ASTRONAUTS ON THE ISS ARE BRACED FOR AN URGENT EVACUATION - AS NASA UNCOVERS 50 'AREAS OF CONCERN' INCLUDING LEAKS AND CRACKS ON THE 25-YEAR-OLD SPACE STATION - NASA's astronauts aboard the International Space Station have been told to prepare for an urgent evacuation amid growing safety concerns. The US space agency and its Russian counterpart, Roscomos, are tracking 50 'areas of concern' related to a growing leak aboard the station. NASA is now cal... More (Source: Daily Mail - Oct 30)
CHINA LAUNCHES 3 ASTRONAUTS TO TIANGONG SPACE STATION ON SHENZHOU 19 MISSION - China's next human spaceflight mission is on its way into orbit. A Long March 2F rocket topped with the Shenzhou 19 crew spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center today (Oct. 19) at 4:27 p.m. EDT (2027 GMT; 4:27 a.m. Oct. 30 Beijing time), rising into a night sky above the sp... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 30)
NOAA SHARES FIRST IMAGERY FROM GOES-19 SUVI INSTRUMENT - The Solar Ultraviolet Imager, or SUVI, onboard NOAA’s GOES-19 satellite, which launched on June 25, 2024, began observing the sun on Sept. 24, 2024. SUVI monitors the sun in the extreme ultraviolet portion of the electromagnetic spectrum to watch for hazardous space weather that could affect Earth... More (Source: nesdis - Oct 29)
LIVE COVERAGE: SPACEX TO LAUNCH 20 STARLINK SATELLITES ON FALCON 9 ROCKET FROM VANDENBERG SFB - SpaceX is preparing to launch another Falcon 9 rocket in the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday morning The flight will add another 20 Starlink satellites to the megaconstellation. The Starlink 9-9 mission features 13 satellites that include Direct to Cell capabilities. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 29)
ASTRONAUT RELEASED FROM HOSPITAL AFTER RETURN FROM INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - An unnamed astronaut was released from Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola in Florida and returned to Johnson Space Center in Houston in good health Saturday, NASA reported. The astronaut was one of four who splashed down while aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on Friday to conclude NASA's SpaceX Cr... More (Source: UPI - Oct 29)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 22 STARLINK INTERNET SATELLITES FROM FLORIDA - SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida's Space Coast on Saturday evening (Oct. 26). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 5:47 p.m. EDT (2147 GMT). The first stage from a SpaceX Falcon 9 r... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 28)
LARGEST COMMERCIAL SATELLITES UNFURL, OUTSHINING MOST OF THE NIGHT SKY - The dawn of annoyingly massive satellites is upon us, shielding our views of the shimmering cosmos. Five of the largest communication satellites just unfolded in Earth orbit, and this is only the beginning of a Texas startup’s constellation of cellphone towers in space. AST SpaceMobile announced t... More (Source: Gizmodo - Oct 28)
AST SPACEMOBILE UNFOLDS DEBUT PRODUCTION DIRECT-TO-SMARTPHONE SATELLITES - AST SpaceMobile successfully unfolded its first five production satellites after compacting them for their SpaceX launch to low Earth orbit (LEO) last month, the direct-to-smartphone broadband constellation developer announced Oct. 25. Each unfolded Block 1 BlueBird spans about 64 square meters, ... More (Source: SpaceNews - Oct 26)
ONE ASTRONAUT HOSPITALIZED IN PENSACOLA AFTER SPLASHDOWN; CREWMATES FLOWN BACK TO HOUSTON - Three NASA astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut returned to Earth early Friday, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico to close out an extended 235-day expedition to the International Space Station. But one crew member experienced a “medical issue” of some sort after splashdown and was hospitalized ... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 26)
CHINA LAUNCHES NEW SET OF CLASSIFIED YAOGAN SPY SATELLITES - China has added a new batch of three spacecraft to a classified series of orbiting Yaogan satellites. A Long March 2C rocket lifted off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 9:09 p.m. EDT on Oct. 22 (0109 GMT and 9:09 a.m. Beijing time on Oct. 23), rising into overcast skies above the spaceport... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 26)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 4TH BATCH OF STARSHIELD SATELLITES FOR THE NRO ON ITS 100TH FALCON 9 ROCKET OF 2024 - SpaceX launch its fourth mission of the year for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) carrying satellites for its so-called “proliferated architecture,” which are believed to be Starshield satellites. The mission, dubbed NROL-167, added an unspecified number of satellites to the growing c... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 25)
SPACEX CREW-8 ASTRONAUTS UNDOCK FROM ISS AFTER WEATHER DELAYS - SpaceX's Crew-8 quartet of astronauts departed the space station at last today (Oct. 23), following more than two weeks of weather-related delays. The Dragon spacecraft for SpaceX Crew-8, called Endeavour, undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) today at 5:05 p.m. EDT (2105 GMT), as t... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 24)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 23 STARLINK BROADBAND SATELLITES TO ORBIT FROM FLORIDA - SpaceX launched 23 more of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida's Space Coast this evening (Oct. 23). A Falcon 9 rocket topped with 23 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today. SpaceX had been targeting Tuesday (Oct. 22) but called that try off due to ... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 24)
SPACEX SCRUBS STARLINK MISSION DUE TO POOR BOOSTER RECOVERY WEATHER, PIVOTS TO WEDNESDAY LAUNCH ATTEMPT - SpaceX stood down from launching another batch of 23 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station to low Earth orbit on Tuesday night. The company said poor weather conditions in the recovery area led to the decision. The Falcon 9 rocket launch comes on the heels of a week that saw... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 23)
NASA, SPACEX ADJUST CREW-8 UNDOCKING DATE - Weather conditions near the multiple splashdown sites off Florida’s coast remain unfavorable for the return of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station. Forecasts remain marginal for an undocking on Tuesday, Oct. 22, and Wednesday, Oct. 23. If weather conditions improve,... More (Source: NASA - Oct 23)
BOEING-BUILT SATELLITE EXPLODES IN ORBIT, LITTERING SPACE WITH DEBRIS - Boeing seemingly can’t catch a break between the endless problems with the 737 Max and the Starliner’s failed crewed test flight. Intelsat announced on Monday that one of its satellites, built by Boeing, broke up in geostationary orbit. Multiple organizations are tracking the debris to avoid col... More (Source: MSN - Oct 23)
ARIANESPACE WILL LAUNCH THE EU’S COPERNICUS EO SENTINEL-1C SATELLITE - Earlier this month, Arianespace announced that the company will be launching the Sentinel-1C, a Copernicus satellite, for the European Commission within the scope of a contract signed with the European Space Agency (ESA). This mission will provide crucial environmental data for the planet, while als... More (Source: SatNews - Oct 23)
BLOWING UP: INFLATABLE SPACE HABITATS COULD BE KEY TO EXPLORING THE SOLAR SYSTEM - It's high time to crank up the volume in space! That's the shout from several private firms that want to see an inflation factor for the future. What is now being evaluated and tested is the use of "softgoods" to fashion inflatable/expandable airlocks and off-Earth habitats, not only for low Eart... More (Source: Space.com - Oct 22)
NASA, SPACEX CONTINUE WEATHER WATCH FOR CREW-8 RETURN - Weather conditions near the multiple splashdown zones off the coast of Florida remain unfavorable for the return of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station. Mission managers continue to monitor conditions and will meet at 11 a.m. EDT Saturday, Oct. 19 for the next weather... More (Source: NASA - Oct 21)
