Spaceflight
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Foust Forward | Is there a business case for the moon?
spacenews.com Foust Forward | Is there a business case for the moon? - SpaceNewsWhen the transition to more purely commercial activities on the moontakes place, and how that happens, remains uncertain.
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TIL that Taco Bell placed a target for Mir's re-entry in 2001
https://spacenews.com/free-tacos-for-us-if-mir-hits-floating-taco-bell-ocean-target-taco-bell-sets-40-by-40-foot-target-in-south-pacific-for-mirs-re-entry/
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FAA moves forward with committee to review launch licensing regulations
spacenews.com FAA moves forward with committee to review launch licensing regulations - SpaceNewsThe FAA is moving ahead with a long-awaited committee to evaluate ways to improve launch licensing regulations as one executive calls for greater changes.
- arstechnica.com As ABL Space departs launch, the 1-ton rocket wars have a clear winner
“Our path to making a big contribution as a commercial launch company narrowed considerably.”…
> A 7-year-old launch company that has yet to have a rocket successfully lift off announced a radical pivot on Thursday. Its new plan? Focusing on missile defense.
> "We have made the decision to focus our efforts on national defense, and specifically on missile defense technologies," Piemont said. "We’ll have more to share soon on our roadmap and traction in this area. For now, suffice to say we see considerable opportunity to leverage RS1, GS0, the E2 engine, and the rest of the technology we’ve developed to date to enable a new type of research effort around missile defense technologies."
> Over the last half decade or so, three US companies have credibly vied to develop rockets in the 1-ton class in terms of lift capacity. ABL has been competing alongside Relativity Space and Firefly to bring its rockets to market. ABL never took off. In March 2023, Relativity reached space with the Terran 1 rocket, but, due to second-stage issues, failed to reach orbit. Within weeks, Relativity announced it was shifting its focus to a medium-lift rocket, Terran R. Since then, the California-based launch company has moved along, but there are persistent rumors that it faces a cash crunch. > > Of the three, only Firefly has enjoyed success. The company's Alpha rocket has reached orbit on multiple occasions, and just this week Firefly announced that it completed a $175 million Series D fundraising round, resulting in a valuation of more than $2 billion. The 1-ton rocket wars are over: Firefly has won.
- www.nasaspaceflight.com China Roundup: Tiangong cargo supply contracts awarded; Shenzhou's 25th anniversary - NASASpaceFlight.com
This week’s Tianzhou 8 mission has delivered supplies to the three taikonauts who recently arrived…
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Tianzhou-8 spacecraft delivers supplies, key experiments to Tiangong space station
spacenews.com Tianzhou-8 spacecraft delivers supplies, key experiments to Tiangong space station - SpaceNewsTianzhou-8 spacecraft delivers supplies, key experiments to Tiangong space station
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Impulse Space buys three Falcon 9 launches
spacenews.com Impulse Space buys three Falcon 9 launches - SpaceNewsImpulse Space has purchased three Falcon 9 launches for its Helios transfer vehicle for missions starting in 2026, including one for the Space Force.
- spacenews.com ABL Space exits commercial launch market, shifts focus to missile defense - SpaceNews
ABL Space exits commercial launch market, shifts focus to missile defense ABL Space exits commercial launch market, shifts focus to missile defense
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China unveils fully reusable Starship-like rocket concept
spacenews.com China unveils fully reusable Starship-like rocket concept - SpaceNewsChina unveils fully reusable Starship-like rocket concept China’s main space contractor has unveiled a fully reusable rocket concept, reminiscent of SpaceX's Starship, designed to support its grandest ambitions for space.
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Chinese official endorses cooperation with the U.S. on space exploration
spacenews.com Chinese official endorses cooperation with the U.S. on space exploration - SpaceNewsA Chinese official expressed willingness to cooperate with the United States in space exploration, interest that appears unlikely to be reciprocated.
> A Chinese official expressed willingness to cooperate with the United States in space exploration, interest that appears unlikely to be reciprocated. > > Speaking at the Beyond Earth Symposium here Nov. 13, Zhou Guolin, minister counselor for science and technology at the Chinese Embassy here, said China was open to some level of cooperation with the United States on spaceflight, without going into specifics. > > “China welcomes participation from space agencies all over the world, including the United States of America, of course,” he said. “History has proved that isolation is not a solution, and that cooperation is the only solution to go forward.” > > Interaction between NASA and China has historically been limited. It includes a 2006 visit by then-administrator Mike Griffin to China as well as working group meetings from 2008 to 2010 on topics such as the exchange of Earth and space science data. That was largely severed with the passage by Congress 2011 of the so-called “Wolf Amendment” that sharply restricted bilateral cooperation between NASA and Chinese organizations.
