RUSSIA LAUNCHES SOYUZ ROCKET WITH DOZENS OF SATELLITES, INCLUDING TWO FROM IRAN - Russia launched a Soyuz rocket early on Tuesday carrying two satellites designed to monitor the space weather around Earth and 53 small satellites, including two Iranian ones, Russia's Roscosmos space agency said. The Soyuz-2.1 launch spacecraft, which lifted off from Russia's Vostochny Cosmodrome, carried two Ionosfera-M satellites, which will become part of the space system for monitoring the Earth's ionosphere, the agency said.   More
(Source: Reuters - Nov 6)

SPACEX LAUNCHES 31ST CARGO RESUPPLY MISSION TO THE SPACE STATION FOR NASA - SpaceX launched its 31st resupply mission to the International Space Station on Monday night. The mission, dubbed Commercial Resupply Services-31 (CRS-31) ferried more than 6,000 pounds of cargo and science experiments to the orbiting outpost. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) happened at 9:29 p.m. EST (0229 UTC).   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Nov 6)

WORLD’S FIRST WOODEN SATELLITE LAUNCHED INTO SPACE - The world’s first wooden satellite has been launched into space as part of study on using timber to help reduce the creation of space junk. Scientists at Kyoto University expect the wooden material to burn up when the device re-enters the atmosphere – potentially providing a way to avoid generating metal particles when a retired satellite returns to Earth.   More
(Source: The Guardian - Nov 6)

SATELLITE SURVIVES IMPACT WITH OBJECT IN SPACE, TAKES SELFIE TO PROVE IT - A tiny puncture discovered in the solar panel of a small satellite orbiting Earth highlights the seriousness of the orbital clutter problem. Lithuania-based satellite manufacturer NanoAvionics discovered the 0.24-inch-wide (6-millimeter) hole in footage captured by an on-board camera of its MP42 satellite, which has been orbiting the planet since April 2022. The satellite captured the image on Oct 24, and NanoAvionics released it on X on Wednesday, Oct 30.   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 6)

JAPAN LAUNCHES MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE ON 4TH FLIGHT OF H3 ROCKET - Japan's new H3 rocket flew for the fourth time ever on Monday morning (Nov. 4). The H3 launched Kirameki 3, a military communications satellite also known as DSN-3, from Tanegashima Space Center on Monday at 1:48 a.m. EST (0548 GMT; 3:48 p.m. local Japan time). The flight was apparently a success: Kirameki 3 deployed at about 29 minutes after liftoff as planned, eliciting cheers and handshakes in mission control, as seen in the launch webcast by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 5)

CHINA SPACE STATION CREW RETURNS TO EARTH AFTER 6 MONTHS IN SPACE - Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth on Monday after a six-month stay on the Tiangong space station, part of China's effort to be a global leader in space exploration. A parachute slowed their capsule's nighttime descent to a remote landing area in China's Inner Mongolia region. The crew emerged after touching down at 1:24 a.m. A Chinese national flag stuck in the ground near the capsule flapped in the wind.   More
(Source: Phys.org - Nov 5)

HELIUM ISSUE ON FALCON 9 BOOSTER SCRUBS STARLINK 6-77 MISSION AT CAPE CANAVERAL - A helium-related issue on the first stage of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket scrubbed a launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Sunday. The mission was set to add another batch of 23 Starlink V2 Mini satellites to SpaceX’s growing megaconstellation. The timing of the Starlink 6-77 mission from pad 40 is now up in the air, given that a delay to Monday would put it just hours before the planned launch of the CRS-31 Cargo Dragon mission to the International Space Station. NASA has a 24-hour stand down agreement with SpaceX during which it won’t launch another Falcon 9 rocket with that period prior to a NASA mission.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Nov 4)

WATCH SPACEX CREW-9 ASTRONAUTS MOVE CREW DRAGON SPACECRAFT TO NEW ISS PARKING SPOT ON NOV. 3 - Four astronauts will relocate a SpaceX spacecraft at the space station on Sunday (Nov. 3), and you can watch the event live. The SpaceX Crew-9 astronauts, including two crew members formerly aboard Boeing Starliner, will move their Crew Dragon at the International Space Station. ISS procedures dictate that all astronauts assigned to a spacecraft climb on board for relocations, on the tiny chance something arises that would force the group to come early back to Earth.   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 3)

SATELLITES WATCH DEVASTATING FLOODS IN SPAIN FROM SPACE - Satellite images captured deadly flooding in eastern Spain caused by torrential rainfall on Tuesday (Oct. 29). Landsat and Maxar satellites imaged the damage, which came after the region experienced more than a foot (30 centimeters) of rain, according to Spain’s meteorological agency, AEMET. Landsat 8's operational land imager scrutinized the area on Wednesday (Oct. 30), tracking "sediment-laden waters" in the coastal city of Valencia, NASA officials stated. (Landsat is jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey.)   More
(Source: Space.com - Nov 2)

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