NASA to delay next New Frontiers competition
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 21:55
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WASHINGTON — NASA will delay the next call for proposals for the New Frontiers program of planetary science missions by two years, a move that could also change what missions will be eligible to compete.
US Space Force missile-warning satellite rockets into orbit
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 18:58 Write a comment
A $1 billion missile-warning satellite for the U.S. Space Force rocketed toward orbit Tuesday.
It was the fifth in this series of space-based infrared system satellites. These advanced national security spacecraft are meant to replace the long-time Defense Support Program constellation of surveillance satellites.
United Launch Alliance sent the Atlas V rocket skyward from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. "Bird away," ULA President Tory Bruno announced via Twitter.
The flight was delayed a day by a bad temperature sensor in ground equipment.
Lockheed Martin won a $1.86 billion contract for this satellite and the next one, due to launch next year. They're intended for an orbit 22,300 miles (36,000 kilometers) high.
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ULA launches U.S. Space Force missile-warning satellite, two rideshare cubesats
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 17:25 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket carrying a U.S. Space Force missile-warning satellite and two small payloads lifted off May 18 at 1:37 p.m. Eastern from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.
Aevum says launching satellites will be side gig for cargo-delivery drone
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 15:01 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — Space launch startup Aevum on May 18 said that its Ravn X unmanned aircraft will be used to both deliver cargo and launch rockets, pending approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Aevum’s autonomous aircraft will deliver cargo and launch rockets
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 15:01 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — Space launch startup Aevum on May 18 revealed that its Ravn X unmanned aircraft will be used to both deliver cargo and launch rockets, pending approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.
South Korea to join NASA’s Artemis project: reports
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 14:12 Write a comment
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea is in last-minute negotiations with the United States to join NASA’s Artemis program, a news outlet here reported May 18, citing government sources.
The negotiations are underway between U.S. officials and South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Science and ICT with the goal of reaching a deal before the May 21 summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his U.S.
Starburst Aerospace in talks to raise $50 million fund for space investments
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 12:01 Write a comment
TAMPA, Fla. — U.S. accelerator Starburst Aerospace plans to raise a $50 million fund this year to invest in space startups, CEO Francois Chopard told SpaceNews in an interview.
The company came close to securing a $200 million fund for similar purposes five years ago, before anchor investors pulled out in the final stages.
BAE Systems wins $325 million Pentagon contract for GPS receivers
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 12:00 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — BAE Systems announced May 18 it has been awarded a $325.5 million contract to supply Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite receiver equipment for the U.S. military and allies.
The contract was awarded by the Defense Logistics Agency.
The curious incident of Swarm and sprites in the night-time
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 12:00 Write a comment
We are all familiar with the bolts of lightning that accompany heavy storms. While these flashes originate in storm clouds and strike downwards, a much more elusive type forms higher up in the atmosphere and shoots up towards space. So, what are the chances of somebody taking photographs of these rarely seen, brief ‘transient luminous events’ at the exact same time as a satellite orbits directly above with the event leaving its signature in the satellite’s data?
York to quadruple smallsat manufacturing capacity with new facility
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 12:00 Write a comment
SAN FRANCISCO – York Space Systems announced plans May 18 to establish a “mega manufacturing facility” in Denver to quadruple the number of small satellites in production at once.
In the new facility, York will be able to produce as many as 80 satellites simultaneously, compared with York’s current production plant where employees can build 20 satellites at a time, York CEO Dirk Wallinger told SpaceNews.
Back to the space cradle
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 11:18 Write a comment
Like an infant adjusting to the new world, ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet is relearning how to move around the weightless environment of space. His cradle is a familiar place though – this is Thomas’s second mission to the International Space Station, the orbiting lab where he where he broke records for science during his first six months in orbit.
Rocket Lab says engine issue caused Electron failure
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 10:28 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — Rocket Lab said an Electron rocket failed to reach orbit May 15 when the vehicle’s computer system detected a problem with the second stage engine and shut it down.
In a May 17 statement, the company said it is continuing to review data from the launch, which suffered a malfunction of some kind around the time the second stage separated and ignited its single Rutherford engine.
NASA rocket chasing the source of the sun's hot atmosphere
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 10:17 Write a comment
A new space instrument captures its first solar eruption
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 10:17 Write a comment
For new sun-watching spacecraft, the first solar eruption is always special.
On February 12, 2021, a little more than a year from its launch, the European Space Agency and NASA's Solar Orbiter caught sight of this coronal mass ejection, or CME. This view is from the mission's SoloHI instrument—short for Solar Orbiter Heliospheric Imager—which watches the solar wind, dust, and cosmic rays that fill the space between the sun and the planets.
It's a brief, grainy view: Solar Orbiter's remote sensing won't enter full science mode until November. SoloHI used one of its four detectors at less than 15% of its normal cadence to reduce the amount of data acquired.
Graphene sensor combines temperature and magnetic measurements
Tuesday, 18 May 2021 08:09 Write a comment
Graphene is the thinnest material known – possessing the thickness of a single atom but 200 times stronger than steel – and has a reputation for versatility. Now an ESA-backed project has come up with yet another use for this ‘wonder stuff’, as the basis for a combined temperature and magnetism sensor.