LAUNCH SET FOR US SATELLITE TO MONITOR SPACE JUNK - A satellite that will monitor the clutter in Earth orbit is scheduled to launch Saturday, nearly three months later than originally planned. The Space-Based Space Surveillance satellite was scheduled to launch on July 8, but it was grounded by concerns about software in the Minotaur IV rocket and a problem in the rocket's electronics. Officials said there were no problems in the satellite itself.    More
(Source: Associated Press - Sep 24)

DISCOVERY IS ON THE LAUNCH PAD FOR ITS FINAL MISSION - NASA has moved the space shuttle Discovery to launch pad 39 A at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., in preparation for the orbiter's targeted Nov. 1 final scheduled launch, which is the second-to-last mission for any shuttle. The mission is set to carry the Permanent Multipurpose Module to the International Space Station, along with supplies, critical spare parts and Robonaut 2. Here's a photo gallery, starting with Discovery on the launch pad and working back to the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the shuttle was joined to its solid rocket boosters and external fuel tank, and Orbiter Processing Facility-3.    More
(Source: Seattle Post Intelligencer - Sep 23)

PARKED CAR CAUSES STIR DURING U.S. SPY SATELLITE LAUNCH - A new spy satellite launched into space late Monday on the latest classified mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office, but not before a private car caused delays because it was parked in the wrong spot. The classified satellite NROL-41 blasted off at 9:03:30 PDT (0403:30 GMT) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. An unmanned Atlas 5 rocket managed by the United Launch Alliance carried the satellite into space. [NROL-41 satellite launch photo.] The satellite's launch was delayed about a half hour due to the pesky car, which was parked at Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex 8 – an area that was supposed to be clear of vehicles.    More
(Source: Space.com - Sep 22)

ZOMBIE SATELLITE GALAXY 15 STILL WON'T DIE - A wayward satellite that has spent months drifting in orbit has not shut itself down as originally predicted, and continues to pose a signal interference risk for other craft. The so-called " zombie satellite," Intelsat's Galaxy 15 communications satellite, lost contact with ground controllers in April, but continues to follow a stable path as its operators on Earth work to avoid potential interference with other nearby spacecraft. In an unprecedented satellite malfunction, the telecommunications broadcast package on Galaxy 15 is stuck on and still transmits signals, but ground controllers are unable to control the solar-powered craft.    More
(Source: MSNBC - Sep 18)

SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY READIED FOR FINAL MISSION - NASA attached the space shuttle Discovery to its fuel tank and twin rocket boosters over the weekend to gear up for the spacecraft's final voyage to orbit later this year. Discovery was firmly attached its 15-story external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters Saturday after a slight delay due to a loose attachment nut that slipped into the spacecraft's aft compartment on Friday. The 100-ton shuttle was hanging vertically near its external tank inside NASA's cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida when the nut slipped loose.    More
(Source: MSNBC - Sep 15)

JAPAN LAUNCHES FIRST GPS SATELLITE - The Japanese Space Agency (Jaxa) has launched a rocket carrying the country's first GPS satellite. The H-IIA rocket was launched from the Tanegashima Space Center carrying the satellite named "Michibiki", which means to "to lead" in Japanese. It will work with the existing GPS system but will sit in a different orbit to allow it to stay above Japan for eight hours a day.    More
(Source: BBC News - Sep 13)

SPACE STATION CARGO VESSEL LAUNCHED FROM BAIKONUR - A robotic Russian resupply ship to service the International Space Station successfully soared into orbit today carrying two-and-a-half tons of cargo, food and water for the high-flying laboratory.The Progress freighter blasted off atop a Soyuz booster from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 6:22 a.m. EDT (1022 GMT) and quickly disappeared into the overcast sky. The liftoff had been delayed two days because of high winds at the remote launch site.    More
(Source: Space Flight Now - Sep 10)

GOCE GRAVITY SATELLITE 'CAUGHT THE COLD' - The flagship European Earth Observation satellite Goce was knocked offline because some of its onboard systems got too cold as it circled the planet. The spacecraft is on a mission to make the most precise maps yet of how gravity varies across the world. But when a fault appeared in its one fully functional computer, the flow of science data to the ground stopped. Controllers managed to recover the situation only when they turned the heat up inside the satellite.    More
(Source: BBC News - Sep 8)

CHINESE BROADCASTING SATELLITE PLACED IN ORBIT - A Chinese communications satellite launched Saturday on a Long March rocket, beginning a mission to broadcast civil television and radio signals across China. Bolted on top of a 180-foot-tall Long March 3B rocket, the Chinasat 6A satellite lifted off from the Xichang space center in southwestern China's Sichuan province at 1614 GMT (12:14 p.m. EDT) Saturday. According to state-run media, the three-stage launcher deployed Chinasat 6A in a super-synchronous transfer orbit with a high point of more than 26,000 miles, a low point of 122 miles and an inclination of 25 degrees.    More
(Source: Space Flight Now - Sep 6)

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