SPACEX LAUNCHES 23 STARLINK BROADBAND SATELLITES TO ORBIT FROM FLORIDA - SpaceX launched 23 more of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida's Space Coast this evening (Oct. 23). A Falcon 9 rocket topped with 23 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today. SpaceX had been targeting Tuesday (Oct. 22) but called that try off due to ... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 24)
SPACEX SCRUBS STARLINK MISSION DUE TO POOR BOOSTER RECOVERY WEATHER, PIVOTS TO WEDNESDAY LAUNCH ATTEMPT - SpaceX stood down from launching another batch of 23 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station to low Earth orbit on Tuesday night. The company said poor weather conditions in the recovery area led to the decision. The Falcon 9 rocket launch comes on the heels of a week that saw... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 23)
NASA, SPACEX ADJUST CREW-8 UNDOCKING DATE - Weather conditions near the multiple splashdown sites off Florida’s coast remain unfavorable for the return of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station. Forecasts remain marginal for an undocking on Tuesday, Oct. 22, and Wednesday, Oct. 23. If weather conditions improve,... More (Source: NASA - Oct 23)
BOEING-BUILT SATELLITE EXPLODES IN ORBIT, LITTERING SPACE WITH DEBRIS - Boeing seemingly can’t catch a break between the endless problems with the 737 Max and the Starliner’s failed crewed test flight. Intelsat announced on Monday that one of its satellites, built by Boeing, broke up in geostationary orbit. Multiple organizations are tracking the debris to avoid col... More (Source: MSN - Oct 23)
ARIANESPACE WILL LAUNCH THE EU’S COPERNICUS EO SENTINEL-1C SATELLITE - Earlier this month, Arianespace announced that the company will be launching the Sentinel-1C, a Copernicus satellite, for the European Commission within the scope of a contract signed with the European Space Agency (ESA). This mission will provide crucial environmental data for the planet, while als... More (Source: SatNews - Oct 23)
BLOWING UP: INFLATABLE SPACE HABITATS COULD BE KEY TO EXPLORING THE SOLAR SYSTEM - It's high time to crank up the volume in space! That's the shout from several private firms that want to see an inflation factor for the future. What is now being evaluated and tested is the use of "softgoods" to fashion inflatable/expandable airlocks and off-Earth habitats, not only for low Eart... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 22)
NASA, SPACEX CONTINUE WEATHER WATCH FOR CREW-8 RETURN - Weather conditions near the multiple splashdown zones off the coast of Florida remain unfavorable for the return of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station. Mission managers continue to monitor conditions and will meet at 11 a.m. EDT Saturday, Oct. 19 for the next weather... More (Source: NASA - Oct 21)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 20 STARLINK SATELLITES ON FALCON 9 ROCKET FROM CAPE CANAVERAL - Against the backdrop of a pink and purple sunset, SpaceX launched its third batch of Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit since Monday morning. It was able to overcome a blustery evening that at times saw wind gusts of more than 26 miles per hour. Liftoff of the Starlink 8-19 mission from Cape ... More (Source: - Oct 20)
SPACEX LAUNCHES FINAL GEN. 1 ONEWEB SATELLITES ON 100TH ORBITAL FLIGHT OF 2024 - SpaceX completed its 100th orbital launch of the year for its Falcon family of rockets late Saturday night in California. It reach this first-time milestone by launching OneWeb’s final batch of its first generation internet satellites. The mission, dubbed OneWeb Launch #20, lifted off from Vand... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 20)
‘HUMANITY WOULD WATCH HELPLESSLY AS SPACE JUNK MULTIPLIES UNCONTROLLABLY’: HAS THE NUMBER OF SATELLITE LAUNCHES REACHED A TIPPING POINT? - “Since the start of the space age, we’ve had a throwaway culture – a bit like plastics in the ocean,” says Nick Shave, managing director of Astroscale UK, an in-orbit servicing company headquartered in Japan. Getting a satellite into orbit around the Earth used to be a big deal. From the ... More (Source: The Guardian - Oct 20)
INTELSAT 33E LOSES POWER IN GEOSTATIONARY ORBIT - Intelsat 33e has lost power in geostationary orbit and the satellite is no longer providing communications for customers across Europe, Africa and parts of Asia Pacific, its operator announced Oct. 19. Intelsat said it is working with satellite maker Boeing to address the anomaly, but “believe ... More (Source: SpaceNews - Oct 20)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 20 STARLINK INTERNET SATELLITES FROM FLORIDA - SpaceX sent yet another batch of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit tonight (Oct. 18). A Falcon 9 rocket topped with 20 Starlink craft, including 13 with direct-to-cell capability, lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station tonight at 7:31 p.m. EDT (2331 GMT). The Falc... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 19)
CHINA LAUNCHES NEW EARTH OBSERVATION SATELLITE - China on Wednesday sent a new Earth observation satellite into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. The Gaofen-12 05 satellite was launched at 7:45 a.m. (Beijing Time) aboard a Long March-4C carrier rocket and entered the planned orbit successfully. It will be use... More (Source: Xinhua - Oct 18)
NASA WEIGHING OPTIONS FOR CONTINUOUS HUMAN PRESENCE IN LEO AFTER ISS - NASA is rethinking its desire for a “continuous human presence” in low Earth orbit during the transition from the International Space Station to commercial platforms to include options where, at least temporarily, the agency may not always have astronauts in orbit. In a talk at the Internatio... More (Source: SpaceNews - Oct 18)
ISS LEAKS AMONG 50 'AREAS OF CONCERN' FOR ASTRONAUT SAFETY: REPORT - NASA and its Russian counterpart have identified 50 "areas of concern" related to a long-running leak aboard the space station, a media report states. The leak has been ongoing since 2019 in the Russian segment of the International Space Station (ISS) and was the focus of a new report from NASA's... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 18)
HOW MUCH DO SPACEX'S REENTERING STARLINK SATELLITES POLLUTE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE? - Satellite megaconstellation operators are getting a lot of flak from atmospheric scientists lately for polluting Earth's upper atmosphere. But is the criticism justified? Who is the biggest contributor to the emerging environmental problem? About 40% of disused satellites burning up in Earth's at... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 18)
CHINA LAUNCHES SECOND BATCH OF 18 SATELLITES FOR THOUSAND SAILS MEGACONSTELLATION - China successfully launched the second group of 18 satellites for the planned 14,000-satellite Thousand Sails megaconstellation Tuesday. A Long March 6A rocket lifted off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, north China, at 7:06 a.m. Eastern (1106 UTC) Oct. 15. The China Aerospace Science and Te... More (Source: SpaceNews - Oct 16)
POLLUTION FROM ROCKET LAUNCHES AND BURNING SATELLITES COULD CAUSE THE NEXT ENVIRONMENTAL EMERGENCY - The growing number of rocket launches and satellites burning up in Earth's atmosphere could trigger the world's next big environmental emergency. Experts are racing to understand the new threat before it's too late. The space industry is booming. Over the past 15 years, the number of rockets laun... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 16)
VAST PROPOSES ITS HAVEN-2 DESIGN TO SUCCEED THE ISS - Vast is targeting a contract to build the successor to the International Space Station (ISS), unveiling Haven-2 on Monday, its proposed space station design. Vast said it developed Haven-2 to offer a compelling solution to ensure continued U.S. and international partner presence in Low-Earth Orbit (... More (Source: Via Satellite - Oct 15)
