Thursday / 22 August 2013

Global Community Working Together On Moon / Solar System Exploration

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12 ISECG Member Agencies Including NASA, ESA, Roscosmos Release Update Of 2011 Global Explorations Roadmap; New Plan Confirms Intention To Include Both Moon & Asteroid Missions Instead Of Either / Or Approach; Human Moon Missions Seen As Preparatory To Mars Missions In 2030s; NASA Administrator Bolden Says Agency Willing To Contribute Expertise / Resources To Multinational Human Moon Missions

Image Credit: ISECG, NASA

Wednesday / 21 August 2013

Students Getting Involved In LADEE Mission

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LADEE Partnering With Lewis Center For Educational Research & NASA JPL To Provide Students Opportunity To Help Track & Monitor Status Of Spacecraft In Flight; Students Will Remotely Control 34-M Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope From Their Classrooms To Determine Status & Position Of Craft; University Of Hawaii-Hilo Raising Funds To Send Intern Krystal Schlechter To Witness 6 Sep LADEE Launch From Wallops Flight Facility In VA

Image Credit: NASA, lewiscenter.org/gavrt/, imiloahawaii.org

 

 

Weekend Edition / Fri-Mon 16-19 Aug 2013

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter: 4 Years & Counting

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Innovative NASA Moon Orbiter Completes 3 Years Of Its Extended Science Mission, Additional Extension Likely As Probe Has Delivered Unprecedented Amount Of Data / Images; LRO Has Orbited Moon Over 18,000 Times, Traveling Over 200M Km, Produced Over 434 Terabytes Of Data, Laser Altimeter Conducted Over 6B Topographic Measurements; LRO Expected To Continue To Send Back Data Until Oct 2014, Though Additional 2 Years Possible

Image Credit: NASA

Wednesday / 14 August 2013

Pacific Space Access, Hawaii Moon Initiatives Featured At Galaxy Forum Event

Galaxy Forum Hawaii 2013 On Sat 17 Aug At University Hawaii Hilo, To Advance 21st Century Galaxy Education & Hawaii-Based Space / Moon Initiatives; Steve Durst (R) Of ILOA Will Update The Pacific Aloha Offshore Spaceport Initiative; ILOA Will Outline 4 Active Moon Missions & Global HQ Development Campaign; UHH Professor John Hamilton (L) Will Speak On PISCES Activities & Kim Binsted Of UH-NASA Will Report On The Mauna Loa HI-SEAS Mars Experiment; Distribution Of New ILOA Galaxy Map 2013 To All Participants

Image Credit: ILOA, PISCES, UHH, Sea Launch

Weekend Edition / Fri-Mon 9-12 Aug 2013

Chang’e-3 Moon Lander / Rover Expected To Launch Dec 2013

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China Set To Make 1st Soft Landing Moon Mission In December 2013 Says China Rocket Expert & CLEP Adviser Lehao Long (TR); RTG Will Power Rover & Keep It Operational For Up To 30 Years; Chief Lunar Scientist Ziyuan Ouyang S  ays High-End Technology Has Solved Problem Of Large Temperature Variance; Mission Will Study Surface / Geological Structure Of Moon & Plasmasphere Electromagnetic Fields Above Earth

Image Credit: China Daily, CNSA

Thursday / 8 August 2013

GLXP Team Announces New Launch Date

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Barcelona Moon Team Revises Launch Date From June 2014 To June 2015; Spacecraft / Lunar Rover Competing For GLXP Will Launch Aboard Long March 2C Rocket With Upper Stage CTS2 For Lunar Transfer Orbit Insertion; Launch Contract Provided By China Great Wall Industries Corporation; Pictured: Team Leader Xavier Claramunt, President Of Galactic Suite 

Image Credit: GLXP, Barcelona Moon Team

Weekend Edition / Fri-Mon 2-5 August 2013

Research Institute Gets New Name, Expands Focus To Entire Solar System

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NASA Lunar Science Institute In Mountain View CA Changes Name To Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI); Name Change Reflects Natural 21st Century Advance Of Human Exploration Goals, Building Out From Vital Well-Developed Cislunar Foundation To Include Vast Resources & Promising Research / Exploration / Human Settlement Potential Of Asteroids, Mars, Jupiter / Saturn Moons & Beyond

Image Credit: NASA

Friday / 2 August 2013

South Korea & U.S. Talk Moon Mission Collaboration

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KARI President Seung-Jo Kim Visits Washington DC To Speak With NASA Head Charles Bolden About Potential Moon Mission Collaborations; S Korea Plans To Develop / Launch Lunar Orbiter By 2020 & Strontium-Powered 20-Kg Lunar Rover By 2025; NASA Wants To Redirect Asteroid To Lunar Orbit, Completes Internal Review Of Technical & Programmatic Concepts, Will Now Formulate Mission Baseline Concept

Image Credit: KARI, NASA

Thursday / 1 August 2013

Europe GLXP Team Seeking India Launch

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Team EuroLuna Leaders Recently Visited Bangalore, India To Meet With Antrix Senior Officials About Arranging Launches For Its Romit1 & Romit3 Spacecraft; Romit1 Will Be A Test Flight To Verify Computer, Radio, Camera Operations & Test Electric Ion Accelerator Rocket Engine; Romit3 Is The Craft That Will Land On Moon In Effort To Win GLXP; Romit1 Is Double-CubeSat With 10X10X20Cm Dimensions & ~2Kg Weight

Image Credit: EuroLuna; GLXP, ISRO

Wednesday / 31 July 2013

 Shanghai Astronomical Observatory Ready To Support China Moon Lander

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SHAO Director Xiaoyu Hong Says 65-M Radio Telescope In Shanghai Has Undergone 6 Months Of Calibration In Preparation For Chang’e-3 Moon Lander / Rover Mission; Team Will Use Kinematic Statistical Method Utilizing Both Ranging, VLBI Measurements & Ephemeral Data Of Motion Of Moon To Analyze Position Of Lunar Lander In Sinus Iridum During Upcoming Mission; 10 Minutes Of Data Acquisition Using This Strategy Can Reach 10-M Accuracy 

Image Credit: SHAO, CNSA, NASA