Friday, October 11, 2013

Scott Carpenter, Mercury astronaut, dies at 88

Time passes as do we all. Time to reflect and remember.

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Scott Carpenter, Mercury astronaut, dies at 88
BY WILLIAM HARWOOD
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS "SPACE PLACE" & USED WITH PERMISSION
Posted: October 10, 2013

Malcolm Scott Carpenter, one of the original seven Mercury astronauts who was forced to take manual control of his Aurora 7 capsule after running low on fuel in one of the scarier moments of the early space program, died early Thursday. He was 88.
....
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Scott Carpenter, Mercury Astronaut in ‘Right Stuff,’ Dies at 88
By Laurence Arnold - Oct 10, 2013 4:00 PM PT
Scott Carpenter, the second American to orbit the Earth and one of the seven Mercury astronauts immortalized in Tom Wolfe’s book, “The Right Stuff,” has died. He was 88.
He died yesterday in a Denver hospice, according to the Associated Press, citing his wife, Patty Barrett, who said his death was due to complications from a stroke in September. He lived in Vail, Colorado.
...
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John Glenn pays tribute to late space pioneer: 'Godspeed, Scott Carpenter'

By Seth BorensteinThe Associated Press
WASHINGTON — When John Glenn soared into space as the first American in orbit, Scott Carpenter wished him bon voyage with three simple words: "Godspeed, John Glenn." Glenn bid farewell to his lifelong pal who died Thursday in the same way.
"Godspeed, Scott Carpenter -- Great Friend," Glenn, the last remaining Mercury 7 astronaut, said in a statement issued by his spokesman on Friday. He added: "You are missed."

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Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -

WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Godspeed, LADEE! AGI software-based Flight Dynamics System to be tested on mission to Moon

I have been reading some of the links I passed earlier and hope you have had a chance to do the same.  I was interested in what was being done with AGI's ASTROGATOR. for the Flight Dynamics System. 

I remember the work that was being done to plan for a possible Lunar Prospector mission.  Folks from Goddard Space Flight Center came to NASA Ames one day with their copy of Swingby to see if it could be used to help speed up orbit designs.

My jobs in support of the Pioneer Mission went away with those missions ending.  I went to work for Lam Research for a year and a half, and then I got a call from Rick Campo who was now working for Lockheed/Martin on the Lunar Prospector mission. Would I like to see if there might be a way to display live instrument data for a Lunar Prospector web site? 

I had to chose if I wanted to leave a full time teaching job at Lam Research to take a half time job with Orbital Sciences Corporation to work on software for the web site. YES!  (later that would become full time - then half time - then no time, with visitor passes, but that is another Pioneer Anomaly story)

Launch dates slipped, as happens with new space missions, and new possible lunch profiles needed to be worked out. Swingby had turned into a commercial product.  This was acquired by AGI and used for the Lunar Prospector mission.

This software is again used here for LADEE as mentioned in Jim Woodburn's AGI blog. If you haven't read the blog already, take a look. He has more links as well.  

By the way, you can get a free version of STK and then buy the more expensive modules only if you need them. I have version 9 (which I haven't learned how to use) and now version 10 is out. :-)


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Godspeed, LADEE! AGI software-based Flight Dynamics System to be tested on mission to Moon
NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft is in the nose-cone of the Minotaur V rocket, awaiting launch from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia tonight at 11:27 p.m. EDT. This mission marks many firsts—it’s the first spacecraft built in-house at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., without a prime contractor, the first launch of the U.S. Air Force’s five-stage Minotaur V vehicle, managed and operated by Orbital Sciences Corp., the first lunar mission flown by Orbital and the first lunar mission launched out of Wallops. According to the NASA website, this approximately 160-day “robotic mission will orbit the Moon to gather detailed information about the structure and composition of the thin lunar atmosphere and determine whether dust is being lofted into the lunar sky. Once launched, the spacecraft will enter into a series of phasing orbits that will allow it to approach the Moon from its leading edge, travel behind it and reemerge to execute a 3-minute Lunar Orbit Insertion maneuver that will place it in an elliptical retrograde equatorial orbit for 24 hours. A series of maneuvers will then be performed to reduce the orbit to nearly circular with a 156-mile altitude. After this, a 100-day Science Phase will commence, followed by a decommissioning period when the altitude will be lowered and the spacecraft will impact the lunar surface.”
......

