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Space News Update — June 26, 2015 —

Contents

In the News

Story 1: First Instrument Delivered for NASA’s Upcoming

Asteroid Sample Return Mission

Story 2: Monster Black Hole Wakes Up after 26 Years

Story 3: Under-Ice Rover Chills With Fish at Aquatic Exhibit

Departments

The Night Sky

ISS Sighting Opportunities

Space Calendar

NASA-TV Highlights

Food for Thought

Space Image of the Week

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1. First Instrument Delivered for NASA’s Upcoming Asteroid Sample Return Mission

The first of five instruments for a spacecraft that will collect a sample from an asteroid and bring it back to Earth has arrived at Lockheed Martin for installation onto NASA’s Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx).

“The next few months will be very busy as we begin integrating the instruments and prepare for the system-level environmental testing program to begin,” said Mike Donnelly, OSIRIS-REx project manager at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The OSIRIS-REx Thermal Emission Spectrometer (OTES) will conduct surveys to map mineral and chemical abundances and to take the asteroid Bennu’s temperature. OTES is the first such instrument built entirely on the Arizona State University (ASU), Tempe campus.

“OTES, the size of a microwave oven, has spent the last several years being designed, built, tested, and calibrated,” said Philip Christensen, OTES instrument scientist at ASU. "Now, OTES is shipping out for the solar system.”

The instrument will be powered on shortly after the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft begins its two-year trip to Bennu. On arrival at Bennu, OTES will provide spectral data for global maps used to assess potential sample sites. It will take thermal infrared spectral data every two seconds and will be able to detect temperatures with an accuracy of 0.2°F. It will also detect the presence of minerals on the asteroid’s surface.

OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to fly to, study, and retrieve a pristine sample from an asteroid and return it to Earth for study.

Scheduled to launch in September 2016, the spacecraft will reach its asteroid target in 2018 and return a sample to Earth in 2023.

The mission will allow scientists to investigate the composition of material from the very earliest epochs of solar system history, providing information about the source of organic materials and water on Earth.

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“It is a significant milestone to have OSIRIS-REx’s first instrument completed and delivered for integration onto the spacecraft,” said Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona, Tucson. “The OTES team has done an excellent job on the instrument and I deeply appreciate their scientific contribution to the mission. OTES plays an essential role in characterizing the asteroid in support of sample-site selection.”

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland provides overall mission management, systems engineering and safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta is the mission's principal investigator at the University of Arizona, Tucson. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver is building the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama manages New Frontiers for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

For more information on OSIRIS-REx visit http://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex and http://www.asteroidmission.org.

Source: NASA Return to Contents

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2. Monster Black Hole Wakes Up after 26 Years

Over the past week, ESA's Integral satellite has been observing an exceptional outburst of high-energy light produced by a black hole that is devouring material from its stellar companion.

X-rays and gamma rays point to some of the most extreme phenomena in the Universe, such as stellar explosions, powerful outbursts and black holes feasting on their surroundings.

In contrast to the peaceful view of the night sky we see with our eyes, the high-energy sky is a dynamic light show, from flickering sources that change their brightness dramatically in a few minutes to others that vary on timescales spanning years or even decades.

On 15 June 2015, a long-time acquaintance of X-ray and gamma ray astronomers made its comeback to the cosmic stage: V404 Cygni, a system comprising a black hole and a star orbiting one another. It is located in our Milky Way galaxy, almost 8000 light-years away in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan.

In this type of binary system, material flows from the star towards the black hole and gathers in a disc, where it is heated up, shining brightly at optical, ultraviolet and X-ray wavelengths before spiralling into the black hole.

First signs of renewed activity in V404 Cygni were spotted by the Burst Alert Telescope on NASA's Swift satellite, detecting a sudden burst of gamma rays, and then triggering observations with its X-ray telescope. Soon after, MAXI (Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image), part of the Japanese Experiment Module on the International Space Station, observed an X-ray flare from the same patch of the sky.

These first detections triggered a massive campaign of observations from ground-based telescopes and from space-based observatories, to monitor V404 Cygni at many different wavelengths across the electromagnetic spectrum. As part of this worldwide effort, ESA's Integral gamma-ray observatory started monitoring the out-bursting black hole on 17 June.

“The behaviour of this source is extraordinary at the moment, with repeated bright flashes of light on time scales shorter than an hour, something rarely seen in other black hole systems,” comments Erik Kuulkers, Integral project scientist at ESA.

“In these moments, it becomes the brightest object in the X-ray sky – up to fifty times brighter than the Crab Nebula, normally one of the brightest sources in the high-energy sky.”

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The V404 Cygni black hole system has not been this bright and active since 1989, when it was observed with the Japanese X-ray satellite Ginga and high-energy instruments on board the Mir space station.

