The Reboost Operation

Why This Matters

Implications for Future Space Endeavors

• Operational Redundancy: Having multiple spacecraft capable of reboosting the ISS provides a safety net, reducing dependency on any single nation’s space technology.
• Commercial Space Travel: SpaceX’s involvement might pave the way for more commercial entities to engage in space station maintenance, potentially lowering costs and increasing innovation in space operations.
• Future Deorbit Planning: The insights gained will directly inform the design of a spacecraft intended to safely deorbit the ISS, ensuring its remnants do not pose a risk to populated areas upon reentry.

Looking Ahead

The Vision of Marslink

The Technical Marvel

Implications for Space Exploration

• Scientific Research: Continuous, high-bandwidth communication would allow scientists on Earth to receive data from Mars in near real-time, facilitating dynamic experiments and immediate response to Martian phenomena.
• Human Settlement: For any future Martian settlers, having direct, reliable communication with Earth would be vital for psychological well-being, operational support, and maintaining cultural ties.
• Economic Ventures: As the Mars economy grows, Marslink could serve as the backbone for Martian commerce, enabling everything from remote mining operations to digital services.

Challenges Ahead

Why the Trump Card for Starship?

• Regulatory Relief: Posts on X and Musk’s own statements highlight a perceived regulatory bottleneck under the current administration. Musk has expressed frustration over the time it takes to get launch permits, which he claims can take longer than constructing the rockets themselves. A Trump White House, according to some X users and Musk, might streamline these processes through executive actions or policy shifts, reducing bureaucratic hurdles.
• Political Support: There’s a sentiment, as seen in various X posts, that Trump’s administration would prioritize business over what some perceive as excessive regulation. This aligns with Trump’s previous term where he was known for cutting red tape, which could be beneficial for SpaceX’s operational freedom.
• SpaceX’s Ambition: Musk’s vision for SpaceX isn’t just about making rockets; it’s about making humanity multi-planetary. The urgency of this mission, especially in terms of making Mars trips a regular affair, could be significantly influenced by the political climate. A less restrictive regulatory environment could mean more launches, faster development cycles, and quicker realization of these ambitious goals.

The Broader Implications

• Economic Impact: SpaceX’s expansion could lead to significant economic benefits, including job creation and boosting the aerospace industry. A supportive political environment could accelerate this growth.
• Environmental Considerations: While regulation often aims to protect the environment, SpaceX’s innovations in reusable rockets and reducing space junk could be seen as environmentally beneficial. However, there’s a counter-argument about the ecological impact of frequent launches, which might require a nuanced approach to deregulation.
• Global Competition: Space exploration is increasingly competitive. A Trump administration’s push to support SpaceX could be seen as a move to maintain or enhance the U.S.’s lead in space technology over nations like China or international players like the European Space Agency.

The Cosmic Catch

The South China Morning Post writes that the report was written by researchers in the Beijing Institute of Tracking and Telecommunications and other organizations that protect China.

Published on China Military Online, concerns of the satellites being used to aid the U.S. military was the reason listed in the study. It claims that SpaceX wants to use Starlink “for military purposes” and that Starlink has worked with the U.S. military on satellite connection to military aircraft and data transmission.

Starlink has aided in the U.S. military before. Newsweek writes that a Federal Communications Commission filing made in March detailed tests of information being sent and received on the ground and via aircraft. They also tested Starlink in February to “provide tactical network speeds of up to 70 megabits per second” which reduced the normal lag time of military satellites.

As for the details of “soft and hard kill methods” of disabling Starlink’s satellites, there is not a lot. However, the researchers suggested that the solutions should be “low-cost, high-efficiency” and that they are worried about the 4,200 satellites as a whole rather than one or two of them. Newsweek suggests that lasers, and microwaves could be of use.

So where did this talk of destroying Starlink satellites come from? Why is there an interest in one facet of U.S. military performance?

