NASA's Gateway Station Progress

In FY19, NASA received $450M for Gateway Station.

The FY20 budget proposal gives the Gateway Station $840M.

The government shutdown delayed the Power and Propulsion Module for Gateway Station from September 2022 to December 2022 (at least).

Canada has become the first international partner to sign onto NASA's Gateway Station.

Lockheed completed a prototype habitat module.

As NASA Receives Criticism for the Gateway Stations, Other Nations Begin to Plan Their Own

Russian cosmonauts will carry out a 14-day lunar landing mission after 2030, according to a presentation made by Russia's general designer of manned spacecraft Yevgeny Mikrin has stated.

“The first landing mission [14 days]," one of the slides in his presentation at a conference dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the International Space Station (ISS) says.

According to the image on the slide, it is planned to send three cosmonauts to the lunar surface.

Mikrin has presented a concept of Russian lunar orbital station.

"We propose that the base block of the station should be created in accordance with the composition of the current Russian segment of the ISS, and include a node module, a scientific/ energy module, and a propulsion module," Mikrin said.

link.

And a graphic emerged from China about their lunar missions and there's a lunar station in it.

All of this is somewhat funny because NASA received a cold shoulder from Canada about participating in the Gateway Station, the Russians have been stating they want an equal say in running the NASA project, and an advisory board was very unhappy with the plans for the station and return to the Moon. ex Administrator Griffin called the Gateway 'stupid.'  The Chinese were not impressed either in the past.

Yet, here's Russia talking about their own lunar station and China has started releasing graphics of their lunar station.

Nasutoceratopsini Ceratopsian From Campanian Cretaceous Alberta, Canada

A basal ceratopsid (Centrosaurinae: Nasutoceratopsini) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian) of Alberta, Canada

Authors:

Ryan et al

Abstract:

A partial skull (CMN 8804) of a ceratopsid from the upper unit of the Campanian Oldman Formation of Alberta is the first Canadian example of the newly established Nasutoceratopsini, a new subclade of Centrosaurinae defined as the stem-based clade of centrosaurine ceratopsids more closely related to Nasutoceratops titusi than to Centrosaurus apertus. The new clade is diagnosed, in part, by having a parietosquamosal frill lacking modified epimarginals; a small nasal horncore; large, rostrolaterally directed postorbital horncores; and a relatively short, deep face. Although the CMN 8804 taxon closely resembles Nasutoceratops, its phylogenetic position within Nasutoceratopsini is unresolved. The CMN 8804 taxon would have been contemporaneous with dinosaurs from the lower portion of the Dinosaur Park Formation 200 km to the northwest in Dinosaur Provincial Park. The presence of the CMN 8804 taxon in Alberta, and the approximately contemporaneous Nasutoceratops in Utah, indicates that the nasutoceratopsins persisted in both north and south Laramidia well after the first appearance (i.e., Coronosaurus brinkmani) of the newly defined Centrosaurini. This stem-based clade is composed of centrosaurine ceratopsids with well-adorned parietosquamosal frills and short postorbital horncores that are more closely related to Centrosaurus apertus than Pachyrhinosaurus canadensis. The rarity of nasutoceratopsins in the well-sampled sediments of Laramidia suggests that they may have had different ecological preferences than centrosaurins, or that their relatively non-diagnostic, fragmentary remains may be misidentified as other centrosaurins. The temporally (∼79–76 Ma) and geographically (Utah to Alberta) large distributions of Nasutoceratopsini weakens the hypothesis of distinct north and south Laramidian provinciality.

Canadians Channel Their Mean into Their Geese, but what if...

The Prime Minister was sweating. Profusely. He was on the phone. An ancient and impossible to crack phone. It had one use. It had one user. It was linked only to the Canadian Prime Minister's office and to Buckingham Palace.

"Yes, your Majesty. We have been getting the reports, too. It is deeply concerning. We are monitoring the situation as best we can and we are seeking to find out what is causing the aberration. I know that is a vast understatement, Your Majesty.

"Yes, I have seen the report a goose even went up and nuzzled an American after saving his life from a moose. There seems to be little effect on the populous other than the confirmed effects in Alberta: they have started saying "Y'all." They are still nice though. There are reports of something happening in British Columbia, but that may be merely some new strain of marijuana and not the Protocol breach.

