[MUSIC] That's it then. The last national security mission for the Atlas V was launched this morning. And it's nothing to shrug at, because today's launch marked number 100 for national security missions completed by ULA overall. And it's ULA's Vulcan rocket that will take over the national security launches after this point. And that's quite a lot to have resting on its shoulders. [MUSIC] Today is July 30th, 2024. I'm Maria Varmasas and this is T-minus. [MUSIC] ULA's Atlas V completes its final national security space launch. SpaceX is reportedly looking to land starship off the coast of Australia. Redwire plans to culture bioprinted vascularized liver tissue on the ISS. And our guest today is Caroline Schumacher, CEO of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. And she will be telling us about how the foundation supports STEM stars in the United States, so stick around for the second part of the show for more. [MUSIC] It is Tuesday everybody, let's get into it. The United Launch Alliance's Atlas V carried out its final national security mission early this morning. The classified mission for the US Space Force lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida, powered by a Russian built RD-180 first stage engine and five North of Grumman Strap-on solid fuel boosters. The Atlas V roared to life at 6.45 AM local time in Florida and lifted off from Pad 41, a top 2.7 million pounds of thrust. Colonel James Horn, a senior launch manager with Space Systems Command said, this is a bittersweet moment for us. I've had the privilege of sitting on console for the very first national security Atlas launch back in 2007. And here we are with our last national security Atlas. For its part, ULA says it's the 100th national security mission that the company has completed. The US military has used the Atlas rocket family for national security space launch since 2007. And the US Space Force plans to use ULA's new Vulcan Centaur rocket for future national security launches after the vehicle is certified. Raiders is reporting that SpaceX is in talks with US and Australian officials to land and recover one of its Starship rockets off Australia's coast. This is a move that makes sense given that the progress of the Starship testing requires a landing demonstration. NASA is planning on using the vehicle to land astronauts on the moon after all. SpaceX is aiming to launch Starship from its Boca Chica Starbase facility, land it in the sea off Australia's coast, and then recover it on Australian territory. Getting permission to do all that would require loosening US export controls on space technologies bound for Australia. Discussions between all the parties involved are ongoing, making the timing of any Starship landing off Australia still up in the air. And in a story that screams, beware of what you share on social media, who else but Elon Musk is getting some heat for stating that the reason that he believes Boeing wins space mission contracts is due to its quote, armies of lobbyists. His words, not ours. The comment was shared in response to a post on X by a Tesla employee who asked again in a quote, why Boeing, given their track record with passenger flights, is given such contracts when SpaceX, given their track record with launches, is just vastly superior. And quote, there's no need to brag, Mr Musk. Redwire Space is launching an experiment to the International Space Station that will analyze the effects of microgravity on tissue, bioprinting and culturing. In partnership with the Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Redwire will culture 36 bioprinted, vascularized liver tissue constructs inside of the company's multi-use variable gravity platform on the ISS. To determine if liver cells bioprinted on earth can properly form functioning blood vessels in microgravity. This is such an amazing project. Redwire says it's focused on improving space bioprinting techniques with human tissue samples with the goal of eventually bioprinting full-scale organs, which could offer a promising solution for addressing the world's organs shortage. My goodness, this experiment will launch to the ISS aboard the Northup Grimman NG-21 cargo resupply mission, which is scheduled for early August 2024 next month. I launch the Australian government's Trailblazer Universities Program delivered by the Department of Education and the Australian National University is partnering with Axiom Space and AI and ML Solutions provider Akashia to develop a wearable space health device that will sense, transmit and real-time assess health data in remote areas, including suborbital flights. The device will enable real-time simulation, diagnosis and prediction of astronaut physiology and fitness to function in microgravity. Data gained from crew under gravity and microgravity conditions in this project will also inform individualized predictions of fitness to fly. The project will see in-space testing with Axiom Space, which will integrate the device on a future spaceflight. Singaporean rocket startup Equatorial Space has closed a pre-series A round, raising over $1 million. The company says it'll use the new funding to support the development of its Dorado sounding rockets and associated infrastructure, including a new static