The Crimson

The only student-run newspaper at Florida Tech.

You are here: Home / Archives for NASA

NASA

Secretive Pentagon space drone ready to launch

by Leave a Comment

By Alex Polimeni

A clandestine U.S. Space Force space drone is preparing for its launch in mid-May, amid an uncertain world of social distancing and COVID-19 concerns.

The USSF-7 mission consists of the Pentagon’s X-37B reusable space plane, a covert spacecraft built by Boeing, designed to launch vertically and land autonomously like an airplane. 

“The X-37B continues to demonstrate the importance of a reusable space plane,” said Secretary of the Air Force, Barbara Barrett, in a release following the most recent X-37B landing. “Each successive mission advances our nation’s space capabilities.”  

An X-37B mission launches in 2015. Photo// Alex Polimeni

No information regarding X-37B mission parameters or objectives are currently made public by the Air Force. The X-37B has flown five times since its first launch in 2010, according to an Air Force fact sheet. 

“Its objectives include space experimentation, risk reduction and concept-of-operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies that could become key enablers for future space missions,” according to a Boeing press release following an X-37B landing in 2014.

The top of the stubby-winged spaceplane has doors that open in orbit, exposing various experiments to the vacuum of space for extended periods of time. 

The space plane is known to unexpectedly land after hundreds of days in orbit, often waking nearby residents with ear-piercing sonic booms, resembling the sound of gunshots. The X-37B has landed at both the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, on the same runway the Space Shuttle utilized, according to Boeing press releases.

“I woke in the middle of the night to a very loud bang,”  said Jeff Seibert, veteran local space journalist for AmericaSpace.  “I figured that the soap holder in the shower had fallen onto the floor as had happened before, and I went right back to sleep.” 

An X-37B sits on the runway after landing. Photo// Boeing

When Seibert awoke, he thought the bang he heard was a sonic boom. When really it was the space plane, the north end of the shuttle landing facility is only 8.5 miles from his home. 

“This program continues to push the envelope as the world’s only reusable space vehicle,” said Randy Walden, Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office director.

The sixth X-37B mission will launch into the Florida skies in mid-May, on the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The Atlas V has been the X-37B’s ride to space for a majority of its history, including its first flight in 2010. 

USSF-7 will begin its mission from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the home of Atlas V launch operations. USSF-7 will be the Atlas V’s 84th mission and the 139th United Launch Alliance flight, all with 100 percent mission success.

The launch will be visible throughout the Space Coast; however, due to the unique nature of the pandemic, it is strongly advised that viewers maintain Centers for Disease Control social distancing guidelines. As this Atlas V will be flying with no solid rocket boosters, a plume below the rocket will not be visible. 

Space industry’s reaction to COVID-19

by Leave a Comment

By Alex Polimeni

As COVID-19 sweeps through the nation, steps are being taken in the space industry to ensure the safety of engineers, technicians, and aerospace experts. 

According to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, as of Mar 28, aerospace and defense industries are considered to be exempt from certain stay-at-home orders. 

The Atlas V launches the first U.S. Space Force mission. Photo// Alex Polimeni

Workers who support national security programs for the U.S. government and Department of Defense, including space and aerospace workers, are considered essential personnel, according to CISA Director Christopher Krebs, in a memo published on the agency’s website. 

However, the exemption is not stopping certain aerospace corporations and agencies from taking action to keep employees safe. According to a NASA news release, Certain NASA facilities are in Stage four, a status that prevents any non-essential employees from being on site.

“Mandatory telework is in effect for NASA personnel at both facilities until further notice. Additionally, all travel is suspended,”said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstein.  “These measures are being taken to help slow the transmission of COVID-19 and protect our communities.” 

Yet, certain essential missions continue to proceed, including the Mars 2020 rover, recently named Perseverance. The $2 billion rover must launch within a narrow launch window between July 17 and Aug. 5, or wait nearly two years, according to a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory website,Engineers and technicians will continue to prepare the rover for its launch on the Atlas V rocket this summer. 

United Launch Alliance and the U.S. Space Force continues to prepare the USSF-7 mission for launch in mid May, according to a ULA press release. The USSF-7 contains a U.S. Space Force space drone in support of U.S. national security.

Despite the spread of the Coronavirus, ULA successfully launched the U.S. Space Force’s first mission on Mar. 26, marking ULA’s 138th launch. Precautions were already in place such as  the media having to maintain six to 10 feet from other reporters and officials at all times. 

“The success of today’s launch is the culmination of years of dedication, hard work and teamwork with several of our mission partners,” said General John Raymond, General of the U.S. Space Force, in a ULA press release. 

According to General John Raymond, the launch of AEHF-6 was made successful by combined teams from the Space and Missile Systems Center, satellite builders at Lockheed Martin, aircrews from the Air Mobility Command, the 45th Space Wing range, and ULA.

