Tag: Mission

SpaceX Launches Communications Satellite on 16th Flight this Year

CBS News reports that SpaceX is maintaining a rapid-fire launch pace while gearing up to launch four fresh crew members to the International Space Station.  Marking the company’s 16th launch this year, a SpaceX “Falcon 9 blasted off from launch complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 3:11 p.m. EST,” Tuesday, “putting a powerful Indonesian communications satellite into orbit.”
Full Story (CBS News)

 

Video

Falcon 9 launches Merah Putih 2 and Falcon 9 first stage landing
(SciNews; YouTube)

Japan’s flagship H3 Rocket Successfully Reaches Orbit

CBS News reports “Japan’s flagship H3 rocket reached orbit and released two small observation satellites in a key second test following a failed debut launch last year, buoying hope for the country in the global space race. The report adds that “the launch is a boost for Japan’s space program following a recent streak of successes, including a historic precision touchdown on the moon of an unmanned spacecraft last month.”
Full Story (CBS News)

 

Video

Japan Successfully Launches H3 Rocket, 17 February 2024
(Firstpost; YouTube)

Rocket Lab’s Electron Rocket Launches on Space Debris Removal Mission

Spaceflight Now reports “a small satellite that will inspect a discarded rocket body in orbit lifted off Sunday/Monday on a mission to develop techniques for removing space debris.”  Built by Japan-based Astroscale, the satellite “launched atop a Rocket Lab Electron” rocket from New Zealand at 9:52 a.m. EST
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

Rocket Lab – Electron Launch, 18 February 2024
(Space Affairs; YouTube)

NASA Leadership to Call Frank Rubio after Record-Breaking Mission

The AP reports that on Wednesday, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy “will speak with agency astronaut Frank Rubio about his record-breaking mission aboard the International Space Station.” Rubio, who is “serving on a year-long mission aboard the orbiting laboratory, today surpassed NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei’s U.S. record of 355 days in space as the longest single spaceflight by an American.” When he “lands on Earth at the end of the month, Rubio will have 371 days in space.”
Full Story (Associated Press)

ULA Launches Atlas V Rocket Carrying SILENTBARKER/NROL-107 Mission

The Orlando Sentinel reports that United Launch Alliance launched an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Sunday morning, “on a mission for the National Reconnaissance Office and Space Force called SILENTBARKER/NROL-107.” Last week, NRO Director Chris Scolese said the classified mission’s primary goal is to place watchdog satellites in geostationary Earth orbit “so that we can understand the intentions of other countries to see what they’re doing in the GEO belts and see if there’s any indications of threats or if it’s just normal operations.”
Full Story (Orlando Sentinel)

 

Video

Atlas V SILENTBARKER/NROL-107 Mission, September 10, 2023
(ULA; YouTube)

Japanese Successfully Launches Lunar Landing, Space Telescope Mission

The Washington Post reports Japan launched a “lunar mission on Thursday, overcoming multiple failures and delays to become the fifth country to head to the moon just weeks after India in a global race to better understand the Earth’s closest neighbor.” The Japanese H2-A rocket is scheduled “to enter the moon’s orbit in three to four months and land early next year,” and carries “two space missions: a new X-ray telescope and a lightweight high-precision moon lander that will serve as the basis for future moon landing technology.” The reputation of “Japan’s space program was on the line with the launch on Thursday,” and Japan’s performance is described as “important for its national security strategy in space, developed with an eye on advancements by China and Russia.”
Full Story (Washington Post)

 

Video

Japan Lunar Lander SLIM + XRISM Launch, September 6, 2023
(The Launch Pad; YouTube)

Artemis I Cubesat Winds Down Mission

Space News reports that a cubesat launched “as a secondary payload on Artemis 1 may end its operations at the end of the month unless it can get its propulsion system working.” The LunaH-Map spacecraft “was one of 10 cubesats launched as secondary payloads on the inaugural flight of the Space Launch System last November.” The spacecraft had planned “to use an ion propulsion system on the 6U cubesat to perform a maneuver as it flew by the moon days later, ultimately allowing it to go into orbit.” However, the thruster failed to fire due to what is likely a stuck valve.
Full Story (Space News)

AIAA Statement on the Indian Space Research Organisation Chandrayaan-3 Mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 24, 2023 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“Congratulations to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on its successful landing at the south pole of the moon! We were thrilled watching the Chandrayaan-3 mission unfold in real time. We will be eagerly following the progress of the rover, Pragyan, and the ongoing mission in the coming days.

