The US made another leap forward in extra-planetary exploration last week with the return of SpaceXs demo crewed launch. It is looking more and more as if Europe will be consigned to being an enthusiastic bit-player, rather than a fully-fledged runner in the space race.

Watching last weekends crowd-less edition of the British Formula One Grand Prix at Silverstone, your columnist was struck by the parallel between motorsports premier racing series and the international competition to put humans into space.

Mercedes-Benz has dominated the proceedings for nearly a decade, while the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull have only managed to launch half-hearted challenges to the German manufacturer during the same period. Victories here and there but never the top prize.

That state of affairs is much like Russia and China, which have only infrequently competed with the United States when it comes to space policy.

Then you have the F1 midfield runners, the likes of McLaren and Renault, which have promised a lot given their pedigree but almost always flattered to deceive. Their racing efforts are the equivalent of Europes forays into orbit.

Last week, the European Space Agency lauded the fact that one of its astronauts - veteran French spaceman Thomas Pesquet - will be aboard SpaceXs second full launch in the first half of next year.

I am thrilled to be the first European to fly on the new generation of US crewed spacecraft, Pesquet said once the ink was dry on the contract. He will be part of a four-person mission alongside two Nasa personnel and a Japanese astronaut.

It reflects the hierarchy in the space race, where the big spenders reign supreme and the rest of the field have to make do with crumbs. Europe, after all, has to rely on Russia and now the US, again, to reach the heavens.

That dependence is likely to last at least another decade, if not longer, as Europes next-gen rocket, the Ariane 6, is not configured for crewed launches. Ithas still yet to make its debut flight, as coronavirus-based delays have moved the first launch back to early 2021.

Ariane 6 is purely geared towards upping Europes capacity to put hardware into orbit, a segment of the sector where the Old Continent admittedly leads the field. When it comes to GPS and Earth observation satellites, Europe can mix it with the best.

But the rockets lack of capacity to carry human capsules and even its one-shot-only capabilities - SpaceXs vehicles are reusable after all - has led many to question whether Europe is already out of the space exploration race and is settling for the riches offered by space exploitation.

Things are poised on a knife-edge. The ESAs member states granted the agency a beefed-up budget in late 2019, which should help fund projects as exciting as a new space station or even a lunar mission.

But the EU, which also contributes billions to the ESAs coffers, last month settled on a long-term budget that fails to provide the agency with any extra firepower compared to its last offering.That was despite widespread calls for the bloc to pump an extra 3-5 billion into the mix.

There are ambitious plans coming out of Brussels regardless. The EUs executive branch, the Commission, has spun off space policy into its own separate department along with defence matters, and the French official in charge, Thierry Breton, intends to boost its standing.

Space is one of Europes strong points, and were giving ourselves the means to speed up, the Commissioner said in late June, just before EU leaders shaved 3bn off the proposed budget.

SpaceX has redefined the standards for launchers, so Ariane 6 is a necessary step, but not the ultimate aim: we must start thinking now about Ariane 7, the former head of IT giant Atos added.

Giving Europe independent access to space for crewed missionsis likely to be a question of politics rather than money at the end of the day. The ESAs members would have to instruct the agency to make it a priority, which would then lead to a race between firms to provide the service.

Another thing that SpaceX has shown is that costs can be reduced when competition is added to the mix. Given Europe's vast resources of technical know-how dotted across the continent, the untapped potential is gigantic, despite the inability to match Nasa's huge budget.

Arianespace, the French company that designs the Ariane rocket family, says thata launcher with crewed capacityis not a question of technical feasibility. For the firms CEO, Stphane Isral nothing is impossible and all he would need is the green light.

The American manned space programme started again in 2012. Eight years later, there was this SpaceX manned flight. If Europe made the same choice, by the end of the decade, it would be possible, he said in June.

Things are moving fast. Elon Musks company carried out a successful test of its Starship this week, the latest step towards a first Moon mission since 1972 and even a crewed launch to Mars.

As ever, the EU - and by extension Europe - does not lack the ambition of other big players. But the slow pace at which politics can move and an at times frustrating unwillingness to take the first step, looks like relegating Europes astronauts to the back of the grid.

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View from Brussels: Out of the space race? - E&T Magazine

Its hard not to get our hopes up that were entering into a brand-new golden age of space exploration, led this time by private enterprise. The innovation demonstrated by nimble, non-traditional, civilian companies in developing and deploying reliable, reusable lift vehicles, along with more affordable payload prices, has re-invigorated the Space Age. And dont forget that the man responsible for SpaceShipOnewhich, arguably, triggered all this private enterprise space developmentwas the IPC APEX EXPO keynote speaker this past January. (Read our exclusive interview with Burt Rutan here, as well as coverage of his keynote presentation here.)

My top 5 picks this week include the SpaceX Dragon splashdown, the Mars 2020 missions Ingenuity helicopterfeaturing an interview with the carbon fiber company that built the helicopters landing gearand the U.S. Air Forces efforts to secure space systems with the help of volunteer hackers. Readers also responded to news from IPC and iNEMI, and blockchain turned out to be hugely popular.

NASA Astronauts Safely Splash Down After First Commercial Crew Flight to Space StationPublished August 3

With a nearly flawless, safe and precise landing, and the potential for quick turnaround and reuse, SpaceX is delivering on those promises made by the Space Shuttle program back in the 1970s. The news coverage we published was popular with readers, not to mention technologically and historically significant.

Goodwinds Composites: Putting a Helicopter on MarsPublished July 31

Simultaneous to the SpaceX manned re-entry news buildup, NASA launched the Mars 2020 mission. Weve featured the Goodwinds team before, so it was exciting for us when they could finally talk about their work on the Ingenuity helicopter. Our exclusive, day-of-the-launch audio interview caught readers attention.

IPC and iNEMI Sign MOU With Focus on Future of Electronics ManufacturingPublished August 3

In this quote from the press release, IPC and iNEMI will collaborate and share information on developing technology roadmaps, organizing forums, establishing new programs, and identifying additional industry needs and projects for the mutual benefit of the membership of both organizations. By pooling resources and perspectives, these two industry associations will help us all to see the future directions and challenges more clearly.

This Month in SMT007 MagazineIBM: Supply Chain BlockchainPublished August 4

When we set out to interview IBMs Michelle Lam and Christophe Begue for the August issue of SMT007 Magazine, our intent was to gain clarity on exactly what blockchain is and how it would function in the manufacturing supply chain. When we featured this article in the newsletter, readers gobbled it up!

Electronics Manufacturing Industry Calls on Congress to Pass New COVID-19 Recovery BillPublished August 4

The global economies continue to carefully navigate their respective ways through the COVID-19 effects toward recovery. IPC continues to advocate for appropriate U.S. government legislation to maintain our momentum during these times. Not only is this news item important, but it was also of interest to readers.

Bonus pick:

U.S. Defense, Air Force Invite Hackers to Re-Imagine How Space Systems Are SecuredPublished August 3

Completing our space tech hat trick is the satellite hack event. This quote from Will Roper, assistant secretary of the U.S. Air Force, says it all: Space is an increasingly important contributor to global economies and security. Letting experts hack an orbiting satellite will teach us how to build more secure systems in the future.

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I-Connect007 Editor's Choice: 5 Must-Reads for the Week - I-Connect007

The Deep Space Exploration and Technology market report highlights the significant growth drivers, opportunities, and challenges that are slated to define the growth trajectory of this business space in the ensuing years.

According to the document, the market is projected to register XX% CAGR over the analysis timeframe (2020-2025) and is slated to witness substantial gains by the end of analysis period.

With the market going up and down amidst the coronavirus outbreak, uncertainty dominates the day. Apart from short-term revenue concerns, some industries are projected to face complications even once the economy emerges from the pandemic.

Request Sample Copy of this Report @ https://www.aeresearch.net/request-sample/263197

Almost all the businesses in various sectors have planned their budget to regain profit trajectory for the approaching years. Our assessment of this industry vertical can assist your action plan for managing market uncertainties and help you fabricate robust contingency plans.

The research report offers an extensive analysis of the various market segmentations along with the existing market trends to facilitate better understanding of the revenue projections.

Key inclusions of the Deep Space Exploration and Technology market report:

Deep Space Exploration and Technology Market segments covered in the report:

Regional landscape: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East & Africa, South East Asia

Product types: Rockets, Landers, Robots, Satellites and Orbiters

Applications spectrum: Moon Exploration, Transportation, Orbital Infrastructure, Mars Exploration and Others

Competitive outlook: Airbus S.A.S, MAXAR Technologies Inc., Bradford, Astrobotic, Masten Space Systems, Axiom Space, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Blue Origin, Nanoracks LLC, The Boeing Company, Planetary Resources, Thales Group, Sierra Nevada Corporation and Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX

Market segmentation

The Deep Space Exploration and Technology market is split by Type and by Application. For the period 2020-2025, the growth among segments provides accurate calculations and forecasts for sales by Type and by Application in terms of volume and value. This analysis can help you expand your business by targeting qualified niche markets.

Research Objective:

Why to Select This Report:

Key questions answered in the report:

MAJOR TOC OF THE REPORT:

Chapter 1 Industry Overview

Chapter 2 Production Market Analysis

Chapter 3 Sales Market Analysis

Chapter 4 Consumption Market Analysis

Chapter 5 Production, Sales and Consumption Market Comparison Analysis

Chapter 6 Major Manufacturers Production and Sales Market Comparison Analysis

Chapter 7 Major Product Analysis

Chapter 8 Major Application Analysis

Chapter 9 Industry Chain Analysis

Chapter 10 Global and Regional Market Forecast

Chapter 11 Major Manufacturers Analysis

Chapter 12 New Project Investment Feasibility Analysis

Chapter 13 Conclusions

Chapter 14 Appendix

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Deep Space Exploration and Technology Market: Competitive Dynamics & Global Out - News by aeresearch

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SpaceX is back in the news, creating hope for aspiring astronauts with a test of part of its Starship system, meant to eventually take crews to the moon, to Mars, and beyond.

The trial liftoff and landing also has the potential to fuel investors dreams of finding the next big thing. Space investing and the low-earth-orbit economy are still in the early stages of development.

In April, NASA selected SpaceXalong with two other teamsto develop landing vehicles for the 2024 Artemis moon missions. SpaceX is developing a reusable systemnamed Starshipthat integrates a powerful rocket and lander. Tuesdays test was an early milestone in Starships development.

During the test, part of the craft lifted off, rose 150 meters, and landed safely. It was another feather in the cap of SpaceX, whose 2020 achievements have been, frankly, breathtaking.

This past Sunday, the company completed a two-month mission qualifying it to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station. Its also delivered many satellites to low earth orbit, which will enable the company to eventually offer high-speed, space-based internet access to earthlings.

SpaceX is no small player. The company is valued at $30 to $40 billion in private markets, but some people see the potential for much more.

Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas for starters thinks the company, headed by Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk, could be worth up to $150 billion, although that value is mainly dependent on a successful internet business. He doesnt have much value assigned to deep space exploration.

Our views around deep space exploration are largely qualitative at this point, wrote Jonas in a July research report.

There arent a lot of business opportunities in deep space yet, but that is changing. There was the Starship test. NASA is also spending money. Aerojet Rocketdyne (AJRD), for instance, makes the rocket engines for the huge NASA space launch systemor SLSwhich is the backbone of the agencys plans for deep space exploration. SLS will be the most powerful rocket NASA has built.

The SLS is slated to launch for the first time in late 2021. Early missions will deliver cargoes to the moon. Space craft traveling that far have to be accelerated to 24,500 miles an hour to break out of low earth orbit.

Jonas, of course, doesnt cover SpaceX. He does cover the space tourism company Virgin Galactic (SPCE). He rates those shares at Buy and has a target of $24 for the stock price.

Aerojet Rocketdyne shares are down about 7% year to date, a little worse than comparable returns of the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average. Virgin Galactic shares have soared 70%.

