Can SpaceX land a rocket on a floating ocean platform?

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SpaceX will apparently attempt something truly epic during next week's cargo launch to the International Space Station.

During the Dec. 16 launch from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which will send SpaceX's robotic Dragon capsule toward the orbiting lab, the California-based company will try to bring the first stage of itsFalcon 9 rocketback to Earth for a controlled landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean.

The bold maneuver marks a big step forward in SpaceX's development of reusable-rocket technology, which the company's billionaire founder, Elon Musk, says could eventually cut the cost of spaceflight by a factor of 100 and perhaps make Mars colonization economically feasible. [SpaceX's Quest For Rocketry's Holy Grail: Exclusive Video]

Musk shared photos of the Falcon 9 and landing platform via Twitter late last month, ratcheting up interest in the cargo mission, the fifth of 12 unmanned resupply flights SpaceX will make to the space station for NASA under a $1.6 billion contract.

"Autonomous spaceport drone ship. Thrusters repurposed from deep sea oil rigs hold position within 3m even in a storm,"Musk tweetedabout the platform on Nov. 22. "Base is 300 ft by 100 ft, with wings that extend width to 170 ft. Will allow refuel & rocket flyback in future," he added in another tweet.

The Falcon 9 photo revealed that the rocket is outfitted with "hypersonic grid fins" to increase stability during a return to Earth.

"Grid fins are stowed on ascent and then deploy on reentry for 'x-wing' style control," Musk tweeted on Nov. 22. "Each fin moves independently for pitch/yaw/roll."

At a conference at MIT in October, Musk said that SpaceX would attempt to land the Falcon 9 first stage on the floating platformduring the rocket's next flight. The next liftoff on the rocket's schedule is the Dec. 16 Dragon launch.

Musk estimated a 50 percent chance of success for the platform landing on the first attempt, but said the odds would improve on subsequent missions.

"There are a lot of launches that will occur over the next year," Musk said at the conference, which was called "AeroAstro at 100" and celebrated 100 years of MIT aerospace research. "I think it's quite likely that [on] one of those flights, we'll be able to land and refly, so I think we're quite close."

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Can SpaceX land a rocket on a floating ocean platform?

Can SpaceX land a rocket on a floating ocean platform? (+video)

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SpaceX will apparently attempt something truly epic during next week's cargo launch to the International Space Station.

During the Dec. 16 launch from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which will send SpaceX's robotic Dragon capsule toward the orbiting lab, the California-based company will try to bring the first stage of itsFalcon 9 rocketback to Earth for a controlled landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean.

The bold maneuver marks a big step forward in SpaceX's development of reusable-rocket technology, which the company's billionaire founder, Elon Musk, says could eventually cut the cost of spaceflight by a factor of 100 and perhaps make Mars colonization economically feasible. [SpaceX's Quest For Rocketry's Holy Grail: Exclusive Video]

Musk shared photos of the Falcon 9 and landing platform via Twitter late last month, ratcheting up interest in the cargo mission, the fifth of 12 unmanned resupply flights SpaceX will make to the space station for NASA under a $1.6 billion contract.

"Autonomous spaceport drone ship. Thrusters repurposed from deep sea oil rigs hold position within 3m even in a storm,"Musk tweetedabout the platform on Nov. 22. "Base is 300 ft by 100 ft, with wings that extend width to 170 ft. Will allow refuel & rocket flyback in future," he added in another tweet.

The Falcon 9 photo revealed that the rocket is outfitted with "hypersonic grid fins" to increase stability during a return to Earth.

"Grid fins are stowed on ascent and then deploy on reentry for 'x-wing' style control," Musk tweeted on Nov. 22. "Each fin moves independently for pitch/yaw/roll."

At a conference at MIT in October, Musk said that SpaceX would attempt to land the Falcon 9 first stage on the floating platformduring the rocket's next flight. The next liftoff on the rocket's schedule is the Dec. 16 Dragon launch.

Musk estimated a 50 percent chance of success for the platform landing on the first attempt, but said the odds would improve on subsequent missions.

"There are a lot of launches that will occur over the next year," Musk said at the conference, which was called "AeroAstro at 100" and celebrated 100 years of MIT aerospace research. "I think it's quite likely that [on] one of those flights, we'll be able to land and refly, so I think we're quite close."

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Can SpaceX land a rocket on a floating ocean platform? (+video)

Commercial Space Industry Regroups After Accidents

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Two accidents in the commercial space industry this year an unmanned rocket that exploded shortly after launch in the fall and an experimental suborbital craft that broke apart during flight shortly after are almost sure to come up the next time a congressional committee discusses the private spacecraft market. But, experts say the incidents wont have much of an effect on the sectors increasing expansion.

