exchange ISS crewmember Garrett Reisman with Gregg Chamitoff.

NASA has provided 75% of the $157 billion cost of the ISS and its withdrawal from the project, which is planned, given America’s quest to return to the moon is likely. Space pioneer John Glenn says it is like “having paid $40,000 for a new car and not having the money to fill the tank”. ESA says that is NASA leaves the ISS, there would be a lot of troubles”. STS 124 commander, Mark Kelly says “it would be great for the NASA to continue to operate the station. It is ridiculous to be thinking about decommissioning the station before it is completed”. But the House Senate Committee says “what are we losing? In terms of actual science it’s going to do virtually nothing”.

ESA has convened the Exo-Planet Roadmap Advisory Team to recommend a system for detecting biomarkers in Earth-like exo-planets in the “habitable” zone and imaging such planets. That does not mean that “life” can be detected but no doubt the media will produce its usual OTT reports.

28 May (28 May 2008)

NASA’s latest space telescope, the $690 million Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) will be launched aboard a Delta II booster from Cape Canaveral on 3 June, to observe the most extreme and energetic objects in the universe.

The European Space Agency’s gravity research satellite, GOCE will be launched on 10 September by a Russian Rokot booster from Plesetsk.

After a glitch with the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, relays of data from the Phoenix lander have resumed via the orbiter. The polygon-shaped features on the relatively flat terrain are likely caused by expansion and contraction of underground ice, say scientists.

Astrium has been awarded a contract from the European Space Agency to build the EarthCARE, the sixth satellite in a series of the Living Planet programme. The satellite weighs 1.7 tonnes and will be placed in orbit in 2013 on a joint mission with Japan to explore the role of aerosols in cloud formations and their interaction with radiation.

40 years ago 28 May 1968

John Manke flew the seventh mission of the HL-10 lifting body to 13,720m on a 245s flight.

The Soviet Union launched an R-360 booster from Baikonur on a sub-orbital 1,700kg, Fractional Orbital Bombardment System spacecraft mission.

24-28 May (27 May 2008)

NASA performed another space spectacular feat on 25 May with the safe landing of the Lockheed Martin-built Phoenix Mars lander in the northern hemisphere. Signals from the lander were relayed to Earth via the Mars Odyssey orbiter. NASA released an image of Phoenix as it descended taken by the high-resolution camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).

A Chinese CZ-4C Chang Zheng-4C launch vehicle - carrying the Feng Yun-3A satellite - has lifted off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center located in the Shanxi province.

The first satellite of the second generation of polar orbiting meteorological satellites was launched at 03:02 UTC. The bird will operate in a 836 km sun-synchronous orbit with an inclination of 98.7 degrees, covering the planet twice a day.

Russian space officials report that more than 10 national satellites have either failed of suffered malfunctions in orbit, including Monitor E, Yamal 201, Cosmos 2441 and 2423, Compass 2, and an Express and Resurs DK spacecraft, in addition to the Express AM22. The Russian Insurance Center is expecting a $107 million loss for the malfunction of this Express satellite. In addition, Cosmos 2421 broke up in orbit and Express A1R has experienced malfunctions.

The Lockheed Martin-Boeing United Launch Alliance marks a new milestone with the transfer of manufacturing of the Atlas V from Boeing’s Colorado plant to the Delta 4 assembly building at Decatur, Alabama.

Wernher von Braun’s third in command, Ernst Stuhlinger died on 25 May aged 94.

The Russian Defence Ministry launched four satellites aboard a Rokot booster from Plesetsk on 23 May in the first military launch from the site this year. Three spacecraft, Cosmos 2437,2438 and 2439 were Gonets communications satellites and one a microsatellite which will broadcast programmes about Russian space history. The launch was the ninth by a Rokot booster since 2000 launching a total of 17 satellites.

Boeing will lay off 750 staff at two satellite manufacturing plants in California as a result of a downturn in satellite orders and the loss of the next generation GPS fleet to Lockheed Martin.