Tesla has done better than both, up more than 250%. There is no connection between Tesla and SpaceX beyond Musk. But Musk matters. SpaceX generates a lot of free advertising for the electric- vehicle maker, saving the car maker billions of dollars each year.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

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SpaceX Took a First Small Step to Mars. That's Great News for Space Investors. - Barron's

Earlier this week, NASA launched another mission to mars. A week after the Apollo 11 moon landing celebrated its 51st anniversary.

In this weeks Flashback Friday, we take you back to 1980, where an Astronaut from Apollo 17, turned U.S senator spoke on the technological possibilities of space exploration.

New Mexico senator Harrison Schmitt is not unfamiliar with scientific exploration on a grandiose scale. It was Schmitt, the geologist and astronaut who explored the lunar surface in Americas latest Apollo 17 moonshot. As a senator, Schmitt is still preaching space technology, now pushing the formation of a Earth resource information satellite corporation. Which would collect and distribute satellite information on a worldwide scale. Information Schmitt says could help U.S. ag prices by using satellite pictures to predict world crop production. Information also to curb the energy crunch through satellite energy exploration. Its acceptance, Schmitt says, is Americans technology test, which will spell prosperity or the lack of it for the future.

Our problem is most of the leadership in the major agencies of government, like the department of the interior, literally dont want us to develop energy in this country, and domestic energy. Theyre afraid of what it does to the environment, theyre afraid of what it does to the atmosphere, and so forth. And so the regulatory and taxation restrictions on doing anything are so formidable. Plus the bureaucratic inertia that comes in budget cycles, that it is almost impossible to get these kinds of things off the ground right now.

Schmitt worries that America will miss out on economic advantages if other countries develop the system first. So do many of these scientists. But according to Schmitt, not the government, which harbors a coolness to towards the system which Schmitt describes as enough to frost a chili pepper.

Bill Overman, KELOLAND News.

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Flashback Friday: Possibilities of space exploration in 1980 - KELOLAND.com

Artists impression of VIPER rover; Credits: NASA

Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), signed a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center (JSC) for the delivery of the X-Band Transceiver and X-Band Diplexer. These critical systems will ensure communications for the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER).

A critical step to human space explorationNASAs lunar rover will explore the South Pole of the Moon in search for water ice and other potential resources by means of its three instruments and a 1-meter (3.28-foot) drill. The data collected by the rover will show where the Moons water ice is most likely to be found and easiest to access. The first water maps of the Moon will mark a critical step forward in NASAs Artemis program to establish a sustainable human presence on the surface of the Moon later this decade.

Furthermore, the exploration of lunar resources to produce oxygen and propellants could enable new mission architectures to human space exploration. The VIPER rover will be delivered to the Moon as part of NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS). With a launch foreseen in late 2023, the mission will have a duration of 100 Earth days, covering 3 cycles of lunar day and night.

Direct-to-Earth communications from the Moon surfaceThales Alenia Space in Spain will design, manufacture, test and deliver the X-Band Transceiver and X-Band Diplexer, which are responsible for the rover communications with direct links between the lunar rover and Earth over NASAs Deep Space Network.

We are thrilled to collaborate with NASA on the VIPER mission, which will search for water on the Moon, a critical element to future human exploration endeavors, said Eduardo Bellido, CEO of Thales Alenia Space in Spain.This contract with NASA reflects our leadership in space communication systems and our competitiveness in delivering state-of-the-art communication equipment for all type of space missions to customers around the world.

VIPER is the fourth mission to the Moon in which Thales Alenia Space in Spain provides key communication equipment. Starting back in 2003 with SMART-1, the first mission to the Moon of the European Space Agency (ESA), the company also contributes to the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO), the first step of the Korean Lunar Exploration Program, as well as to the NOVA-C lunar lander being developed by Intuitive Machines to compete for NASA CLPS awards.

Building on its comprehensive heritage in the development of space communications equipment for all type of space missions, Thales Alenia Space in Spain has contributed to 600 satellites, space probes and cargo vehicles from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to the L2 Lagrangian point at 1.5 million kilometers from the Earth.

Key partner and supplier to NASA missionsThales Alenia Space has a long standing presence in the USA space market as key partner and supplier to commercial and institutional missions. A world leader in space communications, the company has contributed communication equipment to numerous NASA programs such as PACE, WFIRST, IBEX, OCO, Cygnus, JUNO, ICON or JWST.

Thales Alenia Space is also an experienced provider of pressurized elements for human space exploration, including multiple modules of the International Space Station. These include Node 2 & 3, Columbus (pressurized part), the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM), the Permanent Logistic Module (PPM), the Cupola and the ATV and Cygnus resupply cargo vehicle.

Moreover, the companys long-standing capabilities in oceanography and altimetry are born with the Topex-Poseidon joint NASA/CNES (French Space Agency) program, to be followed by the Jason oceanographic satellites series. Thales Alenia Space is now teaming up with the French space agency and NASA/JPL on SWOT, a very ambitious American-French program that will shape the future of space-based oceanography.

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VIPER Rover to use Thales Alenia Space tech for Earth comms - SpaceWatch.Global

The way we portray space exploration is less about the destination, and more about the white men who conquer it. The Neil Armstrong biopic is merely the latest example.

I have a confession. Or, rather, I should just say that I have something to tell you because I dont feel ashamed or in need of absolution. I wanted to write about First Man, but I fell asleep.

Exhaustion set in with the first sequence, as the film moved from the familiar (but no less effective) stress of near-disaster aboard a shaky rocket-powered plane to a heart-dropping descent into the banal. But I didnt actually fall asleep until the Apollo 11 launch scene. I remember waking briefly during the countdown and struggling with each number to keep my eyelids open, thinking,Shit, youre supposed to watch this part!Even if I hadnt fallen asleep, I dont know how much Id have to say about the movie: a dweeby daredevils ascent to space captain filmed as aMad Menspin-off.

The space biopic is a relatively puny genre, and the patriotic tedium of watching a bunch of men lob technicalities back and forth speaks to the lack of actual inspiration. 1983sThe Right Stuffwas panned by the public but received eight knee-jerk Oscar nominations (and won four, a formality), and it has since been declared a film of great import. Space films that do please dont necessarily skimp on patriotism, but they do have to insert aliens and asteroids and nuclear payloads to make it interesting.

The tedium of rocket science obscures the historical knot of empiricism and empire. A different kind of first man, Galileo has a different sort of biopic, too. A play titledLife of Galileo was written by Bertolt Brecht, the Marxist dreamer of modern theatre, and attempts to portray the scientist as rebel visionary. The plot dwells too much in the discovery narrative typical of Galileos glorification as a man of science. But Brecht also touches on the sinister uses of knowledge and the difficulties of producing knowledge for a greater good. Galileo scoffs at the supposed privilege of freedom of research, and he makes clear that it is of no use without freedom of time.

Today, space research is funded by the military and by venture capital because the worlds resources are organized in such a way that nobody else can afford it. When told that he needs to make his scientific research more commercially lucrative, Brechts Galileo responds, Free trade, free research. Free trading in research, eh? hinting at the cynical drive for profit that hides behind invocations of research for the greater good. These are questions often left out when Americans consider the benefits of space research and space travel. InFirst Man, the brute show of scientific prowess Neil Armstrongs famous walk is understood as a social good rather than an invocation of military might.

Biopics are overwrought not just in their cold attempts at sentimentality (having to wring emotion from tight-lipped white men who work too much is an uncomfortable rub) but also in their propaganda. Beyond the nationalist backslapping of these Cold War victory fantasies, a larger narrative animates it all, a hubristic story that people tell of space travel. There is, in fact, an internal contradiction to space aesthetics: outer space is meant to both humble us before the great mystery and inflates us with pride at overcoming the void. In First Man, the technological sublime awe invoked not through landscape but man-made interventions on landscape eclipses the space sublime. It is a feeling perhaps first intimated in the eyepiece of Galileos telescope.

And now, a brief detour to the well-worn tale of the dawn of empiricism. In 1543, Nicolaus Copernicus published his heliocentric model of the solar system. The sun, he said, was the immovable centre around which all the planets, including Earth, rotated. It is often misunderstood that the sin for which Galileo, following the Copernican heliocentric model, was persecuted was removing Earth from some esteemed position in the centre of the universe. But for church officials in the 16th and 17th centuries, that centre was a pit. Earth was the sordid habitance of fallen man. To posit that the Earth was a celestial body implied that it was not the heavy globe of sin Catholic theology imagined it was. In The Great Copernican Clich, published in the American Journal of Physics,Dennis Danielson traces how, from Aristotelian to Ptolemaic models, the center meant the filthy, bogged-down base. Galileo offended not because he dethroned the Earth but rather because he had dared suggest our home world sung with the heavenly spheres in their melodic transit around the sun.

One way in which Galileo proved the Copernican model of the solar system was through his observation of the moon, which appeared through his telescope as something completely different from the perfectly rounded sphere that theology-inflected science had described and expected of the heavens. The Roman Inquisition tried Galileo for heresy in 1633, and he spent the rest of his life under house arrest. The actual glorification of man inherent to the Copernican Revolution is that humanity might know and understand the heavens, proven in part by Galileos ability to pierce the mystery with his telescope. InFirst Man, much is made of mans technical triumph over the cosmos. It harps on that Armstrong is anengineer, not just some meathead Marine.

What kind of story of humanity is being told in the line we wait the whole ofFirst Manto hear? One small step . . . Who is the mankind who takes the giant leap? And to where? The idea that all of mankind jumps forward in Armstrongs step suggests that the mankind of the future and of progress is a scaled-up collective of strapping, square, straight martyrs. Their race and gender default to the obvious. In an ironic moment of self-critique in the movie, Gil Scott-Herons song-poem Whitey on the Moon plays during a montage that serves as the sole nod to a social world outside Armstrongs life: The man jus upped my rent las night / (cause Whiteys on the moon.) / No hot water, no toilets, no lights / (but Whiteys on the moon.) Scott-Herons words deserve a much better context than this sequence, which is only a kind of floating index for the unrest and resistance movements that occurred while the military mission for the moon was working toward a much different future for humanity.

The Apollo program embodies a particularly American hubris, one integral to a story our democracy tells about itself. It is also connected to a long history of how outer space, in particular the moon, has appeared to the explorer, the capitalist adventurer,the space dad: all versions of sovereign white manhood. Outer space has been a backdrop for a Western man to define himself as protagonist since Galileo, who claimed the Earth was of the heavens and that the heavens were knowable by a man with the right stuff.

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Where no man has gone before: The problematic way we portray space exploration - The Big Smoke Australia

The research is critically important to solving problems such as mapping, localization, atmospheric transmission spectroscopy, electromagnetic radiation detection of all kinds, seismic and other planetary sensing, and more. Woosoon Yim, Ph.D. and professor of mechanical engineering in UNLV's Howard R. Hughes College of Engineering, will serve as principal investigator and his team at UNLV will work in tandem with Geisel Software's engineers to address the complex issues inherent in swarming applications.

"Geisel Software is honored to be selected for this Phase I STTR in cooperation with UNLV," commented Brian Geisel, Chief Executive Officer at Geisel Software. "We're excited to be working with such a well-regarded university that's committed to serving minority and underrepresented students. This STTR will give students an opportunity to grow not only in the initial phase as students, but also through the eventual productization phase as engineers."

"Space is a challenging experimentation environment and developing a realistic simulation platform for studyingcoordination and control of swarms of the ground and aerial vehicles is integral to safe space exploration," said Yim. "Geisel Software has technical expertise in solving complex software challenges and experience building custom solutions for government organizations. This partnership builds off our combined strengths to help NASA achieve their exploration goals."

The STTR program is a highly competitive three-phase program that reserves a specific percentage of federal research and development funding to award to small businesses in partnership with nonprofit research institutions to move ideas from the laboratory to the marketplace, to foster high-tech economic development, and to address the technological needs of the federal government.

About Geisel Software, Inc.Founded in 2011, Geisel Software, Inc. (http://geisel.software) is a Massachusetts-based custom software development firm. Geisel's highly trained, innovative team creates elegantly designed, world-class web / cloud, mobile apps and embedded software for some of the most visionary hardware, software and security companies in the medical and robotics industries. Geisel Software is committed to understanding our customer's business and clearly defining project parameters to deliver powerful, unique solutions that allow them to innovate, create and succeed. We serve federal and state government and commercial enterprises across the United States.