“The community couldn't be more thrilled: many of us weren't yet professional astronomers back then, and the instruments and facilities available at the time can’t compare with the fleet of space telescopes and the vast network of ground-based observatories we can use today. It is definitely a 'once in a professional lifetime' opportunity,” adds Kuulkers.

These peaks of activity, which occur every two to three decades, are likely caused by material slowly piling up in the disc surrounding the black hole, until eventually reaching a tipping point that dramatically changes the black hole's feeding routine for a short period.

“Now that this extreme object has woken up again, we are all eager to learn more about the engine that powers the outburst we are observing,” says Carlo Ferrigno from the Integral Science Data Centre at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.

[Editor’s Note: More details are available in the ESA article at http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Integral/Monster_black_hole_wakes_up_after_26_years.]

Source: ESA Return to Contents

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3. Under-Ice Rover Chills With Fish at Aquatic Exhibit

A school of sardines fluttered by as giant leafy kelp swayed back and forth at the California Science Center in Los Angeles on Monday, June 22. At the bottom of this 188,000-gallon aquatic tank, a bright orange garibaldi fish seemed to ignore a new visitor to the aquatic wonderland: the silver body of an under-ice rover.

The rover's presence 24 feet (7.3 meters) underwater at the science center this week helped researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, test the innovative rover's systems. On Monday, the visitors' guide to the rover and the fish around it was Andy Klesh, principal investigator for the rover at JPL and volunteer diver at the science center.

As bubbles flowed from his face mask, Klesh explained that the buoyant rover can be used here on Earth to study the Arctic and Antarctic. Researchers also envision that a technology like this could one day explore icy bodies in the solar system, and even look for signs of habitability and life.

"A lot of what we do in deep space is applicable to the ocean," Klesh said. "This is an early prototype for vehicles that could one day go to Europa and other planetary bodies with a liquid ocean covered by ice. It's ideal for traveling under the ice shelf of an icy world."

Provisionally called the Buoyant Rover for Under-Ice Exploration (BRUIE), this rover would normally float and have wheels. Its wheels would roll along on the underside of ice, as if the ice were the ground. Operating

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underwater, the rover would take images and collect other data to help scientists understand the important interface between ice and water.

"Our work aims to build a bridge between exploring extreme environments in our own ocean and the exploration of distant, potentially habitable oceans elsewhere in the solar system," said Kevin Hand, co-investigator for the rover and planetary scientist at JPL. Dan Berisford, John Leichty and Josh Schoolcraft at JPL are also co-investigators on the project.

The first iteration of this rover was a two-wheeled vehicle that the team took to Barrow, Alaska, in 2012. After the team sawed a hole in the ice, they placed the rover underwater, totally untethered. Back at JPL, engineers drove the rover remotely.

"This was the first time an under-ice vehicle had been operated via satellite," Klesh said.

The new version is longer, has a thicker body and is designed for ocean depths up to about 700 feet (200 meters). The central body contains computers, sensors and communication equipment. On either side of the central section is a "pod," each with sensors, lights, a camera, batteries, instruments and two motors. The software for this rover is similar to what is being used for Mars Cube One, two communication-relay CubeSats that will launch with NASA's InSight Mars lander in 2016.

Researchers are currently working to increase the rover's autonomy and beef up its hazard avoidance, with an eye toward eventually letting the rover survey a frozen lake on its own.

At the science center, the rover gathered data about its surroundings, including taking pictures of nearby fish and the people on the other side of the glass. The rover did not have its wheels, but the sections of its body rotated once every hour, giving visitors a show as it twisted around.

"We're a long way off from exploring Europa's ocean, but the young children visiting the California Science Center and seeing our robot could be the ones building the vehicles that go there," Hand said.

The rover’s stint at the science center from June 22 to June 24 was a rare instance in which it encountered warm-climate sea creatures. The rover's next destination will likely be near one of Earth's frigid poles.

The California Institute of Technology manages JPL for NASA.

For more information about Europa, visit: http://go.nasa.gov/1FATJR8

Source: NASA Return to Contents

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The Night Sky Friday, June 26

Venus and Jupiter, shining in the west as twilight fades, are now only 2.2° apart! That's about the width of your thumb held at arm's length. They point to fainter Regulus, twinkling to their upper left.

Watch the two planets move closer together each evening until their appulse (closest approach) on Tuesday the 30th. That evening they'll be just 1/3° apart, seven times closer than they appear now!

In reality, they're not close together at all. Venus is 51 million miles from Earth this evening; Jupiter is eleven times farther at 561 million miles.

Saturday, June 27

Venus and Jupiter have closed to 1.7° from each other in the west at dusk.

