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Boeing, SpaceX win more space taxi orders

Boeing Starliner
Artwork shows a straight-on view of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner space taxi. (Boeing / NASA Photo)

NASA has awarded four more contracts to Boeing and to SpaceX for space taxi trips to and from the International Space Station – dependent on certification that the spacecraft are safe.

SpaceX is working on a crew-capable version of its Dragon capsule for NASA’s use, while Boeing is developing a capsule known as the CST-100 Starliner. Each company has already been given contracts for two flights; the contracts announced today brings the total trips to six for each.

The space taxis haven’t yet been tested in flight. SpaceX has scheduled an uncrewed demonstration flight of its Crew Dragon to the space station in November, followed by a crewed flight test in May 2018. Boeing’s schedule calls for an uncrewed flight in June 2018 and a crewed flight test in August 2018.

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Scientists mourn the loss of the oldest orca

Granny the orca
The orca known as J2, or Granny, hasn’t been seen for months. (Center for Whale Research / 1998)

No body has been sighted, but after months of missing her, researchers have declared that the oldest orca in Puget Sound’s J pod is presumed dead.

The loss of J2, better-known as Granny, marks a turning point for the small community of southern resident killer whales in Puget Sound and its environs. Orca communities are centered around older females, which made Granny the leader of J pod.

It’s not known precisely how old Granny was, but Ken Balcomb, executive director and principal investigator at the Center for Whale Research, said estimates put her likely age at 76 back in 1987.  That would make her 105 years old now.

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Will virtual actors take on bigger Star Wars role?

Carrie Fisher
Carrie Fisher as General Leia Organa gets a comforting hug from Harrison Ford as Han Solo in “Star Wars, Episode VII: The Force Awakens.” (Lucasfilm Photo)

Spoiler Alert! This article discusses characters from recent Star Wars movies and speculates about future movies. Don’t read further if you’re trying to stay totally in the dark about the Star Wars saga from “The Force Awakens” onward.

When Carrie Fisher died last week, it left a huge hole in the hearts of the actress’ admirers, including the fans of Princess Leia … that is, General Leia Organa Solo, the resilient rebel leader in four Star Wars movies.

Fisher had just finished filming scenes for her fifth movie, Episode VIII, which should hit theaters this coming December. For what it’s worth, rumor has it that Leia plays a key part in the plot. (Spoiler here.)

It’s impossible to predict how big a role Leia might have in the final film of Star Wars’ triple trilogy, Episode IX, which is due for release in mid-2019. There could also be spin-off stories, a la “Rogue One,” that will continue even after Episode IX’s release.

If filmmakers were contemplating a role for Fisher in any of those movies, they’re facing a huge hole in their scripts. And one option to fill it could be the strategy that was used in “Rogue One”: creating computer-generated, motion-capture characters.

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How augmented reality can find your keys

Image: AR headset
This cartoon shows a user wearing a headset that’s part of a system to keep track of items such as keys (102). The headset display could highlight the location of the keys even if they end up hidden under a sheaf of papers or lost between the cushions of a couch. (Microsoft Illustration via USPTO)

Microsoft expects its HoloLens augmented-reality headset to guide you through complicated tasks in the workplace, but someday you could also use it around the house to find misplaced items, play games – and even watch movies on a virtual big screen.

The possibilities for augmented reality, or AR, are laid out in a series of patents and patent applications published over the past month or so.

Augmented reality is a cousin of virtual reality. VR creates a complete computer-generated environment, viewed through headsets ranging from the high-end Oculus Rift and HTC Vive to the smartphone-based Google Daydream and Samsung Gear systems. AR systems like Microsoft’s HoloLens goes one step further, blending computer-generated imagery with the real-life scene that’s in front of you.

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SpaceX explains rocket failure (and its fix)

SpaceX Vandenberg pad
SpaceX’s return to flight is due to take place Jan. 8 at its launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (SpaceX Photo)

SpaceX says an investigation has concluded that the Sept. 1 explosion of its Falcon 9 rocket occurred due to the failure of a helium pressure vessel, and it’s taking steps to avoid the problem for its return to flight, set for Jan. 8.

That launch will send 10 Iridium Next communication satellites into orbit from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base. Meanwhile, repairs are continuing at SpaceX’s launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, where September’s blow-up occurred during a pre-launch fueling test.

The California-based launch company’s founder, Elon Musk, had said previously that the supercooled helium tanks played a role in the accident, which led to the fiery loss of the rocket and its commercial Amos-6 satellite payload. Today’s update adds lots more detail to that diagnosis, and explains what SpaceX is doing to address the issue.

