India PSLV, Russia Soyuz, Arianespace Soyuz, SpaceX Falcon Heavy Planning Launches From 3 Continents This Week

ISRO is working to launch the 2nd PSLV of 2019, 47th overall, on April 1 from Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India. This PSLV-C45 mission will loft main payload electronic intelligence-gathering spacecraft (EMISat) with 29 other satellites. EMISat is intended to reach 780 km, while all other payloads are meant to orbit at ~500 km, and the 4th stage will attempt to move to 485 km to carry out scientific experiments. On April 4, Roscosmos is planning to launch Soyuz with ISS Progress 72P resupply ship from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. It will rendezvous with Pirs module ~6 hours later, delivering 2,450 kg of cargo and supplies to Expedition 58 crew. Arianespace is scheduled to launch a Soyuz rocket, designated VS22, with 4 communication satellites for O3b network on April 4 from Sinnamary, French Guiana, South America. Sinnamary ELS (Ensemble de Lancement Soyouz “Soyuz Launch Complex”) is located 15 km north-west of launch facilities used by Ariane rockets at Guiana Space Center. SpaceX is planning to launch its 1st commercial payload on Falcon Heavy from LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida on April 7. Its Arabsat 6A payload will provide Ku-band and Ka-band communications coverage over Middle East and North Africa regions, and South Africa. SpaceX hopes to recover 3 boosters from this flight for re-use on the next Heavy launch tentatively set for June. (Image Credits: Google Maps, ISRO, Roscosmos, NASA, Arianespace, O3, Lockheed Martin, SpaceX)

MONDAY

Europe Space Gatherings: 58th UNOOSA, EGU, Paris Space Week, BIS Talk, and PTScientists Open House

In Vienna, Austria the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs is to convene the 58th session of its Legal Subcommittee April 1-12 at Vienna International Centre. The UNOOSA works to promote peaceful space exploration and technologies, and related legal policy and is directed by Simonetta Di Pippo. Also in Vienna, the European Geosciences Union is holding its annual general assembly April 7-12, focusing on science globalism and the impact of populist political movements on scientific integrity. Mario Monti (Economist and former Prime Minister of Italy) and Ilaria Capua (Virologist and former Italian Parliamentarian) are notable scheduled speakers. The 5th annual Paris Space Week tradeshow will be held April 2-3 in Paris, France; organized by ASTech and supported by European Space Agency, Airbus, European Photonics Industry Consortium and others. British Interplanetary Society meets in London, UK April 3. Keynote speaker David Hardy will present a lecture entitled ‘Artists in Space: The Early Years’ covering  astronomical and astronautical art history to a sold-out audience. Finally, PTScientists are hosting a meet-and-greet in their Berlin, Germany HQ April 5, discussing their advances towards reaching the lunar surface with payloads and collaborations with partners in these efforts. (Image Credits: UNOOSA, EGU, PTScientists, ASTech)

 Apr 1 — NASA, Washington DC: NASA Town Hall Meeting with Administrator Jim Bridenstine to discuss USA Moon to Mars plans, 13:30 EDT, live coverage available.

Apr 1 — ISRO, Launch PSLV XL / EMISat, Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India: Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on PSLV-C45 mission to launch 30 satellites including main payload electronic intelligence-gathering spacecraft.

Apr 1-7 — Hayabusa2, Asteroid 1999 JU3: JAXA craft planning to drop explosive Small Carry-on Impactor (SCI) to generate a crater in order to gather subsurface material.

 Apr 1-3 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston TX: Seminar: Subsurface, Subaqueous, and Salty – Looking for Life in All the Right Places; Kennda Lynch, Georgia Institute of Technology, 15:30.

 Apr 1-3 — SSERVI, NASA, University of Central Florida, Florida Space Institute, et al, Orlando FL: Centaur Exploration Workshop.

 Apr 1-3 — Exoplanet Exploration Program, NASA, JPL, Potomac MD: Conference: The Landscape of Space Astrophysics in the 2020s and Beyond.

Apr 1-12 — United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, Vienna, Austria: 58th Session of the Legal Subcommittee of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

Apr 1 — Moon: 2.55° SSE of Venus, 21:00.

Apr 1 — Aten Asteroid 2014 FK38: Near-Earth Flyby (0.059 AU)

Continued from…

Jan 2019 – Sep 2020 — New Horizons, Kuiper Belt: Full data from spacecraft 7 instruments during KBO Ultima Thule flyby to be transmitted to Earth over this time period.

Mar 19 – Jul 19 — Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Biomedical Problems, Moscow, Russia: Mixed gender crew of 6 to participate in 4-month space / lunar simulation mission SIRIUS (Scientific International Research In Unique Terrestrial Station).