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Starlink satellites have given aid to Ukraine by enhancing government communication, internet access, help companies stay afloat, and drone attack performance. This outreach has led to Elon Musk being threatened by Dmitry Rogozin, the head of Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos. In a supposed statement given to the Russian media, Rogozin stated,” Elon, you will be held accountable like an adult—no matter how much you’ll play the fool.” Musk then joked that he will “die under mysterious circumstances”

If I die under mysterious circumstances, it’s been nice knowin ya

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 9, 2022

Along with Russia’s attempt to take back Ukraine, recent comments made by President Joe Biden increased tensions between Taiwan and China. During the week, Biden told reporters that the U.S would keep their promise to help defend Taiwan against China. Though Biden’s statement was later walked back by Washington, the Chinese were quick to respond. CNN writes that Chinese officials made aggressive comments like, “Those who play with fire will certainly burn themselves,” and military drills near Taiwan began.

The performance of Starlink satellites on the battlefield has undoubtedly left an impression on China. What started as a tool to benefit humanity by giving basic internet access to remote areas has become a tool to enhance military performance. Could this continue to the U.S. military? Would it be for the better or for the worst?

Since receiving Starlink antennas, Ukrainians have been able to have Internet access, technology companies have been able to stay afloat, the government can communicate and receive updates, and perform drone attacks. Mykahailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation and the one who initially pleaded to Elon Musk for help, told the Washington post that:

“The quality of the link is excellent,” and that, “We are using thousands, in thousands, of terminals with new shipments arriving every other day.”

With an increase of shipments, The Mirror reports that Starlink’s app was downloaded close to 100,000 times in Ukraine and even more around the world.

This has also led to the curious decision of taunting Vladimir Putin over Twitter where Elon Musk challenged him to a fight.

I hereby challenge
Владимир Путин
to single combat

Stakes are Україна

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 14, 2022

With the success of Starlink, security concerns arise. Could receiving Starlink internet result in putting targets on the people’s backs, and giveaway government intel? A Berkeley security researcher, Nicholas Weaver, told CNN that:

“It isn’t necessarily easy, but the Russians have a lot of practice on tracking various signal emitters in Syria and responding. Starlink may work for the moment, but anyone setting a [Starlink] dish up in Ukraine needs to consider it as a potential giant target.”

Afterward, Elon Musk added that the use of Starlink can be used against Ukraine:

Important warning: Starlink is the only non-Russian communications system still working in some parts of Ukraine, so probability of being targeted is high. Please use with caution.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2022

So far, there is no news indicating that this has happened yet. But the risk has been acknowledged by Ukrainian officials.

Sure, @elonmusk. We are going to use them for Ukrainians also after our victory ?

— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) March 3, 2022

Starlink aiding Ukraine amidst the risks involved is a real test of their technology. But there is no doubt that even a slow internet speed in a war-torn area could help civilians get the latest information and help support infrastructure. Though, the internet providers in Ukraine have been compromised by possible Russian-state hackers. Could the aid Starlink is giving end the same way and or be used to geolocate potential targets? We will have to wait and see.

As part of the Rocket Cargo Program, Space News reported that SpaceX will aid the Air Force in enhancing the speed of US Department of Defense planning while also delivering humanitarian aid and disaster relief all over the world.

Greg Spanjers, the manager of the program, emphasized this stating that SpaceX will “determine exactly what a rocket can achieve when used for cargo transport, what is the true capacity, speed, and cost of the integrated system,” and that the Air Force is, “very interested in the ability to deliver the cargo anywhere on Earth to support humanitarian aid and disaster relief.”

The contract does not list which vehicle they plan to use or when tests will commence. Though, Starship Super-Heavy is the only launch vehicle owned by SpaceX that is built for point-to-point travel, Tech Times reports. Until then, the US Air Force will have access to commercial launches and their data. When it comes to delivering disaster relief, they will explore various landing options since there is no direct connection between military bases and the people who need it.