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China’s ivory ban marks big step for elephants

Elephant
The Great Elephant Census documents a decline in the species. (Great Elephant Census via YouTube)

China’s pledge to shut down commercial trade in ivory within a year comes as welcome news to conservationists who have been fighting for years to save endangered elephants – including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

The Chinese government’s announcement on Friday laid out a plan to close domestic trade in elephant ivory by the end of 2017, following up on a commitment made by President Xi Jinping in 2015. The ban will be phased in starting in March, and will apply to physical sales as well as online transactions.

China already has been taking steps to counter the illegal trade, including widely publicized ceremonies during which authorities have crushed down tons of elephant tusks and carved ivory. The country is nevertheless considered the home of the world’s largest ivory market.

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Mannequin Challenge jumps the shark in zero-G

Mannequin Challenge
Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky stays immobile as he floats in a Superman pose for an out-of-this-world Mannequin Challenge. (ESA via Twitter / Thomas Pesquet)

Standing still for a Mannequin Challenge video is a faddish feat, but floating still in zero-G raises the degree of difficulty to the level of a true challenge. And the crew of the International Space Station proves they’re up to the task.

French astronaut Thomas Pesquet served as the film director for the video, which went viral on social media soon after its release on Dec. 29. On Facebook, Pesquet explained that the video was shot during the six-member crew’s Sunday time off.

Most of the crew members were able to anchor themselves along the walls of the space station’s modules with their feet, but Russia’s Oleg Novitsky (posing as Superman) and NASA’s Peggy Whitson (with the camera) looked as if they had the hardest jobs – that is, staying in one place while floating in midair.

“The result is kind of sci-fi spooky, don’t you think?” Pesquet wrote.

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World View settles into Spaceport Tucson

Spaceport Tucson
The Breitling Jet Team flies over Spaceport Tucson in October. (World View Photo)

Arizona-based World View Enterprises is settling into its new offices at Spaceport Tucson and gearing up for what could be a high-flying year ahead.

World View offers a flight system that uses high-altitude balloons to loft payloads, and eventually people, beyond 100,000 feet in altitude. That height isn’t anywhere near the internationally accepted boundary of outer space, but it’s high enough to conduct weather research and provide an astronaut’s-eye view of the Earth below.

The company is already testing balloon platforms known as “Stratollites” that could do some of the work traditionally performed by satellites. Eventually, World View plans to take passengers up on hours-long flights, at a price of $75,000 a seat.

In January, World View struck a $15 million deal with Pima County for construction of Spaceport Tucson, which includes a headquarters and manufacturing facility as well as a 700-foot-wide circular balloon launch pad. The deal was contingent on the facility being ready by the end of this year.

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EmDrive thruster attracts notice from skeptics

EmDrive
The EmDrive apparatus was set up inside a vacuum chamber for testing. (White et al. via AIAA)

For years, space geeks have been intrigued by the idea of propulsion systems that don’t need propellant – and now one of the best-known concepts, known as the EmDrive, is getting a serious once-over.

The EmDrive, short for electromagnetic drive, could be revolutionary for spaceflight if it works. Spaceships could dispense with the mass of rocket fuel, and because the velocity builds up progressively, trips to Mars and beyond would be much faster and simpler.

The concept involves bouncing microwaves around a closed cavity that’s shaped like a cone. The shape supposedly funnels the microwaves to generate forward thrust.

The problem is, Newton’s Third Law of Motion says it shouldn’t work that way. If there’s an equal and opposite reaction for every action, the skeptics say the EmDrive – and the spaceship it’s bolted onto – should stay perfectly still. The effect has been compared to trying to push your car down the road by sitting in the driver’s seat and pushing against the steering wheel.

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Why 2017 will be challenging for Boeing

Boeing logo
Boeing is headquartered in Chicago, but most of its planes are built in the Seattle area. (Boeing Photo)

As Boeing begins its second century, the Seattle-born company is facing a slew of daunting challenges. But 2017 isn’t like the 1970s, when the Boeing Bust prompted a pair of real-estate salesmen to put up a billboard reading “Will the Last Person Leaving Seattle Turn Out the Lights?”

There’s still plenty of business to keep the lights on at Boeing’s plants in Everett and Renton. The challenges have more to do with how brightly they’ll burn in the years ahead, and whether Boeing’s historical role as Puget Sound’s biggest employer will be overshadowed by other companies.

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