About UNLVUNLV is a doctoral-degree-granting institution of more than 31,000 students and 3,900 faculty and staff that has earned the nation's highest recognition for both research and community engagement from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. UNLV offers a broad range of respected academic programs and is committed to recruiting and retaining top students and faculty, educating the region's diverse population and workforce, driving economic activity, and creating an academic health center for Southern Nevada. Learn more at unlv.edu.

SOURCE Geisel Software, Inc.

https://geisel.software

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NASA Awards STTR Research Grant To Geisel Software And UNLV For Robot Simulation Platform for Source Search and Mapping - PRNewswire

As NASA launches its most detailed mission yet toMars, Southeast Asian nations are also working on space programmes, albeit on amuch smaller scale. What is in it for them and how are they making it work?

By John Pennington

As NASA looks for signs oflife on Mars, it seems an odd time for Myanmar to focus on sendingsatellites into space while civil conflicts rage on the ground and thenation battles the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the country is not interested in exploring newfrontiers or entering a space race to prove its technological prowess. Itsspace programme, developed in collaboration with experts at Hokkaido Universityand Tohuku University in Japan, aims to improve connectivity, mitigate theimpacts of natural disasters and boost crop production.

Myanmar first stepped up its space plans in 2017 when itset up a steering committee to develop its own satellite system. In August2019, it launched Myanmar-sat2 todeliver improved broadband and video distribution services.

As Myanmar aims to get 95% of its population online by 2022, the new satellite means they no longer have to pay upwards of US$10 million per year to rent satellite channels from China, Thailand, the US and Vietnam. The savings will go towards covering some of the US$155.7 million Myanmar spent on its launch.

One of the reasons that Myanmar wants to build and launch itsown satellites is to save money. Seven engineers from the Myanmar AerospaceEngineering University were due to go to Japan in March to begin their trainingwith a view to designing, building and launching twosatellites in the next five years.

These will be microsatellites weighing no more than 50kilogrammes and measuring around 50 centimetres per side. They will enablescientists in Myanmar to monitor weather systems, crops and land usagefromurbanisation to spotting illegal activity such as logging and mining.

COVID-19 delayed the engineers departure but the cost of theprogrammefunded by Myanmars governmentwill be US$16million, a fraction of what it would cost to build and launch thetype of large satellites that Southeast Asian nations cannot afford.

Its simply less expensive if we build our own satellite, said KyiThwin, the aerospace universitys rector, adding that the programme could alsoboost Myanmars economy. It is a plausible claim: every dollar the US has spentin space has delivered, according to estimates, anything from US$7-40 ineconomic returns.

However, it all depends on COVID-19if borders do notreopen then the scientists will not be able to travel to Japan andthey will likely miss the initial launch date, scheduled for 2021.

Despite their size and weight, these microsatellites possessadvanced imaging technology. They can send back detailed pictures of widetracts of land regularly, allowing those interpreting the data to trackchanges.

For example, they can show farmers what is happening in fieldsthat may be hard to reach, leading to fewer wasted trips to check on crops. Thesame Japanese universities collaborating with Myanmar helped the Philippineslaunch a satellite in 2016 that proved instrumental in detectingdisease in bananas.

The instruments could alert authorities to changes in areasthat would otherwise go unnoticed, perhaps enabling them to move in and preventillegal practices such as logging or mining before too much damage is done tothe local environment.

Primarily, however, the satellites will monitorweather systems such as typhoons and detect seismic activity.Early detection of severe weather patterns will enable authorities to movepeople and livestock away from danger, saving lives and money. In the aftermathof disasters, the satellites will show scientists how quickly areas arerecovering.

It is not just a matter of launching a satellite and takingan image, but our goal is to bring truly practical outcomes by analysing thedata acquired through the latest technology and observation methods, explainedProfessor Yukihiro Takahashi, director of Hokkaido Universitys Space MissionCenter.

These ties with established space programmes are crucial for initiativesin places like Myanmar. Like many countries, it lacks the resources andtechnology to design and launch satellites itself, meaning it must work withothers.

To this end, it has joined a nine-strong super-constellation ofAsian nations, also including Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, to launchand monitor microsatellites. Malaysia and Thailand will also eventually come onboard.

Furthermore, Myanmar is part of an Asian micro-satelliteconsortium founded in 2016 which committed to sharing technology andobservational data. In this way, ASEAN nations can move forward with spaceprogrammes that would otherwise be out of reach. The more satellites there aresending back pictures of the region, the better, particularly if all membershave access to the data.

Indonesia has the most advanced space programme within ASEAN,being the first in the region to send geosynchronous satellites into space whenNASA launched them in 1976.Vietnams Pham Tun becamethe first Southeast Asian to go into space in 1980.

However, China, India and Japan have dominated the history ofAsian space exploration. Like NASA, all three have launched missions to both Marsand the moon, with more planned, leading to some predictions thatAsia might win the next space race.

ASEANs role in more advanced space exploration attempts willbe limited. While an astronaut from the region may one day return to space oreven set foot on another planet, it would be as part of another countrysprogramme. For now, Southeast Asias space race has smaller but no lessimportant goals: ensuring natural resources are not wasted and averting potentialdisasters here on earth.

Related

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Why are ASEAN nations joining the space race? - ASEAN TODAY

The first helicopter designed to fly on another planet is now on its way to Mars.

NASA's Mars helicopter, called Ingenuity, is hitching a ride to the Red Planet with the agency's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, which lifted off on an Atlas V rocket from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station today (July 30).

Tucked beneath the rover's belly, Ingenuity will spend the next six months en route to Mars. The mission is scheduled to land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021, and within the next few months the rotorcraft will attempt the first-ever flight through another planet's atmosphere.

Related: Meet Ingenuity: Alabama teen names NASA's Mars helicopterLive Updates: NASA's Mars rover Perseverance mission in real time

"We as human beings have never flown or rotorcraft outside of our own Earth's atmosphere, so this will actually be a very much a Wright Brothers moment, except on another planet," Mimi Aung, NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter project manager, said in a news conference on Tuesday (July 28).

While NASA and other space agencies around the world have sent landers, orbiters and rovers to the Red Planet, no one has attempted to fly an aircraft on another planet before. On Mars the atmosphere is much thinner than it is on Earth, which means there's less air to generate lift and more technical challenges in designing a craft that will stay aloft.

"Flying a rotorcraft at Mars is very difficult. First and foremost, the atmosphere there is very thin, about 1% compared to the Earth's atmospheric density here," Aung said. "To build a vehicle that can fly at Mars, it has to be very light and be able to spin very fast."

In photos: NASA's Mars Perseverance rover mission to the Red Planet

Ingenuity weighs about 4 lbs. (1.8 kilograms) and has two counter-rotating blades that measure about 4 feet (1.2 meters) long. Those blades should spin at a rate of about 2,400 revolutions per minute, NASA said in Ingenuity's mission description.To test the helicopter, NASA simulated the Martian atmosphere in a testing chamber at the agency's Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California.

While Ingenuity is only an experimental mission its primary objective is to test powered flight on Mars a successful flight could shape the future of exploration on Mars.

For robotic missions like the Perseverance rover, helicopters could scout the Martian terrain and help plan driving routes. With that same aerial view, rotorcraft could also be used to study the planet's geology from a different perspective, and they could even help astronauts explore Mars someday, NASA said.

"This Mars helicopter Ingenuity could lead to the opening up of a whole new way to explore space" and to take "exploration missions to the aerial dimension," Aung said.

Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us on Twitter@Spacedotcom and onFacebook.

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The first interplanetary helicopter is on its way to Mars - Space.com

The Crew Dragon spacecraft, produced by private company SpaceX, is scheduled to return from the International Space Station (ISS) and splash down in the Atlantic ocean on August 2. Contingent on a favourable weather forecast and a successful final week at the ISS, NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley will begin the undocking procedure on August 1, and re-enter Earths atmosphere the next day a total of 64 days since lift off.

The historic launch took place on May 30 from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the first time a commercial space company has carried humans into orbit around Earth. But while the launch was a nail-biting experience to watch, reentry will be even more risky presenting a tense moment for mission control. SpaceX founder Elon Musk said that the reentry is indeed his biggest concern.

The joint SpaceX and NASA mission was successful in docking with the ISS, so that astronauts could complete scientific and maintenance work, including four spacewalks.

Importantly, the missions primary purpose is to test and demonstrate the vehicles capability to safely carry crew to and from Earth orbit, as the first step in the plan of commencing regular ISS missions and commercial space flights.

The extreme velocities and temperatures the vehicle must endure present a major challenge to engineers and makes reentry the most perilous part of a mission.

The danger starts with finding the right angle of the trajectory as the spacecraft enters the upper atmosphere. If it is too steep, the astronauts will experience potentially fatal g-forces, and the friction of the air drag could cause the spacecraft to explode. If it is too shallow, the capsule will instead catastrophically skip off the atmosphere and back into Earth orbit.

The spacecraft will enter the upper atmosphere at 27,000km/hour. That is 7.5km/second, or more than 20 times the speed of sound. In whichever units you prefer this is fast. At these velocities, a very strong shock wave forms around the front of the vehicle, compressing and superheating the air. Managing the immense thermal load is a huge reentry engineering challenge.

At the most extreme stage, the temperature of the air in the shock layer exceeds 7,000C. By comparison, the temperature at the surface of the Sun is around 5,500C. This makes the vehicles heat shield so hot that it starts to glow a process called incandescence. SpaceXs new and advanced PICA-X material heat shield has managed to protect the capsule in test flights, later being recovered in a very charred state.

The air molecules around the vehicle also break down into positively charged atoms and free electrons a so-called plasma. When some of the molecules recombine, excess energy is released as photons (light particles) giving the air around the vehicle an amber glow.

This plasma layer may be beautiful, but it can cause radio blackouts. When an electron travels along a conductive wire, we have electricity. Similarly, when free electrons move through the plasma around the vehicle, we have an electric field. If the electric field becomes too strong, it can reflect and attenuate the radiowaves trying to reach the spacecraft.

Blackout not only leads to a loss of connection to on-board crew and flight data, it can also make remote control and guidance impossible. The Apollo missions, the Mars Pathfinder and the recent, failed 2018 Soyuz rocket launch all incurred communications blackout on the order of minutes. NASA mission control are anticipating a nervous six minutes of blackout during the peak heating phase of Crew Dragons return if anything goes wrong during this time, its in the hands of the astronauts.

Another risky stage is the parachute-assisted landing. The Crew Dragon will deploy four parachutes upon the final stage of reentry, as the vehicle descends toward a gentle splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida. This manoeuvre has been tested by SpaceX 27 times prior to next weeks crewed landing, so it should work.

A successful landing will have huge implications lowering the cost of space exploration through the use of reusable rockets and enabling private space exploration. While SpaceX engineered the Crew Dragon vehicle under contract to NASA, the company is free to use the spacecraft for commercial flights without NASA involvement after operational certification.

SpaceX has a partnership with commercial aerospace company Axiom Space, which has the ultimate goal of building the worlds first commercial space station. The proposed commercial activities for the station are broad: from in-space research and manufacturing to space exploration support.

Then there is space tourism. Private citizens are already queuing for their ticket to space, and with a successful Crew Dragon splashdown, they wont be waiting long. American space tourism company, Space Adventures (partnered with SpaceX), are planning to offer zero-gravity atmospheric flights, orbital flights with a spacewalk option and laps of the Moon by late 2021.

Read more: Elon Musks Starship may be more moral catastrophe than bold step in space exploration

Whether the costs, environmental impact and dangers of spaceflight is justified for space tourism is debatable. As this articles shows, the required safety briefing for Space Adventure ticket holders will be much more comprehensive than your regular please take a moment to read the safety card in the seat pocket in front of you.

