February 20-26, 2017 / Vol 36, No 8 / Hawai`i Island, USA

ILOA Galaxy Forum East Asia Activities

International Lunar Observatory Association (ILOA) is hosting Galaxy Forum Southeast Asia – Indonesia themed Astronomy From The Moon with SkyWorld TMII in Jakarta February 18. Expecting 220 participants, the event features private space / aerospace, astronomy and related science / technology education and recreation. The Feb 25 Galaxy Forum Japan in Tokyo will be held at NAOJ Mitaka campus with theme Urban Challenges for Optical and Radio Astronomy. It features Astronaut Naoko Yamazaki, Sze-leung Cheung, Masao Saito, Hiroshi Kobayashi and Steve Durst. Galaxy Forum Southeast Asia – Singapore on Feb 23 will advance ILOA SEA Principal Operating Partnership for ILO-1 Moon mission via Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MMoU) signing with representatives from leading institutions of Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, perhaps with future collaborations in Vietnam and Philippines. Galaxy Forum China in Beijing on June 5, the eve of GLEX 2017, will focus on pioneering Astronomy from the Moon and International Human Moon Missions, preliminary to Galaxy Forum Hainan in November for the launch of Chang’e-5 lunar sample return mission. ILOA is working with Canadensys of Canada and Moon Express of USA to design / build the ILO-1 Observatory intended for the Moon South Pole ~2018. ILO-X precursor mission is set to fly aboard the MX-1 lander to lunar equatorial region Dec 2017 via Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle from New Zealand. (Image Credit: ILOA, NASA, Ma Chung University, SSTA, NARIT, IT Bandung, UKM)

MONDAY

Feb 20-23 — Keck Institute for Space Studies, Caltech, Pasadena CA: Conference: Nearby Galaxies with JWST – Science and Observation Planning.

Feb 20-23 — International Astronomical Union, Maulana Azad National Urdu University, University of Western Ontario, Hyderabad, India: Winter School in Astronomy; at Birla Science Centre.

International Human Moon Mission Prospects 2020-2025 Depend on Crewed Lander Development

The tides of global Space Age activity are shifting back toward lunar surface enterprise and development as critical next step in human progress. NASA and its industry partners, along with participation from ESA, are considering feasibility of accelerating pace for human lunar flight by adapting Exploration Mission-1 (EM1) with in-development SLS heavy launch rocket and Orion crew spacecraft from automated circumlunar test flight to crewed flight in 2018 (current first crewed flight is EM2 in 2021). Critical piece of missing architecture is crewed lunar lander system. China would appear to be the leader in terms of contemporary Moon landing capability and potential near-term advancement with the Chang’e-5 (CE-5) and CE-6 sample return missions set to launch this year November 2017 and 2020 respectively aboard the newly-commissioned Long March 5 heavy-lift rocket system. With next-gen super-heavy Long March 9 rocket expected 2025, as well as steady progress on its Shenzhou human spaceflight, Tiangong space laboratory and CE lunar programs, a convergence leading to crewed lunar surface missions is expected soon rather than later. Also advancing relevant Moon services and systems are an array of multifarious American independent ventures from Blue Origin with the New Glenn / New Armstrong series and SpaceX with the upcoming Falcon Heavy, to Bigelow, Golden Spike, Astrobotic, Moon Express, Shackleton Energy, Canadensys and ILOA. (Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CNSA, CAS/NAOC, SpaceX)

Feb 20-24 — International Astronomical Union, Makes Observatory, University of Montpellier, La Reunion Island, France: IAU Symposium 331: SN 1987A, 30 Years Later – Cosmic Rays and Nuclei from Supernovae and their Aftermaths.

Feb 20 – Mar 3 — Committee on Space Research, National University of Río Negro, Viedma, Argentina: COSPAR Capacity Building Workshop in High Energy Astrophysics.

Feb 20 — Moon: 3.6° N of Saturn, 13:44.

Continued from…

Oct 15 – Sep 4, 2017 — Peabody Essex Museum, Salem MA: Lunar Attraction Exhibit; featuring 60 Apollo memorabilia, paintings, sculptures, photographs, books, movies, jewelry that illustrate our profound connection to the Moon.

Feb 16-20 — American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Boston MA: 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting.

Feb 19-22 — Kyoto University, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Kyoto, Japan: Workshop: Quarks and Compact Stars 2017.

Feb 19-25 — University of Alberta, Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada: Lake Louise Winter Institute 2017 (Particle Physics); at Chateau Lake Louise in Canadian Rocky Mountain range.

TUESDAY

Feb 21 — SETI Institute, Mountain View CA: Lecture: Origins of Structure in Planetary Systems; Ruth Murray-Clay from UC Santa Cruz, 12:00.