> The Wolf Amendment has persisted in annual appropriations bills since 2011 with little effort to remove or significantly change it. NASA’s current administrator, Bill Nelson, told a House committee in 2023 he supported the provision. > > “I think the Wolf Amendment, as it’s written, is adequate,” he said in an April 2023 House appropriations hearing. “I think the Wolf Amendment is sufficient for where it is right now.” > > Nelson has, on other occasions, warned of China landing humans on the moon ahead of NASA’s own human lunar return, suggesting that China might lay claim to desirable locations at the lunar south pole and prevent NASA from accessing them. He also used an image from China’s Zhurong Mars rover at a 2021 House hearing to warn the U.S. “about our need to get off our duff” on lunar exploration.
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AST SpaceMobile leans on Blue Origin to ramp up satellite launches
spacenews.com AST SpaceMobile leans on Blue Origin to ramp up satellite launches - SpaceNewsAST SpaceMobile said Nov. 14 it has booked rockets from Blue Origin and others to deploy enough satellites between 2025 and 2026 to provide full text, voice, and 5G data services to standard mobile phones across the United States and other key markets.
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Northrop Grumman eyes 2026 launch of robot-armed satellite servicer
spacenews.com Northrop Grumman eyes 2026 launch of robot-armed satellite servicer - SpaceNewsNorthrop Grumman eyes 2026 launch of robot-armed satellite servicer Northrop Grumman eyes 2026 launch of robot-armed satellite servicer
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China launches first Haiyang-4 oceanography satellite
spacenews.com China launches first Haiyang-4 oceanography satellite - SpaceNewsChina launches first Haiyang-4 oceanography satellite China conducted its 55th orbital launch of 2024, sending the Haiyang-4 (01) oceanography satellite into a near polar orbit.
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Intuitive Machines calls for “infrastructure-first” focus for Artemis
spacenews.com Intuitive Machines calls for “infrastructure-first” focus for Artemis - SpaceNewsIntuitive Machines suggested the need for “reformulation” of NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration campaign to accommodate budget issues and delays.
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Rocket Lab signs first Neutron launch customer
spacenews.com Rocket Lab signs first Neutron launch customer - SpaceNewsRocket Lab says it has signed the first customer for its Neutron launch vehicle as the company pushes towards a mid-2025 first launch of the vehicle.
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NASA and Roscosmos disagree on cause and severity of ISS air leak
spacenews.com NASA and Roscosmos disagree on cause and severity of ISS air leak - SpaceNewsNASA and Roscosmos continue to disagree on the cause and severity of an air leak in the Russian segment of the International Space Station.
- arstechnica.com Firefly Aerospace rakes in more cash as competitors struggle for footing
The Series D fundraising round was “oversubscribed” and netted Firefly $175 million.
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Boeing ships first two redesigned O3b mPower satellites
spacenews.com Boeing ships first two redesigned O3b mPower satellites - SpaceNewsBoeing has shipped the first pair of O3b mPower satellites with fixes addressing power issues that have hobbled the initial six in SES’s next-generation medium Earth orbit broadband network.
> Boeing has shipped the first pair of O3b mPower satellites with fixes addressing power issues that have hobbled the initial six in SES’s next-generation medium Earth orbit (MEO) broadband network. > > Boeing said Nov. 13 the satellites with redesigned power modules were sent via truck from its facilities in El Segundo, California, and are due to arrive at Cape Canaveral in Florida next week for their December SpaceX launch.
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Sony orders two satellites to test laser communications
spacenews.com Sony orders two satellites to test laser communications - SpaceNewsSony has partnered with California’s Astro Digital to test laser communications from two small satellites, using optical disc technology the Japanese conglomerate pioneered for CD players.
- spacepolicyonline.com A Second Round of Layoffs at JPL
Posted: November 12, 2024 10:55 pm ET | Last Updated: November 12, 2024 11:01 pm ET | JPL announced a second round of layoffs today, bringing to 905 the total number of employees who have lost their jobs this year due to budget cutbacks.
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It's far from settled but...it seems at least 50-50 that NASA's Space Launch System rocket will be canceled. Not Block 1B. Not Block 2. All of it.