firing test facility at Hinn Valley in Darwin, Australia. Equatorial Space plans to begin orbital launch services in 2026. Polaris spaceplanes have delivered the glass-fiber composite structures of their latest flight vehicles. The identical twins are five meters long and feature a 30% higher wing area compared to the 4.3-meter-long precursor, Mira. Polaris says the increased size enables them to significantly boost the flight testing capabilities. In addition, the company says the design has been greatly improved compared to Mira, incorporating all the lessons learned so far. Each aircraft is to be equipped with four turbines and a LOX kerosene linear aerospike rocket engine. Polaris decided to build two vehicles rather than one in order to speed up flight testing and to have a reserve aircraft. Smart. In the coming weeks, Polaris will assemble and integrate the new aircraft, making them flight-ready and prepare the documentation required for the operation licenses. Flight testing is scheduled to start in September. The Miras are planned to be the last pure technology demonstration vehicles of Polaris. Next year, the company plans to build and fly the eight-meter-long supersonic successor called the NOVA, which will be the prototype for a commercial product. And that concludes our briefing for today. You'll find links to further reading on all of the stories we've mentioned in our selected reading section of our show notes. We have also included a press release from Viasat about their new wearable wireless hub. Hey T-Minus Crew, if you're just joining us, hi and welcome. And be sure to follow T-Minus Space Daily in your favorite podcast app. Yes, like and subscribe, please. And also, if you could do us a favor, share the intel with your friends and coworkers. So here's a little challenge for you. By Friday, please show three friends or coworkers this podcast. That's because a growing audience is the most important thing for us. And we would love your help as part of the T-Minus Crew. So if you find T-Minus useful, please share the show so other professionals like you can find it. Thank you so much for your support, everybody. It means a lot to me and all of us here at T-Minus. [MUSIC] Our guest today is Caroline Schumacher, CEO of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. I ask Caroline to tell us more about the origins of ASF and who they serve. [MUSIC] Originally, we were called the Mercury Seven Foundation and they changed. The Mercury astronauts wanted all the astronauts of every era of the space program to sort of pick up the mantle and carry it forward, right? So that's really why it changed to the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, because we were founded by astronauts, we're continually led by astronauts. They're very much a part of our organization through and through. So the biggest pillar of what we do is identify the very best and brightest in STEM across the country. We provide merit-based scholarships to juniors and seniors at the college level. We have 48 university partners across the country. This year we selected 71 astronaut scholars. So each university, we work so closely with them and they're a very important part of the process. They'll send two nominees per scholarship at their university and their university can have one to three scholars and they send them to us. We get a whole package, a personal statement, CV, transcript, letters of recommendation and it's reviewed by a volunteer selection panel. It's a rigorous routine because you're looking at great versus great. >> Yeah. >> Sometimes it's like, ah. >> It's gonna be tough. >> You know, how do you, it's reassuring though. I will tell you, the future is bright, so don't let the rest of the media fool you. The future is bright. We have amazing, amazing humans in our country right now doing incredible work and future innovators to follow. So then we select which ones are gonna be awarded and they get up to $15,000 in funding. The part that I love the most is it goes so far beyond the check. So these scholars, they're all going to get flown into our innovators symposium in Gala. That will take place in Houston this year and all of the scholars get to come together, all their expenses are paid and then we do a whole Wednesday to Saturday program for them. We do an industry tour, we have a welcome orientation. We do networking amongst their cohort. They'll be probably 15 to 20 retired astronauts joining us for the weekend. They do a technical conference where they have rapid fire presentations, showcasing their research. We have professional development programs where they'll talk leadership, mentorship, graduate school applications, resume writing, interview tips. And then we'll do a professional expo where we invite industry partners to come in and talk about internship and employment opportunities as well. So we can really expose them to so much. And then we have a Gala where everybody dresses up fancy and we bring every scholar on stage. They're presented their astronaut scholarship certificate by Kurt Brown, our board chairman, Six Time Shuttle astronaut. And then we also present the Neil Armstrong Award of Excellence, which is an alumni award that goes to an alumni who's exhibiting character, a Six of