Monthly Archives: November 2020

Why is NASAs SpaceX Crew-1 launch significant? What are the other trends in the commercial space sector?

The story so far: Perhaps the most stunning instance of a collaboration between public enterprises and the private sector in recent times is that between NASA and SpaceX. It is stunning because of the sheer extent of the frontier it is trying to breach. With its reusable rockets, large capsules to carry payloads and crew and competitive pricing, SpaceX has revolutionised the space sector. The latest instances of this include the launch of the Crew Dragon spacecraft on November 15, which carried to the International Space Station four astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover and Shannon Walker of NASA and Soichi Noguchi of the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). Another recent feat is the launch on November 24 of 60 more Starlink Internet relay satellites into the orbit. These, and thousands more like these, are designed for the purpose of providing broadband services to people anywhere on Earth.

In India too, we have seen the yielding of governmental control over the space industry bit by bit, starting from hiring of vendors and active outsourcing of rocket components to the present idea of allowing external agencies to use ISRO facilities. There has also been a shift from a mandated focus on utilitarian projects to those focused on exploring space and our planetary neighbours, the Moon, the Sun and so on. It is not too much to expect that soon, India may also see the emergence of collaborations like that between SpaceX and NASA.

Also read | ISRO gearing up for launch of small satellite launch vehicles: Sivan

Dr. Mylswamy Annadurai, former director of ISRO Satellite Centre, notes that the collaboration between NASA and SpaceX is remarkable because it has in fact taken the American space programme to a level that had not been possible for NASA to achieve by itself. Having their own rockets to transport astronauts to the International Space Station and back has prevented Americans from spending hugely on the mission, as they were doing earlier. This was possible only because of NASAs active collaboration with SpaceX. Thus, the opening up of the space sector could have many more such advancements in store.

With the November 24 launch of 60 Starlink satellites, the total number of such satellites sent up by the company equals 955. Thousands more will join these, and the aim of this exercise is to provide Internet services that link any point on Earth to any other point. Targeting coverage in northern U.S. and Canada this year, the aim is to have the globe covered by 2021. This will be the new telecom revolution then, in the context of India, reaching out to rural areas as never before.

The cargo version of Dragon-2 spacecraft is the upgraded version of Dragon. It is a reusable spacecraft capable of returning significant cargo to the Earth from the International Space Station. At least in the case of its launch, planned for December 5, it seems that curiosity-driven science would not only survive, but would rather be enhanced. This spacecraft is not just carrying payloads for scientific experiments, but is also sporting a new commercially owned and operated airlock. An airlock is like a doorway, and the new Nanoracks Bishop Airlock Module, built by a Texas-based company, Nanoracks LLC, is an improvement over what was used earlier. This will allow larger payloads to move in and out of the spacecraft, considerably expanding the scope of experiment design and structure.

This mission also carries interesting experiments, one of which is a mixture of meteorite samples and microbes, aimed at seeing how the microbes can be used for biomining on asteroids. Another experiment aims at studying how changes in gravity can affect cardiovascular tissue. So, while there is room for curiosity-driven science, there is also the aspect of utility in the event of more humans travelling to space.

Space tourism could become more common as space travel becomes less expensive. There are companies now, such as Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin and SpaceX, that will offer space flights, albeit for a very high fee. While the first two may allow the customer to experience a few minutes of only microgravity, the last company can, in principle, take space travellers to the International Space Station, where they could spend even weeks. Perhaps this is the stepping-stone to a future colony on the Moon, and should it come through, we will not be without Internet connections there.

Read more:

The Hindu Explains | Would space exploration survive in the era of privatisation? - The Hindu

Motiv Space Systems is designing specialist robotic equipment for the next generation of commercial space exploration, and the extreme off-world environments that astronauts face.

The Mars helicopter weighs just under four pounds and will be strapped to the Perseverance rover's underside during launch and landing.

Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech

In 2023, NASA will embark on an ambitious mission to find out whether it's possible to establish a long-term presence on the moon. Cited as the first step in the next era of human exploration, it is hoped that Project Artemis will lay the foundations for a new generation of commercial spaceflight one that will eventually see astronauts sent to Mars. But alongside those astronauts there are going to be many robots of all shapes and sizes.

Motiv Space Systems is one of the companies that hopes to pave the way for this new era of extraplanetary exploration. Established in 2014, and located just a few miles from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), much of Motiv's staff started their careers at JPL or in other divisions at NASA.

SEE:NASA to build lunar 4G network(TechRepublic)

Despite being a small company, one of Motiv's biggest programmes has involved working with NASA on the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover specifically, designing the robotic arm that will allow the multi-million dollar rover to collect samples from the Martian surface when it touches down in February 2021. From these samples, scientists hope to discover whether life can or has ever existed on the Martian surface.

Work on the Perseverance project was a multi-year activity, with Motiv working side by side with JPL to design and build the robotic arm, perform R&D, analytical elements and testing, and then helping to integrate it into the rover itself.

"Now that's in cruise we're just a few months from landing on Mars and we're really excited about that," Tom McCarthy, VP businesses development at Motiv Space Systems, tells TechRepublic.

"That type of technique has been done for comets and asteroids, but to actually go and land, and pick up samples and then go through all of the trials and tribulates of getting those samples back safely to Earth is quite an undertaking, yet something that's very, very exciting."

