Blue (Da Ba Dee)
Yo listen up here’s the story: about how Blue Origin won a NASA moon lander contract.
Hello Celestial Citizens and Continuum readers,
While our melodic title rightfully suggests a lot of lunar updates in this week’s newsletter, I’m still hung up on the red planet after spending last week in Washington D.C. at the Humans to Mars Summit. There was talk of space food, planetary protection policy, additive manufacturing, nuclear propulsion, and even space urban planning from yours truly. Always one of my favorite space conferences, this year’s H2M had me walking away hopeful that those first humans might make it to Mars by 2040 – even if that means they are going without Chicken McNuggets.
Perhaps Matthew Shindell is really on to something with his new book - because I can’t help falling in love with Mars.
And now, onto the space beat you came here for…
Top Headlines
Ax-2 – The ISS welcomed Axiom Space’s second private astronaut mission this past weekend. The successful launch was not only a win for Axiom, but also another notch on SpaceX’s belt, as Ax-2 marked the tenth human-hauling journey for the Dragon Crew module. Rayannah Barnawi, one of the four astronauts aboard mission Ax-2, made history as the first Saudi woman to make it to space. Barnawi and fellow astronauts John Shoffner and Ali Alqarni are led by Peggy Whitson, former chief of NASA’s Astronaut Office and current record-holder for her 665 days (673 days after this mission) spent in space, more than any other woman or any other American. The crew’s eight days at the ISS will be busy with more than 20 intended projects, including research around microgravity’s effects on mRNA, collaborations with STEM students, even a test of MIT’s gravity-simulating “skin suit.” And if “skin suit” makes you think of Silence of the Lambs: don’t.
Blue Moon – NASA is singing the beloved Eiffel 65 anthem this week after selecting Blue Origin to develop a reusable human landing system for the moon. This is the second of two contracts connected with the agency’s Artemis program – the first going to competitor SpaceX. Revealed last Friday, some key features of the “Blue Moon” lander include liquid hydrogen propellant, a separate refueling vehicle and a crew module that will support astronauts for a 30-day stay on the moon. The deal is great news for the company, whose initial $6 billion bid lost to SpaceX, who had a (very attractive) $2.8 billion bid. Now, Blue is accepting $3.4 billion, about half their original quote. So, the deal is also great news for NASA, as Blue will likely spend “far north” money on the lander than what the agency is paying. That said, the difference may be a small price to pay for getting into the lunar economy early. Those Amazon delivery drivers really are trying to deliver anywhere, no matter the obstacles!
Shoot For The Moon – While NASA may be busy playing SpaceX and Blue Origin off of each other in the Artemis race, the agency did find time to make some other significant lunar moves over the past couple weeks. First, after bailing on the Lunar Flashlight they’d hoped would explore the icy lunar south pole, NASA released updates from their other lunar-obsessed spacecrafts. For one, NASA’s CAPSTONE cubesat just completed a successful test of a lunar GPS system. Say hello to the future Google Maps of the Lunar Gateway space station. Also making observations from lunar orbit, the agency’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) shared images of the tragic Hakuto-R crash site. Sadly, this is somewhat common content for the LRO; the grim reaper of the moon, the spacecraft also captured the destructive aftermath of Israel’s lunar landing attempt back in 2019.
Lucy In The Sky (With Space Rocks) – In brighter news, NASA conducted a nifty course-adjusting maneuver on their asteroid probe called Lucy, setting its sights on a group of asteroids around Jupiter. The spacecraft should reach Dinkinesh, the first asteroid this November. Speaking of probes, back in Earth’s orbit the agency has greenlit a mission to study ice cloud formation in the hopes of improving forecasting capabilities. The agency also strengthened an existing partnership with STEM this week by signing a memorandum that hopes to “expand access to high-quality, hands-on career, technical, and space education.” Surely, with all this momentum, NASA should be finding diamonds in the sky in no time – figuratively speaking.