Read more from the original source:

SpaceX: Crew Dragon is returning to Earth heres when to hold your breath - The Conversation UK

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket lifts off from pad 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Thursday, July 30, 2020, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The mission will send a Mars rover to the Red Planet to search for signs of life, explore the planet's geology and much more. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. The biggest, most sophisticated Mars rover ever built a car-size vehicle bristling with cameras, microphones, drills and lasers blasted off for the red planet Thursday as part of an ambitious, long-range project to bring the first Martian rock samples back to Earth to be analyzed for evidence of ancient life.

NASAs Perseverance rode a mighty Atlas V rocket into a clear morning sky in the worlds third and final Mars launch of the summer. China and the United Arab Emirates got a head start last week, but all three missions should reach their destination in February after a journey of seven months and 300 million miles.

The plutonium-powered, six-wheeled rover will drill down and collect tiny geological specimens that will be brought home in about 2031 in a sort of interplanetary relay race involving multiple spacecraft and countries. The overall cost: more than $8 billion.

NASAs science mission chief, Thomas Zurbuchen, pronounced the launch the start of humanitys first round trip to another planet.

Oh, I loved it, punching a hole in the sky, right? Getting off the cosmic shore of our Earth, wading out there in the cosmic ocean, he said. Every time, it gets me.

In addition to potentially answering one of the most profound questions of science, religion and philosophy Is there or has there ever been life beyond Earth? the mission will yield lessons that could pave the way for the arrival of astronauts as early as the 2030s.

Theres a reason we call the robot Perseverance. Because going to Mars is hard, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said just before liftoff. In this case, its harder than ever before because were doing it in the midst of a pandemic.

Shortly after liftoff, Perseverance unexpectedly went into safe mode, a sort of protective hibernation, after a temperature reading triggered an alarm. But deputy project manager Matt Wallace later said that the spacecraft appeared to be in good shape, with its temperatures back within proper limits, and that NASA will probably switch it back to its normal cruise state within a day or so.

Everything is pointing toward a healthy spacecraft ready to go to Mars and do its mission, he said.

NASAs deep-space tracking stations also had some difficulty locking onto signals from Perseverance early in the flight but eventually established a solid communication link, Wallace said.

The U.S., the only country to safely put a spacecraft on Mars, is seeking its ninth successful landing on the planet, which has proved to be the Bermuda Triangle of space exploration, with more than half of the worlds missions there burning up, crashing or otherwise ending in failure.

China is sending both a rover an orbiter. The UAE, a newcomer to outer space, has an orbiter en route.

Its the biggest stampede to Mars in spacefaring history. The opportunity to fly between Earth and Mars comes around only once every 26 months when the planets are on the same side of the sun and about as close as they can get.

The launch went off on time at 7:50 a.m. despite a 4.2-magnitude earthquake 20 minutes before liftoff that shook NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which is overseeing the rover.

Launch controllers at Cape Canaveral wore masks and sat spaced apart because of the coronavirus outbreak, which kept hundreds of scientists and other team members away from Perseverances liftoff.

That was overwhelming. Overall, just wow! said Alex Mather, the 13-year-old Virginia schoolboy who proposed the name Perseverance in a NASA competition and watched the launch in person with his parents.

About an hour into the flight, controllers applauded, pumped their fists, exchanged air hugs and pantomimed high-fives when the rocket left Earths orbit and began hurtling toward Mars.

We have left the building. We are on our way to Mars, Perseverances chief engineer, Adam Steltzner, said from JPL.

If all goes well, the rover will descend to the Martian surface on Feb. 18, 2021, in what NASA calls seven minutes of terror, during which the craft will go from 12,000 mph to a complete stop. It is carrying 25 cameras and a pair of microphones that will enable Earthlings to vicariously tag along.

Perseverance will aim for Jezero Crater, a treacherous, unexplored expanse of boulders, cliffs, dunes and possibly rocks bearing the chemical signature of microbes from what was a lake more than 3 billion years ago. The rover will store half-ounce rock samples in dozens of super-sterilized titanium tubes.

It also will release a mini helicopter that will attempt the first powered flight on another planet, and test out other technology to prepare the way for future astronauts. That includes equipment for extracting oxygen from Mars thin carbon-dioxide atmosphere.

The plan is for NASA and the European Space Agency to launch a dune buggy in 2026 to fetch the rock samples, plus a rocket ship that will put the specimens into orbit around Mars. Then another spacecraft will capture the orbiting samples and bring them home.

Samples taken straight from Mars, not drawn from meteorites discovered on Earth, have long been considered the Holy Grail of Mars science, according to NASAs now-retired Mars czar, Scott Hubbard.

To definitively answer the life-beyond-Earth question, the samples must be analyzed by the best electron microscopes and other instruments, far too big to fit on a spacecraft, he said.

Ive wanted to know if there was life elsewhere in the universe since I was 9 years old. That was more than 60 years ago, Hubbard said from his Northern California cabin. But just maybe, Ill live to see the fingerprints of life come back from Mars in one of those rock samples.

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'On our way to Mars': NASA rover to look for signs of life - The Daily Times

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Combined Activity in Government Spending and Commercial Revenue has Jumped 73% in the Last Decade, According to Newest Analysis from Space Foundation

The global space economy in 2019 grew more than $9 billion over the previous year, reaching $423.8 billion, according to new findings published by Space Foundations 2020 second-quarter issue ofThe Space Report.

Economic analysis also found:

For more than a decade,The Space Reporthas been widely recognized as the definitive body of information about the global space industry. It contains worldwide space research and data relating to the industrys economy, infrastructure, and workforce, and also details the diverse benefits of space exploration. The report is a resource for government and business leaders, educators, financial analysts, students, space-related companies, and media.

Among the other findings released inThe Space Report 2020, Q2issue:

Space Foundations Research & Analysis team producesThe Space Reportquarterly to provide regular updates on global space activity.

This is the account of the Newsdesk team at Geospatial Media. Reach us at newsdesk [@] geospatialmedia.net or call us on +91-120-4612500

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Global space economy grows to $423.8 billion in 2019 - Geospatial World

One of the narratives in the report is that the United States is at risk of being displaced by China as the world's space superpower.

WASHINGTON A group of more than 120 experts from the U.S. military, government space agencies and the private sector issued a report July 28 calling for investments in technology and education to ensure the United States remains the dominant space power.

The 86-page report, State of the Space Industrial Base 2020: A Time for Action to Sustain U.S. Economic & Military Leadership in Space, summarizes the results of a May conference led by the Defense Innovation Unit, the Air Force Research Laboratory, the U.S. Space Force and NewSpace New Mexico.

One of the narratives in the report is that the United States is at risk of being displaced by China as the worlds leader in space exploration and use of space for economic development. It suggests the U.S. could meet that challenge by increasing its support of the commercial space industry and giving the military a bigger role in protecting civilian and private sector space assets.

China is committed and credible in its pledge to become the leading, global superpower, to include space, by 2049 marking the 100 th anniversary of the Peoples Republic, the report says. A key component of Chinas strategy is to displace the U.S. as the leading power in space and lure U.S. allies and partners away from US-led space initiatives.

A central recommendation in the report is for the U.S. to develop a guiding national vision for space industrialization and national space development.

Other recommendations:

Expand role of U.S. Space Force The report recommends a broader role for the U.S. Space Force protecting U.S. commercial and civil space capabilities, commerce and civil infrastructure in the space domain, similarly to how the U.S. Navy protects the global maritime commerce. Clarity on this issue will drive commercial confidence for a more rapid expansion of U.S. space entrepreneurial activity, says the report.

The Space Force also could help support Americas return to the moon by providing safety of navigation services in cislunar space. The Space Force should articulate its role in planetary defense, the report says. Such a role could accelerate Americas edge in asteroid mining and in-space transportation. In this context, the Space Force would be like the Army Corps of Engineers, helping accelerate the development of critical infrastructure.

Support domestic space industry The industry has been financially damaged by the COVID-19 pandemic and the full extent of the crisis is still unclear. The U.S. government could encourage investments in the space industry in the form of bonds, a space commodities exchange and a government commitment to procure products and services through such an exchange.

Include allies and partners in space development efforts China is trying to lure U.S. allies through offers of joint participation in the development of global platforms and international infrastructure and wealth, including space development. In response, the U.S. should deepen ties with allies and partners in space development projects.

Increase investment in STEM education The U.S. government should provide incentives to fill the demand for talent. One suggestion could be a STEM ROTC with targeted undergraduate scholarships for U.S. citizens in return for working in STEM in the United States after graduation. NASAs Artemis program will require an additional 10,000 STEM graduates for civil needs alone, with more needed to support the Space Force.

Suggestions to the private sector:

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Report proposes actions to strengthen US space industry and military capabilities - SpaceNews

Sunset over an old Space Shuttle in Huntsville. Photo via the U.S. Space & Rocket Centers Facebook page

Never in a million years would I have imagined the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville and its beloved Space Camp programs could be a casualty of COVID-19. But unless they raise $1.5 million dollars, both will have to close permanently in October. We reached out to people here in Birmingham to find out how Space Camp shaped them and why we all need to do our part to save the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, an irreplaceable national treasure. #SaveSpaceCamp now.

Long story short, according to Ben Chandler, Chairman of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation and a Space Camp alum:

the coronavirus pandemic has devastated our revenue stream, and without your support, were on a trajectory to have to close the doors of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center museum, Space Camp and its sister programs sometime in October of this year. Our organization, our beloved Space Camp, and the U.S. Space & Rocket Center museum does not qualify for federal, state or local relief. Its up to us. We have to save Space Camp. We have to raise $1.5 million by October to ensure that the museum stays operational and so that Space Camp can reopen in the Spring of 2021.

Go to spacecamp.com to give now.

We reached out to Dennis Leonard of Birmingham-based EDPA (Economic Development Partnership of Alabama) to find out what more about the impact of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center on the state. Heres what he said:

The U.S. Space and Rocket is Center is a shining jewel brilliantly highlighting Alabamas leadership in winning the first Space Race and in rocketing towards winning the second.

Dr. Wernher Von Braun led 400,000 engineers from Huntsville, in building NASAs Apollo program, which led to the greatest innovation in the 20thCentury, the Apollo 11 Moonshot and landing.

The US Space and Rocket Center pays homage to this otherworldly accomplishment while remaining a symbol of American ingenuity and investment, all solely centered in our great state.

The capital investment made alone in the more than 300 aerospace and defense contractors, the countrys second largest research park, Redstone Arsenal, NASA, and now Blue Origin, Dynetics, and United Launch Alliance is an economic development juggernaut unseen in the rest of the country.

Heres how John Nerger, Chair of the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, which is the board that oversees the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, opened todays press conference:

The coronavirus pandemic has created a dire situation at our beloved Space & Rocket Center and we are now struggling for our very survival.

We closed in mid-March to comply with state health orders. Our museum opened in late May with limited attendance. Space Camp resumed in late-June at a mere 20% of capacity to abide by safe distancing requirements.

Low attendance has meant a 2/3 reduction in revenue, an amount that means we are not financially viable.

Space Camp will have to close its week-long programs again in September due to the lack of enrollment from our international students and our school groups.

We continue to seek local, state and federal assistance, but we realize their ability to help is limited. We just cannot afford to wait for someone wearing a cape to swoop in and rescue us.

Therefore, we are doing a couple of things that are essential for protecting the Center, for protecting Space Camp, and making it possible for both to reopen and rise again in 2021.

First, we are cutting costs, drastically. Sadly, this means letting go over 90% of our valued personnel.

Second, we are turning to the public and the communitywhether local, in our state, across the country and even overseasfor help, immediate help.Thats why we are launching our Save Space Camp campaign today. The campaign to Save Space Camp must raise a minimum of $1.5m to keep the U.S. Space & Rocket Center open past October, which is when we run out of money, and allow us to reopen Space Camp next April.

The program here is far too important to both young and old, but especially our young people. Anyone who sees how vital space, science, engineering and education are to the future of this country and even the future of humanity, we simply must save Space Camp. There is no other option.

Other impacts of a potential closure, according participants at the press conference, include:

Do you know people whove been to Space Camp? With one million alums across the globe, its likely that you do. As for me, Ive never heard anyone say it was anything less than life changing. In fact, its the sort of program my husband and I have talked about wanting to send our own kids to one day.

