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)
CHINESE LONG MARCH 4C LAUNCHES THIRD FENGYUN-3 SATELLITE - China launched its third Fengyun-3 polar orbiting meteorological satellite on Monday via a Long March 4C. Launch took place at 03:07UTC from the LC9 Launch Complex of the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, Shanxi Province. Operated by the CMA (China Meteorological Administration) and NSMC (National Satellite Meteorological Center), the FY-3 series represents the second generation of Chinese polar-orbiting meteorological satellites and are cooperative program between CMA and CNSA (China National Space Administration). More (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Sep 24)
CYGNUS RENDEZVOUS ABORTED DUE TO DATA LINK ISSUE - A commercial Cygnus cargo spacecraft, owned and operated by Orbital Sciences Corp., aborted its rendezvous with the International Space Station on Sunday after the automated spaceship encountered a data glitch before commencing final approach. The Cygnus resupply vehicle flew about 2.5 miles below the space station and will set up its trajectory to try to approach the complex again early Tuesday. Loaded with more than 1,500 pounds of food, computer equipment, spare parts and student experiments, the unmanned cargo freighter was supposed to close in on the space station with GPS and laser navigation aids and move into position about 30 feet below the outpost, close enough for the station's robotic arm to reach out and grapple the free-floating Cygnus spacecraft. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Sep 22)
THIRD ADVANCED EHF SATELLITE LAUNCHED - The U.S. Air Force successfully launched the third Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF-3) communication satellite at 4:10 a.m. EDT, Sept. 18, from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The satellite was carried to orbit aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V launch vehicle. The satellite successfully separated from the launch vehicle approximately 51 minutes after liftoff and will now undergo approximately 110 days of orbit-raising operations, followed by approximately 60 days of on-orbit testing. More (Source: Sacramento Bee - Sep 20)
PRIVATE CYGNUS SPACECRAFT LAUNCHES ON MAIDEN SPACE STATION VOYAGE - An untested commercial spacecraft blasted off on its first trek to the International Space Station today (Sept. 18), kicking off a major demonstration mision for its Virginia-based builders and NASA. The unmanned Cygnus spacecraft and its Antares rocket soared into orbit with a tremendous roar at 10:58 a.m. EDT (1458 GMT) today from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility here — a huge success for the commercial spaceflight company Orbital Sciences Corp., which built both vehicles. The spacecraft is now chasing the space station and is due to arrive early Sunday (Sept. 22), when it will be captured by astronauts using the outpost's robotic arm. More (Source: Space.com - Sep 18)
NASA CLEARS ORBITAL SCIENCES FOR TEST FLIGHT TO SPACE STATION - NASA on Monday cleared a second commercial company to launch a cargo ship to the International Space Station, with blastoff slated this week from a Virginia spaceport. If successful, Orbital Sciences Corp. would join privately owned Space Exploration Technologies, also known as SpaceX, in flying supplies to the space station, a $100 billion research complex that orbits about 250 miles above Earth. More (Source: Reuters - Sep 18)
U.S. AIR FORCE'S THIRD AEHF SATELLITE ENCAPSULATED FOR LAUNCH - The U.S. Air Force's third Advanced Extremely High Frequency communications satellite, built to connect military commanders and government leadership in the event of a nuclear catastrophe, is poised to blast off Sept. 18 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket. Built by Lockheed Martin Corp., the 13,600-pound satellite was encapsulated inside the Atlas 5's five-meter-diameter payload... More (Source: Spaceflight Now - Sep 16)
Previous Next