As the professional technical society for aerospace engineers, our members appreciate and understand the difficulty of this mission’s engineering challenges. Safely landing on the moon is a challenge and to reach the lunar south pole is an even greater accomplishment.

The ISRO team’s resilience is admirable. The Chandrayaan team has persevered over time to continue advancing its lunar exploration program. They have reached an historic milestone making India the fourth spacefaring nation to land on the moon. AIAA is honored to support the four AIAA student branches at universities in India and about 400 AIAA members across India.

We applaud India’s commitment to a safe, peaceful, and prosperous future in space, especially as it joined the Artemis Accords earlier this year. We believe the Artemis Accords establish important principles to guide cooperation among nations exploring space, including those participating in NASA’s Artemis program. As we expand the human neighborhood in low Earth orbit and beyond to the surface of the moon and cislunar space, we see the vital need for this type of cooperation among countries and industries.

On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we recognize the professionals in the aerospace industry involved in making this mission a success. We salute and applaud the ISRO team for making important contributions to shaping the future of aerospace.”

AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

Chandrayaan-3 Takes Lunar South Pole Temperature

SPACE reports India’s Chandrayaan-3 has been hard at work since its landmark landing on the lunar South Pole last week. On Sunday, ISRO posted an update on social media “regarding one of Chandrayaan-3’s payloads called the ChaSTE experiment, or Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment.” The purpose of this experiment “is to use a temperature probe as well as 10 individual temperature sensors to measure temperature profiles of lunar south pole soil.” ISRO says the goal “is for ChaSTE to help scientists understand what the thermal behavior of the moon’s surface is like.”
Full Story (SPACE)

India’s Moon Landing Sparks New Space Race

The Washington Post reports that India’s successful moon landing reflecting Russia’s failed moon landing has seemed to be the signal flare that has started a race to divide up the moon and the possibilities that that implies. China and the US are also players in going to the moon – with the US set to launch astronauts on a trip circling the moon in next year’s Artemis II mission, and land people on the moon with its future Artemis III trip in 2025. The budget differentials are staggering, with India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission costing $74 million and NASA’s Artemis program projecting to hit $93 billion. For governments, space exploration “was always in large part about the ability to project power and influence on Earth.” India’s mission “marks a soft-power win for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as New Delhi prepares to host the Group of 20 Summit next week.”
Full Story (The Washington Post)

AIAA Statement on the NASA SpaceX Crew-7 Launch

August 26, 2023 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we congratulate the entire NASA SpaceX team on its successful Crew-7 launch. We applaud this mission to the International Space Station (ISS) through NASA’s Commercial Crew program, showing how NASA and private industry are working together to extend the human neighborhood into low Earth orbit and beyond.

This mission also demonstrates the value of international partnership in space exploration, delivering the four-member international crew to the ISS. The scientific research they will conduct onboard the ISS will help prepare us for human exploration to the moon and cislunar space, and on to Mars. The addition of Crew-7 continues maximizing the use of the ISS, where astronauts have been living and working continuously in space for more than 22 years. We are encouraged to see these explorers and innovators work to improve life on Earth and accelerate our off-world future.

We recognize the aerospace industry professionals involved in making this mission a success. We salute NASA, SpaceX, and Crew-7 for helping shape the future of aerospace.”