Designing robotics for space exploration poses a unique set of challenges for engineers. For one, extreme swings in temperature in outer space and on extraplanetary bodies make material selection a critical design consideration, particularly as many traditional electronics can't operate in cryogenic temperatures.

This has been a primary focus for another of Motiv's work under NASA's Artemis programme, which aims to establish a long-term human presence on the Moon by the end of the decade. Motiv's contributions lie within some of the precursor missions, which will see robotic landers sent to the moon to carry out experiments ahead of any astronauts' arrival.

Specifically, the Pasadena company is developing technology for the lander capable of withstanding the extreme temperature swings on the lunar surface, which range from nearly 130C during the day to as low as minus -180C at night. The technology is called the Cold Operable Lunar Deployable Arm or 'COLDArm' and involves using a mechanical solution for operating without lubricants as well as electronics that work in cryogenic temperatures.

"There are not many space components that can survive, much less operate throughout the cold lunar night," McCarthy explains.

"What makes the design for the COLDArm unique is not just that the robotic arm will be capable of operating at -180C (as compared to standard space component minimum temperatures of -55C), but to do so without energy-consuming heaters typical on space systems.

"There are families of electronics that actually work in cryogenic temperatures. The key is to identify those, and make sure those components make up a system that will be reliable at those extreme temperatures."

For the early Artemis missions, robots will only have to survive a few lunar days and therefore only a few large thermal swings. However, the ambition is for long-term human habitation, which brings its own set of technological requirements for the astronauts heading there in the next 10 years.

SEE:Editorial calendar: IT policies, checklists, toolkits, and research for download(TechRepublic Premium)

"I think robotics will play a huge role ensuring safety and sustainability for human exploration in those destinations," says McCarthy.

"You want to maximize the exploration time of the human, and you want to minimize the burden or maintenance task of the human, and so you have the robots perform those for you."

Robots will also have an important role to play in establishing habitable environments for humans on the moon, as well as seeking out resources such as water ice than can be tapped by human explorers.

"I think that in many cases you'll need to have robots kind of lead the way, to make sure that there's a safe environment for humans who want to maintain a presence there," says McCarthy.

"There will be an infrastructure needing to be built, and I don't think of humans using the picks and shovels to build the infrastructure I think [it will be] robots using them."

Taking materials that can be used for building off-world habitats carries considerable physical and logistical challenges, namely that the larger the payload you want to take into orbit, the larger the rocket required.

This is why scientists are beginning to explore modularity as a way of taking materials into orbit piece by piece and constructing them on arrival.

SEE:Cleaning up space debris around our home planet(TechRepublic)

"There's a lot of attention being paid by a variety of government entities that see that, if you can build systems on orbit, you can bring pieces up as opposed to completely build systems that are folded into a fairing of a rocket," says McCarthy.

Motiv is already actively exploring this area with another of its solutions, the xLink. Created by the same team that developed the arm for the Perseverance Rover, the xLink is a robotic arm that takes a building block-like approach to its design so that it can be customized and scaled according to its use case, from servicing satellites on-orbit and extending their mission life by upgrading them with new capabilities, to collecting samples from rovers traversing new planets.

The xLink is eventually destined for commercial use, although its first planned mission is aboard NASA's OSAM-2 (On-orbit Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing) spacecraft. Expected to launch no earlier than 2022, the OSAM-2 spacecraft will use the xLink to position 3D-printing elements that will manufacture a 60-foot-plus solar array on-orbit, which scientists hope will eventually generate up to five times the power of traditional solar panels on similarly sized spacecraft.

"There is no rocket that, by itself, could launch a solution that could fit that bill. But, if you could take the pieces with you and assemble them in orbit, and in this kind of modular fashion, now you have this system that is expandable," says McCarthy.

"That's an area that xLink can be scaled to meet the need, and become a very powerful tool in the development of those types of systems."

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To the moon and beyond: The robots that are blazing a trail for human space exploration - TechRepublic

Biden, like many people on the left, believes that climate change is the existential crisis of our age. NASA will be drafted to do its part by putting up more Earth observation satellites. The pace of the return to the moon, not to mention expeditions to Mars, will be slowed.

The Biden approach to NASA seemed to be expressed best by Lori Garver, who served as NASAs deputy administrator during the Obama administration. According to the Space Review, she said, If we dont put some really significant resources into allowing humanity to be sustained on this planet, were not going to have the time to leave it. You cant really do one without the other.

That last sentence is truer than, perhaps, Garver realizes. An article in Astronomy Magazine suggests that the ultimate solution to climate change will be to move resource extraction and heavy industry off the planet. The notion seems like science fiction, but some very serious people are looking at the idea of a space-based industrial revolution. Jeff BezosJeffrey (Jeff) Preston BezosElon Musk passes Bill Gates to become world's second-richest person in Bloomberg rankings How space exploration will help to address climate change Bezos makes first donations from billion Earth Fund MORE, who made his billions from Amazon.com and now runs a space launch company called Blue Origin, suggests zoning Earth for residential areas and light industries. Mining and manufacturing, two of the biggest sources of environmental pollution, would move off the planet.

