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The airport's upcoming fourth terminal (T4) is promising passengers an improved travel experience with the innovative use of technology and an interior that embraces a boutique approach.
From a 70-meter-long LED screen keeping you occupied with beautiful visuals while you're passing through passport control and security to colorful funky chairs that wouldn't look out of place in a tech startup office, T4 is aiming to make transiting through the terminal surprisingly fun.
Amongst some of the "surprises" that passengers, particularly young ones, can look forward to when the terminal opens later this year are cute robot "housekeepers" roaming the lounge, dog-shaped chairs and a "heritage" zone featuring the architectural evolution of Singapore's traditional shop houses (from the 1800s to the 1950s) as well as an opportunity to sample local food delights.
Some LED facades will also come to life with "blink and you'll miss them" animations, like a cat running, while a six-minute musical film will be played at regular intervals.
The automatic two-in-one departure gate will speed up boarding processes.
Beyond the funky design, the terminal is utilizing serious technologies to offer a faster end-to-end travel approach, offering passengers a choice of self-service options.
"We are pushing the boundaries to take customer service up to the next level using new and innovative ideas, and thoughtful design features," explains Poh Li San, vice president of Changi Airport Group's T4 Programme Management Office, adding that the smart use of facial recognition technology will ensure that the whole process is "secure and fully integrated."
Passengers will be able to check in at a kiosk and print their luggage tags electronically thanks to a facial recognition system that bypasses the need for manual identity checks.
They're not the first to adopt such technology.
In May, Delta launched a pilot scheme in Minneapolis-St. Paul to use facial recognition software for a self-service bag drop.
Other airports that use facial recognition tech include Auckland, Amsterdam Schiphol and Qatar Doha, though Poh says she's not aware of any airport implementing the full suite initiatives on a terminal-wide basis.
Changi Airport's new terminal has a boutique feel.
For travelers using T4, moving through the departure gate will now be a centralized experience with an automated two-in-one approach (boarding card and passport check in one go).
The final security check should also prove faster, with passengers no longer needing to remove electronic equipment from their bags thanks to the use of CT scanners -- a first in an airport, according to Poh.
The final boarding will also take place through automated gates equipped with the facial recognition system.
In the US, low-cost carrier Jet Blue also recently started a facial recognition trial for passengers boarding at Boston Logan International Airport.
This end-to-end automated approach will not only help expedite the flow of passengers through the terminal with improved efficiency, but will also help alleviate the city-state's manpower shortage, Poh told journalists previewing the terminal.
Over the long term, Changi Airport expects 20% manpower savings with this automated approach.
An alternative art gallery.
While the two-story terminal is only 225,000 square meters (two-thirds the size of Changi's terminal 3), it still offers a visual sense of space thanks to the use of high ceiling skylights, a general lowering of all the furniture and the use of glass walls throughout that allow peeks of the boarding gates from the departure hall.
The focal point of the airport, visible from both floors, is a hypnotic installation of six kinetic sculptures by Germany's ART+COM Studios, which span 200 meters at the center of the terminal.
Called Petalclouds, it's inspired by the petals of Singapore's national flower, the orchid. The artwork will provide a one-hour choreographed "ballet" on a loop, moving gently to a classical tune composed by award-winning composer Olafur Arnalds.
The petal theme resonates throughout the terminal, from the skylight to the marble flooring, carpet, air-con binnacles and even the dustbins and fire extinguishers, and other artworks are peppered throughout, "all curated around the theme of flight and travel," explains Daniel Foo, who was part of the Changi team selecting the art.
Greenery has not been forgotten, with an estimated 582,000 plants, trees and shrubs throughout the terminal, including a "boulevard" of 160 ficus trees along the boarding corridor.
T4 will be a test-bed for Changi's upcoming fifth terminal.
Nine airlines will operate out of T4 (the four airlines from AirAsia Group, Cathay Pacific, Cebu Pacific, Korean Air, Spring Airlines and Vietnam Airlines), which has a handling capacity of 16 million passengers per year.
This will bring the total handling capacity of Changi Airport to 82 million, ensuring scope for future growth at what is already one of the busiest airports in Asia.
Last year, the airport handled a record 58.7 million passengers.
Poh said its design and innovation was very much "a test-bed" for Changi's fifth terminal, due to be completed in the late 2020s.
"Competition remains strong in the region, and many of our neighbors are also building new airports or improving their existing infrastructure, says Poh.
"Changi Airport continues to push the boundaries to ensure that we stay ahead of the competition."
10. Frankfurt Airport (Germany) -- Among the busiest airports in Europe, Frankfurt Airport sneaks into the Top 10 on this year's Skytrax World Airport Awards list.
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Automated and funky: Inside Singapore Changi Airport's groundbreaking new terminal - CNN
Photo Illustration; Aaron Foster/Getty
We talked to Brian Kelly, expert on all things travel points, on which credit card offers the best rewards, whether hotel points are worth it, and how to become a points freak in the first place.
Brian Kellys livelihood started as many an influencers: His friends gave him a weird nickname in 2010, he decided to make an eponymous blog with said nickname, and then companies started flooding his inbox with emails with words like commission and profit and affiliate marketing. It was just the beginning of what would become his everyday life.
None of the world travel Kelly has donetaking his parents to Beijing and East timor to celebrate their retirement, becoming a chief in a Ghanian village wouldve been possible had Kelly not become addicted to racking up frequent flier miles and credit card points, and bought the domain for The Points Guy, his blog-cum-profitable-website that now beckons 4.5 million visitors a month. Looking for updates about the TSAs electronic ban? The Points Guys got you covered. Have a spare $500 and want to know the furthest you can get away from New York City? Round-trip ticket to Amman, Jordan: $499, baby.
As someone who has dedicated his livelihood to the art of travel, points, and deals, Kelly has the insight and advice that could put money in your pockets and your butt in a lounge chair in the San Sebastin. So, we asked him about credit card rewards, the worthiness of hotel points, and whale sharks.
GQ: Lets ask an extremely basic question first: What exactly are points and miles, and why am I supposed to care about them? Kelly: simply put, theyre a form of currency. You can get them from traveling, but nowadays, more and more points come from credit cards and everyday spending. You literally just have to spend money to get them. Most people have them; most people dont know how to use them.
How did you get into this relatively unconventional hobby or interest, however you choose to classify it? In the nineties, my dad was a business traveler, so he had all these frequent flier miles. Wed go to the Caribbean for almost free, and when I was 12, I thought, it sucks that my dad has to travel for work but at least we have all these points. I was working at Morgan Stanley in 2007 and was traveling a ton, and my friends called me the points guy because I knew all the ins and outs. So in June 2010, I started a blog, and 9 months later, credit card companies came knocking at my door for affiliate marketing. Today were one of top credit card content websites. Its my dream job.
Im young-ish and mainly travel for leisure, maybe once or twice a year. Whats the best credit card for me? The best all-around card in the marketplace is the Chase Sapphire Reserve. It was so popular that they ran out of metal when it came out. You start with 50,000 points and earn triple points on all travel and dining. Travel includes subway tickets and parking tolls, and dining includes things like Seamless. Its a $450 annual fee but you get $300 right away in credit, so you basically pay $150 a year and get a card that gives you triple points. If you dont want that hefty annual fee, Id recommend the Chase Sapphire Preferred, which gives you 50,000 points and double points on travel and dining. American Expresss Starwood is solid as well.
What about hotel points. Are those worth it? It depends. The best are Starwood Preferred Guesttheyre insanely valuable because you can transfer them to maybe 35 different airlines, hotels, and experiences. I saw Adele in London with them. But, while hotel points can be valuable, give me credit card points instead. Its much better to have flexible points than to box yourself in.