“In the face of COVID-19 we are continuing to provide the capabilities that are critical [to] our American way of life,” Raymond said in a U.S. Space Force press release. “I’m very comfortable that we will continue to provide those capabilities without fail.” 

First Dedicated Space Force Satellite Set for Launch

by 1 Comment

By Alex Polimeni

United Launch Alliance prepares to launch the Atlas V rocket with the AEHF-6 satellite, the first dedicated U.S. Space Force launch. 

On Mar. 26, the final installment of the six-satellite constellation, valued at over 15 billion is expected to depart from Florida’s Space Coast.   

An Atlas V, flying in the most powerful configuration, launches another Air Force payload in 2018. Photo//Alexander Polimeni

“The delivery of the last AEHF satellite comes at an inflection point, as the first delivery of the USSF for launch,” said Lieutenant Colonel Paul La Tour, AEHF Space Segment materiel leader, in a press release.

AEHF is a highly secured, nuclear-hardened communications satellite, and would be used as the last resort system for the President to direct American troops in a nuclear war. The program began under the Air Force Space Command, and on its final launch, will fly as the first U.S. Space Force mission. 

AEHF replaced the older Milstar satellites, launched from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s on the Titan IV rocket. A single AEHF satellite has more capacity than the entire five-satellite Milstar constellation, according to a Lockheed Martin factsheet. 

“AEHF satellites play a critical role for the warfighter and the defense of our nation,” said John Dukes, senior materiel leader for the Space Production Corps’ Geosynchronous Orbit Division in an Air Force press release.  “Space is fundamental to our way of life, our economy relies on space and this reliance will continue to grow.” 

The program is also jointly funded by allied forces, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Netherlands, and Australia; all reliant on the unique capabilities of AEHF. The first AEHF launch occurred in 2010.  Since then, four other satellites have been launched, all atop an Atlas V rocket. 

The AEHF-6 spacecraft was delivered to Titusville, Florida, on Jan. 12, to begin pre-launch processing and encapsulation inside the Atlas V’s payload fairing. 

“The successful delivery of AEHF-6 is a significant achievement for the program, it brings us another step closer to delivering mission-critical capabilities to the warfighter,” said Cordell DeLaPena, Program Executive Officer for Space Production, in an Air Force press release. “AEHF is an important asset to our sea, air, and ground missions.” 

Tomorrow, the United Launch Alliance Atlas V will be flying the most powerful configuration, its propel over 13,000  pounds. The Atlas V will begin its journey from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the launch site of all previous AEHF satellites. 

AEHF-6 will mark the 83rd launch of the workhorse Atlas V rocket, and the 138th ULA launch, with 100 percent mission success.

The AEHF-6 launch will be visible from the Florida Tech campus, however, as the launch will occur during the daytime, nearby beaches,  including Holland-Spessard beach and Jetty Park. 

NASA’s Blueberry

by Leave a Comment

by Delainee Rust

Growing up, people often bounce from idea to idea about what they are going to be when they grow up. On the other hand, Alyssa Carson, a freshman from Louisiana majoring in astrobiology, always knew she wanted to go to Mars.

As a kid, Carson was constantly involved in space camps. According to her website, Carson has attended NASA space camps seven times, and she was the youngest person ever to graduate from the Advanced Space Academy. These camps provided her with the opportunity to get involved in programs to help pursue her goal further.

Alyssa Carson testing BMW’s i Interaction EASE concept at the Consumer Electronic Show in Jan. Photo// Instagram.com

For example, Carson is a part of  Project Possum, a private citizen science research organization supported by NASA that conducts upper atmosphere research and provides realistic training for students interested in pursuing a career in space exploration. Programs like this encouraged Carson to help younger kids with similar goals to have the same opportunities as her.

This drive led her to create the Blueberry Foundation. Carson said this group started out small, and eventually grew to what it is today.

“I started the Blueberry Foundation as a way to send more kids to space camp because space camp really helped me in figuring out what I wanted to do,” Carson said. 

Attending space camp helped Carson figure out how to achieve her dreams and what area of space she planned to study, an opportunity she wanted to share with other kids. As the foundation has grown, Carson has begun looking for groups of students from other countries to send to space camp.

As a result, the foundation has recently partnered with a group of kids from Mexico City to send them to space camp in the future. 

Though these dreams began at such a young age,  Carson continues to work towards her goal in school today.  Florida Tech is ranked as a tier One university by the National University U.S. News & World Report, making it very popular in its engineering and science programs. One program that caught Carson’s attention, in particular, was the astrobiology program.

According to Florida Tech’s website, it is the first and one of the few universities that have an astrobiology program. This program and the benefit of being on the space coast were among the reasons Carson chose to study at Florida Tech.

