FAA grounds SpaceShipTwo after problem on July flight
Thursday, 02 September 2021 21:46
Write a comment
The Federal Aviation Administration will not allow Virgin Galactic to resume flights of its SpaceShipTwo suborbital spaceplane until it completes an investigation into a problem on the vehicle’s previous flight in July.
Rocket Lab expands spacecraft component production
Thursday, 02 September 2021 20:47 Write a comment
Rocket Lab announced Sept. 1 that it is expanding production of satellite components to meet demand from companies developing satellite constellations.
Redwire completes SPAC merger
Thursday, 02 September 2021 19:45 Write a comment
Space technology company Redwire announced Sept. 2 that it closed its merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), taking the company public and providing it with capital for future acquisitions.
GAO continues to criticize DoD’s management of narrowband satellite communications
Thursday, 02 September 2021 19:05 Write a comment
The U.S. military’s narrowband communications satellites are oversubscribed and there is insufficient capacity to meet the needs of users, says a new report by the Government Accountability Office.
NASA works to give satellite swarms a hive mind
Thursday, 02 September 2021 18:47 Write a comment
Swarms of small satellites could communicate amongst themselves to collect data on important weather patterns at different times of the day or year, and from multiple angles. Such swarms, using machine learning algorithms, could revolutionize scientists' understanding of weather and climate changes.
Engineer Sabrina Thompson is working on software to enable small spacecraft, or SmallSats, to communicate with each other, identify high-value observation targets, and coordinate attitude and timing to get different views of the same target.
"We already know that Saharan dust blowing over to the Amazon rainforests affects cloud formation over the Atlantic Ocean during certain times of the year," said Thompson, who works at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Examining asteroid Ryugu in opposition to Hayabusa2: A starkly lit distribution of dust and rock
Thursday, 02 September 2021 18:32 Write a comment
New analysis of Hayabusa2 data of the asteroid Ryugu reveals much of the surface reflects and scatters light in ways that are consistent with studies of carbonaceous chondrite meteorites in the lab.
NASA Mars rover may have snagged 1st rock sample for return
Thursday, 02 September 2021 18:28 Write a comment
NASA's newest Mars rover snags 1st rock sample for return
Thursday, 02 September 2021 18:28 Write a comment
FAA bans Virgin Galactic launches while probing Branson trip
Thursday, 02 September 2021 18:25 Write a comment
US grounds Virgin Galactic after space flight 'mishap'
Thursday, 02 September 2021 17:55 Write a comment
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Thursday said it was grounding space flights by Virgin Galactic while it investigates why the company's July 11 voyage carrying Richard Branson deviated from its planned trajectory.
The move represents a blow to the private space company as it prepares to carry paying customers following its first fully-crewed test flight.
It is now unc NASA welcomes new Russian commitment to space station
Thursday, 02 September 2021 17:55 Write a comment
NASA welcomed reports Thursday that Russia's space agency is committed to supporting the International Space Station as long as it operates, administrator Bill Nelson said.
"I look forward to continued cooperation with Roscosmos on the International Space Station until 2030 and into the future," Nelson said in the emailed statement.
The space station's official decommission date NASA's Mars simulation hopefuls face tough application process
Thursday, 02 September 2021 17:55 Write a comment
NASA won't send astronauts to Mars for at least a decade, but the agency said interest is running high in applying for a year's stint in a simulated home base on the Red Planet.
The space agency's simulation is to begin in fall 2022 inside a 3D-printed habitat at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Applications are due Sept. 17.
And being chosen for this simulation seems as difficul OneWeb secures $1 billion insurance deal for remaining constellation
Thursday, 02 September 2021 17:41 Write a comment
OneWeb has signed an insurance policy worth more than $1 billion to cover the remaining 10 launches for its broadband constellation, after its previous policy expired following delays caused by its 2020 bankruptcy.
Virgin Orbit eyes growth in military ‘responsive’ launch
Thursday, 02 September 2021 14:35 Write a comment
Virgin Orbit is looking to grow its military business by proving that rockets launched from airplanes in flight can be instruments of national security.
Timelapse of Eutelsat Quantum launch
Thursday, 02 September 2021 12:00 Write a comment
Video:
00:03:42
Experience the preparation and launch of telecommunications satellite Eutelsat Quantum by watching this unique timelapse video.
Developed under an ESA Partnership Project with satellite operator Eutelsat and prime manufacturer Airbus, Eutelsat Quantum has pioneered a new generation of satellites with the European space industry.
The footage was captured at the Airbus facility in Toulouse – where the satellite was assembled and tested – and Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.
The world’s first fully software-defined satellite – which will be used for communication in government, mobility and data markets – was launched on board an Ariane 5 on 30 July.
Following its