SPACEX SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHES 60 MORE STARLINK SATELLITES AS IT CONTINUES TOWARDS 2020 SERVICE DEBUT - SpaceX has launched another big batch of Starlink satellites, the low Earth orbit spacecraft that will provide connectivity for its globe-spanning high-bandwidth broadband internet network. This brings the total number of Starlink satellites on orbit to 422, though the company plans to de-orbit two of those (the first two prototypes launched) shortly. More (Source: TechCrunch - Apr 22)
IRAN SAYS MILITARY SATELLITE LAUNCHED AMID US TENSIONS - Iran's Revolutionary Guards announced they had successfully launched the country's first military satellite on Wednesday, at a time of fresh tensions with US forces in the Gulf. The United States alleges Iran's satellite programme is a cover for its development of missiles, while the Islamic republic has previously insisted its aerospace activities comply with its international obligations. More (Source: Yahoo News - Apr 22)
SPACEX MODIFIES STARLINK NETWORK DESIGN AS ANOTHER 60 SATELLITES GEAR UP FOR LAUNCH - Another 60 Starlink satellites are ready for launch Wednesday to beam Internet signals to future SpaceX consumers as the company seeks regulatory approval to fly all 4,400 relay stations in the network’s first phase of deployment at lower altitudes than previously planned. SpaceX’s Starlink network is a multibillion-dollar program aimed at blanketing the planet in broadband connectivity, serving a wide range of consumers in homes, businesses, schools and hospitals. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 22)
TO ATTACK OR DETER? THE ROLE OF ANTI-SATELLITE WEAPONS - Last week, Russia conducted another anti-satellite (ASAT) test, apparently one of a series they have been undertaking as part of what increasingly looks to be a broad-ranging ASAT program. This follows a recent statement by the commander of US Space Command, General John Raymond, who acknowledged something that amateur space trackers have noticed for a few months... More (Source: The Space Review - Apr 22)
US GIRDS ITS SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE IN SPACE DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC - In 2016 a Navy satellite called MUOS-5 wasn’t doing well. Partway to its intended orbit, it simply stalled out — but because the spacecraft was already so far away, the dilemma’s details were hard to discern. That’s where the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program came in: GSSAP satellites can sidle up to and take pictures of other orbiters, beaming the portraits back to Earth. So from Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado, operators maneuvered the agile GSSAP satellite close to the inert MUOS-5 to inspect it. More (Source: CNBC - Apr 19)
AN OLD SATELLITE GETS A NEW LEASE ON LIFE, THANKS TO THE HELP OF A SERVICING SATELLITE - An old communications satellite in orbit around Earth is back in service again after being nudged into new life-saving orbit by another satellite. Intelsat 901, which has been in space since 2001, is now providing telecommunications coverage over the Atlantic again after being moved to a new location in space by a servicer satellite, extending the vehicle’s mission by at least five years. More (Source: The Verge - Apr 19)
SPACEX WILL LAUNCH TWO ASTRONAUTS TO INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ON MAY 27, NASA SAYS - Nine years after the last space shuttle flight, NASA plans to launch two U.S. astronauts aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule May 27 for a trip to the International Space Station, the agency announced Friday. The historic test flight will herald the end of America's sole reliance on Russia for basic space transportation. More (Source: CBS News - Apr 18)
SOYUZ WITH CREW OF THREE LANDS SAFELY IN KAZAKHSTAN - A Russian cosmonaut and his two NASA crewmates undocked from the International Space Station and landed in Kazakhstan early Friday, returning to an unfamiliar world in the grip of a pandemic that will force them to extend the social isolation they were hoping to end. “It’s a little bit surreal to think that we’re going back, especially given the situation that’s been unfolding on the ground,” flight engineer Jessica Meir told a reporter Wednesday. “It looks like we are going back to a completely different planet. So it will be certainly an interesting experience for us.” More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 18)
THREE SPACE TRAVELERS WILL RETURN TO EARTH TONIGHT! HERE'S HOW TO WATCH LIVE. - Three spaceflyers will return to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) early Friday morning (April 17), and you can watch their homecoming live. The action starts this evening (April 16) at 6 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT), when NASA astronauts Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir and cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka start saying goodbye to the three crewmembers who will remain aboard the orbiting lab. Watch the farewells live online here and on the Space.com homepage, courtesy of NASA, or directly via the space agency. More (Source: Space.com - Apr 17)
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