“We are therefore exploring a wider range of novel trajectories to mitigate overflight issues, exploring a broad range of landing options for austere sites, researching human factors when landing near populations, and integrating a broader range of cargo including medical supplies,” Greg Spanjers said.

To expand the Rocket Cargo Program, Spanjers brought up their plan to involve other commercial space transportation companies. This is very reminiscent of SpaceX’s moon mission deal with NASA that led to a lawsuit with Blue Origin. Blue Origin’s claims of NASA’s “unlawful and improper evaluation of proposals” and safety concerns over SpaceX’s “high-risk” launch system were unfounded.

It is noticed that M/s #Starlink (https://t.co/xscnDS4Cnn) has started pre-selling/booking of #satellite based #Internet Services in India without any #license/authorization.
Public is advised not to subscribe to Starlink services being advertised. #GatiShakti #spacex @SpaceX

— DoT India (@DoT_India) November 26, 2021

As of now, Starlink has only given Reuters this response: “No comment for now”.

Despite this, Reuters reports that other companies have launched satellites that would offer “low-latency broadband internet services” that would target the same areas of interest that have little to no internet access.

So, what could be the issue? Well, back in April, problems started to arise after Broadband India Forum (BIF) wanted the DoT to stop Starlink pre-sales because they did not have a license or authorization. According to BIF’s website, they are a non-profit that is about “promoting, supporting and enhancing all policy, regulatory and standards initiatives for the proliferation of high-quality broadband in the country in a technology-neutral and all-inclusive manner.” With this in mind, the non-profit is represented by broad band internet companies like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Facebook. This is when India’s DoT started investigating on whether or not the company’s beta roll-out went against India’s telecom and technology laws.

Though India is rich in pastoral scenery that is prime for a satellite internet network, Starlink nor SpaceX do not have any set plans on production in India. They plan to have 200,000 customers by 2022. As of November 1^st, Starlink had about 5,000 preorders.

According to The Verge, Starlink is offered in 20 different countries and has about 140,000 customers. Right now, they only offer beta version of their internet service, but Elon Musk is aiming that the company will have full commercial internet by next year.

Alexandra Abrams, a former employee at blue origin, made an exclusive interview with CBS today where she outlined the company’s ‘toxic’ environment that was documented in an essay. The essay was written by her and 20 other former and current employees claiming there was unaddressed safety concerns, a culture of sexual harassment, and policies that limited workers from reporting Misconduct.

“You cannot create a culture of safety and a culture of fear at the same time. They are incompatible,” said Abrams. “Oftentimes when I would try to reconcile what I was hearing from the engineers who were close to the vehicle versus leadership about risk and safety, I would often go to leadership and say, ‘Okay, how am I supposed to think about this?’ And often the response would be, ‘Oh, well that person in particular just doesn’t have a high enough risk tolerance.'”

The essay was sent to the FAA before being released online. As of now, the FAA has not released a statement.

A specific issue that was brought up in the essay was that in 2018 one team reported 1000 Problem reports concerning the engine. These reports were not address. Abrams was asked whether she trusted the blue origins rocket safely going into space:

“Unfortunately, Laurie, I would not trust a Blue Origin vehicle going to space.”

Abrams claimed that she was fired after refusing to help the company make stricter policies that would prevent workers from bringing disputes in court and speak about harassment.

In an interview with CBS’s Laurie Segall, Abrams alleged that the leadership of blue origin, including Jeff Bezos, were more worried about getting projects done than going over safety.

One of the co-authors also spoke to CBS but I wanted to remain anonymous to not be blacklisted by the industry. They claimed that the pressure of keeping pace with other private space companies was getting to Bezos.

“It was great that Blue Origin was smooth, and steady, and slow until Jeff started becoming impatient and Elon and Branson were getting ahead,” Abrams said. “And then we started to feel this increasing pressure and impatience that would definitely filter down from leadership.”

Sexism was also brought up in the essay. Abram said that women were treated differently than their male counterparts and that they were not listen to.

