SSI News
Good launch for Super Heavy/Starship on third flight…but re-entries and approaches did not go well
After two failed launches, hopes were high that the Super Heavy first stage and its Starship upper stage/reusable spaceship would work well on the combinations's third flight. And the hopes were not misplaced. At 1325 GMT on 14 March 2024, the giant rocket assembly...
Two launch failures: Japan’s new KAIROS rocket has not-unexpected maiden failure but unusual one for China’s Long March 2C (Updated)
At 0201 GMT on 13 March 2024, the maiden flight from the Kii Space Port, Japan, of the Japanese commercial KAIROS (Kii-based Advanced and Instant ROcket System) launch vehicle carrying a dummy satellite ended in failure after only five seconds of flight. The solid...
Human Spaceflight: NASA’s Crew 8 mission flies to ISS while Chinese astronauts make spacewalk outside their own station
Crew Dragon - NASA Crew 8 (Endeavour) was successfully launched via a Space X Falcon 9 from Kennedy Space Centre, USA at 0353 GMT on 4 March. The initial orbit was 215 x 191 km in a 51.7 degree inclination. After a series of manoeuvres to match their orbits, the Crew...
New Space Orders in March 2024: smaller GEO sats are plate du jour but LEO shows the future
Typifying how the GEO market has moved to small spacecraft for smaller regional operators, GEO satellite manufacturer Astranis has received an order from Thai space operator Thaicom for a small 400 kg communications spacecraft. The satellite will be called Thaicom 9...
Launches in March 2024
Mel’s Good Space: International Women’s Day
March marks International Women’s Day (March 8th), and Women’s History Month, and here in the space industry we are fortunate to have amazing females blazing new paths. However, less than 25% of the workforce is female, and at a leadership level it is even fewer, with...
Round-up of recommended space stories in February
We're keeping an eye on space news, so you don't have to. Here's our round-up of the most important, and interesting, space news stories of February from across the web: Money money money: Acquisitions dominated with the likes of Lockheed Martin looking to take over...
IM-1 becomes first commercial spacecraft to…(crash) land on the Moon (Updated)
Farah Ghouri and David Todd followed the launch, descent, landing and subsequent communications of the first private spacecraft lunar landing “Odysseus is alive and well” was the first update on IM-1 from its operator after the lander touched down on the Moon, making...
Launches in February 2024
A total of 18 rocket launches were made in February, including one carrying lunar lander IM-1, which later became the first commercial spacecraft to land on the Moon - though not without some hiccups along the way. We followed IM-1's journey from launch all the way to...
Documentary review: The Space Shuttle that Fell to Earth
David Todd, Seradata’s head of space content, reviews ‘The Space Shuttle that Fell to Earth’, a new BBC documentary marking the 21st anniversary of the fatal Space Shuttle Columbia disaster In January 2003 the 113th flight of the Space Shuttle program was launched...