I think its going to cause some delays, said Kerri Cahoy, an aeronautics and astronautics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. But I dont think itll do much damage to the industry as a whole.

The private sector spaceflight issues started with what NASA is calling a mishap in October, when an unmanned Antares rocket operated by Orbital Sciences Corp. under a contract to bring supplies to the International Space Station blew up shortly after takeoff from NASAs Wallops Island launch facility in Virginia.

Later the same week, a test flight of Virgin Galactics rocket-powered SpaceShipTwo resulted in the death of co-pilot Michael Alsbury when the spacecraft detached from its carrier aircraft in mid-air. Both incidents are still under investigation.

Thus far, members of Congress, who have largely cheered the development of the commercial space business, havent jumped on the incidents as a reason to clamp down on the industry. After the Orbital Sciences explosion, Florida Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson said, space flight is inherently risky, but commercial space ventures will ultimately be successful. He expressed similar thoughts on the Virgin Galactic accident.

Im deeply saddened by the loss of one of the pilots, Nelson said. This has been a tragic week for our commercial space sector. But Im confident that we will learn from the investigations of these two accidents and take steps to prevent them from happening again.

Experts are hoping other lawmakers take similarly deliberative approaches; some have expressed frustration about the way the recent accidents have been reported.

I find a lot of the discussion about the implications for commercial space flight miss the mark, said Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at The George Washington University.

Pace and some others who study space travel say though the timing was unfortunate, comparing the two accidents is unfair and possibly misleading. The Orbital Sciences accident involved an Antares rocket using two decades-old, Russian-built refurbished engines, with the intent of bringing cargo to an orbiting station a relatively routine mission with routine technology. But an accident involving such a mission isnt unheard of, whether its a government launch or a commercial one, experts say.

We obviously have seen launch vehicle accidents from every program implemented by the U.S., the Soviet Union, the Russians and the European Space Agency, said Jonathan Lunine, a space research professor at Cornell University.

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Commercial Space Industry Regroups After Accidents

After historic Orion flight, NASA still faces challenges, GAO says

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Many in the space community are still beaming over last weeks launch of Orion, the historic unmanned test flight that NASA said touched off a new era in human space exploration.

But at a congressional hearing Tuesday, a government watchdog report and some skeptical members of Congress brought some of the grandiose talk of a trip to Mars down to Earth, saying that the program still faces daunting challenges that NASA has struggled to overcome.

The Government Accountability Offices Cristina Chaplain said in testimony that the agencys human exploration program is plagued by inconsistent and unrealistic schedule goals, as well as significant technical and funding issues.

And while members of Congress were quick to congratulate NASA officials for Fridays test flight a 41/2-hour mission that sent a spacecraft designed for humans farther than any has gone in more than 40 years they also took aim at a program to build a new heavy rocket.

Known as the Space Launch System (SLS), the rocket NASA plans for its future deep space missions is still being built and isnt expected to have its first test flight for another four years. (Fridays mission was aboard a Delta IV Heavy rocket built by the United Launch Alliance.)

Orion, the NASA spacecraft designed to travel to asteroids and Mars, completed its first test flight on Friday, bringing NASA one step closer to a manned mission to the Red Planet. (AP)

After its first test flight in 2018 originally planned for 2017 but delayed because of funding issues SLS is then expected to perform its first manned flight in 2021.

But after that flight, future mission destinations remain uncertain, the GAO said.

Orions maiden flight Friday was a long-awaited triumph for an agency that has been unable to fly humans into space since the retirement of the space shuttle three years ago. American astronauts have been hitching rides to the International Space Station aboard a Russian spacecraft at more than $70million a seat.

The test flight seen by thousands was a huge step in advancing human exploration, NASA said, and ultimately landing a person on Mars.

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After historic Orion flight, NASA still faces challenges, GAO says

Europe Proposes Joint Moon Trips with Russia

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Space-agency scientists have presented a plan to piggyback on two missions

In the 45 years since astronauts first walked on the Moon, no European country or space agency has launched a mission to the Moons surface. Credit: Evil Monkey via Wikimedia Commons

Science ministers in Europe have resurrected plans to explore the Moons surfaceand the only strategy currently on the table is to join two uncrewed Russian missions. The developments, which follow the shelving of a proposed European Space Agency (ESA) Moon lander two years ago, come amid growing political tensions between Russia and Western nations.

On December 2, at a meeting in Luxembourg to determine ESAs policy, the space agency got the go-ahead and funding to investigate participation in robotic missions for the exploration of the Moon. Science ministers from the ESA member states did not approve collaboration with Russia specifically, but at the meeting, ESA scientists presented a proposal to join Russia on its missions to put a lander and a rover on the Moons south pole.

