NORTHROP GRUMMAN’S SATELLITE SERVICER MEV-1, EUTELSAT SATELLITE, LAUNCH ON ILS PROTON - An International Launch Services Proton rocket carried Northrop Grumman’s first satellite-servicing spacecraft and a Eutelsat communications satellite to orbit Oct. 9. Proton lifted off at 6:18 a.m. Eastern from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Its two passengers are scheduled to separate from the rocket almost 16 hours later in a supersynchronous transfer orbit. The launch is ILS’s first mission since 2017 and the first time the company has carried two commercial satellite on a single Proton.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Oct 9)

NASA SMALL SATELLITES CAN AID HURRICANE FORECASTS WITH GPS - Eight briefcase-size satellites flying in a row may be key to improving forecasts of a hurricane's wind speed—detecting whether it will make landfall as a Category 1 or a Category 5. NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) fleet, launched in 2016, was designed to show whether the same GPS signals your phone uses for navigation can be used to measure winds deep within a hurricane or typhoon. The answer appears to be a resounding yes.    More
(Source: Phys.org - Oct 9)

NASA’S ICON SATELLITE TO LAUNCH ON WEDNESDAY - NASA will launch its Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) satellite on Wednesday, October 9, from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 9:30 p.m. EDT. The new satellite will orbit Earth, studying what happens when space weather and Earth weather interact in Earth’s ionosphere, the atmosphere level populated by ions and free electrons.    More
(Source: Astronomy Magazine - Oct 9)

SATELLITE INDUSTRY’S FIRST ROBOTIC SERVICING MISSION READY FOR LAUNCH - A pioneering Northrop Grumman-built satellite designed to dock with an aging spacecraft more than 22,000 miles above Earth, then extend its life with the aid of solar-electric thrusters, is set for launch Wednesday from Kazakhstan aboard a Proton rocket. The first Mission Extension Vehicle, or MEV 1, will link up with an 18-year-old Intelsat communications satellite early next year. Once docked, the MEV 1 spacecraft will take over propulsion for the Intelsat 901 satellite, which is running low on fuel.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 9)

ASTRONAUTS WILL SPEND MUCH OF OCTOBER OUTSIDE THE SPACE STATION - October is spacewalk month for astronauts aboard the space station. By the end of the month, crew members will have completed a total of five spacewalks. Most of their time outside will be spent making upgrades to the space station's power system. The first of the five trips occurred over the weekend. Expedition 61 flight engineers Christina Koch and Andrew Morgan spent more than seven hours outside the International Space Station on Sunday.   More
(Source: Space Daily - Oct 9)

KEPLER BOOKS SOYUZ FOR FIRST TWO OPERATIONAL SATELLITES - As it explores changes to its constellation orbit and spacecraft design, Kepler Communications on Oct. 7 said it nonetheless secured launch slots for its first two fully commercial satellites. Kepler will launch the two six-unit cubesats on a Russian Soyuz rocket operated by GK Launch Services in mid-2020. Kepler arranged the launch through Innovative Space Logistics, the Dutch launch broker that arranged for Keplers first two prototypes to launch in 2018 on a Chinese Long March 11 and Indian PSLV.    More
(Source: SpaceNews - Oct 8)

THE PENTAGON WANTS TO LAUNCH SATELLITE CONSTELLATIONS TO TRACK MISSILES - The Pentagon wants to develop and deploy constellations of satellites that would bolster missile defense systems and other military applications in low Earth orbit. The Pentagon’s Space Development Agency (SDA), created in March to oversee space-related projects pursued across the US military, is proposing the establishment of a “National Defense Space Architecture,” according to Bloomberg News. The system, which would consist of as many as 1,200 satellites, would create several layers of satellite constellations.    More
(Source: MIT Technology Review - Oct 8)

NASA MAY ASK SPACEX TO EXTEND DURATION OF CREW DRAGON TEST FLIGHT - NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley may spend more time on the International Space Station than originally planned when they ride SpaceX’s new human-rated Dragon spacecraft into orbit on its first crewed test flight, a space agency official said Friday. A decision to extend the duration of the Crew Dragon test flight with Behnken and Hurley, designated Demo-2, is one of several options under consideration to ensure the space station remains staffed with U.S. astronauts after NASA’s agreement to procure seats on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft expires next year.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 8)

SPACE STATION CREW STAGES FIRST OF 5 BATTERY SWAP SPACEWALKS - Astronauts Christina Koch and Drew Morgan floated outside the International Space Station on Sunday, removed three aging batteries from the lab's solar power truss and installed two more powerful replacements. It was the first of five planned spacewalks to upgrade the complex electrical system and extend the station's life through the 2020s.   More
(Source: CBS News - Oct 7)

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