Spaceflight A British Interplanetary Society Publication CASSINI Space art Grand finale in Wells Australia’s Smallsats place in UK space Rocket Targeting models Icarus down under Vol 59 No 10 October 2017 £4.50 www.bis-space.com CONTENTS Editor: Published by the British Interplanetary Society David Baker, PhD, BSc, FBIS, FRHS Sub-editor: Volume 59 No. 10 October 2017 Ann Page Production Assistant: 371 A Target for Icarus Ben Jones Peter Milne continues his occasional series on the Icarus interstellar project with a description of the evolving work to find a suitable Spaceflight Promotion: destination for the spacecraft, finding several options but only one Gillian Norman preferred target. Spaceflight Arthur C. Clarke House, 372-376 “Houston, this is Honeysuckle…” 27/29 South Lambeth Road, A veteran of more space missions than most people can remember, London, SW8 1SZ, England. Hamish Lindsay describes the vital role played by Australia’s tracking Tel: +44 (0)20 7735 3160 Fax: +44 (0)20 7582 7167 stations during manned and unmanned flights, including personal Email: [email protected] memories of the Honeysuckle Creek facility. www.bis-space.com 377-379 New Horizons for Space Modellers ADVERTISING Spaceflight asked Tony Radosevic to describe the motivation behind Tel: +44 (0)1424 883401 his new range of model kits depicting early launch vehicles, ICBMs Email: [email protected] and spacecraft and to tell us what he envisaged for the future of his DISTRIBUTION company in Australia. Spaceflight may be received worldwide by mail through membership of the British Interplanetary Society. Details including Library 380-383 Cassini - The Grand Finale 1: Steps onto the stage subscriptions are available from the above A historic mission is coming to an end and, in the first of a three-part address. series, Spaceflight looks back 20 years to the origins and extraordinary * * * accomplishments of the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft, a triumph for Spaceflight is obtainable from UK newsagents international cooperation. and other retail outlets in many countries. In the event of difficulty contact: Warners 384-387 Visions of Space Revisited Group Distribution, The Maltings, Manor Lane, Chris Starr played a major role in gathering together a stellar range of Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH, England. space art and speakers at Wells Museum during June and presents just Tel: +44 (0)1778 391 000 Fax: +44 (0)1778 393 668 some of the remarkable range of subjects and talent on display. * * * Spaceflight is a publication which promotes the mission of The British Interplanetary Society. Opinions in signed articles are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editor or the Council of the British Interplanetary Society. * * * Regular Features Back issues of Spaceflight are available from the Society. For details of issues and prices go 364-365 News Analysis – Smallsats are “Go”! to www.bis-space.com or send an sae to the address at top. 365 A Letter from the Editor * * * Published monthly by the British Interplanetary Society. Registered Company No: 402498. 367 Briefing notes – news shorts from around the world Registered Charity No: 250556. Printed in the UK by Latimer Trend & Company Ltd. 368-370 ISS Report – 9 July - 8 August 2017 * * * Copyright © British Interplanetary Society 388 Flashback – A regular feature looking back 50 years ago this month 2017 ISSN 0038-6340. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, 389 Obituary – U R Rao 1932-2017 electronic or mechanical, including photo- copying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system without written permission 390-393 Satellite Digest – 537 July 2017 from the Publishers. Photocopying permitted by license only. 394 Correspondence – Natural selection? – Declarations of faith * * * The British Interplanetary Society is a company 396-397 Society News – BIS Silver Pin for Michael Foale limited by guarantee. Mission 398 What’s On The British Interplanetary Society promotes the exploration and use of space for the benefit SpaceX successfully launched its 12th commercial resupply mission to the International of humanity, by connecting people to create, Cover image: educate and inspire, and advance knowledge in Space Station on 14 August and looks forward to launching Falcon Heavy from the same LC-39A later all aspects of astronautics. this year (see page 367). Joel Powell Spaceflight Vol 59 October 2017 363 NEWS ANALYSIS SSTL subsidiary DMC International Imaging (above) provides data from the Disaster Monitoring Constellation satellites. Right: SSTL’s Kazakhstan’s Kaz and Telesat-7 prototype LEO satellites. SSTL Smallsats are “Go”! uring the 31st Annual Conference on former SSTL employees. ISM says that the idea 500 kg or less. It includes cubesats, nanosats, Small Satellites at Logan, Utah, on 8 for Faraday came from SSTL’s TechDemoSat, picosats and free-flying circuit boards – if August, a debate was held