To help continue to work toward her goal, Carson said that after she finishes her masters she hopes to continue gaining experience in the astrobiology field and continue working with Project Possum. She remains hopeful that she will one day be selected to go to Mars. 

“I just want to be part of the mission and will help contribute in any way I can,” Carson said.

Op-Ed: What really is the U.S. Space Force?

by 2 Comments

by Alex Polimeni

Missile warning, GPS navigation, secured communications, and intelligence gathering; all of these share one commonality— they are essential to America’s national security.

The United States Space Force was formed late last year following increased hostility from other nations in space including China and Russia. 

Space has become an increasingly contested environment. The United States relies on a plethora of defense satellites, spanning through multiple orbits. Orbits thought to be safe and out of reach. However,  anti-satellite weapons have rapidly advanced, and pose an extreme danger to American assets.

According to an NPR report, countries including China, Russia, and India all have demonstrated anti-satellite capabilities through test launches.

The classified NROL-42 mission departed the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, on Sept. 23, 2017. Photo//Alexander Polimeni

Yet, as most Americans are not aware of these critical space-based assets, they could not even picture life without these unique capabilities. These satellites orbit overhead, in the shadow of the public eye. The satellites of the United States Space Force support every warfighting domain; including land, sea, air and space. 

Daily life is intertwined around satellites owned by the Space Force. All GPS navigation satellites are controlled by the United States Space Force. If GPS satellites were to go offline, the financial system would crash, public navigation would be hindered, the power grid would be affected, military aircraft would have no sense of navigation, and more, according to an article from The Atlantic. Furthermore, GPS guided bombs and missiles would be rendered useless, according to a 60 Minutes interview with Bridger General Bill Cooley, the Commander at the Air Force Research Laboratory located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.

In addition to the well-known GPS satellites, America relies on several other constellations, or groups of satellites, to monitor the globe for missile launches, provide secured communications, and more. 

“Our Military Services have created the world’s best space capabilities,”  said Mark Esper, secretary of defense, at a signing in the Pentagon. “Now is the time for the U.S. Space Force to lead our Nation in preparing for emerging threats in an evolving space environment.”  

He added that this new service will help guarantee we are in a position to defend our national interests and outpace potential adversaries. 

Before the United States Space Force, a command within the U.S. Air Force was responsible for the defense of military assets in space. Referred to as “the Air Force Space Command,” in the earliest days, there was no need to defend these satellites, they were safe, and out of reach in orbit. 

As America continued to keep the pace, Russia and China increased aggression in space. The Russians have closely maneuvered military satellites near U.S. commercial satellites. Anti-satellite weapons are within range of nearly all Earth orbits. Space is now a warfighting domain. 

The classified NROL-37 mission departed the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, on Jun. 11, 2016. Photo// Alexander Polimeni

“Let me be very clear, we do not want a conflict that extends into space, but one way to keep that from happening is to make sure that we’re prepared for it and [can] fight and win that conflict if it were to occur,” said John Raymond, general of the U.S. Space Force, to the House Armed Services Committee.

A drastic reorganization is underway in the United States space Force, as resources and airmen are moved from AFSPC.

Air Force bases that have had a large space mission will be transferred to the USSF, and be renamed accordingly. The Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is planned to be renamed to the “Cape Canaveral Space Force Station” sometime at the end of the month. The Vandenberg Air Force Base, America’s west-coast launch site, will also be renamed, according to an article by Spaceflight Now. 

The USSF will still be under the supervision of the Department of the Air Force, but will be funded separately, and will have a Joint-Chief of Staff directly advising the President, significantly elevating the space mission. 

Space is the next frontier – but also the next battlefield. With America’s reliance on space-based assets, it is paramount that we are ready and willing to counter aggression on orbit. Life would not be the same without these satellites. Without space, it would be akin to going back to pre-industrial warfare. These missions absolutely save lives, so we must be ready to protect our spacecraft at all costs. America’s military-might depends on space. 

NASA’s next Mars Rover arrives in Florida

by Leave a Comment

By Alex Polimeni

Following in the footsteps of NASA’s past rovers —Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity — NASA’s fifth Mars rover has been delivered to its seaside launch site in Cape Canaveral, Florida. 

On Feb. 12, the Mars 2020 rover and associated hardware arrived at the Kennedy Space Center. 

The Mars 2020 rover is a $2.4 billion astrobiology laboratory on wheels, whose stated goal is to discover the building blocks of life and search for signs of prehistoric life on the Red Planet. 

Mars 2020 Rover at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Photo// Alex Polimeni

The mission hardware was largely built at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in Pasadena, California, inside the Spacecraft Assembly Facility. The SAF has housed the construction of every previous Mars rover and a multitude of groundbreaking planetary exploration missions, like Voyager 1 and 2, the first two spacecraft to leave the Solar System. 

