ENGINE INSPECTIONS ON TAP FOR NEXT ANTARES ROCKET - Engine inspections on tap for next Antares rocket BY STEPHEN CLARK SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: June 24, 2014 Technicians plan to inspect two AJ26 rocket engines mounted on the next Orbital Sciences Corp. Antares launcher this week to ensure the Russian-built engines are not stricken with the same fault that resulted in a dramatic mishap during a ground test last month, officials said Monday. Orbital Sciences announced Monday it is targeting liftoff of the Antares rocket on company's next commercial logistics flight to the International Space Station no earlier than July 10. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 25)
SPACEX DELAYS FALCON 9 LAUNCH TO TUESDAY - SpaceX managers called off the planned launch of a Falcon 9 rocket Sunday after identifying a potential concern during preflight testing, delaying liftoff until at least Tuesday. The scrub marked the third straight day technical issues or stormy weather have prompted launch delays. The 22-story Falcon 9 launcher was scheduled to lift off at 5:30 p.m. EDT (2130 GMT) with six lightweight communications satellites for Orbcomm Inc., a New Jersey-based company that relays data between remote assets and their owners. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 23)
SIX MORE SMALL SATELLITES TO STUDY EARTH AND SPACE WEATHER - Six tiny satellites have been approved to join the CubeSat program for NASA's 2014 fiscal year. Although each satellite measures just 30 by 10 by 10 centimetres, they're capable of big science. The projects will collect data on terrestrial and space weather, with two particularly focusing on plasma bubbles. he approved projects for the 2014 CubeSats are: ELFIN-STAR (Helio-1): The Electron Losses In Fields INvestigation CubeSat will measure the radiation belt. The CubeSat will loaded with a fluxgate magnetometer and a pair of energetic particle detectors, one each for ions and electrons... More (Source: io9 - Jun 22)
ISRAELI NANOSATELLITE GIVES STRANDED TRAVELERS HOPE - Good things come in nano-packages: Israeli high-school students launched on Thursday night Israel's first nanosatellite, which will aid stranded travelers worldwide to pinpoint their location, JNS reported. The satellite, an 860-gram cube measuring 10 centimeters in each dimension, was designed and built by teens studying at the Herzliya Science Center, sponsored by the Israel Space Agency and the Herzliya Municipality. Called Duchifat-1, after Israel's petite national bird, the device was launched into space from the Yasny Airbase in Russia. More (Source: Haaretz - Jun 22)
SPACEX PUTS FALCON 9'S SATELLITE LAUNCH ON HOLD AGAIN - SpaceX once more delayed the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket with six Orbcomm telecommunication satellites aboard on Saturday — and stirred up some grumbling in the process. On Friday, a potential problem with tank pressure forced a postponement. On Saturday, SpaceX said it would not webcast the countdown, and precious few updates were provided from the launch site at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Most of the information came from the U.S. Air Force's 45th Space Wing, and not from SpaceX. More (Source: NBCNews.com - Jun 22)
SPACEX FALCON 9 LAUNCH RESCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY; LIFTOFF SET FOR 5:46 P.M. - SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket will have another launch attempt on Saturday, according to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The launch was scrubbed Friday because of a technical issue. Crews worked to determine what caused spurious leak readings in the run-up to launch. We do not, however, know what caused the final scrub. Orbcomm confirmed the Saturday's launch for 5:46 p.m. More (Source: News 13 Orlando - Jun 21)
PSLV C23 TO LIFT-OFF ON JUNE 30 WITH FIVE FOREIGN SATELLITES - The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on June 30 will launch its PSLV C23 carrying five foreign satellites from France, Germany, Canada and Singapore. Isro said the lift-off of PSLV C23 satellite launching vehicle was scheduled at 09:49 hours from the Sriharikota space station near Chennai. The five satellites include 830 kg SPOT-7 earth observation satellite for France. The satellite is similar to the Indian Remote Satellite System (IRSS). More (Source: Business Standard - Jun 21)
SPACEX ABORTS FALCON 9 LAUNCH DUE TO PRESSURE GLITCH - SpaceX aborted Friday's launch of its Falcon 9 rocket with six Orbcomm telecommunication satellites aboard, due to concerns about the rocket's tank pressure. Readings from the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida indicated a drop in second-stage pressure, and SpaceX's team couldn't resolve the issue in time for liftoff at 7:01 p.m. ET. The launch was called off with less than eight minutes left in the countdown. It will be rescheduled for Saturday or later. Like the two-stage Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket that blasted off in April, this rocket is designed to relight its first stage after separation to slow its descent. Then it would unfold its landing legs for a "soft splashdown" in the Atlantic. More (Source: ABC News - Jun 21)
RECORD CLUSTER OF SATELLITES LAUNCHED BY DNEPR ROCKET - A cluster of 37 satellites launched out of an underground silo on a remote Russian military base Thursday, rocketing into orbit on top of a Soviet-era ballistic missile modified to haul spacecraft instead of nuclear bombs. The payload package is the most number of individual satellites ever launched on a single rocket, representing nations from 17 countries on four continents. Most of the payloads will turn toward Earth, gathering imagery for environmental and security purposes. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 20)
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