[Spacetalk] https://www.nasa.gov/index.html; https://spaceflightnow.com

Tue Apr 13 23:25:07 CDT 2021

Hi all,
 This is the latest on Ingenuity…we have been following the updates so I could give you the new date and times…we will have to wait a little longer...we have to stay positive and always be thankful… still so much going on with the space program… be sure to register as a NASA virtual guest for the launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission. (see below)...remembering to do our best, enjoy everything we do, believe in ourselves, and let those we care about most know (I always say this, we all need to take it to heart) …hugs & smiles... :-) :-) STAY SAFE, TAKE CARE, Love ya, Gabe

NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity won't fly until next week at the earliest
By Mike Wall <https://www.space.com/author/mike-wall> 16 hours ago
The team will modify and reinstall Ingenuity's flight-control software. for the latest on Ingenuity go to: https://www.nasa.gov/centers/jpl/home/index.html <https://www.nasa.gov/centers/jpl/home/index.html> 

NASA's Mars Helicopter Ingenuity is seen on the surface of the Red Planet by the perseverance rover on April 5, 2021. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU)

We'll have to wait a bit longer to see the first Mars helicopter lift off.
NASA had originally aimed to conduct the first Red Planet flight of its Ingenuity helicopter <https://www.space.com/ingenuity-mars-helicopter-perseverance-rover> — the first-ever powered flight on a world beyond Earth — on Sunday (April 11). A high-speed rotor-spinning test on Friday (April 9) didn't go as planned, however, pushing the debut back <https://www.space.com/nasa-mars-helicopter-flight-delay> until Wednesday (April 14) at the earliest.
Now, after analyzing the issue over the weekend, the Ingenuity team has concluded "that minor modification and reinstallation of Ingenuity’s flight control software is the most robust path forward," officials at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California, which manages Ingenuity's technology-demonstrating mission, wrote in an update <https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/status/290/work-progresses-toward-ingenuity-s-first-flight-on-mars/> Monday (April 12).
"Our best estimate of a targeted flight date is fluid right now, but we are working toward achieving these milestones and will set a flight date next week," NASA officials wrote in the update.
Related: Watch NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity test its blades! (video) <https://www.space.com/mars-helicopter-ingenuity-tests-rotor-blades>
Validating the software change and beaming it to the 4-lb. (1.8 kilograms) chopper, via NASA's Perseverance rover <https://www.space.com/perseverance-rover-mars-2020-mission>, will take some time, the officials added. A detailed timeline is still being worked out, and the team plans to set a new flight date next week.

https://ww <https://ww/> "We are confident in the team’s ability to work through this challenge and prepare for Ingenuity’s historic first controlled, powered flight on another planet," officials wrote. Ingenuity remains healthy and stable, and its vital systems such as power and communications are working properly, they added.
Perseverance and Ingenuity landed together inside Mars' 28-mile-wide (45 kilometers) Jezero Crater on Feb. 18. On April 3, the solar-powered helicopter deployed from the rover's belly and began soaking up the Martian sun for the first time.
After powering up, Ingenuity began going through a series of preflight checkouts. The chopper sailed through all of these tests except the final one — Friday's spinup, which aimed to get Ingenuity's two rotors up to 2,400 revolutions per minute, the same rotational speed they'll reach during flight. 
But during the test, "the command sequence controlling the test ended early due to a 'watchdog' timer expiration," NASA officials wrote in a statement <https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/status/291/mars-helicopter-flight-delayed-to-no-earlier-than-april-14/> on Saturday (April 10). "This occurred as it was trying to transition the flight computer from 'Pre-Flight' to 'Flight' mode.”
Ingenuity carries two cameras but no scientific instruments. Its main task is to show that powered flight on Mars is possible, potentially opening up a new mode of exploration on the Red Planet. If Ingenuity's month-long flight campaign is successful, future Mars missions could commonly include helicopters <https://www.space.com/mars-helicopter-nasa-space-exploration.html> as scouts for rovers or as data gatherers in their own right, NASA officials have said.

SpaceX's SN15 Starship prototype rolls out to launch pad
By Mike Wall <https://www.space.com/author/mike-wall> 16 hours ago

https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-sn15-launch-pad?utm_source=Selligent&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SDC_Newsletter&utm_content=SDC_Newsletter+&utm_term=2868862SpaceX is moving on quickly from its latest fallen Starship <https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-super-heavy.html> prototype.
Elon Musk's company rolled out the newest Starship test vehicle <https://twitter.com/thejackbeyer/status/1380391439306133504>, known as SN15 ("Serial No. 15"), its South Texas launch pad last Thursday (April 8), just over a week after its predecessor exploded during a high-altitude flight <https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-sn11-rocket-launch-2nd-attempt>.

That previous vehicle, SN11, performed well during most of its 6.2-mile-high (10 kilometers) flight on March 30 but suffered a serious problem while gearing up for landing <https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-sn11-crash-cause>. (SpaceX skipped the SN12, SN13 and SN14 iterations, going directly from SN11 to SN15.) 