Considering your travel habits, you must have a lot of tips. Share them please? I think a lot of people go to the same place over and over, which isnt necessarily bad, but I think people should explore more. Also, dont go to places during peak season, like Europe in summer or Asia in spring. You get half the crowds and half the prices during shoulder seasons. Its also easier to get frequent flier miles at lower levels during this time. But generally, [right now is] a great time to be traveling because the US dollar is so strong.
Last extremely important question: We hear youre mildly obsessed with sharks.If you could travel anywhere to see them, where would that be? A place called Holbox Island, [near] Tulum. The whale sharks are really plentiful there, and Im dying to see whale sharks.
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The Best Credit Card for Travel Rewards, and Other Advice from The Points Guy - GQ Magazine
From the Louvre to the boulevards of Haussmann and the literary hangouts of Montmartre, Paris has been a center of innovation in culture throughout history.
The city is now looking to obtain that official status for a surprising monument: its rooftops.
Paris has begun the process of having its classic zinc rooftops recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site, local news outlets reported. The process is long and arduous, involving many inspections, and it could be years before the international organization renders its decision.
Currently, the only UNESCO world heritage site in Paris is the banks of the river Seine.
Local union workers who restore and rebuild the rooftops noted that their profession has been in decline among younger populations and expressed hope that world heritage status could spark interest.
"Being included on the list marks a just recognition of our profession," Angel Sanchez, president of the union that represents the roofers, told Le Parisien. "Our tools have modernized. The inherent risks of our profession have declined, but our methods have remained traditional."
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Why Paris Thinks Its Rooftops Deserve International Recognition - Travel+Leisure
Jul 27, 2017 at 7:41 am | Print View
Stepping into The Map Room, a new pub in downtown Cedar Rapids, is a little like stepping into the pages of an atlas maps from around the world line the walls.
We traveled a lot, and we were always picking up maps wherever we went. We joked we would put them in the map room someday, said owner Christina Springman, who opened the bar and restaurant with her husband, Mitch Springman.
Instead of creating that room in their house, they decided to share their maps with the public, alongside servings of homemade pub food and signature cocktails. Together, the decor and the menu are meant to provide a friendly, comfortable atmosphere.
We wanted a spot that would inspire people to talk about their travels, Christina Springman said.
The food also comes with a globe-trotting aesthetic. The kitchen is small, about 4 feet wide, so they had to keep the menu focused; chef Quincey Sproston mainly serves burgers, along with a selection of loaded fries and crostinis.
Each burger focuses on a different global city, with a flavor profile and toppings inspired by that areas cuisine. The Delhi burger, for example, is topped with paneer, garam masala and mint chutney, while the New Orleans burger is topped with mortadella, ham, salami, mozzarella, provolone and spicy olive relish. Others include the Marrakesh, Seoul, Memphis and Napoli burgers.
We tried to hit every continent with the menu, Springman said. We just had to figure out how to put them on a burger.
The drink menu, meanwhile, features beer and wine alongside craft cocktails like the La Mure, which includes blackberry brandy, fresh lemon juice and sparkling wine, or the Porch Life, with gin, Domaine de Canton ginger and house-made strawberry lemonade.
We went for light, refreshing summer drinks, Springman said. I want this to be a comfortable tavern. I dont want it to be pretentious by any means.
Both of the Springmans have a restaurant industry background. Christina Springman most recently managed the Black Sheep Social Club, and Mitch Springman manages The Lucky Penny in Hiawatha.
Black Sheep Social Club owner Graig Cone gave them the loan to get started with The Map Room. When Stellas closed during the 2016 flood and didnt reopen, Springman got in touch with building owner Kory Nanke with her business proposal. After some remodeling, The Map Room opened June 30.
Springman said the small downtown bar has always appealed to her, nestled among much taller buildings. Along with the snug indoor seating, she plans to open patio seating this week.
Everything else is so big and towering. Its a tiny little respite, she said. I like the size of it. I can talk to everyone in here. Its nice and cozy.
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Travel the world on a plate at The Map Room - The Gazette: Eastern Iowa Breaking News and Headlines
Chinese scientists create biggest virtual universe with worlds fastest computer, dwarfed Switzerlands record set only last month, will help researchers in their efforts to unlock the secrets of the cosmos. China experts said that China was learning to take full advantage of its raw calculation power, which had outpaced other nations in recent years, and recreating the universe was just the first step.
By simulating the creation of the universe on Sunway or its more advanced successors researchers will be able to single out distant areas of space for the telescope to investigate.
Gao Liang, chair scientist of the computational cosmology group in the National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, said they simulated the birth and early expansion of the universe using 10 trillion digital particles, doing a quadrillion calculations per second.
This projects scale was five times greater than that of the previous record, which was achieved last month by astrophysicists at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, he added.
But while the European project ran for 80 hours, the Chinese one was maintained for just over an hour. The Chinese work was carried out at the National Supercomputer Centre in Wuxi, Jiangwu two months ago. There were lots of calculations... It must be exhausted, Gao said. He explained that Sunway had used a total of 10 million CPU cores, running multiple instructions on each core to increase the speed of calculation. A billion billion calculations per second: where no computer has gone before
The simulation was disclosed to the public for the first time on Wednesday in an article by Wang Qiao, another scientist taking part in the project, for S cience and Technology Daily, the official newspaper of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China.
The Sunway was stretched to its limit by the task, but it remained heathy, according to Gao. This is just a warm-up exercise. We still have a long way ahead to get what we want, he said.
In astronomy, researchers simulate the universe by breaking down its mass into particles. These particles interact with one another through physical forces such as gravity. The more particles involved, the more precisely the scientists can replay and forecast the universes evolution. This process can shed light on many issues such as the nature and spread of dark energy.
The calculation, also known as N-body simulation, intensified with the increase of particles. It was only possible to simulate over 1,000 particles with the best computers in 1970s. In recent years scientists reached the trillion-particle level on some of the worlds most powerful machines such as the Titan in the US, the K computer in Japan and Tianhe-2 in Guangzhou.
Gao said We just got to the point of tens of millions years after the Big Bang. It was still a very young stage for the universe. Most galaxies were not even born, he said.
China has been building its next-generation high performance computer which will be at least 10 times faster than Sunway. When the machine is finished around 2019, astronomers in China will have more calculation resources than their peers in most other countries to uncover the secrets of the universe, according to Gao.
The supercomputers will work alongside Chinas other large scientific facilities, including Fast, the worlds single largest radio telescope which is 500 meter in diameter, in Guizhou.
The telescope, whose name stands for the Five hundred metre Aperture Spherical Telescope, could obtain detailed information from the distant universe, but first it would need to know where to look. By simulating the evolution of the universe on a computer, researchers can single out promising regions that may offer interesting findings and feed the coordinates to the telescope.
"Having a more sensitive telescope, we can receive weaker and more distant radio messages," Wu Xiangping, director-general of the Chinese Astronomical Society, said of the 500-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) nestled in a bowl-shaped valley between hills in the southwestern province of Guizhou "It will help us to search for intelligent life outside of the galaxy and explore the origins of the universe," he added underscoring the China's race to be the first nation to discover the existence of an advanced alien civilization.
After 2020, the weight of new discoveries about the universe may shift to China, Gao said.
The Daily Galaxy via South China Morning Post
Image Credit: Pics About Space
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Does the Biebs have a new Purpose?
On Monday, Justin Bieber shocked fans when he cancelled the final 14 dates of his Purpose tour and broke teeny-boppers hearts all over the world. Some say he's suffering from exhaustion after a year and a half of touring, others have said he's doing some "soul searching," and now there's reports attributing his drastic move to his allegiance to pastor Carl Lentz's Hillsong Church.