Dennis Leonard of EDPA said this about the importance of Space Camp to our state:

Space Camp is certainly an economic development attraction and tourism destination. There is only one Space Camp in the US and two others in the world. We attract space campers from all 50 states and 150 countries around the world who are intrigued by space, are motivated by STEM and STEAM education, and who themselves want to be space explorers. If the US Space and Rocket Center, along with Space Camp, were to close, we would lose this youthful engagement, the allure of future students wanting to attend Alabama colleges and universities, and the likelihood of talent attraction for our multidimensional workforce.

I reached out to two Birmingham-area leaders who are both space camp alums to find out what it means to them, and here is what they said.

The Space and Rocket Center is more to me than a tourist destination. It IS the reason I became a meteorologist. As a middle school student I attended The Space Academy in Huntsville where my eyes were opened to the world of space.

I fell in love with science because of Space Camp. From there, I decided I would like to study earths atmosphere and become a meteorologist. Literally, if it wasnt for Space Camp, Im not sure I would be where I am today.

I have vivid memories of my missions, my experiences, and my role as CAPCOM (Capsule Communicator) at Space Camp.

I dream of the day when my kids can attend. At space camp, kids are inspired, taught, challenged, and build lasting friendships. Its a world class program focused on growing our next generation of leaders, scientists, engineers, and innovators.

In a state that doesnt have the best reputation for being ahead of the curve academically, having NASA, and the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville has been a huge source of pride.

It has given us a means to put our best foot forwardone of science, innovation, and exploration to share with the rest of the world through tourism and Space Camp, inviting commerce and investment in our state.

As incredible new innovations are in progress even here in Birmingham, how often we hear the term moonshot. This will be our moonshot. That turn of phrase carries with it an expectation that science is still important in Alabamathat inspiring our businesses, entrepreneurs, andchildrento reach for the moon and beyond really matters.

In one incredible place in Alabama children can be inspired, practice teamwork, be exposed to people from around the globe and all the good that entails, and truly experience how math and science apply in daily life. Its incredible, and its RIGHT HERE in our back yard. We should be EXPANDING on that, not contemplating eliminating it.

Who doesnt have memories of going to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center when they were a kid? What parent doesnt love watching their own kids hop into lunar modules, eat lunch underneath a Space Shuttle, or enjoy the outdoor rides among real rockets?

Heres why we need to help save it:

Alabamas US Space and Rocket Center is theonlyfacility like it in the US, and it was Dr. Von Brauns brainchild to challenge young, visiting minds with the center.

We must make a multi-year investment in saving the US Space and Rocket Center to preserve history, immerse visitors and campers in the infinite challenges of space exploration, and retain Alabamas singular leadership role in leading the space race which now includes the protection of our telecommunications systems, global defense, and scientific achievement.

Related

Link:

Love the US Space & Rocket Center? #SaveSpaceCamp now - Bham Now

Report Highlights

The recentramp-up by NASAas it revitalizes its commitment to the Moon, Mars and other planetary exploration is providing new opportunities for companies involved in optics and photonics. This report examines the new technical challenges in space photonics and optics, and the spillover to manufactured products, which is both exciting and well recognized.

Reports Includes:

An overview of spacephotonics opportunities at NASAfor revitalizing Moon, Mars and other planetary exploration initiatives Coverage of pre-Artemis Moon scientific missions and photonics Comparative study on space-made vs. earth-made optical fibres Knowledge about Lunar Crater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE).

Summary

Request for Report Sample:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/13038

The recent ramp-up by NASA as it revitalizes its commitment to the Moon, Mars and other planetary exploration initiatives is providing new opportunities for companies involved in optics and photonics. Astronomy and optics go all the way back to Galileos telescope, and instruments including the spectrometer date back to the first days of the NASA space program. The potential spin-off effects of these activities are the stuff of marketing dreams. Who among us is not delighted by the transition from room-sized valve driven mainframe computers to semiconductors? Or memory foam mattresses, infrared thermometers, freeze dried ice cream, solar cells, Bowflex exercising and water filtration recycling systems? In optics, the tracking system for LASIK eye surgery owes a debt to velocity and range imaging LADAR first used for docking spacecraft.

Unlike the outcomes of the programs leading to the first Moon mission, Mercury-Gemini-Apollo, the program here is far longer lasting and the scope is far greater. NASAs intent is not just to land on the Moon, but to develop the Moon as a launching pad where water and rocket fuelamong other things can be mined indigenously, and space exploration to Mars and beyond can occur.

More Info of ImpactCovid19@https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/covid-19-analysis/13038

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Space Photonics Opportunities Abound As NASA Renews Moon And Planetary Exploration Market: Future Scenarios and Business Opportunity Analysis COVID-19...

NASAs Mars 2020 Perseverance rover andIngenuityhelicopter launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 7:50 a.m. EDT on July 30, 2020.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover and Ingenuity helicopter are on the way to Mars after the July 30 7:50 a.m. launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Image credit: NASA.

The Perseverance rover mission will address high-priority science goals for Mars exploration.

Developed under NASAs Mars Exploration Program, it will seek signs of past microbial life and characterize the planets climate and geology.

It will also collect samples of Martian rocks and dust for a future Mars Sample Return mission to Earth, while paving the way for human exploration of the Red Planet.

Perseverance will land in Jezero Crater on Mars on February 18, 2021.

Home to a lake billions of years ago, Jezero isnt a typical Mars crater.

This is a wonderful place to live for microorganisms, said Perseverance project scientist Dr. Ken Farley, of Caltech, speaking of the time when the lake was still there.

And it is also a wonderful place for those microorganisms to be preserved so that we can find them now so many billions of years later.

The car-sized Perseverance is also the largest, heaviest robotic Mars rover NASA has built.

The rover is about 3 m (10 feet) long not including the robotic arm, 2.7 m (9 feet) wide and 2.1 m (7 feet) tall. But at 1,025 kg (2,260 pounds), it weighs less than a compact car.

Its robotic arm is equipped with a rotating turret, which includes a rock drill, science instruments and a camera.

But while Perseverances arm is 2.1 m (7 feet) long, just like Curiositys, its turret weighs more 45 kg (99 pounds) because it carries larger instruments and a larger drill for coring. The drill will cut intact rock cores, and theyll be placed in sample tubes via a complex storage system.

Perseverance also has a six-wheel, rocker-bogie design derived from all of NASAs Mars rovers to date that helps to maintain a relatively constant weight on each of the rovers wheels and minimizes tilt.

The wheels are slightly narrower and taller than Curiositys but are similarly machined out of a rigid, lightweight aluminum alloy.

Both Curiosity and Perseverance have wheels lined with grousers raised treads that are specially designed for the Martian desert.

This artists concept depicts NASAs Mars rover Perseverance on the surface of the Red Planet. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Perseverance is carrying seven different scientific instruments:

(i) Mastcam-Z is an advanced camera system with panoramic and stereoscopic imaging capability with the ability to zoom;

(ii) SuperCam is an instrument that can provide imaging, chemical composition analysis, and mineralogy at a distance;

(iii) Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) is an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and high-resolution imager, which will map the fine-scale elemental composition of Martian surface materials;

(iv) Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC) is a spectrometer that will provide fine-scale imaging and uses an ultraviolet (UV) laser to map mineralogy and organic compounds;

(v) The Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) is a technology demonstration that will produce oxygen from Martian atmospheric carbon dioxide;

(vi) Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) is a set of sensors that will provide measurements of temperature, wind speed and direction, pressure, relative humidity, and dust size and shape;

(vii) Radar Imager for Mars Subsurface Experiment (RIMFAX) is a ground-penetrating radar that will provide centimeter-scale resolution of the geologic structure of the subsurface.

NASAs Mars helicopter Ingenuity. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Another special feature on Perseverance can be found on the aft crossbeam: a plate that contains three silicon chips stenciled with the names of approximately 10.9 million people from around the world who participated in the online Send Your Name to Mars campaign from May to September 2019.

The fingernail-sized chips also contain the essays of 155 finalists in NASAs Name the Rover essay contest.

The chips share space on an anodized plate with a laser-etched graphic depicting Earth and Mars joined by the star that gives light to both and a message in Morse code in the Suns rays: Explore as one.

Perseverance is also bringing a twin-rotor, solar-powered helicopter named Ingenuity to test out aerial flight on another planet for the first time.

The Wright Brothers showed that powered flight in Earths atmosphere was possible, using an experimental aircraft, said Ingenuitys chief pilot Dr. Hvard Grip, a researcher at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

With Ingenuity, which weighs only about 1.8 kg (4 pounds), were trying to do the same for Mars.

Perseverance is ferrying 23 cameras to the Red Planet the most ever flown in the history of deep-space exploration. Two cameras are installed on the Ingenuity helicopter.

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Perseverance Launches to Hunt for Signs of Ancient Martian Life | Planetary Science, Space Exploration - Sci-News.com

Just two years after the first men walked on the moon, some astronauts drove a buggy on it.

Although astronauts David R. Scott and James B. Irwin described the Lunar Roving Vehicle more like a bucking bronco buggy.

Scott, Irwin and Alfred M. Worden went to the moon aboard Apollo 15 in 1971. Scott and Irwin were the first astronauts to operate a vehicle on the moon and Worden was the first to go on a spacewalk.

As the trio entered the orbit of the moon on July 29, 1971, The Patriot reported, Three excited men seeing a desolate world of craters and rugged mountains below them and calling it absolutely overwhelming absolutely mind-boggling.

Apollo 15 launched from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on July 26, 1971.

This mini-panorama combines two photographs taken by Apollo 15 lunar module pilot Jim Irwin, from the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) site, at the end of the second Apollo 15 moonwalk on August 1, 1971. Apollo 15 was the fourth crewed mission to land on the Moon and the first to visit and explore the Moon's Hadley Rille and Apennine Mountains which are located on the southeast edge of the Mare Imbrium (Sea of Rains). The image shows the ALSEP Central Station in the foreground, the Passive Seismic Experiment beyond the left side, and the Lunar Surface magnetometer in the background near the center. Mission commander David R. Scott is leaning to his right and is putting down the Apollo Lunar Surface drill used to take core samples and set up a heat flow experiment. The Solar Wind Spectrometer is in the right foreground.The min-pan of photographs AS15-11845 and 11847 was combined by Erik van Meijgaarden, volunteer contributor to the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal site. (NASA)

Scott was the commander, Worden the command module pilot and Irwin the lunar module pilot.

From July 30 to Aug. 2, Scott, Worden and Irwin spent 18.5 hours on the moon and collected 170 pounds of material.

During the return trip, Worden performed the first spacewalk in deep space.

From NASA, During three periods of extravehicular activity, or EVA, on July 31, and Aug. 1 and 2, Scott and Irwin completed a record 18 hours, 37 minutes of exploration, traveled 17.5 miles in the first car that humans have ever driven on the moon, collected more than 170 pounds of lunar samples, set up the ALSEP array, obtained a core sample from about 10 feet beneath the lunar surface, and provided extensive oral descriptions and photographic documentation of geologic features in the vicinity of the landing site during the three days (66 hours, 55 minutes) on the lunar surface.

The Lunar Roving Vehicle weighed about 460 pounds. It could be folded for storage aboard the lunar module.

Astronaut James Irwin beside the Rover parked near the lunar module, looking northeast, Mount Hadley in the background. (AP Photo)

Mike Neufeld, a curator in the space history division at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. told space.com, "It was a very elegant little vehicle," Neufeld said. "It had to be lightweight and had to be folded up in a very compact space. They were very successful there were no major failures so clearly it was a successful design."

The vehicle had a top speed of about 8 mph. The rocky surface of the moon prevented the astronauts from going very fast.

Neufeld said, "They weren't driving on flat land it was more like a dirt buggy than anything else. It didn't travel that fast, but for the astronauts who drove it, it seemed like it was exciting and fast. It was a pretty bouncy ride. Even flat looking terrain on the moon is not very flat because there are so many crater pits, so it would have been a fairly exciting ride."

On Aug. 2, 1971, The Patriot reported, The Apollo 15 lunar rock hounds think they found what they went to the moon for a piece of crystal rock that may date from the creation of the universe.

