Category Archives: Advanced Technology

Wednesday / 28 October 2015

Posted on by

AngelicvM Joins GLXP Collaboration With Astrobotic & Hakuto

10282015Team Astrobotic To Carry Chile Team AngelicvM 5kg Rover ‘Uni’ On Mission To Moon; Japan Team Hakuto Also Sharing Cost Of Mission & Potential Prize; Astrobotic To Deploy Uni, 2 Hakuto Rovers & Its Own Andy Rover To Travel 500 Meters On Lunar Surface; Astrobotic CEO John Thornton States “Team AngelicvM Shares Our Vision Of Uniting And Inspiring Individuals To Look To The Moon As The Next Great Destination For Exploration And Discovery”; Astrobotic Goal To Fill Payload Space On Lander By Early 2016 With Inclusion Of Lunar Mission One, Mexican Space Agency & 1 Possible Other GLXP Team; Launch Proposed With SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket NET 2017

Credit: GLXP, Astrobotic, Hakuto, Tohoku University Research News of Engineering, Angelicvm

Tuesday / 27 October 2015

Posted on by

USGS Lunar Maps Using LRO Reveal Data ‘Contrary To Conventional Wisdom’

10272015Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Providing Mosiac Map With Data From Wide Angle Camera & Topographic Data With Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA); Dr. Mark Robinson, ASU Professor & LRO Camera PI States “Images From The LRO Camera Have Greatly Advanced Our Knowledge Of The Moon” & Images Reveal Volcanic Activity Younger Than Previously Thought; LOLA Gathering Topographic Data; Co-Investigator Dr. Erwan Mazarico Comments “The LOLA Data Are A Foundational Dataset To Be Used In Multiple Types Of Studies For Years To Come”; Maps Indicate Elevation Areas – Highest Point Near Engel’gradt Crater (200° E Longitude, +6° Latitude) & Lowest Area Within Moon South Pole-Aitken Basin Near 188° E Longitude, -70° Latitude

Credit: USGS/NASA/ASU

Thursday / 22 October 2015

Posted on by

Russia-Europe To Collaborate On Human Lunar Settlement At Late 2016 Meetings

10222015Moscow Space Research Institute Prof Igor Mitrofanov (TL) Asserts “We Have To Go To The Moon” Due To Commercial, Astronomical Observation & Utilization Of Lunar Resource Benefits; Meeting Of Ministers To Decide Europe Participation Late 2016; Russia Vostochny Cosmodrome For Lunar, Planetary, Human Missions Described As “Biggest & Most Ambitious Projects” By Pres Putin (TR); ESA Lunar Exploration Head, Bérengère Houdou (BL) States “Ambition To Have European Astronauts On The Moon” & Lead Scientist Dr. James Carpenter (BR) Notes Moon South Pole Unique Characteristics Includes Possible Water Ice For “Use As Rocket Fuel; Luna-25 Luna-Glob Lander Expected 2018 & Luna-Resurs 1 Lander Expected 2020

Credit: ESA, EPA/ Alexei Nikolsky, University of Bristol, IKI

Wednesday / 21 October 2015

Posted on by

President Obama Inspiring Youth To ‘Ask About The Stars’ At White House Astronomy Night

10212015Private-Sector “Educate To Innovate” (ETI) Campaign Announced By Pres. Obama Stating “We Need To Inspire More Young People To Ask About The Stars And Begin That Lifetime Quest To Become The Next Great Scientist, Or Inventor, Or Engineer, Or Astronaut”; Astronomy Night Featuring Moon, Mars Meteorite Rock Samples & New York 12th-Grader Alvarez-Bareiro Inviting President To Examine The Moon; President Outlined Priorities: Journey To Mars, Space Technology, Earth Science & Climate, ISS, Commercial Space; ETI Focus In STEM To Prepare 100k Teachers By 2021 & Other Projects To Work With 30+ States To Support ~500k Students Grades 4-8; Hawaii World Class Observatories Goal Of Inspiring A Passion For Astronomy Offering Free Tours To Students 16 Years Old As Early As November 2015

Credit: NASA, Case.edu

Tuesday / 20 October 2015

Posted on by

LEAG 20-22 October Focus On Moon Utilization For Sustained Human Space-Faring Capabilities

10202015Public & Private Sector To Discuss Common Goals Of Lunar Exploration, Apply Results Of Recent / Ongoing Missions Toward Future Exploration, Provide A Community Forum At 2015 LEAG In Columbia MD; Along With Various Information Sessions, ESA Will Offer Update On Current Lunar Exploration Activities & Plans With International Partnerships; Rob Kelso Of PISCES To Brief On PISCES-NASA “Additive Construction With Mobile Emplacement (ACME)” Project Demonstrating Technologies Associated With Planetary Robotic Construction Using Basalt; Final Day Includes In Situ Resource Utilization Session About Key Factors For Sustainable Human Spaceflight Programs