"We are sure Wildrose is NOT behind this. They are as dismayed as the rest of us. When a Canadian goose cleaned up the mess it may on Danielle Smith's lawn and seemingly apologized, she immediately contacted me. She was aghast.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I am aware it is one of the signs of the apocalypse if Canada democratically decides to become American. I know the Crown cannot afford to have Hell freeze over: Victoria's Great Engine would seize and you would pass away leaving your Crown to Charles rather than William. I am aware of what your actions will be if the Protocol outright fails.

"We are doing everything we can to find the root cause. We will stop the Protocol Breach. We have our best agents searching: I promise. I will keep you aprized. Thank you, Your Majesty."

Trudeau's hands shook as he put down the phone. He reached for a cloth on his desk. A lesser man, a less in shape man, would have died of a heart attack half way through the call. Unfailingly polite she may be, but that Woman could be terrifying when her furnace was fully stoked.

He took a breath. He held it for a moment and then exhaled. He was risking much by not fully informing the Crown, but he knew he had to: if she suspected the chaos in the American election was tied to the Protocol breach...he shuddered.

For a moment, before he called in his Cabinet, he sat and muttered, "I know you are behind this. I just have to find you. No one has seen you in a week, not since just before the breach...I will find you. I will stop you. Whatever it is you are plotting."

...

Far, far to into the Canadian Arctic, kilometers away from any human settlement and in a place too horrific even for the polar bears, a brown coated animals howled in pain and anguish as its body metamorphosed. A cloaked figure watched with glee.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Absorb their hate! Absorb their anger! Revel in their fear! Channel it! Use it! It is mighty! It is powerful!"

The furred creature shifted, screamed and contorted. It's paws changed, becoming unholy. It shifted and warped and lost its fur over most of its body. It became an unhealthy color, too long and far from the Sun. It howled and beat at the ground as the hate coursed through it. As the bigotry and ignorance racked its body, soul, heart and mind, it arched backwards into the air as bones cracked, shifted and reformed in its new and corrupt state.

The amulet around its neck glowed bright with a terrible darkness as the changes warped and remolded the creature until the power faded. Until the transformation was complete.

Then the Canadian Penny set within reverted to normal. A bauble on a necklace.

And the creature stood erect.

The cloaked figure cackled his mad laugh and smiled his sickly smile.

Doug Ford looked upon his creation and was pleased.

"Good. Good. Good. Arise, my creature. You are ready.

"Now. You need an appropriate moniker. I name you....Logan."

Scuffle in the South China Sea #63

China has begun combat air patrols over the disputed islands in the South China Sea.

Here's a general update.

The Chinese Shenzhen destroyer has rejoined the South China Sea fleet after a major upgrade.

Some wonder if China is preparing to fight a 'people's war' over the South China Sea.

China is opposing the South China Sea be brought up at the G20 summit.

The US & South Korea had meetings over the South China Sea.

The first US destroyer to visit China since the South China Sea ruling by The Hague has docked.

The US has called for military transparency.

Canada is being called on by some to speak up on the South China Sea dispute.

Philippines has called on China to respect international law.  Japan joined that call.

Philippines seeks to negotiate with China.

Vietnam has supposedly shipped rocket launchers to its garrisons in the South China Sea.

Two new Ediacaran small fronds from Mistaken Point, Newfoundland

Two new Ediacaran small fronds from Mistaken Point, Newfoundland

Authors:

Mason et al

Abstract:

Small, stemmed frond fossils are common in Ediacaran-aged strata (ca. 565Ma) at Mistaken Point, Newfoundland, and many of them have previously been informally referred to as ‘dusters,’ but due to their small size and consequent relatively poor preservation, they have not yet been described taxonomically. Two new genera are herein defined on the basis of their unique constructions: the mop-like rangeomorph Plumeropriscum hofmanni new genus new species, and a flabellate, lobate frond Broccoliforma alta new genus new species. Plumeropriscum hofmanni n. gen., n. sp. has a three-dimensional petalodium structure with numerous primary branches attached at the base of the petalodium rather than at a central axis. Broccoliforma alta n. gen., n. sp. lacks visible branching, and instead has a lobate morphology with a petalodium that is at least superficially similar to the ivesheadiomorph Blackbrookia. Several other previously described taxa had also been included under the umbrella of ‘dusters.’ Collectively, these taxa show that the low epibenthic tier that small fronds occupied was more diverse than previously realized, with multiple taxa converging on the stemmed, small-frond body plan.