The moon and asteroids are the sources of untold mineral wealth. A single asteroid, 16 Psyche, is said to contain 10,000 quadrillion dollars worth of metals. The quoted figure is somewhat misleading. If one were to bring all the gold on 16 Psyche to Earth, its price would collapse, making it into a cheap, industrial metal.

The point, however, is that only by turning humankind into a space-faring civilization can we avoid environmental catastrophe while maintaining technological progress. The fact further suggests that the Artemis program has an environmental dimension that Team Biden would do well to recognize and to consider when formulating space policy for the incoming administration.

American law already recognizes the right of companies to extract resources from the moon and other celestial bodies, thanks to Title IV of the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act. The act was passed in 2015 on a bipartisan basis and signed into law by Obama.

Currently, NASA has been attempting to gain international recognition of Earth humans right to extract and own space resources as part of the Artemis Accords. The accords have been signed by nine nations, besides the United States, with more to follow.

The point of all of this, going back to what Garver said, is that climate change and space exploration are inseparably linked. She likely meant that Earth needs to be sustained so that humankind can expand into space. However, the opposite is also true. Humankind must expand into space so that the Earth, the pale blue dot that the late-Carl Sagan once celebrated, can be preserved.

Slowing down Artemis so that NASA will have more money for a few more Earth observation satellites would be counterproductive, if the goal is to find a permanent solution to climate change. If Team Biden is really interested in using NASA as part of the solution to environmental pollution, including greenhouse gas emissions, they would be well advised to speed Artemis up, not slow it down.

Developing a space industrial infrastructure will be the work of some decades. The first astronauts to return to the moon will busy themselves with developing the technology for mining Earths nearest neighbor and turning the extracted resources into useful products. NASAs commercial partners will compete to create a transportation network that will send people and tools into space and bring finished products back to Earth cheaply and reliably.

Team Biden should resist the temptation to go slow on Artemis just because it was started by Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpPennsylvania Supreme Court strikes down GOP bid to stop election certification Biden looks to career officials to restore trust, morale in government agencies Sunday shows preview: US health officials brace for post-holiday COVID-19 surge MORE. Biden should make Artemis his own. In so doing he just might crown a long political career by saving the planet and improving the future.

Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space and politics, has published a political study of space exploration entitled Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? as well as The Moon, Mars and Beyond. He blogs at Curmudgeons Corner. He is published in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Hill, USA Today, the LA Times, and the Washington Post, among other venues.

More:

How space exploration will help to address climate change | TheHill - The Hill

Now, scientists have gathered the largest set of data about space biology to date based on astronauts including the Kelly twins, mice and insects that have flown on the space station.

The 30 studies, authored by more than 200 researchers from around the world, represent the largest body of information on the risks of space flight to the human body.

The studies identify six key molecular changes that may have a significant impact on astronaut health. Understanding these changes is key for preparing for long-term spaceflight missions to the moon and Mars in the future.

Risks of deep space missions

The six molecular changes that occur during spaceflight include DNA damage, oxidative stress, alterations of telomere length, shifts in the microbiome, mitochondrial dysfunction and gene regulation.

Oxidative stress happens when free radicals overwhelm antioxidants in a cell, encouraged by the space environment. This type of stress was found to be largely connected to the other molecular changes the researchers observed.

These changes on a cellular and molecular level can have a significant impact on astronaut health, both during and after their missions. These impacts have been observed on the cardiovascular, central nervous, musculoskeletal, immune and gastrointestinal systems, as well as causing disruptions to circadian rhythms and changes in vision.

Increased cancer risks have also been associated with these changes.

One of the new studies also identified clonal hematopoiesis, when blood cells carrying mutations spread more quickly than others, as a potential risk among astronauts for cardiovascular disease, lymphoma and leukemia. Clonal hematopoiesis was identified in blood samples from astronauts 20 years before the average age when it is normally detected at age 70, compared to 157 cancer patients.

So far, missions to the space station have not exceeded a year, but deep space missions to Mars could last up to five years.

"Understanding the health implications from the (6) features and developing effective countermeasures and health systems are key steps in enabling humanity to reach the next stage of space exploration," the authors wrote at the conclusion of their study spanning the effects of spaceflight.

DNA damage

Telomeres act like caps at the ends of chromosomes to protect them and they shorten as people age.

During the Twins Study, the telomeres in Scott's white blood cells actually grew longer in space and returned to a normal length after he returned to Earth.

In a new study, the blood samples of 10 astronauts collected before and after spaceflight were studied and compared with the results of the Twins Study.

Although these astronauts were shielded from some space radiation during their six-month stays on the space station since it's in low-Earth orbit, the researchers still spotted evidence of damage to their DNA.

The astronauts' telomeres elongated in space due to chronic oxidative stress sustained during spaceflight. Once they returned to Earth, their telomeres were shorter than before spaceflight.

"We now have a foundation to build on - things we know to look for in future astronauts, including telomere length changes and DNA damage responses," said Susan Bailey, author on three of the studies and Colorado State University professor, said in a statement.

"Going forward, our goal is to get a better idea of underlying mechanisms, of what's going on during long-duration space flight in the human body, and how it varies between people."

Bailey, an expert on radiation damage to DNA and telomeres, was also an investigator for the Twins Study.