The European Space Agency and the Russian Federal Space Agency have selected an Apollo-like command module-service module design for the joint Crew Space Transportation System with a maiden flight planned for 2015 from the new Vostochny spaceport, carrying six crew. The service module will be based of ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), the first of which was recently docked to the International Space Station. The Russian launch will not be part of the co-operation.

The Russian Express AM22 communications satellite launched in December 2003 and which suffered stabilising systems problems, resulting in increased fuel consumption is likely to be declared as loss, with the result of a $107 million insurance payout.

The final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission by the Space Shuttle Atlantis STS 125 has been delayed to 8 October 8, while the STS 126 Endeavour flight will be pushed to 10 November from 16 October.

Jupiter has given birth to a third large spot in its turbulent cloudy atmosphere.

40 years ago 23 May 1968 The US Air Force launched a Thor Burner 2 booster from Vandenberg AFB, California, carrying a 130kg Defense Meteorological Satellite Programme (DMSP) Block 4A satellite into a 98deg inclination, 806-883km orbit.

24 May 1968 A Russian Kosmos booster was launched from Kapustin Yar carrying a military satellite, Cosmos 221 into a 215-2,140km, 48deg inclination orbit.

50 years ago

24 May 1958 Captain E. L. Breeding withstood a maximum gravity load of 83g for a fraction of a second during on a rocket sled at Holloman AFB.

23 May (23 May 2008)

The Russian Insurance Center is expecting a $107 million loss for the malfunction of the Express AM22 satellite.

Boeing will lay off 750 staff at two satellite manufacturing plants in California as a result of a downturn in satellite orders and the loss of the next generation GPS fleet to Lockheed Martin.

The European Space Agency and the Russian Federal Space Agency have selected an Apollo-like command module-service module design for the joint Crew Space Transportation System with a maiden flight planned for 2015 from the new Vostochny spaceport, carrying six crew. The service module will be based of ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), the first of which was recently docked to the International Space Station. The Russian launch will not be part of the co-operation.

The Russian Express AM22 communications satellite launched in December 2003 and which suffered stabilising systems problems, resulting in increased fuel consumption is likely to be declared as loss, with the result of a $107 million insurance payout.

The final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission by the Space Shuttle Atlantis STS 125 has been delayed to 8 October 8, while the STS 126 Endeavour flight will be pushed to 10 November from 16 October.

Jupiter has given birth to a third large spot in its turbulent cloudy atmosphere.

40 years ago 23 May 1968

The US Air Force launched a Thor Burner 2 booster from Vandenberg AFB, California, carrying a 130kg Defense Meteorological Satellite Programme (DMSP) Block 4A satellite into a 98deg inclination, 806-883km orbit.

22 May (22 May 2008)

China’s first direct broadcast satellite, Chinasat 9 will be launched in June.

After losing the contract to build the third generation GPS satellite fleet to Lockheed Martin, Boeing has laid off 750 staff.

Sea Launch despatched a Zenit 3SL booster from the Odyssey platform in the Pacific Ocean carrying the 4,642kg Space Systems/Loral-built Galaxy 18 communications satellite, with 24 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders operating at 123degW in geosynchronous orbit.

Russia says that the abnormal and stressful re-entry of the Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft returning from the International Space Station on 21 April was caused by a delay of the detachment of the crew cabin from the service module.

NASA’s Swift satellite has observed a star at the point of exploding before becoming a supernova, while the US space agency has directed Johns Hopkins University to begin preliminary work on the proposed $750 million, 450kg Solar Probe mission planned to be launched in 2015 to fly to within 7 million km, experiencing temperatures of 2,550degF.

40 years ago 21 May 1968

The Soviet Union launched an R36 missile from Baikonur carrying a 1,700kg FOBS payload on a sub-orbital mission that may have failed to reach orbit.

20 May (20 May 2008)

NASA has given the go ahead for the launch of the STS 124 mission by Discovery on 31 May to the International Space Station lasting a possibly 14 days. The crew includes rookie Greg Chamitoff who will replace Garrett Reisman who arrived at the ISS in March. The main payload on 124 is Japan’s Kibo pressurised module, accompanied by mission specialist Akihiko Hoshide. Commander is veteran Mark Kelly, with rookie pilot Ken Ham. The other veteran is Mike Fossum. Other rookies are Ron Garan and Karen Nyberg.