Canadian Fighter Procurement Debacle Continues

Canada’s Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan has just announced that his ministry will reach out to fighter manufacturers this summer to determine the best aircraft to meet the country’s needs.

link.

Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures From Paleoproterozoic Canada

Microbially induced sedimentary structures in the Paleoproterozoic, upper Huronian Supergroup, Canada

Authors:

Hill et al

Abstract:

The Paleoproterozoic Gordon Lake and Bar River formations, Huronian Supergroup, contain a variety of sedimentary structures in the Flack Lake area of Ontario, Canada, that have been considered of debatable origin. We identify these structures as microbially induced sedimentary structures (MISS). The preserved MISS are related to microbial mat destruction and decay, and include sand cracks, mat chips, remnant gas domes, pyrite patches, and iron laminae. A biological origin for the fossil structures is supported by their similarities to modern and ancient documented examples of MISS, the sand-dominated nature of the substrate in which they are preserved, and key microtextures identified in thin section. Microtextures include curled, frayed and layered mat chips, carbonaceous laminae, oriented grains, and concentrated heavy minerals. On outcrop scale, the presence of desiccation cracks, flaser and lenticular bedding, and ripples in association with the types of MISS identified in the Gordon Lake Formation support the interpretation of a tidal flat depositional environment. The Gordon Lake Formation contains a greater number and diversity of MISS than the overlying Bar River Formation, as a result of lower energy deposition in the former. The quartz arenite of the Bar River Formation contains fine-grained to pebbly granulestone characterized mainly by tangential and planar cross beds, which is consistent with a tidal channel or sand shoal setting. Although fossil evidence of life is rare in the rocks of the Huronian Supergroup, identification of MISS in the Flack Lake area provides a significant and convincing indication of microbial colonization at the time of deposition.

Canadian Surface Combatant Will be Existing Design

The Royal Canadian Navy's (RCN's) Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) requirement is to be streamlined and an existing design chosen instead of a new one, Canada's Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Judy Foote, announced on 13 June.

The CSC project is intended to replace the RCNs Halifax-class frigates and Iroquois-class destroyers, becoming the mainstay of the RCN's surface fleet for the 21st century.

An initial requirement was for a newly-designed vessel, but this has now changed. The Canadian government will instead look to select an existing warship design and then modify it to suit the RCN's needs. There will be up to 15 ships built, but construction will not begin until after Canada's Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) are built.

link.

Canada Will buy F/A-18E Super Hornets as a Stop gap before Fighter Competition

The Canadian government wants to acquire the Super Hornet to fill its fighter-jet capability gap on an interim basis, a move that would also take the pressure off the country’s prime minister on the thorny political issue of the F-35.

Liberal Party Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had promised during last year’s election campaign his government would never buy the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but that plane is still favored by Canada’s air force. Any decision to exclude the F-35 from a competition to acquire new jets could also spark a messy legal battle.

link.

Evidence of the Wilson Cycle From PaleoProterozoic on the Canadian Shield

Variations in zircon Hf isotopes support earliest Proterozoic Wilson cycle tectonics on the Canadian Shield

Authors:

Partin et al

Abstract:

Sedimentary basins provide an archive of magmatic and tectonic events in their detrital zircon record, which can be dated and coupled with Hf isotopic data to reveal secular changes in the production of juvenile and evolved magmatism and track the history of orogenic events. The Rae craton, which forms a substantial portion of the northern Canadian Shield, experienced successive orogenic events along its margins during most of the Paleoproterozoic Era. Yet, some of these orogenic events are poorly defined and their details remain controversial. We present coupled detrital zircon U-Pb age and εHf data from Paleoproterozoic metasedimentary successions of the eastern Rae craton. The zircon preserve an archive of ∼600 million years of magmatic and tectonic history on the Rae craton and its periphery. The U-Pb and Hf isotopic data indicate that zircon provenance was dominantly from the northern and western Rae craton, where magmatic and tectonic activity was focused during the ∼2.5 to 2.3 Ga Arrowsmith orogeny and the ∼2.0 to ∼1.93 Ga Taltson and Thelon events. Our detrital zircon dataset holds a more complete record of these Proterozoic orogenic events than is currently defined from known and dated crustal rocks on the Rae craton and shows that juvenile magmatism is more common than current models for either event suggest. Notably, an inverted U or horseshoe-shaped εHf array (-15.5 to +5.0) in our zircon dataset reflects a Wilson cycle that began in the earliest Paleoproterozoic on the Rae craton.

