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

[Gabe]

Good afternoon all,

 I am in the airport in Copenhagen…I’ve spent two amazing weeks in Denmark visiting schools and long time friends as well as making new friends. We know how this goes,..hopefully, I will get is sent although I believe most schools in the USA are off for the Holidays and will not be back until next year….it has been an amazing 2 weeks…every day was so special, every event was awesome…the time spent with the students is always wonderful…it is questionable in my mind why I have only been to Denmark 4 times…but I am still thankful and so appreciative of everyone who supported the visit…without your support none of this is possible…I know it takes time, energy, and so much planning…I say my part is easy…others have to do so much…

Now in an airport in New Jersey…my flight from Iceland to New Jersey was late, I missed my connecting flight….I had to take a training and a bus to a hotel…they put me on the wrong bus so I went to the wrong hotel…I had to go back to the terminal, waiting to get on the correct bus…I finally got everything sorted out and in the hotel around 11pm, I had to catch a bus at 4am that took me to a train to the terminal…isn’t his fun… :-) I have a 2 hour wait for boarding, a 3 hour flight to Florida, if all goes well I’m hoping to reach my home around noon today, I gained 6 hours in time which will be 36 hours traveling…I am concerned because the destination at the gate I am waiting is Costa Rica, I’ve asked some of the others here and they are going to Costa Rica…no agent at the gate…mmmmm :-)  at the wrong terminal, missed the flight…evidently, they changed terminals, I’d spoken with 2 United representatives, neither saw the error. On a flight now, 12 hours after I was supposed to leave last night…my bag went on the earlier flight…I’m sure it will be an adventure trying to find it…as it turns out…it was never sent, I am still waiting for it….the challenge is to enjoy every minute..,stay positive, always be thankful, and keep smiling….

Christmas is always my favorite holiday…I always say we should share in each others’ holidays because we are so much alike….why not take advantage of sharing the happiness of all festive events…to those who just celebrated Hanukkah…Congratulations…traveling this time of the year presents unique challenges because everything is so crowded but also very special because everything is decorated for celebrations…

The space program continues to make progress…in the USA and around the world…so many countries are now exploring space, so many commercial companies are now doing exploration and commercial companies, like Space X, are leading the way…it is such an exciting time…visiting schools I remind the students of the opportunities as many struggle, not knowing what to do while expectations are often very high…their lives are filled with work hard work, stress, pressure…which they learn from their parents and everyone around them…the expectation of them and those they place on themselves is often excessive so they struggle and never admit it, they hide it because they don’t want to disappoint their parents or others…I love that in Norway and Denmark (I am not sure of others) the kids call their teachers by their first name…it only makes sense their teacher should be their friend to help them and guide them…I wish we could adapt this in the USA…

We have to stay positive and always be thankful… 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… STAY SAFE, TAKE CARE, Love ya, Gabe



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There were many events scheduled for the end of December but they have been put on hold for various reason…I was looking forward to sharing in these, we will, just little further off…


Falcon Heavy launch of secretive X-37B military spaceplane on hold <https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/12/11/live-coverage-spacex-falcon-heavy-set-to-launch-of-secretive-x-37b-military-spaceplane/>
December 11, 2023 <https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/12/>


Falcon Heavy is returning to the hangar and the launch of the USSF-52 mission with the X-37B spaceplane is on hold. A ground issue scrubbed an earlier launch attempt and now required work on the vehicle itself.

ULA’s first mission with its Vulcan rocket slides to January launch window
December 10, 2023 <https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/12/> Will Robinson-Smith <https://spaceflightnow.com/author/will-the-robinson-smith/>

ULA’s Vulcan rocket sits at the pad at Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) ahead of the start of a wet dress rehearsal tanking test on Friday, Dec. 8, 2023. Image: ULA

Update: Added additional context from social media posts from Tory Bruno confirming that the launch will move to January.

The debut of United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket will slip from late December into early January, according to the company’s president and CEO, Tory Bruno. In a social media post on Sunday, Bruno said the planned Dec. 24 launch date is off the table.

After initially stating that the Christmas Eve launch opportunity was “likely out” on Dec. 10, Bruno later added further context, stating that a launch in 2023 wasn’t really viable.

“The payload is encapsulated, but it will still have to be integrated, followed, testing and vehicle close outs,” Bruno stated on X. “This pushes us past the December window.”