The LADEE Flight Dynamics System (FDS) was built by our good friends at Applied Defense Solutions (ADS) and Space Exploration Engineering (SEE), in close coordination with Ames  where mission operations will be performed after launch. I was privileged to be part of the peer review team for the LADEE flight dynamics design and was very impressed by the exceptional quality of the people on the team. ADS has used AGI products to operate well more than 20 military, NASA and commercial spacecraft, including IBEX, LCROSS and theRadiation Belt Storm Probes, and the LADEE FDS is no different. The system is based on our STK, STK Astrogator and Orbit Determination Tool Kit software. Because the software has been proven in so many operational NASA missions and is in use at most centers, the LADEE team was confident in using it for their FDS. It also made collaboration that much easier.
.....

Also significant was the reuse of AGI products. Since the software has been employed for many other operational missions, including those in deep space, using it helped reduce technical risk and testing time.

....

About Jim Woodburn

Dr. Jim Woodburn is AGI's chief orbital scientist. He is responsible for the maintenance, enhancement and verification of all STK functions that rely on orbital or attitude dynamics.
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Here is a 13 page Microsoft Word document about history of STK.

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Software Architecture and Use of Satellite Tool Kit's ... - IEEC 


This paper describes the history of the software program and reasons behind the numerical ...
 In 1996 AGI bought Navigator from CSC, and obtained the rights to ... 
A summary of the libration point and deep-space missions that employed ..... 
BeforeSwingby was built, the Goddard Mission Analysis System (GMAS) was used  ...

Software Architecture and Use of Satellite Tool Kit’s Astrogator Module for Libration Point Orbit Missions
John Carrico, Emmet Fletcher

Analytical Graphics, Inc.

Abstract

The Satellite Tool Kit (STK) Astrogator software module is the third and most recent version of a program originally developed by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).  This software lineage - Swingby, Navigator, Astrogator – started in 1989 and has since been used to design and operate many missions, including the non-low Earth orbit missions Clementine, Wind, SOHO, ACE, Lunar Prospector, the AsiaSat 3 rescue, and MAP.  This paper describes the history of the software program and reasons behind the numerical methods employed. The authors also discuss the software design methodology and goals that led to this mature software product.  Limitations encountered during analysis and operations use are described, as well as subsequent architecture changes made to alleviate them, reduce risk, and support automation.

Introduction

Astrogator is the maneuver planning and trajectory design module of Satellite Tool Kit (STK), a completely commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software program developed by Analytical Graphics, Incorporated (AGI)[i].  Astrogator is fully integrated within STK and, among other things, can be used to generate the orbit ephemeris and attitude history of spacecraft.  These data are then available for subsequent analysis and processing by other modules in STK, such as calculating station acquisitions, lighting times, communication links, coverage effectiveness, and Sensor obscurations.
........

Summary

The software linage of Swingby, Navigator, and STK/Astrogator has been used for the analysis and operations of the majority of Libration point trajectories, as well as several Cislunar, Lunar, asteroid, and interplanetary missions, since it’s first use for the Clementine (DSPSE) mission.  The feedback from use in early missions has caused significant enhancements for the most recent incarnation, STK/Astrogator.  The driving requirement to have a single software tool support pre-launch mission analysis, operations, and contingencies has been a major factor in selection of algorithms and methods, and several innovative solutions have been implemented to accomplish this task.

The close working relationship between software industry and government experts has been instrumental in the development of a commercial software product with a mature feature set able to support Libration point and other multi-body missions.

Finally the integration of the trajectory software package Astrogator with the other mission analysis capabilities of STK has proven to be valuable for many analysis and operational tasks:  The ‘normal’ post-trajectory-design numerical tasks have been streamlined and automated, ensuring consistency, reducing risks, and allowing studies that would otherwise be time and cost prohibitive.  Additionally, the interactive and advanced computer graphics capabilities have become an invaluable aid to understanding the complex trajectories that exist in the multi-body problem.
......
[i] Analytical Graphics, Inc. web site at www.stk.com
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And another look at "The Astrogator's Guild"

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The Astrogator's Guild

Mike, John and other astrogators guide you through the gravity fields of space

LADEE Trajectory Update: 10-08-13

LADEE is now in its last rev in the 24 hour capture orbit, and preparing for LOI-2, which will lower the spacecraft into a 4 hr orbit.  LOI-2 is scheduled for 10:38 UTC (3:38 AM PDT) Wed. morning, Oct. 9. Here’s the view from LADEE to the Moon:


Some Orbital links

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As you may have noticed from the material, there are interested and talented personnel working behind the scenes on space missions. Hope you have some young ones coming up through the educational system that are being inspired to be creative. Got to help the granddaughter in first grade use spheres, cones, and tubes to make her idea of a Unicorn robot.

Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -
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WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -

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Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Update to my LADEE update

Daniel , in Germany, sent me an email with concerns about why more folks, especially space journalists, are not talking more about the LADEE mission. He suggested that "The Astrogator's Guild" should be on your reading list. (my paraphrasing)  See link below.

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The Astrogator's Guild

Mike, John and other astrogators guide you through the gravity fields of space

LADEE Trajectory Update: 10-08-13

LADEE is now in its last rev in the 24 hour capture orbit, and preparing for LOI-2, which will lower the spacecraft into a 4 hr orbit.  LOI-2 is scheduled for 10:38 UTC (3:38 AM PDT) Wed. morning, Oct. 9. Here’s the view from LADEE to the Moon:


Daniels website is in German, which you might also like to follow.

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Skyweek Zwei Punkt Null
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AGI makes the STK and ASTROGATOR program.

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AGI develops commercial modeling and analysis software for the space, defense and intelligence communities. Used by more than 40,000 engineers, operators and analysts worldwide, AGI software avoids the cost of reinvention, eliminates stovepipes and reduces risks associated with unproven tools.

NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft is in the nose-cone of the Minotaur V rocket, awaiting launch from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia tonight at 11:27 p.m. EDT. This mission marks many firsts—it’s the first spacecraft built in-house at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., without a prime contractor, the first launch of the U.S. Air Force’s five-stage Minotaur V vehicle, managed and operated by Orbital Sciences Corp., the first lunar mission flown by Orbital and the first lunar mission launched out of Wallops. According to the NASA website, this approximately 160-day “robotic mission will orbit the Moon to gather detailed information about the structure and composition of the thin lunar atmosphere and determine whether dust is being lofted into the lunar sky. Once launched, the spacecraft will enter into a series of phasing orbits that will allow it to approach the Moon from its leading edge, travel behind it and reemerge to execute a 3-minute Lunar Orbit Insertion maneuver that will place it in an elliptical retrograde equatorial orbit for 24 hours. A series of maneuvers will then be performed to reduce the orbit to nearly circular with a 156-mile altitude. After this, a 100-day Science Phase will commence, followed by a decommissioning period when the altitude will be lowered and the spacecraft will impact the lunar surface.”

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And again, Wikepedia has a good run down on LADEE.

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Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment ExplorerThe Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is a NASA lunar exploration mission led by Ames Research Centerin collaboration with Goddard Space Flight Center. It was launched on a Minotaur V from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on September 7, 2013, at 03:27 UTC.[4] During its nominal 100-day scientific mission, LADEE will orbit around the Moon's equator, and use instruments aboard the spacecraft to study the lunar exosphere and dust in the Moon's vicinity. Instruments include a dust detector, a neutral mass spectrometer, and an ultraviolet-visible spectrometer, as well as a technology demonstration consisting of a lasercommunications terminal.[5] (see Free-space optical communication "lasercom")
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SFLIGHT101 has a very pictorial account on the LADEE mission if you have not seen.

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Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -

WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -

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Monday, October 7, 2013

LADEE Has Entered Lunar Orbit - so it is said

My SpaceRef Daily News letter says LADEE has entered lunar orbit.

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  • Posted by Keith Cowing - Source: SpaceRef
  • Posted October 6, 2013 10:31 AM

According to someone at NASA: "Early this morning (October 6), we fired LADEE's main engine in a braking maneuver known as the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) burn."
"This slowed the spacecraft's velocity enough for it to be captured by the Moon's gravity. This critical burn went flawlessly and LADEE is now in lunar orbit! Two more main engine burns, on October 9 and 12 will adjust LADEE's trajectory, settling it into its commissioning orbit."
Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
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Wikepedia has a good run down on LADEE.