Are the Oldest Known Supracrustal Rocks in the World in Labrador, Canada?

Occurrence and geochronology of the Eoarchean, ∼3.9 Ga, Iqaluk Gneiss in the Saglek Block, northern Labrador, Canada: Evidence for the oldest supracrustal rocks in the world

Authors:

Shimojo et al

Abstract:

Understanding Earth’s early evolution requires decoding the cryptic geological record that is preserved in a few extremely rare terrains on Earth. The Saglek–Hebron Block in the North Atlantic Craton is one of the oldest terrains in the world. To better understand the Eoarchean history of the Saglek–Hebron Block, we undertook a comprehensive geological and geochronological investigation of this terrain. The Saglek–Hebron locality contains orthogneisses and supracrustal rocks, which are classified into two groups of the Eoarchean and Mesoarchean suites based on field associations defined by intrusion of the Mesoarchean mafic Saglek dykes. The Eoarchean suites contain the Nulliak supracrustal rocks and Uivak Gneisses. In this paper, we report cathodoluminescence (CL) observations and U–Pb ages of zircons from the Eoarchean orthogneisses to constrain the evolution of the Saglek–Hebron Block. We made detailed sketch maps (1:20) of critical outcrops to establish relative chronological relationships between lithologies. At least seven generations of mafic and felsic units were recognized in an outcrop of the St John’s Harbour South area. The first and second generations are mafic supracrustal rocks whereas the third to seventh generations are tonalitic gneisses, which are intruded into the supracrustal units. We study CL observation, geochemistry and U–Pb dating of zircons from the oldest and youngest tonalitic gneisses.

The CL observation of internal structures of the zircons showed they typically comprise three domains of core, mantle and rim. The cores have clear oscillatory zoning, whereas the mantles lack oscillatory zoning and exhibit dark CL emission and structureless CL images. The obvious correlation between the ages and chemical compositions of U contents and Th/U ratios indicates that the cores with low U contents and high Th/U ratios preserve the protolith age. The cores with clear oscillatory zoning, low U contents and high Th/U ratios of zircons from the oldest suite plot on a concordia line with ages ranging from 3953 to 3797 Ma. The oldest and average ages of the six oldest spots on the concordia line are 3953 ± 54 and 3920 ± 49 Ma, respectively. On the other hand, the average age of the four old spots of zircons from a younger generation of orthogneiss is 3869 ± 63 Ma. The geological and geochronological relationships between the third and seventh generation orthogneisses are consistent with each other, confirming an Eoarchean age of ca. 3.9 Ga for the oldest suite of the Uivak Gneisses. We name this oldest suite the Iqaluk Gneiss. As the protolith of the Iqaluk Gneiss was clearly intruded into the Nulliak supracrustal rocks, the Nulliak supracrustals must have a minimum age of ca. 3.9 Ga, indicating that they are the oldest supracrustal rocks on Earth. But, further studies should be necessary to obtain more precise age of the Iqaluk Gneiss and Nulliak supracrustal rocks.

Evidence of the Separation of Laurentia From Australia During the Rifting of the Coulmbia Sueprcontinent found?

