Category Archives: Moon Exploration

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 14-17 April 2017

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Russia Collaborating With ESA For Luna-25 High-Res Cameras And Future Moon South Pole Missions

Roscosmos And ESA Formulate Agreement On Moon South Pole Luna-25 Lander, Europe To Provide High-Res Landing Camera System To Aid Touchdown In Boguslavsky Crater 2018-19; The Two Agencies Also Set To Cooperate On Luna-27 (Moon South Pole Lander 2021), Luna-28 (Moon South Pole Sample Return 2023), ExoMars Lander / Rover 2020; Russia Aiming To Put Humans On Moon 2029, Start Lunar Base 2030-2035; Developing New Angara Rocket & Federatsiya Crewed Spacecraft For Lunar Missions

Credits: Roscosmos, ESA, NASA, LROC, Ivanov et al., 2015

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 7-10 April 2017

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Canada Prioritizes Technologies For International Lunar Deep Space Habitat And Lunar Surface Mobility (LSM) Concept Study

Canadian Space Agency Asking For Innovative Proposals For Detailed LSM Concepts & Feasibility Assessment Of Two Main Assets: Precursor To Human & Scientific Rover And Lunar Pressurized Rover Core; Planning To Select Up To 2 Six-Month Contracts; Canada Government Commits To CSA US$80.9M Over 5 Years To Accelerate Canada Leadership In Space Post-ISS Era Including Technology To Support International Human Missions On And Around Moon Such As Robotics, Rovers, Software, And Mars Surface Observation

Credits: CSA, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 24-27 March 2017

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Cislunar Outpost Imperative And Moon Base Plans Increasing

Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA Human Exploration & Operations Associate Administrator Speaks On Plans For Cislunar Outpost To Support Future Crews Working On / Around Moon As A Step Toward Humans To Mars 2030s; Decisions To Be Made Within Months For SLS / Orion Payloads & Clearer Mission Plans For EM-1-3 To Be Formulated, Perhaps With Humans Aboard 2018 EM-1 Flight; Proposals Made By Bigelow For Cislunar Refueling Depots By 2020, SpaceX 2018 Circumlunar Trip For 2 Customers, Blue Origin 2020 Moon South Pole Cargo Deliveries

Credits: Bigelow, Robert Bigelow, SpaceX, Elon Musk, NASA, Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 17-20 March 2017

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Human Moon Mission Planning Advances In USA, China, Russia

US Gov Surveying Feasibility Of Human Moon Flyby Sep 2018 On Orion / SLS / EM-1, Private Venture SpaceX Plans 2018 Circumlunar Trip For 2 Tourists, Blue Origin Proposes 2020 Moon South Pole Cargo Deliveries To Start Permanent Human Settlement; China Chief Lunar Exploration Designer Hu Hao Announces Success Of CE-5 Sample Return Launching Nov 2017 Will Pave Way For Human Landing Mission Which ‘Should Be Carried Out ASAP’; Russia Begins Selection Of 6-8 Cosmonauts For Federatsiya Spacecraft Intended To Fly To Moon, First Uncrewed Test Flight Planned 2021 On New Angara Rocket

Credits: NASA, CNSA, Roscosmos, SpaceX, Blue Origin

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 10-13 March 2017

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Blue Origin Proposes 2020 Plan To Start Permanent Moon South Pole, Human Settlement

Jeff Bezos Circulating 7-Page White Paper To NASA Leadership & U.S. Administration Transition Team Detailing Plan To Develop Blue Moon Lunar Lander / Cargo Craft, Amazon-Like Delivery Service Starting July 2020 To Enable Future Human Settlements Near Shackleton Crater Where Ice, Hydrogen & Constant Solar Power Are Available; Wants To ‘Partner With NASA To Achieve This Challenging, Worthy, Exciting Objective’; SpaceX, Moon Express, Astrobotic, Shackleton Energy, Golden Spike, Commercial Ventures Planning Moon Services; Robert Bigleow States “Mars Is Premature At This Time. The Moon Is Not”

Credits: Blue Origin, ESA, NASA, LRO, Bigelow Aerospace

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 3-6 March 2017

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SpaceX And NASA May Return Humans To Moon Before 50th Apollo 11 Observation