While longer telomeres may sound like an advantage of space travel, Bailey suspects this effect could lead to other risks rather than serving as a fountain of youth.

"Extended lifespan, or immortality, of cells that have suffered space radiation-induced DNA damage, such as chromosomal inversions, is a recipe for increased cancer risk," Bailey said. "Telomeres really are reflective of our lifestyles - whether on or off the planet. Our choices do make a difference in how quickly or how well we are aging. It's important to take care of your telomeres."

It's all in the mitochondria

Health issues specific to astronauts include muscle and bone loss, heart and liver problems and immune system dysfunction.

Now, researchers believe these issues are rooted in a broader issue called mitochondrial dysfunction.

Mitochondria are the powerhouses that generate chemical energy required for cells. And when they're exposed to altered gravity or radiation, they essentially malfunction.

"What we found over and over was that something is happening with the mitochondria regulation that throws everything out of whack."

Their study included data from the Twins Study, animal studies and samples from 59 astronauts.

When the mitochondria are suppressed, ripple effects can be observed across the liver, other organs and in the immune system. The researchers believe this dysfunction could also explain the issues astronauts have with disrupted circadian rhythms (body clock) and even cardiovascular issues.

Understanding the root of the problem could help researchers target it.

"There are already many approved drugs for various mitochondrial disorders, which would make it easier to move them toward this application," Beheshti said. "The low-hanging fruit now would be to test some of these drugs with animal and cell models in space."

Heart stress in space

A study using fruit flies born on the space station, which means they spent half of their lives in space, showed that their hearts were smaller and less efficient at pumping blood. And if astronauts live on the moon or the surface of Mars for a lengthy mission, they may experience something similar.

"For the first time, we can see the cellular and molecular changes that may underlie the heart conditions seen in astronaut studies," said Karen Ocorr, co-senior author of the study and assistant professor in the Development, Aging and Regeneration Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, in a statement.

"We initiated this study to understand the effects of microgravity on the heart, and now we have a roadmap we can use to start to develop strategies to keep astronaut hearts strong and healthy."

Fruit fly hearts are similar to those of humans when we're in the womb. The flies were returned to Earth and had their heart function tested by seeing how they fared when climbing up the side of a test tube.

"In the normal fly heart, the muscle fibers work like your fingers when they squeeze a tube of toothpaste. In the space flies, the contraction was like trying to get toothpaste out by pressing down instead of squeezing," Ocorr said. "For humans, this could become a big problem."

The benefits of understanding how the human heart functions in space could help those with heart issues on Earth -- and those planning on future space missions.

"As we continue our work to establish a colony on the moon and send the first astronauts to Mars, understanding the effects of extended time in microgravity on the human body is imperative," said Sharmila Bhattacharya, study author and senior scientist at NASA, in a statement.

"Today's results show that microgravity can have dramatic effects on the heart, suggesting that medical intervention may be needed for long-duration space travel, and point to several directions for therapeutic development."

Excerpt from:

Astronauts experience these key changes in space that could impact their health, new research shows - CNN

The space trade is skyrocketing higher.

The Procure Space ETF (UFO), the first-ever global ETF to give investors access to the growing space industry, has soared nearly 20% in November amid some positive tailwinds including SpaceX's historic Crew-1 launch with NASA, the first of its kind conducted by a private company.

Though some of the upside is likely tied to hopes around Joe Biden's presidency and how it could progress the space race, the impact could be more nuanced than some may think, Andrew Chanin, co-founder and CEO of ProcureAM, told CNBC's "ETF Edge" this week.

"We're actually really encouraged, although the previous administration has really done a lot to push the space industry forward, both from a commercial and military and defense standpoint," Chanin said Monday.

"Space ... isn't something that is bipartisan. It's nonpartisan," he said. "So, we believe that space is something that's here to stay and should and will be potentially a priority for any administration in the future."

President-elect Biden is expected to toe the Democratic Party line on space policy, likely prolonging the new age of human spaceflight and steering NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration towards studying the impacts of climate change.

For UFO which requires 80% of its holdings to be "pure plays" on space, or derive 50% of their revenues from space-related businesses a "new set of eyes" may be beneficial, Chanin said.

UFO's top five holdings are Orbcomm at roughly 6.5%, Virgin Galactic at over 6%, SES at nearly 6%, Maxar Technologies at about 5% and Trimble at almost 5%. Communications, aerospace and defense, and wireless communications plays account for more than 70% of the 31-stock portfolio.

"Communications is one of the largest revenue-generating areas for the space industry today. So, think satellites, think ground stations and the various equipment that relies upon satellite signals," Chanin said.

"This interview likely wouldn't be happening today without satellites helping in that process," he said. "So, as technologies like 5G, cloud computing, internet of things and so on start to rely more and more on using satellites to transfer data from point A to point B, it's something that we think could become a very large player of space."

It's worth considering adding a thematic ETF such as UFO to more traditional portfolios, Dave Nadig, chief investment officer and director of research at ETF Trends and ETF Database, said in the same "ETF Edge" interview.

"I love products like this. I think they give you a real opportunity to make a little satellite play pardon the pun in your portfolio on something that you may believe in," Nadig said.