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

SpaceX, NASA Mission Delayed

CNN reports that a SpaceX and NASA mission that “was set to launch four astronauts – representing four nations and space agencies across the globe – to the International Space Station was abruptly called off Thursday evening.” The delay was announced late Thursday night for reasons that were not immediately clear. The astronauts’ SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft “had been slated to launch atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 3:50 a.m. ET Friday.” In a social media post, SpaceX “said only that it was delaying the liftoff time to Saturday, August 26 at 3:27 a.m.” because it “provides teams additional time to complete and discuss analysis.” During a livestream, NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said “mission mangers met and elected to postpone the launch of the Crew-7 crew for 24 hours to provide just a bit more time to close out some open paperwork.” The latest forecasts from the US Space Force “projects a 95% chance that the weather will be favorable for the Saturday liftoff.”
Full Story (CNN)

Crew-7 Prepares for Launch

Aviation Week reports that preparations “continue for the planned Aug. 25 launch of NASA’s Crew-7’s three astronauts and a cosmonaut to the International Space Station (ISS) to begin a multi-mission exchange of the seven current crewmembers.” Early on Tuesday, the Crew-7 members “wrapped up a countdown dress rehearsal.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

SpaceX’s Crew-7 Mission to Launch Next Week

SPACE reports that four astronauts from four countries “will fly on SpaceX Dragon capsule to the International Space Station for a six-month mission.” They will “launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on SpaceX’s Crew-7 flight no earlier than Aug. 25.” NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli said, “It’s one of the things I think we’re most proud of, is what we represent by being an all-international group.” Moghbeli will “become the second Iranian-American astronaut to reach space” on the mission.
Full Story (SPACE)

DART Mission Shows that Dimorphos Has No Water-Ice

SPACE reports that six months following the DART mission slamming a spacecraft into an asteroid, Dimorphos has given NASA scientists time to clarify a profile of the asteroid. Careful scrutiny of the debris “from the impact of NASA’s DART mission into Dimorphos has not found any evidence for water-ice on the asteroid, nor the residue of thruster fuel from the spacecraft, new results from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) show.” However, the data from the MUSE (Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer) “instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile does indicate differences in the size of particles in the debris, and show how the polarization of the light from the asteroid changed.”
Full Story (SPACE)

SpaceX Launches Two Separate Satellite Missions

Spaceflight Now reported that SpaceX “launched two Falcon 9 rockets in a span of a little more than four hours Friday, a record-setting day that began with the launch of 52 Starlink internet satellites from California and ended with the sunset liftoff of two SES television broadcast payloads from Florida.” The two missions were launched just over four hours apart and set a record “for the shortest span between two SpaceX Falcon 9 launches in the company’s history.” Space News reported that the payloads included SES-18 and SES-19, built by Northrop Grumman. The two satellites “are due to start services in June after using onboard hydrazine-fueled propulsion to reach their geostationary orbital slots.” SES-18 is “set to replace the operator’s aging SES-3 satellite at 103 degrees west,” while SES-19 is “heading to 135 degrees west to join the SES-22 satellite that SpaceX launched last year.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now); More Info (Space News)

 Video
SES-18 and SES-19 Mission

On Friday, March 17 at 7:38 p.m. ET, a SpaceX Falcon 9 launched SES-18 and SES-19 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

(SpaceX; YouTube)

SpaceX Targeting December 11 for Japanese Moon Lander Launch

SPACE reports that SpaceX is “now targeting Sunday (Dec. 11) for the launch of a private Japanese moon lander after a series of delays.” If all goes according to plan, a Falcon 9 rocket “will launch the Tokyo-based company ispace’s Hakuto-R lander toward the moon on Sunday at 2:38 a.m. EST (0738 GMT), SpaceX announced today.” Sunday will be “a big day for space fans: NASA’s Orion capsule is scheduled to return to Earth that afternoon, wrapping up the agency’s Artemis 1 moon mission.” The coming SpaceX flight, “which will kick off ispace’s Mission 1, was originally supposed to get off the ground last month. It has been pushed back several times, however, so SpaceX could perform additional checks on the Falcon 9.” The company said “in today’s update that the Falcon 9 and the Hakuto-R lander, which is also carrying a small United Arab Emirates moon rover, are both ‘looking good for launch’ no earlier than Sunday.”
Full Story (SPACE)