Elon Musk Announces Ambitious Plans To Send 2 Commercial Tourists On 1-Week Circumlunar Trip Late 2018 In Crew Dragon Capsule Via Falcon Heavy Rocket; NASA, Originally Planning Uncrewed Circumlunar SLS / Orion EM-1 Flight 30 Sep 2018, Is Being Requested To Study Feasibility Of Redesigning Mission To Include Astronauts; U.S. President Trump States “American Footprints On Distant Worlds Are Not Too Big A Dream”; USA Could Claim First Human Return To Moon & First Woman To Moon With Energetic Timeline

Credits: SpaceX, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 24-27 February 2017

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2017 Student Moonbots Challenge Winner Could Send Video To Moon And Meet GLXP Winners In Person

Parallel International Competition To Google Lunar XPrize, Moonbots Challenge For Students Ages 8-17 To Detail What They’d Like To Leave On Moon As A Legacy, Build Robotic Lunar Rovers & Make STEM Video; Registrations Due 1 March; 5 Teams (Moon Express, SpaceIL, Synergy Moon, Team Indus, Team Hakuto) Will Attempt To Launch To Moon Before 2018, Land,Travel 500 Meters & Send High Res Video To Earth; Moonbot Grand Prize Winner Video Will Be Sent To Moon On Disc

Credits: Moonbots, GLXP

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 17-20 February 2017

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U.S. Administration Considers Accelerating 1st Human Moon Mission Of 21st Century To 2018

Acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot Requesting Top Official For Human Spaceflight William Gerstenmaier To Explore Feasibility Of Sending Astronauts On EM-1 Flight 2018; Could Advance A Human Return To Moon, Landing 1st Woman On Moon, Reclaiming Multi World Species Status, First Missions To Mars & Beyond; Scott Pace Of Space Policy Institute At GWU Notes There May Be A Push For Significant Near-Term U.S. Accomplishments; Presidential Policy Advisor Bob Walker Believes There Is Possibility To Land Humans On Moon 2021-2025, Perhaps Using Commercial Companies & Technologies; Similar Goals Of Other Countries Could Catalyze International Collaboration For Human Lunar Missions / Settlement

Credits: NASA, ESA, Bigelow Aerospace

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 10-13 February 2017

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Europe And USA Closer To Returning Humans To Moon Via Orion / SLS In 2021

ESA Delivers Propulsion & Supply Module For Uncrewed Lunar 2018 Exploration Mission-1, Will Begin Developing Module With Airbus For 2021 Crewed Lunar Flight – Taking Humans Farther Than Any Apollo Mission; EM-1 Also Carrying 13 CubeSats, 4 Or More Will Focus On Moon Science & Observations; New U.S. Administration May Advance Human Moon Landing / Settlement Competencies & Technologies, Resource Extraction, Commercial Space Policies; Orion / SLS Has Potential To Carry Astronauts To Asteroids & Mars; SpaceX Planning Craft For Mars, Jupiter, Saturn Systems

Credits: NASA, ESA, Rad Sinyak

Inauguration Month Edition
January 2017

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Human Moon Lander Imperative, 2020-2025:
To Enable 21st Century Solar System Complete

2018 SLS / Orion EM-1 First Mission Planned For Cislunar Capability Signals Opportunity For Human Lunar Lander Enterprise And Development; American Independents Such As Golden Spike, Astrobotic, Moon Express, Shackleton Energy, Canadensys, ILOA, As Well As Blue Origin, SpaceX, Bigelow Among Others, May Collaborate Through Public-Private Partnerships Bi-Nationally, Multi-Nationally With Canada, China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe, Japan, Russia, USA, And Other Nations Globally; American And International Space Community May Welcome Progressive, Constructive Initiatives From New U.S. President And Administration, While Remaining Vigilant Against Regression; New U.S. President Could Enable Humanity To Reestablish And Advance Itself As Multi World Species, With Women, Men On The Moon And 21st Century “Stretch Goal”

Credits: SPC, ILOA, NASA, Space Dev