"I do think this is well-positioned for a Biden administration, not so much because I expect all of a sudden there to be a trillion-dollar space budget, but because I think one of the things that drives these companies is actually international cooperation," he added. "A lot of the companies that are driving international space development happen to be U.S. companies. I suspect in a Biden administration we're going to see not just a focus on [research and development] and traditional NASA-style space exploration. I think we're going to see a focus on international cooperation around infrastructure."

Moreover, through UFO, investors can get "accidental exposure" to both strengthening themes such as aerospace and technology stock they may not have otherwise bought, Nadig said.

"I think it's worth taking a look at not just for the theme itself, but for those individual companies," he said. "Many of these smaller satellite companies you have no exposure to unless you're in the Russell 3000. ... Some of these are small- and mid-cap names that just are not household, in-every-portfolio kinds of names. So, thematic funds like this are a great way to sort of re-weight yourself towards innovation."

UFO climbed a fraction of a percent on Friday. It is down about 5% year to date.

Disclaimer

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The UFO ETF is up 20% this month. How a Biden administration could impact the space trade - CNBC

CHAPEL HILL For space exploration to be successful, we need to understand and address underlying causes of health issues observed in astronauts who have spent extended periods of time away from Earth. These problems include loss of bone and muscle mass, immune dysfunction, and heart and liver problems. Using data collected from a number of different resources, a multidisciplinary team led by NASA scientists reports the discovery of a common but surprising thread that drives this damage: mitochondrial dysfunction.

The researchers, whopublished their workin the journalCell, used a systems approach to look at widespread alterations affecting biological function.

We started by asking whether there is some kind of universal mechanism happening in the body in space that could explain what weve observed, said senior author Afshin Beheshti, a principal investigator and bioinformatician at KBR in the Space Biosciences Division of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), visiting researcher at the Broad Institute, and co-president at the COVID-19 International Research Team (COV-IRT).What we found over and over was that something is happening with the mitochondria regulation that throws everything out of whack.

Mitochondria are cell organelles that generate most of the chemical energy cells need for the biochemical reactions we all depend on for life. This chemical energy is stored in a small molecule called adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the molecular engines that rev biological processes such as muscle contraction and nerve impulse propagation.

To implicate mitochondrial dysfunction, the investigators analyzed data obtained from NASAs GeneLab platform, a comprehensive database that includes data from animal studies, the NASA Twin Study, and samples collected from 59 astronauts over decades of space travel. Many of the scientists who participated in this study are involved with GeneLabs Analysis Working Groups, which draw from institutions worldwide. The platform contains a range of biological data related to changes in tissues and cells that occur due to the combined effects of space radiation and microgravity, including proteomic, metabolomic, transcriptomic, and epigenomic data.

The researchers used an unbiased approach to look for correlations that could explain the widespread changes observed. We compared all these different tissues from mice that were flown in space on two different missions, and we saw that mitochondrial dysfunction kept popping up, Beheshti said. We looked at problems in the liver, and saw they were caused by pathways related to the mitochondria. Then we looked at problems in the eyes and saw the same pathways. This is when we became interested in taking a deeper look.

Jonathon Schisler. (Photo by Alyssa LaFaro)

Jonathan Schisler, PhD, assistant professor of pharmacology and pathology & laboratory medicine at the UNC School of Medicine, is a co-senior author of the paper.

This particular study is a great example of what team science can accomplish, said Schisler, who is also a member of the UNC McAllister Heart Institute. My lab focuses on the integration of complex genomic-biologic data to elucidate the relationship between complex biological functions and disease. So our expertise was a great fit for this collaboration with NASA.

Mitochondrial suppression, as well as overcompensation that can sometimes occur because of that suppression, can lead to many systemic organ responses. They can also explain many of the common changes seen in the immune system.

Using their discoveries from mice as a starting point, the researchers then looked at whether the same mechanisms could be involved with humans in space. Examining data from the NASA Twin study, in which identical twins Scott and Mark Kelly were followed over time, the former on the International Space Station and the latter on the ground, they saw many changes in mitochondrial activity. Some of these changes could explain alterations in the distribution of immune cells that occurred in Scott during his year in space. They also used physiological data and blood and urine samples that had been collected from dozens of other astronauts to confirm that mitochondria in different cell types had been suppressed.

I was completely surprised to see that mitochondria are so important, because they werent on our radar, Beheshti said. We were focusing on all the downstream components but hadnt made this connection. He added that mitochondrial dysfunction can also help explain another common problem with extended space traveldisrupted circadian rhythms. Since the team first reported their findings within NASA, other NASA scientists have begun making connections between mitochondrial changes and common space-related cardiovascular problems as well.

Schisler added, We can now ask more specific questions regarding the relationship between mitochondrial function and space flight. One challenging aspect of mitochondrial biology is the chicken and egg discussion. Are the changes in mitochondrial function resulting from other parts of the cell not working correctly, or do the elements of space directly impact the mitochondria? Its exciting that our study opens the door for the design of mitochondrial-specific countermeasures that could negate the impact of microgravity and radiation on our bodys cells to generate energy.

In conjunction with this paper, and again with a large consortium research group, Schisler co-authored acompanion article inCell Reportsthat describes how molecular-based countermeasures can protect tissues against the damage caused by space flight.

