Category Archives: Cislunar Space Development

Friday / 22 January 2016

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Rocket Reusability Significant For Cislunar Space Development

Moon Rocket, Mining

Paul Spudis Article In Air & Space Notes Advancement Of Reusable Craft Capable Of Soft Landing, As Demonstrated By SpaceX & Blue Origin, Directly Relevant For Permanent Return To Moon & Supporting Missions To Mars / Solar System; Would Require Automated Landers & Reusable Propulsion Systems Utilizing Propellants Manufactured On Moon (Cryogenic Liquid O2, H, Methane); Inevitable Frequent Moon Missions & Cheaper Access To Space Bolsters Need To Define Lunar Property Rights

Credit: P. Spudis, NASA, EADS Astrium

Friday / 15 January 2016

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Russia Continues 10-Year Commitment To Human Moon Missions, Perhaps Including 1st Woman To Moon

Russia Moon Plans

Russia Asserts It Plans To Realize A Human Moon Mission By 2027, Touch Surface By 2029 & Begin Establishing Habitable Moon Base; Will Use Angara Boosters, Develop Reusable Capsule; Seeking International Collaboration; Luna-25 Lander Aims To Launch 2018 (Picking Up From Luna-24 Successful Sample Return Mission 1976) To Boguslavsky Crater Near Moon South Pole; Recent Female Moon Simulation & Legacy Of Sending 1st Woman In Space, Russia May Try To Send 1st Woman To Moon

Credit: Roscosmos, ESA, NASA, Anatoly Zak / RussianSpaceWeb

Friday / 8 January 2016

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India Planning Robust Lunar Program With Chandrayaan-2, 3, 4

Chandrayaan 2-3

Dr. Mylswamy Annadurai, Director Of ISRO Satellite Centre & Project Manager Of Chandrayaan-1, States India On Track To Launch Chandrayaan-2 (Indigenous Orbiter, Lander, Rover) In Late 2017 Or Early 2018 On GSLV Mark-2; Will Attempt High-Altitude Polar Landing & Perform In-Situ Chemical Analysis Of Lunar Soil; Planning Chandrayaan-3 & 4 “In The Near Future” Which May Utilize Nuclear Power Sources; Private India GLXP Team Indus Hoping To Rideshare On PSLV To Reach Moon 2016-2017

Credit: ISRO, NASA

Friday / 18 December 2015

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JAXA Plans To Achieve Japan 1st Soft Landing On Moon In Fiscal Year 2018

JAXA SLIM NAOJ

Smart Lander For Investigating Moon (SLIM) Mission Hoping To Secure Funding FY2016 To Launch FY2018 On Japan Solid-Fuel Epsilon Rocket; Will Improve Landing Technology To Be Used On SELENE-2 (Orbiter, Lander, Rover) And Human Missions To Moon Proposed For 2025; SLIM May Land In Crater / Area Mapped By Kaguya (SELENE) With Support Of National Astronomical Observatories Of Japan (NAOJ); Commercial GLXP Team Hakuto Aiming To Launch Pair Of Rovers To Moon Mid-2017 Aboard Astrobotic Lander

Credit: JAXA, SELENE, NAOJ, Team Hakuto

Thursday / 17 December 2015

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ESA ESTEC Moon 2020 Symposium Discusses Human Mission Possibilities With 3D Printing & Britain First ESA Astronaut Tim Peake At ISS

12172015Monolite Founder Enrico Dini (L) Discusses Challenges, Successes & Next Steps In 3D Printing Intended For The Lunar Surface To Develop A Moon Village; 3D Printing With Regolith Has Addressed Key Component To Avoid Freezing; Heating Regolith With Microwave Technology Is Currently Being Studied; Dini States That Technological Advancements Are Also Underway To Create Large Building Blocks (Pre-Cast) For Construction With Flexible Molds Using Lunar Regolith Agglomerate Polyurethane Foam; FAA Endorses Moon Village Concept Expressing An Interest In Supporting A Commercial Role; ESA Astronaut Tim Peake (R) Enters First Week At ISS Conducting Experiments That Could Aid Future Human Moon / Mars Missions

Credit: ESA, D-Shape, Foster + Partners, NASA

Wednesday / 16 December 2015

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China Chang’e-4 Readying For Moon Far Side Mission 2020, Relay Satellite 2018