The Bieb's religious devotion is not news as it has been well chronicled over the yearshe's spoken about it, he 's sung about it, he has tattoos about it. It's definitely not a secret.
However, a source tells E! News that over the last year especially the "Sorry" singer has been very dedicated to the Hillsong Church and that it's helped him through some stressful times. But, the source adds that the tour being shut down early is not a result of his dedication to Hillsong, instead it's because he's "burnt out" from his constant touring.
The insider continued that Bieber loves his family at Hillsong but that he's always felt that way. The source also said that it's at Hillsong where the 23-year-old has learned about having balance and loving himself and that's as a result of their practices. Additionally, the insider says the Canadian's camp supports his decisions and the choices he makes in regards to his well-being.
Another source affirmed the same sentiment, telling E! News, "Justins definitely done some soul searching lately but it was his own decision to cancel the tour. Its been hectic and that 'rock star' life doesnt mix anymore with the life he wants to live."
Another source also tells E! News that the Grammy winner has been leaning on Patrick Schwarzenegger for support during this transition in his life and wants to be around like-minded individuals like Patrick.
The insider says that both Bieber and Schwarzenegger enjoy being involved in the church and have been hanging out a lot doing sober and relaxed activities together recently.
In a statement apologizing to fans, Bieber's longtime manager Scooter Braun wrote, "A man's soul and well being I truly care about came first and we must all respect and honor that. Justin will be back and I know he looks forward to performing for you and with you all again. One chapter ends and another begins."
We hope he finds whatever he's looking for...
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How Justin Bieber's Spirituality Impacted His Purpose Tour Cancellation - E! Online
A movement is growing.
In recent months, hundreds of thousands have mobilized in mass protest moved by a sense that our collective state is not well. Amid a slow and steady drip of half-truths and outright lies, action is an appropriate response, a sign of hope.
Emotion-laden responses are useful in building bridges from apathy to action. Yet, as countless fatigued and burnt-out activists struggle in the wake of moral outrage, we must go deeper.
We need a discipline of contemplative activism.
In recognizing the challenges of working for social justice, spiritually-rooted social action provides something of substance to the people in movements. From this place of rootedness, social movements can set intentions that point towards sustainability.
Through activism we confront toxicity in our world; through contemplation we confront it in ourselves, said Phileena Heuertz, founding partner of Gravity, a Center for contemplative activism.
Through retreats and trainings, Heuertz helps individuals find their own center of gravity, or, as she describes, the place that inherently knows we are loved, safe, and have no need to fear.
Without practices that dismantle our unconscious egoic motivations, at best our work will be limited in its effectiveness and at worse, our work will exercise more violence in the world, said Heuertz.
In drawing from a deep well of spirituality, contemplative activism nurtures a sense of wholeness.
Traditionally, contemplative spirituality is built on a foundation of silence, stillness, and solitude. For some, this means a commitment to exercises like centering prayer, the Daily Examen, and meditation. Others describe more physical practices like yoga, breathing exercises, and dancing.
While these practices are necessary for formation, Micky ScottBey Jones, director of Healing Justice Initiatives at Faith Matters Network, says there is more to activism than organizing and running successful campaigns.
"Not being rooted in something that allows for spiritual, emotional, and physical evaluations and check-ins will lead to a shallow and exhausting activism that likely isnt sustainable in a health way, said Jones.
All too often, contemplative spirituality is critiqued as being isolationist and a mere aspiration towards bourgeoisie spiritual experience. If our inner life doesnt change how we address and meet the needs of those around us, we have precious little to offer the world.
Contemplative activism, then, isnt ultimately about a set of practices but about holding a certain posture in the world.
Contemplative activism is an invitation and an exploration of counterintuitive practices as a way to show up differently in the world, said Tia Norman, contemplative designer for Folklore Films.
Healthy spiritual disciplines should not only change our own way of being, but lead us into conflict with a greatly needed voice and presence. In articulating this posture, Marlon Hall, whose work through The Awakenings Movement equips and sustains social visionaries, references Mark 4, in which Jesus speaks with spiritual authority to calm a storm threatening to overtake himself and those with him.
Winds hollowing and ocean waves crashing against the vessel moving his party, Jesus stood and directly enjoined peace to be still, said Hall.
From the center of a storm, Jesus prophetic posture emerges from a place of inward stillness. For contemplative disciplines to be of use in building sustainable movements, they must hold a firm commitment to balancing both inward and outward engagement.
Contemplative activism carves out vessels of peace where Christ may speak directly to the issues of peace for people moved by the storms of our current sociopolitical climate, said Hall.
In focusing on contemplation and action we honor the whole being. This nurturing of whole individuals is crucial for building transformative social movements equipped to engage personally, communally, and systemically.
Alongside contemplation and action, healing must be an essential part of a spiritually-rooted movement.
The three are inextricably linked and in this moment; we need the potency of this triad, interconnected, to heal ourselves and heal the world around us, said Teresa Pasquale Mateus, co-founder and executive director of The Mystic Soul Project.
As a storyteller and advocate for the liberation of women caught in cycles of sexual violence, healing through contemplative activism is critical to Nikole Lims work.
Lim describes parts of her experience in holding the stories of those in her community as secondhand post-traumatic stress disorder. The weight of her work has, at times, led to physical illness. While hospitalized with an unnamed virus that caused immense physical and mental stress, Lim wrestled with whether she was equipped for her vocation and considered abandoning it altogether.
Shortly after being hospitalized, Lim joined a pilgrimage to Rwanda. The intention of this experience, Lim said, was to journey alongside survivors and perpetrators of genocide to understand the pain that oppresses us all.
It was through this experience that healing came in a profound way, said Lim.
From the grounding of spiritual practice, Lim discovered courage to intentionally enter experiences of unspeakable violence and pain while caring for her own needs. Contemplative prayer has taught Lim the value of pausing and listening.
These moments of reflection allow me to catch my breath inviting God into the work toward justice so that in my exhaustion, I do not perpetuate violence through my careless words or unconscious actions, said Lim.
As exemplified in Lims experience, Teresa Pasquale Mateus says, I think that the grounding in a relational and intimate God, which the contemplative path offers, and practices for deep spiritual and emotional healing can help rebalance and restore much of this brokenness inside each of us and our communities of faith and action.
Contemplative activism offers a foundation for a transformative and sustainable movement. While new language and practice continually evolve in this discipline, Micky ScottBey Jones offers a reminder that it is an approach that simply needs to be claimed in this time and place.
Contemplative spirituality is our heritage. It is a gift from the ancestors. From those who have gone before in our faith traditions and moral courage movements.
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Religion and Spirituality Books Preview: August 2017 - Publishers Weekly
Description Twenty-Third Publications, a Division of Bayard, Inc. is seeking an Acquisitions Editor to work as a contractor from their home office. The primary responsibility for the Acquisitions Editor for Spirituality and Parish Lines is to provide 20 publishing projects per term of Agreement (a combination of books and small booklets) that will support the mission of Twenty-Third Publications in these categories. This role is carried out in collaboration with the Publisher and the Acquisitions Team. Qualified candidate should have five years editorial experience, three in book acquisitions preferred. Responsibilities
Seeks and actively acquires manuscripts and/or authors that match these editorial lines.
Maintains an updated working docket of proposals discussed by the Acquisitions Team in the spirituality and pastoral lines and collaborates in building seasonal lists from this docket.
Evaluates incoming proposals and manuscripts.
Obtains author questionnaire and reviewer recommendations (as needed) regarding manuscripts or proposals under consideration.
Participates in a weekly acquisitions meeting: prepares Potential Project Report for manuscripts under consideration and presents these to the Acquisitions Team members; uses this feedback in weighing project viability.
