by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

NASA rejected space station development proposals from Maverick Space Systems, Orbital Assembly Corporation (OAC) and ThinkOrbital, according to a newly released document.

The three companies were competing for funding under the space agency’s Commercial LEO Destinations (CLD) program. The effort is focused on the development of private commercial space stations that will provide the the United States with uninterrupted access to Earth orbit when the International Space Station (ISS) is retired in 2030.

NASA awarded $415.6 million for space station proposals from Blue Origin, Nanoracks and Northrop Grumman under the CLD program. The space agency also rejected proposals from SpaceX and Relativity Space.

WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — The NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS)—a state-of-the-art asteroid detection system operated by the University of Hawaiʻi (UH) Institute for Astronomy (IfA) for the agency’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO)—has reached a new milestone by becoming the first survey capable of searching the entire dark sky every 24 hours for near-Earth objects (NEOs) that could pose a future impact hazard to Earth. Now comprised of four telescopes, ATLAS has expanded its reach to the southern hemisphere from the two existing northern-hemisphere telescopes on Haleakalā and Maunaloa in Hawai’i to include two additional observatories in South Africa and Chile. 

OTTAWA, Ont. (Telesat PR) — Telesat (NASDAQ and TSX: TSAT), one of the world’s largest and most innovative satellite operators, and Cobham SATCOM, a leading global provider of satellite communications solutions to the land and maritime sectors, have announced an Agreement to deploy high-performance Cobham SATCOM 3-axis TRACKER 4000 terminals for the Telesat Lightspeed Landing Station network.

Under the terms of the agreement, Cobham SATCOM will manufacture, integrate, and install advanced Ka-band tracking antennas at Telesat’s sites throughout the world, and provide long-term logistics and maintenance support. The radome-protected antennas will provide accurate tracking in the most adverse weather conditions, ensuring high availability and throughput for carrier-grade performance.  Based on Cobham SATCOM’s successful TRACKER Gateway series, the Landing Station terminals offer industry-leading performance, high reliability, and low total cost of ownership. 

CHANTILLY, Va., February 2, 2022 (NRO PR) — The National Reconnaissance Office successfully launched the NROL-87 mission aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex-4E located at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 12:27 p.m. PST. NROL-87 is the 60th launch since NRO began publicly disclosing launches in December 1996.

NASA has released the selection statement that lays out the space agency’s reasoning for awarding Nanoracks, Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman a total of $415.6 million to develop plans for private space stations under the Commercial LEO Destinations (CLD) program. The facilities are designed to maintain a permanent U.S. presence in Earth orbit when the International Space Station (ISS) is retired in 2030.

In this story, we’ll look at the Blue Origin’s Orbital Reef station. The project summary is drawn from publicly available information. Excerpts from the selection statement follow. Long paragraphs in the latter have been broken up to improve readability. Acronyms have been spelled out for the sake of clarity.

MOSCOW (Rosatom PR) — The Russian Space Systems holding (part of the Roscosmos State Corporation) has developed a project for a promising solar space power plant (SCES). It is designed to supply power to hard-to-reach – island, mountainous and northern – regions of the Earth, as well as for scheduled and emergency recharging of spacecraft.

How does a space solar station differ from those familiar to everyone on the ground? In the Earth’s atmosphere, the sun’s rays are scattered and partially lose their energy efficiency. In outer space, the efficiency of using solar energy is ten times higher. RCS scientists proposed to convert it into a laser beam and transmit it to Earth with minimal energy loss.

Speech
Kings College London
1 February 2022

It’s a huge pleasure to be here today on the next step in our execution of the Integrated Review, the Defence Command Paper and Defence and Security Industrial Strategy.

A lot has happened in Defence in the last year. From assisting in homeland resilience in issues as varied at vaccine delivery to Heavy Goods Vehicle support to the largest Royal Navy deployment in decades making our positive presence felt on the far side of the world.

Above all, as I speak, the Defence Secretary is meeting NATO partners, discussing the truly concerning situation on Ukraine’s borders – the most serious threat of a major war on our continent since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

However the British people know that what they can always expect from UK Defence is calm, determined, delivery.

• Space debris is a major threat to the satellite services we rely on
• 13 projects involve industry and academia across the UK

SWINDON, UK (UK Space Agency PR) — The UK Space Agency is providing £1.7 million [US $2.3 million] for new projects to support sustainable space operations, Science Minister George Freeman announced today.

The 13 new projects will help track and remove dangerous debris in space. They include an AI-based tool which can take autonomous action to avoid a collision and another which will see multiple small spacecraft fired at debris before taking it into the atmosphere to dispose of it.

• UK’s first Defence Space Strategy published today to address growing threats
• £1.4 billion invested in cutting-edge technology to protect UK interests in space
• UK will strengthen partnerships with key allies and NATO to build stability and resilience

LONDON (Ministry of Defence PR) — The UK will invest £1.4 billion [US $1.9 billion] to bolster our national interests in space, as part of the first Defence Space Strategy published today.

Following publication of the National Space Strategy in September last year, the Defence Space Strategy (DSS) outlines how Defence will protect the UK’s national interests in space in an era of ever-growing threats, stimulating growth across the sector and supporting highly skilled jobs across the UK.

SpaceX’s Starlink has promised fast broadband service from its network of thousands of Earth orbiting satellites. The company has now introduced a new premium service level promising even faster broadband service at five times the cost of the original package. Subscribers to the new service will pay $2,500 plus shipping for a larger antenna and $500 per month. A $500 deposit is required to order the service, with equipment scheduled […]

HOUSTON (NASA PR) — NASA and its international partners approved crew members for Axiom Space’s first private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. The flight, called Axiom Mission 1 or Ax-1, is targeted to launch Wednesday, March 30, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a flight-proven SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The Ax-1 crew will fly on Crew Dragon Endeavour to and from the space station. After 10 days in orbit, the Ax-1 crew will splash down off the coast of Florida.