NASA TELEVISION TO AIR RUSSIAN SPACEWALK AT INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - Two veteran Russian cosmonauts will venture outside the International Space Station for a spacewalk Wednesday, May 29, to retrieve science experiments and conduct maintenance on the orbiting laboratory. Live coverage of the activity will air on NASA Television and the agency’s website. Expedition 59 Commander Oleg Kononenko, RN3DX and Flight Engineer Alexey Ovchinin are scheduled to open the hatch to the Pirs docking compartment airlock at 11:44 a.m. EDT on May 29 for a spacewalk expected to last 6.5 hours. Live coverage of the spacewalk will begin at 11:15 a.m.    More
(Source: Southgate Amateur Radio Club - May 27)

HOW TO SEE SPACEX'S STARLINK SATELLITE 'TRAIN' IN THE NIGHT SKY - SpaceX's new array of Starlink communication satellites has even the most jaded of satellite observers agog with excitement as they move across the sky. On Thursday evening (May 23), SpaceX launched 60 Starlink satellites into orbit on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The satellites are in good health and are the first of a planned 12,000-satellite megaconstellation to provide internet access to people on Earth. The satellites, which are now orbiting at approximately 273 miles (440 km) above the Earth, are putting on a spectacular show for ground observers as they move across the night sky.    More
(Source: Space.com - May 27)

DAY MEETS NIGHT IN THIS AMAZING ASTRONAUT PHOTO OF EARTH FROM SPACE - An evocative new photo from the International Space Station shows what it's like to fly along the line between darkness and daylight on planet Earth. Expedition 59 astronaut Christina Koch posted the eerie view on Twitter May 20 from one of the windows of the station; the view includes a glimpse of one the orbiting complex's solar arrays. Below, night gradually gives way to daylight as clouds streak above the Earth's surface. "A couple times a year, the @Space_Station orbit happens to align over the day/night shadow line on Earth," Koch wrote with the posted photo.    More
(Source: Space.com - May 27)

WOW! THIS IS WHAT SPACEX'S STARLINK SATELLITES LOOK LIKE IN THE NIGHT SKY - It's been one day since SpaceX launched its first 60 Starlink internet satellites into orbit, and a skywatching sleuth has already spotted them soaring across the night sky. Netherlands-based satellite tracker Marco Langbroek stunned space fans tonight (May 24) with this jaw-dropping video of dozens of Starlink satellites soaring overhead. "Here is the video I shot, be prepared to be mind-blown!" Langbroek wrote on his website SatTrackCam Leiden Blog, where he shared the video. He counted at least 56 objects as the satellites flew overhead.

A TOP-SECRET CHINESE SPACE MISSION FAILING IN MID-FLIGHT — CHINA'S SECOND ROCKET LOSS OF THE YEAR - China attempted to launch a top-secret military payload into space early Thursday morning, but the attempt ended in a rain of wreckage. The loss of the Long March 4C rocket and its satellite marks the nation's second launch failure of 2019. The first was a commercial launch in March by the Chinese aerospace startup OneSpace. China put out notifications of airspace closures and other safety measures ahead of the launch, but — as is common — it did not formally announce the mission.    More
(Source: Business Insider - May 24)

BOULDER’S BALL AEROSPACE SATELLITE SET FOR LAUNCH - A satellite built by Boulder-based Ball Aerospace arrived in Florida on Monday in preparation for a June launch as part of NASA’s Green Propellant Infusion Mission. The mission will be NASA’s first time using a low toxicity “green” propellant and propulsion system in orbit – an alternative to conventional chemical propulsion. “We are proud to be part of this historic mission to test a new green propellant on board Ball’s flight-proven small satellite, helping to provide science at any scale,” Makenzie Lystrup, vice president and general manager, Civil Space, Ball Aerospace said in a statement.   More
(Source: Boulder Daily Camera - May 24)

SPACEX LAUNCHES STARLINK: WAITING FOR DEPLOYMENT OF 60 SATELLITES IN LANDMARK MISSION - SpaceX just vaulted a rocket full of 60 satellites into the sky. Now for the moment of truth: The company will try to deploy the entire batch of satellites safely into orbit. This is the first dedicated mission for SpaceX's Starlink, an ambitious plan to put up a megaconstellation of satellites that could beam cheap broadband all over the planet. The towering Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 10:30 pm ET. Around 11:30 pm ET, the second stage of the rocket will try to gently deploy all 60 satellites in a unique way. The payload stack will turn over as the satellites fan out in a way that will look like "spreading a deck of cards on a table," as SpaceX CEO Elon Musk described it.    More
(Source: CNN - May 24)

TETHERS UNLIMITED DEVELOPING SATELLITE SERVICER FOR LEO MISSIONS - Tethers Unlimited is designing a satellite servicing vehicle that would leverage technologies developed for the U.S. Defense Department and NASA to service spacecraft in low Earth orbit. Tethers Unlimited already has many of the technologies needed for the servicer either completed or in development under Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants, CEO Robert Hoyt told SpaceNews. By combining these technologies, the company hopes to have a servicer called LEO Knight in orbit within three to four years, he said. The servicer would support on-orbit assembly, refueling for small satellites and other functions, he said.    More
(Source: SpaceNews - May 22)

ARE WE REACHING THE END OF SPACEWALKS? - It’s June 3, 1965 and astronaut Ed White, in orbit over Hawaii, emerges from a space capsule to become the first American to conduct a extravehicular activity, or EVA. Connected with a single tether providing power and communication lines, he maneuvers using an oxygen gun for propulsion, takes in the view, and poses for pictures. “I feel like a million dollars,” White says. These days EVAs are not done for the photos, they are part of the maintenance and operation of the International Space Station. They are planned to the minute, and astronauts seldom have time for a selfie (or joyriding with jet-guns).   More
(Source: Popular Mechanics - May 22)

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