“Our rover has left the only home it has ever known,” said John McNamee, project manager of Mars 2020 ina press release. “The 2020 family here at JPL is a little sad to see it go, but we’re even more proud knowing that the next time our rover takes to the skies, it will be headed to Mars.”

The currently unnamed Mars rover will continue a legacy that began with NASA’s first Mars rover – Sojourner – turning to school-children from the United States to name the rover. An essay competition, open to all students from K through 12, is underway, with an announcement expected in the next few months.

The rover is also the host to the first powered aircraft to fly on another planet. The Mars Helicopter Scout is a twin-blade miniature technology demonstrator, to validate flying an aircraft on another planet. The MHS is mounted below the rear of the rover. 

As Bob Balaram, chief engineer of the MHS stated in a JPL video, “the system is designed to fly for 2 to 3 minutes every day.” He added that the short duration flights can reach an altitude of around 15 feet and will support a 13-megapixel high-resolution camera. 

Additionally, the first of its kind sample-return payload will be included within the rover. The rover will use its drill to collect samples of interest and store the contents inside various tubes. The sample “package” will be deposited at a location on the surface, determined by the JPL team. Eventually, a joint NASA and European Space Agency mission will retrieve the samples and return them to Earth, allowing thorough analysis according to JPL. These will be the first samples ever retrieved from Mars, using laboratories on Earth for dissection.

The Mars 2020 mission has a method of Entry, Descent, and Landing, known to JPL officials as “seven minutes of terror.” Once the Mars 2020 payload is within the atmosphere of Mars, a rocket-propelled sky crane will be deployed. The sky crane will act as a hovering platform, as the rover descends on a cable to the surface of Mars. 

Due to the distance from Mars, there is about a 14-minute delay for signals to reach Earth.

“From the top of the atmosphere, down to the surface, it takes us 7 minutes,” said Adam Steltzner, EDL Engineer, in a JPL video. “So when we first get word we touched the top of the atmosphere, the vehicle is either alive or dead on the surface, for at least 7 minutes.” 

However, before this mission can begin its journey to Mars, it must first leave Earth’s atmosphere. NASA has selected United Launch Alliance to lift this flagship science mission, utilizing the Atlas V rocket. The Atlas V is the workhorse for NASA’s most costly missions, having successfully delivered many spacecraft to Mars in the past. At liftoff, the Atlas V for Mars 2020 will generate 2,254,000 lbs. of thrust; all this power required to lift the car-sized, 2,300 lb rover and associated hardware to Mars.  

The launch is currently scheduled for July 17 from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Complex 41 has supported a multitude of Mars explorers, including the Curiosity rover, in 2012. 

NASA launches research programs for students

by 1 Comment

NASA announced new resources and funding available to students as the program will be increasing its prevalence of small satellites, and has opened new lines of research for both graduate and undergraduate students.

Last Wednesday, a crowd of students gathered in the Hartley room to enjoy pizza and drinks before embarking on an insightful space exploration lecture led by top leading experts in the field.

Jose Nunez, the former chief of flight technologies branch at Kennedy Space Center, and the current Florida Tech liaison to KSC, presented to hundreds of young space enthusiasts.

Nunez began by describing NASA’s new objective: return to the moon by 2024. After a thorough overview of the mission phases of the Artemis program, Nunez segued to the core of his speech—research opportunities.

According to Nunez, NASA selects research through the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System, NSPIRES.

With this system, NASA posts requests for research proposals to which anyone can make submissions. NSPIRES also includes Research Opportunities in Earth and Space Science, ROSES, which is a broad research request for anything not specifically requested elsewhere.

Furthermore, NASA is looking to use some of the ROSES funding for the CubeSat Launch Initiative.

Through this initiative, students and research organizations can work with NASA to develop cubesats or small satellites, which will conduct astrophysical science research.

The Cubesat Launch Initiative is a much larger program for the development and launch of cubesats on current NASA rockets.

It includes the NASA 2020 small satellite technology partnership.

This program specifically requires the development teams to work directly with NASA and have access to a block of funds set aside for this project.

During his presentation, Nunez outlined the NASA internships.

“Internships have two different flavors,” Nunez said. “One is called a NIFs, a NASA internship fellowship. That is just a one-shot deal. The other is called a pathway. That is the path to become a civil servant.”

Nunez highlighted the value in looking for students that are involved in extracurriculars that boost their skill base in reliance to a career field in aerospace.

Some students, such as Ajeé Watson, attended mostly for the internship information.

“My major is aerospace engineering, and I wanted to hear about good opportunities,” Watson said.

Other students, such as Wesley Howell, attended more for project information.

“We have been in contact with Nunez for senior design,” Howell said. “We wanted to see how we could continue. There are a lot of opportunities for students.” Howell echoed Nunez. “My whole goal is to make you aware of the opportunities. What you do with them is up to you guys.”