Video: Watch SpaceX's Starship SN11 launch on a test flight <https://videos.space.com/m/78dXZUyF/spacex-starship-sn11-lost-minutes-after-foggy-launch?list=9wzCTV4g>

Blue Origin to launch 'astronaut rehearsal' New Shepard test flight Wednesday. How to watch live.
By Mike Wall <https://www.space.com/author/mike-wall> 16 hours ago

Blue Origin's first upgraded New Shepard rocket and crew capsule launches on an uncrewed suborbital flight from the company's West Texas test site on Jan. 14, 2021. (Image credit: Blue Origin)
Blue Origin <https://www.space.com/19584-blue-origin-quiet-plans-for-spaceships.html> plans to launch an uncrewed test flight of its New Shepard suborbital vehicle on Wednesday (April 14), and you can watch the action live online.

The company, which is led by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos <https://www.space.com/19341-jeff-bezos.html>, will launch New Shepard from its West Texas site on Wednesday during a window that opens at 9 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT; 8 a.m. local time), if all goes according to plan. You can watch it on this page and her <https://www.space.com/17933-nasa-television-webcasts-live-space-tv.html>e <https://www.space.com/17933-nasa-television-webcasts-live-space-tv.html>, as well as on the Space.com homepage, starting an hour before liftoff, courtesy of Blue Origin, or directly via the company <https://www.blueorigin.com/>.

Blue Origin is developing New Shepard <https://www.space.com/40372-new-shepard-rocket.html>, a reusable rocket-capsule combo, to take paying customers and payloads on brief trips to suborbital space. Wednesday's flight, known as NS-15, won't carry any people, but it will be a substantial step toward crewed operations.

Related: Blue Origin's NS-11 New Shepard test flight in photos <https://www.space.com/blue-origin-new-shepard-ns-11-test-flight-photos.html>

Coverage Set for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 Briefings, Events, Broadcasts
 <https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/51084589487_1ebbc1f7c7_k.jpeg>
The crew for the second long-duration SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to the International Space Station, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2, are pictured during a training session at the SpaceX training facility in Hawthorne, California. From left are, Mission Specialist Thomas Pesquet of the (ESA (European Space Agency); Pilot Megan McArthur of NASA; Commander Shane Kimbrough of NASA; and Mission Specialist Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
Credits: SpaceX

You are invited to be a NASA virtual guest for the launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission. 

The launch, on a Falcon 9 rocket, is targeted for no earlier than Thursday, April 22, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission will carry NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur – who will serve as the mission’s spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively – along with JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who will serve as mission specialists. 

Click on the registration button below to receive mission updates, interactive opportunities, and a stamp for your NASA virtual passport following launch. All resources, participation, and registration are FREE.

Sincerely, 

NASA Guest Operations
REGISTER FOR CREW-2
 <http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001HjKVUxG9-TUEQFa0r_wFyAwa8XywDcyGR_4VfERddZgBIdRxOkRW8nYTnn6FW01FBjajdtrMDwVZwoY3fsvWKlCN-R5pV2zvp68Ful59Rtrk18XVc0LDspDQ1JITtLPsy6BezGiO5uBI0ZSzAui-HVi3kAXkzYOz-lVyOybkMbNXCQuju-y1aU6xy2O7ZrEA7DB1n9HfM3P6nTS6F2aWtAAq70w0aXprv6ew5a6tzzC82OmWKTbuJA==&c=HXGUOO9s3X1RbbPjNIynA1BdYPZp_tG6t0pVUIuvn3RxQQNuo39dLA==&ch=UJdnkzPihRHa3yFfEJrQu7er-BWqgnULFZs1MiCaigFXok_Vg7SDnA==>

Astronomers detect a bright-blue bridge of stars, and it's about to blow
By Ben Turner - Staff Writer <https://www.livescience.com/author/ben-turner> 5 days ago
It's an entirely new region of the Milky Way.

 <https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html>  <https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Astronomers%20detect%20a%20bright-blue%20bridge%20of%20stars%2C%20and%20it%27s%20about%20to%20blow&url=https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html>  <http://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html&title=Astronomers%20detect%20a%20bright-blue%20bridge%20of%20stars,%20and%20it%27s%20about%20to%20blow>  <http://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html&media=https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Qp6gDZ6tRJeXGugLiP2TKN-1200-80.jpg>  <https://share.flipboard.com/bookmarklet/popout?title=Astronomers%20detect%20a%20bright-blue%20bridge%20of%20stars%2C%20and%20it%27s%20about%20to%20blow&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.livescience.com%2Fnew-milky-way-spur-discovered.html>  <mailto:?subject=I%20found%20this%20webpage&body=Hi,%20I%20found%20this%20webpage%20and%20thought%20you%20might%20like%20it%20https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html>

The Milky Way galaxy. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html?utm_source=Selligent&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=LST_Newsletter&utm_content=LST_Newsletter+&utm_term=2868862 <https://www.livescience.com/new-milky-way-spur-discovered.html?utm_source=Selligent&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=LST_Newsletter&utm_content=LST_Newsletter+&utm_term=2868862> 

Astrophysicists have found a new region of the Milky Way, and it's filled with searingly hot, bright-blue stars that are about to explode.

The researchers were creating the most detailed map yet of the star-flecked spiral arms of our galactic neighborhood with the European Space Agency's (ESA) Gaia telescope when they discovered the region, which they have named the Cepheus spur, they reported in a new study.

Nestled between the Orion Arm — where our solar system <https://www.livescience.com/our-solar-system.html> is— and the constellation Perseus, the spur is a belt between two spiral arms filled with enormous stars three times the mass of the sun and colored blue by their blistering heat.

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