In the southern sky this evening, look for Saturn lower left of the gibbous Moon. Scattered to the lower left of Saturn are the stars of Scorpius. The brightest of these is orange Antares.

Sunday, June 28

Saturn shines close to the waxing gibbous Moon this evening. Below and lower left of them runs Scorpius, as shown here.

Telescope users in eastern North America can watch for the thin, invisible dark limb of the Moon to occult the 4.1-magnitude star Theta Librae. Some times: Toronto, 10:58 p.m. EDT; New York, 11:08 p.m. EDT; Miami, 10:48 p.m. EDT; Chicago, 9:36 p.m. CDT; Austin, 9:06 p.m. CDT.

Meanwhile, Venus and Jupiter are now 1.1° apart in the west at dusk (in the longitudes of the Americas).

Monday, June 29

The bright Moon forms a triangle with Saturn to its right and Antares closer to its lower right, as shown here.

Venus and Jupiter are now 0.6° apart in the west at dusk (for the longitudes of the Americas).

Source: Sky & Telescope Return to Contents

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ISS Sighting Opportunities

For Denver: No Sightings Possible

Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Daylight Time)

Friday, June 26

1 p.m., ISS Science, Research and Technology Panel (all channels)

4:30 p.m., SpaceX/Dragon CRS-7 Prelaunch News Conference (Starts at 4:45pm) (all channels)

Saturday, June 27

2 p.m., International Docking Adapter/Commercial Crew Panel (all channels)

Sunday, June 28

9 a.m., Coverage of the Launch of the SpaceX/Dragon (Launch scheduled at 10:21 a.m. ET) (all channels)

11:30 a.m., SpaceX/Dragon CRS-7 Post-Launch News Conference (time is approximate) (all channels)

Tuesday, June 30

5:30 a.m., Coverage of the Grapple of the SpaceX/Dragon CRS-7 Cargo Craft at the ISS (Grapple scheduled at appx. 7 a.m. ET) (all channels)

8:30 a.m., Coverage of the Berthing of the SpaceX/Dragon CRS-7 Cargo Craft to the Harmony Module at the ISS (all channels)

11:30 a.m., Weekly Update on the New Horizons/Pluto Pre-Flyby Mission (Produced by Johns Hopkins applied Physics Laboratory) (all channels)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to the NASA website. Return to Contents

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Space Calendar • Jun 26 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #414 (OTM-414) • Jun 26 - [Jun 23] Comet C/2015 M1 (PANSTARRS) Closest Approach To Earth (1.153 AU) • Jun 26 - Asteroid 2014 OL339 Closest Approach To Earth (0.272 AU) • Jun 26 - Asteroid 274301 Wikipedia Closest Approach To Earth (1.141 AU) • Jun 26 - Asteroid 2023 Asaph Closest Approach To Earth (1.839 AU) • Jun 26 - Asteroid 5035 Swift Closest Approach To Earth (2.016 AU) • Jun 26 - Asteroid 7554 Johnspencer Closest Approach To Earth (2.309 AU) • Jun 26 - David Morrison's 75th Birthday (1940) • Jun 26 - Charles Messier's 285th Birthday (1730)

• Jun 27 - [Jun 22] NASA Wallops Flight Facility Open House, Wallops Island, Virginia • Jun 27 - Comet 319P/Catalina-McNaught Closest Approach To Earth (0.693 AU) • Jun 27 - Comet 322P/SOHO Closest Approach To Earth (0.959 AU) • Jun 27 - Comet 272P/NEAT At Opposition (4.235 AU) • Jun 27 - Asteroid 2013 VY9 Near-Earth Flyby (0.087 AU) • Jun 27 - Asteroid 4581 Asciepius Closest Approach To Earth (0.362 AU) • Jun 27 - Asteroid 6128 Lasorda Closest Approach To Earth (1.137 AU) • Jun 27 - Asteroid 11911 Angel Closest Approach To Earth (2.319 AU) • Jun 27 - Neptune Trojan 2008 LC18 At Opposition (31.443 AU) • Jun 27 - 20th Anniversary (1995), STS-71 Launch (Space Shuttle Atlantis, 1st Mir Docking)

• Jun 28 - [Jun 21] CRS-7/ BEAM/ IDA 1/ AggieSat 4/ Bevo 2/ Falcon 9 Launch (International Space Station)

