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NASAWatch on TV: Lunar Mission Updates
NASAWatch on TV: Lunar Mission Updates

Keith’s note: Japan successfully landed its SLIM spacecraft on the Moon this morning. However there seems to be a problem with its solar panels which are not charging its batteries. This may have to do with the panels’ orientation to the sun after landing. Unless that can be rectified the spacecraft can only operate for a matter of hours before its batteries are drained. SLIM did deploy its two small rovers and efforts are being made to see if any data has been collected. One of the rovers has responded. I was on CGTN a few minutes ago to talk about SLIM as well as the end of Astrobotic’s Peregrine mission to the Moon which returned to Earth the other day after a propulsion system failure prevented a lunar landing. I was also asked about former NASA Administrator Mike Griffin’s slam against NASA’s Artemis program. [audio]

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  • NASA Watch
  • January 19, 2024
Astrobotic Has Set A New Standard For Space Mission Transparency
Astrobotic Has Set A New Standard For Space Mission Transparency

Keith’s note: Take the time to read the Astrobotic press release (below). While it is sad that Peregrine won’t land on the Moon it is very important that everyone – including NASA – takes note of the unrivaled transparency and promptness of updates that Astrobotic has provided. They’ve set a new standard that all responsible users of space should follow. Ad Astra.

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  • NASA Watch
  • January 14, 2024
The Dream Is Indeed Alive: Space Exploration For Everyone – Everywhere
The Dream Is Indeed Alive: Space Exploration For Everyone – Everywhere

Keith’s note: The popularity of space exploration – both real and imagined – is something that those of us in the developed and throughly wired developed world take for granted. What we often do not appreciate is how much of our content leaks out and finds its ways across the rest of the world. And in so doing how it can inspire millions of people – ones that we never stop to think about – to aspire to explore space. [much more below]

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  • NASA Watch
  • January 7, 2024
India Moon Landing Interviews On DW And CGTN
India Moon Landing Interviews On DW And CGTN

Keith’s note: I did an interview with Deutsche Welle about Chandrayaan-3. They aired an intro piece before me where they talked with a family in India and their children’s reactions to the landing and I almost had tears in my eyes since, as I said in my interview that was me as a little boy. [DW Audio]. I also did an interview with CGTN talking about how the Moon is a place that everyone can and should visit. [CGTN Audio]

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  • NASA Watch
  • August 23, 2023
Report: How NASA Plans To Do Artemis Things On A Busy Moon
Report: How NASA Plans To Do Artemis Things On A Busy Moon

Keith’s Note: according to NASA: “More than 20 missions are planned to the Moon between now and 2026, with participants including NASA, international agencies, and industry. Many of these missions are going to operate in proximity to each other on the surface of a celestial body for the first time in history. This will raise challenges humanity has never faced. A new Lunar Landing and Operations Policy Analysis by NASA’s Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy examines some of the policy challenges that having numerous missions at the Moon will create.” More: NASA Releases Report on Policy Matters in Upcoming Moon Missions

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  • NASA Watch
  • October 27, 2022
Let's Go Visit Paul Spudis On The Moon

Paul Spudis now has a crater on the Moon named after him. Let's go visit Paul. He's easy to find – he's right next door to Shackleton. https://t.co/Pz9o2sejzJ pic.twitter.com/gJZ67pbrIY — NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) October 1, 2021

  • NASA Watch
  • October 1, 2021
Lockheed Martin and GM Team up for Human Lunar Terrain Vehicle

Lockheed Martin, General Motors Team-up to Develop Next-Generation Lunar Rover for NASA Artemis Astronauts to Explore the Moon, Lockheed Martin Corporation “Lockheed Martin and General Motors Co. are teaming up to develop the next generation of lunar vehicles to transport astronauts on the surface of the Moon, fundamentally evolving and expanding humanity’s deep-space exploration footprint.” “NASA’s Artemis program is sending humans back to the Moon where they will explore and […]

  • NASA Watch
  • May 26, 2021
The OrbitBeyond Moon Mission Is Not Happening
The OrbitBeyond Moon Mission Is Not Happening

Keith’s 29 July note: This was tweeted by Thomas Zurbuchen @Dr_ThomasZ earlier today “NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) missions will be challenging for various reasons & they may not always succeed. We’re willing to accept some risk in order to get back to the Moon quickly with commercial partners, and do exciting science and tech development. While the first three companies selected to carry payloads to the Moon were […]

  • NASA Watch
  • July 29, 2019
Tranquility Base Coming to Times Square for 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11
Tranquility Base Coming to Times Square for 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11

Times Square to Transform Into Tranquility Base, the Moon Landing Site, in Honor of 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11, Aldrin Family Foundation and The People’s Moon “The Aldrin Family Foundation will host a day-long, free family celebration in support of The People’s Moon project on July 20 in Times Square in honor of the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest achievements of all time – landing a human on […]

