Author Archives: LED Editor

Tuesday / 22 July 2025

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New NASA Acting Admin Is “Fired Up and Ready to Launch” to the Moon; Supports Artemis

Appointed NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy opposes proposed NASA funding cut of 24.3% overall and 47% for science; Congress, both sides of the aisle / both houses, wants to maintain current funding (no inflation adjustment); Duffy tweeted: Our critical Moon mission, Artemis, must be as known & supported by America … as Apollo was! It’s a race to the Moon. Clock is ticking. I’m fired up and ready to launch! YouGov/CBS News poll shows 2/3 of Americans want Astronauts back on the Moon

Credits: NASA, X, nasawatch.com

Friday / 18 July 2025

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Lunar Science & Ethics MoU Forged Among LPP, COSPAR, IAU

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) among International Astronomical Union (IAU), Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) and Lunar Policy Platform (LPP), will enhance / develop, over the next 3 years, principles outlined in LPP Guide to Lunar Science & Ethics, promoting peaceful, safe and sustainable lunar activities; from this, COSPAR President Pascale Ehrenfreund expects enhanced international cooperation and science-informed space policies; IAU President Willy Benz acknowledges the imperative to protect Moon unique features for future generations; LPP global network includes 40+ governments, space agencies, companies, scientists, institutions

Credits: LPP, COSPAR, IAU, University of Hawai’i

Tuesday / 15 July 2025

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Artemis III Moonwalking Spacesuits Have Advanced Features for Astronaut Safety and Utility

Axiom Space Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) incorporates visor by Oakley, uses gold-coated polycarbonate to withstand 145kph micrometeoroids (<2mm), provide crystal-clear vision, protect from South Pole UV rays, glare, dust; Axiom partners with Prada of Italy for outer materials of AxEMU, Nokia for communication system, GU company for in-suit nutrition; Axiom received US$228.5 million NASA Task Order; cost of each modular-sized Nomex-Kevlar-Mylar suit $5-15 million; can withstand temperatures -157°C to +121°C; weight on Earth ~127kg includes oxygen, liquid cooling, CO2 removal, power supply, fan; tested at NASA Johnson NBT

Credits: Axiom Space, Oakley, GU, Prada

Friday / 11 July 2025

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NASA Calls for Scientists to Add Expertise to Artemis III Geology Team; LSIC Advances Moon Missions

Participating Scientists (PS) are needed to supplement knowledge held by current members of Artemis III Geology Team and other NASA Artemis Project teams; applications to be a PS are due August 12; PS will engage in pre-mission planning for Artemis orbital and surface missions, mission operations and post-mission reports; NASA LSIC regularly convenes government, academia and industry to collaborate on technologies for a sustained human presence on the Moon, addressing challenges like power, dust mitigation and construction; online and in-person conferences are held monthly, Fall meeting just announced for Nov 5-6 at Georgia Tech in Atlanta

Credits: NASA

Tuesday / 8 July 2025

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Space Age Publishing Company Announces Opportunity for Your Message to Reach Earth from Moon NET 2026

Space Age Publishing Company to offer broadcasting from the Moon for global outreach to ~8 Billion humans via ILOA ILO-1 Mission; build your brand, promote your name, logo, product, service, event; receive Mission Certificate, Mission Updates and free ad in ongoing Space Calendar terrestrial edition; Charter Advertisers / Broadcasting Pioneers are de facto supporters of expanding human activity beyond Earth with Aloha; opportunities to participate range US$50-$50,000; WE ARE GOING BACK TO THE MOON – BE PART OF IT

Credits: Space Age Publishing Company, International Lunar Observatory Association

4-7 July 2025
USA Holiday Weekend Edition

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International Lunar Observatory Association ILO-1 Flagship Mission to Fly on Astrolab FLEX Rover to Moon South Pole NET 2026

ILOA Hawai’i will have instruments for Milky Way Center observation and commercial 2-way communications mounted on light bar of Astrolab FLEX rover, targeted to launch on Starship NET Dec 2026 and land at 1 of 9 possible Artemis landing sites near Moon South Pole; aim is for at least 1 year of operations for ILO-1 payload to fulfill long-term astronomy, science and exploration goals, as well as provide commercial lunar broadcasting for Space Age Publishing Company / Space Calendar, and others

Credits: Astrolab, SpaceX, Smithsonian

Friday / 27 June 2025

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Lonestar Data Sees Moon as Effective Data Storage Location

NewSpace commercial enterprise Lonestar Data Holdings seeks safety for critical data from the 402 quintillion bytes created daily by humans, a number that doubles every few months; Chair and CEO Chris Stott says lunar storage, orbital and eventually on / under Moon surface, would be the best defense from a catastrophe-caused data center shut-down or loss that makes vital information unavailable; Stott wants to preserve human knowledge so it is not lost as when the Alexandria library burned, says the time is now, when cost to put a kilogram in space is US$5,000, down from $100,000

Credits: Lonestar Data Holdings

Tuesday / 24 June 2025

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Harsh Shadows at Lunar Poles Provoke Special Astronaut Training for Artemis III

Astronauts train at NASA Marshall in Huntsville AL on its 26m x 13m black epoxy floor, with 12kW and 6kW lights shining to simulate low-angle, high-contrast visual conditions at Moon South Pole where Artemis III astronauts will land; test engineer Emma Jaynes says “The color white can become blinding … shadows behind a lander could extend for miles”; called the world’s flattest floor, large items such as lander and rock mock-ups, and huge cloths to imitate regolith, can be moved easily across the floor on tiny air jets as in an air hockey game, simulating microgravity

Credits: NASA

Friday / 20 June 2025

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Newly Announced Mona Luna European Lunar Rover Model Is at Paris Air Show

Venturi Space of Monaco shows 750kg, 2.5m x 1.64m rover Mona Luna to CNES, ESA, 300,000 at Paris Air Show; Venturi working with Astrolab of Hawthorne, California for NASA LTV rover, both have lunar-night-surviving batteries, Swiss-developed hyper-deformable wheels; Mona Luna travels 20kph, climbs 20° slopes, hibernates 14 days; remote-control enhanced by onboard AI; designed to reach Moon on ESA Argonaut lander launching on Ariane 6.4 NLT 2030 

Credits: Venturi Space

Tuesday / 17 June 2025

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RENOMINATE ISAACMAN

Jared Isaacman as NASA Administrator was — and is — a good idea; his 100-page plan for NASA includes getting Artemis II on the launchpad this summer and flying by Dec 2025, 57 years-to-the-month after Apollo 8 instead of Apr 2026, and championing nuclear-electric propulsion; Isaacman would have donated his salary for scholarships and might have funded a flight to ISS; a confirmed NASA Administrator is now months away; NASA and USA would benefit from an Isaacman renomination

Credits: John Kraus, NASA