CHINA LAUNCHES JILIN-1 MISSION VIA LONG MARCH 2D - China launched four satellites to provide photographs to commercial clients while helping with harvest assessment, geological disaster prevention and resource surveys. The launch of the Jilin-1 mission took place at 04:13 UTC on Wednesday, using a Long March-2D launch vehicle from the 603 Launch Pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center’s LC43. The Jilin-1 mission was developed on the China’s Jilin Province and is the country’s first self-developed remote sensing satellite for commercial use.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Oct 8)

INDIA LAUNCHES FIRST ASTRONOMY SATELLITE - Indian astrophysics got a boost recently when an Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) PSLV rocket launched from Satish Dhawan Space Center on September 28th, placing Astrosat in a low-Earth orbit inclined 6° to the equator. The multi-purpose observatory is equipped to observe the Universe across the X-ray spectrum, accompanied by simultaneous visible and ultraviolet light observations. Previously, India has lofted X-ray detectors aboard high-altitude balloons and sub-orbital sounding rockets, but this is India’s first astronomical satellite. Data from AstroSat will be available to the Indian astronomy community via proposals for observations.   More
(Source: SkyandTelescope.com - Oct 7)

EXPERTS: NORTH KOREA'S NOT PREPARING FOR A SATELLITE LAUNCH - Despite recent rumors, North Korea is not preparing for a satellite launch on October 10, when Pyongyang will celebrate the 70th anniversary of its Korean Workers’ Party. Recent satellite imagery does not show any launch preparations underway at the Sohae launch facility, said analysts with 38 North, a website providing analysis of North Korean affairs and a program of the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced Internationals Studies. A bit of background first: the idea that North Korea would conduct a satellite launch – regarded by the United States and South Korea as an excuse to test ballistic missile technology – on October 10 emerged in the aftermath of North-South tensions this August.    More
(Source: The Diplomat - Oct 6)

FACEBOOK PLANS TO LAUNCH AN INTERNET-BEAMING SATELLITE NEXT YEAR - Facebook plans to launch an Internet beaming satellite into space next year that will bring online access to people in Sub-Saharan Africa. "Over the last year Facebook has been exploring ways to use aircraft and satellites to beam internet access down into communities from the sky. To connect people living in remote regions, traditional connectivity infrastructure is often difficult and inefficient, so we need to invent new technologies," CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. Facebook and Eutelsat, a satellite operator, announced their collaboration today on a new satellite called the Amos-6, which will launch into a geostationary orbit next year, beaming Internet into communities that do not otherwise have access.    More
(Source: ABC News - Oct 6)

SPACEX PROPOSING COST-EFFECTIVE REUSABLE ROCKETS - As India launches its first observatory in space and Europe places a probe on a comet, SpaceX is hoping to help the U.S. lead the space race with reusable rockets and the kind of raw power not seen since the glory days of the Saturn V. Earlier this year California-based enterprise SpaceX launched the Dragon, a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket carrying unmanned cargo to the International Space Station. The company has hoped to land the rocket on a floating barge in the ocean but has yet to succeed. Aerospace sources told The Washington Times that SpaceX is aiming to launch again in November, but a representative for the company declined to comment.   More
(Source: Washington Times - Oct 6)

REMEMBERING SPUTNIK – THE SATELLITE THAT BEGAN THE SPACE RACE - 58 years ago a tiny satellite was successfully lofted into orbit, firing the opening salvo in what would become the Space Race. Sputnik-1 became the first man-made satellite to orbit Earth, a trailblazer for thousands of spacecraft that have since ridden uphill while providing the initiator of technological advances that allowed humans to leave the confines of our planet. The plan of chief Soviet rocket scientist Sergei Korolev, the concept for Sputnik-1 was presented in 1954, a year prior to President Eisenhower’s plans for the United States to launch an artificial satellite during the International Geophysical Year (IGY).   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Oct 5)

AMSAT-NA VP-ENGINEERING ON NASA TV WEDNESDAY - VP-Engineering Jerry Buxton, N0JY will be on the panel at a NASA prelaunch briefing on Wednesday, October 7 at 1800 UT. The briefing will be shown live on NASA TV. The amateur radio FM transponder CubeSat, AMSAT Fox-1A, will be among 13 CubeSats flying as secondary payloads on the NROL-55 mission which should launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Thursday, October 8, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. NASA will be holding two briefings about the launch. The first on Wednesday, Oct. 7 at 1700 UT (1pm EDT) will highlight the growing importance of CubeSats in exploration and technology development. The second at 1800 UT (2pm EDT) will discuss five of the CubeSats.   More
(Source: AMSAT-UK - Oct 4)

HURRICANE JOAQUIN EYED FROM SPACE STATION - Astronauts on the International Space Station spied powerful Hurricane Joaquin spinning in the Bahamas in a spectacular photo showing the eye of the storm Friday. The cyclone was a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph when the picture was taken early Friday, according to NASA. As of 12 p.m. EDT (1600 GMT) Saturday, the storm is forecast to move northeast from the Bahamas and pass near Bermuda in the next few days.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 4)

ATLAS 5 LAUNCHES MEXICOS MORELOS-3 L-BAND SATELLITE - A U.S. Atlas 5 rocket on Oct. 2 successfully placed Mexico’s Morelos-3 mobile communications satellite into geostationary transfer orbit, a launch that will enable Mexico to deploy its MexSat system despite the loss of an identical satellite in May’s failure of a Russian Proton rocket. Operating from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, launch service provider United Launch Alliance notched its 100th mission since its 2006 founding from a merger of rocket operations of its two shareholders, Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin Corp. Morelos-3 builder Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems of El Segundo, California, said the satellite was healthy in orbit and sending signals.   More
(Source: Space News - Oct 3)

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