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Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment ExplorerThe Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is a NASA lunar exploration mission led by Ames Research Centerin collaboration with Goddard Space Flight Center. It was launched on a Minotaur V from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on September 7, 2013, at 03:27 UTC.[4] During its nominal 100-day scientific mission, LADEE will orbit around the Moon's equator, and use instruments aboard the spacecraft to study the lunar exosphere and dust in the Moon's vicinity. Instruments include a dust detector, a neutral mass spectrometer, and an ultraviolet-visible spectrometer, as well as a technology demonstration consisting of a lasercommunications terminal.[5] (see Free-space optical communication "lasercom")
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SFLIGHT101 has a very pictorial account on the LADEE mission if you have not seen.

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We will have to wait until NASA gets back to work to follow what is happening from NASA Ames and Goddard Spceflight Center.

Others are talking though.  Thanks.

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NASA's LADEE Spacecraft Project Successful
Submitted by Bruce Totolos on Mon, 10/07/2013 - 06:36

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Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -
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WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -

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Saturday, October 5, 2013

SpaceX launched upgraded Falcon 9 rocket from west cast September 29, 2013

With much expectation, we have been waiting to see how the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch from the west coast launch site would go.  It looks like it did well with a possible glitch with the upper stage.  Since I would guess you have been following this already I will just leave you with two links.

It will be interesting to see how well things go with both Orbital Sciences and SpaceX coming on line.

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SpaceX launched upgraded Falcon 9 rocket from west cast September 29, 2013
Sep. 29, 2013 at 4:17 PM ET
Irene KlotzReuters

The private spaceflight company SpaceX launched the first of its new and improved Falcon 9 rockets from the California coast on Sunday, succeeding with an ambitious test flight that also marked the company's first flight from the West Coast.

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SpaceX knocks down claim that Falcon 9 rocket exploded in orbit
Oct. 1, 2013 at 2:35 PM ET
Alan Boyle, Science EditorNBC News

The SpaceX launch company and its billionaire founder, Elon Musk, on Tuesday smacked down suggestions that the upper stage of its upgraded Falcon 9 rocket exploded after putting a half-dozen satellites in orbit.

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I will be  also watching to see when NASA gets back to business.

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MAVEN mission engineers go back to work after NASA gets exemption 
By  on 4 October, 2013 in exploration, NASA, Satellites, Science - 

While most NASA employees have been temporarily laid off following US Congress failure to pass the US budget for this year, some exemptions have been allowed.  Just as police, military and other essential workers have been allowed to remain at work (and get paid) so NASA engineers working on the Mars Atmosphere And Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft have now been allowed back in preparation for its launch on 18 November approaches.

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Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -
 
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WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -

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Friday, October 4, 2013

Back in the USA 

Spent a month and half in Thailand and returned 18 September 2013 and here it is October already. The US Government is in shutdown and a lot of employees are on furlough with no pay.  This includes NASA which means its websites as well are not available.
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http://notice.usa.gov/



Due to the lapse in federal government funding, this website is not available. 
We sincerely regret this inconvenience.



For information about available government services, visit USA.gov.









Este sitio web no se está disponible durante el cierre del Gobierno. 
Lamentamos profundamente las molestias que esto pueda causar.



Visite GobiernoUSA.gov para informarse sobre los servicios gubernamentales disponibles durante el cierre del Gobierno.








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You folks were great about sending me interesting links which I read on the Internet with my smart phone when I could connect with WiFi.
LADEE launched on a mission to the Moon with a highly elliptical orbit around Earth. It is about to change to a lunar orbit. 
Since we can't use the NASA site let me give you a link to the Planetary Society web site.
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-lakdawalla/2013/10021120-ladee-has-finally-left-earth.html


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July 27 I posted about the eBook,"The Pioneer Directives", and I received an invitation to listen to Konsantin Kakaes read part of his book at a meeting at 2:00 p.m. the day we got back from Thailand.  I didn't think I could make it, (17 hour flight time) but we got in early and traffic was light from San Francisco to Tracy. Cleaned up and drove an hour and a half to NASA Ames at Moffett Field. The attendance was very sparse I believe because Ames scheduled another meeting at 2:00 p.m. on capturing an asteroid and bringing it to the Moon.  The few of us that were there had a most enjoyable time reminiscing about the Pioneer missions. It had been some time since I had visited Ames and was good to see where you had worked for 20 years. Nice to see Ames is still working on lunar missions.


