SPACEX LAUNCHES 24 STARLINK SATELLITES ON FALCON 9 ROCKET FROM CAPE CANAVERAL - SpaceX launched another batch of Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as the Sun rose over Florida’s Space Coast. The Starlink 6-68 mission added 24 more Starlink V2 Mini satellites to the rapidly expanding satellite internet constellation in low Earth orbit. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station was set for 5:45 a.m. EST (1045 UTC), but SpaceX didn’t begin fueling its Falcon 9 rocket in support of that launch time. Instead, liftoff happened at 8:21 a.m. EST (1321 UTC).   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Nov 15)

BOEING SHIPS FIRST TWO REDESIGNED O3B MPOWER SATELLITES - Boeing has shipped the first pair of O3b mPower satellites with fixes addressing power issues that have hobbled the initial six in SES’s next-generation medium Earth orbit (MEO) broadband network. Boeing said Nov. 13 the satellites with redesigned power modules were sent via truck from its facilities in El Segundo, California, and are due to arrive at Cape Canaveral in Florida next week for their December SpaceX launch.    More
(Source: SpaceNews - Nov 14)

SPACEX LAUNCHING 20 STARLINK SATELLITES FROM CALIFORNIA TONIGHT - paceX will launch another batch of its Starlink internet satellites from California's central coast tonight (Nov. 13). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 20 Starlink spacecraft, including 13 with direct-to-cell capability, is scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base tonight at 11:21 p.m. EST (8:21 p.m. local California time; 0321 GMT on Nov. 14). SpaceX will webcast the action live via X, beginning about five minutes before launch.   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 14)

UNPREDICTABLE SOLAR ACTIVITY SENDS SATELLITES PLUMMETING TO EARTH - Last week, three tiny Australian satellites from Curtin University's Binar Space Program burned up in Earth's atmosphere. That was always going to happen. In fact, Binar means "fireball" in the Noongar language of the First Nations people of Perth. When a satellite is in low Earth orbit (2,000 km or less), it experiences orbital decay as it drags closer and closer to the surface, eventually burning up. But these cube satellites (CubeSats), known as Binar-2, 3, and 4, entered the atmosphere much sooner than originally planned. They only lasted for two months – a third of what was expected. This significantly reduced valuable time for science and testing new systems.   More
(Source: ScienceAlert - Nov 14)

NASA AND ROSCOSMOS DISAGREE ON CAUSE AND SEVERITY OF ISS AIR LEAK - NASA and Roscosmos continue to disagree on the cause and severity of an air leak in the Russian segment of the International Space Station, one that NASA worries could lead to a “catastrophic failure” of part of a Russian module. That disagreement was brought to light during a brief meeting of NASA’s ISS Advisory Committee Nov. 13, which recounted a meeting of that committee with its Roscosmos counterpart in Moscow in September to discuss issues with the station.    More
(Source: SpaceNews - Nov 14)

LONGEST-SERVING SATELLITE OSCAR-7 MARKS 50 YEARS IN ORBIT - Launched on November 15, 1974, OSCAR-7, a microsatellite, continues its mission 50 years after its launch, serving as a vital asset for amateur radio operators globally. It holds the title of the oldest operational satellite, predating the launch of NASA's Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 by three years. Space-themed merchandise OSCAR-7 belongs to a series of amateur radio satellites known as OSCARs (Orbital Satellites Carrying Amateur Radio), built by volunteers from the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT).   More
(Source: SpaceDaily - Nov 13)

CHINA REVEALS REUSABLE CARGO SHUTTLE DESIGN FOR TIANGONG SPACE STATION - China has unveiled the design of a new reusable shuttle to take cargo to and from the country's space station. The Haolong space shuttle is being developed by the Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute under the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). It is one of two winning projects stemming from a call for proposals from China's human spaceflight agency, CMSA, to develop low-cost cargo spacecraft.   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 13)

CHINESE PRIVATE ROCKET LAUNCHES 1ST SATELLITE FOR INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMER - Chinese commercial space firm CAS Space announced that it successfully launched 15 satellites into Earth orbit, including one for the Sultanate of Oman. CAS Space's Kinetica-1 (also known as Lijian-1) solid rocket lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert on Sunday 11:03 pm Eastern time on Sunday, Nov. 10 (0403 GMT on Monday, Nov. 11; or 12:03 pm Beijing time on Monday).   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 13)

CHINESE COMMERCIAL LIJIAN-1 ROCKET LAUNCHES 15 SATELLITES - A Chinese commercial rocket sent 15 satellites into orbit late Sunday, including launch service provider CAS Space’s first international payload. The Lijian-1 (Kinetica-1) solid rocket lifted off at 11:03 p.m. Eastern Nov. 10 (0403 UTC, Nov. 11) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The CAS Space launch report states the launch occurred within the “Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Test Area.” The area likely refers to a growing section of Jiuquan spaceport hosting launch areas for companies including CAS Space, Landspace, Space Pioneer and others. It is one of a number of initiatives to allow China to facilitate new commercial rockets and break a bottleneck in spaceport access.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Nov 12)

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