Spitzer Spin Off – On the military side, the U.S. Space Force reaches for some of that upward//positive NASA energy, not only with their new holistic health regimen for their Guardians, but also with a proposal to resurrect an old NASA telescope hanging out in deep space. Decommissioned back in 2020 to make way (read: $$$) for the Webb, the Spitzer was an infrared telescope which studied distant objects and dust-shielded stellar nurseries. While the Webb is certainly a main source of deep space imagery at the moment, the Force hopes Spitzer’s alternate positioning and wavelengths may still provide valuable insights. The complex servicing required to bring the telescope back to life would launch in 2026, conducted by startup Rhea Space Activity.
Don’t Play Games – In other Space Force news, the defense department turns to digital simulation technology to help control Cape Canaveral which is becoming increasingly trafficked. At a recent symposium, advocate for the tech David Sracic advised that we stop using the term “metaverse” because of its ties to gaming. We should note that the symposium was themed “GEOINT: From Maps to Metaverse.”
Astronomy Beat – The past couple weeks have also been bright (literally) in terms of natural occurring phenomena in the sky. Published last Monday, astronomers shared an exciting first observation of a radiation belt outside of our solar system. Magnetospheres are among many elements that point to possibly habitable planets, which is one reason findings like this extrasolar radiation – observed by the 39 telescope-strong High Sensitivity Array – are so informative. And speaking of the potential for life outside our solar system, NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey System (TESS) recently found an Earth-sized exoplanet is likely shrouded in volcanoes. Now, that may not sound the most inviting, but according to study co-author Björn Benneke, this amount of volcanic activity “could sustain an atmosphere, which may allow water to condense” on the consistently shadowed, or “night” side of the planet. If you want in on all this deep space action, good news: you don’t need telescopes as powerful as the High Sensitivity Array or TESS to observe a new supernova. Beginning this past Friday and lasting for the next few months, an exploded star can be spotted near the Ursa Major constellation.
Sweet Home, Colorado? – Current tensions between Alabama senator Tommy Tuberville and U.S. President Joe Biden may be the cause of a delay and even potential halt of a years-long plan to move the country’s Space Command from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama. The move would bring approximately 1,400 service members plus their families and collaborators to Alabama. One of the factors the government looks at when creating a permanent headquarters is access to health care. For this reason, many believe the move simply won’t happen, given Alabama’s relatively new and incredibly restrictive abortion laws. Maybe Space Command just takes health care for its people as seriously as Space Force takes with its holistic approach…
The JWST Download
Great geyser! JWST captured a massive water plume coming from one of Saturn’s moons – the same moon NASA wants to send their space snake to.
Like our earthbound superstars, astronomers call these ancient supermassive stars “cosmic monsters.”
Check out the proposals that won big for the JWST’s second year, or “cycle.”
Never to be totally sidelined, the Hubble pipes up this week about a mid-sized black hole lurking in the constellation Scorpius. And if we know anything about Scorpios, this means chaos.
A Global Space
India - India’s third lunar mission, the Chandrayaan-3 began assembling its payloads last week in preparation for its July launch. This journey to the lunar south pole comes four years after the Chandrayaan-2 lander crashed on arrival due to a software glitch. Feeling stronger than ever, the ISRO will likely launch the Chandrayaan mission – which will include a lander and a rover – on July 12th, one day prior to Russia’s Luna 25 lander scheduled to lift off on July 13th.
Canada – A new economic report just gave Canada’s planned Spaceport Nova Scotia a huge boost, claiming the construction of the spaceport alone would “contribute $171 million to Canada’s GDP,” followed by around $300 million per year after operations are established. In addition to the direct economic benefits, the report also projects the spaceport to have a positive impact on education and tourism. All around, the findings will certainly help spaceport builder Maritime Launch Services complete its necessary fundraising for the exciting national project.
ESA – The team behind JUICE has been getting crafty over the past few weeks, working with a stuck antennae. It took thruster-propelled shaking, warming the spacecraft up in the sunlight, and a “non-explosive actuator” to free the RIME, or Radar for Icy Moon Exploration. The RIME is one of ten instruments the spacecraft will use on Jupiter’s icy moons to investigate their habitability.
