October 5-11, 2020 / Vol 39, No 40 / Hawai`i Island, USA

IAC Cyberspace 2020 and Associated Events Embrace Resiliency by Connecting @ll Space People

International Astronautical Federation, led by President Pascale Ehrenfreun, is holding 71st International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2020) October 12-14. As a Cyberspace Edition under the motto “IAF Connecting @ll Space People”, IAC will be free of charge to reach new communities. With over 3,000 registered, there will be 3 Plenaries, 2 Highlight Lectures, 6 GNF Sessions, 2 Special Sessions, 14 Technical Keynotes, a Networking Session and a virtual gallery with 1,600 video lectures divided into 32 Symposia. Preliminary to IAC, the IPC Steering Group, IAF Technical Committees and TAC Meetings will converge October 6-9, followed by NextGen Summit Oct 10, and IPMC Younger Professionals Workshop & Technical Gallery Oct 11. There will be opening and closing ceremonies, IAF 3G Diversity Award (given to ESA this year), and talks featuring an Astronaut Panel, Head of Space Agencies, Chang’e-4 mission leaders, Artemis mission + Artemis Accords, and the Launch of Worldwide Missions to Mars. Announcements will be made by DLR, Lockheed Martin, ESA, Northrop Grumman, Blue Origin, Arianespace, Dragonfly Aerospace and Thales Alenia Space. The IAF General Assembly will be held Oct 15. IAA Academy Day is reset to take place on Oct 24, 2021 on the eve of the 72nd IAC which will be held in Dubai, UAE Oct 25-29. IAC 2022 is set for France, and IAC 2023 in Azerbaijan. (Image Credits: IAF, IAA, IISL, SGAC, DLR, ESA, NASA, NG, et al)

MONDAY

Oct 5-6 — Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics, African Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education, Boston College, International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems, Online: African Workshop on GNSS and Space Weather.

Hawai’i Forges Ahead with Groundbreaking Astrophysics and Space Science

Widely known for being a global leader in scientifically productive astrophysical observations, Hawaii Island has also fostered a growing community geared towards 21st Century science. Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES) supported by HI State Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, has programs ranging from off-world habitat analogs on the slopes of Mauna Loa (in conjunction with HI-SEAS) to sintered basalt feasibility study, and a virtual lecture series Women in Space Exploration (WiSE) set for October 5–10. Connecting aspiring female space students with inspirational, established professionals in the space field, a panel of 7 women – scientists, engineers, communicators and entrepreneurs – are to speak over the 5-day event. Astronomically, Hawaii continues contributing to humankind’s understanding of the universe through its complex of observatories: as part of the Event Horizon VLBI array, Submillimeter Array and East Asian Observatory / JCMT took part in the historic first black hole imaging of Powehi, named in Olelo Hawaiʻi. Keck, CFHT, Subaru and Gemini continue groundbreaking optical observation on Earth. International Lunar Observatory Association aims to pioneer the next step of advancement in astrophysics by conducting astronomy from the Moon NET October 2021, with data studied remotely here in Hawaii. The next major astronomy facility on Hawaii, utilizing exosphere spectroscopy, may shed light on perhaps the most pondered topic of our species: whether we occupy the universe alone. (Image Credits: W.M. Keck, PISCES, HI-SEAS, CFHT, Gemini, Subaru, EAO)

Oct 5-9 — United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), International Astronomical Union (IAU), Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, NSF NOIRLab, Online: Conference on Dark and Quiet Skies for Science and Society.

Oct 5-9 — ESA, ArianeGroup, MOOG, CNES, ASI, Bradford Space, DLR, Estoril, Portugal: 7th Space Propulsion 2020 Conference; international forum supporting the preparation of space propulsion future activities and roadmaps; expecting 700 professionals from over 30 countries; reset to February 8-12, 2021.

Oct 5-10 — Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES), Microsoft, Hawaii Science and Technology Museum, Online / Hawaii Island: Women in Space Exploration (WiSE) Talks; featuring 7 inspiring women who work in space careers exploring Mars, life support systems, Saturn and even extraterrestrial habitats; 09:00-11:00 HST daily.

Oct 5-11 — Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES), Hawaii Island: 2020 STEM Aerospace Research Scholars (STAR) Program; reset to 2021.

Oct 5 — Moon: 5.9° SE of Pleiades, 20:00.

Oct 5 — Apollo Asteroid 2020 RV2: Near Earth Flyby (0.038 AU)

Continued From…

Nov 2019 – Nov 2020 — Hayabusa2, Earth Trajectory: JAXA Hayabusa2 with two samples collected from C-type asteroid 162173 Ryugu on trajectory for Earth return.

Jul 29 – Oct 31 — CNSA, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Online / Beijing, China: Students to submit ideas for payloads for Chang’e-7 lunar south pole craft, and ZhengHe mission that will return samples from Asteroid 2016HO3 and visit Comet 133P.