NORTH KOREA ROCKET EXPLODES DURING SPY SATELLITE LAUNCH, AND METEOR HUNTERS CAUGHT IT ON CAMERA - The first stage of a North Korean rocket apparently exploded Tuesday (Nov. 21) during a purported spy satellite launch, a new video suggests. A camera at South Korea's Yonsei University, usually used for tracking meteors or shooting stars, showed the first stage of the North Korean Chollima-1 rocket appearing to erupt and spread debris, Reuters reported Friday (Nov. 24). "This time they appear to have detonated the first stage propellant in mid-air," Byun Yong-Ik, an astronomy professor at Yonsei University, told Reuters. More (Source: Space.com - Nov 27)
CHINA CONDUCTS LAUNCH TO TEST SATELLITE INTERNET CAPABILITIES - China sent an undisclosed number of satellites into orbit Thursday to test satellite internet technologies. A Long March 2D rocket using a Yuanzheng-3 upper stage lifted off at 5:00 a.m. Eastern (1000 UTC) Nov. 23 from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China. The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp., (CASC), only announced the nature of the payload when it declared the launch successful. No details of the launch payloads were revealed. Xinhua tersely described the launch as carrying a single “experiment satellite for satellite internet technologies.” More (Source: SpaceNews - Nov 24)
CHINA'S YOUNGEST SPACE STATION CREW SEND HOME SPECTACULAR VIEWS FROM SPACE - China's Shenzhou 17 astronauts are getting into the rhythms of life in orbit — and also sending back some choice clips of their activities. Shenzhou 17 arrived at the Tiangong space station on Oct. 26, where they were greeted by the outgoing Shenzhou 16 mission crew. Mission commander Tang Hongbo, a veteran of 2021's Shenzhou 12 mission, and rookie astronauts Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin have now been in orbit for three weeks and working well. More (Source: Space.com - Nov 24)
CHINA'S NEXT CARGO SPACECRAFT ARRIVES AT LAUNCH SITE AHEAD OF EARLY 2024 LIFTOFF - China is preparing to send fresh supplies and more propellant to its space station. The robotic Tianzhou 7 cargo spacecraft arrived recently at China's coastal Wenchang Satellite Launch Center, according to Chinese state media. The spacecraft will undergo final assembly and testing ahead of a launch on a Long March 7 rocket in early 2024. More (Source: Space.com - Nov 23)
NASA ACKNOWLEDGES POSSIBILITY OF SHORT-TERM POST-ISS GAP - While NASA seeks to maintain an uninterrupted human presence in low Earth orbit, an agency official said a short-term gap between the International Space Station and commercial successors would not be “the end of the world.” NASA’s current approach to its future in LEO counts on supporting development of commercial space stations with the goal of having at least one such station ready to support NASA astronauts and research by 2030, when the ISS is scheduled for retirement. A key question, though, will be whether any of the several companies working on such concepts will be ready by the end of the decade. More (Source: SpaceNews - Nov 23)
3RD TIME LUCKY? NORTH KOREA CLAIMS SUCCESSFUL SPY SATELLITE LAUNCH - South Korea moved Wednesday to suspend parts of a 2018 military pact with North Korea after Pyongyang defied warnings from the U.S. and its allies with what it said was the successful launch of its first spy satellite. North Korea launched the Malligyong-1 satellite on a Chollima-1 rocket from the Sohae facility on its west coast at 10:42 p.m. Tuesday (8:42 a.m. ET), according to KCNA, the state news agency. The rocket flew normally along the preset flight track, and the satellite entered orbit at 10:54 p.m., KCNA said, citing North Korea’s space agency. More (Source: NBC News - Nov 23)
NORTH KOREA CLAIMS IT HAS PUT A SPY SATELLITE INTO ORBIT IN 3RD ATTEMPT - North Korea claimed Wednesday to have successfully placed a spy satellite into orbit with its third launch attempt this year, demonstrating the nation's determination to build a space-based surveillance system during protracted tensions with the United States. The North's claim could not immediately independently be confirmed. Observers doubt whether the satellite is advanced enough to perform military reconnaissance. But the launch still invited strong condemnation from the United States and its partners because the U.N. bans North Korea from conducting satellite launches, calling them covers for tests of missile technology. More (Source: NPR - Nov 22)
SPACEX SET TO LAUNCH 23 STARLINK SATELLITES FROM FLORIDA TONIGHT - SpaceX plans to launch 23 more Starlink internet satellites to orbit from Florida tonight (Nov. 21), continuing a busy stretch for the company. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to lift off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station during a nearly four-hour window that opens at 11:01 p.m. EDT (0401 GMT on Nov. 22). You can watch the action live via SpaceX's account on X (formerly known as Twitter), beginning about five minutes before the launch window opens. More (Source: Space.com - Nov 22)
NASA REQUESTS FUNDING FOR $1 BILLION ‘SPACE TUG’ TO DEORBIT THE ISS - NASA is developing a plan to deorbit the International Space Station (ISS) at the end of its lifetime, currently scheduled for 2030. Since the 356-foot-wide laboratory is too big to completely vaporize if left to naturally burn in Earth’s atmosphere, the space agency intends to send a US spacecraft to help deorbit the station and direct its reentry over the unpopulated South Pacific. Earlier this year, NASA requested ideas from the industry for a new spacecraft design or a modification of an existing vehicle to fit this purpose. More (Source: SpaceRef - Nov 22)
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