Offers standard terms to author; requests author contracts.
Collaborates with the author in the development of a project, bringing the manuscript to a point where it may be sent for copy editing, or in some case further developmental editing as needed.
Seeks imprimatur when needed or when appropriate, asks author to obtain.
As needed, makes suggestions for endorsements, foreword or preface and obtains these where appropriate, and forwards information for back cover write up to marketing.
When possible, attends annual conferences and conventions to maintain relationships and make new contacts with other publishers and authors.
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Acquisitions Editor, Spirituality and Parish Resources - Publishers Weekly
Srila Prabhupada, the guru whose Hare Krishna movement is examined, mostly uncritically, in a new documentary, Hare Krishna! The Mantra, the Movement and the Swami Who Started It All. (Abramorama / Abramorama)
In 1965, a 70-year-old retired pharmacist from Kolkata arrived in New York with no contacts or support and very little money. What he did bring was, depending on your point of view, either (a) spiritual enlightenment or (b) a mind-control cult that ripped susceptible middle-class teens away from their families.
The documentary Hare Krishna! The Mantra, the Movement and the Swami Who Started It All mentions both possibilities, but clearly favors the first. Filmmaker John Griesser and his co-director Lauren Ross fill the film with footage of Srila Prabhupada, the man who, in 1966, founded a religious organization called the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), and his intelligent and articulate disciples. Coverage of controversies involving ISKCON after the gurus 1977 death (including an alleged murder conspiracy) is relegated to a montage of unfavorable TV news and a Hare Krishna gag from Airplane II.
For viewers who arent hostile to mysticism, vegetarianism and endless chanting, its a stirring story. Prabhupada arrived at a pivotal moment in American culture, setting up shop in a Lower East Side storefront behind a sign promising Matchless Gifts. He was soon communing with George Harrison, members of the Grateful Dead and Allen Ginsburg, who is shown singing Hare Krishna to a smirking William F. Buckley Jr. The swamis goal was simple, he explained: To see everyone happy. But how tricky a goal that can be.
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Review: 'Hare Krishna!' offers a misty-eyed look at a mystical leader - The Spokesman-Review
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Theatre review: The Ruling Class, Pitlochry Festival Theatre - Herald Scotland
Launch of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft Friday carrying three fresh crew members to the International Space Station will boost the lab's crew back to six and, most important from NASA's perspective, dramatically boost research with four crew members -- three NASA astronauts and a veteran European flier -- available to operate experiments in the American segment of the laboratory.
Soyuz MS-05 commander Sergey Ryazanskiy, NASA flight engineer Randy Bresnik and European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli, are scheduled for launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 11:41 a.m. EDT Friday (GMT-4; 9:41 p.m. local time), roughly the moment Earth's rotation carries the pad into the plane of the space station's orbit.
With a doctorate in biomedicine, Ryazanskiy spent 166 days aboard the station in 2013-14 and he is the first scientist-cosmonaut to serve as a Soyuz commander. He also commanded one of three international crews during a 500-day simulated Mars mission in 2009.
"Sergey is the first scientist-commander of the Soyuz and with his Mars experience and just the good character of the person he is, he's been an outstanding commander for us to prepare for our flight," Bresnik said.
The Soyuz MS-05 crew, left to right: European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli, commander Sergey Ryazanskiy and NASA flight engineer Randy Bresnik.
NASA
An F/A-18 TOPGUN graduate with more than 6,000 hours flying high-performance aircraft, Bresnik will serve as flight engineer in the left seat of the Soyuz during launch and landing. He spent 10 days in space as a shuttle crew member during a 2009 space station assembly mission.
In an interesting bit of trivia, Bresnik's grandfather was Amelia Earhart's photographer.
"I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Ameila Earhart," Bresnik said in a NASA interview. "It turns out my grandfather was her photographer for five years before her (ill-fated around-the-world) record attempt in 1937. He was supposed to accompany her on the flight, but in the end, she ended up taking extra fuel instead of him and his equipment.
"So that simple decision in 1937, because my father was born in 1938, meant that had he gone on that flight, I wouldn't be here today."
Filling out the Soyuz MS-05 crew is Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli, making his third spaceflight. He first flew aboard the shuttle Discovery during a 2007 station assembly flight and then completed a long-term stay aboard the outpost in 2010-11, pushing his total time in space to 174 days.
"I wanted to be an astronaut since I was a kid," he said. After a long stint in the Italian army, serving as a master parachutist, jump master and special forces operator, he "eventually picked up again this childhood dream and got a degree in aerospace engineering and then worked for the European Space Agency. Then (I was) fortunate enough in 1998 to be selected as a European astronaut."
At the time of launch, the space station will be flying over the northeast border of Kazakhstan, about 1,130 miles ahead of the Soyuz. If all goes well, Ryazanskiy and Bresnik will oversee an automated four-orbit rendezvous with the laboratory, moving in for docking at the Earth-facing Rassvet port around 6 p.m.
A Russian Orthodox priest blesses the media shortly after the Soyuz MS-05 spacecraft was erected on the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
NASA
They will be welcomed aboard by Expedition 52 commander Fyodor Yurchikhin, flight engineer Jack Fischer and Peggy Whitson, NASA's most experienced astronaut with 629 days in orbit (as of Friday) during three missions, including two stints as commander.
The combined crew will include four astronauts assigned to the U.S. segment of the station -- Fischer, Whitson, Bresnik and Nespoli -- and two in the Russian segment -- Yurchikhin and Ryazanskiy.
The station crew normally is evenly split between the Russians and the U.S. segment, which includes astronauts representing NASA, ESA, Japan and Canada. But the Russian federal space agency Roscosmos recently decided to downgrade to two crew members to save money in the near term and that opened up a Soyuz seat for a USOS -- U.S. orbital segment -- astronaut.
With the arrival of the Soyuz MS-05 crew, an additional USOS crew member will be available to carry out research.
"I am excited about having a full complement of people up here who can really utilize this amazing laboratory," Fischer, who's been aboard the station since April 20, said in an interview with CBS News.
"This will be the first time where we have four USOS, we're have three Americans and an Italian, Paolo, working on the U.S. segment on science. Four people. That's crazy talk! I'm super excited about how much science we're going to be able to get done with all four people. So, overall, it's awesome, I cannot wait for them to get up here and cannot wait for the discoveries that we make together."
Nespoli, left, Ryazanskiy, center, and Bresnik make a traditional visit to Red Square in Moscow where they paid respects at the tomb of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space.
NASA
Bresnik agreed, calling the expanded USOS crew "a huge improvement."
"We'll get a taste of it when we launch because Paolo Nespoli and I will be up there with (Jack) and Peggy, who've been working their tails off since June 2 when they've been by themselves (in the U.S. segment). So we'll have about five or six weeks together, the four of us, and hopefully we'll learn the ropes from them really well and then just dovetail into four crew members in increment 53.
"We don't really have an idea how to quantify that yet," he added. "Is it really just a fourth body and we're adding 25 percent more capability? Or, we're able to do all the maintenance and other stuff that we normally do and this person could be, theoretically, book-kept as all utilization. So we may double our capacity."
Ryazanskiy said having only two Russian crew members aboard will require some Russian research to be carried out in their spare time, but he does not anticipate any problems.
"We will be really busy because there will only be two of us," he said. "I have a lot of science that is now going on the task list so some experiments will be done in my free time aboard the station. But overall, for life support and technical issues, two Russian crew members will be enough."
Whitson, who holds a Ph.D. in biochemistry, was launched to the station last November and originally planned to return to Earth in early June with her Soyuz MS-03 crewmates Oleg Novitskiy and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet. But the Russian decision to reduce its crew complement left an open seat on the Soyuz MS-04 spacecraft that carried Yurchikhin and Fischer into orbit April 20.
