General Atomics acquires Tiger Innovations
Sunday, 31 January 2021 19:44SAN FRANCISCO – General Atomics announced the acquisition Feb. 1 of Tiger Innovations, a Herndon, Virginia small business focused primarily on satellite systems, and related hardware and software.
General Atomics plans to integrate Tiger Innovations with its General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) group to “complement GA-EMS’ portfolio of advanced space systems and technologies,” according to a Feb.
An open system for missile-warning satellite data is in the works but faces challenges
Sunday, 31 January 2021 17:41WASHINGTON — During a deadly wildfire season that ravaged California in 2018, the U.S. Forest Service used data from the Air Force’s overhead missile-warning satellites to help spot new fires and flareups.
Spacewalkers complete 4 years of power upgrades for station
Sunday, 31 January 2021 15:35A pair of spacewalking astronauts completed a four-year effort to modernize the International Space Station's power grid on Monday, installing one last battery.
Spacewalkers complete 4 years of power upgrades for station (Update)
Sunday, 31 January 2021 15:35A pair of spacewalking astronauts completed a four-year effort to modernize the International Space Station's power grid on Monday, installing one last battery.
Apes, robots and men: The life and death of the first space chimp
Sunday, 31 January 2021 15:15On January 31, 1961, an intrepid chimpanzee called Ham was launched on a rocket from Cape Canaveral in the United States, and returned to Earth alive. In this process, he became the first hominin in space.
In the 1950s, it was unclear whether humans could survive outside Earth—both physically and mentally. The science fiction writer and warfare expert Cordwainer Smith wrote about the psychological pain of being in space.
Plants, insects and animals had been taken to high altitudes in balloons and rockets since the 18th century. The Soviet Union sent the dog Laika into orbit on Sputnik 2 in 1957. She died, but from overheating rather than the effects of space travel itself.
While the USSR focused on dogs, the US turned to chimpanzees as they were the most like humans. The stakes became higher when US President John F. Kennedy promised to land humans on the Moon by the end of the 1960s.
Biography of a non-human astronaut
Ham was born in 1957 in a rainforest in the Central African nation of Cameroon, then a French territory.
Apply now for the 2021 YGT opportunities!
Sunday, 31 January 2021 14:55The 2021 ESA YGT opportunities are now open for applications until 1 March. Positions are available in engineering, science, IT and business services. Find out more and apply now.
See the European Service Modules taking humankind forward to the Moon
Sunday, 31 January 2021 13:57Live from the Airbus integration halls in Bremen, Germany, get a sneak peek of the two European Service Modules that will power astronauts to the Moon and back as part of NASA’s Orion spacecraft.
Virgin Galactic to resume SpaceShipTwo test flights in mid-February
Sunday, 31 January 2021 12:10WASHINGTON — Virgin Galactic announced Feb. 1 that the company will launch its SpaceShipTwo suborbital spaceplane in mid-February, two months after a technical problem aborted an earlier launch attempt.
In a statement, Virgin Galactic said the window for its next SpaceShipTwo flight will open Feb.
China’s iSpace suffers failure with second orbital launch attempt
Sunday, 31 January 2021 12:04HELSINKI — Launch of a Hyperbola-1 rocket by Chinese private firm iSpace ended in apparent failure shortly after liftoff from Jiuquan launch center Monday.
Maine company successfully launches prototype rocket
Sunday, 31 January 2021 08:47A Maine company that's developing a rocket to propel small satellites into space passed its first major test on Sunday.
Brunswick-based bluShift Aerospace launched a 20-foot (6-meter) prototype rocket, hitting an altitude of a little more than 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) in a first run designed to test the rocket's propulsion and control systems.
It carried a science project by Falmouth High School students that will measure flight metrics such as barometric pressure, a special alloy that's being tested by a New Hampshire company—and a Dutch dessert called stroopwafel, in an homage to its Amsterdam-based parent company.
Opportunities for industry to renew Europe’s Spaceport
Sunday, 31 January 2021 08:35ESA invites European space and non-space companies to get involved in the modernisation of facilities at Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. A total budget of €140 million has been allocated to finance this work over the 2020–24 period.
Startup tests hybrid engine for small launch vehicle
Sunday, 31 January 2021 01:24WASHINGTON — A Maine startup made its first, albeit small, step towards space Jan. 31 with the successful launch of a rocket testing the engine technology it plans to use on future small launch vehicles.
The Stardust 1.0 rocket by Braunschweig, Maine-based bluShift Aerospace launched at about 3 p.m.
Umbra raises $32 million for radar satellite constellation
Sunday, 31 January 2021 00:55SAN FRANCISCO – Earth observation startup Umbra raised $32 million in an investment round led by the family office venture fund of Passport Capital founder John Burbank with participation from existing Umbra investors including CrossCut Ventures, Starbridge Ventures, Hemisphere Ventures and PonValley.
NASA, SpaceX to launch second Commercial Crew Rotation Mission to ISS
Saturday, 30 January 2021 05:05NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than Tuesday, April 20, for launch of the second crew rotation mission with astronauts on an American rocket and spacecraft from the United States to the International Space Station. NASA's SpaceX Crew-2 mission will launch four astronauts aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rocket to the space station. It will be the first mission to fly
NASA, Boeing test crew return and recovery procedures
Saturday, 30 January 2021 05:05Landing and recovery teams from Boeing and NASA recently completed a crew landing dress rehearsal at the U.S. Army's White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico, in preparation for missions returning with astronauts from the International Space Station as part of the agency's Commercial Crew Program. When astronauts land after their journey to the space station on Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spa