12162015With Goal Of First Landing On Moon Far Side, CE-4 Communications Relay Satellite Being Prepared To Deploy In 2018 Via Long March 5 Rocket From Wenchang Satellite Launch Complex At Hainan Island; Satellite Will Serve As Communications Link Between Moon Far Side / Earth From L2; CE-4 Lander & Rover Slated For NET 2020 Launch & Will Have Low Frequency Radio Spectrometer For Astronomy; Chief Scientist Of China Lunar Exploration Program Ziyuan Ouyang States “Since Chang’e-3 Successfully Completed Its Mission We Have Had More Time To Explore A More Comprehensive Mission For Chang’e-4”

Credit: CNSA, CAST, CLEP, NASA

Tuesday / 15 December 2015

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China Chang’e-3 Spacecraft Enters Year 3 On Moon; Honorary Currency Celebrates China National Spaceflight

12152015Currently In Lunar Night 25 Chang’e-3 (CE-3) Expected To Awaken 21 Dec & Begin Lunar Day 26 Operations; First Long-Term Robotic Observatory Lunar-based Ultraviolet Telescope (LUT) On CE-3 Continues To Gather Images Of Galaxies / Binary Stars / Deep Space With Fewer Limitations Than Earth Due To The Thin Exosphere; Chinese Lunar Exploration Program Has 3 Phases: Orbiting CE-1 & CE-2 / Landing CE-2 & CE-4 (To Far Side NET 2018) / Sample Return CE-5 (Slated For 2017) & CE-6; China’s Central Bank Commemorates Chang’e-1 On Currency (Bill & Coin) 2015 Banknote Reads “Chinese Spaceflight Commemorative”

Credit: People’s Bank of China, CNSA, CAST, CLEP, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 11-14 December 2015

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International Moon Missions Being Discussed By UN With Lunar Mission One & By ESA At Dec 15-16 Moon Symposium

UN LM1 ESA

David Iron, Founder Of Lunar Mission One (LM1), With Advice From UNOOSA Director Simonetta Di Pippo And Her Predecessor Mazlan Othman (A LM1 International Advisory Board Member) Brings LM1 To Attention Of UN, Pointing Out Practical & Inspiring Reasons For International & Commercial Moon South Pole Mission ~2024; Upcoming ESA Symposium Focusing On Coordinated Human & Robotic Moon Missions 2020-2030 Features Similar Message: Significance Of The Moon As A Starting Point For Sustained, International Space Missions For The Betterment Of Humankind

Credit: Lunar Mission One, UNOOSA, ESA, V. Martin/ITU

Friday / 11 December 2015

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Japan To Develop Moon / Planetary Robots & Analog Test Site, Expected To Launch 2nd Epsilon Rocket 2016

JAXA SLIM Moon

JAXA To Partner With Domestic Companies To Create Robotic, Vehicle, Other Technologies For Human Missions To Moon (2030) & Mars (2040); Low-Cost (US$38M Per Launch) Epsilon Rocket 2nd Flight Planned For 2016, Will Enable ~$126M SLIM Moon Lander Mission Capable Of Landing Within 100 Meters Of Target Area In FY2018; SLIM Mission To Be Discussed At Galaxy Forum Japan 20 February 2016 At NAOJ Mitaka; New Online JAXA Hub Invites Information Exchange With Industries To Participate In Sustainable Moon / Planetary Activities

Pictured L-R: Yasuhiro Morita (Epsilon Program Manager), Yoshisada Takizawa & Susumu Sasaki (SELENE Project Managers)

Credit: JAXA, NASA

 

Tuesday / 8 December 2015

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India Chandrayaan-1 Moon Weather Data Being Studied By Swedish Institute Of Space Physics (IRF)

1282015Lack Of Atmosphere & Global Magnetic Fields On Moon Reflect Some Solar Wind Back Into Space From Surface According To IRF Researcher Charles Lue; Measurements Taken By Chandrayaan-1 Sub-keV Atom Reflecting Analyzer (SARA) / Solar WInd Monitor (SWIM) Revealing Up To 10% Of Solar Wind Reflects Back Into Space; Lue States “This Knowledge Is Of Great Importance To The Lunar Space Environment” And Is Mapping Areas Where Solar Wind Is Most Prominent; Findings Could Be Utilized To Estimate How Much Water Is On Lunar Surface

Credit: Charles Lue, NASA