  • NASA Watch
  • July 8, 2019
SpaceIL Spacecraft Isn't Successful in Landing on the Moon

Israel succeeded in getting its spacecraft in orbit around the moon, however an engine problem during the landing attempt caused the spacecraft to crash. Prime Minister Netanyahu in attendance said shortly after the news that “if you don’t first succeed, try again.” No doubt Israel will try again. A nation came together on what started as a Google Lunar X Prize entry. It can celebrate the effort and achievements it […]

  • NASA Watch
  • April 11, 2019
NASA Issues NextSTEP ISRU Contracts to 10 Companies
NASA Issues NextSTEP ISRU Contracts to 10 Companies

NASA Selects US Companies to Advance Space Resource Collection “NASA has selected 10 companies to conduct studies and advance technologies to collect, process and use space-based resources for missions to the Moon and Mars. NASA placed a special emphasis on encouraging the responders to find new applications for existing, terrestrial capabilities that could result in future space exploration capabilities at lower costs.” The first track is for one-year studies to […]

  • NASA Watch
  • May 31, 2018
Sierra Nevada to Develop Ground Prototype Deep Space Main Habitat

Sierra Nevada Corporation Signs Two NextSTEP-2 Contracts with NASA, Sierra Nevada Corporation “Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) has formalized its agreement with NASA under Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-2 (NextSTEP-2), signing a contract to design and develop a prototype for a deep space habitat. The formal signing of the contract under NextSTEP Broad Agency Announcement, Appendix A: Habitat Systems, aimed at enabling potential long-duration human missions in deep space, clears […]

  • NASA Watch
  • January 25, 2018
Moon Express Adds Canadian Government Official as VP Global Development
Moon Express Adds Canadian Government Official as VP Global Development

Canadian Minister of Transport’s Director of Policy Alain Berinstain Leaving Government for Moon Express, SpaceQ “SpaceQ has learned that Alain Berinstain, the current Director of Policy for Minister of Transport Marc Garneau, is leaving government to work for the U.S. based space exploration company Moon Express.” “Before Berinstain began working for Minister Garneau, he had worked 17 years at the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). He left the CSA in 2013 […]

  • NASA Watch
  • November 3, 2017
Podcast with Bob Richards of Moon Express
Podcast with Bob Richards of Moon Express

Mission Approved – Bob Richards on the Moon Express Plan to Commercialize the Moon, SpaceQ “Moon Express has raised $45 million(US), built hardware, tested some of it, and gotten the FAA and other government agencies to approve of its first commercial mission to the moon, and in less than a year might have its first spacecraft on the moon.” “In this episode of the SpaceQ podcast Bob Richards, CEO and […]

  • NASA Watch
  • July 27, 2017
NASA Future In-Space Operations: Supersynchronous Earth Orbits for Lunar Missions

NASA Future In-Space Operations: MOBIUS – Supersynchronous Earth Orbits for Lunar Missions Now available is the November 16, 2016 NASA Future In-Space Operations (FISO) telecon material. The speaker was Madhu Thangavelu (USC) who presented “MOBIUS – Supersynchronous Earth Orbits for Lunar Missions.” Note: The audio file and presentation are online and available to download.

  • NASA Watch
  • December 22, 2016
New LRO Earthrise Image Released
New LRO Earthrise Image Released

NASA Releases New High-Resolution Earthrise Image “NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) recently captured a unique view of Earth from the spacecraft’s vantage point in orbit around the moon.” “The image is simply stunning,” said Noah Petro, Deputy Project Scientist for LRO at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The image of the Earth evokes the famous ‘Blue Marble’ image taken by Astronaut Harrison Schmitt during Apollo 17, 43 […]

  • NASA Watch
  • December 18, 2015
Moon Express Contract Verified for Google Lunar XPRIZE
Moon Express Contract Verified for Google Lunar XPRIZE

XPRIZE Verifies Moon Express Launch Contract, Kicking Off New Space Race “Moon Express, Inc. has received official verification today of their launch contract from XPRIZE as part of the $30M Google Lunar XPRIZE, a global competition for privately funded teams to land an unmanned spacecraft on the surface of the moon by December 31, 2017. Moon Express will use a Rocket Lab Electron rocket combined with the company’s “MX-1E” micro-lander […]

  • NASA Watch
  • December 8, 2015
A New Spin on the Journey to Mars – By Way of the Moon
A New Spin on the Journey to Mars – By Way of the Moon

NASA-Funded Study Reduces Cost of Human Missions to Moon and Mars by Factor of Ten, National Space Society and Space Frontier Foundation [With video of news conference] “Note from the authors: This study by NexGen Space LLC (NexGen) was partly funded by a grant from NASA’s Emerging Space office in the Office of the Chief Technologist. The conclusions in this report are solely those of NexGen and the study team […]

  • NASA Watch
  • July 21, 2015