regarding launched in 2014 carrying a range of equipment you are into “virtual” connections between Dthe general upturn in “smallsat” enabling from British industry. components (which the military are when they technology. It was promulgated that there Faraday is itself a spacecraft bus, the launch electronic components to look like may be a threat from consolidation based on first of which is planned for launch to a Sun- space debris, “talking” to each other across optimum revenue streaming. It was decided synchronous orbit in early 2019 to operate space) – but generally speaking they are very that there is very little danger to what is an a wide range of small payloads in a six- cheap, simple and highly effective at putting up increasingly vibrant industry, so influential that month demonstration for a variety of different payloads for customers unable to afford large it is having knock-on effects far away from the customers. Following which, the bus itself could satellites on dedicated launchers. Except that clean-rooms and test facilities of specialist continue to operate for up to five years for one is where the knock-on effect of an expanding smallsat manufacturers. or more payloads identified by specific users. market delivers its own rewards. But before we get into those knock-effects, Faraday and SSTL have reached agreement Companies like Virgin Galactic, which good news for British space business came on flying missions annually for three years to cleverly attracted bucket loads of publicity by with word that Surrey Satellite Technology see how far the demonstration and qualification getting people with large disposable incomes Ltd (SSTL) and In-Space Missions Ltd (ISM), takes it. But if current trends are anything to go to sign up to fun flights to the edge of space, have signed a deal setting up Faraday – a joint by, it could easily be the start of something big. are now turning that technology into the really project designed to market SSTL smallsats and interesting – and deliverable – revenue- provide platforms ranging from 50 kg down to What are smallsats? earning technologies: smallsat launchers. circuit boards for customers. In-Space Missions Today, the word is flexible but generally There is a very wide gap between researchers, Ltd grew out of SSTL put together in 2015 by indicates anything sent into space weighing technologists, institutions and universities who 364 Spaceflight Vol 59 October 2017 NEWS ANALYSIS are unable to afford anything more expensive than balloon-carriers or sounding rockets and those who buy dedicated satellites for major research projects. lon Musk is getting ready for one of technology, engineering and development, That gap is being addressed with a range his most audacious commitments: expect tests to succeed because they are of smallsat launcher concepts, several of which the launch of the first Falcon Heavy, designed as verification shots. If they fail are very likely to deliver on their promise. And Eessentially three Falcon 9 rockets strapped there is uproar, vilification from the media the growth in smallsat payloads and customers together. It is high risk and it is to be and a cloak of shame. It should not be so. is riding an upward curve that will very soon applauded. It is where the space industry Commercial space is succeeding cross over the falling curve of launch costs used to be: testing new ideas with only a 50- because it is trying, failing, and trying again based on frequent use and lower prices off the 50 chance of succeeding first time around. It – eventually (quite quickly) succeeding, launch pad. When those lines cross, revenue is a return to basics and it is to be welcomed. running rings around the ponderous and risk- streams can feed further development for Generally, in “old space” industries, averse agencies from which they get their better, and cheaper, launchers and they turn a testing has now become the applauded custom. Yet it was the very philosophy of profit. verification of an assumption. Be it launch high-risk followed by teams that succeeded vehicle or spacecraft, nowadays a test in putting NASA astronauts around the New spaces shot is expected to work perfectly and we Moon less than seven years after the first But there is more to this. In a trend reminiscent assume that it will. This is a cultural shift in US manned space flight. Now, it takes of that first surge toward “commercial space” in the way space projects proceed and it is an longer than that to conduct consultative the early 1980s, venture capitalists are looking endemic misappropriation of what testing studies between government and industry to put their money into early-stage companies is all about – which should be about trying to develop a small space probe. to fast-track a plethora of promising applications something that may not work but from which But if that is taken exclusively it is a little such as imaging, asset tracking, data collection lessons can be learned.