Future research will build upon both of these studies, allowing us to defend our astronauts from spaceflights pathophysiological impact on the human body so we can reach our goals of getting to Mars, Schisler said.

The hope is that now that mitochondrial issues have been identified as a cause of so many health risks related to space travel, countermeasures could be developed to address them. There are already many approved drugs for various mitochondrial disorders, which would make it easier to move them toward this application, Beheshti noted. The low-hanging fruit now would be to test some of these drugs with animal and cell models in space.

Read more about Schislerscollaboration with NASA.

This work was supported by the GeneLab Project at NASA Ames Research Center, through NASAs Space Biology Program in the Division of Space Life and Physical Sciences Research and Applications (SLPSRA); the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; the National Institutes of Health; the South Carolina Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research; the American Heart Association; and the Human Health Countermeasures Element of the NASA Human Research Program.

(C) UNC-CH

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Why does space travel create health issues? UNC, NASA scientists may have the answer - WRAL Tech Wire

Artists concept of Change 5 entering lunar orbit. Its Chinas 1st moon-sample-return mission and the 1st for the world at large since 1976. Image via China Lunar Exploration Project.

After a journey lasting 112 hours, the Change 5 spacecraft is now reported by space engineers in China to have entered orbit around the moon. The robotic mission is the first lunar sample-return mission since the 1970s. It launched last week (November 23, 2020) from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Chinas Hainan province, rising into the sky atop a Long March 5 rocket. The China Lunar Exploration Program said earlier today:

At 20:58 on November 28, the Change-5 probe flew to the moon for about 112 hours and successfully ignited a 3000 N engine at a distance of 400 kilometers [248 miles] from the lunar surface. About 17 minutes later, the engine shut down normally. According to the monitoring and judgment of real-time telemetry data, the Change-5 probe braked normally in recent months and entered the orbit around the moon smoothly.

If all goes according to plan, the new and ambitious Change 5 will haul pristine moon samples back to Earth in mid-December,something that hasnt been done since the Soviet Unions Luna 24 mission in 1976.

EarthSkys lunar calendar shows the moon phase for every day in 2021. Order yours before theyre gone! Makes a great gift.

The mission, named after the ancient Chinese goddess of the moon, will seek to collect lunar material to help scientists understand more about the moons origins and formation. Image via China Global Television Network.

Although Chinese officials have been characteristically vague about Change 5s details, we know the short mission will be action-packed. The 18,100 pound (8,200 kg) spacecraft is expected to send two of its four modules a lander and an ascent vehicle to the lunar surface within the next day or two. The mission will land in the Mons Rumker area of the huge volcanic plain Oceanus Procellarum (translated from Latin to English as Ocean of Storms). Portions of this region on the moon have been explored by a number of other surface missions, including NASAs Apollo 12 in 1969.

The stationary lander will study its environment with cameras, ground-penetrating radar, and a spectrometer, but its main job is to snag about 4.4 pounds (2 kg) of lunar material, some of which will be dug from up to 6.5 feet (2 meters) underground. This work will be done over the course of two weeks, or one lunar day. That isa firm deadline, given that the Change 5 lander is solar-powered and wont be able to operate once night falls at its location.

Mons Rumker harbors rocks that formed just 1.2 billion years ago. In contrast, the moon rocks brought home by the Apollo astronauts between 1969 and 1972 are considerably older. The Planetary Society, a nonprofit space advocacy program, explained:

The samples should be the youngest ever returned to Earth: just 1.2 billion years old, when multicellular life may have already evolved on our planet. Change-5 will help scientists understand what was happening late in the moons history, as well as how Earth and the solar system evolved.

This image of Mons Rumker on the moon was captured by Apollo 15 astronauts in 1971. It is about 43 miles (70 km) wide and rises nearly a mile (1.6 km) above the surrounding area. Image via Planetary Society.

China is often said to have been late to the space race. It didnt send its first satellite into orbit until 1970, by which time the U.S. had already landed astronauts on the moon. But China has caught up fast. Supported by billions of dollars in government investment, China has rapidly accelerated its space program over the past decade, firing space labs and satellites into orbit.

China launched the Change 1 and Change 2 orbiters in 2007 and 2010 respectively, and the Change 3 lander-rover duo that touched down on the moons near side in December 2013. Sadly, the Change 3 rover died after 31 months of work on the lunar surface when the rover became unresponsive to calls from the ground, although not before surpassing its intended lifetime and setting a new record for the longest operating rover on the lunar surface. The Change 3 rover, like all other rovers, was designed to move and explore the surface whereas its lander, which is still going strong, was built specifically to stay in place without roaming around.And in January 2019, Change 4 became the first mission ever to ace a soft landing on the moons mysterious far side. Change 4 is still currently in operation.

Change 5 is part of a recent surge in sample-return missions. On December 6, 2020, for example, pieces of the asteroid Ryugu collected by Japans Hayabusa2 mission are scheduled to touch down in Australia. More recently, NASAs OSIRIS-REx probe snagged a hefty sample of the asteroid Bennu; that material will come down to Earth in September 2023, if all goes according to plan.

Speaking to astronauts aboard the Shenzhou 10 spacecraft through a video call in 2013, Chinese president Xi Jinping said:

The space dream is part of the dream to make China stronger. The Chinese people will take bigger strides to explore further into space.

