Drie gebeurtenissen deze week die ik er even wil uitlichten. Virgin Galactic deed een nieuwe testvlucht. De race tussen Branson en Bezos gaat dit jaar richting hoogtepunt. Wie lanceert als eerste een mens boven de honderd kilometer ? Terwijl er bewoners van het International Space Station vertrekken en er andere zich klaarmaken op een lancering, maakt China reclame voor zijn toekomstig ruimtestation. Gaat China over enkele jaren de (bemande) ruimtevaart in een baan om de Aarde overnemen ? En er was ook de vijftiende verjaardag van Mars Express, terwijl ESA aftelt naar Mars 2020.

Nieuwe testvlucht voor Virgin Galactic.
Virgin Galactic: Richard Branson Welcomes VSS Unity Home from Second Supersonic Flight.
SpaceCom: Success! Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity Space Plane Aces 2nd Powered Test Flight.
NasaSpaceFlight: Branson pride in VSS Unity’s test flight success.

Filmpjes:
Virgin Galactic: Richard Branson Welcomes VSS Unity Home from Second Supersonic Flight.
Virgin Galactic: VSS Unity Second Rocket Powered Flight – UNCUT.

Ondertussen:
The Independant: Sir Richard Branson to blast himself into space 'in months' after training as an astronaut.

China lanceert nieuwe remote sensing satelliet.
NasaSpaceFlight: Long March 2D lofts Gaofen-6.
Een filmpje vind je hier, enkele foto’s hier. 

En de volgende lancering komt weldra:
GB Times: China to launch Fengyun-2H weather satellite on June 5.

SpaceX nieuwtjes.
NasaSpaceFlight: Falcon 9 launch with SES-12 delayed to June 4.
Teslarati: SpaceX to fly ‘hybrid’ Falcon 9 with Block 4 and 5 stages on June 4 launch.

Teslarati: SpaceX photos reveal Falcon 9 fairings parasailing to Pacific splashdown.

Chinezen nodigen de wereld uit om gebruik te maken van hun ruimtestation.
UNOOSA: United Nations and China invite applications to conduct experiments on-board China's Space Station.
Space Policy Online: China shares some details of its new space station, seeks experimenters.
Sputnik News: Beijing Welcomes Use of Chinese Space Station By All UN Nations.
GB Times: Why China is opening its space station to international partners.

Het “HANDBOOK: China Space Station and its Resources for International Cooperation” kan je hier downloaden (PDF).

Een filmpje:
EuroNews: China says its space station project will be open to al UN member states.

Chinese ruimtevaarders beëindigen survival training.
GB Times: China's astronauts complete desert survival training in preparation for space station missions.

Enkele filmpjes:
CCTV English: Chinese astronauts complete desert survival training.
New China TV: Taikonauts complete desert survival training.

Survival betekent ook dat je je moet weg geraken van het lanceerpad als dat nodig moest zijn.
New China TV: Taikonauts complete launchpad evacuation training.

ISS: Voorbereidingen op terugkeer en lancering.
Als introductie vind je hier nog de volledige uitzending van de koppeling van de eerder gelanceerde Cygnus OA-9.

NASA: Space to Ground: Handoff: 06/01/2018 (filmpje).
TASS: ISS crew closes hatches to return to Earth aboard Soyuz MS-07 spacecraft.
Beelden vind je hier. 
Space Course: ISS Expedition 56 Transfer (filmpje).
TASS: Russian spacecraft with three crewmembers undocks from ISS.

In afwachting van de landing (die vandaag zondag 3 juni moet plaatsvinden) kan je alvast genieten van dit 360° filmpje.
NASA Johnson: Welcome Home: Soyuz Landing In 360/VR

Russian Space News: Open trainings of “Soyuz MS-09″ spacecraft crews.
Russian Space News: A control inspection of the “Soyuz MS-09″ spacecraft.
NASA: Expedition 56-57 Crew Prelaunch Activities - May 31, 2018.
ESA: Horizons mission – all systems go.
DLR: Trailer zur Mission horizons von Alexander Gerst (filmpje).
ESA: Volg de ISS-missie van ESA-astronaut Alexander Gerst.

ISS: Meer nieuwtjes.
NASA: NASA, Space Station Partners Announce Future Mission Crew Members.
ESA: Astronaut Luca Parmitano to be space station commander on his next flight.

Rusland organiseert het wereldkampioenschap voetbal. En dan moeten de kosmonauten een handje helpen.
Ruptly TV: Zero gravity football: Russian cosmonauts show off skills ahead of World Cup.

Mashable: Artist makes perfumes that smell like humans (filmpje).

Collect Space: USPS ceremony dedicates 'amazing' Sally Ride Forever postage stamp.

En nog dit: vier uur tv-beelden van de Aarde in volgend filmpje:
NASA: ISS High Definition Earth-Viewing System (HDEV) Experiment.

Commercial Cargo/Crew.
NasaSpaceFlight: Orbital ATK looks ahead to CRS2 Cygnus flights, Antares on the commercial market.