As a result, NASA and Roscosmos agreed to extend Whitson's mission and she will return to Earth with Yurchikhin and Fischer aboard the MS-04 spacecraft on Sept. 3. The mission extension will push her total time in space to 666 days, moving her up to eighth in the world just behind Yurchikhin, who will rank seventh.
Ryazanskiy, Bresnik and Nespoli face an intense first few weeks aboard the station with a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship scheduled to arrive in mid August, a spacewalk by Yurchikhin and Ryazanskiy on Aug. 17, plans to photograph the Aug. 21 solar eclipse from orbit, the departure of Yurchikhin and his crewmates Sept. 3 and the arrival of a fresh crew -- one Russian and two Americans -- on Sept. 13.
Ryazanskiy, Bresnik and Nespoli are scheduled to return to Earth Dec. 14. They will be replaced Dec. 27 by another crew made up of one Russian and two Americans.
Bresnik, serving as the Soyuz flight engineer, during simulator training at Star City near Moscow. Bresnik has more than 6,000 hours flying time in a variety of high-performance aircraft and logged 10 days in space during a 2009 shuttle mission.
NASA
The solar eclipse is generating widespread interest, the first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 99 years. Bresnik said the station crew will be able to monitor the eclipse over three orbits and plans to downlink video and still images.
"We'll have, actually, three passes," Bresnik told CBS News in a pre-launch interview from Moscow. "The first one ... is when we're over the southern Pacific, and we'll be on the lookout. Then on the second pass, we (are) over the top of Lake Huron when we'll be able to see it the best. We'll be there with video cameras and our big telephoto lenses to take pictures.
"And then, we'll be able to see it on a third orbit, out over the Atlantic Ocean, where we'll have about an 85 percent obscuration of the sun. We've got special filters for the cameras to take those pictures. We'll share it right away with everybody."
For his part, Ryazanskiy said he is looking forward taking photos in general and sharing them via social media.
"I really like to make photos," he told reporters earlier this year. "From a previous mission, I (took) more than 65,000 photos. Nowadays, I'm working on a book with photos and stories. Personally, I prefer Instagram because it's easier to share your visual experiences. Now we have so many different social media channels, I will try to use the most popular."
He said his sister will help him get his pictures on line.
"It's really important and really necessary to try to share all these wonderful things you can see from above," he said. "Sometimes, it's impossible even with photos because it's much more beautiful or three dimensional. But still, we should try, we should try to share our experience with other people who maybe in the future will be able to fly in space."
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Russian Soyuz, with 3-man crew, set for Friday trip to space station - CBS News
Space nerds around the world rejoiced a few days ago, when it was announced that Google Street View had found its way into the International Space Station. You can travel through each of the 15 connected modules that compose the station, carefully examining everything you glide past. Its a great way to kill some time, and while doing our own exploring we (of course) got hung up on a food stash, which is located in Node 3 (Tranquility). You can see it for yourself here, but heres what we were able to make out onboard:
Astronauts: They crave bold flavors, just like us!
Google has also been thoughtful enough to provide descriptions of a lot of the things that you pass along the way; For what its worth, the items are velcroed onto the galley table, which is big enough for six astronauts and was designed by high school students. And what looks like a metal suitcase next to the table is a microwave/forced air convection oven that serves as a food warmer.
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There's a Bottle of Sriracha Onboard the International Space Station - The Daily Meal
KEEN-eyed Bromsgrove, Rubery and South Birmingham residents may spot something unusual in the skies over the coming days as the International Space Station will be visible from the town.
No equipment is needed to see the Space Station just a clear night and a good pair of eyes at the right time.
The space station looks like an aeroplane or a very bright star moving across the sky, although it doesnt have flashing lights or change direction.
It will also be moving considerably faster than a typical plane, which generally fly at around 600 miles per hour, while the space station flies at 17,500 miles per hour).
The Space Station should be visible for around six minutes tonight (Thursday, July 27) at around 10.05pm.
It should also be visible at around 10.49pm on Friday (July 28). 9.57pm on Saturday and 10.41pm on Sunday.
Visit https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/sightings for more information.
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Laurel Kornfeld
July 27th, 2017
An artists impression of LISA Pathfinder in space. Image Credit: ESA/ATG medialab
The European Space Agencys (ESA) LISA Pathfinder, a probe that tested technologies for their capability to detect the ripples in space-time known as gravitational waves, has been shut down.
Over a period of 16 months, the spacecraft, a preliminary proof-of-mission project, tested technologies aimed at studying gravitational waves in a follow-up mission, the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), scheduled for launch in 2034.
First proposed as part of Albert Einsteins theory of general relativity over a century ago, gravitational waves result from major space events, such as mergers of two black holes or supernova explosions.
Because only some types of gravitational waves can be detected by ground-based observatories, scientists had to create and launch a space-based observatory that would not be vulnerable to phenomena on Earth, such as seismic activity.
Were looking for the universe vibrating from these mergers, these big, big events, said LISA Pathfinder project scientist Paul McNamara in an ESA video about the mission. From the operations to the hardware to the development, its just been a wonderful mission.
Video courtesy of European Space Agency (ESA)
Two gold-platinum cubes, each with a weight of 4.3 pounds (2 kilograms) and a diameter of about 1.8 inches (4.6 centimeters), suspended inside LISA Pathfinder, served as its primary technology. A 1.5-inch (3.8-centimeter) laser measured the distances between the cubes to vary their positions, distance, and orientation.
During its period of operation, LISA Pathfinder had to be held steady to prevent its sensitive motion detector from being influenced by photons coming from the Sun. This was accomplished by thrusters that exerted tiny reactive forces to the probe, keeping it in a near-perfect gravitational orbit.
Keeping the spacecraft stable was so important that two separate systems, one designed by ESA and the other by NASA, were placed and used on board.
We were trying to hold it as stable as the width of a DNA helix. And we went down from there to the width of part of a DNA helix, explained John Ziemer of NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and systems lead for the NASA thruster system on the probe.
Known as the Space Technology 7 Disturbance Reduction System (ST7-DRS), the thruster system was developed by the company Busek Co. Inc. with assistance from JPL.
Algorithms developed by NASAs ST7 project were used in conjunction with ESAs commands and input from ESAs sensors to guide LISA Pathfinder during its U.S. operations phase.
While the spacecraft completed its primary mission in the fall of 2016, tests of various algorithms to stabilize it continued into March and April of this year.
The main goal for us was to show we can fly the spacecraft drag-free, Ziemer said. The main force on the spacecraft comes from the Sun, from photons with [an] extremely tiny force that can subtly move the spacecraft.
Engineers hope that the new steady thrusters could eventually replace reaction wheels, currently used to point and rotate spacecraft, on other probes, such as telescopes designed to hunt for exoplanets, he added.
Turned off on Tuesday, July 18, 2017, LISA Pathfinder will remain in a parking orbit, where it will coast while continuing to circle the Sun.Its 2034 successor will be composed of three separate spacecraft positioned in a triangle, with each one 1.55 million miles (2.5 million km) from its partners.
The three LISA probes will use technology much like LISA Pathfinders cubes and will detect gravitational waves by the minute distortion (only one trillionth of a meter) the waves exert on the distances between them.