Rifting of Columbia to form a deep-water siliciclastic to carbonate succession: The Mesoproterozoic Pinguicula Group of northern Yukon, Canada

Authors:

Medig et al

Abstract:

The Mesoproterozoic Pinguicula Group (less than 1.38 Ga) is exposed in the Wernecke and Hart River inliers in northern Yukon, Canada. The Pinguicula Group records deposition of non-cyclic siliciclastic and carbonate strata on low-energy slopes affected by rare high-energy deposits in a tectonically active epicratonic setting. The succession is ∼1.4 km thick at its measured type sections and comprises three newly formalised formations: the Mount Landreville, Pass Mountain, and Rubble Creek formations (formerly units A, B, and C, respectively). The Mount Landreville Formation is a predominantly siltstone succession with minor conglomerate and sandstone deposited below storm wave-base on a relatively gentle slope. The Pass Mountain Formation is a wispy- to planar-laminated carbonate succession deposited on a low-energy slope mostly below storm wave-base and is punctuated by rare high-energy gravity-flow deposits including debrites, grain-flows, turbidites, and micro-turbidites. The Rubble Creek Formation is dominated by repetitive centimetre- to decimetre-scale lime mudstone beds; it is distinguished from the Pass Mountain Formation by abundant zebra texture (an alternating dark grey and white banding caused by late diagenetic or hydrothermal fluid influx) and a lack of sediment gravity-flow deposits.

The Pinguicula Group is the middle of five, unconformity-bounded, Proterozoic stratigraphic successions deposited on the northwestern margin of Laurentia (ancestral North America). The Pinguicula basin was epicratonic and deepened to the south (present coordinates). The basin formed during an amagmatic extensional event that contributed to the break-up of Columbia and the separation of Laurentia from Australia.

Whereas most preserved Mesoproterozoic basins are dominated by shallow-water lithofacies deposited in rift and epicratonic settings, with few deep-water lithofacies preserved, the carbonate strata of the Pinguicula Group provide a rare insight into deeper-water carbonate environments.

Apatoraptor pennatus: a new Caenagnathid Oviraptorosaur From Cretaceous Canada

A new caenagnathid (Dinosauria: Oviraptorosauria) from the Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Alberta, Canada, and a reevaluation of the relationships of Caenagnathidae

Authors:

Funston et al

Abstract:

Our understanding of caenagnathids has benefited from recent discoveries, including nearly complete skeletons from the Hell Creek Formation of Montana. However, their phylogenetic relationships remain unclear. A new specimen from the Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Alberta has implications for the phylogeny and paleobiology of these creatures. The partial skeleton is articulated and includes a mandible, a full cervical and dorsal series of vertebrae, a right pectoral girdle and arm, a sternum, gastralia, a partial ilium, and a partial hind limb. The mandible is edentulous and the articular ridge is intermediate in form between Caenagnathus collinsi and Chirostenotes pergracilis. The neck is long and composed of at least 11 well-pneumatized cervical vertebrae with fused cervical ribs. The dorsal ribs have finger-like uncinate processes dissimilar in shape to those of other oviraptorosaurs. The pectoral girdle is large and typically maniraptoran, except that the glenoid of the scapulocoracoid faces laterally instead of posteroventrally. The arm is well muscled and can be interpreted to have been a pennibrachium, as indicated by ulnar papillae on the ulna. The manus is characterized by a short first metacarpal but an elongate phalanx I-1 and oviraptorid-like phalangeal proportions in the second digit. These and other features indicate that the specimen represents a new taxon, Apatoraptor pennatus, gen. et sp. nov. Phylogenetic analysis resolves the complicated relationships of Caenagnathidae and allows the evolution of display features to be traced throughout Oviraptorosauria.

Point Rosee: a Second Viking Colony Site Found in Newfoundland, Canada

It’s a two-mile trudge through forested, swampy ground to reach Point Rosee, a narrow, windswept peninsula stretching from southern Newfoundland into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Last June, a team of archaeologists was drawn to this remote part of Canada by a modern-day treasure map: satellite imagery revealing ground features that could be evidence of past human activity.

The treasure they discovered here—a stone hearth used for working iron—could rewrite the early history of North America and aid the search for lost Viking settlements described in Norse sagas centuries ago.

To date, the only confirmed Viking site in the New World is L’Anse aux Meadows, a thousand-year-old way station discovered in 1960 on the northern tip of Newfoundland. It was a temporary settlement, abandoned after just a few years, and archaeologists have spent the past half-century searching for elusive signs of other Norse expeditions.