Money for lunar exploration will come from a pot of 800million (US$980million) contributed by ESAs member states and dedicated to international space exploration; the pot will primarily pay for activities on the International Space Station and the development of a propulsion module for NASAs Orion spacecraft, which is eventually designed to carry astronauts to deep space, and was tested on December 5 in an uncrewed space flight.

In the 45 years since astronauts first walked on the Moon, no European country or space agency has launched a mission to the Moons surface. And no lander or astronaut has been to the lunar south pole, a region thought to contain ice and thus deemed a probable spot for any future permanent lunar base. A 12-kilometer-deep crater there might provide access to material from the Moons interior, also making it attractive for scientific study, says Ian Crawford, a lunar scientist at Birkbeck, University of London. The ancient material could reveal details of the collision between a Mars-sized planet and early Earth that is thought to have produced the Moon. The idea that weve been there and done that did last for a long time, but thats gone away now, says Crawford. The Moon still has a lot to tell us.

A Moon lander proposed by ESA failed to gather enough support at a similar meeting of ministers in 2012. That left European scientists and industry mobilized to gobut without a mission. A group of ESA scientists has been discussing a partnership with the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, ever since.

The groups proposal, aired for the first time at the Luxembourg meeting, is that ESA contribute to Roscosmoss Luna-Resource Lander, also known as Luna27, which is scheduled for launch in 2019, as well as the Lunar Sample Return, planned for the early 2020s. The first will study the lunar soil and atmosphere at the south pole; the second would bring samples back to Earth. ESA would provide precision landing and communications equipment, as well as drill and analysis instruments.

The ministerial decision, in principle, means that ESA can start to fund efforts to incorporate these technologies into the missionalthough whether it will do so has still to be agreed. The preliminary phase is estimated to cost up to 50million. The total price would be much higher, perhaps in the hundreds of millions.

ESA has said that pursuing lunar missions is strategically important, not only to secure access to the Moons surface for European scientists, but also to ensure that European expertise and technology is involved in future lunar explorationincluding, ultimately, international crewed missions and even a permanent lunar base. NASA currently has no plans to land on the Moon (Orion will be designed to take astronauts into lunar orbit), but Russia, China, Japan and several private companies are making plans to put rovers on the body. Representatives from these nations have more than hinted that permanent Moon bases and human exploration would be the next steps. It would be crazy that an agency like ESA would not be part of lunar exploration, says Brengre Houdou, who heads ESAs Lunar Exploration Office.

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Europe Proposes Joint Moon Trips with Russia

Jon Lester Saga Tested Red Soxs Commitment To Organizational Philosophy

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The Boston Red Sox chose to think with their heads rather than their hearts.

Jon Lester reportedly agreed to a six-year, $155 million contract with the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, making him the second-highest paid pitcher in Major League Baseball in terms of average annual value ($25.83 million). The Red Sox probably could have matched the Cubs dollar-for-dollar likely resulting in a Boston reunion but they instead refrained from becoming too emotionally invested in the saga.

The Red Sox absolutely wanted to bring back Lester this offseason, only they wanted to do so on their terms. Once the Lester bidding extended beyond Bostons comfort zone, the organization needed to decide whether to alter its self-imposed threshold or stick to the plan. The Sox took the latter route.

The Red Soxs decision to not go beyond six years and $135 million for Lester wasnt as much stubborn, frugal and merciless as it was systematic. Boston has been reluctant to dish out long-term contracts to pitchers over 30, and while the Red Sox were willing to making an exception for Lester, there still was a barrier the club was unwilling to cross. Two World Series rings and past success werent enough to cloud Bostons organizational vision.

Every scenario has a point at which the best course of action is to stand up and walk away from the table. The Red Sox felt that point in this particular instance was $20 million less than the Cubs highest bid. Its hard to blame them given the number of lucrative, long-term contracts that have backfired in recent years.

This isnt to say Lester doesnt deserve everything he just received. The three-time All-Star is an extremely reliable and durable pitcher capable of spearheading a rotation. Hes a huge addition to the Cubs, who suddenly look like contenders in the National League Central. But Lester joined some elite company with his new contract, making it easy to forget that there were legitimate questions as recently as 2013 about whether he fit the ace mold.

Lesters 2014 campaign marked his first season with an ERA under 3.00 (2.46) since breaking into the majors in 2006. In that span, Kershaw has had six seasons with a sub-3.00 ERA, Adam Wainwright has had four while Felix Hernandez and Zack Greinke each have had three.

For more than $25 million per season, Lester needs to provide ace-like production annually moving forward.

