SURPRISE, RELIEF AS CHINA’S KEY SATELLITE MAKES IT TO ORBIT DESPITE ROCKET LAUNCH FAILURE - Chinese space authorities say an important communication satellite is now where it should be after it veered off course during a failed rocket launch last month. The ChinaSat 9A probe was steered towards its target orbit on Wednesday, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation said. It had ended up in the wrong orbit after the unsuccessful launch of the Long March 3B, or CZ-2B, on June 19. More (Source: South China Morning Post - Jul 7)
“GECKO GRIPPER” TECH TO CLEAN UP SPACE JUNK - Watch your backyard closely on a warm Florida morning, and you can see geckos climbing the fence to greet the Sun, looking for an insect snack before the mid-day heat sets in. The same gripping technique that geckos use to scale smooth surfaces such as fences could soon be grappling with space junk in orbit. Hao Jiang (Stanford University) and colleagues recently proposed using “gecko grippers” to grab space debris in an effort to clean up near-Earth space. More (Source: Sky & Telescope - Jul 7)
I WONDER IF IT HAS ROOM SERVICE? HERE’S THE SPACE HOTEL THAT WON A RECENT NASA COMPETITION - Looking to the future of space exploration, there really is no question that it will involve a growing human presence in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). This will include not only successors to the International Space Station, but most likely commercial habitats and facilities. These will not only allow for ventures like space tourism, but will also facilitate missions that take us back to the Moon, to Mars, and even beyond. With this purpose in mind, an interdisciplinary team of MIT graduate students designed a space habitat known as the Managed, Reconfigurable, In-space Nodal Assembly (MARINA). This module would serve as an privately-owned space station that would be occupied by two anchor-tenants for a period of ten years; a luxury hotel that would provide orbital accommodations, and NASA. More (Source: Universe Today - Jul 6)
THREE LAUNCHES IN 12 DAYS! SPACEX LOFTS HEAVY COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE - For the third time in 12 days, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully took off from Earth and sent a satellite payload into orbit. The rocket launched from the historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 7:38 p.m. EDT (2338 GMT) today (July 5). The Falcon 9 sent the Intelsat 35e satellite to a high-up geostationary transfer orbit; the craft will eventually make its way to geostationary orbit, about 22,300 miles (35,800 kilometers) above Earth. More (Source: Space.com - Jul 6)
FIRST SATELLITE ABLE RE-ENTER THE ATMOSPHERE IN A CONTROLLED WAY JUST LAUNCHED - D-Sat is the first satellite in history that will end its mission by re-entering Earth’s atmosphere in a safe and controlled way, burning up instead of becoming new debris. The satellite, which was launched on Friday, 23 June 2017, used a decommissioning and re entry device created by the EU-funded D3 project. Space debris is a growing problem. Earth observation, weather forecast, global navigation, disaster prevention, high-precision farming, and self-driving cars are all applications that require space-based assets. More (Source: Cordis News - Jul 5)
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE CLASSIFIED KIND - The first days of June 2017 were a busy period at the International Space Station (ISS). The SpaceX Dragon CRS-11 cargo ship arrived and berthed, and the Orbital ATK Cygnus OA-7 “S.S. John Glenn” cargo ship unberthed and departed. There was also another spacecraft sneaking up for a close approach, one that was classified and not supposed to be noticed. On June 3, the US military satellite USA 276 approached the ISS to a nominal distance of 6.4 kilometers and effectively circled the ISS in both the cross-track and along-track directions. More (Source: The Space Review - Jul 4)
IARU REVISES SATELLITE COORDINATION GUIDELINES TO ALIGN WITH WRC-15 DECISIONS - Starting on August 1, the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) will follow revised guidelines for satellite frequency coordination. Educational satellite projects have grown in popularity as launch opportunities have increased. These satellites, constructed by students at universities and other institutions, generally have been licensed to operate in the Amateur-Satellite Service, which the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Radio Regulations define as having the “purpose of self-training, intercommunication, and technical investigations carried out by amateurs…interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest.” More (Source: ARRL - Jul 4)
ROCKET FAILURE MAY DELAY CHINA’S SPACE STATION AND MOON MISSIONS - China’s latest space launch has ended in failure. The Long March 5 rocket successfully took off at 11.23am GMT on Sunday from the Wenchang Space Launch Centre in China, but after an hour came tumbling back down to Earth due to an abnormality. Once in the air, mission control in Beijing tried to save the rocket by changing its flight plans, but those attempts were unsuccessful. The rocket, along with the experimental communications satellite it was carrying, crashed into the Pacific Ocean shortly afterwards. More (Source: New Scientist - Jul 4)
SPACEX CRAFT RETURNS TO EARTH AFTER 2ND SPACE STATION TRIP - A SpaceX Dragon capsule that brought supplies to the International Space Station has splashed down as planned in the Pacific Ocean. SpaceX announced on Twitter that the Dragon hit the water off the California coast shortly after 5 a.m. Monday. After being released by the space station's robotic arm, the capsule completed a 5?-hour journey back to Earth. More (Source: ABC News - Jul 4)
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