“The sagas suggest a short period of activity and a very brief and failed colonization attempt,” says Douglas Bolender, an archaeologist specializing in Norse settlements. “L’Anse aux Meadows fits well with that story but is only one site. Point Rosee could reinforce that story or completely change it if the dating is different from L’Anse aux Meadows. We could end up with a much longer period of Norse activity in the New World.”

The site of the discovery, hundreds of miles south of L’Anse aux Meadows, was located by archaeologist Sarah Parcak, a National Geographic Fellow and “space archaeologist” who has used satellite imagery to locate lost Egyptian cities, temples, and tombs.

link.

Purgatorius pinecreeensis: A New Omnivorous Species of Purgatoriid Plesiadapiform Primate From Paleocene Paleogene Saskatchewan, Canada

A new species of the basal plesiadapiform Purgatorius (Mammalia, Primates) from the early Paleocene Ravenscrag Formation, Cypress Hills, southwest Saskatchewan, Canada: further taxonomic and dietary diversity in the earliest primates

Authors:

Scott et al

Abstract:

The fossil record of the earliest primates, purgatoriid plesiadapiforms, has become increasingly well documented during the past two decades, but their dietary preferences remain poorly understood. While the available evidence, which consists mostly of isolated teeth and incomplete jaws with teeth, suggests that purgatoriids were insectivorous to omnivorous, we describe here a new species of Purgatorius, Purgatorius pinecreeensis sp. nov., that extends the range of purgatoriid dental disparity toward greater omnivory than had been known before. Purgatorius pinecreeensis sp. nov., from the early Paleocene (Puercan) Ravenscrag Formation of southwestern Saskatchewan, differs from other species of Purgatorius in having slightly lower crowned teeth with a lower trigonid relative to talonid, blunter and more swollen major cusps, more transverse lower molar paracristids, and m3 with a more robustly developed posterior lobe. Taken together, these specializations enhanced the capacity for crushing and grinding at the expense of orthal shear, and represent the first instance of a modest degree of bunodonty in the family. The discovery of P. pinecreeensis sp. nov., along with other recently reported basal plesiadapiforms from the Puercan and Torrejonian of the northern Western Interior, lends additional support to the notion of a significant primate radiation soon after the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.

Giant Terrestrial Bird Gastornis Wandered the Eocene Paleogene Arctic of Canada

The palaeobiology of high latitude birds from the early Eocene greenhouse of Ellesmere Island, Arctic Canada

Authors:

Stidham et al

Abstract:

Fossils attributable to the extinct waterfowl clade Presbyornithidae and the large flightless Gastornithidae from the early Eocene (~52–53 Ma) of Ellesmere Island, in northernmost Canada are the oldest Cenozoic avian fossils from the Arctic. Except for its slightly larger size, the Arctic presbyornithid humerus is not distinguishable from fossils of Presbyornis pervetus from the western United States, and the Gastornis phalanx is within the known size range of mid-latitude individuals. The occurrence of Presbyornis above the Arctic Circle in the Eocene could be the result of annual migration like that of its living duck and geese relatives, or it may have been a year-round resident similar to some Eocene mammals on Ellesmere and some extant species of sea ducks. Gastornis, along with some of the mammalian and reptilian members of the Eocene Arctic fauna, likely over-wintered in the Arctic. Despite the milder (above freezing) Eocene climate on Ellesmere Island, prolonged periods of darkness occurred during the winter. Presence of these extinct birds at both mid and high latitudes on the northern continents provides evidence that future increases in climatic warming (closer to Eocene levels) could lead to the establishment of new migratory or resident populations within the Arctic Circle.

More on the Guaranteed Income Plans in Canada

Buried under a whack of promises, the Ontario budget contains an unusual pledge. Kathleen Wynne and company are on the hunt for a guinea pig, a city willing to pay each of its residents hundreds of dollars a month, no matter their employment status or salary, in return for absolutely nothing.

The idea’s called “guaranteed basic income,” or “mincome,” and it’s being hailed as a possible answer to income inequality.

The single-city project is “still in its inception stage” and has yet to be designed, according to a Ministry of Finance spokesperson. But in theory, it’s a simple fix for poverty, underemployment, precarious work and the rising cost of living.

