NO, BOEING STARLINER'S NASA ASTRONAUTS ARE NOT STRANDED IN SPACE. HERE'S WHY. - Boeing Starliner's two astronauts knew to expect the unexpected when they took off on the spacecraft's first crewed mission on June 5. I learned this back in March, when NASA hosted reporters at the agency's Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston for two days. We used four Starliner simulators, spoke at length with senior agency and Boeing leadership, and sat down with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. More (Source: Space.com - Aug 2)
SPACE STATION ASTRONAUTS CHECK OUT STARLINER SYSTEMS AND PREPARE FOR CARGO DELIVERY - Expedition 71 focused on preparing for a cargo resupply mission with Cygnus, performing spacesuit maintenance, and conducting various scientific tasks. Crew members also practiced for the robotic capture of Cygnus and engaged in regular maintenance and research activities. On the International Space Station (ISS), the Expedition 71 crew turned its attention to an upcoming U. S. cargo mission, spacesuit work, and a variety of life science on Monday, July 29. NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test members began the week servicing their Starliner flight suits and the spacecraft’s life support systems following a morning of light research duties. More (Source: SciTechDaily - Aug 1)
REPAIR KIT FOR NASA’S NICER MISSION HEADING TO SPACE STATION - NASA will deliver a patch kit for NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer), an X-ray telescope on the International Space Station, on the agency’s Northrop Grumman 21st commercial resupply mission. Astronauts will conduct a spacewalk to complete the repair. Located near the space station’s starboard solar array, NICER was damaged in May 2023. The mission team delivered the patch kit to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston in May 2024 so it could be prepped and packed for the upcoming resupply mission. More (Source: NASA - Aug 1)
SCIENTISTS RACE TO MAP DANGEROUS ULTRASMALL SPACE JUNK - An ambitious U.S. government program is working to detect and track millions of tiny space junk pieces—down to the size of a sand grain—throughout low-Earth orbit and beyond. The U.S. Air Force monitors roughly 25,000 pieces of trash in low-Earth orbit (LEO), the busiest and most crowded region, which encompasses orbits of 2,000 kilometers or less in altitude. Current telescopes and radar technology limit the smallest trackable pieces to approximately 10 centimeters across, about the size of a bagel. More (Source: Scientific American - Jul 31)
ROCKET LAB STANDS DOWN FROM SYNSPECTIVE’S SAR JULY 30 LAUNCH DUE TO WEATHER - Launch preparations are progressing well for our mission, but Mission Control is keeping a close eye on a band of heavy rain and thick cloud heading its way to the launch site. Weather POV currently = 60%. Then later the mission is in stand down. With an increased POV of ~80%, we’re standing down from today’s launch attempt due to weather. Details to come on our new target launch date. More (Source: SatNews - Jul 31)
ULA LAUNCHES ATLAS 5 ROCKET ON THE COMPANY’S 100TH NATIONAL SECURITY MISSION - United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket marked its swan song when it comes to launching critical missions connected to U.S. national security. A launch at dawn sent up a classified payload as part of the United States Space Force-51 (USSF-51) mission, marking the 100th such operation for ULA. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) happened Tuesday, July 30, 6:45 a.m. EDT (1045 UTC), the opening of a three-hour launch window. ULA had a smooth countdown with no hiccups during the fueling process. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jul 31)
BOEING'S STARLINER TESTS THRUSTERS AT ISS AS NASA REVIEWS OPTIONS FOR ASTRONAUTS' RETURN TO EARTH - The first Boeing Starliner to fly astronauts to space performed a crucial in-space test Saturday (July 27) as the next mission faces a months-long delay. Engineers tested Starliner's reaction control system (RCS) thrusters to prepare for a wider agency review that will evaluate the spacecraft's readiness for landing NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams sometime in August, if all goes to plan. More (Source: Space.com - Jul 31)
SIERRA SPACE WON'T STOP BLOWING UP INFLATABLE SPACE STATION MODULES - Sierra Space has announced the completion of another full-scale burst test in which the company exploded one of its inflatable modules being developed as part of efforts to build a commercial space station. Sierra Space's "Ultimate Burst Pressure test" was conducted on June 18, 2024 and involved an inflatable space station module built to full scale at more than 20 feet tall (6 meters). The test unit, which compares to the size of a typical family home, is about one-third the volume of the International Space Station (ISS) at 10,600 cubic feet (300 cubic meters) and has enough room to house four astronauts, plus exercise and scientific equipment, Sierra Space says. More (Source: Space.com - Jul 30)
FAILED NORTH KOREA SATELLITE LAUNCH ENGINE POINTS TO RUSSIAN ROLE, SAY SOUTH KOREAN LAWMAKERS - North Korea appears to have received assistance from Russia for its failed attempt in May to launch a reconnaissance satellite, South Korean lawmakers said on Monday, citing the country's spy agency. North Korea had said it used a new "liquid oxygen and petroleum engine" in the satellite, which exploded minutes after lift-off. But Seoul's National Intelligence Service (NIS) told lawmakers that there were no signs of North Korea having developed such an engine, and it was possibly from Russia. More (Source: Reuters - Jul 30)
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