First Women / Americans at the Moon South Pole 2020-2021: Part 3

Moonbase Best Advances Korea, Mideast Peace

SpaceWeek 2017 with new USA Moon Return priorities marks the 48th observation of the epochal Apollo 11 touchdown “in peace for all”. A Moonbase could be a game changer for peace on Earth, offering a new perspective, a new direction, and a new inspiration (“If we can put people on the Moon, why can’t we ___ .”). The best option for resolving conflicts in the Korean Peninsula and Middle East may arise from the collaborations required for this Luna construct, with rockets pointed up to the Moon instead of toward other nations.

American leadership advancing humanity to a new beginning, elevating commerce, science, technology, education, society to a new vantage. Official public investment in the Moon boosts commercial and independent efforts and raises opportunity for international cooperation on a multinational public-private “Moonrush”, development of the Cislunar Superhighway infrastructure. Reclamation of America / humanity’s greatest advance and of human existence as a multi world species, evolving to a multi world civilization and cislunar econosphere will win a most successful future for the 2020s.

The Moon is our launch pad to Mars, the Solar System, and gateway to the Stars, an outpost and stepping stone for Solar System Complete in the 21st Century.(Image Credit: NASA, Google Earth, Landsat / Copernicus, SIO, NOAA, US Navy, NGA, GEBCO, IBCAO)

MONDAY

Ongoing…
Jul 17 — ISS, 330-435-km LEO: Expedition 52 three-member crew working on Two Phase Flow experiment to analyze how heat transfers from liquids in microgravity, observing protein crystals and magnetic three-dimensional cell cultures under microscope, using Electrostatic Levitation Furnace for sample reaction tests, practicing evacuation steps needed in unlikely event of an emergency, transferring cargo from Progress MS-06.

Jul 17 — Solar System: New Horizons target for Jan 2019 flyby KBO 2014 MU69 may be cluster of small objects; study shows Mercury craters are shallower than on Moon & rate of landform evolution is ~twice as fast; ESA / JAXA BepiColombo Mercury dual orbiters complete final tests; scientists suggest conditions on Titan could provide power using methane, sea turbines, solar power future airborne wind turbines; Juno uploads Jupiter Great Red Spot images.

Jul 17 — Galaxy: New ALMA observations of Milky Way Galaxy center Sgr A* reveals bundle of ionized gas streams which form a bar & series of arms which look like a “minispiral”; smallest star Milky Way EBLM J0555-57Ab is about size of Saturn, 600 LY away – found by team at University of Cambridge who also helped find TRAPPIST-1 system; Hubble telescope new image reveals very bright galaxy IC 342 very close to Milky Way mostly hidden due to thick layers of cosmic gas, stars, dust.

Jul 17 — Global: U.S. revives National Space Council; China plans Sea Launching, 4 students living in Lunar Palace 365 Project habitat for 200 days; Poland Mars Analogue Simulation 2017 for 2-week Moon / Mars Human exploration simulation to begin next week with 6 volunteers; Dutch research group ASDReports projects Nanosatellite and Microsatellite market will grow to $3.49B by 2022; Ghana 1st satellite enhancing its capability in space science / tech, will monitor country’s coastline.

Jul 17 — NewSpace: Moon Express unveils MX-1E lander design and new website showing MX-2 lunar south pole lander and MX-9 sample return craft; Virgin Orbit shares video of hot fire test of NewtonFour which will be used to power LauncherOne upper stage; Blue Origin to display its New Shepard rocket & offer simulated space rides at EAA AirVenture convention next week; NanoRacks CEO Jeffrey Manber discuss adding an airlock to its ISS platform, future business in space.

Jul 17 — ARTEMIS P2, Moon Orbit: Craft begins 7th year in Moon orbit today; originally launched with constellation of 5 satellites in 2007 to study Earth magnetosphere, NASA ARTEMIS collecting data on Moon interaction with Sun; reached Moon 2011.