The astronauts were searching for and found anorthosite, a type of rock that is very rare on earth. Grains of anorthosite found in soil from the Apollo 11 and 12 landing sites have been dated at 4.6 billion years - the age of the solar system.

In this image provided by NASA, the two Apollo 15 astronauts are shown gathering lunar samples during their second lunar surface extravehicular activity in this reproduction taken from a color transmission made by the RCA color television camera mounted on the Lunar Roving Vehicle, August 10, 1971. David R. Scott, commander, is on the left. On the right is lunar module pilot James B. Irwin. (AP Photo/NASA)

Apollo 15 also was the first flight to include a spacewalk.

On Aug. 5, Worden became the first person to perform deep space extravehicular activity.

Worden said he was outside the spacecraft for 38 minutes.

He described it to smithsonianmag.com, Black as the ace of Spades, but as Jim and I floated out, there was enough sunlight to light our way. It was an unbelievable sensation. I described it once as going for a swim alongside Moby Dick.

What a feeling to be free in deep space about 196,000 miles from home."

... It was the most unbelievable sight one could imagine, and I was so proud of our ability and ingenuity as a nation to do something this magnificent. By turning my head just so I could position myself so that both the Earth and the Moon were in field of vision. I realized that no one in all of history had ever seen this sight before. What an honor it was.

The astronauts splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, 335 miles north of Honolulu on Aug. 7.

Helicopters picked them up and took them to the USS Okinawa.

The return was safe despite the fact that one of the three parachutes on the command module failed.

The three astronauts were reprimanded a year later when it was revealed they had secretly carried unauthorized postal covers to the surface of the moon and each paid $7,000 for it. When NASA got wind of the stamp covers being for sale by a German stamp dealer, they were reprimanded and had to forfeit the money. In addition, they never flew into space again.

Three Apollo 15 Astronauts, from left, David Scott; Alfred Worden, and James Irwin, were disciplined by NASA July 12, 1972, for secretly carrying 400 souvenir, stamped envelopes that could have been sold for $600,000 or more. One hundred of the envelopes were given to an acquanintance of the astronauts and sold at a reported price of $1,500 each. The three, who eventually decided not to take any of the $150,000, "exercized poor judgement," NASA said. (AP Photo)

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The lunar rock hounds of Apollo 15: Exploring the moon in a bucking bronco buggy in 1971 - PennLive

Mat Kaplan:Leading the way to the Red Planet, this week on Planetary Radio. Welcome. I'm Mat Kaplan of the Planetary Society with more of the human adventure across our solar system and beyond. Hope is on its way to Mars. We'll enjoy a conversation with the two leaders of the Emirates Mars Mission in a few minutes. China's Tianwen-1 was also successfully launched a few days ago. By the time the first of you hear this, Perseverance, NASA's next Mars rover should be hours away from its liftoff. The agency's Thomas Zurbuchen and Mimi Aung, leader of the Mars Helicopter project are moments away.

Mat Kaplan:Down the line, we'll hear from Bruce Betts about comet NEOWISE and the other wonders waiting for you in the night sky. The July 24 edition of the down link is topped by a view of two worlds that aren't from around here. In fact, these young gas-giants circle the star that is 300 light years away. The image was captured by the European Southern Observatory's very large telescope in Chile. Yeah, that's its name, the very large telescope. It was augmented with a chronograph that blocked most of the star's light revealing those planets.

Mat Kaplan:Launch of the James Webb Space Telescope has been delayed again, as the pandemic continues to take its toll and just on us humans. NASA is now looking at October 31st of next year, that's right, the most powerful and ambitious space telescope ever will get a spooky Halloween send-off. Astronauts Bob Behnken and Chris Cassidy have completed the power system upgrade of the International Space Station with the final space walk. Behnken and Doug Hurley are set to return to Earth in their SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule on August 2nd.

Mat Kaplan:As always, you'll find much, much more at planetary.org/downlink and you can sign-up to receive our weekly newsletter for free. Remember Mimi Aung? We talked back in July of last year with the project manager for the first flying machine headed to another planet. Aung participated in a July 20th virtual event presented by Space Foundation. Titled Roving the Red Planet, the webinar also featured past Planetary radio guests NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, Jet Propulsion Lab Director Michael Watkins, and NASA's Associate Administrator for its Science Mission Directorate Thomas Zurbuchen. We'll hear from Zurbuchen in a few minutes, but first, here's some of what Aung had to say.

Mimi Aung:There are three technologies being demonstrated on Mars 2020. The terrain relative navigation for safer landing in hazardous terrain, Montse, which converts a carbon dioxide to oxygen for instituted resource utilization, and the Mars Helicopter. NASA performs technology demonstrations, tech demos to demonstrate advanced capabilities for spacecraft for our future missions. The Mars Helicopter tech demo will be the first ever to attempt a rotorcraft flight at Mars. In fact, we as human beings have never flown a rotorcraft, a helicopter, anywhere outside of our own Earth's atmosphere. So, really a Wright Brothers moment but on another planet.

Mimi Aung:For NASA, the Mars technology demonstration, Mars Helicopter tech demo is motivated by the potential to add the aerial dimension to space exploration. Today we explore Mars from spacecraft in orbit and rovers roving on the surface. In the future, there'll be astronauts on the surface and the helicopter can serve as scout for rovers and astronauts. A helicopter can also allow us to reach places that are simply not accessible today without being able to fly.

Mimi Aung:It's not easy to build a rotorcraft to fly at Mars. The atmosphere is really thin. Compared to Earth, it's about 1%. A vehicle to fly in Mars has to be really light and it has to spin really fast. The helicopter we've built is named Ingenuity, and Ingenuity has a rotor system that's 1.2 meter in diameter and the entire vehicle has to weigh under two kilograms. That's about four pounds. To build this vehicle that weighs about four pounds while having the capability to fly and land autonomously, and to survive and operate autonomously at Mars, remotely operated from Earth, that's a huge challenge. It's the tiny package with tons of capability packed. The day our vehicle weighed in, it weighed in a hair under 1.8 kilogram. That was a huge day for us.

Mimi Aung:Since then, we've performed the helicopter test flights in a simulated Mars atmosphere in the 25-foot diameter space simulator chamber here at JPL. Very importantly, Perseverance has tested deploying us from the belly pan of the Perseverance Rover successfully to the surface. At this point, we've performed all the tests that we can on Earth and the next step really is now to do it in the real environment this Mars Helicopter Ingenuity is designed for in space vacuum, as soon as after launch, and finally on the surface of Mars.

Mimi Aung:We have a 30 Martian day window to do our flight experiments. We have up to five flight plans to be performed in that time period. The first and foremost, the most important flight for us, for our team is the very first flight where we'll repeat the flight that we have tested multiple times in our test chamber here on Earth. And then after getting the first flight, then we will be performing more bolder and bolder flights of higher heights and further distances. So, here we are. Exciting days ahead. Helicopter is about to be launched. Our team is thrilled. It's truly the high risk/high reward phase of our project. High risk because every step forward, every event that we have will be a first time event, right? First in space vacuum, and then in the environment of Mars.

Mimi Aung:But more importantly, high reward. All of the experiences will be feeding into future much more capable rotorcraft for our team. That is the ultimate reward that we've worked really, really, really hard for. I came to NASA inspired for the opportunity to contribute to space exploration. And along the way, I also fell in love with making first of a kind capabilities work for increasingly autonomous advanced space systems. Here today is an example of the dream come true. Here we are on a historical mission, Perseverance working on a tech demo, Mars Helicopter Ingenuity. Thank you so much

Mat Kaplan:Mars Helicopter Project Manager, Mimi Aung. The tiny whirly bird is now making its way to the Red Planet in the belly of the Perseverance rover. Thomas Zurbuchen, always speaks eloquently and with great passion about our exploration of the solar system and beyond. Here are a few excerpts from his contribution to Space Foundation's webinar.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Before I get started, I wanted to congratulate the United Arab Emirates for their successful launch of the Hope Mission to Mars along with their Japanese launch partners, that's a truly amazing accomplishment and we're happy to join them soon with Perseverance because together, Hope and Perseverance are essential ingredients of exploration. It's truly an exciting decade ahead of us as the entire world sends missions to Mars, to study and explore the Red Planet.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Next week, the United States returns to Mars. It's the next step in putting together a puzzle we've been working on for centuries which has accelerated in the last 55 years beginning with the first flyby of Mars by Mariner 4. The world's eyes were opened when the Viking lander sent back transformative pictures of the surface of another planet for the first time. The world got to see for itself the color Mars red with its own eyes.

Thomas Zurbuchen:We saw how it resembled our great American desert scapes and we wondered anew what our two planets might have in common where all the ingredients necessarily to life, carbon, other elements, water, energy; were they present on Mars and [inaudible 00:08:58] produce microbes as they did on Earth. But did unhappy celestial occurrences for the neighbors snuffed out that agent's life as we strive here and flourish here on Earth as life is an important part of our planet.

Thomas Zurbuchen:These are questions scientists have pondered for decades and more. Now, we sent Perseverance, the most capable robotic scientist ever sent to the surface of another planet, to the most promising place we could determine from here that could have supported life. An ancient river delta by what might have once have been a huge lake. The Perseverance Rover belts on the legacy of NASA's Mars exploration program and joined a fleet that right now includes our rover, outlander, and multiple orbiters. It's our ninth mission to land and our fifth rover.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Perseverance is our first mission to astrobiology. In this case, the search of ancient life as part of its top line science goals, that current fleet of Mars including the rovers planet made Curiosity which is still roving five years in. On older missions we have sent historically, these other missions have all found things that led us to keep going down this path. Having found organics, methane, signs of water in the past and even now, Perseverance suites of instruments will take the next step.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Perseverance is also the bridge between science and human aspiration that demonstrates how the two can support and reinforce each other. It will do incredible things until human scientists with their own unique perspectives and ability to make science judgments are able to walk the surface. I'll look forward to that personally, many of us, too. What will Perseverance do? The planet stories told in parts through its climate and meta will tell us more about the weather on Mars and prevalence of dust and how it would affect human missions.

Thomas Zurbuchen:RIMFAX will probe beneath the surface perhaps finding ice deposits human missions could use. SuperCam and Mars cam will survey and study the environment and turn amazing images. Basically, Perseverance will bring all human senses to Mars. We'll sense the air around it. See and scan the horizon, hear the planet with microphones on the surface for the first time, feel it as it picks up samples into cache and perhaps even taste it in the sense as pixel and other instrument sample the chemistry in the rocks and soil around it.

Thomas Zurbuchen:As humans prepare for the greatest adventure here in-person exploration of Mars, our robots can help. MOXIE will help that demonstrate how we might live off the land by converting carbon dioxide into oxygen that we can breathe or for rocket fuel. Sherlock in addition, do searching for organics uses space suit material for calibration which will also help us learn how it degrades on Mars and technologies such as MEDLI and terrain relative navigation, TRN will help our rover to the surface and also provide data that is important to landing future human missions on Mars.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Jim is going to talk a lot about this and this important context of human exploration as well. A helicopter named Ingenuity will demonstrate powered flight on another planet for the first time. I really look forward to seeing this Marsian Wright Brothers moment. Mimi will tell us more about this. I'm just so excited about it. Perseverance is going to prepare for humanity at long last to hold a piece of Mars in our hand, not just a meteorite from somewhere but a piece of an actual surface with its geologic context analyzed with the best instruments there for us to study back on Earth, the best instruments humanity has available to themselves, not only today but also in the future.

Thomas Zurbuchen:This is the first lap of humanity's first-ever roundtrip to another planet. This amazing explorer could not have been ready for launch. In this transient window we have without the perseverance of teams across the country and the world who struggled and sacrificed through the global pandemic to keep their sights on this milestone of humanity. Their work and this mission embody the agency's and our nation's spirit of persevering even in the most challenging of situations, providing inspiration and advancing science and exploration.