Spaceflight Insider: SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Edging Closer To Flight.
SpaceCom: SpaceX's 'Load-and-Go' Rocket Fueling Approach Viable, NASA Safety Panel Says.
Teslarati: SpaceX releases photo of NASA astronauts testing in Crew Dragon spaceship.

Naar de Maan.
Space News: NASA to request proposals for first Gateway element later this summer.

Geek Wire: Jeff Bezos and his Blue Origin space venture go all in on moon settlements.
The Mars Society: Moon Direct - Robert Zubrin - International Space Development Conference - Saturday, May 26, 2018 (filmpje).

NASA: Commercial Partners Key to Sustainable Moon Presence.
NASA: NASA Selects University Teams to Develop System Prototypes for Deep Space.

Naar Mars.
Science 2.0: Will First Mars Astronauts Stay In Orbit - Tele-operating Sterile Rovers - To Protect Earth And Mars From Colliding Biospheres?

SpaceCom: Populating a Mars Base Will Be Dangerously Unsexy.
Russia Today: Red sex: reproducing on Mars could be problematic (filmpje).

Scientias: Een moestuintje op Mars: wat komt daar allemaal bij kijken?

InSitu Resources Utilization.
NASA: NASA Selects US Companies to Advance Space Resource Collection.
Geek Wire: Blue Origin gets in on NASA studies for resource utilization on moon and Mars.
En in dit filmpje hoor je hoe men raketbrandstof op Mars kan maken.

In-Orbit Assembly.
NASA Langley: Life at the Lab: Caution Robots Working (filmpje).
Via Satellite: On-Orbit Manufacturing: A Change in Mindsets Needed.

Nieuwe baas voor Russische ruimtevaart. Maar wel minder geld.
TASS: Putin appoints head of Roscosmos.
Parabolic Arc: Putin Appoints Mr. Trampoline Man to Head Roscosmos.
NASA Watch: New Head Of Roscosmos Is Under Formal U.S. Sanction.

Sputnik News: Russian State Space Giant Roscosmos May Curb Space Program Due to Lack of Funds.
ParabolicArc: Report: More Budget Cuts Planned for Russia’s Beleaguered Space Program.

Vijftien jaar Mars Express.
ESA: From horizon to horizon: Celebrating 15 years of Mars Express.
DLR: High-resolution images for numerous insights into the climate development and geological history of Mars.
Ars Technica: Mars Express has revealed the Red Planet in stunning new ways.

Het (inter)planetaire nieuws.

Zon:
NASA: NASA Selects Mission to Study Solar Wind Boundary of Outer Solar System.

Mercurius:
ESA: Bepicolombo unpacked at the spaceport.

Aarde:
Digital Globe: Success in Commercial Remote Sensing.
NASA JPL: NASA Invested in Cracking Earth's Carbon Puzzle.
PhysOrg: Satellite data helps cut city heat.

Maan:
GB Times: Chang'e-4: Lunar microsatellite may be lost, Queqiao continues toward Lagrange point beyond Moon.
GB Times: Queqiao update: Chang'e-4 lunar relay satellite establishing halo orbit after approaching Lagrange point.
Collect Space: For All Moonkind to map humanity's lunar heritage sites using blockchain registry.

Mars:
The Planetary Society: The Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Makes Tracks on Magical Mystery Tour of Different Rocks.
Inside Outer Space: Curiosity Mars Rover: Dusty Season.
NASA: NASA CubeSats Steer Toward Mars.
ESA: Red Planet Rover set for extreme environment workout.

Dawn:
NASA JPL: Dawn Mission: New Orbit, New Opportunities.
Spaceflight Insider: Dawn will enter lowest ever orbit around Ceres.

Pluto:
EurekAlert!: New Horizons data reveals dunes made of methane on Pluto.
EurekAlert!: Scientists reveal the secrets behind Pluto's dunes.
Sky And Telescope: Dunes on Pluto.
SpaceCom: Pluto Has Dunes, But They're Not Made of San.

Aanvullend:
ScienceMag: Dunes across the Solar System.

Planetoïden:
NASA JPL: NEOWISE Thermal Data Reveal Surface Properties of Over 100 Asteroids.

Rosetta:
ESA: Rosetta Science Continues (filmpje).

De Brexit en Galileo.
BBC News: UK ups the ante on Galileo sat-nav project.
VRT NWS: "Brexit means brexit, ook in de ruimte!"
Space News: Could Britain collaborate with Australia on a Galileo alternative?
BBC: Why is there a row about Galileo? (filmpje)
The Guardian: UK will build own satellite system if frozen out of EU's Galileo – chancellor.
The Guardian: The Galileo space row shows the mess of Brexit in microcosm.
The Guardian: The Observer view on the standoff over the Galileo project (Observer editorial).

En nog een Galileo-filmpje:
European GNSS Agency: InDrive - Galileo European project.

GDPR en ruimtevaart.
Via Satellite: GDPR is Here But, What Does it Really Mean for Satellite?

Veel lees- en kijkplezier,

Koen