Jul 17 — New Horizons Team, NASA, Patagonia, Argentina: Science team to use 2 dozen small mobile telescopes (each 40 cm diameter) to observe final stellar occultation by Kuiper Belt Object 2014 to look for evidence of debris & chart flight trajectory for flyby Jan 1, 2019.

= All times

for terrestrial events in local time unless noted.

= All times for international terrestrial events in local time unless noted.

= All times for space events, and…

= All times for international space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time;’ Greenwich, England).


Weekly Planet Watch – Evening Planets: Mercury (W), Jupiter (SW), Saturn (S); Morning Planets: Venus (E), Uranus (SE), Neptune (SE).

Space Day July 20, 2017: Two Years Before Apollo 11 @50

Space Exploration Day may become a global, national holiday in 2 years when Humankind celebrates the 50th commemoration of the 1st footsteps on the Moon / Apollo 11 landing by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin July 20, 1969. A New Moon may be rising with USA Vice President Mike Pence stating ‘America will return to the Moon.’ NASA Ames is hosting the 8th Annual Lunar and Small Bodies Graduate Conference (LunGradCon 2017) on July 17 for students to present research in 4 categories: Dust / Regolith & Plasma, Geology & Geophysics, Volatiles / Exospheres, and Missions & Human Exploration. The 4th annual SSERVI Exploration Science Forum is July 18-20. Maria Zuber will be presented with the Eugene Shoemaker Distinguished Scientist Medal. Invited speakers include Astronaut Harrison Schmitt, David Kring, James Head, Noah Petro, Pamela Clark, Ben Bussey, Carle Pieters, Alan Stern, Andrea Jones, Mario Santander and Gwanghyeok Ju. They will talk on International Observe the Moon Night, water on the Moon, Korea Lunar Exploration, Mexican Space Agency lunar payload, LRO, Lunar Ice Cube and LunaH-map. The 2nd New Worlds Space Policy Summit headed by Rick Tumlinson is set to occur in Washington DC on July 20. The Moon Society and NSS North Texas Chapter are hosting Moon Day 2017 on July 22 at Frontiers of Flight Museum featuring Astronaut Janet Kavandi. (Image Credit: NASA, ESA, LPI, DSI, NSS, et al)

Jul 17 — NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field CA: 8th Annual Lunar and Small Bodies Graduate Conference (LunGradCon 2017); grad students and early-career postdocs to present their research on lunar and small body science.

Jul 17 — Keck Institute for Space Studies, Pasadena CA: Lecture: Building the Giant Magellan Telescope; featuring James Fanson – Project Manager at Giant Magellan Telescope Organization.

Jul 17-20 — Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, NASA, Boeing Co., American Astronautical Society, Washington DC: 2017 International Space Station R&D Conference: Innovation Beyond Boundaries; keynote speaker Astronaut Kate Rubins.

Jul 17-21 — Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom: Conference: Transiting Exoplanets from the Wide Angle Search for Planets.

Jul 17 — Venus: 1.6° N of comet 24P Schaumasse, 23:00.

Jul 17 — Aten Asteroid 2017 NS5: Near-Earth Flyby (0.034 AU).

Continued from…

Jun 26 – Jul 21 — Other Worlds Laboratory at University of California – Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz CA: 2017 Exoplanet Summer Program.

Jun 30 – Jul 29 — Space Media Ventures, National Space Society, Online: Kickstarter Campaign: Space Odyssey Game; presented by Neil DeGrasse Tyson, for people of all ages to experience new Worlds and add to them as real science & their collective imagination allows.

Jul 11 – Aug 11 — Mars Spacecraft, Mars Orbit: Superior Solar Conjunction to prevent normal operations for international Mars missions, craft will undergo critical operations stand-down and most will rely on automated systems.

Jul 12-20 — Korean Physical Society, International Cosmic Ray Conference Committee, Korean Federation of Science & Technology Societies, Busan, South Korea: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC2017).