We shouldn't overreact, as Berger points out none of the relevant appointments have been made. It's still a stunning report with huge implications. Here's the full quote:
> To be clear we are \far\ from anything being settled, but based on what I'm hearing it seems at least 50-50 that NASA's Space Launch System rocket will be canceled. Not Block 1B. Not Block 2. All of it. There are other ways to get Orion to the Moon.
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Roman Space Telescope reaches assembly milestone
spacenews.com Roman Space Telescope reaches assembly milestone - SpaceNewsAll the major elements of NASA’s next flagship space telescope are now under one roof as NASA says its development remains on cost and schedule.
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Expending the Expendables: More launch companies are betting their future on reusability
spacenews.com Expending the Expendables: More launch companies are betting their future on reusability - SpaceNewsMore launch companies are betting their future on reusability rather than expendable rockets that previously dominated.
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Firefly Aerospace raises $175 million
spacenews.com Firefly Aerospace raises $175 million - SpaceNewsFirefly Aerospace has raised $175 million in a round led by a new investor to support production of launch vehicles and spacecraft.
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China’s space agency to boost support for commercial space sector
spacenews.com China’s space agency to boost support for commercial space sector - SpaceNewsChina’s space agency to boost support for commercial space sector
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Spaceplane developer Reaction Engines goes bankrupt
spacenews.com Spaceplane developer Reaction Engines goes bankrupt - SpaceNewsReaction Engines Ltd., a British company that has worked for decades on an air-breathing rocket engine for spaceplanes, has filed for bankruptcy.
- spacenews.com Chinese commercial Lijian-1 rocket launches 15 satellites
HELSINKI — A Chinese commercial rocket sent 15 satellites into orbit late Sunday, including launch service provider CAS Space’s first international payload. The Lijian-1 (Kinetica-1) solid rocket l…
- www.nasaspaceflight.com Launch Roundup: Falcon 9 launches customer payloads, China to fly resupply mission to Tiangong - NASASpaceFlight.com
While SpaceX is preparing to fly Starship on its sixth integrated test flight next week,…
- arstechnica.com There are some things the Crew-8 astronauts aren’t ready to talk about
“I did not say I was uncomfortable talking about it. I said we’re not going to talk about it.”…
- arstechnica.com Russia: Fine, I guess we should have a Grasshopper rocket project, too
On this timeline Russia is nearly a decade and a half behind SpaceX.
- spacenews.com Long March 2C launches 4 PIESAT-2 commercial radar satellites
HELSINKI — A Long March rocket launch sent four satellites into orbit late Friday to provide commercial X-band radar imaging services. A Long March 2C rocket lifted off at 10:39 p.m. Eastern Nov. 8…
- www.bbc.com Skynet-1A: Why did the UK's oldest space satellite end up thousands of miles from where it should have been?
Britain's oldest satellite is in the wrong part of the sky, but no-one's really sure who moved it.
A gentle space mystery with a little light learning about space debris too
- www.nasaspaceflight.com PLD Space unveils ambitious plan for the next decade - NASASpaceFlight.com
PLD Space unveiled an aggressive 10-year plan last month at the company’s new headquarters building…
- arstechnica.com Rocket Report: Australia says yes to the launch; Russia delivers for Iran
The world’s first wooden satellite arrived at the International Space Station this week.
- arstechnica.com Space policy is about to get pretty wild, y’all
Saddle up, space cowboys. It may get bumpy for a while.
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Sierra Space expands spaceplane fleet with in-house mission control
spacenews.com Sierra Space expands spaceplane fleet with in-house mission control - SpaceNewsSierra Space is developing an expanded line of orbital spaceplanes that will be coordinated from new in-house mission control.
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Vast signs agreement with Czech government
spacenews.com Vast signs agreement with Czech government - SpaceNewsCommercial space station developer Vast Space has signed an agreement with the Czech Republic that could allow a Czech astronaut fly on a future mission.
- www.nasaspaceflight.com Boeing finishing expansion of NASA SLS Core Stage production facilities at KSC - NASASpaceFlight.com
NASA and Space Launch System core stage prime contractor Boeing are working to finish activating…
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NASA MSR review continues despite committee leadership change
spacenews.com NASA MSR review continues despite committee leadership change - SpaceNewsNASA says it still expects to make a recommendation on a new architecture for the Mars Sample Return (MSR) program by the end of the year.
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Virgin Galactic seeks to raise money to accelerate growth of spaceplane fleet
spacenews.com Virgin Galactic seeks to raise money to accelerate growth of spaceplane fleet - SpaceNewsVirgin Galactic is proposing to raise $300 million in additional capital to accelerate production of suborbital spaceplanes and a mothership aircraft.
