March 16-22, 2015 / Vol 34, No 11 / Hawai`i Island, USA

NewSpace Commercialization Conference Addresses Legal Challenges Facing Industry

The 3rd Manfred Lachs International Conference on NewSpace Commercialization and the Law is being held March 16-17 at the Institute of Air and Space Law of McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Private NewSpace companies currently utilizing, and planning to gain further access to markets in LEO, near / on the Moon and in deep space, emphasize the need to create policies and laws for safety, property rights and security issues. Representatives from private, government and academic institutions will speak on topics including SmallSats, Commercial Space Stations and Launches for Trips to the Moon & Mars, Funding Sources, and On-Orbit Servicing & Active Space Debris Removal.  Paul Dempsey, Nancy Graham and Ram Jakhu (shown L-R) will give welcoming remarks. Other speakers include Bob Richards (Moon Express), Yaw Nyampong (Pan-African University), Jim Keravala (Shackleton Energy), Joseph Pelton (Arthur C. Clarke Foundation) and Jinyuan Su (Xi’an Jiaotong University). The conference will be followed by the ICAO / UNOOSA AeroSPACE Symposium on Mar 18-20. (Image Credit: McGill University, NASA, B. Smegelsky, IAWA, Y. Nyampong, Bigelow Aerospace, Pan-African University)

MONDAY

Mar 16 — ISS, LEO: Expedition 43 three-member crew participating in interviews for NASA & ESA, installing cables in Harmony module for upcoming International Docking Adapters installation, loading Progress 57P with waste, conducting airflow monitor tests, measurements & calibrations.

 Mar 16 — Chang’e-3, Sinus Iridum / Mare Imbrium, 44.12°N 19.51°W, Moon Surface: Now in lunar night 16, China spacecraft may study Lunar terminator / dust dynamics, make optical & ultraviolet observations during Apr 4 lunar eclipse.

 Mar 16 — Gaia, Sun-Earth L2 Lagrange Point: ESA mission mapping 1B stars within 30K light years to create largest, most precise 3D map of Milky Way Galaxy; first data set expected to be released in June.

Mar 16 — Cassini, Saturn Orbit: Polydeuces flyby scheduled at 35,000-km altitude.

Mar 16 — Firefly Space Systems, Austin TX: NewSpace company planning to develop & launch (in 2017) reusable Firefly Alpha rocket able to lift 453 kg to LEO for ~US$8-9M with help of NASA Space Act Agreement.

Mar 16 — Virgin Galactic, Las Cruces NM: May begin flight tests this year on second SpaceShipTwo; hiring employees for New Mexico, Mojave & Long Beach facilities.

Mar 16 — Nanoracks LLC, Houston TX: NanoRacks External Payload Platform to be launched to ISS on Japan HTV-5 & mounted to Japan Experiment Module External Facility for future CubeSat deployment.

Mar 16 — ESA, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Online: Due: Proposals for joint 2021 Europe-China space mission to study astronomy, Solar System or physics.

Planetary Scientists Gather in Texas for LPSC 2015

International specialists in petrology, geochemistry, geophysics, geology and astronomy will present the latest results of their planetary science research at the 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference on March 16-20 at The Woodlands TX. With active missions sending back valuable data from all over the solar system, funded by a 2015 NASA planetary science budget of US$1.4B, the conference promises to feature a variety of interesting presentations and conversations. Special Sessions are scheduled on early results from the MAVEN mission, the Rosetta mission so far, accurate age dating of planetary features, and the evolution of the ancient Mars atmosphere and climate. Additional sessions will cover subjects such as lunar volatiles, exobiology,  and Pluto and Kuiper Belt objects / the New Horizons mission. Several highlighted events will precede and coincide with LPSC 2015 including user workshops for LRO & MESSENGER Data, a NextGen Lunar Scientist workshop, a Lunar Cubes Mission Opportunities overview, and a plenary session featuring the Masursky Lecture on Solar System evolution by Lars Borg of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. (Image Credit: NASA, ESA, LPI)

Mar 16-17 — Institute of Air and Space Law, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada: 3rd Manfred Lachs International Conference on NewSpace Commercialization and the Law.

Mar 16-19 — SES, Thales Alenia Space, Eutelsat America, Hughes, et al, Washington DC: Satellite 2015 Conference; at Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Mar 16-20 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, The Woodlands TX: 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC); at the Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center.

Mar 16 — Moon: 1.2° NNW of asteroid 15 Eunomia, 14:00.

Mar 16 — Asteroid 2015 BZ310: Near-Earth flyby (0.054 AU).

Mar 16 — Asteroid 2015 DB199: Near-Earth flyby (0.096 AU).

Continued from…

Oct 16, 2014 – Jun 11 — NASA, University of Hawai`i, Mauna Loa HI: Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) Mission 3.