August 14, 2024 Quick space linksCourtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Satellite builder Terran Orbital removes Rivada from its list of future revenue
This appears to be a bookeeping maneuver, but suggests that Rivada may be having problems, which is a big deal because its contract with Terran Orbital is for $2.4 billion to build 300 satellites.
- Proposed Nova Scotia spaceport Maritime Launch Services signs deal with unnamed rocket company
This is one of those press releases about nothing. Maritime’s spaceport is years behind schedule. The release includes really no information, and appears to have been issued merely to counter another proposed Canadian spaceport, Nordspace, that recently released its own press release about nothing.
- Chinese pseudo-company CAS Space touts 320 second static fire test of an engine for its Kinetic-2 Falcon 9 copycat rocket
The goal is to do the first test launch in 2025.
- On this day in 2007 the Hubble Space Telescope capture a rare edge on view of Uranus and its rings
“Astronomers on Earth can only see the rings’ edge every 42 years due to the planet’s 84 year orbit.”
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Satellite builder Terran Orbital removes Rivada from its list of future revenue
This appears to be a bookeeping maneuver, but suggests that Rivada may be having problems, which is a big deal because its contract with Terran Orbital is for $2.4 billion to build 300 satellites.
- Proposed Nova Scotia spaceport Maritime Launch Services signs deal with unnamed rocket company
This is one of those press releases about nothing. Maritime’s spaceport is years behind schedule. The release includes really no information, and appears to have been issued merely to counter another proposed Canadian spaceport, Nordspace, that recently released its own press release about nothing.
- Chinese pseudo-company CAS Space touts 320 second static fire test of an engine for its Kinetic-2 Falcon 9 copycat rocket
The goal is to do the first test launch in 2025.
- On this day in 2007 the Hubble Space Telescope capture a rare edge on view of Uranus and its rings
“Astronomers on Earth can only see the rings’ edge every 42 years due to the planet’s 84 year orbit.”
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Following up on the TCEQ story, iyt looks like the lawfare activists *may* have finally scored a hit – there may be state enforcement action against SpaceX in the works now. From Tim Fernholz of Payload, quote tweeting SpaceX’s correction of CNBC’s latest “revision” of their story on Starbase wastewater discharges:
__________________
Here’s SpaceX’s response, which stresses the work they do on compliance but basically confirms they have been discharging wastewater without a permit.
3:42 PM · Aug 12, 2024
It’s always interesting when a company has a comprehensive response like this prepared at publication time but doesn’t share it with the journalist, who I would guess asked for comment days before publishing
3:44 PM · Aug 12, 2024
I asked TCEQ, the Texas environmental regulatory agency, whether it gave SpaceX permission to discharge wastewater without a permit.
The answer? “There is a pending enforcement action. Due to this, we cannot comment any further at this time.”
12:53 PM · Aug 14, 2024
One of the aforementioned activists then weighs in, but I’ll let interested parties go there to read it if they wanted.
https://x.com/TimFernholz/status/1823764945043165611
“On this day in 2007 the Hubble Space Telescope capture a rare edge on view of Uranus and its rings”
That’s a Cool Image. Lo-res, but still cool.
Blair Ivey: There is a link at the tweet to the original Hubble press release with a high resolution version.
Dropping this in here….
Gregg Kihn
[July 10, 1949 – August 13, 2024]
“The Breakup Song” (They Don’t Write ‘Em)
Live at Wolfgangs Vault (February 24, 2011)
https://youtu.be/vzQ07lataP4
4:24
“I’d like to do a song that put both my kids through College, and partial grandchildren as well…”