This illustration shows ESAs (the European Space Agencys) LISA observatory, a multi-spacecraft mission to study gravitational waves expected to launch in 2034. In the mission concept, LISA consists of three spacecraft in a triangular formation spanning millions of kilometers. Test masses in spacecraft on each arm of the formation will be linked together by lasers to detect passing gravitational waves. Credits: Image AEI / Milde Marketing / Exozet; Caption NASA
Tagged: European Space Agency LISA Pathfinder The Range
Laurel Kornfeld is an amateur astronomer and freelance writer from Highland Park, NJ, who enjoys writing about astronomy and planetary science. She studied journalism at Douglass College, Rutgers University, and earned a Graduate Certificate of Science from Swinburne Universitys Astronomy Online program. Her writings have been published online in The Atlantic, Astronomy magazines guest blog section, the UK Space Conference, the 2009 IAU General Assembly newspaper, The Space Reporter, and newsletters of various astronomy clubs. She is a member of the Cranford, NJ-based Amateur Astronomers, Inc. Especially interested in the outer solar system, Laurel gave a brief presentation at the 2008 Great Planet Debate held at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab in Laurel, MD.
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A Russian Soyuz rocket made a railroad journey Wednesday to its launch pad in Kazakhstan, two days before blastoff with a crew of three spaceflight veterans from the United States, Italy and Russia heading for the International Space Station.
The three-stage rocket departed an assembly building just after sunrise Wednesday on a special rail car for the journey to Launch Pad No. 1, the same mount from which Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin launched on the first piloted space mission in April 1961.
A hydraulic lift raised the Soyuz vertical before swing arms moved into place around the rocket. The launch structure containing the Soyuz booster then rotated to align with the planned launch azimuth.
Fridays liftoff is scheduled for 1541 GMT (11:41 a.m. EDT; 9:41 p.m. Baikonur time). The three-man crew inside the Soyuz MS-05 capsule will head into orbit on a fast-track pursuit of the space station, with docking set for approximately 2200 GMT (6 p.m. EDT) with the research outposts Rassvet module.
Russian cosmonaut Sergey Ryazanskiy, 42, will occupy the Soyuz spacecrafts center seat during Fridays launch and docking. The Soyuz commander, a biochemist with a career in space medicine before his selection as a cosmonaut in 2003, is making his second trip to the space station after spending 166 days in orbit as a flight engineer on the Expedition 37 and 38 crews.
NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik will be the Soyuz MS-05 spaceships board engineer, assisting Ryazanskiy with cockpit duties during the six-hour voyage from liftoff to docking. The 49-year-old retired Marine Corps fighter pilot hails from Santa Monica, California, and logged nearly 11 days in orbit aboard the space shuttle Atlantis on a 2009 mission to the space station.
Bresnik will take command of the stations Expedition 53 crew in September.
European Space Agency flight engineer Paolo Nespoli has 174 days of space experience on two previous missions, including a flight on the shuttle Discovery in 2007 and a long-duration stay on the space station in 2010 and 2011. Nespoli, 60, is a native of Milan and was a special forces operator in the Italian Army before working on several European space projects as an engineer.
The trio will become part of the space stations Expedition 52 and 53 crews, joining commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and flight engineers Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer on the orbiting complex. Yurchikhin, Whitson and Fischer are due to depart the station and return to Earth on Sept. 2, and three fresh crew members will launch on the next Soyuz spaceship from Baikonur on Sept. 12.
The space station has been flying with a three-person crew since early June, and Fridays docking will boost the outposts occupancy back to six.
Yurchikhin and Ryazanskiy will conduct a spacewalk Aug. 17 to deploy several small satellites and work outside the Russian segment of the station.
A SpaceX Dragon supply ship launched from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida is expected to arrive at the complex the same week, but its liftoff will have to work around the scheduled Russian spacewalk. Station managers want to ensure the satellites released by the Russian spacewalkers are accurately tracked before committing the Dragon cargo freighter to approach the outpost, minimizing the chance for a collision with one of the small craft.
The Dragon capsule is currently set to launch around Aug. 14, but if it slips more than a day or two, the launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket could be further delayed until officials are sure the small satellites are well away from the space station. A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket is also expected to launch the same week, potentially complicating bookings on the U.S. Air Forces Eastern Range, which is responsible for flight safety, communications and tracking support for all missions from Cape Canaveral.
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Launcher for next space station crew in position for liftoff Friday - Spaceflight Now
Credit: Astrobotic illustration of lander
CAPE CANAVERAL In a commercial push to return to the Moon while celebrating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, Astrobotic Technology Inc. has contracted with United Launch Alliance to use an Atlas 5 rocket to send the Peregrine lander to the lunar surface in 2019.
Astrobotic is thrilled to select a ULA launch vehicle as the means to get Peregrine to the Moon, said John Thornton, CEO of Astrobotic. By launching with ULA, Astrobotic can rest assured our payload customers will ride on a proven launch vehicle with a solid track record of success. Together, our two organizations will honor the past and trail blaze the lunar future.
This initial Peregrine lunar lander will fly 77 pounds (35 kilograms) of customer payloads from six nations either above or below the spacecrafts deck, depending on specific needs.
The autonomous landing will use cameras, guidance computing and five Aerojet Rocketdyne-made hypergolic engines to set the lander down on four shock-absorbing legs.
It will stand 6 feet tall (1.8 meters) and have a diameter of 8 feet (2.5 meters).
Subsequent missions envision scaling up to payload masses of 585 pounds (265 kilograms). Markets range from scientific instruments to placing mementos on the Moon.
Technical credibility and signed deals remain key differentiators for Astrobotic as a lunar delivery company. Our customers and partners know that our 10 years of lunar lander development work has made us the world leader in this market, said Thornton.
The Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic aims to deliver payloads to the Moon for companies, governments, universities, non-profits and individuals.
We are thrilled that Astrobotic has selected ULA to launch the Peregrine Lander to the Moon, said ULA president and CEO, Tory Bruno. The Moon is the next great frontier, but in a different way than when Neil Armstrong landed there. Enabling technologies like those from Astrobotic will allow people to live and work in the space between here and the Moon and take advantage of all those resources in a way that is sustainable.
The Atlas 5 now has added six high-profile launches to its backlog in the past four months three commercial, two Air Force and one for NASA.
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Commercial lunar mission signs up with Atlas 5 for launch - Spaceflight Now
July 27, 2017 by Philip Sloss
With all the structural test articles (STA) of the Orion spacecraft at prime contractor Lockheed Martins Space Systems facility in the Denver area, work is underway to qualify the elements for the Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1) and Exploration Mission-2 (EM-2) missions to the Moon. Testing of different combinations of spacecraft hardware in support of EM-1 and EM-2 will continue into 2019. Current status:
This phase of testing will help characterize the dynamic response of the structures and verify that the design meets the required factor of safety.
The Crew Module STA is currently set up in a loads testing fixture in the Structural Test Lab at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Waterton facility in Littleton, Colorado. It was shipped from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida on NASAs Super Guppy cargo aircraft in late April to Buckley Air Force Base near Denver.
The Service Module STA made the same Super Guppy flight a couple of months later after the Crew Module Adapter (CMA) and European Service Module (ESM) STAs were mated at Kennedy.
Weve done tests on two of them so far, Dan Qvale, Orion STA Assembly Test and Launch Operations Lead with Lockheed Martin, said during an interview with NASASpaceflight.com.
The crew module is actually in its second test, the first one was whats called proof pressure we went to 150% percent of the maximum expected internal pressure on the vehicle and validated that it structurally survived. That completed [at] Kennedy before we shipped it to Denver. Now that its here, were running qualification loads testing on the crew module primary and secondary structure.
The launch abort system has been assembled and were also in qualification load testing for it now, its having a test run. And then the service module is being set up for the next roughly one month. The spacecraft adapter cone is being installed, the outer walls on the CMA are going on, and then it will go into a modal test of just the service module. And that will begin about a month from now.
The launch abort system (LAS) STA was assembled with inert motors that simulate the weight and center of gravity of the units that will fly on EM-1 and EM-2.
