Virgin Orbit launches seven US Space Force satellites in first night-time launch
Following the lift off of carrier aircraft "Cosmic Girl" at 0549 GMT from the Mojave Air and Space Port, California on 2 July, and after flying out over the Pacific, Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket was air-dropped at 0653 GMT with the first engine igniting soon...
Atlas V launches two USSF payloads: WFOV and USSF-12 2 (Corrected)
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) successfully launched an Atlas V 541/RL-10 C1/GEM-63 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral, USA at 2315 GMT on 1 July 2022 on behalf of the United Space Force's Space Systems Command's USSF-12 mission. The rocket was carrying two payloads...
Aspiring launch provider Relativity Space is selected by OneWeb to provide launches for its Gen 2 satellites
OneWeb signed a "launch services agreement for multiple launches" with upcoming American launch provider Relativity Space on 30 June. According to the announcement, the agreement includes an undisclosed number of future missions utilizing its in-development,...
ISRO successfully launches PSLV-C53 with solar cell covered last stage becoming a satellite in its own right (Corrected)
India's space agency and industrial conglomerate, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has successfully launched its PSLV CA rocket on flight C53 from the Sriharikota (Satish Dhawan Space Centre). The launch, under ISRO commercial subsidiary NewSpace India...
SpaceX launches C-band telecomms satellite SES-22
At 2104 GMT on 29 June, a SpaceX Falcon 9v1.2FT Block 5 rocket was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, USA. It carried SES-22, a C-band telecommunications satellite, into a 35,627 x 310 km at 16.5 degrees inclination Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) on its...
Airbus UK receives order for FORUM – the ninth ESA Earth Explorer mission
ESA has selected Airbus UK, Stevenage, to lead the FORUM construction project, according to an announcement on 28 June. The Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring (FORUM) satellite is an ESA Earth Explorer mission that aims to help understanding...
D-2/Atlacom-1 satellite changes hands mid-orbit
New-space satellite manufacturer NanoAvionics has sold off the D-2/Atlacom-1 satellite that is already in orbit – a rarity since satellites are usually sold and purchased well before they leave the ground. It was launched last June aboard a Falcon 9v1.2FT, Block 5 and...
Long March 4C launches Gaofen 12-03 radar sat
At 1546 GMT, 27 June, a Chinese Long March-4C (CZ-4C) rocket carried the Gaofen 12-03 (12C) satellite into low Earth orbit (LEO). The mission lifted-off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The satellite is equipped with a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload...
Electron launches NASA funded CAPSTONE mission to test Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit planned for Lunar Gateway
Rocket Lab successfully launched an Electron rocket from Māhia Peninsula, New Zealand, at 0955 GMT on 28 June, to an initial low Earth parking orbit. The Electron was carrying CAPSTONE (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation...
NASA’s SLS heavy lift rocket is passed for lunar duty after completing curtailed fuelling and countdown test
NASA’s plans for unmanned and later human launches to the Moon have been given the green light to proceed after its new, but much delayed, heavy-lift launch vehicle, the SLS, passed a fuelling and countdown test during its fourth Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR). As with...