Category Archives: Moon Exploration

Weekend Edition / Fri-Mon 1-4 Mar 2013

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China Rising As Space Power Through Clear Vision, Lunar Aspirations

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China Progressing Steadily On Clearly Defined / Consistently Executed Space Plan; Chang’e-2 Arrival In Outer Space 20M km From Earth Is Breakthrough For China Deep Space Exploration; 5th China Human Spaceflight Set For Jun~Aug 2013; China Upgrades Long March-3B Rocket For Late 2013 Chang’e-3 Lunar Lander Mission, Increasing Carrying Capacity By 30 kg & Allowing For Additional Launch Windows

Image Credit: CNSA, 33rdsquare.com, news.xinhuanet.com

Thursday / 28 February 2013

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Interplanetary Cubesat Missions Could Open Lunar Opportunities

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INSPIRE Mission Among 24 Small Satellites Selected By NASA To Fly As Auxiliary Payloads In 2014-2016; Dual 3U INSPIRE CubeSats Will Be 1st To Travel Beyond Earth Orbit, Demonstrating Functionality In Interplanetary Space; Relatively Affordable (~US$3M) Moon Missions By Universities & Private Organizations Likely To Follow; LunarCubes Missions Briefing 11 April 2013 At NASA KSC

Image Credit: NASA

Wednesday / 27 February 2013

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GLXP Teams Gearing Up For Team Summit

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April 2013 GLXP Team Summit In Chile Will Provide Opportunity For Teams To Showcase Their Progress; Penn State Lunar Lions, Only University-Led Team, Prototype Propeller-Driven Model Rover In Final Stages; White Label Space Now With Full Operations In Japan; Tim Pickens Advancing Moon Express Propulsion Engineering At New ME Headquarters In Huntsville, AL; Team Stellar Says GLXP Will Lead To Better Meteor Protection

Image Credit: White Label Space, GLXP

Tuesday / 26 February 2013

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Susmita Mohanty Envisions Private Astronaut Taxis To Moon

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India Commercial Space Company Earth2Orbit Founder Susmita Mohanty Discusses India’s Part In NewSpace Movement & Her Thoughts On How To Accelerate Human Spaceflight Development; Aerospace Companies Over-Engineer / Under-Design Crew Craft With Exorbitant Costs; International Consortium Of Companies Such As Apple, Samsung, SpaceX Could Design Spaceships That Think; Private Astronaut Taxis To LEO & Moon Would Follow

Image Credit: Abhijit Bhatlekar, Earth2Orbit

Weekend Edition / Fri-Mon 22-25 Feb 2013

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China On The Moon

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First China Lunar Rover Mission Set For Late 2013; Vehicle, Named ‘Zhonghua’ (China), Will Weigh 120kg, 20kg Of Payload, Able To Travel Up To 10km On Lunar Surface; 2 Solar Panels & Nuclear Fuel Cells Will Power Rover For 3-Month Life Span; Radar On Bottom Will Explore 100m Beneath Surface; Mechanical Arm Will Take Samples; Preliminary Research Underway For Human Mission In 2025-2030

Image Credit: Xinhuanet, theepochtimes.com

Friday / 22 February 2013

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Moon Valuable To Study / Mine Asteroids & Protect Earth

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Naveen Jain Of Moon Express Says Over 4B Years Of Well-Preserved Asteroid Impacts On Moon Provide Resources For Asteroid Research & Solar System Exploration; Stable Environment Is Beneficial For Astronomical Observatories & Asteroid Detection; Can Create Fuel Depots, Lunar Bases & Earth Space Port; Private-Public Partnerships For Moon Exploration Will Safeguard Future Of Humankind

Image Credit: NASA, Moon Express

Thursday / 21 February 2013

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  Australia Off Earth Mining Forum Introduces New Lunar Regolith Simulant

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Leonhard Bernold Of University Of New South Wales Presents At Australia ‘Off Earth Mining Forum’ About New Lunar Simulant Created By His Research Team; Substance – Made Up Primarily Of Fine Basalt Particles – Facilitates Tests Of Moon Mining Techniques, Equipment Such As 3D Printers, Waterless Lunar Concrete Formulas To Build Landing Pads & Habitats On Moon

Image Credit: University of New South Wales

Weekend Edition / Fri-Tues 15-19 Feb 2013

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New International Space Age Emerging

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Bruce Cordell Outlines Evidence For Emergence Of New Apollo-Level International Space Age By Mid-Decade; Cites Cyclical Patterns In Politics, Economics, International Relations & Public Ebullience Over Past 200 Years; Significance Of New ‘Gold Rush In Space’ / Emergence Of Commercial Space, Geo-Political Significance Of Moon In Coming Years; Recent Poll Indicates 75% Of Americans Want Increased NASA Budget For Human Missions To Moon / Mars

Image Credit: 21stcenturywaves.com, cislunarnext.org

Thursday / 14 February 2013

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SpaceIL Hopes To Inspire Israel Youth With Moon Mission

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GLXP Team SpaceIL Claims They Have Raised US$20M Towards US$30M Moon Mission, Announces New Commercial Sponsor: Bezeq; SpaceIL CTO Yonatan Winetraub Says 120kg-Spacecraft Will “Hitch A Ride” With Commercial Rocket, Then Utilize Hopping Technology, Video Cameras Developed By Elbit-Elop, & Bezeq Optical-Fiber Technology To Achieve GLXP Requisite Tasks; Ultimate Goal Is To Inspire Youth, Stimulate Science Education In Israel & Beyond

Image Credit: Israel21c.org, GLXP

Wednesday / 13 February 2013

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CSCA Brings Space / Lunar Entrepreneurs, Mining Industry Together

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Canadian Space Commerce Association 2013 National Conference On 7 March In Toronto, Ontario, Canada; What Can Space Companies Learn From Canada Mining Industry & Vice Versa? Speakers Include Dale Boucher Of NORCAT, Robert Richards Of Moon Express, Rick Tumlinson (T) Of Deep Space Industries Inc., Peter Visscher (B) Of Artemis Jr / RESOLVE Project, Space Law Experts Ram Jakhu & Melissa Force 

Image Credit: CSCA