Of course, if you’re already raking in cash from a decent job, you’ll end up paying the windfall back and then some at tax time. But if you’re on sick leave, have lost your job or are going back to school, mincome ensures you won’t go hungry.

Mincome proposals have been bouncing around in various forms since the days of Thomas Paine, championed by economists and politicos of all stripes ever since and invariably discarded, like other unorthodox ideas, as a pipe dream – a potentially expensive one at that.

Back in the 1970s, a pilot in Dauphin, Manitoba met with reasonable success. Recent months have seen mincome once again garnering attention from the feds. Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have resolved to develop and deploy a mincome experiment, potentially in Prince Edward Island. Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi endorses the idea, as does Alberta’s finance minister, Joseph Ceci.

link.

A Liberal-dominated parliamentary committee is calling on the federal government to explore the concept of guaranteeing people a minimum income.

The finance committee tabled a pre-budget report Friday that pushes for a study and pilot project on basic income, which is seen as a way to lift people out of poverty.

The idea, which was not in the Liberal election platform, was among 56 recommendations in a document that encouraged the federal government to act on a broad range of subjects — from aboriginal issues to labour mobility to a national transit strategy.

link.

Hat tip to Randy.

Ontario, Canada to Attempt Pilot Program for Guaranteed Basic Income

Finland and the Netherlands have already shown their interest in giving people a regular monthly allowance regardless of working status, and now Ontario, Canada is onboard.

Ontario's government announced in February that a pilot program will be coming to the Canadian province sometime later this year.

The premise: send people monthly checks to cover living expenses such as food, transportation, clothing, and utilities — no questions asked.

It's a radical idea, and one that has been around since the 1960s. It's called "basic income." In the decades since it was first proposed, various researchers and government officials have given basic income experiments a try, to mixed results.

link.

New Space Race #3

Canada:

The opinion has been expressed Canada at risk of losing out on the riches of asteroid mining.

Europe:

Antitrust regulators are not granting immediate approval for Safran acquiring Arianespace.

The Europeans are looking at what to do for the next iteration of the Vega rocket.

They are also considering a new, smallsat launcher.

India:

ISRO is looking how to privatize its PSLV rocket.

India's on track to launch its new rocket in December after a successful engine test.

Russia:

After launching the Joint European Russian Exomars and associated orbiter, the Russians space plans are woefully underfunded to achieve their official goals.

At the same time, the Russians are stating they want to build space based weapons.

And they want to test their ballistic missiles against an asteroid in 2033.

USA:

The CST-100/Starliner has been testing its water landings.   (and here). 

Here are some more details about the new cargo missions to the space station.  SpaceX was awarded another 5 cargo missions in December to the Internal Space Station by NASA for roughly $700 million.

Orbital ATK's new Antares rocket is expected to debut this summer.

The Atlas V launcher may lose its USAF payloads if the Treasury Department finds the Russian RD-180 rocket engines violate the sanctions on Russia.  The chief buyer at the Pentagon has stated the engine buys do not violate the sanctions currently in place for Russia.  An Air Force General has stated they will be moving off the RD-180.

The US Air Force plan to develop a new rocket with the $1 billion budget request has been called a violation of the law by Congressman Rogers.

NASA has ordered stop work to man rating the interim upper stage for the Space Launch System and will move forward with the long term solution.  This ought to make Culberson happy as it makes doing the Europa mission(s) easier.  The Upper Stage might just be stuck in a political tug of war though.

A mock up of the SLS first stage is making the rounds in the Southern US.

One of the crawlers formerly used to transport the shuttle to the launch pad has been modified to carry the SLS.

Due to other nations actions, China and Russia mainly, the US needs to prepare for a space war.  Here's Undersecretary of Defense Kendall on future space military programs.

It seems the reports of the death of XS-1, the DARPA reusable small sat launcher, are exaggerated: DARPA is requesting a further $50.5M for the fabrication of the airframe.  More info here as well.

The House is considering (in hearings at least) the Space Leadership Preservation Act.  Amongst the changes are giving the NASA administrator a ten year appointment.  Here are some arguments for the act.  Here are some reasons against it.   Considering who the main proponent is, I'm not surprised by the provisions.  Whether its a good idea or not, its considered a very long shot to get passed.