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Thor In The Early Days At Vandenberg Air Force Base

Thor The Discoverer 3 launch vehicle being prepared for launch in June 1959 at SLC-1 West. Discoverer was the cover story for the CORONA reconnaissance satellite program. This spacecraft carried mice that died before liftoff. (credit: Peter Hunter) The little rocket that could: Thor in the early days at Vandenberg (part 2) by Dwayne A. Day Monday, July 1, 2024 Bookmark and Share The Thor rocket served as the workhorse for the American military and civil space programs for the first decade of the space age, evolving into the Thor-Delta and finally the venerable Delta II. Many launches were conducted from Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast, boosting classified payloads into orbit. Relatively few photographs of these early Vandenberg operations have been seen because national security secrecy suppressed the history. Now, more images of Thor operations at Vandenberg have become available, providing a glimpse of what it was like to prepare the workhorse and launch it into space. (See “The little rocket that could: Thor in the early days at Vandenberg (part 1),” The Space Review, June 24, 2024.) Thor The business end of a Thor equipped with three solid rocket motors. This rocket carried a MULTIGROUP signals intelligence satellite. (credit: USAF) Thor’s legacy In the space program, it has long been popular to proclaim “firsts” for each new achievement, sometimes to the point of absurdity. Naturally, the earliest rockets accomplished many significant “firsts,” and the Thor racked up a lot of firsts: First operational American ballistic missile First missile to be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base First booster to launch a spacecraft into polar orbit First booster to launch a payload recovered from orbit First booster to launch a reconnaissance satellite First booster to launch a signals intelligence satellite First booster to launch a communications satellite First booster to launch a meteorological satellite First booster to launch a navigational satellite First long-range vehicle to record, successively, 100, 200, 300, and 400 launchings Thor Space Launch Complex-1 West at Vandenberg Air Force Base in the 1960s. People who worked there found it cold and windy year-round. (credit: USAF) Many of these missions launched into polar orbits from Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast, from relatively remote, and simple, launch sites such as Space Launch Complexes 1, 2, and 10. The simplicity was an evolution of Thor’s development: the earliest Thor launch facilities were built at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida for testing the new intermediate range ballistic missile. In part because testing often meant lengthy pre-launch preparations, not to mention post-launch explosions, the Florida facilities were relatively robust and heavy. In fact, during the very first test launch in January 1957, the Thor barely rose off the pad before exploding. Major General Bernard Schriever, who was then in charge of American ballistic missile development, quipped that the missile’s accuracy was fine, they just needed to increase the range. Thor Thors being prepared for launch, probably at Vandenberg. These are probably intermediate-range ballistic missiles for the Royal Air Force, which operated them in the United Kingdom, but conducted operational training launches at Vandenberg. (credit: USAF) Project Emily When Vandenberg was established, its facilities were constructed to handle operational, not test, Thor missiles, requiring relatively less pre-launch work. Much of the equipment at the launch sites was identical to equipment designed to be transported by air to sites in Europe. The Thor rockets and other support equipment were mounted on trailers that could be driven into Air Force cargo transports. Thor A Royal Air Force Thor being prepared for launch in the United Kingdom. The RAF did not launch any of the missiles from the UK, but trained regularly. This pad is nearly identical to the ones at Vandenberg. (credit: USAF) From 1959 to 1963, the Royal Air Force operated 60 Thor intermediate-range ballistic missiles from 20 RAF air stations within the United Kingdom. This was known as Project Emily. The Thors were a major part of the British nuclear deterrent, although in an unusual arrangement, the United States had operational control over the nuclear warheads. The RAF Thor crews practiced launching nearly two dozen missiles from several sites at Vandenberg. When the program ended in 1963 and Britain decided to purchase Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missiles, most of the RAF Thors were returned to the United States and converted into launch vehicles. Thor The SLC-1 pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base in the early 1960s. These pads were relatively austere, and most rocket and payload final processing was done horizontally in a retractable shed. Most of the equipment at the pad was designed to be air