• Jun 28 - Comet P/2008 Y12 (SOHO) At Opposition (3.691 AU) • Jun 28 - Asteroid 2022 West Closest Approach To Earth (1.865 AU) • Jun 29 - Comet P/2002 S7 (SOHO) At Opposition (3.928 AU) • Jun 29 - Comet P/2013 A2 (Scotti) At Opposition (4.109 AU) • Jun 29 - Asteroid 5535 Annefrank Closest Approach To Earth (1.314 AU) • Jun 29 - Asteroid 4738 Jimihendrix Closest Approach To Earth (1.387 AU) • Jun 29 - Asteroid 2874 Jim Young Closest Approach To Earth (1.390 AU) • Jun 29 - [Jun 23] Webcast: The Future of Human Spaceflight Panel • Jun 29 - Charles Precourt's 60th Birthday (1955)

Charles Messier

Source: JPL Space Calendar Return to Contents

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Food for Thought

NASA, Microsoft Collaborate to Bring Science Fiction to Science Fact

NASA and Microsoft are teaming up to develop Sidekick, a new project using commercial technology to empower astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

Sidekick uses Microsoft HoloLens to provide virtual aid to astronauts working off the Earth, for the Earth. A pair of the devices is scheduled to launch on SpaceX’s seventh commercial resupply mission to the station on June 28.

“HoloLens and other virtual and mixed reality devices are cutting edge technologies that could help drive future exploration and provide new capabilities to the men and women conducting critical science on the International Space Station,” said Sam Scimemi, director of the ISS program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “This new

technology could also empower future explorers requiring greater autonomy on the journey to Mars.”

The goal of Sidekick is to enable station crews with assistance when and where they need it. This new capability could reduce crew training requirements and increase the efficiency at which astronauts can work in space.

“Microsoft HoloLens is about transforming the ways you create, connect, and explore," said Alex Kipman, technical fellow, Windows and Devices Group at Microsoft. "Sidekick is a prime example of an application for which we envisioned HoloLens being used - unlocking new potential for astronauts and giving us all a new perspective on what is possible with holographic computing."

NASA and Microsoft engineers tested Project Sidekick and the Microsoft HoloLens aboard NASA’s Weightless Wonder C9 jet to ensure they function as expected in free-fall in advance of their delivery to the microgravity environment of the space station.

Sidekick has two modes of operation. The first is “Remote Expert Mode,” which uses Skype, part of Microsoft, to allow a ground operator to see what a crew member sees, provide real-time guidance, and draw annotations into the crew member’s environment to coach him or her through a task. Until now, crew members have relied on written and voice instructions when performing complex repair tasks or experiments.

The second mode is “Procedure Mode,” which augments standalone procedures with animated holographic illustrations displayed on top of the objects with which the crew is interacting. This capability could lessen the amount of training that future crews will require and could be an invaluable resource for missions deep into our solar system, where communication delays complicate difficult operations.

After the devices arrive at the space station, crew members will test and verify the software and hardware functionality in a standalone mode. A second set of devices to be delivered on a future mission will test and verify Sidekick functionality with network connectivity to test the Remote Expert Mode. NASA expects astronauts on the station will first use Sidekick by the end of the year.

Sidekick also will be used and evaluated during the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) 20 expedition set to begin July 21 when a group of astronauts and engineers live in the world's only undersea

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research station, Aquarius, for two weeks. The Aquarius habitat and its surroundings provide a convincing analog for space exploration.

The Sidekick project is part of a larger partnership formed by NASA and Microsoft to explore applications of holographic computing in space exploration. Earlier this year, NASA and Microsoft announced a collaboration to develop software called OnSight, a new technology that will enable scientists to work virtually on Mars using the same HoloLens technology. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, led the development of Sidekick and OnSight. NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston led testing and certification of Sidekick for use onboard the space station.

“Our team is excited to be building virtual and mixed reality tools that will make our explorers more efficient and effective,” said Jeff Norris, project lead for Sidekick and OnSight at JPL.

The International Space Station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation that enables us to demonstrate new technologies and make research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. It has been continuously occupied since November 2000 and, since then, has been visited by more than 200 people and a variety of international and commercial spacecraft. The space station remains the springboard to NASA's next giant leap in exploration, including future missions to an asteroid and Mars.

For more about the ISS, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station

Source: NASA Return to Contents

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Space Image of the Week

Planet Aurora

Explanation: What bizarre alien planet is this ? It's planet Earth of course, seen through the shimmering glow of aurorae from the International Space Station. About 400 kilometers (250 miles) above, the orbiting station is itself within the upper realm of the auroral displays, also watched from the planet's surface on June 23rd. Aurorae have the signature colors of excited molecules and atoms at the low densities found at extreme altitudes. The eerie greenish glow of molecular oxygen dominates this view. But higher, just above the space station's horizon, is a rarer red band of aurora from atomic oxygen. The ongoing geomagnetic storm began after a coronal mass ejection's recent impact on Earth's magnetosphere.

Image Credit: Scott Kelly, Expedition 44, NASA

Source: Astronomy Picture of the Day Return to Contents