Chase Million
@millionconcepts.com
CEO of Million Concepts. We empower teams to make better data-driven decisions under pressure. The mission won't wait for you.
Astronomer and planetary scientist. Software engineer. Project manager. Magician. Writer at sol-orietur.ghost.io
Astronomer and planetary scientist. Software engineer. Project manager. Magician. Writer at sol-orietur.ghost.io
555 proposals so far for NASA PSD's new S^3 program that consolidates most planetary science research funding. I expect the third "spike" to be higher. (Procrastination FTW.) 800+ proposals would not surprise me. Program will fund <55, for a 7% success rate. Unsustainable is an understatement.
January 6, 2026 at 2:49 PM
555 proposals so far for NASA PSD's new S^3 program that consolidates most planetary science research funding. I expect the third "spike" to be higher. (Procrastination FTW.) 800+ proposals would not surprise me. Program will fund <55, for a 7% success rate. Unsustainable is an understatement.
This appears to be a de facto implementation of the rumored "warm backup" option for the Lunar Terrain Vehicle competition.
![Science Transport & Robotic Innovation for Deployment and Exploration (STRIDE)
Advance Notice of Intent to Solicit
NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) through the Mars Exploration Program (MEP) within the Planetary Science Division (PSD) intends to add a new program element under the Planetary Science Division (PSD) in the ROSES-2025 solicitation entitled Science Transport & Robotic Innovation for Deployment and Exploration (STRIDE).
This future ROSES-2025 program element is expected to solicit proposals from for-profit U.S. organizations that may result in the award of firm-fixed-price contracts, subject to the availability of funds, programmatic priorities, and the merit of submitted proposals. NASA anticipates selecting multiple awards but reserves the right to make no awards.
This program element will use a one-step (direct) proposal submission process via NSPIRES; Notices of Intent and Step-1 proposals are not anticipated for this program.
Description
The STRIDE program will solicit proposals from U.S. industry to conduct design studies of advanced robotic surface and aerial mobility systems with payload transportation and deployment capability for Mars surface operations, and, where applicable, early-stage prototyping of hardware for the same purpose. These studies will inform the future development of commercial robotic systems that are Mars-environment capable and able to traverse challenging terrain to deliver science payloads across the Martian surface.
This opportunity seeks participation from a broad range of providers, from established space hardware developers to terrestrial robotics companies with potential to enter the space sector, to explore mobility solutions that are scalable and adaptable to diverse mission scenarios. The goal of the program element is to identify commercial systems that can operate in realistic Martian environments [cont.]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gq63kbfct7o7j5flbqmutm6b/bafkreihs4bdgznzvwqfsecpjvzcjyc6dcgdfux4erw3xpjagwgrmlejhwa@jpeg)
December 17, 2025 at 5:08 PM
This appears to be a de facto implementation of the rumored "warm backup" option for the Lunar Terrain Vehicle competition.
Realtime stock market news has always just been confusing correlation with causation on tiny fluctuations, via headline. The "Yahoo Finance AI" bot distills that completely. It is all like, "Stock is up 0.1% with market trends while remaining sensitive due to high beta." Zero information conveyed.
December 9, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Realtime stock market news has always just been confusing correlation with causation on tiny fluctuations, via headline. The "Yahoo Finance AI" bot distills that completely. It is all like, "Stock is up 0.1% with market trends while remaining sensitive due to high beta." Zero information conveyed.
"The City of Yes and the City of No" by Yevtushenko.
I met Yevtushenko in my senior year of high school. He asked my friend about his career plans. "Scientist or artist." "Become an artist," he advised. I think about that a lot. Why not both? Everything is deadly. Better let me be tossed around.
I met Yevtushenko in my senior year of high school. He asked my friend about his career plans. "Scientist or artist." "Become an artist," he advised. I think about that a lot. Why not both? Everything is deadly. Better let me be tossed around.
![I am like a train
rushing for many years now
between the city of Yes
and the city of No.
