A New Suit for the Moon Mission

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Space suits in the television series Lost in Space. (Netflix)

U.S. companies Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace have been tasked to build new suits for NASA’s astronauts. The suits will be worn as part of the Artemis Program returning astronauts to the Moon. First, the new suits will be tested and used on the International Space Station (ISS).

While both companies are still in the early stages of developing the next space suite, the $3.5 billion Extravehicular Activity Services (xEVAS) Contract will support this development and production.

In a press release, Mark Kirasich, deputy associate administrator of NASA’s Artemis Campaign Development Division, stated:

Our commercial partnerships will help realize our human exploration goals…We look forward to using these services for NASA’s continued presence in low-Earth orbit and our upcoming achievement of returning American astronauts to the Moon’s surface. We are confident our collaboration with industry and leveraging NASA’s expertise gained through over 60 years of space exploration will enable us to achieve these goals together.

You may recognize the name Axiom Space. It was the company that worked with SpaceX to put private citizens on the ISS with its Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1). It is also developing the world’s first commercial space station, the Axiom Station.

Collins Aerospace, part of Raytheon Technologies, has plenty of experience with space suits. The company designed the spacesuit used by the Apollo mission astronauts who landed on the moon. It also designed the space suits currently in use for missions outside the ISS.

NASA’s FY 2023 Budget Request

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: NASA

So what else did NASA Administrator Bill Nelson share with the Senate Committee on Appropriations last week (beyond his comments about the International Space Station)? In his prepared statement regarding NASA’s $26 billion budget request, he highlighted a number of priorities for his agency, including:

  • the Artemis Program to bring astronauts back to the Moon and related exploration costs – $7.5 billion;
  • continued support for the ISS – $4.3 billion;
  • the space technology research and development portfolio for the Moon, Mars, and other areas, such as sending the CAPSTONE CubeSat to the Moon as a pathfinder for the Artemis program – $1.44 billion;
  • greater science funding for projects such as exploring solutions for bringing the samples of Martian rock and soil collected by the Perseverance rover to Earth through the Mars Sample Return mission – $8 billion; and
  • supporting the civil aviation manufacturing sector with test flights on its Low Boom Flight Demonstrator, which will enable environmentally and socially acceptable supersonic passenger flights, as well as continued work on the X-57 Maxwell, an all-electric aircraft – $971 million.

NASA certainly has a lot on its place, and I did not even highlight the focus on Earth iteself, such as the planned Earth System Observatory, which is an array of satellites, instruments, and missions designed to generate a 3D, holistic view of the entire planet.

We just provided a $40 billion aid package to Ukraine so that it can defend itself and have a better future. This $26 billion will take us out of the realm of Earth-bound conflicts and allow us to find our future in the stars, or at least the solar system. It is money well spent.

In Case You Missed It: Public Views on the Space Program

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Size of the Earth compared to Mars and the Moon. (hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/)

Back in July 2019, the Pew Research Institute issued the results of earlier surveys about the US space program. Let’s look at the answers to six of the questions:

  1. Most Americans think sending astronauts to Mars or the Moon should be a lower priority for NASA – or say it should not be done at all (see graphic below).
  2. Americans see priorities other than a Moon or Mars landing as more pressing for NASA.
  3. Half of Americans think space travel will become routine during the next 50 years of space exploration.
  4. A majority of Americans say the U.S. must remain a global leader in space exploration, and that NASA’s continued involvement is essential.
  5. Americans have little confidence that private space companies will minimize space debris. 
  6. Americans are not enthusiastic about the idea of creating a military Space Force.

NASA may not be listening given that a trip back to the Moon was the lowest priority of Americans and yet is it the largest program currently in the U.S. space program, with a Moon satellite and trip to Mars as part of future plans. As far as minimizing space debris, the public seemed right on the mark regarding private space companies. If Elon Musk is any indicator, the commercial sector will not be deterred as it adds thousands of new satellites and related debris. And the ship has sailed on the Space Force question with the creation of the US Space Force in December 2019.

This would not be the first time Washington, DC goes down its own path regardless of public sentiment.

Image (Credit): Second question on the Pew survey on the space program. (Pew Research Institute)

Growing Options in Moon Dust

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Placing a plant grown during the experiment in a vial for eventual genetic analysis. (UF/IFAS photo by Tyler Jones)

Speaking of moon dust, it seems scientists have found that they can grow plants in lunar soil. This is quite a surprise given the nature of moon dust. It would seem to be an even greater feat than growing plants in Martian soil.

NASA has reported that scientists at the University of Florida have successfully grown plants in actual lunar soil from the Apollo 11, 12, and 17 missions. Only water and a nutrient solution were added to the soil before seeds were planted. Plants started to sprout in two days. After 20 days the plants were harvested and studied before they had started to flower. While the lunar soil plants were somewhat stunted and stressed, the experiment was a success.

NASA noted:

This research opens the door not only to someday growing plants in habitats on the Moon, but to a wide range of additional questions. Can understanding which genes plants need to adjust to growing in regolith help us understand how to reduce the stressful nature of lunar soil? Are materials from different areas of the Moon more conducive to growing plants than others? Could studying lunar regolith help us understand more about the Mars regolith and potentially growing plants in that material as well? All of these are questions that the team hopes to study next, in support of the future astronauts traveling to the Moon.

This is a fascinating finding if it will allow us to use the lunar surface to feed astronauts rather than bringing more material from the Earth. It is also very timely as NASA is preparing the way for human habitation on the Moon under the Artemis Program.

We wanted to learn from the Moon before pushing onto Mars. This is a clear sign that we are doing so.

Space Quote: A Mature Rocket Market?

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Space Launch System rocket. (NASA)

“The launch industry is at a point where the technology is so mature that it may not be necessary to have the U.S. government invest in it… It may be we’re at a tipping point with this rocket.”

-Statement by Dan Goldin, a former NASA administrator, regarding NASA’s expenditures on the Space Launch System (SLS) in a Wall Street Journal article, “NASA Is Building Moon Rockets, Maybe for the Last Time.” The SLS and Orion spacecraft are part of NASA’s Artemis Program to return astronauts to the Moon.