SSI News
Electron returns to flight as Rocket Lab launches payload for US military
Rocket Lab has successfully deployed a satellite for the US Space Force into low Earth orbit completing a return-to-flight after a launch failure suffered in May. This mission utilised a Electron rocket which lifted-off at 0600 GMT on 29 July, from the Rocket Lab...
Anuvu, formerly Global Eagle, orders first two small GEO sats from Astranis
Anuvu, which emerged from the Chapter 11 proceedings of Global Eagle Entertainment (GEE) in March, has contracted with newspace satellite manufacturer Astranis for two spacecraft. The deal announced on 27 July covers two ~400 kg satellites based on the Astranis...
Jeff Bezos attempts to restore competition to Human Landing System
Blue Origin CEO and recent addition to the ranks of ‘astronaut’, Jeff Bezos, has offered to restore competition to NASA’s Human Landing System (HLS) programme in an open letter to the NASA Administrator. In return for an HLS contract, Bezos has offered to cover the...
ISS loses Pirs module but replacement on the way
It is a time of renewal at the International Space Station as one long-standing module is removed to be replaced by another. At 1055 GMT, on 26 July, the Progress MS-16 cargo spacecraft removed the Pirs airlock module from the station in preparation for a de-orbit...
Hubble returns to operations but is on borrowed time
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is back online after a month of downtime due to a malfunctioning payload computer. The veteran telescope, launched to low Earth orbit in 1990, was brought back into service on 17 July when controllers switched over to a backup...
US$178 million Europa Clipper launch is formally awarded to SpaceX Falcon Heavy saving NASA US$2 billion
While NASA's US$4.25 billion Europa Clipper unmanned exploration flyby mission to Jupiter's moon Europa was always mooted as going on the NASA Heavy lift launch vehicle (HLV) SLS, and, in fact, was at one stage Congressionally obliged to do so, in the end cost and...
New Shepard makes first crewed launch
As planned, Blue Origin’s New Shepard made its first crewed launch on 20 July, the 52nd anniversary of Apollo 11’s lunar landing. According to the company, Jeff Bezos, Mark Bezos, Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen “officially became astronauts when they passed the Kármán...
Nauka module limps towards ISS after suffering multiple issues in orbit following successful Proton launch (Updated)
The newest ISS module, known as Nauka, was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, by a Proton M at 1458 GMT on 21 July. The Proton rocket flying for the first time in almost a year utilised a 3-stage configuration as opposed to the more familiar 4-stage...
Lynk Global signs up for future Falcon 9 launch through Spaceflight Inc
Newspace company Lynk Global has contracted with launch arranger Spaceflight Inc to manifest multiple satellites on an upcoming SpaceX rideshare in December. Lynk is aiming to provide ubiquitous mobile phone connectivity through LEO satellites. Its fifth test...
Third triplet of Yaogan 30 satellites launched by China this year
Lifting-off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, China, a Long March 2C (CZ-2C) rocket has carried four satellites in to LEO. The mission took place at 0019 GMT on 19 July. The primary payloads carried were the three Yaogan 30 spacecraft - the tenth such group...
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