My nerves are strained
like wires
between the city of No
and the city of Yes.
Everything is deadly,
everyone frightened, in the city of No.
It’s like a study furnished with dejection.
In it every object is frowning, withholding something,
and every portrait looks out suspiciously,
Every morning its parquet floors are polished with bile,
its sofas are made of falsehood, its walls of misfortune.
You’ll get lots of good advice in it -- like hell you will!--
not a bunch of flowers, or even a greeting.
Typewriters are chattering a carbon copy answer:
"No--no--no…No--no--no. No--no--no."
And when the lights go out altogether,
the ghosts in it begin their gloomy ballet.
You’ll get a ticket to leave –- like hell you will!--
to leave the black town of No.
But in the town of Yes--
life’s like the song of a thrush.
This town’s without walls--
just like a nest.
The sky is asking you to take any star
you like in your hand.
Lips ask for yours, without any shame,
softly murmuring:
"Ah--all that nonsense!"
And in no one is there even a trace of suspicion,
and lowing herds are offering their milk,
and daisies, teasing, are asking to be picked,
and wherever you want to be, you are instantly there,
Taking any train, or plane, or ship that you like.
And water, faintly murmuring, whispers through the years:
"Yes--yes--yes. Yes--yes--yes. Yes--yes--yes."
To tell the truth, the snag is it’s a bit boring at times,
to be given so much, almost without any effort,
in that shining multicolored city of Yes.
Better let me be tossed around--
To the end of my days,
between the city of Yes
[Cont]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gq63kbfct7o7j5flbqmutm6b/bafkreihqi3m44looh4wvnty74jmycy5x4vlfncrpl6mmtti5zvogcspvfy@jpeg)
December 7, 2025 at 2:28 PM
"The City of Yes and the City of No" by Yevtushenko.
I met Yevtushenko in my senior year of high school. He asked my friend about his career plans. "Scientist or artist." "Become an artist," he advised. I think about that a lot. Why not both? Everything is deadly. Better let me be tossed around.
I met Yevtushenko in my senior year of high school. He asked my friend about his career plans. "Scientist or artist." "Become an artist," he advised. I think about that a lot. Why not both? Everything is deadly. Better let me be tossed around.
Introduce yourself with four spaceships.
November 25, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Introduce yourself with four spaceships.
I desperately want more wide-field UV with time-domain capabilities... but we did pretty good! This is the NUV coverage up through the final official data release. (A lot of the galactic plane was observed later, but after detector limits were relaxed and the photometry is suss.)
November 4, 2025 at 8:36 PM
I desperately want more wide-field UV with time-domain capabilities... but we did pretty good! This is the NUV coverage up through the final official data release. (A lot of the galactic plane was observed later, but after detector limits were relaxed and the photometry is suss.)
In 2017, author and programmer Leonard Richardson wrote a zine called "Tool Safety" about what he learned from writing Beautiful Soup, one of the most impactful Python libraries ever. I think often about "the best use of the power we have as computer programmers."
www.crummy.com/software/Bea...
www.crummy.com/software/Bea...
November 3, 2025 at 4:13 PM
In 2017, author and programmer Leonard Richardson wrote a zine called "Tool Safety" about what he learned from writing Beautiful Soup, one of the most impactful Python libraries ever. I think often about "the best use of the power we have as computer programmers."
www.crummy.com/software/Bea...
www.crummy.com/software/Bea...
This is an ASCII art diagram of the Galileo spacecraft found in the archived data documentation.
November 3, 2025 at 1:06 AM
This is an ASCII art diagram of the Galileo spacecraft found in the archived data documentation.
Post a game you remember playing that no one else remembers.
October 30, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Post a game you remember playing that no one else remembers.
The Kentucky Oath of Office is 50% about not participating in duels with deadly weapons.
October 29, 2025 at 12:35 PM
The Kentucky Oath of Office is 50% about not participating in duels with deadly weapons.
