RUSSIAN CREW SWAP AND CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS WEIGH ON UPCOMING LAUNCH TO SPACE STATION - With the next Soyuz mission preparing to launch to the International Space Station, the crew has passed its final exams. But, while NASA's space station manager has made assurances that an earlier swap of the two Russian cosmonauts on the crew should pose no issues, concerns surrounding coronavirus will likely alter the mission's standard preflight quarantine. More (Source: Space.com - Mar 14)
SATELLITE IMAGES SHOW IRAN HAS BUILT MASS GRAVES AMID CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK - Satellite images of mass graves in the city of Qom suggest Iran’s coronavirus epidemic is even more serious than the authorities are admitting. The pictures, first published by the New York Times, show the excavation of a new section in a cemetery on the northern fringe of Iran’s holy city in late February, and two long trenches dug, of a total length of 100 yards, by the end of the month. More (Source: The Guardian - Mar 13)
CHINA'S NEW NAVIGATION SYSTEM IS NEARLY COMPLETE WITH PENULTIMATE BEIDOU SATELLITE LAUNCH - The Chinese Beidou satellite navigation system is almost finished, thanks to the launch of a new satellite this week. China launched its 54th Beidou satellite on a Long March 3B rocket on Monday (March 9). The rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China at 7:55 p.m. local time (7:55 a.m. EDT; 1155 GMT). Footage from state media outlet CCTV showed a flawless night liftoff as the satellite rocketed into space, en route to geosynchronous orbit. More (Source: Space.com - Mar 13)
CHINA'S MARS MISSION LIKELY STILL ON TRACK FOR JULY LAUNCH DESPITE CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK - China is planning to launch its first solo interplanetary mission in July, but the new coronavirus has severely hindered and slowed activity in the country. Will the COVID-19 outbreak keep China from launching for Mars? Chinese authorities enacted a range of travel and enforced quarantine measures in January to combat the spread of infection. This meant many employees, including those in the space sector, could not return to work. More (Source: Space.com - Mar 13)
ASTRONAUTS TAKING PRECAUTIONS TO KEEP CORONAVIRUS FROM SPREADING TO SPACE - Astronauts preparing for an international space mission are taking precautions to avoid bringing coronavirus to space, according to a report. NASA’s Chris Cassidy along with Russian astronauts Ivan Vagner and Anatoly Ivanishin are prohibited from leaving the Star City training center outside of Moscow ahead of their April 9 mission to the International Space Station, the Telegraph reported. More (Source: New York Post - Mar 13)
LOCKHEED MARTIN APP OFFERS A GLIMPSE INTO THE PLANNING OF A SATELLITE CONSTELLATION - Lockheed Martin developed an iPhone and iPad app called “Constellations” that visualizes the tradeoffs and calculations that go into designing a network of satellites in space. Company officials demonstrated a beta version of the app to reporters March 10 during the Satellite 2020 conference. The final product will be available on the Apple app store in a few weeks, a spokesman said. More (Source: SpaceNews - Mar 12)
THE SPACE FORCE IS ADDING ANOTHER SATELLITE TO ITS FIRST LAUNCH - A new space situational awareness satellite will hitch a ride into orbit alongside the United States Space Force’s latest anti-jamming communication satellite later this month when the service conducts its first launch since being established in December. Sponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory and manufactured by the Georgia Institute of Technology, TDO-2 is a multi-manifest small satellite vehicle carrying multiple government payloads that will help provide space domain awareness for the Space Force. More (Source: C4ISRNet - Mar 12)
DOCKING, RENDEZVOUS AND NEWTON'S THIRD LAW – THE CHALLENGE OF SERVICING SATELLITES IN SPACE - If you want to build or fix something in space, you might think you'd need a human to do it. But what if you didn't? What if robotic spacecraft could be used to refuel satellites in orbit, add new instruments to outdated machinery and even build entire structures while in space? More (Source: Phys.org - Mar 12)
SPACEX CEO ELON MUSK SAYS THERE’S NOTHING TO FEAR FROM STARLINK BROADBAND SATELLITES (AND NO SPIN-OUT) - Will SpaceX’s Starlink broadband satellite constellation ruin astronomy? Will it threaten the telecom industry? Will SpaceX spin out Starlink anytime soon? SpaceX’s billionaire CEO, Elon Musk, answered all three questions today at a fireside chat at the Satellite 2020 conference in Washington, D.C.: No, no and no. More (Source: GeekWire - Mar 11)
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