Illustration of proposed Gilmour Space launch pad at Abbot Point. (Credit: Gilmour Space)
BRISBANE, Australia, 20 May 2021 (Gilmour Space PR) — Locals and tourists in the Whitsunday region could soon be watching rockets launching into space with the Queensland government today announcing its support for the local space launch industry.
In a statement, Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development Steven Miles said: “Growing our space industry in Queensland will add billions to the economy and create thousands of local jobs. That’s why we are committed the development of launch infrastructure.
Prototype bi-functional temperature and magnetic sensors based on graphene, placed in the 3D-printed holder seen at their centre. Graphene is the thinnest material known – possessing the thickness of a single atom but 200 times stronger than steel – with a reputation for versatility. Now an ESA-backed project has come up with yet another use for this ‘wonder stuff’, as the basis for a combined temperature and magnetism sensor. (Credit: AGP)
PARIS (ESA PR) — Graphene is the thinnest material known – possessing the thickness of a single atom but 200 times stronger than steel – and has a reputation for versatility. Now an ESA-backed project has come up with yet another use for this ‘wonder stuff’, as the basis for a combined temperature and magnetism sensor.
WASHINGTON — NASA Administrator Sen. Bill Nelson issued the following statement Wednesday after the China National Space Administration’s release of the first photos from the Zhurong Mars rover: “Congratulations to the China National Space Administration on receiving the first images from the Zhurong Mars rover!” Nelson said. “As the international scientific community of robotic explorers on Mars grows, the United States and the world look forward to the discoveries Zhurong […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., May 19, 2021 (Redwire PR) – Redwire, a new leader in mission critical space solutions and high reliability components for the next generation space economy, announced today the hiring of Colonel Dean Bellamy, USAF, Ret., as its Executive Vice President of National Security Space, effective May 10, 2021.
Col. Bellamy comes to Redwire from national security technology company Peraton, where he was Vice President of Space Strategies and Development. In that position, he produced long-range strategies to help Peraton meet its space portfolio’s objectives, and drew on his expert knowledge of program management, leadership and satellite operations developed through his years of service in the military. In addition to developing these strategies, Col. Bellamy took an active role in their implementation.
As Redwire’s Executive Vice President of National Security Space, Col. Bellamy will bring his experience and expertise in strategic planning and program management in both the private sector and as a military officer to set and achieve new space development goals while meeting the needs of Redwire’s national security customers.
An unclassified report on these unidentified aerial phenomena is due to Congress in June. They might not be of terrestrial origin. We’ve been looking for life on Mars and elsewhere for decades. It might have found us.
Illustration of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. (Credits: Firefly Aerospace)
CEDAR PARK, Texas, May 20, 2021 (Firefly Aerospace PR) – Firefly Aerospace Inc., a leading provider of economical and dependable launch vehicles, spacecraft, and in-space services, announced today that it has awarded a contract to SpaceX to launch its Blue Ghost lunar lander in 2023. Blue Ghost will be carrying 10 payloads for NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order 19D mission, in addition to separately contracted commercial payloads.
PARIS (ESA PR) — As international teams across the world forge plans to revisit the Moon, ESA is elaborating how best to facilitate this exploration. As part of its Moonlight initiative, the agency is encouraging European space companies to put a constellation of telecommunications and navigation satellites around the Moon. To succeed, the proposed lunar missions will require reliable navigation and telecommunication capabilities. Building these independently would be costly, complex […]
Synthetaic provides the US Air Force with faster ways to monitor change, extract key insights, and enable automation through AI models with minimal human labeling.
DELAFIELD, Wisc., May 20, 2021 (Synthetaic PR) – Synthetaic, the leading synthetic data company, today announced it has won a contract with AFWERX, a program of the USAF focused on expanding technology, talent, and transition partnerships for rapid and affordable commercial and military capability. Synthetaic’s Rapid Automatic Image Categorization technology (RAIC) will enable rapid object labeling, AI modeling, and Earth Observation object detection by analyzing large, multidimensional imagery datasets.
In order to achieve optimal operational value, customers require ways to rapidly find and identify objects, and extract key insights from imagery data with minimal human machine interaction. Synthetaic empowers ad hoc labeling and searching through a new approach of massive data scale processing and AI model building. The technology also allows non-expert labelers to annotate objects of interest, and build and run detection AI models in minutes instead of days or weeks.
Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo’s first flight above 50 miles on Dec. 13, 2018. (Credit: Virgin Galactic)
LAS CRUCES, N.M (Virgin Galactic PR) — Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SPCE) (“Virgin Galactic” or the “Company”), a vertically integrated aerospace and space travel company, today confirmed that the next rocket-powered test flight of SpaceShipTwo Unity will be conducted on May 22, pending weather and technical checks. This follows the completion of a maintenance review of VMS Eve, the mothership jet aircraft designed to carry SpaceShipTwo to an altitude of approximately 50,000 feet.
Paragon Space Development Corporation will continue development of an aerobot for exploring Venus form the air and a system to extract ice from the lunar regolith with the help of a pair of NASA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II awards.
The Mechanical-compression Aerobot for extended Range Venus ExpLoration (MARVEL) would be an autonomous robotic balloon vehicle capable of carrying scientific payloads through the Venusian atmosphere. Paragon has teamed with Thin Red Line Aerospace to develop MARVEL.
The Astrobotic CubeRover traverses the terrain in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Laboratory regolith bin on Dec. 10, 2020. Also in the bin is NASA’s Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR), a robotic platform designed to dig on the Moon. The regolith bin simulates the Moon’s surface. (Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett)
Astrobotic will develop a wireless charging system for use on the lunar surface with the help of a NASA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award.
PARIS (ESA PR) — ESA is backing a bold proposal to create a commercially viable constellation of satellites around the Moon. Dozens of international, institutional and commercial teams are planning to send missions to the Moon, envisaging a permanent human lunar presence. Using a shared telecommunications and navigation service would reduce the design complexity of future individual missions and make them lighter, freeing space for more scientific instruments or other […]
