Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 1 of 18 December 2020 Update Saxophone Solo in LEO Oklahoma Space Alliance A Chapter of The National Space Society A free email newsletter of the Oklahoma Space Alliance December 2020 December 2020 OSA Meeting Saturday, December 12, 2020 Zoom Meeting Due to COVID-19 405-863-6173 Program— Space News and Events Website: http://osa.nss.org Quote of the Month "I think there cannot be a greater vision for all nations other than transformaing our terrestrial habitat into a livable planet earth through international collaboration in space." – Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
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A Chapter of The National Space Society A free email ...osa.nss.org/Update2012.pdfasteroid (98943) 2001 CC21 in 2026 and rendezvous with yet another space rock, 1998 KY26, in 2031.
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Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 1 of 18 December 2020
Update
Saxophone Solo in LEO
Oklahoma Space Alliance
A Chapter of The National Space Society
A free email newsletter of the Oklahoma Space Alliance
December 2020
December 2020 OSA Meeting
Saturday, December 12, 2020
Zoom Meeting Due to COVID-19
405-863-6173
Program— Space News and Events
Website: http://osa.nss.org
Quote of the Month "I think there cannot be a greater vision for all nations other than transformaing our terrestrial habitat into a livable planet earth through international collaboration in space." – Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 2 of 18 December 2020
Table of Contents Saxophone Solo in LEO .............................................................................................................. 1
December 2020 OSA Meeting .................................................................................................... 1
Quote of the Month ................................................................................................................... 1
Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................... 2
Hayabusa2 Comes Home .......................................................................................................... 3
Moon to Earth: Wake Up, America!......................................…………………………………………………….4
First Operational Crew Dragon Mission Launches.………....….……………………………………………………5
ESA is First to Pay for Space Debris Removal.…………………………….…………………………………………….6
The Oklahoma Space Alliance Update is a bi-monthly newsletter of the Oklahoma Space Alliance a chapter
of the National Space Society, a non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. The
address of OSA is 102 W. Linn, #1, Norman, OK 73071.
Unless otherwise noted, all contents of articles herein do not necessarily reflect the opinion of anyone but the writer. Reprint rights are granted to recognized
chapters of NSS, provided credit is given.
Articles may be submitted by U.S. mail or electronically. Articles may be sent to the Editor at
121 South Creekdale Drive, Norman, OK 73072 or to [email protected]. Each submission should include the author’s name and either e-mail address
or phone number (for verification only). A text or Microsoft Word file is preferred. Please contact the
Editor by phone, e-mail or texting before mailing your information.
On December 5, a 16-inch-diameter capsule ejected from the Japanese probe Hayabusa2 completed a six year journey, delivering samples from the asteroid Ryugu to Earth. Launched in December 2014, Hayabusa2 surveyed Ryugu (3,000 feet-wide, e.g. 900 meters) up close from June 2018 to November 2019, taking two separate samples and deploying a small lander and several micro-rovers. The 16 kg. capsule landed in the Austalian outback. JAXA recently approved an extended mission for the parent Hayabusa2 spacecraft to fly by the small asteroid (98943) 2001 CC21 in 2026 and rendezvous with yet another space rock, 1998 KY26, in 2031. Additionally, JAXA is collaborating with Germany on a low-cost asteroid mission called Destiny+ to launch in 2024.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 4 of 18 December 2020
Moon to Earth: Wake Up, America!
