CHINA LAUNCHES EXPERIMENTAL SATELLITE - China launched a Long March 7A carrier rocket on Tuesday morning to deploy an experimental satellite into space, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. The State-owned space giant said in a news release that the rocket blasted off at 10:10 am from a service tower at the Wenchang Space Launch Center, a coastal spaceport in Hainan province. After a short flight, it placed the satellite, named Communication Technology Demonstrator 26A, into its preset orbit.   More
(Source: China Daily - Jun 24)

1ST-OF-ITS-KIND MISSION WILL ATTEMPT TO SAVE AGING SPACE TELESCOPE USING ROBOT SPACECRAFT - Satellites don't always stay in orbit. As they get closer to Earth, atmospheric drag can pull them lower and lower until they burn up, with solar activity speeding up the process. NASA's Swift Space Observatory is facing that fate -- its orbit is decaying, and if left alone, it will be destroyed in a matter of months. But in a first-of-its-kind mission, Katalyst Space, a startup, is teaming up with NASA to try and rescue Swift using the company's newly developed robotic spacecraft, LINK.   More
(Source: ABC News - Jun 24)

ROCKET LAB SHATTERS RESPONSIVE SPACE RECORD: LAUNCHES U.S. SPACE FORCE VICTUS HAZE MISSION IN 16 HOURS 42 MINUTES - Rocket Lab Corporation, a global leader in launch services and space systems, today announced it has successfully launched its Electron rocket and deployed its own Pioneer spacecraft for the U.S. Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command’s (SSC) VICTUS HAZE Tactically Responsive Space (TacRS) mission led by the SSC’s Space Safari Program Office. Lifting off from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 10:19 pm NZT on June 19th, the mission shattered the previous TacRS record set by VICTUS NOX by more than 10 hours. The feat establishes a new global benchmark for rapid call-up space capabilities.    More
(Source: RocketLab - Jun 23)

NASA’S NANCY GRACE ROMAN SPACE TELESCOPE ARRIVES IN FLORIDA - NASA’s next great observatory, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, arrived at the Kennedy Space Center aboard the agency’s massive Pegasus barge late Sunday morning. The spacecraft was nestled inside its protective case, which NASA nicknamed the “Chariot” in keeping with the “Roman” theme. That said, telescope is named not for the ancient empire, but instead for NASA’s first Chief of Astronomy, Nancy Grace Roman.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 22)

'NO ONE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE POSSIBLE.' A SPACE TELESCOPE IS FALLING OUT OF SPACE. THIS IS NASA'S DARING PLAN TO SAVE IT. - or over 20 years, NASA's Swift space observatory has been conducting prolific science in orbit, hunting for signs of gamma-ray bursts — the most powerful explosions in the universe. Now, it's falling to Earth, doomed to a fiery death by the end of the year as its orbit decays. But maybe not...   More
(Source: Space.com - Jun 21)

SPACEX LAUNCHES INTELLIGENCE-GATHERING SATELLITES FOR THE NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE - SpaceX launched its third mission this year supporting the National Reconnaissance Office’s constellation of intelligence-gathering satellites. The mission, dubbed NROL-179, launched an undisclosed number of satellites into orbit as part of what the NRO calls its proliferated architecture constellation. These are believed to be Starshield satellites, a government variant of SpaceX’s Starlink, though neither the NRO nor SpaceX has confirmed on the record that this is the case. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket from pad happened Friday, June 19, at 1:50:45 a.m. PDT (4:50:45 a.m. EDT / 0850:45 UTC).   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 20)

SPACEX DRAGON SPLASHES DOWN IN PACIFIC, COMPLETES CARGO MISSION - At 5:11 a.m. PDT (8:11 a.m. EDT), the unpiloted SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splashed down off the coast of California near Oceanside, marking the return of the 34th SpaceX commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station for NASA. Dragon undocked at 12:25 p.m. EDT on June 16, carrying samples that could shape future space exploration and life on Earth.   More
(Source: NASA - Jun 19)

A BOLD SATELLITE RESCUE MISSION CAME TOGETHER IN RECORD TIME, BUT WILL IT WORK? - Just 10 months ago, NASA asked three companies if they could do something nobody had done before. Could they build and launch a satellite to save a $500 million astronomy mission at risk of crashing back to Earth? What’s more, could they do it in less than a year on a tight budget? Katalyst Space Technologies, a startup founded in 2020, presented the most compelling solution. “They came back with a response that was technically and programmatically plausible, and then we were like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it,’” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director of NASA’s astrophysics division.   More
(Source: Ars Technica - Jun 19)

HOME AGAIN! SPACEX DRAGON CARGO CAPSULE SPLASHES DOWN OFF CALIFORNIA COAST - SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is back on Earth. The robotic Dragon undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday (June 16) at 12:25 p.m. EDT (1625 GMT), while the two spacecraft were flying about 260 miles (418 kilometers) above the northern Pacific Ocean.   More
(Source: Space.com - Jun 18)

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