Neil Armstrong, and really achieving great things. And that's presented by Rick and Mark Armstrong, Neil's sons. So then outside of that, we do all kinds of great things for the scholars throughout the year. We'll have virtual programs. We keep our alumni engaged for the first five years after they receive the scholarship. They're eligible for a travel grant so that they can come to one of our signature events, which we have a Gala during the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame induction weekend at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. And then we have our innovators program, or I'll fly them in to do speaking opportunities to help them keep, continue showcasing what they're doing and inspire others instead. So that's like the big piece of what we do. Wow. And then there's this-- Yeah. I know. It's so much. And then there's this other pillar, right? But wait, there's more. There's more, yeah. Another piece of what we do where it's really important to us to celebrate the space program and really inspire space exploration. And so we commemorate the space program. So we are tied to the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. It was started by our foundation years ago. It's now at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, and it's owned and operated there. But we help steward the process, and we take place as part of the induction ceremony. But we host anniversary events, and we've done 15th anniversary of Apollo 16, and we celebrated Skylab anniversary. So these are things that we like to do too, because we just want to always keep educating the community about the space program and celebrating it. OK. So going back to the students, the thing that is incredible, what you're describing to me, is when I think of how students get help, like a scholarship, it's a very standard thing. I know when I got scholarships, when I was at college, I was sort of like, here's the check. Good luck. And you all, it's almost like, I don't mean to be flipping. It's like a debutante ball in the best possible way, sort of what it sounds like to me. Oh, I love that. I love that. Yes. It's like they're also being introduced to the industry and the community, but also the community is getting to know them and being like, here are these incredible people who are going to do amazing things. Keep an eye on what they're up to, maybe hire them. That is incredible, because a lot of times that is the biggest challenge is trying to figure out and make those opportunities, especially if you're coming in from nowhere or you don't have those connections as it is. That's just, that's a rocket boost. I'm using all the cliches, but it's really, that is massive. Go ahead. We love it. Yeah. In fact, we actually named our professional development program for Michael Collins. And the reason is he was extremely passionate about scholars having skills outside of the lab, communication skills, presentation skills. And I would lump in there the networking. Networking is a really hard skill to nail. Even the best people at it, the biggest extroverts cannot do great at networking. How to foster those relationships. We assign mentors to our scholars too. And our astronauts support that. Industry partners pass the alumni. I mean, we've awarded over 800 scholars since we started. So now the more seasoned scholars are folded into the organization. They're on our boards. They're mentors. They're on our committees. So they're now kind of paying it forward just like the astronauts did, carrying on that legacy. So given 40 years of this incredible program, I mean, the alumni you must have, I mean, can you paint me a picture of just like some, I don't know if you can paint a broad brush picture, but like, yeah, tell me a bit about some of the alumni. I don't know. Yeah. What's really, really unique about ASF is everyone thinks, oh, they give scholarships to go become an astronaut. No, let's first be clear. That is not what we do. And I think it's really fascinating that goes back to our founders. The Mercury astronauts said this, they wanted to promote students' education in science and technology before STEM was the buzzword. Because they knew the next frontier lies anywhere. It may, you know, and they wanted it to be for all STEM students. And that's really where we are. And we're very proud that, you know, we have a huge presence in life sciences, as well as engineering and of course aerospace and astronomy and all of that as well. But I mean, very significant. So, you know, we have scholars that, you know, work in all facets of the STEM world. So defense, you know, we've got them in defense for that. That's about like, no, that's what they do because they can't tell me the rest. I get it. I get it. They're in defense. It's like artificial intelligence. And it's still up there. Right. You know, of course, you know, I love it. The board chair that I mentioned that I'm so close with through both organizations I work for. She's an acoustical engineer, which I think is really cool work, too. We have scholars in insulation. And when I say insulation, not your roof, insulation, like working using aerogel technology for apparel. For tactical shelters, all kinds of applications. Scholars that are working in medical