http://pioneerdetectives.createsend1.com/t/ViewEmail/i/BEC92898C34868EF/85F4B1A130D0A3FE2540EF23F30FEDED 


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It looks like NASA has been having a busy time with Orbital sciences' Cygnus cargo spacecraft successfully birthing to the ISS on September 29, 2013.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/09/29/orbital-sciences-cygnus-spacecraft-successfully-berths-with-the-iss/

 

 9/29/2013 @ 1:31PM 


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Then there was the Voyager 1 announcement about leaving the Solar System.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/12/tech/innovation/voyager-solar-system/index.html
http://www.theguardian.com/science/across-the-universe/2013/sep/13/voyager-1-solar-system-great-explorers





Okay, I am back and will see what I can find of interest to let you know about and please feel free to let me know what you find as well.







The weather here in Tracy California is a bit drier than what was happening in Thailand. 



I tend to wilt in 90 degree F at 73% humidity with thunder storms most every day. :-)










Thanks for looking up with me.
- LRK -

Web Site: http://lkellogg.vttoth.com/LarryRussellKellogg/
BlogSpot: http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/
WordPress: http://lrkellogg.wordpress.com/
RSS link: http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Newsletter: https://mailman1.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-update
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Saturday, July 27, 2013


          

        










The Pioneer Detectives












Viktor Toth mentioned at his blog site a new eBook by Konstantin Kakaes about the Pioneer Anomaly.



Please excuse the plug for the book.





After reading Viktor's comments I had it down loaded to my Toshiba AT 300 Android tablet and had an enjoyable read with a free Kindle reader..



It brought back a lot of memories about the Pioneer 10 and 11 missions and conversations with Viktor Toth.



I must admit a surprise to see my name mentioned in print.  







Do read what Viktor has to say and some of the reviews at Amazon.com.



The story behind the story, told in an entertaining way, may interest you as well.

- LRK -







Viktor's blog





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I spent a part of yesterday afternoon speed-reading Konstantin Kakaes’s new e-book, The Pioneer Detectives. It’s a short book (still well worth the $2.99 Kindle price) but it reads very well and presents a fair picture of our efforts researching the origin of the anomalous acceleration of the Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft.







Yes, I was one of those “detectives”. (In fact, I still consider myself one, as I don’t believe our job is quite done yet; we still owe the community a detailed account of our research and an update of our Pioneer Anomaly reviewbefore we can move on with a clean conscience.) So I have an insider’s view of this very intriguing story.





snip



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The Pioneer Detectives



- LRK -







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The Pioneer Detectives









snip



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At Amazon.com



- LRK -









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The Pioneer Detectives: Did a distant spacecraft prove Einstein and Newton wrong? (Kindle Single) [Kindle Edition]

Konstantin Kakaes





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A number of reviews. A snip of one for flavor.



- LRK -









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snip





3 of 3 people found the following review helpful









Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase





The heroes of science are those who follow the evidence wherever it leads them. Scientists may be motivated by glory and fame, they are human after all, but the good ones are also motivated by a fundamental desire to understand. Those men working on the Pioneer Anomaly, which, if true, would upend Einstein's theory of gravity, were motivated by understanding. What force could be acting on a spacecraft that made its actual distance so much different than the distance it should be at under Einstein's theory?

"Detectives" was a great word to choose for the title. This short book reads like an unfolding mystery, and Kakaes holds the answer until the end. In doing so, you learn to appreciate the incredible amount of honest work done by the team at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (also known as the coolest place on earth) in the face of bureaucratic intransigence along with lost and fading data.

The pacing of the book is excellent, and while Kakaes expects a lot from the reader (he doesn't skip over the science, since it's the integral to understanding the issue), he's a more than capable guide and you need not have a previously strong understanding of general relativity before diving in. Still, I admire for Kakaes for trusting his audience's intelligence, which allows him to tell a story without reverting to gimmicky metaphors. For those dismayed by the current canon of science writing for general readers as too dumbed down and extrapolative, this is the book for you.

Kakaes ends with some big thoughts, ones that leave the reader thinking long after finishing.









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Thanks for looking up with me.  
- LRK -



 






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