Everything is on the LAS essentially except for the fact that its [an] inert motor. No antennas, but it has fillets, ogives, it has the MATA truss assembly (Motor Adapter Truss Assembly), [and] it has the inert motor. Structurally it has got all those components the ogives actually provide structural load path for the launch abort system as well.
Types of tests:
The STAs will go through different types of tests in the facilities at Waterton, including modal, loads, shock, and acoustic testing.
The tests are broken up into different types of tests and in many cases they are in multiple configurations, Qvale explained. A modal test is a way we take measurements of the vehicle, its dynamic response, and they use those to validate the numeric models that theyre using to simulate and obtain load data analytically.
They need these modal tests in order to measure the stiffness of the combined joints that connect all of the pieces together. And so you tend to run them in configurations your vehicle is going to be in.
In our case, the first one were going to run is the entire stacked vehicle SM (Service Module), CM, and Launch Abort System all connected so thats obviously a flight configuration on the launch pad and during ascent.
We run a modal test on just the CM alone, which is obviously a configuration it will be on reentry. We do a modal test on just the CM and SM, which is the flight configuration it would be in during the mission. We run one on the launch abort system connected to the crew module the LAV (Launch Abort Vehicle) they call it because that would be the configuration you would be in if you experienced an abort event.
So those tests are for the most part being run in order to validate models for all these different configurations that the vehicle will be in or could be in during a mission.
The second category of tests are loads tests.
Those very much fall into the category of one-time only [tests], Qvale added. What were trying to do is apply loads for the major events the vehicle experiences during the mission to simulate those.
You dont just want the vehicle to survive the maximum predicted event, you want some margin on that some assurances that it can survive and theres margin on top of that. And so what we do there is we try to go to 140% of what the maximum expected load is going to be. For example, right now were testing both the launch abort system and the crew module.
Qvale provided a breakdown of what they are trying to qualify/validate in the loads tests for the different elements, such as the all-important for crew safety Launch Abort System (LAS)
The LAS is basically getting two primary things validated, one is the ascent loads so the compression that happens on the vehicle while youre in nominal ascent. The other is abort loads, so qualification of loads that would be applied in the event that an abort actually happens and now instead of compressive loads you have large tension loads.
The crew module has a whole series of nine different events that were trying to simulate, so those include things like main parachute extraction. (Then) were running LAS load cases that represent the landing of the vehicle or the ascent of the vehicle. Weve already run cases where we simulate the jettison of the forward bay cover.
So its basically case-by-case cases where we take the hydraulic jacks, connect up to the vehicle, and then well apply a load thats intended to simulate what the flight-like the loads would be plus 40%. So as long as the design doesnt change on the vehicle, it has been qualified and theres no need to go revisit these.
As Qvale noted, the initial loads test on the CM articles was done at KSC. Both pressure vessels were proof tested to verify that they would hold pressure up to 140% of the maximum pressure load expected during flight. Qvale noted that the flight article, which is still at KSC being fully outfitted for the EM-1 flight, was pressurized to 140%; however, the STA was taken up to 150%.
The third type of tests are shock tests, to evaluate how well parts of the structure handle pyrotechnic events during flight.
[A] typical first flight vehicle would get protoqual shock tested, Qvale explained, which means you cant make the shock more severe, you cant say we did it plus margin. Its as severe as it ends up being. You cant add additional explosives to make it more severe, so instead what you do is you run it twice.
So the way that Orion is going to be protoqual-ing the shock environment (run it twice) is by number one doing it during the EM-1 mission and number two after EM-1 is recovered, were going in and running it a second time. All this needs to happen before we have a manned mission.
However, Qvale added that the program is starting shock testing on the STAs before EM-1. We dont want to wait until the EM-1 mission to start making sure that this will work properly, he said, so what the STA is doing is we are measuring the shock response on the vehicle from these events.
Were going in and say we have an avionics box [that is] near a shock source. Were putting accelerometers on it, and then were running the shock event and were measuring the response at that avionics box and were comparing that with the screening requirements that we gave the avionics box supplier to design and test the box too. And so this should validate that what we gave them to screen this hardware too is enveloped by the measurements that we just took.
So its essentially validation of the capability of the vehicle to survive shock and the combination of these measurements that were doing on the STA that will be compared with screening requirements that our EM-1 hardware was bought to and then ultimately validation by running the event during the mission and then running it a second time on the EM-1 vehicle post-mission.
The Waterton test facilities are used by Lockheed Martin on all the spacecraft they build and have been part of Orion testing since the early days of the spacecraft.
Both the test fixturing as well as the load control and data acquisition are incredibly specialized skills, and youre applying loads that basically take the vehicle to the limit of what its capable of most likely, Qvale explained. [It] doesnt matter if its Orion or another program, you tend to have the same objective there and its such a specialized area that essentially the Structures Test Lab does qualification loads testing for Lockheed Martin [Space Systems], period.
Space Systems brings them their hardware to run these sorts of tests because its impractical that youd have this expertise on a program, even if that program had hundreds of people on it.
At the time of the interview, Qvale noted that the Service Module was waiting for one of the next generation Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites to finish using a test facility before it could move in.
Test setup/configuration:
Structural test hardware for all the spacecraft elements is there to support the test campaign, with mass simulators for some of the larger moving parts, especially on the Service Module assembly.
We got the spacecraft adapter cone at the base, we have a flight-like OMS-E nozzle, we have a structural representation of the ESM so it has mass sims (simulators) instead of avionics boxes, Qvale explained.
On top of the ESM weve got the crew module adapter, so its made up of similar to the flight-like one it has all the longeron trusses, theyre called. The forward and the aft composite walls, the composite outer walls, mass simulators for all the avionics that goes in the avionics ring.
For the four solar arrays, we dont have any flight-like solar arrays theyre all mass simulators. And then for the SM fairings the SAJs (Spacecraft Adapter Jettisoned panels), theyre called theyre essentially flight like, they have the harnessing on them to run the pyro tests.
In addition, an Orion stage adapter STA also recently hitched a ride on the Super Guppy from the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama to Colorado. The stage adapter connects the full spacecraft stack to the launch vehicle upper stage.
Qvale explained that the tests are mostly focused on the spacecraft structure.
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For the most part it is just the structural elements. The only electronics that we are putting on the vehicle are harnessing thats used to get to all the pyro-mechanisms, but instead of having an avionics box that fires the pyro-mechanisms we basically take test cables, mate up to the flight-like cables, and then use test equipment to fire the pyros. The only electronics per-se, is just the harnessing on the vehicle in order to run the shock tests. Everything else is structural.
One thing that is important is we want to have similar mass in the right locations on the vehicle to run a lot of these tests and so we have mass simulators that basically have the appropriate weight and the appropriate center of gravity so that when they get bolted onto the vehicle from a structural standpoint it looks like a flight vehicle.
Test campaign supports EM-1 and EM-2, runs into 2019:
Development of Orion was divided into three phases, with each culminating in the scheduled test flights: EFT-1, EM-1, and EM-2.
This round of testing in Colorado will support the two Exploration Mission test flights that first cover the major phases of flight to the Moon and back without a crew and then with a crew.
Right now the end of the campaign is [about the] middle of 2019, Qvale explained. One distinction here is that some of these tests are needed before EM-1 launches, but other tests are not needed until EM-2 launches. So the ones that are happening out in the 2019 time-frame are more the tests like of the LAV the crew module with the launch abort system. [Those tests are] trying to gather data in support of if we had either a pad or an ascent abort on EM-2.
Were predicting that all the prerequisites we need to complete before EM-1 launches are going to be completed by the beginning of November 2018, and thus far if you were to look at the start of the campaign, which we typically measure as the day that the crew module got delivered to Kennedy from MAF at this point, halfway through 2017 were essentially on schedule for all three vehicles.
