ANOTHER GOES SATELLITE TO BE LAUNCHED - The U.S. space agency says its latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite is undergoing final testing prior to its scheduled launch April 28. The GOES-O satellite was developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Once in orbit it will be designated GOES-14 and NASA will transfer operational responsibility to NOAA. More (Source: UPI - Mar 5)
RUSSIAN MILITARY SATELLITE LAUNCHED BY PROTON ROCKET - A Russian Proton rocket hauled a military communications satellite into orbit early Saturday. The three-stage Proton booster, topped by a Block DM upper stage, blasted off at 0410 GMT (11:10 p.m. EST Friday) from Complex 81 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The rocket's Block DM upper stage completed several burns to place mission's payload into a geosynchronous transfer orbit stretching from an altitude of approximately 136 miles to a high point of about 22,000 miles. More (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com - Mar 1)
N. KOREA BEGINS ASSEMBLING ROCKET FOR LAUNCH, YONHAP REPORTS - North Korea appears to be assembling a rocket that it claims will carry a satellite into space, Seoul-based Yonhap News said. Ground assembly of the rocket appears to be proceeding, Yonhap reported, citing a government official it didn’t identify. North Korea will probably complete the work in a week at the earliest, it added. South Korean officials expect North Korea to complete launch preparations before its scheduled parliamentary elections next month, the report said. More (Source: Bloomberg.com - Feb 28)
LAND LAUNCH SUCCESS FOR TELSTAR 11N SATELLITE - The Land Launch Zenit-3SLB system today successfully inserted Telesat’s Telstar 11N communications satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit from the Zenit launch site at the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan. All systems performed as planned. More (Source: SatNews.com - Feb 27)
EUTELSAT DOUBLES ITS BROADCASTING RESOURCES AT 9 DEGREES - Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL) today announces the entry into commercial service of its EUROBIRD™ 9A satellite at 9 degrees East. Redeployment of the satellite was made possible with last week’s entry into service at 13 degrees East of HOT BIRD™ 9, which released EUROBIRD™ 9A (formerly HOT BIRD™ 7A) for its new commercial mission to support the rapid pace of growth at Eutelsat’s 9 degrees East broadcast neighbourhood. It will replace EUROBIRD™ 9 at this position, doubling operational resources from 20 to 38 transponders. More (Source: Eutelsat - Feb 26)
MARCH LAUNCH OF DISCOVERY POSSIBLE, BUT NOT CERTAIN - NASA managers today ordered engineers to replace suspect hydrogen flow control valves aboard the shuttle Discovery with valves that have less flight time in a bid to reduce the chances of in-flight cracks that could lead to debris in a pressurization line. If ongoing tests and higher fidelity computer models continue to show positive results, Discovery could be cleared for a delayed launch attempt by around March 12, sources said today. That would give NASA just two or three launch opportunities before standing down until April 7 to avoid conflict with a Russian Soyuz mission to the international space station. More (Source: SpaceFlightNow.com - Feb 25)
CHINA TO LAUNCH SATELLITE FOR FRANCE'S EUTELSAT - China's rocket industry has scored a commercial coup with its first deal in more than a decade to launch a private communications satellite for a major Western operator, according to U.S. and European industry officials. The agreement to put a five-ton satellite for France's Eutelsat Communications into orbit, apparently wrapped up in the past few days, represents a high-water mark for Beijing's campaign to expand the scope and global influence of Chinese space technology. More (Source: The Wall Street Journal - Feb 25)
NASA SATELLITE CRASHES MINUTES AFTER LAUNCH - A NASA satellite crashed back to Earth about three minutes after launch early Tuesday, officials said. "We could not make orbit," NASA program manager John Brunschwyler said. "Initial indications are the vehicle did not have enough [force] to reach orbit and landed just short of Antarctica in the ocean." "Certainly for the science community, it's a huge disappointment." More (Source: CNN - Feb 24)
NORTH KOREA PLANS ROCKET LAUNCH THAT SOUTH CALLS ‘PROVOCATION’ - North Korea plans to launch a satellite, drawing condemnation from South Korea’s defense minister, who said the regime may instead be preparing a long- range missile test. Preparations for the launch of an “experimental communications satellite” are making “brisk headway,” the official Korea Central News Agency said today, citing an unidentified spokesman from the national space agency. More (Source: Bloomberg.com - Feb 24)
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