THE OVZON 3 LAUNCH IS DELAYED UNTIL JANUARY NEXT YEAR - “Launch of Ovzon 3 is now targeted for early January 2024 due to continuous unfavorable weather and as a result of shifts in the launch schedule. While weather is out of our control, the spacecraft remains healthy, and we continue to work closely with SpaceX to prepare for launch in early January. This shift does not affect the roll-out of our unique next generation SATCOM-as-a-Service offerings”, says Per Norén, CEO of Ovzon.   More
(Source: SatNews - Dec 24)

ROCKET LAB WINS $515 MILLION CONTRACT TO BUILD 18 SATELLITES FOR U.S. GOVERNMENT AGENCY - Space launch provider and satellite manufacturer Rocket Lab has secured a deal worth over half a billion dollars to build 18 satellites for a U.S. government agency. As disclosed in an SEC regulatory filing Dec. 21, Rocket Lab National Security will “design, manufacture, deliver and operate 18 space vehicles” as part of a U.S. government contract valued at $515 million. A spokesperson said the company could not provide further details.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Dec 24)

ISS ROUNDUP: 25 YEAR ANNIVERSARY, SPACEWALKS, CARGO ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES - The final quarter of 2023 saw the International Space Station (ISS) celebrate 25 years in orbit, though there was no letup in the ongoing work as the Expedition 70 crew settled into the tasks and experiments that are carried out onboard the orbital laboratory. Cargo spacecraft arrived at the Station carrying supplies and fresh experiments and departed, taking scientific results, redundant equipment, and trash down to Earth.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Dec 24)

SPACEX LAUNCHES FALCON 9 FIRST-STAGE BOOSTER ON RECORD-BREAKING 19TH FLIGHT - SpaceX sent off a Falcon 9 first-stage booster for a record-breaking 19th launch just after midnight as it continues the expansion of its Starlink satellite constellation. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral occurred at 12:33 a.m. EST (0533 UTC). First-stage B1058 was already the fleet leader with 18 prior missions and cemented that position with the Starlink 6-32 mission, which will deliver 23 satellites to orbit. The booster first flew in May 2020 carrying astronauts for the first time on the Demo-2 Crew Dragon mission. It still features a faded NASA ‘worm’ logo from that mission.    More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Dec 24)

TWO SPACESHIPS DEPART, CREW WILL SPEND HOLIDAYS IN SPACE - Two spaceships in two days have departed the International Space Station and the Expedition 70 crew will spend Christmas and New Year’s Day orbiting Earth. NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara monitored the Canadarm2 robotic arm release of the Cygnus space freighter on Friday, Dec. 22. Earlier, ground engineers remotely maneuvered the Canadarm2 and detached Cygnus from the Unity module where it had been installed since Aug. 4.   More
(Source: NASA - Dec 24)

NASA REPORT STUDIES OPTIONS FOR A FUTURE NATIONAL LABORATORY IN ORBIT AFTER ISS - A NASA study examined several options for continuing a national laboratory in low Earth orbit after the International Space Station but stopped short of recommending a specific option. The study by the agency’s Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy, released by NASA Dec. 20, represents what it calls an “initial assessment” of models for a future national lab in low Earth orbit (LEO) after retirement of the ISS. The study was directed by the National Space Council at its September 2022 meeting and released to coincide with the council’s most recent meeting Dec. 20.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Dec 24)

STEVE WOZNIAK'S START-UP PRIVATEER DEVELOPS RIDE-SHARING SPACECRAFT TO REDUCE ORBITAL CLUTTER - Space start-up Privateer, co-founded by the famed Apple technologist Steve Wozniak, will begin orbital tests of its ride-sharing orbital module Pono in January. The module, which launched on Dec. 1 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, was developed to encourage space users to share assets in order to reduce the growing amount of satellites and other orbital clutter around Earth.   More
(Source: Space.com - Dec 22)

LIVE COVERAGE UNDERWAY OF SPACEX DRAGON CARGO SPACECRAFT DEPARTURE - Live coverage of the departure of SpaceX’s Dragon cargo spacecraft from the International Space Station is underway on NASA Television, the agency’s website, and the NASA app. Following commands from ground controllers at SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, Dragon will undock at 5:05 p.m. EST from the forward port of the station’s Harmony module and fire its thrusters to move a safe distance away from the station.   More
(Source: NASA - Dec 22)

TO SUSTAINABLY DEVELOP SPACE, WE MUST MANAGE ORBITAL CAPACITY - Once upon a time, we thought that our actions were too insignificant to impact something as large as the natural environment — that it wouldn’t be possible for fishermen to exhaust a fishery, that groundwater was so plentiful that conservation was unnecessary, and that the sky was big enough that the odds of two human-created objects colliding in space, much less threatening our ability to make use of orbits, was negligible. Today we know better. But the road from recognizing a resource as finite to managing it in a sustainable manner is long.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Dec 21)

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