transportable. (credit: USAF) Thor Standard Launch Vehicle Even though it was designed as a weapon, Thor was soon adapted for space launch, which would only take place from a few sites at Vandenberg. (See “Things that almost go boom,” The Space Review, June 17, 2024.) SLCs-1, 2, and 10 served most of their operational lifetimes with relatively spartan space support facilities. Most launch prep was done horizontally in retractable sheds, just like the missiles, and there were only limited payload servicing capabilities at the launch sites. SLC-2E eventually acquired a larger support tower to replace the cherry pickers used early in the program. SLC-2W received a much larger tower to support NASA’s Thor-Delta program and its descendants, and to enable vertical stacking of satellite payloads. Thor For early Thor launches, technicians reached the Agena upper stage and its payload using a cherry picker. (credit: USAF) In 1963, Thrust-Augmented-Thor Agena D rockets carrying CORONA reconnaissance satellites were launched from the converted Atlas pad, initially designated PALC-1-1, but later renamed SLC-3W. SLC-3W had a flame trench, a launch tower, and more extensive support facilities, and CORONA launches continued from that site until the end of the program in 1972. After that, SLC-3W was converted back to support Atlas launches. Thor Although Thor launches started at SLC-1 and SLC-2, by the mid-1960s many of them were launching from the converted Atlas pad at Space Launch Complex-3 West. The pad had greater capability to support the payload. (credit: USAF) Thor rockets flew with a variety of upper stages over the years, including the Able I and II, Ablestar, Burner I and II, and Agenas A, B, and eventually D. The Agena D, like Thor, also earned a reputation as a versatile workhorse. It not only served as a second stage but also supported many payloads in orbit by providing stability, power, and communications. Agena upper stages on top of Thors carried more than a hundred CORONA reconnaissance satellites into orbit. They also carried over a dozen large signals intelligence satellites with names like MULTIGROUP and STRAWMAN into space from Vandenberg until the early 1970s. Thor-Agenas launched other classified payloads such as the QUILL radar satellite and Program 989 signals intelligence satellites. Agenas were also used on Atlas rockets on both coasts, and Titan rockets at Vandenberg, but Thors at Vandenberg carried the most Agenas to the edge of space, where the Agena took over. Thor The Thor evolved into multiple variants, including multiple upper stages. For satellites that only needed a boost to orbit, not power, stabilization and communications, the Agena was unnecessary, leading to upper stages such as Able I and II and Burner I and II. (credit: USAF) Thor fades away The recently discovered collection of Vandenberg Thor photos includes few payload photos, save for some photos of a 1963 Transit navigation satellite launch. (See “Nuclear Transit: nuclear-powered navigation satellites in the early 1960s,” The Space Review, February 12, 2024) Thor One of the Transit5BN navigation satellites being prepared for launch. Three such satellites were launched between December 1963 and April 1964 from Vandenberg. The last one failed to reach orbit. (credit: USAF) Thor’s record in its early years was not great—that was true for all rockets in the early space age—but it quickly improved over time to better than 95% by the early 1970s. Still, there were notable launch accidents. Two of them involved nuclear power sources. In 1964 a Transit navigation satellite launched from Vandenberg spread its radioactive material in the upper atmosphere. In 1968, a Nimbus weather satellite fell into the Santa Barbara Channel just downrange from Vandenberg. It was located by a search team, then lost, then relocated and recovered. The full story of that search and recovery effort has not been fully reported. But the most spectacular failure in the Thor extended family was a Delta II that exploded just above its Florida launch pad in 1997, spraying debris over the surrounding scrub and destroying the cars of pad workers. Thor A Transit 5BN satellite being prepared for launch at Vandenberg. The satellite was nuclear powered, using a small radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) with approximately one kilogram of plutonium. (credit: USAF) Unflown Thor missiles and launch vehicles are on display in several American and British museums and there is a Thor inside a shed at the preserved SLC-10 launch site at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The last Delta II rocket to be built is on outdoor display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor’s Center. The workhorse is long retired, fading from memory, but not yet forgotten. Thor Thor rockets operated with various upper stages during their service, but the most common was the Agena, which also served as a spacecraft in low Earth orbit, supporting photo-reconnaissance and signals intelligence payloads. (credit: USAF) Next: Part 3, Thor gallery.

