SpaceX Starship Mk.1 suffers spectacular tank failure during pressure test
While officially it is not a blow to SpaceX, given that its Starship Mk.1 suborbital hopping test rocket was not going to fly again, nevertheless, the tank failure on the spacecraft/upper stage during a deliberate over-pressurisation test on on 20 November 2019 still...
Arianespace signs up Measat 3d for Ariane 5 launch
Arianespace and the Malaysian regional satellite operator MEASAT Global Berhad (MEASAT) have signed a launch agreement for an Ariane 5 ECA launch of the communications satellite MEASAT-3d. MEASAT-3d,will be launched into geostationary transfer orbit on its way to its...
EchoStar orders two small satellites
Having acquired the start-up Helios Wire low Earth orbit "Internet of Things" (IoT) constellation outfit, satellite operator EchoStar has ordered two S-band test IoT communications satellites from CubeSat manufacturer Tyvak. The acquisition of Helios Wire has allowed...
Spacewalkers start major instrument repair on ISS Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
While the overall International Space Station (ISS) is so large that an individual science instrument is relatively insignificant - such was the importance of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS-2) - worth US$2 billion - that a series of spacewalk repairs was...
Second Kuaizhou-1A rocket in four days launched from China carrying smallsats into orbit (Updated)
A launch occurred at 1000 GMT, 17 November 2019, from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, North China. This mission saw the Kuaizhou-1A light-launcher carrying two small satellites built by the Small Satellite Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). On-board...
Rispace 2019 Belfast: Upper stage delivery systems try to turn shared launches into dedicated delivery service
The history of the troubles in Northern Ireland is a long and bitter one - and that bitterness continues given that walls - figurative and actual - still exist between the Protestant Unionist community and the rapidly growing (due to its higher birthrate) Catholic...
Following a lack of investment and failing to secure financing LeoSat has suspended operations
LeoSat Enterprises, a newspace company based in the USA has reportedly had to suspend operations after failing to raise enough interest in its US$50 million Series A round of funding. LeoSat was planning on launching a 100-strong constellation of inter-connected,...
Eutelsat to pursue laying-off 10 per cent of its workforce in second round of cutting expenses
Following its announcement in July 2019, major FSS operator Eutelsat S.A. has begun to implement its cost-saving "LEAP 2" programme. This information comes from the company's Q1 2019-2020 earnings report. The previous "LEAP" programme which was conducted over last...
EXPACE Kuaizhou-1A rocket puts Jilin-1 Gaofen 02A imaging sat into orbit…then Long March 6 launches five Ningzia sats itself
China's EXPACE privateer launch company launched Kuaizhou-1A launch vehicle at about 0340 GMT on 13 November from the Jiuquan launch site in China. The launch reportedly placed the 230 kg Jilin-1 Gaofen 02A imaging satellite into a sun-synchronous low Earth orbit for...
SpaceX launches first operational Starlink mission and achieves further reusability milestone
Lifting-off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has lifted-off for the fourth time. This mission took place at 1456 GMT, on 11 November 2019, launching the second batch of 60 Starlink satellites into orbit. Following on from the...