When CBS reached out to blue origin for a comment, they did not address the safety allegations, but they said that the company has no tolerance for discrimination and that they would investigate new claims of sexual harassment. They also claimed that Abrams was fired after getting several warnings about federal export control regulations. Though, Abram said that she did not get any warnings.

Alexandra Abrams blue origin

Next month

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2021

While this is good news, Musk tends to overshoot when it comes to timelines. According to The Verge, he claimed at the Mobile World Conference that the full version of Starlink would come out in August, and that Starlink would have “possibly over 500,000 users within 12 months.”

Starlink is made up of about 12,000 constellation satellite system in low Earth orbit. These satellites offer constant internet service. A terminal, which consists of a satellite dish and a Wi-Fi router, is worth $499 and the internet service is $99 a month. Since the release of their open beta testing in October, Musk claims to have sold over 100,000 terminals to 14 different countries. The company also aimed to have worldwide coverage in September. So far, Engadget writes that Starlink’s beta version has only been offered in North America, some parts of Europe, Australia, Chile, and New Zealand. Though, expansions are planned to be made in Mexico, Japan, the Philippines, and South Africa.

Their main goal is to provide internet service to rural areas around the globe with download speeds of up to 100Mbps and 20Mbps. Internet could also eventually reach developing countries.

As previously mentioned, Musk is not one for meeting deadlines. A recent example is the production and delivery date of Tesla’s Cybertruck. At first, buyers were promised to see production by the end of 2021. In early August, an insider for Tesla tweeted that the production will start in 2022. It was only then that designs were finalized and when beta testing would start.

We will have to see, but I would not bet money on Starlink making the October deadline. If they do, I will gladly eat my own words.

The launch is to commence on 8pm Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Though, this might change as stated in their announcement. A second launch date has been scheduled on September 6^th.

Our crew is continuing final preparations for launch and teams are targeting no earlier than 8:00 p.m. ET on September 15 for liftoff of #Inspiration4.

SpaceX and Inspiration4 will narrow down the launch window to five hours approximately three days before liftoff. pic.twitter.com/l6zmkGk6Zo

— Inspiration4 (@inspiration4x) September 10, 2021

The lucky individuals chosen for the exciting multi-day mission are Jared Isaacman, Dr. Sian Proctor, Hayley Arceneaux, and Chris Sembroski.

Jared Isaacman, who is the Mission Commander, is the CEO of Shift4 and a pilot who holds two world records in the Speed-Around-the-World back in 2007 and 2008. He is also a part of the Black Diamond Jet team where he flew in over 100 airshows, and co-founded Draken International, the largest private air force that trains future pilots for the United States Armed Forces.

Dr. Sian Proctor, the Mission Pilot, is an educator, trained pilot, and entrepreneur from Guam. Her father worked for NASA at the tracking station through the Apollo missions.

After winning the battle of bone cancer when she was ten, Hayley Arceneaux, the Medical Officer for the mission, is a physician assistant at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital the same hospital she was treated in.

Chris Sembroski is an aerospace employee at Lockheed Martin and is a United Space Air Force Veteran. He is the Mission Specialist.

According to Fox 35, they will conduct experiments that are geared toward health and the effect space has on the human body overtime. They will conduct and participate in three tests while on board. The tests will gather blood samples, cognitive tests, inflammation, and any other changes to the body. They will also be testing a controlled ultrasound that will eventually be used at home by the average person.

Jimmy Wu, a professor at the Center for Space Medicine at Baylor, said that his collogues will be the ones to retrieve this data to further study health conditions like diabetes, and heart disease.

“It is not a safe environment for life and so there are things that happen to the body that we have been understanding for the last 60 years,” and, ”A lot of the technology we are working on  is about, in the end, about giving [the average person the ability] to manage their own health and to be able to do it without necessarily depending on all the burdens we have of our current healthcare system and going to the doctor and wait times associated with that.”

The mission will also help raise money to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.