The statements come a couple days after the rocket conducted an initial Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR), where the vehicle was fully fueled and went the countdown was to proceed to the final seconds before cutting off. But Bruno said a “couple of routine ground issues came up near the end” of the test.

Ground teams were targeting a T-0 of 4:30 p.m. EST on Friday. Based on observations of venting during the operation it appeared the countdown reached its final four minutes before an abort occurred. The Vulcan vehicle left the launch pad and returned to the Vertical Integration Facility building at launch complex 41 Saturday afternoon.



Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket set for return to flight mission <https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/12/14/blue-origins-new-shepard-rocket-set-for-return-to-flight-mission/>
December 14, 2023 <https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/12/>
After more than a year of being sidelined, Blue Origin is preparing for a resurgence of its New Shepard rocket suborbital flights. The launch window for its uncrewed return-to-flight mission dubbed NS-24 opens on Monday, Dec. 18



Geminid meteors light up the sky in amazing photos
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKazCifPauBWcNGfmu?format=multipart>
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKazCifPauBWcNGfmu>
(Thilina Kaluthotage/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Photographers worldwide watched the celestial spectacle this year, and we rounded up some of the best in case you couldn't catch the meteor shower in person.Full Story: Space <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKazCifPauBWcNGfmu?format=multipart> (12/14)

Sun unleashes most powerful since 2017 (video)
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaBCifPauBWcNLJbi?format=multipart>
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaBCifPauBWcNLJbi>
(NASA/SDO)
The outburst, which occurred at 12:02 p.m. EST (1702 GMT), registered as an X2.8, making it the most powerful solar flare since September 2017. Full Story: Space <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaBCifPauBWcNLJbi?format=multipart> (12/14) 

Is humanity prepared for contact with intelligent aliens?
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaDCifPauBWcNWQPy?format=multipart>
 <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaDCifPauBWcNWQPy>
(Seth Shostak/SETI Institute)
First of all, the consequences of first contact strongly depend on the way it takes place. A new paper offers the view that first contact with alien life poses considerable risks for humanity. Additionally, a first contact event could also take place without being culturally recognized. Full Story: Space <https://r.smartbrief.com/resp/ryhlCKojllDytKaDCifPauBWcNWQPy?format=multipart> (12/15) 
















Perseverance rover celebrates 1,000 Mars days on the Red Planet
News <https://www.space.com/news> published 13 December 2023

NASA's Perseverance rover just rolled past a big milestone on the Red Planet.

The car-sized Perseverance <https://www.space.com/perseverance-rover-mars-2020-mission> has now been exploring its exotic environs for 1,000 Mars <https://www.space.com/47-mars-the-red-planet-fourth-planet-from-the-sun.html> days, or sols. (One sol is slightly longer than an Earth day — 24 hours and 37 minutes.)

"Sol in, sol out! I completed 1,000 Martian days … and my work is far from done," Perseverance team members wrote on Tuesday (Dec. 12) via the mission's official account on X <https://twitter.com/NASAPersevere/status/1734737408934166557> (formerly known as Twitter).

The mission team celebrated Tuesday as the official landmark day, though Sol 1,000 extended into Wednesday (Dec. 13) as well, officials with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California told Space.com via email. (JPL manages Perseverance's mission.)

Related: Perseverance rover captures gorgeous video of solar eclipse on Mars <https://www.space.com/perseverance-rover-mars-solar-eclipse-video>
Perseverance and its tiny robotic partner, the Ingenuity <https://www.space.com/ingenuity-mars-helicopter-perseverance-rover> helicopter, landed inside Mars' Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021. Ever since, the big rover has been hunting for signs of ancient Mars life <https://www.space.com/17135-life-on-mars.html> on the floor of the 28-mile-wide (45 kilometers) Jezero, which is a great place to do such work.

"We picked Jezero Crater as a landing site because orbital imagery showed a delta — clear evidence that a large lake once filled the crater," Perseverance Project Scientist Ken Farley, of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, said in a statement on Tuesday <https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-perseverance-rover-deciphers-ancient-history-of-martian-lake>. 

"A lake is a potentially habitable environment, and delta rocks are a great environment for entombing signs of ancient life as fossils in the geologic record," Farley added. "After thorough exploration, we've pieced together the crater’s geologic history, charting its lake and river phase from beginning to end.”



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