ILS PROTON SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHES ASTRA 2E FOR SES - International Launch Services (ILS), a leader in providing mission integration and launch services to the global commercial satellite industry, successfully placed the ASTRA 2E satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) today for SES of Luxembourg. SES is a world-leading satellite operator, providing satellite communications solutions to broadcast, telecom, corporate and government customers worldwide. This was the fifth ILS Proton launch of the year. The ASTRA 2E satellite launched onboard an ILS Proton at 3:38 a.m. today local time, from Baikonur Cosmodrome (September 29: 5:38 p.m. EDT and 21:38 GMT).    More
(Source: The Herald - Oct 1)

SPACEX FALCON 9 BLASTS OFF FROM CALIFORNIA - An unmanned Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from California on Sunday to test upgrades needed for planned commercial launch services. The 22-story rocket, built and flown by Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, soared off a newly refurbished, leased launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Station at noon EDT/1600 GMT. The Falcon 9 blazed through clear blue skies out over the Pacific Ocean, aiming toward an orbit that flies over Earth's poles. Perched on top of the rocket was a small science and communications satellite called Cassiope, built by MDA Corp of Canada.   More
(Source: Reuters - Sep 29)

ORBITAL'S CYGNUS SUCCESSFULLY BERTHED ON THE ISS - Orbital's Cygnus spacecraft made its second attempt to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday morning, resulting in a successful capture and berthing by the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS). A week has passed since a discrepancy in the GPS data between the ISS and Cygnus resulted in the need to delay rendezvous and berthing, allowing Orbital controllers to uplink a line of code into the spacecraft's software.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Sep 29)

CANADIAN SPACE AGENCY SATELLITE TO LAUNCH ON A SPACEX ROCKET THIS WEEKEND - After several delays, CASSIOPE is set to rocket into orbit around 16:00 Universal Time/ 9:00 AM Pacific time on Sept. 29. The launch was postponed earlier this month on Sept. 13 for SpaceX to complete tests on its modified Falcon 9 version 1.1 rocket, after a static fire on Sept. 12 revealed technical issues. The launch was also delayed by several Minuteman III ICBM tests being conducted this week from Vandenberg by the USAF, the latest of which is set to occur early Thursday morning at 3:01-9:01 AM Pacific Time.   More
(Source: Canada.com - Sep 28)

PRIVATE CYGNUS SPACECRAFT'S 1ST SPACE STATION ARRIVAL SET FOR SUNDAY AFTER DELAY - A commercial cargo vessel's historic first arrival at the International Space Station is now set for Sunday (Sept. 29), one week later than originally planned, NASA officials say. The unmanned Cygnus spacecraft, built by Virginia-based company Orbital Sciences, is expected to be grabbed by the orbiting lab's huge robotic arm at 7:15 a.m. EDT (1115 GMT) on Sunday, with docking operations beginning two hours later. You can watch all the action live here at SPACE.com, courtesy of NASA TV; coverage begins at 4:30 a.m. EDT.   More
(Source: Space.com - Sep 28)

SOYUZ TMA-10M DOCKS WITH THE ISS - Another three crewmembers were sent on their way to the International Space Station (ISS), following their launch on Soyuz TMA-10M from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Wednesday. NASA’s Michael Hopkins, along with Russia’s Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazanskiy took just under six hours to arrive at the Station, as the fast rendezvous technique was once again employed in their flight profile.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Sep 26)

SATELLITE LAUNCH DELAY EXTENDS TIME WITH NO BACKUP - A six-month launch delay for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's next-generation geostationary satellites could mean the agency will violate its policy of always having a backup weather satellite in orbit. NOAA has two operational geostationary satellites providing large-scale imagery of the east and west U.S. coastlines from orbits 22,000 miles above the Earth, and a backup through its Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) program.    More
(Source: FCW.com - Sep 26)

SOYUZ SENDS ASTRONAUTS TO INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - Two Russians and an American have blasted off in a Soyuz rocket bound for the International Space Station. Michael Hopkins, Oleg Kotov and Sergei Ryazansky took off from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan on Wednesday. They will join European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano, who has spoken to the BBC about a dramatic leak in his helmet during a spacewalk in July.   More
(Source: BBC News - Sep 26)

SPACE STATION TRAFFIC JAM DELAYS 1ST ARRIVAL OF NEW PRIVATE CYGNUS SPACECRAFT - The first arrival of a brand-new commercial cargo ship at the International Space Station has been delayed until no earlier than Saturday (Sept. 28) to make way for a new crew launching to the orbiting lab this week, NASA officials say. The unmanned Cygnus spacecraft built by Orbital Sciences Corp. — which launched into orbit on Sept. 18 — was initially expected to link up with the station on Sunday (Sept. 22), but a software glitch forced controllers to abort the arrival and wait at least 48 hours for the next attempt.   More
(Source: Space.com - Sep 24)

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