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Astronauts aboard the International Space Station farewelled over 2000 kg of scientific experiments and hardware on Sunday 23 January as a cargo Dragon spacecraft began its return to Earth. 

ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer captured the  resupply vehicle in all its glory as it departed the orbital outpost at 15:40 GMT/16:40 CET. It splashed down approximately 29 hours later off the coast of Florida, USA.  

The SpaceX spacecraft arrived at the Space Station just before Christmas, bringing new experiments alongside Christmas treats. It returned with a bellyful of science, including several European experiments that were quickly transported to NASA’s Space Station

Earth observation company Satellogic will start trading as a public company Jan. 26 after completing a delayed merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).

The post Satellogic completes SPAC merger appeared first on SpaceNews.

Moscow (Sputnik) Jan 20, 2022
China and Russia are both developing space capabilities but the difference is the speed with which China is progressing and it represents a "pacing challenge" for the United States, US Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John Raymond said. "I think they both are developing capabilities for their own use," Raymond said on Wednesday. "I think what's different is that China has gone ve

Moscow (Sputnik) Jan 25, 2022
NATO released its "overarching" space policy on 17 January, stipulating that any space-based attack on an ally could trigger the alliance's collective defence policy under the bloc's Article 5. What's behind the renewed US focus on space and expansion of NATO activities there? NATO's newly released space doctrine expands on the alliance's 2019 Space Policy - which recognised space as a new

Washington DC (UPI) Jan 21, 2021
United Launch Alliance sent two space tracking satellites into orbit for the U.S. Space Force from Florida on Friday afternoon. The Atlas V rocket lifted off as planned at 2 p.m. EST into a mostly cloudy sky from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station near Kennedy Space Center. The single solid rocket booster strapped to the rocket also ignited, contributing to the rocket's fi

Herndon VA (SPX) Jan 20, 2022
Eclipse Global Connectivity, Smiths Interconnect and ST Engineering iDirect (iDirect) has announced their collaboration to deliver an integrated airborne Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (A-ISR) satellite communications (SATCOM) capability for military and government aircraft. The solution, drawing on the extensive expertise of the three companies, will initially address the be

Greenbelt MD (SPX) Jan 25, 2022
When a volcano in the South Pacific Kingdom of Tonga began erupting in late-December 2021 and then violently exploded in mid-January 2022, NASA scientist Jim Garvin and colleagues were unusually well positioned to study the events. Ever since new land rose above the water surface in 2015 and joined two existing islands, Garvin and an international team of researchers have been monitoring changes

Cape Town, South Africa (VOA) Jan 14, 2022
SpaceX rocket launch Thursday carried three small South African-made satellites that will help with policing South African waters against illegal fishing operations. Produced at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, the satellites could also be used to help other African countries to protect their coastal waters. SpaceX's billionaire boss Elon Musk has given three nano satelli

Tsukuba, Japan (SPX) Jan 26, 2022
Warpspace Co., Ltd., a spin-out space startup from the University of Tsukuba, an optical inter-satellite communication service provider, announced that it has been selected to conduct a study on space communication for the lunar exploration by JAXA, which could be a part of the Artemis plan. Warpspace develops "WarpHub InterSat," the optical inter-satellite data relay communication service for t

Beijing (XNA) Jan 26, 2022
China on Monday conducted a test flight for a new engine that experts said could power China's future hypersonic aircraft and near-space plane. The engine, developed by the Laboratory of Spray Combustion and Propulsion under School of Aerospace Engineering at Tsinghua University, successfully conducted a flight test on Monday morning, China Central Television (CCTV) reported. A two