PRIVATE JAPANESE SPACECRAFT WILL INSPECT 2 DEAD SATELLITES IN 2027 - Japanese space-sustainability company Astroscale has unveiled plans for a mission it says will be the world's first to inspect multiple defunct satellites in different orbits. The mission, named In‑situ Space Situational Awareness-Japan 1, or ISSA-J1, is scheduled for launch in 2027 and will inspect two retired Japanese satellites in orbit. It follows the success of the company's Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan (ADRAS-J) mission, which delivered stunning close-up footage of a spent rocket stage in orbit.   More
(Source: Space.com - Apr 17)

NASA SELECTS VOYAGER FOR SEVENTH PRIVATE MISSION TO SPACE STATION - NASA and Voyager Technologies have signed an order for the seventh private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, targeted to launch no earlier than 2028 from Florida. This is the company’s first selection for a private astronaut mission to the orbiting laboratory, underscoring NASA’s ongoing investment in fostering a commercial space economy and expanding opportunities for private industry in low Earth orbit.   More
(Source: NASA - Apr 17)

BLUE ORIGIN ONE STEP CLOSER TO LAUNCHING NEW GLENN FROM VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE - Days ahead of the planned third launch of a New Glenn rocket, Blue Origin was tapped by the U.S. Space Force to proceed towards developing its first launch site in California. The Space Force said it picked Blue Origin’s proposal to develop Space Launch Complex 14 (SLC-14) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, the next step towards the company gaining permission for construction and future launch operations.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 16)

WEST COAST SPACEX FALCON 9 MISSION LAUNCHES 25 STARLINK SATELLITES - SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California Tuesday night. The rocket carryied another 25 satellites for its Starlink internet service. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East happened at 9:29:49 p.m. PDT (12:29:49 a.m. EDT / 04:29:49 UTC). The Falcon 9 departed from the central California coast on a southerly trajectory, targeting an orbit of 258 x 246 km, with a 97-degree inclination.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 16)

AMAZON SIGNS $11.57 BILLION DEAL FOR SATELLITE FIRM GLOBALSTAR TO CHALLENGE MUSK'S STARLINK - Amazon said on Tuesday it would acquire Globalstar in an $11.57 billion deal, bolstering its fledgling satellite business as it looks to take ​on Elon Musk-led bigger rival Starlink. Shares of satellite company Globalstar were up more than 9% ‌in premarket trading, after gaining over 6% in the past two weeks following media reports of the companies’ discussions. The stock had nearly doubled in value last year and has risen about 12% ​so far this year, before news of an acquisition emerged. Amazon shares rose ​about 1% on Tuesday.   More
(Source: NBC News - Apr 15)

HUGE NORTHROP GRUMMAN CYGNUS XL CARGO SHIP ARRIVES AT SPACE STATION - The S.S. Steven R. Nagel has arrived at the International Space Station. The second of Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft to deliver supplies to the orbiting outpost, the vehicle was captured by the space station's Canadarm2 robotic arm at 1:20 p.m. EDT (1720 GMT) on Monday (April 13). "Cygnus capture is complete," radioed Chris Williams, a NASA astronaut and Expedition 74 flight engineer, to Mission Control. "The S.S. Steven Nagel, welcome aboard the ISS!"   More
(Source: Space.com - Apr 15)

A WORST-CASE SOLAR STORM COULD KNOCK OUT SATELLITES, GPS AND POWER GRIDS, REPORT WARNS - For many of us, checking the weather is part of daily life. But, in an increasingly technology-dependent world, there is another kind of forecast we can't afford to ignore: space weather. Space weather refers to activity on the sun and how it affects Earth and the space around it, a complex, chaotic system scientists are working to understand, forecast and mitigate.   More
(Source: Space.com - Apr 14)

THE ISS RESUPPLY MACHINE: HOW NASA’S COMMERCIAL CARGO MODEL BECAME THE AGENCY’S QUIETEST SUCCESS STORY - In the shuttle era, delivering cargo to the International Space Station meant strapping supplies into a vehicle that cost roughly $1.7 billion per mission to fly, operated by a standing army of civil servants and contractors, and required years of processing between flights. Today, NASA pays around $200 million per mission under fixed-price commercial contracts, launches happen on reused rockets at a pace that barely registers in the news cycle, and the agency doesn’t have to build or operate the spacecraft at all.   More
(Source: Space Daily - Apr 14)

SPACEX LAUNCHES HUGE 'CYGNUS XL' CARGO SHIP CARRYING OVER 5 TONS OF SUPPLIES TO ISS ASTRONAUTS - SpaceX launched launch a massive cargo ship packed with over 5 tons of gear for astronauts on the International Space Station early Saturday (April 11), then aced a rocket landing minutes after the Florida liftoff. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soared into a blue sky over Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 7:41 a.m. EDT (1141 GMT) on Saturday, sending Northrop Grumman's "Cygnus XL" resupply freighter toward the International Space Station (ISS). The mission, called NG-24, is Northrop Grumman's 24th resupply flight to the ISS for NASA.   More
(Source: Space.com - Apr 12)

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