Congress has authorised three additional Space Shuttle missions before the retirement of the fleet in 2010. One of the missions will carry the much-delayed Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer to the International Space Station in 2010.

40 years ago 20 May 1968

“Law makers enter the space race”. At an International Symposium on Space Law in Virginia began the serious debate international liability of damage from falling space debris. “If a space station falls from orbit and destroys a city, is there a financial liability of the launch country?” the symposium debated.

16-19 May (19 May 2008)

Japan’s long-planned Galaxy Express GX satellite booster could cost from three to five times as planned.

Russia’s Progress M64 docked to the International Space Station on 16 May.

United Launch Alliance has been awarded a contract to launch the US Air Force Space Based Infrared Systems (SBIRS) GEO 2 satellite aboard an Atlas V.

Lockheed Martin has beaten Boeing for the $3.5 billion contract for the GPS III Block A satellite contract. Boeing has also lost contracts to build new refuelling aircraft and unmanned spy planes.

The Swedish Space Corporation launched a Maser 11 rocket from the Esrange Space Centre to a height of 252km on a 6min 26s period of microgravity for the European Space Agency.

50 years ago

18 May 1958 The first full-size tactical nose cone was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean after a launch of a Jupiter missile from Cape Canaveral.

40 years ago

17 May 1968 A Scout B booster was launched from Vandenberg AFB, California carrying Europe’s ESRO 2B technology satellite into a 334-1,085km, 97deg inclination orbit

18 May 1968 A Thorad Agena D was launched from Vandenberg AFB, California carrying Nimbus B meteorological satellite and US Air Force Secor 12. The launched failed.

15 May (15 May 2008)

15 May 2008

ESA and Roskosmos have agreed to design a cone-shaped manned spacecraft for Earth orbit and moon missions. The companies involved are Thales Alenia and Energia. The spacecraft will carry 18-20 tonnes and will be launched from Vostochny with flight tests starting in 2015 with the first crewed flight in 2018. ESA will spend half a million Euro to develop a re-entry vehicle to provide data for a future human transporter.

The satellite communications company, Orbcomm has awarded a $117 million contract to MircroSat Systems to build a second generation fleet of 18 Orbcomm satellites to be launched in 2010-11 to replace older satellites. Six other replacements will be built by OHB-System.

EADS’s Astrium subsidiary company reported $51 million revenues of $1.16 million in the first quarter.

The International Space Station Expedition Crew 20 to be launched in November 2099 will include NASA’s rookie astronaut, Tim Creamer and Japan’s Soichi Noguchi. The next crew will include Douglas Wheelock and Japan’s Satoshi Furukawa.

EADS Astrium and the German Space Agency have proposed that a European manned spacecraft could be developed by 2017 using the technology of ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle, the first of which is docked to the International Space Station. The first design will be shown at the Berlin Air Show.

Russia launched the International Space Station Progress M64 tanker aboard a Soyuz booster from Baikonur on 15 May.

Thales Alenia has signed a contract with Korea Telecom to build Koreasat 6 and the company is also expected to be awarded the contract to build a new Nilesat communications satellite.

Canada’s MDA will provide the voice and data link systems for the International Space Station through to 2016.

Two-time payload specialist, Ron Parise who flew aboard the Space Shuttles Columbia in 1990 and Endeavour in 1995 died of brain cancer on 9 May.

The University of Colorado will build the Total Solar Irradiance Sensor on the first three National Polar Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) satellites to be launched in 2013, 2015 and 2020.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Lockheed Martin will likely win the contract to build the GPS III series of military satellites.

Aerojet has completed a hot-fire 120lb thrust monopropellant engine for the Orion crew module.

Technical problems stalled the development of Echostar’s CMBStar satellite being built by Lockheed Martin.

NASA completed the first series of tests of the J-2X engine which will power the upper stages of the Ares 1 and V boosters.

Kazakhstan’splans for launching satellites from Mig 31 fighters is unlikely say officials.