Credit: LEAG, UH Hilo, PISCES, ESA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 16-19 October 2015

Posted on by

2017 Lunar Lander Prospects:
Astrobotic, Chang’e-5, Chandrayaan-2, Moon Express, SpaceIL, Moonspike

101720152017 Moon Exploration Progressing With Private-Funding & International Initiatives; Team Astrobotic Earlier Announced Potential SpaceX Launch With Confirmation Of Contract Pending; China Chang’e-5 & India Chandrayaan-2 Lunar Missions Reveal International Desire To Advance Human Exploration; Moon Express Five Launch Deal With Rocket Lab, Including GLXP Launch, Demonstrates Momentum; Team SpaceIL To Be World’s First Verified Moon Launch Aboard SpaceX Falcon 9; Moonspike Kickstarter Fundraising Effort Underway To Design & Construct Fully Fledged Three-Stage Moon Rocket

Credit: CCTV, CNSA, CAS, Astrobotic, Moon Express, Space IL, Moonspike, ISRO

Friday / 16 October 2015

Posted on by

China Makes Public 18-Month Performance Survey Of Chang’e-3 LUT Operating On Moon Surface

Chang'e-3 18 month survey

First Robotic Telescope Working On Moon Acquiring ~10,000 Images Per Month, Displaying Highly Stable Photometric Performance During 51-Run Observation Of 17 IUE Standard Stars (Used For Calibration); Continuously Monitoring Bright Variable Stars, Performing Sky Survey At Low Galactic Latitude; Exceeding Planned Lifetime (Now In Lunar Night 23), Mission Providing Data For NextGen Telescopes; Paper Published in Astrophysics and Space Science Gains International Attention For China Accomplishments / Science, Establishing Astronomy From The Moon; Chang’e-3 LUT Mission Awaits Official 2016 Extension

Credit: CAS, NAOC, CNSA, CCTV, ILOA, NASA

Thursday / 15 October 2015

Posted on by

Fuel Production On Lunar Surface To Aid Deep Space Exploration, Mars Missions

10152015MIT Study Suggests Refueling On Moon Could Play Role In Sustainable Human Mars & Deep Space Missions; Takuto Ishimatsu Postdoc At MIT Notes New Mathematical Model Improving On Conventional Straight Shot Route, States “The Idea Of Taking A Detour Into The Lunar System…It’s Very Unintuitive…This Could Be Very Affordable in The Long Term”; Lunar Soil & Water Ice In Craters May Be Mined & Converted Into Fuel In-Situ; Fuel Depots At Lagrange Points Would Potentially Reduce The Launch Mass Of A Mars Mission By 68%; Resource Producing Infrastructure Is Vital To Promote Human Presence, Enterprise & Exploration

Credit: NASA, MIT

Wednesday / 14 October 2015

Posted on by

Space Agency Heads At IAC2015; Discussing “Moon First” Approach To Space Exploration

10142015International Participation & Cooperation, IAC2015 Plenary Session Includes Israel Space Agency Chairman Isaac Ben-Israel, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, CNSA Administrator Xu Dazhe, ISRO Scientific Secretary Krishna Murthy, Roscosmos Head Igor Komarov, JAXA President Naoki Okumura, ESA Director General Jan Woerner With Panel Moderated By German Journalist Uli Bobinger; 3 Goals Emerging: Need For Stronger International Cooperation, Moon As Next Destination, Need For Measurable Benefits To The Public; CNSA Xu Dazhe Discussing China CE5 Moon Sample Return Mission & CE4 Lander on Far Side Moon; HOA Panel Consensus Of Further Moon Exploration & Moon Before Mars As Logical Step

Credit: IAC2015, NASA, ESA

Tuesday / 13 October 2015

Posted on by

66th International Astronautical Congress Promoting Space Sciences Vital For Human Survival

10132015IAC2015 Conference Held 12-16 Oct In Jerusalem To Highlight Diverse Topics During Technical Sessions, Lectures, Plenaries, & Other Activities; Lunar Focus Includes 3 Part Moon Exploration Technical Session, Human Exploration Of The Moon & Cislunar Space Discussion; International Astronautical Federation Plenary 7 “The Moon – A Continent & A Gateway For Our Future” 15 Oct Will Be Moderated By Prof. Bernard Foing Of ESA/ESTEC & International Lunar Exploration Working Group Executive Director; IAC Moon Plenary Panel Focus  Reviewing Key Lunar Mission Data & Upcoming Lunar Exploration Plans; GLXP Competitor SpaceIL Will Be An Exhibitor At Event

Credit: IAC2015, ESA, Israel Space Agency, JAXA, IAF