Last year, China also became the first country to send an unmanned rover to the far side of the moon. And in July this year, China launched its first unmanned mission to Mars: the Tianwen-1 probe, which will orbit the planet before landing a rover on the surface; its expected to reach the red planet next February. If Tianwen-1 is successful, Beijing has plans to eventually send a manned mission to Mars. Plans are also underway to launch a permanent space station by 2022, and send astronauts to the moon by the 2030s.

If successful, China would become only the second country, after the U.S., to put a citizen on the moon.

Bottom line: Chinas robotic Change 5 mission launched from the Wenchang Space Launch Center of Chinas Hainan province, rising into the sky atop a Long March 5 rocket at about 3:30 p.m. EST (20:30 UTC) on November 23, 2020. If all goes according to plan, the new and ambitious Change 5 will haul pristine moon samples back to Earth in mid-December, a feat not accomplished since the Soviet Unions Luna 24 mission in 1976.

Read more from The Guardian: China launches Change-5 mission to bring back rocks from moon

Read more from Scientific American: Chinas Change-5 Mission Launches to Collect Lunar Samples

Excerpt from:

Chinas Change 5 mission is orbiting the moon! - EarthSky

Astronaut Bruce McCandless II participates in a historical spacewalk.

Imagine an organism that has habituated to carrying 50 to 80 kgs of weight throughout its life and has evolved over millions of years doing just that. Suddenly, one day a member of the species flies off to a new world with no weight pushing him down. Sixty years later, members of this species now spend months in such weightless conditions. Ever wondered how their genes are affected as they adjust to this new normal?

Curiosity is a trait that has driven human species to ever greater heightsexploring every depth and height on this planet, and even travelling beyond this world and into outer space. But while humans remain more curious than ever to explore the celestial bodies around us, scientists have started to wonder how our bodies would respond to this change.

A chief barrier in humans path to long-term space exploration is our inability to survive for long in low gravity conditions. While it has been known that human beings suffer a physical decline in space, a new study has now found how living in low gravity can affect our cells at the genetic leveland it has done so using worms!

The research, conducted by the University of Exeter and the NASA GeneLab, took some Caenorhabditis elegans worms to the International Space Station and exposed them to low gravity conditions. Subsequently, a genetic analysis of these worms revealed "subtle changes" in about 1,000 genes. Stronger effects were observed in some of the genes, especially among neurons (the nervous system cells).

"We looked at levels of every gene in the worms' genome and identified a clear pattern of genetic change," said Dr Timothy Etheridge of the University of Exeter.

"These changes might help explain why the body reacts badly to space flight. It also gives us some therapy targets in terms of reducing these health effects, which are currently a major barrier to deep-space exploration."

Furthermore, this research also exposed the worms to high gravity conditions in centrifuges, and these tests provided the researchers with more data on gravity's genetic impacts while allowing them to look for possible treatments using high gravity in space.

"A crucial step towards overcoming any physiological condition is first understanding its underlying molecular mechanism," said Craig Willis of the University of Exeter, who is also the lead author of the study.

"We have identified genes with roles in neuronal function and cellular metabolism that are affected by gravitational changes. These worms display molecular signatures and physiological features that closely mirror those observed in humans, so our findings should provide foundations for a better understanding of spaceflight-induced health decline in mammals and, eventually, humans."

While the rapid development in technology has brought deep space exploration firmly within our species reach, it remains to be seen if we will be physically and mentally capable of such extended space flights that cover significant distances. But with more and more studies on space flight life sciences, our species might just end up surpassing this barrier as well.

The paper was published in the journal iScience, and it can be accessed here.

**

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Experiments on Worms in Space Show How Low Gravity Can Affect Humans on Genetic Level | The Weather Channel - Articles from The Weather Channel |...

TerraMetric Founder and CEO Clint Graumann and SpaceBD Co-Founder & CEO Masa Nagasaki

Teams can be created when two specialist space-sector firms from opposite sides of the globe sign a Teaming Agreement and officially kick off a collaborative relationship that focuses on business development for the space industry.

Thats what occurred when Tokyo-based Space BD and Floridas TerraMetric realized they share a common vision of making space an accessible market to any industry or company and are committed to achieving results from launch to low Earth orbit, with a further focus on lunar and deep space exploration.

Technical skills, legislative knowledge, funding and time management are all critical factors in successfully accomplishing any space mission. However, guidance on how to effectively bring these factors together and thrive in the competitive global NewSpace market is equally important especially for those who are new to the space sector. Space BD and TerraMetric not only offer this guidance, but also work alongside key partners to achieve their goals, sharing every step on the path to success.

This Teaming Agreement reinforces the capabilities of both organizations, allowing them to push forward together. Space BDs experience and market connections in Asia-Pacific and their partnership with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), strengthens TerraMetrics reach into the Eastern hemisphere, while TerraMetrics expertise and network throughout North America as well as other regions, will provide Space BD with increased global coverage.

The mutual extension of capabilities for both companies will offer clients more choices from a wider range of options. Today, TerraMetric and Space BD already collaborate to provide in-orbit demonstration service using stable condition on the external platform of International Space Station through their respective existing partnerships. As on orbiting testimony to the achievements of international cooperation, the International Space Station is a fitting first step for this new international partnership.