Jul 16-21 — International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life (ISSOL), San Diego CA: 18th International Conference on the Origin of Life.

TUESDAY

Jul 18-20 — NASA Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI), Ames Research Center, Moffett Field CA: 4th annual NASA Exploration Science Forum (2017).

Jul 18-27 — Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), ESA, International Space Science Institute, AustroSpace, Alpbach, Austria: 41st Summer School Alpbach 2017 – The Dusty Universe.

Jul 18 — Moon: 9.2° SSE of Pleiades, 22:00.

WEDNESDAY

Jul 19 — Cassini, Saturn Orbit: Flyby of Janus scheduled at 94,000-km altitude; Atlas at 121,000-km.

Jul 19 — Moon: 0.48° S of asteroid 8 Flora, 02:00; 0.43° N of Aldebaran, 13:37.

THURSDAY

Jul 20 — Apollo 11 48th Observation, Nationwide USA / Global: First Human mission to land on Moon in 1969; 1st steps by humans on another World taken by Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin.

Jul 20 — Viking 1 Mars Lander 41st Observation, Nationwide USA / Global: First spacecraft to successfully land on another planet; originally scheduled for July 4, landing was delayed until this day in 1976 due to rough landing site.

Jul 20 — New Worlds Organization, Washington DC: 2nd Space Policy Summit.

Jul 20 — Wallops Flight Facility Visitor Center, NASA, Delmarva Space Sciences Foundation, Wallops Island VA: Introduction to Solar Science & the Total Solar Eclipse of 2017; 17:00-18:00, available on the Wallops Ustream channel.

Jul 20 — Sotheby’s, Online / New York: Space Exploration auction, featuring Apollo 11 Contingency Lunar Sample Return bag used by Neil Armstrong to bring back the very first samples of the Moon.

Jul 20 — Moon: 1.2° S of comet 24P Schaumasse, 00:00; 2.7° S of Venus, 01:13.

FRIDAY

Jul 21 — NASA Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI), Ames Research Center, Moffett Field CA: Autonomy on Future Science Mission Directorate (SMD) Missions.

Jul 21 — `Imiloa Astronomy Center, University of Hawai`i – Hilo, Hilo HI: Mauna Kea Skies Talk; astronomers from Mauna Kea observatories speak about recent discoveries; this session features Institute for Astronomy UH 2.2 Meter Telescope; 19:00 HST, US$8-10.

Jul 21 — Moon: 5.0° S of M35 cluster, 02:00; at perigee (361,238 km), 07:09.

SATURDAY

Jul 22 — Frontiers of Flight Museum, The Moon Society, National Space Society of North Texas, Dallas TX: Moon Day 2017; focusing on current and future activities in space with Astronaut Janet Kavandi; preview plans for Apollo VII 50th Anniversary in 2018.

Jul 22 — British Interplanetary Society, Herstmonceux, United Kingdom: 72nd Annual General Meeting of the British Interplanetary Society; at Observatory Science Centre.

Jul 22 — Moon: 13.0° S of Castor, 09:00; 9.3° S of Pollux, 13:00; New Moon, 23:46.

Jul 22 — Apollo Asteroid 2017 MB1: Near-Earth Flyby (0.059 AU).

SUNDAY

Jul 23 — Chandra X-ray Observatory, HEO: NASA spacecraft in extended mission phase begins 18th year of operations in Space; instruments able to detect X-ray sources 100 times fainter than any previous X-ray telescope; launched 1999.

Jul 23-29 — Rencontres du Vietnam, Quy Nhon, Vietnam: 13th Rencontres du Vietnam: Exploring the Dark Universe.

Jul 23 — Moon: 3.1° S of Mars, 02:00; 2.8° S of Beehive Cluster, 11:00.

Jul 23 — Apollo Asteroid 2017 BS5: Near-Earth Flyby (0.008 AU).