WHAT WILL THE X-37B MILITARY SPACE PLANE DO ON ITS NEXT MYSTERY MISSION? - On Wednesday, the United States Air Force's Rapid Capabilities Office is set to launch the fourth mission of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle — the military's secretive robotic space plane. The reusable, unmanned X-37B spacecraft will blast off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V booster tomorrow (May 20) at 10:45 a.m. EDT (1445 GMT) from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. You can see a video of how the X-37B will launch. Since April 2010, two X-37B vehicles have chalked up a total of 1,367 days in space on three different missions. On the last flight, which launched in December 2012 and landed this past October, the X-37B set the record for longest mission of a reusable space vehicle: 674 days.    More
(Source: Space.com - May 20)

BILL NYE PREPARES FOR HIS BOLDEST EXPERIMENT YET - The countdown is set for tomorrow’s launch of the prototype LightSail satellite, which scientist and television personality Bill Nye hopes will make history by being the first crowdfunded satellite propelled by beams of light to reach orbit. It turns out that Nye, who is also the chief executive officer of the non-profit Planetary Society, learned quite a bit about how to accomplish the monumental task while teaching kids about science on his morning TV show, "Bill Nye the Science Guy," which ran on PBS for five years in the 1990s.   More
(Source: Upstart - May 20)

ALLEGED PLANE HACKER SAID HE 'MESSED WITH' SPACE STATION, SATELLITES - A computer expert under scrutiny for allegedly hacking a commercial plane bragged in 2012 that he and his colleagues “messed around with” the International Space Station via cyberspace. Chris Roberts, a security professional with One World Labs, told an audience that he “got into trouble for playing with” the Space Station eight or nine years prior. “We adjusted the temperature on it,” he told the GrrCON Hacker Conference in response to a question from an audience member. “It was quite fun. We got yelled at by NASA.”    More
(Source: The Hill - May 20)

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ORBIT ADJUSTMENT WORKS AFTER FIRST FAILED ATTEMPT - For three astronauts aboard the International Space Station, coming back to earth just got a little easier. A second attempt to adjust the ISS orbit was completed Sunday, following a failed attempt Saturday by Russia's space agency, Sputnik International reported. The earlier try to correct the orbit sputtered after the engines on a cargo spacecraft docked to the ISS failed to start. The Russian news agency Tass reported the procedure took 32 minutes and boosted the orbit 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles).   More
(Source: International Business Times - May 19)

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION MAY GET LASER CANNON TO VAPORIZE ORBITAL DEBRIS - The International Space Station (ISS) has been forced to alter trajectory numerous times over the years, but not for any scientific of logistical reason — it was necessary to avoid collisions with space junk. The day of simply stepping out of the way could be coming to an end, though. Researchers from Japan’s Riken Computational Astrophysics Laboratory have proposed a system that could blast dangerous space debris out of the sky before it comes close to the ISS. Scientists estimate there are nearly 3,000 tons of space junk in orbit of the Earth. These are pieces of rocket boosters, decoupling rings, and smaller objects like screws or paint chips.    More
(Source: ExtremeTech - May 19)

SECOND ATTEMPT TO CORRECT ISS ORBIT TO TAKE PLACE ON MAY 18 - Another attempt of the International Space Station (ISS) orbit correction with the help of the Progress M-26M cargo spacecraft will be carried out on May 18, a source in space industry said Sunday. On Saturday, a planned correction of the ISS orbit could not be carried out after the engines of the Progress M-26M failed to start on time.    More
(Source: Sputnik International - May 18)

SPACEX GETS CERTIFIED TO LAUNCH NASA SCIENCE MISSIONS - NASA has formally certified SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket to launch all but the space agency’s most costly robotic science missions, beginning with a a U.S.-French oceanography satellite set for liftoff from California in July. NASA’s Launch Services Program, which manages the agency’s rocket procurements for research missions, concluded the multi-year certification effort Tuesday, according to George Diller, a NASA spokesperson.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - May 17)

RUSSIAN ROCKET CARRYING SATELLITE BURNS UP OVER SIBERIA - A Russian rocket carrying a Mexican satellite has malfunctioned and burnt up over Siberia soon after launch on Saturday, Russia's space agency says. The Proton-M carrier rocket broke down minutes after it was launched from Kazakhstan on Saturday morning, the Roscosmos agency said. The cause of the accident is being investigated, Roscosmos added. Russia's space programme has experienced a series of embarrassing mishaps in recent months. Earlier reports said that the rocket had crashed in Siberia.    More
(Source: BBC News - May 17)

SPACE STATION LAUNCHES WOULD FACE FURTHER DELAYS UNDER HOUSE SPENDING PLAN - William H. Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for human exploration and operations, told lawmakers on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee in February the full request for Commercial Crew is "absolutely required" to meet the 2017 target date. "The date will slip and more importantly there's very important work that needs to be done in the near-term time frame that is important for both safety and also important for the overall design of the vehicles," he said. "Without that funding, we will impact those other objectives as well as just the dates."   More
(Source: USA Today - May 15)

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