Dear Mr. or Ms. Anonymous,
Alone, I have nothing but my sense of duty.
Together, We the People of the United States -- you and me -- have our magnificent Constitution.
Here's how that works out in a specific case --
Alone, I have nothing but my sense of duty.
Together, We the People of the United States -- you and me -- have our magnificent Constitution.
Here's how that works out in a specific case --
October 18, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Dear Mr. or Ms. Anonymous,
Alone, I have nothing but my sense of duty.
Together, We the People of the United States -- you and me -- have our magnificent Constitution.
Here's how that works out in a specific case --
Alone, I have nothing but my sense of duty.
Together, We the People of the United States -- you and me -- have our magnificent Constitution.
Here's how that works out in a specific case --
While working on another project, I ran across this time series of radio frequency interference (RFI) detected by NASA's Surface Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) radiometer. What most immediately stands out to me is that you can clearly see wars after ~2020.
salinity.oceansciences.org/smap-radiome...
salinity.oceansciences.org/smap-radiome...
October 17, 2025 at 9:02 PM
While working on another project, I ran across this time series of radio frequency interference (RFI) detected by NASA's Surface Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) radiometer. What most immediately stands out to me is that you can clearly see wars after ~2020.
salinity.oceansciences.org/smap-radiome...
salinity.oceansciences.org/smap-radiome...
October 16, 2025 at 12:00 AM
I wonder how the user of Wal-mart Realm feels about this news. The future comes at you fast.
October 14, 2025 at 11:44 PM
I wonder how the user of Wal-mart Realm feels about this news. The future comes at you fast.
It is not possible to "abstain from actions or speech related to societal and political events." Nobody can do this. On account of we exist in societies as political creatures. This is not a good faith request. It is a demand for complete control over speech and actions.
October 2, 2025 at 3:10 PM
It is not possible to "abstain from actions or speech related to societal and political events." Nobody can do this. On account of we exist in societies as political creatures. This is not a good faith request. It is a demand for complete control over speech and actions.
It looks like we are authorized to continue working on NASA grants as long as they don't require access to NASA installations or personnel. But disbursements of funds may not occur because there will not be people to review them. Orgs will have to decide if they want to float the expenses.
October 1, 2025 at 5:31 PM
It looks like we are authorized to continue working on NASA grants as long as they don't require access to NASA installations or personnel. But disbursements of funds may not occur because there will not be people to review them. Orgs will have to decide if they want to float the expenses.
A small fraction of 0.37% of the Federal budget for this.
September 17, 2025 at 8:28 PM
A small fraction of 0.37% of the Federal budget for this.
In the latest season of Wednesday, Gomez Addams eats mice on toast. There is no chance that this is not a Museum of Jurassic Technology reference, IMHO.
[Not a meaningful spoiler in any sense.]
[Not a meaningful spoiler in any sense.]
September 17, 2025 at 1:29 AM
In the latest season of Wednesday, Gomez Addams eats mice on toast. There is no chance that this is not a Museum of Jurassic Technology reference, IMHO.
[Not a meaningful spoiler in any sense.]
[Not a meaningful spoiler in any sense.]
And wrt this issue of water in particular... the Moon needs some kind of highly sensitive "rain gauge" to establish a baseline / groundtruth.
I hope you get a chance to re-fly the ITMS, @barbylon.bsky.social.
I hope you get a chance to re-fly the ITMS, @barbylon.bsky.social.
September 13, 2025 at 10:42 PM
And wrt this issue of water in particular... the Moon needs some kind of highly sensitive "rain gauge" to establish a baseline / groundtruth.
I hope you get a chance to re-fly the ITMS, @barbylon.bsky.social.
I hope you get a chance to re-fly the ITMS, @barbylon.bsky.social.
I'm having trouble getting over the assembly environment, TBH, which I think tells the whole story. For comparison, that is Peregrine 1 (Astrobotic) on the left and the VIPER (NASA) rover on the right.
