DISPOSABLE $100 IOT SATELLITES COULD SWARM EARTH'S ORBIT - Tiny cheap satellites, self-organizing and communicating as a group, could shift the internet of things (IoT) to space. The postage-stamp-sized devices, acting as sensors, just like the ones we see in traditional IoT networks could perform tasks such as mapping or studying Earth, say scientists involved in a recent successful launch of the disposable nanosatellites. The test satellites, essentially just sensors, were deployed in a batch in March. They captured data, communicated with one another, and then after a couple of days in orbit, as was planned, burned up as they reentered the atmosphere.   More
(Source: Network World - Jun 21)

RUSSIA TO LAUNCH SCIENCE MISSION PROBING DARK ENERGY - A Russian-built satellite hosting an array of X-ray telescopes is awaiting launch Friday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on a mission to measure the mass and distance of colossal clusters of galaxies throughout the universe. The X-ray observatory, designated Spektr-RG, is scheduled to blast into space on top of a Russian Proton rocket at 1217:14 GMT (8:17:14 a.m. EDT; 5:17:14 p.m. Baikonur time) Friday to kick off Russia’s most prominent space science mission in seven years.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 21)

THE SATELLITE WITH X-RAY VISION - In the early hours of October 23, 2011, ROSAT was engulfed in the waves of the Indian Ocean. This was the end of a success story that is unparalleled in German space exploration research. The satellite, developed and built by a team led by Joachim Trümper from the Garchingbased Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, not only found more than 150,000 new cosmic X-ray sources, it also revolutionized astronomy.    More
(Source: Phys.org - Jun 20)

THIS IS WHAT 2 DOZEN SATELLITES LOOK LIKE PACKED FOR LAUNCH ON A SPACEX FALCON HEAVY - SpaceX is gearing up for its busiest Falcon Heavy megarocket launch yet and now, thanks to the U.S. Air Force, we know what the epic rideshare looks like. When the next SpaceX Falcon Heavy launches on Monday (June 24) from NASA's historic Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the heavy-lift rocket will be carrying 24 different satellites for the Air Force's Space Test Program-2 mission. If you're wondering what two dozen satellites look like inside a Falcon Heavy nose cone, wonder no more.    More
(Source: Space.com - Jun 20)

NOAA READIES FOR COSMIC-2 SATELLITE LAUNCH - COSMIC-2, a mission of six satellites designed to improve weather forecasts and space weather monitoring, is set to launch no earlier than June 24 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. The satellites, flying on the U.S. Air Force’s Space Test Program-2 mission, are known as the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate (COSMIC-2). This mission is a partnership between the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO) with NOAA and the Taiwan National Space Organization (NSPO), as designated representatives.   More
(Source: WeatherNation - Jun 19)

WATCH A CHUNK OF SATELLITE MELT LIKE A MARSHMALLOW ON FIRE - Space junk is a worrisome problem, especially when wayward bits of technology survive reentry and land back on Earth as angry hunks of debris. European Space Agency researchers wanted to learn more about how satellites burn up during reentry, so they fried a satellite chunk in a plasma wind tunnel to see what happens. The footage is impressive.   More
(Source: CNET - Jun 19)

FIREFLY OFFERING FREE LAUNCH FOR RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONAL PAYLOADS - Firefly Aerospace is asking academic institutions, startup companies and the public to submit ideas for payloads to launch, free of charge, on the inaugural orbital flight of the company’s Alpha rocket next year from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Texas-based launch company said the initiative to host academic and educational payloads on the first Alpha launch will promote education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math disciplines.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 19)

SPACEX EXPLOSION A SET BACK FOR INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - NASA CHIEF - NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine says the explosion that destroyed a SpaceX astronaut taxi in April will "no doubt" delay NASA's drive to return Americans to the International Space Station from U.S. soil later this year. Speaking at the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget this Tuesday, Bridenstine stopped short of offering a clear flight timeline for its multibillion-dollar Commercial Crew Program, and said he would not prejudge the results of an investigation into the incident.   More
(Source: RFI - Jun 19)

PROTON ROCKET, RUSSIAN-GERMAN ASTRONOMY SATELLITE ARRIVE AT LAUNCH PAD - A rocket-transporting railroad car ferried a Proton booster to its launch pad Friday at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for final checkouts and testing before the vehicle’s scheduled June 21 liftoff with the Russian-German Spektr-RG X-ray telescope. The Proton rocket began the trip to the Complex 81 launch pad Friday at around 6:30 a.m. local time in Kazakhstan. After pulling up to the pad, a hydraulic lift raised the rocket vertical, and ground crews moved a mobile gantry around the launcher to provide access for workers to complete inspections, testing and closeouts before next week’s launch.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 17)

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