Copernical Team
Rocket Lab launches first of 2 Responsive Space Missions for NRO
Rocket Lab USA, Inc (Nasdaq: RKLB) has launched the first of two responsive space missions for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Following lift-off of NROL-162 ("Wise One Looks Ahead") from Pad A at Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 at 06:30 UTC, July 13, 2022, Electron successfully delivered the NRO's national security payload to space. In partnership with the Australian Department of D
Rocket Lab supports significant milestone for DARPA and SDA for Mandrake-2 Mission
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has supported a significant milestone for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Space Development Agency's (SDA) Mandrake-2 mission. In June, the two Mandrake-2 spacecraft, Able and Baker, successfully demonstrated closing and maintaining an optical communications link for the full test duration of 40 minutes at a range of 114 km. In
SKYNET 6A satellite passes Critical Design Review
Airbus has achieved a key milestone with the successful completion of the Critical Design Review (CDR) of the UK Ministry of Defence's (MOD) next secure military communications satellite, SKYNET 6A. Richard Franklin, Managing Director of Airbus Defence and Space UK said: "Achieving this crucial milestone is tangible proof that in partnership with Defence Digital in the Ministry of Defence
Space Systems Command awards GPS support contract to Lockheed Martin
Space Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company the contract to deliver operations and sustainment support services for the Global Positioning System IIR/IIR-M/III/IIIF. The support contract provides specialized sustainment services to maintain the GPS IIR/IIR-M/III/IIIF space vehicles and signal in space, and meet evolving requirements for a resilient system for the joint wa
MDA awarded contract by York Space Systems
has been awarded a contract from York Space Systems. The contract will see MDA design and build Ka-Band steerable antennas for satellites to be produced by York Space Systems. "We're excited to establish this new relationship for satellite systems with York Space Systems to support important space security and communications constellations," said Mike Greenley, CEO of MDA. "This contract r
New satellite series adds capabilities to China's data relay capacity
China launched a Tianlian II series satellite early on Wednesday morning to form a global-covering network of the country's second-generation relay satellites. A Long March 3B carrier rocket blasted off at 12:30 am at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China's Sichuan province and then placed the Tianlian II-03 satellite into a geostationary orbit, according to China Aeros
Multi-domain operations: Helping militaries make better decisions faster
For years, Paul Meyer's job in the U.S. Air Force was to suppress enemy air defenses. To do that, he had to know where they were and what they were doing. And to do that, he and the pilot of his F-4 Phantom II had to get close enough to show up on their radars. "My job was to play chicken - to put myself in that environment where I have to fire my missile before he fires his," said Meyer,
First image from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope reveals thousands of galaxies in stunning detail
Billions of years ago, long before a swirling cloud of gas and dust coalesced to form the sun, light left the earliest stars and began a long journey through space.
The light has been traveling ever since, covering trillions upon trillions of miles. It hurtled by galaxies and their nascent stars, some of which were accompanied by planets. And on one of these, a species evolved with the ability not only to question what might be out there, but to build tools to see what its own eyes could not.
On Monday, the world got its first glimpse of that ancient light courtesy of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, the most sophisticated and ambitious deep-space viewing tool yet assembled.
It's a snapshot of deep space, the light from innumerable galaxies swirling around a central point like the light thrown off from a disco ball. Flanked by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson unveiled the image at a White House news conference.
China launches two new satellites
China on Saturday launched a Long March-2C carrier rocket to place two satellites in space. The pair of satellites, Siwei 03 and 04, were lifted at 6:57 a.m. (Beijing Time) from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in the northern province of Shanxi and soon entered the preset orbit. They will provide commercial remote sensing services for sectors such as land resources investigation,
NASA and Houston's Ion Partner to Create Opportunities for Startup Community
The Ion, Houston's innovation hub, has announced a new collaboration with NASA's Johnson Space Center. NASA and the Ion are establishing a technology transfer center at the Ion, empowering the Houston-Galveston region's aerospace innovation ecosystem by giving local entrepreneurs and startups opportunities to share ideas and intellectual property with NASA. The collaboration between NASA a