Japan – Thanks to Japan, space wood may be a real thing! And please, get your mind out of the gutter. JAXA and researchers from Kyoto University recently completed an experiment involving the exposure of various types of wood to the harsh elements of space. Per their optimistic findings, JAXA plans to launch a wooden satellite called LignoStella into orbit as early as next year.
France – BRACE yourselves for more space simulations! The CNES-funded experiment, dubbed Bed Rest with Artificial gravity and Cycling Exercise (BRACE), will examine the effects of long-term space travel on our muscles. Specifically, the research team will see how volunteers – who will spend 60 days in a bed suspended to mimic a loss of gravity – fare with an artificial gravity centrifuge added to exercise routines common on the ISS.
Spain – This week, Spanish company PLD Space conducted a final test on its reusable, one-stage Miura 1 rocket, signifying an impending launch. While we don’t have an exact launch date yet, we know it will be on or after May 28th due to weather. With this mission, PLD Space hopes to become the first “private micro launcher company” in the European space race.
Russia – Less than 48 hours after Ax-2 took off from Florida’s coast, Russia launched a Progress cargo craft from Baikonur to the very same destination – the ISS. Russia’s cargo ship adds 2.7 tons – the weight of a small elephant – of supplies to the crowded space station. It’s an example of the ongoing shuffle of space in space, and the intricate coordination needed particularly as more private missions take flight.
North and South Korea – Two nations go head to head in their own space race: North and South Korea have both been busy in recent weeks preparing launches. This past Thursday, May 25th, South Korea launched eight satellites via Nuri, a locally made rocket. While a huge step for South Korea in the global space arena, any launch in this area is delicate. North Korea has made it clear that it intends to launch its own satellites very soon, which many believe will focus on surveillance relating to nuclear targets.
Space Reads!
Can’t get enough stellar content? Here are some pieces of space-adjacent news we’ve been reading:
NASA may have called off their Lunar Flashlight this week, but there’s still a lot to learn about the ice on the moon’s permanently shadowed regions, particularly its feasibility as a human survival resource.
SETI decoded a message from Mars this week with the help of the public. But don’t get too excited – it was only a test signal from a human vehicle. The hope is that this “practice round” gives us the tools for when that first alien message DOES come through. You know, it gives us time to build a reliable midi keyboard.
We’ve talked space salad. Now, we’re talking fermented fungi cheese in a new NASA competition around sustainable space food.
If you think Hannibal Lecter is scary, have you heard of cosmic cannibalism? This supernova that’s been going on (off?) for three years points to a black hole that’s probably a billion times the size of the sun.
Similar to that summer I decided to casually dive into quantum mechanics and couldn’t shake the feeling that nothing was real, this thoughtful piece from
will have you questioning the authenticity of space and tech “innovation.” Looks like “give em the old razzle dazzle” might not have been such sage advice from that space investor after all…
And that’s a wrap on this week in space news! Keep an eye out this coming Monday for MOONSHOT, our paid subscriber newsletter covering the commercial space sector. A big thank you to Tess Ryan for writing this edition with me and for keeping tabs on the cosmos! We hope you enjoyed reading Continuum this week and will share it with your friends. And if you really, really like us, then consider becoming a paid subscriber or gifting a subscription to someone who is the Jeff to your Elon.
Keep it celestial people,
Britt
CEO of Celestial Citizen & Creator of Continuum
This edition of the newsletter was brought to you by:
Multiverse Media (Gold Sponsor)
Colorado School of Mines Space Resources Program (Silver Sponsor)
Explore Mars (Silver Sponsor)
The BO lander is exciting as it presents a very good, perhaps better, alternative to Starship. Starship is not designed for the Moon, its oversized, uses the "wrong" fuel...etc.
The BO lander makes me wonder what architecture form Jarvis/Clipper will take. I am leaning toward a Starship-style bellyflop design, albeit hydrogen-fueled.
Hey hey--this is my second issue in and I’m super impressed by the breadth of the content you cover!