ISRO'S ANTRIX SAYS NEARLY 30 SATELLITE LAUNCH ORDERS IN THE PIPELINE - Emerging as a global competitive provider for satellite launches, Isro's commercial arm Antrix Corporation has almost 30 orders at hand from different countries for satellite launches which are scheduled to be completed in next two to three years. Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) Chairman A S Kiran Kumar said tonight that the organisation is working on increasing its capabilities on critical technologies. "We have (orders of) almost 30 odd satellites from about 7-8 countries. We have to put them into orbit in next two-three years and we are working on it," he said in Jaipur.   More
(Source: NDTV - Dec 19)

EMERGENCY SPACEWALK PLANNED FOR SPACE STATION - The International Space Station (ISS) has had a rough go of late, with no fewer than three launch pad accidents that prevented cargo vehicles from getting to orbit in the past year alone. Now another problem aboard the ISS itself may prevent the vehicles that do get to space from actually docking with the station—and one of those vehicles is on its way soon. That could necessitate an emergency spacewalk by commander Scott Kelly and astronaut Tim Kopra on Monday or Tuesday.   More
(Source: Time - Dec 19)

WITH TODAY’S LAUNCH, GALILEO CONSTELLATION NOW TWELVE - The pace of deploying Europe’s own satellite navigation system continued to increase with today’s launch of the latest pair of Galileo satellites, doubling the number of satellites in space within nine months. Galileo 11 and 12 lifted off together at 11:51 GMT (12:51 CET, 08:51 local time) atop a Soyuz rocket from French Guiana. This sixth Galileo launch was a textbook operation: all Soyuz stages performed as planned, culminating in the Fregat upper stage deploying the twin satellites into orbit close to 23,500 km altitude, around 3 hours and 48 minutes after liftoff.   More
(Source: - Dec 18)

CHINA SENDS DARK MATTER PROBE INTO ORBIT - China launched the first in a series of planned space science probes Thursday, putting a satellite into orbit to study high-energy cosmic rays for signals hinting at hypothesized clumps of dark matter that have eluded detection for decades. The Dark Matter Particle Explorer, or DAMPE, mission is the first dedicated astrophysics observatory put into orbit by China. Fitted with detectors sensitive to gamma rays, electrons and high-energy cosmic rays, the DAMPE satellite will scoop up particles speeding through the cosmos and measure their energy, direction and electric charge, according to mission scientists.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Dec 18)

WALLOPS ISLAND READIES FOR FIRST LAUNCH OF SPACE STATION CARGO SINCE EXPLOSION - The crater — 50-feet long by 30-feet deep — is filled, a crack in a reinforced concrete wall beneath the launch pad is repaired and a set of stairs blown away by the blast has been replaced. The only signs that a rocket carrying a load of cargo bound for the International Space Station exploded seconds after liftoff more than year ago are a few black streaks of charring, one marking the face of a 310-foot water tower overlooking the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport and the Atlantic Ocean.   More
(Source: The Baltimore Sun - Dec 18)

ISS SSTV ACTIVITY PLANNED FOR LATE DEC. 2015 - The ARISS Russia team is making plans to support a couple of Slow Scan TV (SSTV) events in the next few months on 145.800 MHz FM. The first session is being targeted for Dec 26-27 (subject to change) to celebrate 15 years of ARISS school contacts with the ISS crew. The down link mode will be PD120 which should allow for the opportunity to receive more images in a single pass. Watch for updates and additional information as it becomes available.   More
(Source: AMSAT-UK - Dec 18)

EUROPE READIES FOR SATELLITE LAUNCH, MOVES CLOSER TO OWN SATNAV - Europe is set to launch the next two satellites Thursday for its multi-billion-euro Galileo satnav system, a rival to America's GPS, according to space firm Arianespace. This would bring Europe a step closer to providing initial navigation services by next year, Arianespace chief executive Stephane Israel told AFP, after many years of frustrating delays. "The programme is truly on track, moving forward, keeping its promises," he said. Weather permitting, a Russian Soyuz rocket will launch the satellite pair -- numbers 11 and 12 in the Galileo constellation orbiting Earth -- from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 1151 GMT.   More
(Source: Yahoo7 News - Dec 17)

PSLV COMPLETES COMMERCIAL LAUNCH WITH SIX SINGAPOREAN SATELLITES - Six spacecraft for Singapore lifted off Wednesday aboard an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle. Clustered atop the the PSLV on a launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Center on India’s east coast, the satellites were manufactured in Singapore, with launch services arranged with Antrix Corp., the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organization. Liftoff occurred at for 1230 GMT (7:30 a.m. EST) Wednesday the Indian spaceport, where the PSLV blasted off at 6 p.m. local time, just after sunset.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Dec 17)

SOYUZ CREW OVERCOMES GLITCH TO DOCK WITH SPACE STATION - A Russian Soyuz spacecraft streaked into space and chased down the International Space Station Tuesday, but a problem with the ferry ship's automated rendezvous system forced commander Yuri Malenchenko to take over manual control at the last minute. After backing away and assessing the ship's alignment and control, he deftly guided the craft in for docking at the lab's Rassvet module to complete a four-orbit rendezvous. While manual dockings are relatively rare, Malenchenko, one of Russia's most experienced cosmonauts and a veteran of five previous flights, had no problem lining back up on the Rassvet docking target and the ship nosed into the attachment mechanism at 12:33 p.m. EST (GMT-5).   More
(Source: CBS News - Dec 15)

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