Technical strengths and lower cost led NASA to select Blue Origin lander
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 20:01
NASA cites Blue Origin's aggressive schedule of test flights as well as its lower cost. NASA identified two weaknesses in Blue Origin’s proposal. One involves its communications system, which had a risk of not meeting agency requirements. Dynetics won strengths for offering excess capabilities, like Blue Origin, for other classes of landing missions.
HASC chairman questions ‘continued delays’ in settling dispute over Space Command’s location
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 19:20
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) is wading into the contentious battle over the proposed relocation of U.S. Space Command. Rogers had largely stayed out of the fray over the past two years. Colorado lawmakers fought to reverse former president Trump’s decision to relocate Space Command’s headquarters.
NASA selects Blue Origin to develop second Artemis lunar lander
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 16:17
NASA selects Blue Origin to develop a lunar lander. The lander will transport astronauts on Artemis missions starting at the end of the decade. The value of the fixed-price award is $3.4 billion. The contract includes a demonstration landing on Artemis 5, currently scheduled for no earlier than late 2029.
FCC denies Dish Network 5G plan over Starlink interference concerns
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 15:33
FCC votes to preserve frequencies for satellite services between 12.2 and 12.7 GHz. Dish Network had sought permission to use the spectrum to operate a high-power mobile service. DirecTV, majority owned by U.S. Telecoms giant AT&T, had said millions of its customers would suffer harmful interference.
Inmarsat orders 3 smallsats to bolster L-band safety services
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 12:00
Inmarsat has ordered three small geostationary satellites from 3D printing specialist Swissto12 for a launch in 2026. The identical satellites will be based on the Swiss manufacturer’s dishwasher-sized HummingSat platform. Inmarsat reported a 16% year-on-year rise in revenues to $403 million for the three months ended March 31.
Space Force looks at options for relieving Cape Canaveral launch congestion
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 11:14
Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy says launch facilities at Cape Canaveral are nearing capacity. He says the service needs to add more payload processing capacity at both Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg. Purdy noted the ability to conduct launches to polar orbits, traditionally flown from the Western Range.
SpaceX launches 22 new-generation Starlink satellites
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 00:00
The Starlink 6-3 mission launched at 2:19:30 a.m. EDT (0619:30 UTC) from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. SpaceX delayed the liftoff from the morning’s first two launch opportunities at 12:41 a.m. And 1:31 a.m. The launch was rescheduled for Saturday to loft spare satellites for the telecom and data relay networks operated by OneWeb and Iridium.
Jammed radar boom on Jupiter-bound JUICE probe finally freed
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 00:00
Jupiter Icy Moons mission – JUICE – was launched April 14 atop an Ariane 5 rocket. On its way to the first of several gravity assist flybys, the spacecraft successfully deployed its over-size solar arrays and a 10.6-meter (35-foot) magnetometer boom. But a long antenna boom needed by the Radar for Icy Moons Exploration failed to unfurl when first commanded.
MEASAT connects Malaysian Armed Forces personnel via high-speed satellite b’band – SatNews
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 00:00
MEASAT Global Berhad (‘MEASAT’) will be providing CONNECTme NOW satellite broadband services at no cost to frontline Malaysian Armed Forces personnel who are serving at selected remote, border checkpoint posts. CONNECTme NOW is Malaysia’s leading, prepaid, satellite broadband Wi-Fi Hotspot service by MEASAT.
TransAstra receives USSF contract to explore apps for Omnivore™ on-orbit propulsion pystem – SatNews
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-19 00:00
TransAstra Corporation has been awarded a Phase One Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the United States Space Force. The contract will fund exploration of the propulsion system’s product-market fit for a range of government and commercial customers. The Omnivore™ thruster uses solar reflectors to focus highly concentrated sunlight onto a solar absorber located inside the thruster.
Starlink v2, Iridium, and OneWeb satellites involved in Falcon 9 missions
Original Publication Date: 2023-05-18 20:18
SpaceX is preparing to launch a number of low Earth orbit communications satellites for three different networks. The first launch, Starlink Group 6-3, flew on Friday, May 19 at 2:19 AM EDT (06:19 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The launch was just over five days after the last flight from the same pad. Eight hours after the scheduled Starlink 6-3 launch time, another Falcon 9 attempted to launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. However, the Vandenberg launch scrubbed at T-55 seconds and was moved to Saturday.