Space news

Tesat-Spacecom, a Germany-based manufacturer of optical terminals for communications satellites, announced March 9 it is establishing a U.S. subsidiary to support military and commercial programs.

SpaceX launched 40 high-speed internet communication satellites to a polar low Earth orbit on the OneWeb 17 mission on Thursday. Launching from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, the Falcon 9, lift off was at 2:13 PM EST (19:13 UTC) and marked SpaceX’s 16th orbital launch of 2023–a launch every 4.25 days.

Payloads: Human Research Program (HRP) sample collection: The crew collected multiple body samples in support of the Food Physiology, Repository, Host Pathogen, and Standard Measures investigations.  Food Physiology is designed to characterize the key effects of an enhanced spaceflight diet on immune function, the gut microbiome, and nutritional status indicators. Repository is a storage bank …

NASA will provide coverage of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission return to Earth from the International Space Station, beginning with undocking coverage live at 12 a.m. EST on Saturday, March 11. The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to undock from the space station at 2:05 a.m., to begin the journey home.

Japanese lunar exploration company ispace plans to list its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange next month, just before the company attempts its first landing on the moon.

Relativity Space will wait at least three days before making its next attempt to launch its Terran 1 rocket after propellant temperature issues scrubbed its first launch attempt March 8.

The fast growth of China’s commercial space industry is helping the country progress toward its goal of edging out the United States in space, the U.S. intelligence community said in a report released March 8.

Administrator Bill Nelson will broadcast his annual State of NASA remarks at 3 p.m. EST on Thursday, March 9. The event will air on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.

Payloads: Combustion Integrated Rack/Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction/Growth and Extinction Limit (CIR/SoFIE/GEL): The crew gained access to the CIR rack and exchanged a used manifold gas bottle with a new one of the same composition (85% O2, 15% N2). SoFIE is a hardware insert for the CIR that enables a wide range of solid-material combustion …

On 8th March 2023, Relativity Space scrubbed the Good Luck Have Fun (GLHF) launch due to exceeding launch commit criteria levels for the thermal conditions of Stage 2.

Media are invited to a joint briefing with NASA and The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory at 9 a.m. EDT Tuesday, March 14, to discuss the first space-based instrument to observe major air pollutants across North America every hour during the daytime.

3D-printing specialist Relativity Space postponed its first launch attempt on Wednesday, a mission that marks the most significant test yet of the company’s ambitious manufacturing approach.

In the space domain, the plan is to be in a state of “perpetual competition" with rival powers, said Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations of the U.S. Space Force.

Starfish Space has raised $14 million for its planned satellite life extension and debris removal service in a funding round led by insurance giant Munich Re, the startup announced March 8.

Relativity Space is one of the more intriguing new space launch companies.

Shield Capital, a venture firm that invests in defense and space startups, announced that retired U.S. Air Force general David Goldfein has joined its national security advisory board.

"Vigilance is very important for us as we fly crew going forward."

The International Space Station adjusted its orbit March 6 to avoid a close approach by an imaging satellite operated by Satellogic, the latest evidence of growing congestion in low Earth orbit.

OneWeb is in the home stretch of a four-year launch campaign with the company’s next two missions, scheduled this month with SpaceX and NewSpace India Limited, set to give the company enough satellites to provide global internet coverage.

Relativity Space’s 10-story-tall Terran 1 rocket will encounter the most extreme aerodynamic forces of its eight-minute test flight around 80 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral. That’s a key moment when the company’s engineers hope to confirm the 3D-printed rocket can withstand the rigors of launch.

NASA is proposing to extend three existing contracts for the transportation of cargo to and from the International Space Station (ISS) through its anticipated end in 2030. The contracts, which were originally awarded in 2015, are currently set to expire in 2024.

SpaceX has announced a new initiative to make its Starlink internet service more accessible to potential customers in the United Kingdom (UK).

An ongoing review of data from the Artemis 1 mission has turned up no issues that would delay the crewed Artemis 2 mission scheduled for launch late next year.

Relativity Space, a California-based startup that counts billionaire Mark Cuban as one of its early investors, is ready to launch the first 3D-printed, methane-fueled rocket into orbit from Cape Canaveral.