Thomas Zurbuchen:The mission itself personifies the human ideal of persevering towards the future. Mike is going to tell us more about this, especially. Perseverance carries our hopes and dreams, the names of 11 million people from across the world who sent in their names to go with us under the plaque we read, "Explore as one." I just want to tell you, both of my parents who are no longer with us, their names are there. That is really meaningful to me from that perspective as well as also my family who's here, whose all of their names are on this list.

Thomas Zurbuchen:Perseverance carries the goodwill of the entire space community that we and other nations all sent missions to Mars this decade. It reinforces NASA's commitment to working with our international partners to accomplish stunning achievements in science, technology, and exploration. When Perseverance launches, it takes us all. Everyone of us will have a chance to learn from and be inspired by this mission. Any time we attempt something that pushes us to the next threshold is a time to celebrate. It is a big moment. A milestone for humanity that we all share. We explore and discover together. And together, we persevere.

Mat Kaplan:Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA's Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate. We're grateful to Space Foundation. We've got a link to their complete Roving the Red Planet Webinar on this week's showpage@planetary.org/radio. We're far from done. After a quick break, we'll head for the United Arab Emirates for a great conversation with Sarah Al Amiri and Omran Sharaf, leaders of The Emirates Mars Mission and the Hope orbiter. Stay with us.

Bill Nye:Where did we come from? Are we alone in the cosmos? These are the questions at the core of our existence. The secrets of the universe are out there waiting to be discovered, but to find them, we have to go into space. We have to explore. This endeavor unites us. Space exploration truly brings out the best in us. Encouraging people from all walks of life to work together, to achieve a common goal, to know the cosmos and their place within.

Bill Nye:This is why the Planetary Society exists. Our mission is to give you the power to advance space science and exploration. With your support, we sponsor innovative space technologies, inspire curious minds, and advocate for our future in space. We are the Planetary Society. Join us.

Mat Kaplan:We featured a launch party on last week's show. One of the many voices you heard belonged to Her Excellency Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri. Sarah is Deputy Project Manager and Science Lead on the Emirates Mars Mission or EMM. She's also Minister of State for Advanced Sciences in the UAE and she has been named the new President of the UAE's Space Agency. Those are just a few of her titles and accomplishments.

Mat Kaplan:Joining Sarah on this week's show is Omran Sharaf. Omran is the EMM Project Director at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center. He's overseeing every aspect of this ambitious mission including the transition from a focus on Earth observation satellites to development to interplanetary missions. You're going to hear the term MEPAG used. That's the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group. Sarah and Omran, thank you so much for joining us on Planetary Radio. It is a great honor to be able to speak to you so soon after the beginning of this mission, the Emirates Mars Mission with its Hope spacecraft.

Mat Kaplan:I know I speak on behalf of our audience and everyone, all my colleagues at the Planetary Society want to congratulate you on this terrific start for this mission to the Red Planet. Thank you for being here.

Sarah Al Amiri:Thank you for having us, Mat. It's a pleasure for us to be on and to talk about the start of the Hope Mars Mission.

Mat Kaplan:I have to join NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine who we heard on the show last week and many other space experts and officials around the world who are also congratulating you and your team. I'm sure you have been asked this question too many times, but how does it feel to be on your way to Mars? Sarah, why don't you start again?

Sarah Al Amiri:It's been over six years of intense work. As you all know, it's challenging to get a spacecraft built to Mars and it's even more challenging to do it in six years. It's been a mixture of emotions across the board even after launch, leading up to launch. Now that we have the spacecraft there, it's a rollercoaster of emotions where you hit a high every time you achieve a milestone, but you know there's another challenge coming up. It's just these series of challenges that will continue on until we get to orbit around Mars, until we get to starting our science operations and getting scientific data down and start analyzing that. The emotional journey that we're on at the moment will continue on for the next few months.

Mat Kaplan:Omran, a slight variation on that question. How did it feel? Was there a sense of relief when your spacecraft turned toward the big antennas and started to say, "I'm feeling fine. I'm on my way to Mars."

Omran Sharaf:I wouldn't say a full relief. It felt good. I was happy that actually the spacecraft is safe and is communicating with us. It's a long journey. It's a seven-month journey. We have the Mars Orbit Insertion; a very, very critical days in the project that's going to take place in February 2021. It felt good, but not fully relieved.

Mat Kaplan:What is the current status of the spacecraft, Omran?

Omran Sharaf:The spacecraft is safe and sound. It's healthy. It started its cruise towards Mars. We're monitoring the spacecraft on a continuous basis 24/7 for now, as we are commissioning the spacecraft as part of the deal. This process will stay like this for about two weeks, maybe. Later on, we'll switch to normal operations in which we'll be having our operations conducted or contacting the spacecraft twice a week, for six hours every contact. So far, everything looks good and we're happy with the status of the spacecraft.

Mat Kaplan:Are there any significant milestones during this cruise phase as Hope makes its way to Mars?

Omran Sharaf:Yes. We do have very important operations that would take place about 10 days from now, the TCM, trajectory correction maneuver. We have a series of 70 scans taking place which are being launched and arrive to Mars which are very critical for us. This is, I would say, the most critical operation that will be taking place. It will be taking place about seven times throughout the journey.

Mat Kaplan:So, plenty to keep you busy, it sounds like.

Omran Sharaf:Yes.

Mat Kaplan:I know and I'm sure you know that arrival at Mars whether it's orbital insertion as you'll be doing are heading down to the surface is thrilling but can also be terrifying, and this is your first time doing this. What steps have you taken or will you be taking to make sure things go smoothly?

Omran Sharaf:Yes, as you mentioned it's a very risky operation. When it comes to risk [inaudible 00:21:17] the best way to mitigate those risks especially with these missions and especially if it's a platform that you developed, it's not a platform that's been bought or something that's been used before, is by testing it, testing it, and testing it. Before launching, we had a lot of scenarios that simulated the Mars orbit insertion and saw how the spacecraft reacted to these scenarios.

Omran Sharaf:For now, what we can do is again just monitor the spacecraft and make sure that we are on the right trajectory. By the time we reach Mars, we make sure that the softwares are up to date, the data that the spacecraft is using to conduct the maneuvers are up to date, whether it's a nominal scenario, whether it's a scenario [inaudible 00:21:58] error and saw how the spacecraft reacted to that error and fixed that error.

Mat Kaplan:What happens after you achieve your initial orbit at Mars? There are some further adjustments that have to be made before Sarah and her science team can start doing their work, right?

Omran Sharaf:Yes. We will [inaudible 00:22:18] orbit in about month or two. It depends in the spacecraft. During that time, we again check the status of all the subsystems of the instruments, and make sure that the instruments are actually working well. A calibration will take place. Then, after that, we shift it to our science orbit and again, we'll have to check the status of the systems again and calibrate it for the science orbit that it will be operating from. Once that's done and we check the validity of the data that we are receiving from the spacecraft basically, the science team will be able to take that data and use it, and distribute it to the rest of the world to also use it in their studies.

Mat Kaplan:Sarah, let me turn to you. If you're like other missions scientists that I know, I expect you'll be going a bit crazy as you wait through all of these to begin gathering data and doing the science that Hope was going to enable.

Sarah Al Amiri:A large part of what we're doing as the science team at the moment, is the scientists have actually been working on what we're calling the path to science closure and that's analyzing the data that we will get from the Hope probe from about a year-and-a-half now. All the models that need to go into play visualization tools, certain studies that need to take place have already been in development and we've utilized either data that has been captured from the instrument on the ground or sometimes, especially for us on the Emirates side, utilized a lot of training data from other missions that somewhat will capture some form of data that is similar to the Emirates Mars vision. We've been able to work on developing capabilities through that.

Sarah Al Amiri:Also, the processing is very important to the instrument scientists on the team are currently working on the data pipeline, ensuring that we're able to process the data to a level with which scientists can take it and analyze it. They'll be working in conjunction with the engineering team through cruise because there's a few maneuvers that need to happen with regards to the instruments and also in capture orbit, we'll be collecting data while we're in capture orbit transitioning into science. Work on the science team at the moment is ramping up and the team is now really looking forward to getting their hands on the data.

Mat Kaplan:This is such and important point and I think a lot of people who otherwise consider themselves space enthusiasts, don't realize the level of work that has to go in not just by the engineers behind the mission, but the scientists in preparing to get the data for, as you said, months and years before that data starts to flow.

Sarah Al Amiri:Absolutely. A lot of people used to say the science team's work starts after launch, when you get into science orbit. That's absolutely not the case. We started very early on, on the mission together with the engineering team. That's how you scope the requirements. You start with objectives of what you want to study of the planet, and you start breaking that down into the requirements that engineers then go and design and develop the mission for. We've been working on this mission even more closely with our system engineering team, our spacecraft developers, all the instrument teams both on the engineering and science side to get to the point that we're at, mission designers.

Sarah Al Amiri:Even how you capture your data, how often do you want to cover which areas of Mars at which resolution, all of this is defined very early on by the science team. Before you launch, you need to verify that the instruments are functioning according to plan. Then again, after you launch, you need to ensure that a lot of the design and development work goes into place so that you're able to get the right datasets. That's the role of the science team that's very well-integrated in the overall mission and starts from day one and stays on to well after decommissioning to release data.

Mat Kaplan:Is it fair to call Hope Mars' first weather satellite?

Sarah Al Amiri:Absolutely. We're providing the first holistic view of the Marsian weather throughout an entire year and cover the gap in knowledge that we have, and that's the transitions from the day to night cycles. It's every time of the day, we'll be able to cover all of Mars in roughly a 10-day span. This gives us a much better understanding of the weather system of Mars. We also get to correlate how much impact does the weather have on atmospheric loss.

Mat Kaplan:Could you go over briefly because I know there's much more detail on the mission website and we will link to that website and other resources on this week's showpage@planetary.org/radio but what are the instruments that Hope carries that will be collecting this data?

Sarah Al Amiri:It carries three different instruments to collect the data. All three instruments are scientific instruments. The first two which is the Emirates Mars Infrared Spectrometer and the Emirates eXploration Imager are providing the weather data for us. They'll be looking entirely at the lower atmosphere of Mars. That's where weather occurs. They'll be capturing data about dust, water vapor, ice clouds, ozone so that we're able to fully characterize what happens in the lower atmosphere.

Sarah Al Amiri:We also have a second instrument which is the Emirates Mars Ultraviolet Spectrometer. That is looking at how far out hydrogen and oxygen extends into the atmosphere. It focuses at the exosphere of Mars. The other aspects of this mission which is our third objective is we want to understand, if something happens in the lower atmosphere of Mars, for example there's dust storm. How does that impact atmospheric loss? What does it do with escape rates of hydrogen and oxygen?

Sarah Al Amiri:We're able to do that using the EMUS instrument that also looks at the thermosphere and it measures carbon monoxide and oxygen, and provides us that link between upper and lower atmosphere. So that we can have an overall view of what role does Mars play in the loss of its atmosphere and we already have an understanding of what role space plays in the loss of Mars' atmosphere. That can provide us a better understanding of climate change on Mars and atmospheric loss on the planet.

Sarah Al Amiri:Hopefully, in the larger perspective of things and this is something that was vital to its mission, to be complimentary to other studies on Mars. In the larger perspective, things will help us better understand how the Marsian atmosphere went from a much denser and wetter one to a dry and very thick atmosphere.

Mat Kaplan:Complimentary indeed because of course with what you've been describing, you've made me think of the MAVEN Mission that we've also covered pretty extensively on this show. Would you say that the MAVEN will definitely be complimented and maybe its work will be amplified by what Hope may be helping us to learn?

Sarah Al Amiri:It's not only the MAVEN Mission. You can take several other missions including ones that for example cover on the polar orbit and they cover the Marsian atmosphere at a higher resolution than our mission. Then, you got the landers that are on the surface that cover quite extensively local weather in a very localized place. It fits in very well on the overall science and the reason it does that it's because we utilized the report that MEPAG usually releases on scientific goals for exploring Mars and been able to find gaps within that, that no other mission is designing for.