Will the Red Sox rue the day they let Lester get away? Perhaps. Bostons rotation remains in shambles, meaning general manager Ben Cherington cant waste any time in attempting to orchestrate some magic not involving Lester.

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Jon Lester Saga Tested Red Soxs Commitment To Organizational Philosophy

Steven Soderbergh Heads To Red Oaks

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With not one but two TV projects either about to hit US cable (medical drama The Knick) or in development (a small screen spin-off of The Girlfriend Experience), Steven Soderbergh is seemingly busier than ever, and thats saying something. Now he will also spend time producing a third show, Red Oaks, for Amazon. And hes recruited Craig Roberts, Paul Reiser, Richard Kind and Oliver Copper to star.

As with The Girlfriend Experience show, Soderbergh wont actually direct the pilot for the new potential series, though hes hired someone more than capable: David Gordon Green. And the show represents him collaborating once again with The Knick writer Greg Jacobs. Greg Jacobs told me this idea on the set of Behind The Candelabra and I told him it was great and that he should start working on it immediately, says Steven Soderbergh in a statement picked up by The Wrap. Then, while we were on the set of The Knick he gave me the script he wrote with Joe Gangemi and I said, This is ready to go, let's find a director. We very quickly agreed to approach David because the humour was sharp without being mean, and we felt he would understand and appreciate that.

Red Oaks is set at the eponymous country club in New Jersey in 1985, and features Roberts as an assistant tennis coach. Itll be put up on Amazons Prime Video streaming service with a variety of other pilots for consideration by customers before the company decides which shows will go ahead. Given the people involved, though, wed guess this has a good shot.

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Steven Soderbergh Heads To Red Oaks

Red Sox acquire Wade Miley from Diamondbacks, per report

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Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

After nearly a full day of speculation, it appears Boston has finally reached a deal for one of Arizona's top starters.

The Boston Red Sox on Wednesday acquired Wade Miley from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Allen Webster, Rubby De La Rosa and a minor leaguer,according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi.

The Red Sox were rumored to be close to a deal for Mileyearly Wednesday afternoon, but it took several hours for the agreement to finalize. Miley heads to Boston having eclipsed 200 innings in each of his last two seasons. The 28-year-old left-hander owns a 3.79 ERA/103 ERA+ in 106 big league games. Miley is two years removed from his best season, when he finished second in the National League Rookie of the Year voting after posting a 3.33 ERA/122 ERA+ in 194 innings.

Webster, who along with De La Rosa, was acquired from the Dodgers in the trade that sent Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett to Los Angeles in 2012, has been unsuccessful in 89 big league frames across parts of two season. The 24-year-old right-hander put up a 3.10 ERA in 20 Triple-A starts in 2014.

De La Rosa owns a 4.54 ERA/86 ERA+ in 113 innings for Boston. The 25-year-old righty has struck out almost a batter per inning in parts of two Triple-A seasons since joining the Red Sox organization.

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Red Tape assessment on CH agencies done

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THE newly-formed Investment Ombudsman (IO) Mindanao Team is set to meet with three Davao City Government offices today, Wednesday, to reveal the results of their Red Tape assessment, which was conducted in October.

Office of the Ombudsman-Mindanao public assistance center head Maria Corazon Arancon, who is part of the IO Mindanao Team, said they recently concluded the Red Tape assessment on the City Engineer's Office, City Agricultural Office and the Office Senior Citizens Affairs and they are set to meet with the agency's heads today for an exit conference to reveal the results.

"There were a total of seven personnel who conducted the assessment and three people from Manila came to assist us. So what we did is we went to the offices and we observed and studied the flow of their offices. So we are going to meet with the department heads for an exit conference on Thursday," Arancon said.

She said the assessment is intended to determine the delays in the issuance of permits and other services. But she said their assessment is not to litigate the officials of the offices but rather provide recommendations on how to integrate their system for effective delivery of services.

"We had an orientation with the different department heads with the help of the Atty. Melchor Quitain, the city administrator. We told them that we are not here to find fault in their system. It is all with the good intention of improving their system," Arancon said.

She also said that once they have bared the results and their recommendations to the concerned agencies, they will monitor the offices to ensure that their performance will be consistent.

On another note, she said they are set to conduct the blue certificate assessment on the different local government units in Cagayan and Gensan on January next year.

Arancon said the blue certificate assessment also has the same intentions that of the red tape assessment but more focused on the business aspect.

Deputy Ombudsman for Mindanao Rodolfo Elman, for his part, said the creation of the Investment Ombudsman Teams in June earlier this year was by virtue of Office Order 327.

The IO teams have been formed to address the grievance of investors against business-related public offices and the speedy resolution of their complaints.

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Red Tape assessment on CH agencies done