SATELLITE SPOTS IRAQI PROTESTS AT US EMBASSY FROM SPACE - A Maxar Technologies satellite in orbit has spotted the protests at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq, showing views of the New Year's Day demonstration from above. Maxar's WorldView-3 Earth-observation satellite captured images of crowds of demonstrators at the U.S. Embassy Compound in Baghdad on Jan. 1. The photos show protesters at the entrance of the compound, with the black plume from a small fire visible in one image.    More
(Source: Space.com - Jan 3)

INDIA BOOSTS RADAR SATELLITE COUNT WITH TWO LAUNCHES IN 2019 - Among the significant but low-profile Indian space missions of 2019 were the launches of two Radar Imaging Satellites, RISAT-2B and RISAT-2BR1. Earth observation (EO) satellites that use a radar, thus giving them all-weather vision, have been around since 1978. India entered this field in 2009 with RISAT-2 using an Israeli built payload. Ten years on, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has now increased to four its tally of SAR, or synthetic aperture radar, satellites.    More
(Source: The Hindu - Jan 3)

KOCH MARKS RECORD STAY IN SPACE FOR FEMALE ASTRONAUT - Astronaut Christina Koch, launched to the International Space Station in March, marks her 289th day in space Saturday, breaking retired astronaut Peggy Whitson’s world record for the longest single spaceflight by a female. Along the way, Koch has participated in four spacewalks, joining astronaut Jessica Meir for history’s first all-female excursion in October.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 2)

ASTRONOMERS SAY SPACEX’S SATELLITES ARE TOO BRIGHT IN THE SKY. FRIDAY’S LAUNCH WILL TRY TO FIX THAT - They were seen sparkling across the skies of Montana right around Christmas: a tidy row of lights that some mistook to be UFOs. The glowing celestial train has been spotted in California, Texas, in the Netherlands and even Chile. And it has astronomers worried. Because the twinkling lights are not stars, planets or the faint objects hunted by observatories.   More
(Source: The Daily World - Jan 2)

SPACEX PREPARES FOR FIRST OF MANY STARLINK LAUNCHES IN 2020 - 2020 looks to be a big year for space. The next twelve months could see the U.S. regain a long-lost capability and another rover should be sent on its way to the Red Planet. SpaceX is planning to kick off 2020 with the launch of the next batch of Starlink satellites. SpaceX is scheduled to launch its next batch of 60 Starlink satellites with a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket on January 3, 2020, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Insider - Jan 1)

NEW WGS-11 SATELLITE DEVELOPED BY BOEING - Boeing has developed a new variant of its 702 satellite for the U.S. Air Force’s Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) constellation, one intended to offer both greater bandwidth efficiency and signal power than previous satellites in the fleet. The new WGS-11 will be delivered on a recently negotiated contract award from the Air Force. According to the company, advances in Boeing digital satellite technology means WGS-11 will deliver hundreds of coverage beams, providing a more flexible and efficient use of bandwidth.   More
(Source: Military Embedded Systems - Jan 1)

JAPAN'S LOW ALTITUDE SATELLITE TSUBAME REGISTERED IN GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS - Japan’s superlow altitude satellite Tsubame has been registered by Guinness World Records as having achieved the “lowest altitude by an Earth observation satellite in orbit,” the nation’s space agency has announced. The satellite flew at an orbital altitude of 167.4 kilometers from Sept. 23 to 30 as part of its test mission from Dec. 23, 2017, to Oct. 1, 2019, compared with the 600 to 800 km zone where most Earth observation satellites operate.   More
(Source: The Japan Times - Dec 31)

ORBITING TOWARD 2020: NEW YEAR TREE LAUNCHED IN ZERO-G ABOARD INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - The crew of the ISS is fully geared for a New Year’s party. The walls of the station, orbiting the Earth at an altitude of over 400km, have been decorated and an adorned fir tree sent flying between the modules. The holiday mood aboard the ISS was captured in a video, published by Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos. There are oranges, sweets, toys and New Year-themed banners prepared by the crew for the celebrations.   More
(Source: RT - Dec 31)

CHINA'S TAIJI-1 SATELLITE PASSES IN-ORBIT TESTS - China's first satellite to conduct experiments on key technologies related to space-based gravitational wave detection, Taiji-1, has successfully completed its in-orbit tests, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) announced Wednesday. The satellite, sent into orbit on Aug. 31, 2019, is China's first such kind of satellite, and has completed its in-orbit experiments, making a breakthrough in the country's gravitational wave detection, said Wu Yueliang, chief scientist of the project.   More
(Source: Space Daily - Dec 30)

Previous Next