The SM is on schedule, the launch abort system testing is on schedule and the CM is within two to three days of being on schedule.
Different hardware combinations will go through different tests at the Lockheed Martin facilities and the ordering of the test schedule was built based on multiple factors. In general the philosophy of how we ordered the tests, was number one we had to look at do any of these tests produce data that we need soon?, Qvale explained.
One of the first tests well run when we build the entire vehicle up the full stack is an acoustic test. And similar to what I told you about the shock test, this acoustic test is intended to be similar.
Its only intended to take measurements at specific locations and validate requirements that we are having [the] flight boxes screened to, so obviously it would be a really bad day to find out very late in the flow that we never designed and screened the boxes to the values that theyre going to experience. So for example [placing] a test like that early in the flow so that we can validate [the parameters] that all this hardware for EM-1 is getting designed and built around is a good plan.
Qvale added that the other part that determined the flow was that it takes a lot of time to build the vehicle.
For example, when we put the SM fairing on, thats on the order of twenty shifts of work to get it completed. You dont want to take them back off or youre going to have to go back through another twenty shifts worth of labor to reinstall them. So we ordered the flow so that if we build the vehicle one time, like we will be doing this Fall, we will knock out all the tests that need the vehicle in that configuration.
Theres an acoustic test thats stacked, theres a modal test thats stacked, and then we need to disassemble the vehicle to move it from one facility that has the acoustic chamber to another facility where were going to be running the loads testing. So rather than just dismantle the vehicle, we said lets just run the shock test for the launch abort system. Just run the test, blow the pyros, and thats what will separate the launch abort system and now thats how you take it apart.
So we tried to be smart about ordering things so that we got the maximum bang for the buck every time we had to assemble the vehicle.
There are plans to use at least some of the structural test articles after all the testing in Littleton is complete Qvale noted plans to use the crew module STA in a water impact test at NASAs Langley Research Center prior to the EM-2 flight. Given those future plans and the extensive testing that will be done during the test campaign, the health of the hardware will be closely monitored.
Lets go back to the loads test for example. The requirement may be that the vehicle needs to survive 140 percent [of] the limit load. In the case of the crew module, maybe survive means not rupture but it could be bent basically when youre done.
For our purposes that doesnt work because we cant destroy the vehicle we need to use it for the next year and a half. So during these tests, they monitor the health of the vehicle and if we believe were bumping up on the ultimate capability and we could damage it, then we curtail things and say OK, lets put completion of this test back on the shelf.
Well revisit it in a year and say were we close enough did we get to 138 percent and thats good enough? Or do we need to 140 percent and lets put the vehicle back in there and well bend things on it to verify that it doesnt rupture.
Thus far, every single test weve run has essentially gotten to the 140 percent limit load with no adverse effects. So I think well get the majority of these done the first time around and hopefully well end the campaign and the vehicle will have seen some extreme loading, but it will still be completely viable to go use for another mission.
Post EM-1 tests with returning Crew Module:
As noted earlier, the crew module that flies the EM-1 mission will also take part in gathering test data.
When we launch EM-1, the launch abort system isnt coming back, the service module not coming back, the fairings are not coming back the only thing were getting back is the crew module, Qvale said.
The first environmental test data set collected with the EM-1 crew module will occur as it flies the uncrewed mission to lunar orbit and then returns to Earth for entry, descent, and landing.
The reason most spacecraft go through environments testing is to verify that they work after theyre exposed to the environment, so thats acoustics and thermal and shock, he added. In the case of the EM-1 mission, theres one environment that its not going to experience and thats abort.
And so part of what well be doing with this post EM-1 flight testing is not only running the second shock test but exposing the vehicle to abort-level vibration and then validating that oh, by the way, all the mechanisms you need to survive and still operate after that did in fact work.
Part of our plan long term to validate the abort environment is well still have the STA service module and the STA launch abort system and the STA service module fairings. Were going to take all those things, assemble the vehicle with the EM-1 post-flight vehicle, and were going to go back and run these shock events a second time.
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Orion STA undergoing pre-mission testing in Denver - NASASpaceflight.com
Paul Knightly
July 22nd, 2017
Jonathan Clarke and Anastasiya Stepanova stand next to the Mars Society flag at the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station. The second phase of the Mars 160 mission began its Mars mission simulation on July 20, 2017. Photo Credit: Mars Society
The second phase of the Mars Societys Mars 160 mission began at the end of June 2017 in the Canadian high arctic. A six-person crew is staying at the organizations Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station (FMARS) for several weeks. However, due to inclement weather, the crew was unable to make it to FMARS until July 17.
The six-person crew will be living under simulated Mars mission constraints for 30 days at FMARS located on the rim of the Haughton Impact Crater on Devon Island in Nunavut, Canada. The arctic mission represents the second half of Mars 160 after the first half concluded in December 2016 at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in Utah.
The primary goal of Mars 160 is to conduct two nearly identical field analog studies to determine how mission location impacts science return. As space agencies and organizations around the world are setting goals of sending humans to Mars, the metrics and methods used for crew selection and training on Earth increase in importance. Mars 160 also seeks to perform detailed field studies to answer questions about the geology and biology of these unique desert and high arctic environments.
The six-person Mars 160 crew arrives at the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station on July 17, 2017. From left to right: Yusuke Marakami, Paul Knightly, Anastasiya Stepanova, Anushree Srivastava, Alexandre Mangeot, and Jonathan Clarke. Photo Credit: Mars Society
The location for FMARS was selected for its similarities to the surface of the Red Planet in terms of its analogous geology as well as its relative isolation. Situated on the rim of a well-preserved 39-million-year-old impact crater, periglacial processes near the arctic station are similar to those that have been observed on the Martian surface.
Daily temperatures during the arctic summer hover right around the freezing point of water, which would be considered a warm day at the Martian equator. Its remote location in the arctic has made it well-suited to test the effects of isolation on the 13 crews it has hosted over the last 17 years.
The Mars 160 arctic crew consists of six members representing six nationalities:
The second phase of Mars 160 is being coordinated by two principal investigators:
After performing a necessary refit of the station, the crew entered into simulation (or sim) conditions July 20. That, in part, requires crew members to wear simulated space suits while conducting field science activities. Additional simulation constraints placed on the crew will include limiting communications to the outside world.The Mars 160 mission is expected to run through the middle of August.
For more information and regular updates on the Mars 160 mission, visit http://mars160.marssociety.org/. Additionally, you can follow the mission on Twitter: @MDRSUpdates.
Paul Knightly is serving as a crew geologist for Mars 160 and is also writing for Spaceflight Insider.
Tagged: Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station Mars Mars 160 Mars Society The Range
Paul is currently a graduate student in Space and Planetary Sciences at the University of Akransas in Fayetteville. He grew up in the Kansas City area and developed an interest in space at a young age at the start of the twin Mars Exploration Rover missions in 2003. He began his studies in aerospace engineering before switching over to geology at Wichita State University where he earned a Bachelor of Science in 2013. After working as an environmental geologist for a civil engineering firm, he began his graduate studies in 2016 and is actively working towards a PhD that will focus on the surficial processes of Mars. He also participated in a 2-week simluation at The Mars Society's Mars Desert Research Station in 2014 and remains involved in analogue mission studies today. Paul has been interested in science outreach and communication over the years which in the past included maintaining a personal blog on space exploration from high school through his undergraduate career and in recent years he has given talks at schools and other organizations over the topics of geology and space. He is excited to bring his experience as a geologist and scientist to the Spaceflight Insider team writing primarily on space science topics.
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Mars 160: 6-person crew arrives at arctic station - SpaceFlight Insider