Rocket Lab Launches First US Mission

Reuters reports that Rocket Lab “launched its first mission from American soil on Tuesday, kicking off an expansion of the company’s launch business that adds to a surge in private rocket activity at U.S. space ports.” The Long Beach, California-based company’s workhorse “Electron rocket, an expendable launcher standing 40 feet (12 meters) tall, lifted off at 6 p.m. EST from its new launch pad at the NASA-operated Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia.” The mission “marked Rocket Lab’s first outside its flagship launchsite on the Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand, where the company has carried out all 32 previous Electron missions since the rocket’s debut in 2017.”
Full Story (Reuters)

 

 Video

Rocket Lab Launches First Electron mission from Virginia, Tuesday, January 24, at 6 p.m. EST from Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia.
(NASASpaceflight; YouTube)

AIAA Statement on Blue Origin’s Successful New Shepard Mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 20, 2021 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates our corporate member Blue Origin on its successful first human flight of its New Shepard rocket today. AIAA Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we are excited to congratulate Jeff Bezos and the Blue Origin team on their accomplishments today! The successful New Shepard Mission NS-16 builds upon today’s anniversary when we first touched the moon and accelerates us toward where we’re going next. Blue Origin is opening up access to space travel for more people. We believe this will help extend the human neighborhood beyond planet Earth.

We commend Blue Origin for turning this mission’s seat auction into inspiration. The AIAA Foundation is honored to be among the organizations chosen to receive $1 million each to inspire future generations to pursue STEM careers. We look forward to engaging students and educators with new, innovative, and creative STEM education opportunities, as well as expanding the robust K-12 and university programs we have enabled for the last 25 years.

We are excited to build on our existing partnership with Blue Origin through our Design/Build/Launch (DBL) competition, giving high school students opportunities to develop and fly microgravity research payloads onboard future missions of New Shepard. We are proud of our recently announced 2021 DBL winners – Puneeth Bheesetty, Anna Porter Puckett, and Jaden Shawyer – from Granby High School, Norfolk, Virginia. They join our 2020 DBL winner, Eleanor Sigrest, who recently graduated as valedictorian of a dual program at Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, Virginia, and the Governor’s School at Innovation Park in Manassas, Virginia. We look forward to seeing their research payloads fly aboard New Shepard and hearing their results at an ASCEND event – a gathering of the global community focused on building humanity’s off-world future faster.

We recognize the countless aerospace industry professionals who are involved in making today’s mission a success. We salute and applaud the Blue Origin team for turning dreams into reality and helping shape the future of aerospace.”

AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About ASCEND
Powered by AIAA, ASCEND promotes the collaborative, interdisciplinary, outcomes-driven community of professionals, students, and serious enthusiasts around the world who are accelerating humanity’s progress toward our off-world future! For more information, visit ascend.events, or follow ASCEND on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

AIAA Statement on the Successful Virgin Galactic Unity 22 Mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 11, 2021 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates our corporate member Virgin Galactic on its successful flight test of SpaceShipTwo Unity today. AIAA Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we are excited to congratulate Sir Richard Branson and the Virgin Galactic team on their accomplishments today! The successful Unity 22 mission marks a major step forward in humanity’s quest to extend the human neighborhood beyond planet Earth. Virgin Galactic is helping move us closer to the day when space travel is widely accessible to people everywhere.

We especially congratulate Unity 22 Mission Specialist Sirisha Bandla on her part in this flight. In addition to serving as a Unity 22 crew member, Sirisha is a member of our ASCEND Guiding Coalition. The ASCEND Guiding Coalition is the executive board of advisors for ASCEND, the global community focused on building humanity’s off-world future faster. Sirisha exemplifies the community experience of space because no one goes to space alone.

We commend the pioneering role of Sir Richard Branson in accelerating the nascent space tourism industry. Today’s mission would not have been possible without his long-term vision and risk taking. He has courageously led the Virgin Galactic team through challenges and tragedies to get here. Their collective perseverance is admirable, reminding us of how we must accelerate innovation in space with the utmost focus on safety and our shared humanity.

We recognize the countless professionals in the aerospace industry involved in making this mission a success, from design, to fabrication, to testing, and now to operations. We salute and applaud the Virgin Galactic team for pursuing their dreams with determination and making important contributions to shaping the future of aerospace.”


Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.