wearable devices that are advancing technologies to ensure real time data for patients. And then, you know, of course, we love to brag on those that are in aerospace. The hundredth flight director at JSC is a scholar, Fiona Turret, in mission control for ISS. And then we have Christina Koch, who's Artemis, too. She's a scholar from NC State. She's very, still very involved with us as much as she can be. She's a little busy right now. I think she's a little busy, yes. Yeah, we got a 238 pilot who's a scholar as well, Trent Kingery. So, I mean, I could brag all day. I really appreciate you mentioning that, you know, this is not like to make an astronaut of scholarship. It's about excellence in the sciences and technology and engineering because the applications for what people end up studying have, it's always surprising where they end up. You really never know. And we need smart people everywhere in doing all sorts of incredible things. It speaks to the vision of this foundation that that's what you all support. So, I think that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, so, I mean, I think it's really special that when you go back to 1984 and those early days that the founders really had this vision of, like I said earlier, kind of like, who knows where the next frontier of innovation lies, right? And so it has been very enduring. And we're just thrilled that we get to be a part of it. I feel very honored really to take part in the journey of these scholars. I always kind of my line for everybody, you know, I'm standing up at a gala at a podium is, you know, we give the gift to the scholarship, the funding, and certainly all the great program. And it comes with it to the scholars. But I really think the bigger gift is the scholars are being given to society and launching them. And so many tell us that they were at a time when they were exhausted from, you know, all the research and they weren't sure if they were going to be able to continue staying in the lab because they had to get extra jobs. And this being selected as an astronaut scholar is validation, validation that they're on the right track, that they can do this. And then they meet all these like-minded scholars and create this beautiful cohort and join this astronaut scholarship foundation family that they know, okay, I'm not alone. I got this. I can keep doing it. And I think we're just all really proud of that, you know, really proud that we create this community. We'll be right back. [ Sound Effects ] Welcome back. Thought we were all done talking about JAX's slim lander that adorably landed kind of sideways on the moon earlier this year and then kept on ticking? Yeah, us too. Slim is actually for real quite done with its mission. And after making it through a few Lunar Nights, its battery is officially depleted as of late May. But wait, there is a little more utility left even if it's not awake. The NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter team still has plenty of use for slim because Slim's got a retro reflector. Now, because of Slim's awkward landing, that reflector is on its side and not on top where it should be, which does make it a bit hard to bounce things off of, but not impossible. In fact, by working closely with JAXA, the NASA team bounced two laser pulses sent from the LRO off the Slim retro reflector during two successive orbits back in late May. And it being sent to a retro reflector, think about it for a second, the signal bounced right back to the LRO as planned. This required precision pinpointing to within one one-hundredth of a degree of where the sideways and two-inch-wide Slim retro reflector on the lunar surface was thought to be. And they did it. So quite a proof of concept for the teams involved about the accuracy of the LRO's laser altimeter, which did the laser pinging, and the retro reflector on the surface on Slim, which bounced it back so it punged. This was all a pretty great day for the NASA team that built the retro reflector on Slim. Shao Li Sun, who led the retro reflector team at NASA Goddard, said this, "LRO's altimeter wasn't built for this type of application, so the chances of pinpointing a tiny retro reflector on the moon's surface are already low. For the LRO team to have reached a retro reflector that faces sideways instead of the sky shows that these little devices are incredibly resilient." And that's it for Team Minus for July 30th, 2024, brought to you by NTK Cyberwire. For additional resources from today's report, check out our show notes at space.ntuk.com. We are privileged that NTK and podcasts like Team Minus are part of the daily routine of many of the most influential leaders and operators in the public and private sector, from the Fortune 500 to many of the world's preeminent intelligence and law enforcement agencies. This episode was produced by Alice Carruth, our associate producer is Liz Stokes. We are mixed by Elliot Peltzman and Trey Hester, with original music by Elliot Peltzman. Our executive producer is Jennifer Iben. Our executive editor is Brandon Karp. Simone Petrella is our president. Peter Kilpie is our publisher, and I am your host, Maria Varmazes. Thanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow. [Music] Team Minus. [Music] [BLANK_AUDIO]
