SPACEX DRAGON CARGO SHIP DELIVERS CHRISTMAS PRESENTS (AND SUPPLIES) TO SPACE STATION - A SpaceX Dragon capsule arrived at the International Space Station early Wednesday (Dec. 22), carrying with it a holiday haul of science gear and Christmas treats for the astronauts living on the orbital outpost. The autonomous Dragon resupply ship docked itself at the orbital outpost at 3:41 a.m. EST (0841 GMT), ahead of its planned 4:30 a.m. docking time. It parked itself at the space-facing port on the station's Harmony module, with NASA astronauts Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn monitoring the docking from inside the station.    More
(Source: Space.com - Dec 23)

H-IIA LAUNCHES NEXT-GENERATION INMARSAT-6 FLIGHT 1 SATELLITE - apan succesfully launched the Inmarsat-6 Flight 1 (I-6 F1) satellite Wednesday as a part of Inmarsat’s next-generation satellite broadband service. I-6 F1 launched aboard an H-IIA 204 rocket at 12:32 AM local time Thursday (15:32 UTC Wednesday). Designated H-IIA F45, Wednesday’s launch is Japan’s third orbital flight of 2021 and H-IIA’s second mission of the year, marking the 45th flight of the H-IIA vehicle overall.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Dec 23)

US SPACE FORCE TESTS ATTACK RESILIENCE OF SATELLITE NETWORK - The US Space Force has conducted a virtual exercise to test the ability of the country’s satellite network to resist various types of attack, particularly those from Russian and Chinese anti-satellite weapons. Conducted at the Schriever Space Force Base in Colorado, the 10-day trial simulated an aggressive near-peer adversary that could be pitted against the American satellite network. Simulated threats reportedly included kinetic anti-satellite interceptor missiles and a variety of electronic warfare threats such as jamming.   More
(Source: The Defense Post - Dec 23)

JAPAN WILL LAUNCH A HUGE COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE ON WEDNESDAY. HERE'S HOW TO WATCH IT LIVE. - A highly advanced commercial communications satellite will lift off from Japan on Wednesday (Dec. 22) and you can watch the action live. The huge Inmarsat-6 F1 satellite is scheduled to launch atop a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H-2A rocket Wednesday from Tanegashima Space Center in Japan during a two-hour window that opens at 9:33 a.m. EST (1433 GMT; 11:33 p.m. local time at Tanegashima).   More
(Source: Space.com - Dec 22)

SPACEX ACES 100TH ROCKET LANDING AFTER DRAGON CARGO SHIP LAUNCH TO SPACE STATION - SpaceX launched its 31st rocket of the year early Tuesday (Dec. 21), sending a used Dragon cargo capsule toward the International Space Station before nailing the company's 100th landing. A new two-stage Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from Launch Complex 39A here at NASA's Kennedy Space Center at 5:07 a.m. EST (1007 GMT), kicking off the company's 24th cargo resupply mission to the orbiting lab for NASA. The Dragon is packed with more than 6,500 pounds (2,949 kilograms) of supplies, scientific experiments, and hardware for the crew of Expedition 66 on the station.   More
(Source: Space.com - Dec 22)

NEW CHINESE AMATEUR RADIO SATELLITE COULD LAUNCH ON DECEMBER 25 - The CAMSAT XW-3 (CAS-9) amateur radio satellite has been installed on the CZ-4C Y39 launch vehicle at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in China, and related work is in progress as planned, CAMSAT’s Alan Kung, BA1DU, reports. “If all goes well, the satellite will be launched on December 25, 2021.”   More
(Source: ARRL - Dec 22)

ISS SSTV TRANSMISSION SET FOR LATE DECEMBER - The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) team will support Slow Scan TV (SSTV) transmissions from the International Space Station (ISS), December 26 – 31. The images will be related to lunar exploration. Transmissions should be available worldwide on 145.800 MHz FM, using SSTV mode PD120.   More
(Source: ARRL - Dec 22)

LAUNCH OF WEBB TELESCOPE DELAYED TO CHRISTMAS MORNING - A poor weather forecast at the Guiana Space Center in South America has forced officials to delay the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope by one day to Dec. 25, Christmas morning, mission managers said Tuesday. The 32-minute launch window Saturday opens at 7:20 a.m. EST (1220 GMT). Ground crews at the jungle spaceport in French Guiana planned to transfer the European Ariane 5 rocket with the Webb telescope on top to the ELA-3 launch zone Wednesday.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Dec 22)

YOU CAN WATCH SPACEX LAUNCH NASA SUPPLIES TO SPACE STATION EARLY TUESDAY - SpaceX will launch a Dragon spacecraft packed with NASA cargo to the International Space Station early Tuesday (Dec. 21) as part of its latest resupply mission for the U.S. space agency and you can watch it live. A shiny new SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will take to the skies here from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at 5:06 a.m. EST (1006 GMT). The two-stage launcher will blast off from Pad 39 lofting a robotic Dragon cargo capsule carrying more than 6,500 pounds (2,948 kilograms) of fresh supplies, experiment hardware, and other gear for the astronauts aboard the orbiting lab.    More
(Source: Space.com - Dec 21)

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