NASA's Lunar Flashlight team assessing spacecraft's propulsion system
Friday, 13 January 2023 14:56NASA's Lunar Flashlight mission successfully launched on Dec. 11, 2022, to begin its four-month journey to the moon, where the small satellite, or SmallSat, will test several new technologies with a goal of looking for hidden surface ice at the lunar South Pole. The mission is characterizing its new "green" propulsion system and developing a modified plan for the briefcase-size satellite's journey to the moon.
While the SmallSat is largely healthy and communicating with NASA's Deep Space Network, the mission operations team has discovered that three of its four thrusters are underperforming.
Week in images: 09-13 January 2023
Friday, 13 January 2023 13:14Week in images: 09-13 January 2023
Discover our week through the lens
SpaceX edges closer to first Starship orbital launch attempt
Friday, 13 January 2023 12:05SpaceX and its chief executive, Elon Musk, say the first orbital launch attempt of its Starship vehicle is approaching, but the company must first overcome both technical and regulatory obstacles.
The post SpaceX edges closer to first Starship orbital launch attempt appeared first on SpaceNews.
Ingenuity completes the A-Z tour of the Wright Brothers Field at Jezero Crater
Friday, 13 January 2023 07:34NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has acquired a new image using its high-resolution color camera. The camera, which is mounted in the helicopter's fuselage and pointed approximately 22 degrees below the horizon, was used during the 38th flight of the Ingenuity on January 11, 2023 (Sol 667 of the Perseverance rover mission). During the flight, the Ingenuity traveled a horizontal distance of
Lunar Flashlight team assessing spacecraft's propulsion system
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45NASA's Lunar Flashlight mission successfully launched on Dec. 11, 2022, to begin its four-month journey to the Moon, where the small satellite, or SmallSat, will test several new technologies with a goal of looking for hidden surface ice at the lunar South Pole. While the SmallSat is largely healthy and communicating with NASA's Deep Space Network, the mission operations team has discovered that
Ongoing ISS Operations, Soyuz Status Update
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45NASA and Roscosmos are adjusting the International Space Station flight plan after completing an investigation into a coolant leak on the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the station. NASA hosted a joint media briefing Wednesday about the Roscosmos-led investigation to update the public on the Soyuz status and the forward strategy. As a part of the work, Roscosmos engineers determine
Update on "Start Me Up" mission anomaly
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45Preliminary analysis of data from the Start Me Up mission has begun to shed light on the outcome of the January 9th flight and next steps to follow. The Start Me Up mission was the first orbital launch attempt in history conducted from western Europe. The flight was conducted by Virgin Orbit's air-launched LauncherOne system from the newly commissioned Spaceport Cornwall in the UK, which j
First steps towards the space station of the future
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45In 1998, the International Space Station was launched, with astronauts living and working aboard. In addition to advances in medicine or helping to face the issues we have on Earth - such as water and air quality - the research conducted on the ISS is critical in our journey to the Moon and Mars and helping humanity explore the confines of the universe. However, the ISS cannot keep operati
Use the Force, Percy!
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45What do you see in the picture above - an abandoned lightsaber dropped by a Jedi Knight, lying forgotten amidst the Tattoine sand? It may look like a scene straight out of Star Wars, but sometimes life imitates art. The apparent "lightsaber" is actually an ~18 cm (~7 in) long sample tube holding a rock core drilled by NASA's Perseverance rover, collected from Jezero Crater, Mars, for potential r
SimX awarded US Space Force contract to adapt VR Medical Simulation Training for astronaut applications
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45The Virtual Advancement of Learning for Operational Readiness (VALOR) program at SimX, Inc. has been awarded a multi-year program by the U.S. Space Force (USSF) to develop a novel VR medical simulation training capability for the astronaut recovery and space launch missions. This program seeks to enhance the unique, mission-critical clinical training provided to U.S. Air Force (USAF) Pararescue
OneWeb confirms successful deployment of 40 satellites
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45OneWeb has confirmed the successful deployment of 40 satellites launched by SpaceX from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This launch is OneWeb's 16th to-date, with only two more launches remaining to complete its first-generation constellation enabling global connectivity in 2023. Lift-off took place on Sunday, 9 January 2023 at 11:50 p.m. ET (local). OneWeb's satellites separated succe
Ball Aerospace enters final stages of building Space Force's next-gen weather satellite
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45Ball Aerospace completed the spacecraft bus for the Weather System Follow-on-Microwave (WSF-M) satellite, the U.S. Space Force's next-generation operational environmental satellite system. Ball also finalized environmental testing on the Microwave Imager (MWI) instrument and has started final space vehicle assembly, integration and testing. Upon delivery, WSF-M will provide mission data to
Momentus to deliver FOSSA Systems satellites to orbit
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45Momentus Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTS) has signed a contract with FOSSA Systems ("FOSSA"), a Spanish company that offers global low-power Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and in-space services through its satellite constellation, to place its latest generation of satellites, FOSSASat FEROX, into low-Earth orbit on two Vigoride Orbital Service Vehicle missions starting in 2023. The first group o
NASA, DOD seek universities to develop cubesats for launch
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI) is collaborating with the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force to solicit applicants for a set of hands-on learning engagements that will help higher education institutions, faculty, and students elevate efforts to build small satellites and enhance the potential to be selected for flight opportunities. Teams selected for the University Nanosatellite
NASA scientists and satellites make sense of Earth's subtle motions
Friday, 13 January 2023 03:45Creeping, rising, falling, slipping - some parts of Earth are in perpetual motion. The movements are usually too tiny for human senses to notice, but they offer clues about more significant changes happening inside volcanoes, along fault lines, and where tectonic plates meet and clash. That's why scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California are using advanced tools and c