Sarah Al Amiri:The purpose of that is that we want to send a purely scientific mission that doesn't replicate other missions, to add on to the scientific findings, and it helps our team get the full experience. It is our first mission, yes, but we wanted our team to learn because we're building, he built his own capacity. Therefore, to learn they need to go through the entire process of learning and things that are unknown and defining science objectives in areas that you're not 100% sure what your outcome is going to be.

Sarah Al Amiri:Now, what will be interesting for me personally is taking what we get in terms of findings and then having that spin out more questions. That for me is what exploration is all about. When your one answer builds into or translates into several other questions to be asked about Mars, and it continuously pushes forward unlocking all the mysteries.

Mat Kaplan:Boy, that's science for you, isn't it? Omran, let me turn back to you. Space communication, deep space communication especially always a big challenge. How are you going to be getting Sarah's data back here to Earth and sending commands to the spacecraft?

Omran Sharaf:It uses an X-band antenna that we have onboard our spacecraft to communicate with the spacecraft and also to send commands and receive data and telemetries. We're utilizing the deep space network, NASA's Deep Space Network. We thought instead of us building everything from A to Z, it was more about utilizing existing platforms and infrastructure around the world to deliver this mission. The command and control room in Dubai is connected to the DSN. That's how we communicate with it.

Omran Sharaf:As you mentioned, it's a big challenge. As we move further away from Earth, the delay in communication increases and by the time we reach Mars, the delay is going to be between about 15 to 20 minutes which adds bigger challenges to the operations and sort of to what we mentioned earlier, Mars orbit insertion in which that process will have to take place autonomously and on its own. Basically, we find out about it if we succeeded or not 20 minutes later.

Mat Kaplan:Yeah, always a challenge.

Omran Sharaf:The spacecraft definitely needs to be smarter than let's say spacecrafts orbiting Earth. The EMUS Mars Mission was at least five times more complex than the previous missions that we worked on at the center. The challenge here was also not just the fact that it had to be smarter but also, for us to understand how smarter it needs to be and also at the same time, build a spacecraft or design it or get the knowledge, and deciding of how to design such a smart spacecraft. That was also a challenge for the team.

Mat Kaplan:Sarah, let me switch gears here and come back to you as we talk about the other reasons this mission is taking place. Of course the chance to gather unique data at Mars is exciting and very important, but it's those other reasons the UAE is taking on this challenge that I want to turn to beginning with the name you chose for this spacecraft. Is this mission all about hope?

Sarah Al Amiri:This mission is all about hope. At the time that we started this mission in late 2013, the Middle East was known notoriously for all the unrest across various countries. Most of it, if you dig down deep to the root cause of it was the youth weren't getting the necessary opportunities that they were looking for. We come from a region that's made up of 100 million people under the age of 35. It got to a point where the energy and the creativity of those people were being used in the wrong groups and for the wrong reasons. It was very important for us to bring another purpose to work for, and this mission was developed from the very beginning to be run completely by those under 35, done in a certain way that it has a scientific purpose.

Sarah Al Amiri:We were requested to design a mission not only to get to Mars and capture an image, but to capture valid scientific data that not only develops our science community, but is able to benefit science communities be it in the Arab Region or around the world and provide another way to look at how to advance countries and where to put the energy of the youth, and to provide opportunities for people and how to create them. We never had people that worked on planetary exploration missions prior to this mission. Seven years ago, the jobs that we have today were not there. The experience that has been captured by the team members that have been through this program has never been in the region.

Sarah Al Amiri:Yes, we have a lot of people who have left the region and are now working in various institutions abroad, but within the regions, this is the first time such an area of knowledge is there. What this changes and that's where hope factors in and even more than that, it's the hope that transforms into expanding possibilities is when you see that happening, when you put together an audacious goal that people very early on doubted it would ever see the light of day, and deliver on it as promised, within the timeline promised, within the budget promised, and with the dedication of the team working in conjunction with our knowledge partners across the world.

Sarah Al Amiri:That has sent a strong message from what I've personally from the people around me of various ages just in The Emirates. We've heard from the first time from people from around the Arab world asking questions on what does change really mean? How do you create opportunities? What are the possibilities out there? It's this dialogue that has been quite important for this mission is to let people think of a different possibility and hope for a better life and more stable life.

Mat Kaplan:This must be very gratifying, then, to see this and there's good evidence for it. I'm grateful to your colleague, Alexander McNabb for getting us together. But he also gave me this great background materials about the mission and your work including a report by University College London about the impact of the mission. The report contains this terrific infographic that I have in front of me. It quantifies many of the mission's social, educational, and cultural benefits. Do you know the one I'm talking about? It's really very impressive.

Sarah Al Amiri:Yes, and that has been something that we've had from the get-go. We've had an outreach team that has been part of this mission very early on. We've catered, I think at some point, to children as young as three years old all the way to post-graduate education. There's been dedicated programs across the board for those. We will continue those and expand them on to the region. But something that's also important that's in the University College London report that comes to our ... the objective that the UAE started a planetary exploration mission in the first place. And that was, how do you build experience in an area that does not exist within the country? How to build capabilities around that? How do you expand the capacity that you have?

Sarah Al Amiri:What this mission allowed us is to create a model by which we design and develop a project or a mission that has a very clear end outcome. At the same time, within the process of that design and development, you're transferring on experience and you're developing capabilities by sharing knowledge across nations. What this helps you to do is to not reinvent the wheel, to learn from the experience of others, more importantly to learn from the tacit knowledge that other people have had. Not something you can never be taught on a book and you can never read it and learn it from anywhere except by going through the development with someone who has gone through it before.

Sarah Al Amiri:There's very small nuances in design and development that people have learned throughout the years, that have come from failing on other programs or doing things in a certain way on other programs that have informed the path for it. What the report provided us was a sanity check. Is this model the right model by which we can go about as a nation to develop new industries? Because what we're working on for the next 10 years is to establish new economic sectors within the country and to increase the impact of scientific research within the country, and increase the capabilities and capacity of the science community overall.

Sarah Al Amiri:The purpose for that is about 20 years from now, demands for oil, for energy will start declining. That is a portion of our economy. That's not entirely our economy, but that is still a significant portion of our economy. It's very important for us to expand on the methodologies by which you can establish new sectors and be able to do that in the correct method. In some way, this has been an experiment in policy making and setting forth a method by which you can develop new sectors in the country.

Mat Kaplan:With that all nations took the long view that the UAE appears to be taking with this project and a goal that really stretches over a 100 years, I know that just over a third of your team members are women. I'm sorry to say that I think that may surprise some people outside the UAE and the Arab world, but I hope it's a pleasant surprise.

Sarah Al Amiri:I've heard that quite a lot as a surprise for us. I think it's just the natural progression that that is over 30%. The reason for that is 56% of those that enter into STEM fields today are women. You have gender parity when it comes to the input. 70% of university graduates overall are women. We've been lucky enough as a young organization that has just been established since 2006 to bring people on who are the best and brightest, and most passionate of minds to work on this project, regardless of gender. It was never something that was put sort of as a criteria and some people do assume that that was the case. It was just the best minds out there that are part of this program and part of this development process.

Mat Kaplan:You're both relatively young people. Omran, here you are, the project director for a Mars mission. I suspect you may be the youngest ever. It sounds like that fits into some of what we've heard from Sarah.

Omran Sharaf:I don't know if I'm the youngest ever project director of Mars mission, but if I am, that's a big honor, to be honest.

Mat Kaplan:I think so, yeah.

Omran Sharaf:But as you know, at the end of the day, I mean, yes we are a young team that worked on this mission and has been given this responsibility by the UAE government to deliver and to execute this project. However, we shouldn't forget that also, we work with our partners, our knowledge partners at the University of Colorado, Boulder which had experienced people with understanding and background in deep space missions. It's a combination of the youth, of the young and the combination of the experienced working together as one team, I think was a major factor in us being able to come up with this new model and approach to do doing things. At the same time, delivering the mission with the limited resources we had when it comes to timeframe and also the budget.

Omran Sharaf:One thing that the UAE government was very clear with us at the beginning, they said, "Don't buy it. Build it. However, learn from others. Don't start from scratch. Work with others [inaudible 00:41:23]. [inaudible 00:41:23] task and program, and delivering something that's new and unique, a new model of executing such missions that is more innovative, that is more efficient, that's more effective. A model that is based on collaboration rather than competition." And as I said, international cooperation was core to this mission and the reason why we were able to deliver it.

Mat Kaplan:Sounds like a pretty wise approach. Sarah, back to you. Looking away from the mission just for a moment or two, I'm thinking of your new job that you're going to move into on August 1st as president of the UAE Space Agency. Do you see that as an opportunity to extend the sorts of goals that you've talked about for this mission?

Sarah Al Amiri:Absolutely, yes. It has been something [inaudible 00:42:12] has been set up to work on. The overall space program of The Emirates is not a one-off program. We have a space agency. We've got a space center. There's an overall long-term development plan for that sector, and what is a success story for us moving forward is one, how do you transfer this capability tangentially into other sectors and two, how do you start building the space economy and further supporting the creation of businesses on the space sector in a different way, filling in a potential gap in the overall industry globally.

Sarah Al Amiri:This for me is an area that we need to seriously work on over the course of the next few years. The other aspect is a program that has been launched and it's about also working with different people in the Arab Region hosting some of the greatest minds out there to work on design and development of spacecrafts with us in conjunction, so that they can also be the voice of change within their countries and they're able to then take their experience and be able to build upon it, and build a spacecraft that are quite vital when it comes to the data or utilize data from spacecraft for urban development and overall development of the science and technology ecosystem within their nations.

Mat Kaplan:Very exciting future ahead, it sounds like. I hope that as we move into this future, even the immediate future that we can stay in touch with both of you to talk more about The Emirates Mars Mission, the Hope probe. But also, I'd love to hear more about your new job when you get into it, Sarah. I'm just wondering now as we come to the end of this, where the two of you will be on that day in February when Hope arrives at Mars?

Omran Sharaf:In the command and control room in Dubai.

Mat Kaplan:Not surprising.

Sarah Al Amiri:Exactly.

Mat Kaplan:Okay. Hopefully, a good celebration afterward. It has been a delight. Thank you so much and congratulations once again from all of us who are following this mission certainly, all of us at the Planetary Society and listeners to this show. The greatest of success to both of and the entire EMM team as we head for Mars with you.

Sarah Al Amiri:Thank you, Mat.

Omran Sharaf:Thank you, Mat. Thank you.

Mat Kaplan:We have been talking with Her Excellency Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri who was appointed as Minister of State for Advanced Sciences in The United Arab Emirates. In October of 2017, she is also the Deputy Project Manager and Science Lead on the Emirates Mars Mission EMM, where she leads the team developing and fulfilling the mission's scientific objectives, goals, instrumentation and analysis program. She was programs engineering on the Dubai Sat-1 and Dubai Sat-2 Projects. She also shares The United Arab Emirates Council of Scientists, and as we said on August 1st, she'll become president of the UAE Space Agency.

Mat Kaplan:Sarah, I got to bring up something that you mentioned before we started recording. A certain gentleman that I work for, apparently played a role in inspiring you toward this career?

Sarah Al Amiri:Yes. I grew up watching Bill Nye The Science Guy. He brought science to life to me. It was really interesting just growing up watching that and having science brought to your household, not having it the typical textbook science that you study. That has expanded my understanding of how much impact science had on our daily lives and what you can do with it, and what you can create with it. It's an absolute pleasure to be on this podcast.

Mat Kaplan:The Science Guy can be very proud when I tell him about this. Omran Sharaf is The Emirates Mars Mission Project Director at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center in the UAE. He and his team are responsible for developing, launching, and operating the Hope spacecraft that we've been talking about. Omran has worked on the project from the start and developed all the necessary capabilities and partnerships at the center. He oversaw this transition from Earth observation satellites to a center that develops interplanetary exploration missions. Omran, I have to note that you got your Bachelor's Degree from my father's alma mater, The University of Virginia. Go, Cavaliers!

Omran Sharaf:Go, Cavaliers! Go hoos!

Mat Kaplan:And we will go on to talking with Bruce Betts for this week's edition of What's Up in just a moment.

Read the rest here:

Hope Leads the Way to Mars - The Planetary Society