GETTING A JUMP ON TRAFFIC: THE SUDDEN URGENCY OF GOVERNMENT-INDUSTRY PARTNERSHIPS IN SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT - Some operators of low Earth orbit satellites are bracing for a storm of debris. Russia’s demonstration of an antisatellite weapon last November, destroying the Cosmos 1408 satellite, created thousands of tracked pieces of debris, and many more too small to be tracked. Much of that debris remains in orbits similar to the satellite, with an inclination of 82.3 degrees. That means the debris can end up running headlong into satellites operating in sun-synchronous orbits at inclinations of 97 degrees. More (Source: SpaceNews - Apr 11)
US SPACE FORCE WANTS TO HARNESS COMMERCIAL INDUSTRY IDEAS ON DEBRIS REMOVAL - U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) may hold an industry day to hear from commercial companies about possible technologies for space debris removal, the profit potential for such companies for that mission, and how Space Force could leverage commercial expertise. During a question and answer session with reporters at the Space Foundation’s Space Symposium in Colorado Springs on Apr. 6, Brig. Gen. Stephen Purdy, the program executive officer of assured access to space at SSC, said that space debris removal “has certainly been a topic of public conversation among our leadership, in particular.” More (Source: - Apr 10)
JAPANESE SATELLITE LASER-COMM STARTUP WARPSPACE DRAWS BEAD ON U.S. MARKET - Warpspace, a Japanese space startup developing an inter-satellite laser communications system, is establishing a U.S. presence to partner with American companies and compete for government and military contracts. “Warpspace USA Inc. was recently incorporated in Delaware,” chief strategy officer Hirokazu Mori told SpaceNews. The company is developing an optical inter-satellite data relay service in medium Earth orbit called WarpHub InterSat. The target customers are Earth observation satellite operators that need to quickly move large volumes of data from space to the ground. More (Source: SpaceNews - Apr 10)
FIRST CREW OF PRIVATE ASTRONAUTS WELCOMED ABOARD INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked at the International Space Station on Saturday with four private astronauts, beginning a planned stay of at least eight days — and maybe longer — while becoming the first mission with an all-commercial crew to visit the orbiting research complex. The commercial spacecraft built and owned by SpaceX docked with the Harmony module at 8:29 a.m. EDT (1229 GMT) Saturday, nearly 45 minutes later than scheduled due to a video problem on the space station. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 10)
SOYUZ LAUNCHES RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE SATELLITE FROM PLESETSK - A Soyuz 2.1b rocket has successfully launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, carrying a Lotos electronic signals intelligence satellite into orbit for the Russian military. Liftoff took place at 11:20 UTC from Plesetsk’s Site 43 on a northeastern trajectory. Lotos-S1 number 5 was deployed into Low Earth Orbit with a separation apogee of approximately 900 km and an inclination of 67 degrees. The spacecraft will utilize its onboard propulsion to circularize its orbit over the coming weeks, before becoming fully operational for use by the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS). More (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Apr 9)
INMARSAT’S SECOND I-6 SATELLITE ENTERS THERMAL VACUUM TESTING - United Kingdom operator Inmarsat confirmed Thursday that its second I-6 series satellite — I-6 F2 — has begun the months-long thermal vacuum testing process. The satellite, manufactured by Airbus Defense and Space in Stevenage and Portsmouth, U.K., is about the size of a double-decker bus with a wingspan larger than a commercial airplane. Thermal vacuum testing will ensure that the satellite can operate in the harsh conditions of space. More (Source: Via Satellite - Apr 9)
US SPACE FORCE TO TEST EXPERIMENTAL NAVIGATION SATELLITE IN UPCOMING ARMY EXERCISE - The Air Force Research Laboratory and L3Harris will begin integrated testing this summer of an experimental satellite with implications for a future hybrid precision, navigation and timing architecture. Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3) is being designed to showcase new PNT technology that could shape future upgrades to GPS satellites and inform a possible new acquisition program to augment today’s constellation. Once on orbit in late 2023, the satellite will conduct more than 100 experiments testing different technology, like a digital signal generator that can be reprogrammed on-orbit to broadcast new signals. The Air Force awarded L3Harris an $84 million contract in 2018 to develop the NTS-3 satellite. More (Source: Defense News - Apr 9)
FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND COMMERCIAL ASTRONAUT MISSION HEADS FOR SPACE STATION - Strapped in the seats of a SpaceX crew capsule, a retired NASA astronaut and three wealthy paying passengers rocketed into orbit Friday from the Kennedy Space Center on the first fully commercial mission to the International Space Station. The commercial crew mission, managed by a Houston-based company named Axiom Space, is slated to last 10 or 11 days. The flight is the first mission to travel to the space station as part of a purely commercial venture. All previous space station missions have been government-led or contracted by a government space agency. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 9)
CHINA LAUNCHES NEW SATELLITE FOR EARTH OBSERVATION - China launched a new Earth observation satellite from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Thursday. The satellite, Gaofen-3 03, was launched by a Long March-4C rocket at 7:47 a.m. (Beijing Time) and has entered the planned orbit successfully. The satellite will be networked with the orbiting Gaofen-3 and Gaofen-3 02 satellites to form a land-sea radar satellite constellation and capture reliable, stable synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. More (Source: xinhuanet.com - Apr 8)
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