TerraMetric is a global space business development firm with proven expertise up and down the integrated space exploration value chain, helping small- to medium-sized NewSpace businesses worldwide break into new markets and achieve their vision. TerraMetric works in concert with clients to provide market intelligence, secure large contracts, and connect with partners and customers.

We at TerraMetric are delighted to announce our teaming agreement with Space BD, commented TerraMetric CEO and Founder Clint Graumann. Space BD and TerraMetric have a common business culture driven by a shared passion for space. With Space BDs upstream focus and TerraMetrics detailed knowledge of downstream applications, together we can offer customers greater choice from a wide-reaching, comprehensive range of space business connections and expertise.

Space BD is the leading satellite launch and ISS utilization service provider based in Japan, and is expanding its services to support component import and export, test facilities installation, capacity building program, and strategic research project from business development perspective.

We are pleased to start our partnership with TerraMetric, said Space BD Co-Founder and CEO Masa Nagasaki. Since our initial discussion, we have been sharing common values and vision to expand space industry through providing optimum solution to everyone who wants to utilize space.We look forward to accelerating commercialization of Low Earth Orbit as well as development of deep space exploration including lunar missions with TerraMetric as U.S.-Japan strategic private partnership.

By combining their expertise and using space as enabler for various industries, TerraMetric and Space BD will work together to accelerate space business development and make space a sustainably growing industry.

See the rest here:

Space BD and TerraMetric Agree to Accelerate Commercial Space Growth - SatNews Publishers

It sounds like science fiction: giant solar power stations floating in space that beam down enormous amounts of energy to Earth. And for a long time, the conceptfirst developed by the Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in the 1920swas mainly an inspiration for writers.

A century later, however, scientists are making huge strides in turning the concept into reality. The European Space Agency has realized the potential of these efforts and is now looking to fund such projects, predicting that the first industrial resource we will get from space is beamed power.

Climate change is the greatest challenge of our time, so theres a lot at stake. From rising global temperatures to shifting weather patterns, the impacts of climate change are already being felt around the globe. Overcoming this challenge will require radical changes to how we generate and consume energy.

Renewable energy technologies have developed drastically in recent years, with improved efficiency and lower cost. But one major barrier to their uptake is the fact that they dont provide a constant supply of energy. Wind and solar farms only produce energy when the wind is blowing or the sun is shiningbut we need electricity around the clock, every day. Ultimately, we need a way to store energy on a large scale before we can make the switch to renewable sources.

A possible way around this would be to generate solar energy in space. There are many advantages to this. A space-based solar power station could orbit to face the sun 24 hours a day. Earths atmosphere also absorbs and reflects some of the suns light, so solar cells above the atmosphere will receive more sunlight and produce more energy.

But one of the key challenges to overcome is how to assemble, launch, and deploy such large structures. A single solar power station may have to be as much as 10 kilometers squared in areaequivalent to 1,400 football fields. Using lightweight materials will also be critical, as the biggest expense will be the cost of launching the station into space on a rocket.

Artists conceptions of a solar power satellite, dubbed the Integrated Symmetrical Concentrator SPS concept. Image Credit: NASA

One proposed solution is to develop a swarm of thousands of smaller satellites that will come together and configure to form a single, large solar generator. In 2017, researchers at the California Institute of Technology outlined designs for a modular power station, consisting of thousands of ultralight solar cell tiles. They also demonstrated a prototype tile weighing just 280 grams per square meter, similar to the weight of card.

Recently, developments in manufacturing, such as 3D printing, are also being looked at for this application. At the University of Liverpool, we are exploring new manufacturing techniques for printing ultralight solar cells on to solar sails. A solar sail is a foldable, lightweight, and highly reflective membrane capable of harnessing the effect of the suns radiation pressure to propel a spacecraft forward without fuel. We are exploring how to embed solar cells on solar sail structures to create large, fuel-free solar power stations.

These methods would enable us to construct the power stations in space. Indeed, it could one day be possible to manufacture and deploy units in space from the International Space Station or the future lunar gateway station that will orbit the moon. Such devices could in fact help provide power on the moon.

The possibilities dont end there. While we are currently reliant on materials from Earth to build power stations, scientists are also considering using resources from space for manufacturing, such as materials found on the moon.

Another major challenge will be getting the power transmitted back to Earth. The plan is to convert electricity from the solar cells into energy waves and use electromagnetic fields to transfer them down to an antenna on the Earths surface. The antenna would then convert the waves back into electricity. Researchers led by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency have already developed designs and demonstrated an orbiter system which should be able to do this.

There is still a lot of work to be done in this field, but the aim is that solar power stations in space will become a reality in the coming decades. Researchers in China have designed a system called Omega, which they aim to have operational by 2050. This system should be capable of supplying two gigawatts of power into Earths grid at peak performance, which is a huge amount. To produce that much power with solar panels on Earth, you would need more than six million of them.

Smaller solar power satellites, like those designed to power lunar rovers, could be operational even sooner.

Across the globe, the scientific community is committing time and effort to the development of solar power stations in space. Our hope is that they could one day be a vital tool in our fight against climate change.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Image Credit: NASA

Excerpt from:

Solar Power Stations in Space Could Be the Answer to Our Energy Needs - Singularity Hub