Relativity Space’s first launch countdown aborted about a minute before liftoff Wednesday at Cape Canaveral when sensors detected warmer-than-expected liquid oxygen on the Terran 1 rocket’s second stage, delaying until Saturday the first test flight of the 3D-printed launcher.

The US Space Force and Space Launch Delta 45 have awarded 3 Cape Canaveral Space Force Station launch complexes to commercial space launch providers ushering in a new era of launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

A spacesuit prototype of what NASA astronauts, including the first woman, plan to wear on the surface of the Moon during the agency’s Artemis III mission, is set for reveal during a televised event hosted by Axiom Space beginning at 10:30 a.m. EDT (9:30 a.m. CDT) Wednesday, March 15, from Space Center Houston in Texas.

Introducing The Inspired 24, a group of space enthusiasts dedicated to promoting the democratization of space!

Along with announcing a target date for Artemis II, NASA also gave many other updates on the Artemis programme.

Rocket Lab’s chief executive Peter Beck says the company played an active role in reshaping the U.S. government’s approach to buying launch services.

In March 2023, reports emerged that Kazakh authorities had seized all TsENKI assets in Baikonur and issued orders for the local head of the organization not to leave the country.

In March 2023, news emerged that Kazakh authorities had seized all TsENKI assets in Baikonur and issued orders for the local head of the organization not to leave the country.

In March 2023, news emerged that Kazakh authorities had arrested all TsENKI assets in Baikonur and issued orders for the local head of the organization not to leave the country. These unofficial reports, if proven true, could potentially bring an end to the Baiterek project and upend the entire Soyuz-5 rocket development programme.

The foundation for a global aerospace economy was born in Florida and continues to soar to new heights in the Sunshine State. Our mission today is to make Florida the leader of tomorrow.

After a comprehensive review of their scientific merits and technical status, the SPC has confirmed the continued operations of the missions led by ESA's Science Programme: Cluster, Gaia, INTEGRAL, Mars Express and XMM-Newton. The SPC also confirmed the Agency's contributions to the extended operations of CHEOPS, Hinode, Hubble, IRIS, and...

Payloads: Combustion Integrated Rack/Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction/Growth and Extinction Limit (CIR/SoFIE/GEL):The GEL experiment samples, igniter tip, and adsorber cartridge were replaced in support of continuing experiment runs. SoFIE is a hardware insert for the CIR that enables a wide range of solid-material combustion and fire suppression studies, providing common infrastructure including sample holders, flow …

Boeing completed a demonstration of a U.S. military ground system designed to protect satellite communications from jamming attacks, the company announced March 7.

Japan's science minister said the failure was "extremely regrettable."

Satellite imagery specialist BlackSky announced fourth-quarter results on Tuesday that show the company further trimming losses and securing an additional military contract.

An antenna verification framework used by geostationary satellite operators has started accepting ground station measurements from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Danish drone venture Quadsat said March 6.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is making progress addressing institutional problems that led to the delay of an asteroid mission, the lab’s director says.

Japan’s brand-new H3 rocket was destroyed on its March 7 inaugural flight after the vehicle’s second-stage engine failed to ignite.

Japan’s first H3 rocket, designed to launch satellites and resupply space stations, fell back into the atmosphere Monday after its second stage engine failed to ignite five minutes into the new launcher’s inaugural test flight, destroying the rocket and a three-ton Earth observation spacecraft.

Japan's H3 rocket fails after second stage doesnt ignite

The Ukrainian government claims that European investigators were “premature” in concluding that a component from a Ukrainian company was the blame for the failed Vega C launch last December.

In some sectors of the space industry, innovative technologies from startups don’t stand much of a chance to be part of a DoD program due to institutional and cultural barriers, said Jordan Noone, co-founder and general partner of Embedded Ventures.

Forecasters from the U.S. Space Force predict mostly sunny conditions at Cape Canaveral during a three-hour launch window Wednesday afternoon for the first flight of Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket.

"He must be out of money by now, surely?"

Payloads: Investigating Structure and Function of the Eye (ISAFE): In preparation for experiment activities, the crew reviewed the Big Picture Words package. Microgravity causes blood and cerebrospinal fluid to shift toward the head, which is believed to be an underlying cause of structural changes to the eyes, known as “Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome” or SANS. …

The veteran rover captured a dazzling sunset at the start of a new cloud-imaging campaign.