Tag: May 2022

Astra’s NASA Mission Fails With Loss of Satellites

Reuters reported that Astra Space’s mission to send “tiny storm-monitoring NASA satellites to orbit” failed after a second-stage booster engine shut down 10 minutes after liftoff. The rocket was carrying two satellites designed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory to “measure moisture and precipitation in tropical storm systems,” which were set to be the first batch of a six-satellite constellation managed by NASA. NASA Science Mission Directorate Associate Administrator Thomas Zurbuchen tweeted that the mission “offered a great opportunity for new science and launch capabilities.”
More Info (Reuters)

Video

Astra rocket launches on mission to deliver NASA TROPICS satellites
(VideoFromSpace via YouTube)

Starliner Closes Hatch; Astronauts Prepare Test Vehicle for Return to Earth Wednesday

The Orlando (FL) Sentinel reports that The Boeing Company’s Starliner successfully docked with the ISS on Friday, and its hatch opened on Saturday. “Since then the crew has removed 500 pounds of cargo sent up, and then loaded it up again with 600 more pounds for the return to Earth. That includes three Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System tanks, essential for supplying breathable air on station. They will be refurbished planetside for a future return to the station.”
Full Story (Orlando Sentinel – subscription publication);
More Info (SciTech Daily)

Video

Boeing Starliner’s Hatch Closes in Preparation for Undocking from ISS
(Boeing via YouTube)

Boeing Starliner Launches on Test Flight to ISS

Space.com reports Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft successfully launched Thursday at 6:54 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station “kicking off the crucial Orbital Flight Test (OFT-2).” Fifteen minutes after launch, Starliner separated from the ULA Atlas V’s upper stage, and “16 minutes later, the capsule aced its 45-second-long orbital insertion burn.” OFT-2, an uncrewed mission to the ISS, is designed to demonstrate Starliner’s readiness to carry astronauts on behalf of NASA.
Full Story (Space.com)

Video

Boeing Starliner OFT-2 Launch

NASA: Artemis 1 Will Not Launch Until May

SPACE reports an April launch is “no longer possible for Artemis 1, which will send an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the moon using a huge Space Launch System (SLS) megarocket, agency officials said today (Feb. 24). And May could be difficult to hit as well.” Tom Whitmeyer, deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development at NASA headquarters in Washington, said Thursday during a virtual news conference, “We continue to evaluate the May window, but we’re also recognizing that there’s a lot of work in front of us.”
Full Story (SPACE)