WEST COAST FALCON 9 LAUNCHES 27 SATELLITES FOR SPACEX’S STARLINK INTERNET SERVICE - SpaceX closed out May with its 16th Falcon 9 launch of the month. The Saturday afternoon launch from the company’s West Coast launch pad carried 27 Starlink V2 Mini satellites to a low Earth orbit. Liftoff of the Starlink 11-18 mission from a foggy Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base occurred at 1:10 p.m. PDT (4:10 p.m. EDT, 2010 UTC). More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 1)
ISS MISSIONS WITH RUSSIA ARE LIKE WORKING WITH NAZIS, SAYS FORMER US ASTRONAUT - A retired US astronaut has told RFE/RL that joint missions with Russia on the International Space Station (ISS) should be scaled back, comparing them to collaboration with Nazi Germany at the height of World War II. "Cooperating with the Russians on the ISS is like going on an Antarctic expedition with Nazis in 1943," said Terry Virts, a former commander on the station. More (Source: Radio Free Europe - Jun 1)
HOW MANY SATELLITES COULD FIT IN EARTH ORBIT? AND HOW MANY DO WE REALLY NEED? - The number of satellites orbiting Earth is rising fast, thanks to private companies such as SpaceX. But just how big will these "megaconstellations" become? And what problems might they cause? In the last five years, the number of satellites orbiting Earth has more than doubled and will likely double again within a similar timespan, thanks to the efforts of private companies such as SpaceX. But while these spacecraft can provide important benefits, they are also causing multiple issues that are only just being realized by scientists. More (Source: Live Science - May 31)
U.S. SPACE FORCE, LOCKHEED MARTIN LAUNCH NEWEST GPS SATELLITE ON SPACEX FALCON ROCKET - The latest addition to the United States’ Global Positioning System (GPS) constellation launched into medium Earth orbit Friday afternoon, skirting some season thunderstorms passing through the area. The GPS III-7 Space Vehicle 08 (SV-08) launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff occurred at 1:37 p.m. EDT (1737 UTC), the end of a 15-minute window. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - May 31)
NASA HELPS WITH PROGRESS ON VAST’S HAVEN-1 COMMERCIAL SPACE STATION - NASA-supported commercial space station, Vast’s Haven-1, recently completed a test of a critical air filter system for keeping future astronauts healthy in orbit. Testing confirmed the system can maintain a safe and healthy atmosphere for all planned Haven-1 mission phases. Testing of the trace contaminant control system was completed at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, as part of a reimbursable Space Act Agreement. More (Source: NASA - May 30)
CHINA LAUNCHES CLASSIFIED SHIJAN-26 SATELLITE WITH LONG MARCH 4B ROCKET - China carried out its ninth launch of the month early Thursday, sending the secretive Shijian-26 spacecraft into orbit. A Long March 4B rocket lifted off at 12:12 a.m. Eastern (0412 UTC) May 29 from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China. Insulation tiles fell away from the rocket’s payload fairing as it climbed into a cloudy sky. The Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST), which provided the Long March 4B for the mission, declared success of the launch within an hour of liftoff. More (Source: SpaceNews - May 30)
SPACEX TO LAUNCH GPS III SVO8 SATELLITE FROM CAPE CANAVERAL ON MAY 30 - SpaceX is set to launch a GPS III SVO8 satellite into orbit from Cape Canaveral, FL on May 30. The preparations for the upcoming mission for the U.S. Space Force (USSF) proceeded on an accelerated timeline to add the SV08 to the constellation. In press comments, Col. Andrew Menschner, underscored the need for accelerated launch is to mitigate increasing GPS jamming and interference. “There are today 38 GPS satellites in orbit, 31 of which operate on a daily basis. We have a healthy redundancy in the constellation. More (Source: Inside GNSS - May 30)
SPACE ONE AND SPACE BD TO LAUNCH SATELLITE FOR JAPANESE MILITARY - The Japanese military has selected companies Space One and Space BD to launch a small satellite. The companies announced May 28 that they won a contract from the Japan Ministry of Defense for the launch of an optical imaging satellite that will be built by Canon Electronics. The announcement did not disclose the value of the contract or the projected launch date. More (Source: SpaceNews - May 30)
SPACEX TO LAUNCH ANOTHER GPS III SATELLITE IN RECORD TURNAROUND - SpaceX is gearing up to launch a Global Positioning System satellite for the U.S. military on May 30 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, marking another high-profile national security mission that shifted from United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan to the Falcon 9 rocket. The launch of GPS III SV-08 — the eighth satellite in the GPS III constellation — was originally assigned to United Launch Alliance (ULA) but was switched to SpaceX as the military prioritizes getting advanced anti-jamming capabilities into orbit as quickly as possible. The move comes as GPS signals face increasing threats from both nation-state actors and inadvertent commercial interference. More (Source: SpaceNews - May 29)
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