The Overlap Between The Space And Longevity Industry

ISS research Research on the ISS can help both improve the health of astronauts on long-duration missions and extend the lives of people on Earth. (credit: NASA) The overlap between the space and longevity industries by Dylan Taylor Monday, July 1, 2024 Bookmark and Share As the nascent space sector takes off, commercialization and space tourism are expected to grow increasingly prominent. To prepare for long-term spaceflight, we need to better understand how the human body responds to unusual environments encountered during space travel. The answer to solving these problems may lie at the intersection between space medicine and human medicine—specifically, longevity—back here on Earth. The challenges and new opportunities for scientific research into aging and longevity in space are moving closer to becoming practical applications. Space medicine is a core competency for any human to explore, develop. and, ultimately, live permanently in space. Over the past half century, space health advancements have trickled down to benefit everyday life on Earth. Examples of these innovations include laser angioplasty, voice-controlled wheelchairs, programmable pacemakers, digital imaging biopsy systems, and LED imaging to assist in brain cancer surgery. Often, research conducted in space that is critical for professional astronauts and, eventually, space tourists to thrive overlaps with longevity research conducted on Earth. Space exploration and the development of a longer, healthy human lifespan is essential to our success when traveling among the stars. The challenges and new opportunities for scientific research into aging and longevity in space are moving closer to becoming practical applications. Longevity yechnology Longevity technologies have come a long way since humans first started exploring space. A Bank of America-Merrill Lynch report predicted that the human longevity market alone will exceed $600 billion in 2025 and coined it “techmanity.” Thus far, longevity technologies like nano-cosmeceuticals, tissue rejuvenation, genomics, AI and big data are all helping to support human longevity. Some research put forth the notion that we could possibly extend the average human lifespan to 120 years. Earth-based developments have already demonstrated their importance in our quest to understand how humans can survive and thrive in space. Many experts still question whether a three-year roundtrip journey to Mars would be ethically permissible, given our current understanding of human physiology in space and the medical countermeasures to keep the crew healthy in space. Currently, research into astronaut health and human longevity are underway on the International Space Station to find solutions. When longer trips across our solar system—and perhaps beyond—are contemplated, the lack of adequate biomedical knowledge to assure crew health is clearly lacking. Humans will be far from Earth, in remote and hazardous locations with limited resources. Help from home will not be possible. As is the case with any expedition, they will need to have a boost in overall health maintenance capabilities on board. As missions start to become longer, longevity research will assume a dominant role. Among the health innovations developed in space to counteract poor health and aging, 3D bioprinting has become a hugely reliable tool. Already on Earth, a variety of technologies are being developed wherein a patient’s cells can be reprogrammed to adopt different functions and then be used to build functional copies of natural tissues and organs. Having fully functional versions of these technologies would greatly enhance the ability to keep crews safe and, in so doing, enhance longevity. Again, such research is already underway in the microgravity conditions encountered on the ISS. Many experts still question whether a three-year roundtrip journey to Mars would be ethically permissible, given our current understanding of human physiology in space and the medical countermeasures to keep the crew healthy in space. Recently, NASA, along with the Department of Health and Human Services Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), the FDA, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced a multi-agency effort to extend the lifespan of 3D tissue chips up to six months. According to NASA, the goal of the collaboration is to thoroughly understand the disease models, drug development, exposures to chemical and environmental factors, and physiological changes due to the space environment and clinical trial design. On Earth, the normal aging process involves skin deterioration. Microgravity also often causes various changes to the human body, many of which are similar to the typical aging process on Earth. However, they tend to occur much quicker in microgravity than on Earth. Colgate Skin Aging effectively implements a 3D model of engineered human skin cells to examine the molecular and cellular changes that occur during space flight. Thanks to this research, innovative models may be available to prevent some aging processes from occurring. The study could also help better protect humans from other aging-related problems in wound healing products. Partnering longevity research with space science Currently, 55% percent of space medical research is supported by commercial funding. The US is the leader in private space health research. Partnerships between private companies and research aboard the ISS have been increasing. One such partnership involves NASA and The Michael J. Fox Foundation and supports research to determine the structure of the LRRK2 gene through protein crystals developed in space. AngieX is another longevity company developing therapies to target tumor cells and blood vessels in space. Biogen Inc, Eli Lilly, Merck, and 490 Biotech are also advancing space-based life science research. Major universities and organizations also support studies in longevity-related areas such as biomarkers, radioprotectors, gene therapy and hibernation research. For