SPACEX LAUNCHES FINAL NOAA GOES WEATHER SATELLITE ON FALCON HEAVY ROCKET - The finale in a series of critical weather satellites for the United States surmounted some weather challenges as it began its journey to join its three fellow satellites on orbit. The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites-U (GOES-U) satellite is designed to provide critical weather, climate and solar data to meteorologists and other parties to enhance the safety of people and property. The spacecraft, managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), was launched to a geosynchronous transfer orbit onboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 26)
NASA CANCELS ISS SPACEWALK DUE TO SPACESUIT COOLANT LEAK - NASA cancelled a spacewalk at the International Space Station today (June 24) following a spacesuit coolant leak in the hatch. NASA astronauts Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mike Barratt were told by Mission Control at 8:52 a.m. EDT (1252 GMT) to stop the planned 6.5-hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS). The pair had already switched over to the internal power in their suits at 8:46 a.m. (1246 GMT), meaning the spacewalk had technically started. Following the cancellation, astronauts opened the hatch into the ISS at 9:51 a.m. EDT (1351 GMT), officially ending the spacewalk. More (Source: Space.com - Jun 26)
FIREFLY TO LAUNCH ALPHA FROM WALLOPS - Firefly Aerospace announced June 24 it plans to launch its Alpha rocket from the same pad at Wallops Island, Virginia, used by the Antares rocket, rather than from Cape Canaveral as previously planned. The company said that it would use Pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on Wallops Island for Alpha launches, starting as soon as 2025. The launch pad, built for the Antares rocket, will continue to be used for the revised Antares 330 Northrop Grumman is developing in collaboration with Firefly as well as the larger Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are building. More (Source: SpaceNews - Jun 25)
POWERFUL GOES-U WEATHER SATELLITE CLEARED FOR JUNE 25 LAUNCH ON SPACEX FALCON HEAVY ROCKET - The green lights continue to shine leading up to the launch of a powerful U.S. weather satellite. GOES-U, the fourth and final member of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) GOES-R series of next-gen weather satellites, has been cleared for its planned Tuesday (June 25) liftoff following an in-depth readiness review on Monday (June 24). More (Source: Space.com - Jun 25)
IRAN TO CONDUCT TWO MAJOR SATELLITE LAUNCHES IN COMING WEEKS - Iran is set to conduct two significant satellite launches in the coming weeks, according to Hassan Salariyeh, the head of the Iranian Space Agency (ISA). Salariyeh announced on Saturday that the launches are scheduled to occur before July 21, as reported by the official IRNA news agency. Salariyeh noted that the ISA is currently performing compatibility tests between the satellites and the launch rockets. More (Source: Eurasia Review - Jun 24)
SPACEX MARKS RECORD 20TH FLIGHT WITH FALCON 9 PAYLOAD FAIRING HALF ON STARLINK MISSION - SpaceX completed the launch of its first Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in more than two weeks on Saturday. The last time the company attempted to launch the Starlink 10-2 mission, it encountered a rare scrub as the Falcon 9’s first stage Merlin engines began firing. Liftoff of the rescheduled flight happened at 1:15 p.m. EDT (1715 UTC), the opening of a nearly four-hour window, from Space Launch Complex 40. The mission also marked the first time SpaceX launched one of its payload fairings for a 20th time. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 24)
SPACEX COMPLETES FALCON 9 DOUBLE LAUNCH DAY WITH STARLINK MISSION FROM VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE STATION - SpaceX completed another double launch day with a West Coast launch of 20 Starlink V2 Mini satellites, including 13 featuring Direct to Cell capabilities. Liftoff of the Starlink 9-2 mission happened at 8:47 p.m. PDT (11:47 p.m. EDT, 0347 UTC). It came following the launch of 22 Starlink satellites from Florida at 1:15 p.m. EDT (1715 UTC) on Sunday. More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jun 24)
HOW THE GOES U SATELLITE WILL CHANGE EARTH AND SPACE WEATHER FORECASTS FOREVER - I remember in college in the late 2000s learning about forecasting weather. My classmates and I would hand draw maps with the current weather systems and then we'd look at the satellite data to help paint the picture of what would happen in the coming hours and days. NOAA's weather satellites were good back then, but compared to what we have in orbit now, the difference is night and day. As a broadcast meteorologist, I've used the data they provide to communicate life-saving information and advanced warning to billions of people across the United States and even the Caribbean when threatening weather developed. More (Source: Space.com - Jun 24)
CHINA LAUNCHES SINO-FRENCH ASTROPHYSICS SATELLITE, DEBRIS FALLS OVER POPULATED AREA - A Chinese launch of the joint Sino-French SVOM mission to study Gamma-ray bursts early Saturday saw toxic rocket debris fall over a populated area. A Long March 2C rocket lifted off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 3:00 a.m. Eastern (0700 UTC) June 22, sending the Space Variable Objects Monitor (SVOM) mission satellite into orbit. The launch was declared successful by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) a short time after liftoff. More (Source: SpaceNews - Jun 24)
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