Orlando FL (UPI) Feb 26, 2021
Texas-based Firefly Aerospace plans to launch its new Alpha rocket from California in April and send a lunar lander to the moon by 2023. The 95-foot-high launch vehicle is designed to lift satellite payloads that weigh just over a ton into low-Earth orbit, or slightly lighter loads to a higher orbit. Firefly has existed for only four years, and would join a small, but growing, group

Edwards AFB CA (AFRL) Feb 25, 2021
The Air Force Research Laboratory's Rocket Propulsion Division hosted a virtual conference of the Management Committee (Integration and Outreach Division) of the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), chaired by Ray Flores, deputy director, Office of the Inspector General, HQ Air Force Materiel Command, February 23-24. Dr. Suren Singhal, deputy manager, Office of the C

Beijing (XNA) Mar 02, 2021
China's satellite application system has made great progress in 2020, with more than 300 satellites in orbit for various applications, according to a recent report released by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. Among them are Beidou navigation satellites, remote sensing satellites for meteorological and marine monitoring, and communication satellites. China start

Washington DC (AFNS) Feb 26, 2021
Because of its small size and high dependency on advanced technology, the US Space Force is perhaps better positioned than any branch of the US military to become a cash-cow for private industry. A top US Space Force official has praised the falling costs of space flight in recent years, saying that nearly all of its space activities are now capable of being performed by private industry.

West Lafayette IN (SPX) Mar 02, 2021
Frozen water is hiding beneath the dust-covered surface of Mars, and scientist Ali Bramson wants to find it. She sees a chance to both sustain future human explorers and answer questions about the red planet's climate. Bramson, a Purdue University assistant professor of planetary science, was part of recent research to determine the location and depth of the subsurface ice. The results of

Tucson AZ (SPX) Mar 02, 2021
This first HiRISE image of the Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars also shows many parts of the descent system that got it safely there. Each inset shows an area about 650 feet (200 meters) across. The rover itself sits at the center of a blast pattern created by the hovering skycrane (labeled as "descent stage") that lowered it there. The skycrane flew off to crash as at a safe dist

Bethesda MD (SPX) Mar 02, 2021
Launch vehicles and satellites are commonly built by different contractors in separate locations by two different talent pools. Satellite engineers and managers are not generally intimately familiar with launch vehicle design, manufacture and operations. Launch vehicle engineers and managers are not generally intimately familiar with satellite design, manufacture and operations. At some point

new Delhi (Sputnik) Mar 02, 2021
The launch of the PSLV-C51 occurred on Sunday at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The latter is located on Sriharikota Island in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched the Brazilian satellite Amazonia-1 along with 18 other co-passenger satellites via the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C51). The event occurred on Sund

Long Beach CA (SPX) Mar 02, 2021
Rocket Lab has unveiled plans for its Neutron rocket, an advanced 8-ton payload class launch vehicle tailored for mega-constellation deployment, interplanetary missions and human spaceflight. Neutron will build on Rocket Lab's proven experience developing the reliable workhorse Electron launch vehicle, the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually since 2019. Where Electron prov

Washington DC (UPI) Mar 1, 2021
A Kentucky space firm that conducts science experiments on the International Space Station has plans to launch its own miniature, automated orbital research platform in about two years. Lexington-based Space Tango has small research containers, or CubeLabs, on the space station. Bustling business and growing need for such experiments in microgravity led the company to plan its own space