example, the University of London and the University of Copenhagen are among the many working on gene therapy data. The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the University of Sydney, and the University of Lyon are conducting research into radioprotectors. Integrating advancements from both industries, SP8CEVC, in partnership with AngelList, is an innovative new rolling fund creating progress in both space technology and human longevity. Their goal is to combine space and longevity advancements to ultimately support the other. Within the space sector, the goal is to focus on space infrastructure and other assets in over 20 sub-verticals. Longevity-based investments focus on organizations that address nine hallmarks of biomarkers, aging and diagnostics. The absence of a strong gravity field’s impact upon a variety of chemical and biological processes has yielded insights that we’d have never seen if we did not start to ask “what if?” in space. “Space is going to create goods, services, and jobs that will change humanity and our planet for the better,” according to SP8CEVC’s co-founder and Longevity Lead, Junaid Mian, RPh. “However, it’s going to take time to build out this infrastructure. And not only that, as people start to go up to work instead of across to work, space rapidly ages people, and we need to find a way to mitigate that. So we also need to increase healthy human lifespan.” As has already been demonstrated, Earth- and space-based research activities benefit one another synergistically. Space utilization provides a totally unique environment unavailable on Earth’s surface. The absence of a strong gravity field’s impact upon a variety of chemical and biological processes has yielded insights that we’d have never seen if we did not start to ask “what if?” in space. The collaborations we have seen developing involve all sectors of the biomedical and chemistry sectors. Together they are working to create healthy habitats and medical support for humans on this world and others. Human longevity advancements on the future horizon of the space economy should not be understated. People need to live and work in space for weeks and months to thrive and perform their experiments for years and, ultimately, decades. The exploration of space is a multigenerational endeavor and we need to start approaching it with human longevity in mind. Creating newer space stations that build upon decades of prior space station operations will allow greater strides to be made in human health and longevity in space. When we further innovate human longevity science in space, these advancements will continue to trickle down to Earth. Ultimately, we can create an increasingly healthier and more stable society everywhere. Learning how to explore the most distant reaches of space can help us live healthier lives back here on the home planet. Dylan Taylor is the founder and CEO of Voyager Space. Dylan is a commercial astronaut, flying a member of the NS-19 crew for Blue Origin. As an active NewSpace investor, he is dedicated to developing the space economy and accessibility to the final frontier.

Space Feminism

book cover Review: Space Feminisms by Jeff Foust Monday, July 1, 2024 Bookmark and Share Space Feminisms: People, Planets, Power by Marie-Pier Boucher, Claire Webb, Annick Bureaud, and Nahum (eds.) Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2024 hardcover, 260 pp., illus. ISBN 978-1-350-34632-1 US$120 The space community has become more diverse as it has grown in recent years both in the people who are a part of it and the opportunities to do different activities in space. That diversity is welcome, but it is not without conflict. Some want to move faster, seeking to right historical wrongs, while others are puzzled or even threatened by these changes. As with any compilation, there are hits and misses, although different people will have different opinion on what hits and what misses. Most, though, will find the interviews interesting. Those shifts came to mind while reading Space Feminisms, a compilation of works by artists, academics, and others. The editors define “feminisms” as “theorizations, techniques, and political activations that challenge, dismantle, and subvert the white, Western, heteronormative, and masculine gender-based dominations that are at one structural and personal.” That definition alone is enough to turn on, or off, some readers. The book is an eclectic collection. There are essays on the social sciences as well as on art and architecture related to space and feminism. There are also interviews with astronauts Jessica Meir, Nicole Stott, and Soyeon Yi, the first Korean in space. A roundtable featuring engineers, academics, and a former director of the UN’s Office for Outer Space Affairs discussed topics ranging from the settlement of Mars to how to bring in more underrepresented communities into the space field. As with any compilation, there are hits and misses, although different people will have different opinion on what hits and what misses. Most, though, will find the interviews interesting: Meir, for example, discusses her time on the ISS as well as becoming a mother after that flight. Yi talks about overcoming sexism both in her training in Russia for her flight to the station as well as on the station itself, with one cosmonaut acknowledging after the flight that he had misjudged her: “you are smart and a real astronaut.” The book appears intended primarily for institutional and academic audiences, with a price tag to match. Browsing through the book, though, is still useful to get different perspectives about space and society. The art might seem strange and the concepts discussed foreign at times, but reflects the growing diversity of who participates in space and how. Jeff Foust (jeff@thespacereview.com) is the editor and publisher of The Space Review, and a senior staff writer with SpaceNews. He also operates the Spacetoday.net web site. Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author alone.

Terrifying rocket explosion in populated region of China!