JAXA Press Release
Representatives of 11 space agencies from around the world gathered in Montreal, Canada July 10 - 12 to continue the coordination of programs to extend human and robotic presence throughout the Solar System.
In May 2007, multilateral space agency discussions resulted in the release of “The Global Exploration Strategy - The Framework for Coordination.” This “framework document” - the product of a shared vision of space exploration focused on solar system destinations where humans may someday live and work - represented an important first step in coordinating space exploration efforts toward common goals. The Framework Document envisioned a coordination mechanism to facilitate international planning, leading to the establishment of the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG).
During the Montreal ISECG meeting which was hosted by the Canadian Space Agency, the participating agencies made significant progress in a number of areas that will facilitate cooperation. Among accomplishments were the establishment of an ISECG secretariat, that will be initially hosted by ESA, plans for conducting effective public engagement, and development of tools for sharing information on exploration capabilities and mission plans across agencies.
Continue reading ‘Space Agencies Meet in Montreal to Coordinate Space Exploration Plans’
Guy Bujold, Canadian Space Agency president; Jean-Jacques Dordain, European Space Agency director-general; NASA Administrator Michael Griffin; Anatolii N. Perminov, Russian Federal Space Agency head; and Keiji Tachikawa, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency president. Credit: ESA/S. Corvaja
The Heads of the Five Families Space Agencies met in Paris this week to discuss ending the Mob war, dividing up the narcotics trade, and bringing Michael Corleone back from Sicily the future of the International Space Station.
Among other things, the meeting produced this statement supporting their own efforts on - of all things - the International Space Station, which they have spent the last 20 years building.
Heads of Agency International Space Station Joint Statement
PARIS — The heads of the International Space Station (ISS) agencies from Canada, Europe, Japan, Russia and the United States met at European Space Agency (ESA) Headquarters in Paris on July 17, 2008, to review ISS cooperation. As part of their discussions, they noted the significantly expanded capability that the ISS now provides for on-orbit research and technology development activities and as an engineering test bed for flight systems and operations that are critical to future space exploration initiatives. These activities improve the quality of life on Earth by expanding the frontiers of human knowledge.
Continue reading ‘Heads of the Five Space Agencies Meet; Is Bloody ISS Turf War Finally Over?’
Taylor Dinerman examines the current state of the reusable launch vehicle industry over at The Space Review. He is particularly intrigued by a test of a sub-scale space plane that Lockheed Martin conducted in New Mexico last December.
Rob Coppinger of Flight Global takes a look at the success of SpaceX, the El Segundo, Calif. rocket company that has secured a NASA launch services contract that could be worth up to $1 billion without ever having launched anything into orbit. The contract involves the company’s Falcon 1 vehicle, which has failed in its only two launch attempts, and the larger Falcon 9, which has yet to fly.
Coppinger also examines new rocket and spacecraft concepts under consideration by Japan and Europe on his Hyperbola blog. JAXA is considering a VTOL concept that looks a lot like the vehicle that Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is working on. Meanwhile, ESA and Russia are jointly examining various designs for a crew transport.
A major initiative has been launched to improve quality control for the Proton launcher, which has suffered two failures in eight months, Coppinger reports. Russia’s Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and its partner, International Launch Services, will be working closely with subcontractors to prevent future problems.
In American space news, the Rocketsandsuch blog has a new post claiming that costs on NASA’s Orion program have risen again by about $3 billion.
JAXA has published some really cool images of the lunar surface produced by its Kaguya (Selene) orbiter. These include:
- Topographical map of the moon 10 times more accurate than any previous one.
- “Full Earth-rise” without any wane. This is the first time that a high-definition image of the full Earth has been captured from space.
- Images of the Apollo 11 landing site on Mare Tranquillitatis.
Belated congratulations are also in order: the Kaguya mission team was honored with a Laureate Award by Aviation Week & Space Technology last month. This is the first Japanese mission to be honored in such a way.
With the first part of its Kibo module attached to the International Space Station, the Japanese space agency has decided to recruit 3 new members to its existing roster of 8 astronauts, Reuters reports.
“We hope to have more applicants this time than we did last time,” said Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency official Takahiro Abe. “Japanese will have opportunities to work for long periods at the International Space Station.”
Earlier this week, the Canadian Space Agency announced it will recruit additional astronauts. In the Ottawa Sun, columnist Greg Weston finds it sad that his country is recruiting new astronauts at a time when its top aerospace company, MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, is selling its space division to an American defense contractor.
The Conservative government of Stephen Harper has until April 21 to decide on whether to approve or block the sale. MDA built Canada’s most famous contributions to human spaceflight, the two Canadarms and the Dextre robot.
With the first part of its Kibo module delivered to the International Space Station, Japanese space officials are becoming more assertive as they face growing expectations to make good on their 20-year-old commitment to the orbiting laboratory, the Yomiuri Shimbun reports.
“Though Japan is the last of the participating nations to have a facility attached to the ISS, the country is now a full-fledged member of the spacefaring community, and no longer needs to feel shy about pushing its own agenda vis-a-vis the United States, Russia, the European Union and other member nations,” staff writers Koichi Yasuda and Makoto Mitsui report.
They have an interesting account of a disagreement that occurred between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) as Takao Doi and his colleagues were connecting the module to ISS during the recent Endeavour flight.
Continue reading ‘Japan Becomes More Assertive as ISS Role, Expectations Grow’
Credit: NASA
As the first section of the Japanese Kibo module is attached to the International Space Station this week, Air & Space Magazine takes an in-depth look at the country’s small but ambitious human spaceflight program.
Former NASA astronaut Dan Berry talks with Japanese astronauts and space agency officials about their goals for the future and the cultural challenges they face in working with Americans and other members of the space station program.