September 13, 2025 at 6:12 PM
I'm having trouble getting over the assembly environment, TBH, which I think tells the whole story. For comparison, that is Peregrine 1 (Astrobotic) on the left and the VIPER (NASA) rover on the right.
Nature cannot be fooled.
September 7, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Nature cannot be fooled.
NASA science has already been permanently and irreparably harmed by the PBR. If it is allowed to go fully into effect, if Congress does not pass a NASA budget refuting it, then the devastation will be complete.
Maybe consider sending this graphic to your congresspeople.
Maybe consider sending this graphic to your congresspeople.
![This infographic compares China's advancing space science efforts with America's recent retreats from planned missions. The graphic is titled "China advances its space science efforts as America considers retreat" with the subtitle "As China moves forward with an ambitious slate of missions, the U.S. weighs deep cuts to NASA's science portfolio."
The comparison is organized by planetary/celestial body focus areas, with China's missions marked by green checkmarks on the left and U.S. missions marked by red X's on the right:
China's upcoming missions (green checkmarks):
Earth's Magnetic Field: Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer, launching in 2026
Universe/Exoplanets: Xuntian Space Telescope, launching in 2026
Asteroid Apophis: Apophis Recon Swarm, proposed for 2027 launch
Exoplanets: Earth 2.0 Space Telescope, launching in 2028
Mars Sample Return: Tianwen-3, launching in 2028
Jupiter: Tianwen-4, launching in 2029
Gravitational Waves: Taiji-2, launching in 2030
Venus: Venus Atmosphere Sample Return, proposed for 2033
Ice Giant Planets: Neptune-Triton Mission, under study for 2039
U.S. canceled or terminated missions (red X's):
Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (operational, terminated in FY26 PBR)
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (cut by 58% in FY26 PBR, launching in 2027)
OSIRIS-Apophis Explorer (operational, terminated in FY26 PBR)
Habitable Worlds Observatory (under study for 2030s, 90% cut in FY26 PBR)
Mars Sample Return (in development, canceled in FY26 PBR)
Juno (operational, terminated in FY26 PBR)
Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (ESA partnership, 2030s, canceled in FY26 PBR)
DAVINCI and VERITAS (in development, 2031, canceled in FY26 PBR)
Uranus Flagship Mission (under study for 2030s, canceled in FY26 PBR)
The graphic is credited to Maxwell Zhu and Casey Dreier from The Planetary Society.
[Alt text generated by Claude Sonnet 4.]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gq63kbfct7o7j5flbqmutm6b/bafkreidno2fkgvd2osx2la42o5eusn5sfep77rdlnk4oyib662mwgrlwye@jpeg)
September 3, 2025 at 6:27 PM
NASA science has already been permanently and irreparably harmed by the PBR. If it is allowed to go fully into effect, if Congress does not pass a NASA budget refuting it, then the devastation will be complete.
Maybe consider sending this graphic to your congresspeople.
Maybe consider sending this graphic to your congresspeople.
I would like someone to please remind the Senators that "NASA's exploration goals" extend far beyond the human spaceflight program. And that the robotic and space science efforts at NASA also produce incredible benefits and returns.
September 3, 2025 at 2:54 PM
I would like someone to please remind the Senators that "NASA's exploration goals" extend far beyond the human spaceflight program. And that the robotic and space science efforts at NASA also produce incredible benefits and returns.
If we hypothesize a near-term capability to regularly deliver large amounts of mass to the lunar surface (e.g. fusion power plants or rovers bigger than an SUV), then what is the argument for chasing (possibly) water-rich areas for (possible) long term habitation? Why not just plan to ship water?
August 23, 2025 at 4:54 PM
If we hypothesize a near-term capability to regularly deliver large amounts of mass to the lunar surface (e.g. fusion power plants or rovers bigger than an SUV), then what is the argument for chasing (possibly) water-rich areas for (possible) long term habitation? Why not just plan to ship water?