China has undertaken the most ambitious robotic sample return mission in history. Its Chang'e-5 probe launched on November 23, beginning a 23 day mission to return the first lunar samples since Russia’s Luna 24 in 1976. It landed near the volcanic peak of Mons Rümker, a mountain in Oceanus Procellarum, on December 1. Wiithin hours it was drilling and scooping 2 kg. of samples. The ascent stage of the lander lifted off on December 3, to rendezvous and dock with the orbiting Earth return modules on December 5 – the first time an automated docking has been done in lunar orbit (margin for error on docking: 5 cm). During those few days, counting the Chang’e-5 lander, orbiter and ascent vehicles all carrying out various tasks, China had eight operational spacecraft on or in the vicinity of the moon. The samples were transferred to an Earth return capsule, and the ascent stage was then deliberately crashed into the moon. TEI is scheduled for December 12, landing after a skip reentry on December 16. The lander unfurled a Chinese flag on the moon for the first time.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 5 of 18 December 2020
First Operational Crew Dragon Mission Launches
The four astronauts of the Crew-1 mission docked with ISS on November 17, just 27 hours after launch from KSC. This flight marks the culmination of the Commercial Crew Program begun by NASA in 2010. Bragging rights for SpaceX, too: it was awarded a CCDev contract in 2014, ath the same time as Boeing, but Boeing’s Starliner has yet to finish a successful unmanned test, let alone deliver any astronauts to orbit. The four astronauts on Crew-1 join NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of ISS Expedition 64, who have been on ISS since October; Crew-1 will have a six-month stay on ISS. Having a larger crew aboard allows NASA to more than double the amount of research conducted per week in the U.S. part of the space station.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 7 of 18 December 2020
Rocket Lab Joins Reusable Booster Club
Rocket Lab recovered the first stage of its two-stage Electron rocket for the first time on November 19, fishing the booster out of the Pacific Ocean about 400 miles from its New Zealand launch site a few hours after it had helped launch a 30-satellite mission aptly called "Return to Sender." The recovery vessel encountered 6.5-foot swells at the splashdown site, "so it was a pretty lively event out there," company founder and CEO Peter Beck said. "Ironically, the stage survived in really great condition after coming back from space, but it did take a bit of a beating out at sea." And things got really sporty on the way back to shore, when the ship and its crew battled 16.5-foot swells.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 12 of 18 December 2020
More Records for Falcon 9
How time flies. It was only in 2015 that SpaceX managed its first successful landing of a Falcon 9 first stage, and now the number of successful landings is up to 67. On November 24, Falcon 9 lauched for the 100th time. The first stage recovery set a record of its own; that particular stage landed successfully for the 7th time. The stage first flew in September 2018 on the launch of the Telstar 18 Vantage satellite. Next came the final Iridium mission in January 2019. The next four launches, like this one, were Starlink missions, starting in May 2019, and most recently August 2020. This flight carried 60 more Starlink satellites. SpaceX has now launched 955 Starlink satellites, of which 895 are in orbit. Beta testing of their broadband internet ervice has begun. Falcon 9 has launched 23 times so far this year.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 15 of 18 December 2020
Nanoracks Commercial Airlock Arrives at ISS Aboard Upgraded Cargo Dragon
CRS-21, the first upgraded version of the SpaceX Dragon cargo ship, launched on December 6 and arrived at ISS the following day. It was the first unmanned spacecraft with the ability to dock itself to the space station automatically, which it did flawlessly. Previous cargo Dragons have parked near the station and been hauled in by astonauts using the Canadarm. Since Crew-1 Dragon recently delivered four astronauts to ISS, this is also the first time two Dragons have been docked to the station at the same time. CRS-21 delivered 6,400 lbs. (2,903 kg) of supplies and equipment, including the Bishop commercial airlock developed by Nanoracks and holiday goodies for the astronauts, including cherry blueberry cobbler, roasted turkey, macaroni and cheese, potatoes au gratin, corn, green beans and shortbread cookies with "sparkle gel" for decorating. ISS is beginning to look like Deep Space 9; there are currently six spacecraft (two crew and four cargo ships) docked at the station.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Update Page 16 of 18 December 2020
Revised FAA Commercial Space Regulations are Almost Here
The FAA began to rewrite its launch and reentry licensing rules two-and-a-half years ago. The new regulation is due to be published for public comment soon, and will become law 90 days thereafter. Key revisions allow a single operator’s license to be used for multiple launches from multiple sites, said FAA associate administrator for commercial space transportation Wayne Monteith. “It eliminates duplicative requirements in different launch ranges, and reduces regulatory language by about 85 percent.” United Launch Alliance CEO tory Bruno likes what he sees. In a SpaceNews op-ed he says “These clarified rules provide a solid foundation for the commercial rocket launch industry — ensuring that launch companies can understand and follow the rules while keeping critical national infrastructure and American citizens safe when launching.”