50 years ago 15 May 1958

The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 3 into a 217-1,864km, 65deg inclination orbit returning science data to 6 April 1960 when the spacecraft’s orbit decayed.

16 May 1958

Flying on a level course over a 10 mile path Walter Irwin flew a Starfighter 104 at a world speed record of 1,404mph.

40 years ago 16 May 1968

Jerry Gentry flew the HL-10 lifting body to 13,720m and a maximum speed of 719kph during a 265s flight.

1-7 May (7 May 2008)

SPACE DIARY

1-7 May 2008

(The Space Diary will resume on 15 May)

The European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton X-ray orbiting observatory has uncovered part of the missing matter in the universe.

At an event in Washington marking NASA’s 50th anniversary, veteran Mercury astronaut John Glenn said that the Space Shuttle fleet should continue to fly to support the International Space Station rather than pay Russia to carry American astronauts. Glenn also says that NASA should continue to work on the ISS beyond 2015. Why should NASA pull the plug on its contribution to the ISS when it did more the work on it and leave it to Russia.

Russia’s Energomash company is to double its production of the RD-180 engines for the Atlas V, the production of which is currently at five a year. Ten RD-171 engines for the Sea and Land Launch Zenit. Russia has supplied 41 RD-180s to the USA and 20 RD-171s. The long term production will total more than 100 engines.

The Space Shuttle Discovery is on Launch Complex 39A preparing for its STS 124 mission to the International Space Station to be launched on 31 May, carrying Japan’s Kibo science laboratory module.

Russia’s 2,000 strong space troops at the Baikonur Cosmodrome is being reduced to about 300 to 400 as part of a programme to scale down the workforce since 1993.

With the European Space Agency planning to selected a new cadre of astronaut, despite being disinterested in joining the “club”, Britain may hijack the ESA selection process because NASA has intimated that with Britain’s potential co-operation on the robotic technology the US Constellation programme a limey spaceman could fly with NASA.

The United Launch Alliance has been selected by NASA to launch the Discovery Programme Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) on a Delta II booster from Cape Canaveral in 2011. The project involves two satellite which will fly in tandem orbits about the moon to measure its gravity field.

The 11-day final servicing mission of the NASA Hubble Space Telescope has been delayed from August to possibly October as a result of External Tank problems.

The Russian Proton M failure to place the AMC-14 communications satellite into the correct orbit has delayed the planned launch in July of the Express AM 44 and MD-1 satellites.

South Korea’s first astronaut, Yi So-Yeon thought she was going to die during the hairy re-entry of her Soyuz TMA 11 spacecraft after its return from the International Space Station, with her two companions, Yuri Malenchenko and Peggy Whitson. She complained of severe back and waist pain and bruises after the 10G re-entry, instead of 4G. Her vision was blurred and the shock caused her to scream. Yi was hit by her companion’s bags and logbooks. She likened re-entry to being in a fireball and said that the capsule was filled with gas.

50 years ago

1 May 1958

The USA’s Explorer 1 and 3 satellites discovered an unexpected band of high-intensity radiation extending from 600-8,000 miles. Dr James van Allen described the radiation as being 1,000 times as intense as cosmic rays.

6-7 May 1958

A US Navy Stratolab balloon reached an altitude of 40,000ft after lifting off from Crosby, Minnesota with Lt Cdr Malcom Ross and the first astronomer to observe the stratosphere, Alfred Mikesell.

40 years ago

1 May 1968

The US Air Force launched a Thorad Agena D booster from Vandenberg AFB, California carrying a KH-4 recoverable spy satellite into an 83deg inclination, 164-243km orbit.

6 May 1968

A $1.5 million Apollo Lunar Landing Research Vehicle (LLRV) lost control at Ellington Air Force Base, Texas at an altitude of about 90ft, forcing astronaut Neil Armstrong to eject, landing safely without injury.

7 May 1968

The Soviet Union launched a Cosmos booster from Plesetsk carrying 775kg Cosmos 220, a military navigation satellite into a 637-700km, 74deg inclination orbit.