Expedition 26 and STS-133 crew members share a meal in the Unity node of the International Space Station. (Credit: NASA)

NASA and a Texas company are exploring the possibility of using a “3D printer” on deep space missions in a way where the “D” would stand for dining.

NASA has awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I contract to Systems and Materials Research Consultancy of Austin, Texas to study the feasibility of using additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing, for making food in space.

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Space-X CEO Elon Musk speakes during the June 7, 2013 signing ceremony at the Space-X facility in Hawthorne, Calif. (Credit: USAF/Joe Juarez)

by Alicia Garges
SMC Public Affairs

LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — The Space and Missile Systems Center has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Space Exploration Technologies Corp., better known as SpaceX, as part of the company’s effort to certify its Falcon 9 v1.1 Launch System for National Security Space (NSS) missions. This cooperative agreement facilitates data exchanges and protects proprietary and export-controlled data. The CRADA will be in effect until all certification activities are complete.
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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., June 11, 2013 (ERAU PR) — Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s new Commercial Space Operations degree program, the first of its kind in the world, will sponsor Teachers in Space summer workshops for the next five years.

A project of the Space Frontier Foundation (SFF), Teachers in Space stimulates student interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by giving teachers authentic astronaut training and real space science experiences combined with information and resources they can take back with them to their classrooms.

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Bellevue, Washington, June 11, 2013 (Planetary Resources PR) – Alien planets are out there and Planetary Resources needs your help to find them! That’s right, the same high-powered telescope technology being used by Planetary Resources to identify near-Earth asteroids can also be used to hunt for what scientists call extrasolar planets or “exoplanets” – which are very much alien worlds. For the first-time ever, this capability will be placed directly into the hands of students, researchers and citizen scientists.

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By Andrew Nelson
Chief Operating Officer,
XCOR Aerospace

Just a quick note while I have a moment to stop and reflect in the thick of NSRC 2013. Specifically, I want to address some new rules being proposed by the US State Department on export controls for manned suborbital space vehicles designed for commercial spaceflight.

At the end of May, the Department of State published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (or NPRM) Rule 78 FR 31 444 (pdf)– that did a great thing. The DoS proposed a move of commercial satellites from the US Department of Defense (DoD) Munitions List to the Department of Commerce’s commerce control list (CCL).  This is a great step for the industry. Since the time commercial satellites were placed on the munitions list in 1999, the commercial satellite industry was almost wiped out.

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WhiteKnightTwo Flight Test Summaries Via Scaled Composites Flight: 126 Date: 06 Jun 13 Flight Time: 1.4 hr WK2 Pilot: Sturckow WK2 CoPilot: Stucky WK2 FTE: Penney Objectives: Virgin Galactic WK2 Experimental Authorization checkride Results: Objective achieved. Congratulations to CJ Sturckow! Flight: 125 Date: 06 Jun 13 Flight Time: 2.3 hr WK2 Pilot: Masucci WK2 CoPilot: Stucky WK2 FTE: Penney Objectives: Virgin Galactic WK2 Experimental Authorization checkride Results: Objective achieved. Congratulations […]

China launched three taikonauts into orbit this morning aboard the Shenzhou 10 spacecraft for the second and final human visit to the Tiangong 1 space station. The crew is set for a 15-day space mission. Commander Nie Haisheng and crew mates Zhang Xiaoguan and Wang Yaping rocketed into orbit aboard a Long March 2F/G from Pad 921 at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center’s LC43 Launch Complex. The launch went off […]

WASHINGTON (FTC PR) — The Federal Trade Commission has closed its investigation into the proposed acquisition of rocket engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne by aerospace company GenCorp Inc.  Although the FTC concluded that the deal will give GenCorp a monopoly in the market for a type of advanced missile defense interceptor propulsion system, the Commission decided not to challenge the transaction, primarily because the Department of Defense wishes to see the transaction go forward for national security reasons.

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PLANE CRAZY SATURDAY
Mojave Air & Space Port
Mojave, Calif.
June 15, 2013
10 A.M. – 2 P.M.

Mojave Air and Space Port Gate Guard – Convair CV-990, formerly flown by NASA as medium-altitude research platform and Landing Systems Research Aircraft (LSRA) that tested space shuttle landing gear and braking systems, will be highlighted as the Aircraft of the Month for June!

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Bellevue, Wash., June 10, 2013 (Planetary Resources PR) – Planetary Resources, Inc., the asteroid mining company, announced today the hiring of Peter Marquez to lead the company’s global engagement. Marquez will engage with key U.S. government entities on matters of strategic domestic and global interest to assist Planetary Resources in achieving its long-term mission. The company’s objective is to mine near-Earth asteroids using innovative and cost-effective robotic exploration technologies to access raw materials ranging from elements used in rocket fuel to precious metals.

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