Dear Readers,
Journal of Space Operations & Communicator, a quarterly online publication, serves as a forum for those involved in the space operations field to communicate with one another, share ideas and information that improve the way operations are carried out in space. The Journal is a crossdisciplinary scholarly publication designed to advance space communication as a profession and as an academic discipline. The Journal is distributed electronically without charge to users on a global basis. JSOC contains peer-reviewed articles, comments and case notes written by leading scientists, professors, and practitioners in their respective fields of aerospace expertise. The editorial board seeks articles that demonstrate exemplary academic research of emerging trends in space technology and space operations fields.
The editorial board would like to wish all in our community a most informative, successful New Year 2023 full of vitality and good health. We all were fortunate to witness several milestones in the space industry: (1) Multiple successful Space X cargo deliveries to the International Space Station, (2) Two successful space tourism events by private space entrepreneurs Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic and Jeff Bezo’s Blue Origin, and (3)Tthe most recent NASA’s unscrewed lunar –orbiting Artemis 1 mission with main the objective to test the Orion spacecraft, especially its heat shield. The New Year 2023 portends to be a memorable in space program milestones, as well.
In review of the Journal articles last year, as we considered safety management of space missions, space weather radiation was determined one of its major threats. Due to the protective magnetosphere, life on Earth and much of lower orbital operations of satellite and space station activities remain unaffected. This issue continues the discussion. On the Radiation Shielding of Autonomous Spacecraft Intended for Artemis Camp Development investigates relevant strategies what the Artemis or any lunar program needs to consider in space weather for a successful mission. The author spoke on the topic in two previous AIAA conferences (ASCEND 2022 and Materials Research Society 2022 Conference) and will again in 2023 at AIAA’s Sci Tech Conference. AIAA community outreach extends to K-12 students. And, the Journal includes a case demonstration “Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics —Teaching Space Weather Studies” that was presented at the Fall 2022 Meeting of the Chesapeake Section of American Association of Physics Teachers.
Hopefully, you will find this issue informative and worthwhile reading.
Sincerely,
Ronald H. Freeman, PhD
Editor-in-Chief
January 1, 2023 |