New head of Space Force acquisitions looks to get back to basics
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-24 22:03
Frank Calvelli is assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration. Calvelli says a number of Space Force programs are years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget. One of his first moves will be to impose discipline into acquisitions, he says.
China looks to launch liquid propellant rockets from the seas
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-30 10:43
Chinese state-owned and commercial companies are developing capabilities to launch liquid propellant rockets from sea platforms. China has already demonstrated the ability to launch the Long March 11 solid rocket from sea platforms. These have been facilitated by a new spaceport near Haiyang in the eastern coastal province of Shandong.
NASA prepares to release first JWST science images
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-30 01:32
James Webb Space Telescope is already collecting "early release observations" Observations are taking place as engineers finish preparing the telescope for routine science observations. 15 of the telescope's 17 observing modes are now commissioned. Project scientists have kept the list of objects for those initial observations confidential.
SpaceX launches SES-22 C-band replacement satellite
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 21:50
SES-22 is the first to launch of six geostationary satellites that SES ordered. The satellites will migrate broadcast customers into a narrower swath of C-band. SES and other C-band holders are in line for $9.7 billion in total.
NASA administrator tests positive for COVID
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 20:48
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson has tested positive for COVID-19, he announced June 29. Nelson revealed the diagnosis when he participated by phone, rather than in person as originally planned. Nelson recently returned from an extended trip to Europe that featured meetings with European Space Agency officials.
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope mission: Live updates
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-30 15:07
NASA will announce the first science-quality images from the James Webb Space Telescope on July 12. Agency officials hinted at what some of those images will be, and scientists discussed what they hope to learn from the observatory's early work. The James Webb Space Telescope is entering its final commissioning phase before beginning science operations this summer.
'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' episode 8 suffers from a clash of styles
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-30 15:00
"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" Season 1, episode 8 is a lighthearted episode. The USS Enterprise is on a routine survey mission of the Jonisian Nebula. Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) is confronted by something very strange.
The 'faintest asteroid ever detected' won't hit Earth, months of observations show
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-30 14:00
Asteroid discovered in August 2021 seemed on a collision course with Earth. It took the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Chile to rule out the collision. The telescope had to track the 160-feet-wide space rock as it moved so far away from Earth that it eventually became "the faintest asteroid ever observed"
Live coverage: Virgin Orbit scrubs launch to study propellant temperature data – Spaceflight Now
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 00:00
Virgin Orbit LauncherOne rocket will climb into orbit with seven small satellite payloads after release from a Boeing 747 carrier aircraft southwest of Los Angeles. Virgin’s live webcast begins at 9:45 p.m. PDT (12:45 a.m. EDT; 0445 GMT)
SpaceX closes out first half of 2022 with on-target launch for SES – Spaceflight Now
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 00:00
SpaceX completes its 27th mission of the year, powering a commercial television broadcasting satellite into orbit. The Falcon 9 rocket delivered the SES 22 communications into an elliptical, or oval-shaped, transfer orbit on the way to an operating perch in geostationary orbit. SES 22, built by Thales Alenia Space, is the first of five new C-band television broadcasting satellites SES plans to launch this year.
Live coverage: SpaceX launches SES broadcasting satellite – Spaceflight Now
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 00:00
SpaceX launched a television broadcasting satellite Wednesday for SES. The Falcon 9 rocket launched the SES 22 geostationary communications satellite. The nine main engines produced 1.7 million pounds of thrust for about two-and-a-half minutes. SES 22 will begin a 15-year mission beaming programming for SES’s corporate clients.
Virgin Orbit ready for first night launch on Space Force mission – Spaceflight Now
Original Publication Date: 2022-06-29 00:00
The first nighttime flight of Virgin Orbit’s commercial air-launched rocket is on track for Wednesday night off the coast of California. The rocket will carry seven small payloads into orbit on a mission for the U.S. Military’s Space Test Program. Virgin Orbit has accomplished three consecutive successful missions since the first LauncherOne test flight failed to reach orbit.
Asteroids and Comets News by SpaceRef
The U.S. House of Representatives will be held in Washington, D.C. On Wednesday. The session is expected to last for three days. The House of Representatives will also be held in New York City on Wednesday. The House of Reps will be held on Thursday and Friday. The House will also be held on Friday.
An Aurora Streams High Above The South Pacific
An Aurora Streams High Above The South Pacific. An aurora streams above a cloudy Earth as the International Space Station orbited 268 miles above the south Pacific. (June 15, 2022) -- Larger image Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
NASASpaceFlight.com
China launches the Gaofen-12 03 mission on board a Chang Zheng 4C. The launch occurred from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in China. The satellite launched to a Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO) at 15:46 UTC.
Commercial Archives
Straight Up is Virgin Orbit’s first nighttime launch. The launch was procured by the Space Force’s Rocket Systems Launch Program. Two of the satellites are also part of the ELaNa (Educational Launch of Nanosatellites) 39 mission for NASA.
International Archives
India launched its 55th Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) – in its Core Alone (CA) configuration – carrying nine payloads to a low Earth orbit (LEO) These included POEM, to demonstrate using the fourth stage as a hosted payload bus. PSLV-C53 launched from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on June 30, 2022.
Chinese Long March 3B Launches APStar-6C Communications Satellite – Spaceflight101
China conducted a rare commercial launch of a Long March 3B rocket with the APStar-6C communications satellite for APT Satellite Holdings to join their constellation of Geostationary Communications Satellites. The Long March 3B lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 16:06 UTC on a mission of under half an hour to lift the spacecraft into an elliptical Geostationary Transfer Orbit.
Blue Origin’s New Shepard Reaches new Heights in latest Test Flight – Spaceflight101
Blue Origin's reusable New Shepard launch system reached new heights in a test designed to expand the vehicle’s operational envelope by sending it to a peak altitude of 107 Kilometers. Sunday’s flight marked the second for this particular set of hardware, following up on the successful December 2017 mission that debuted “Crew Capsule 2.0”
ISS Updates – Spaceflight101 – International Space Station
A veteran NASA spacewalker and an EVA rookie from Japan ended their week with nearly six hours of work outside the International Space Station. The restoration of the Station’s Mobile Servicing System started last year and continued in January to provide Canadarm2 with a new pair of grappling hands.
New fossil galaxy discovery could answer important questions about the history of the universe
A new fossil galaxy has been discovered. Named "Pegasus V," The dwarf galaxy is located on the outskirts of Andromeda. The discovery was reported in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. More astronomical facilities are looking into researching faint galaxies in the near future.
A giant black hole that spins slower than its peers
Astronomers have made a record-breaking measurement of a black hole's spin. NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory shows this black hole is spinning slower than most of its smaller cousins. This is the most massive black hole with an accurate spin measurement and gives hints about how some of the universe's biggest black holes grow.
The path of most resistance could help limit bone loss during spaceflight
Astronauts that have returned after spaceflights over three months may show signs of incomplete bone recovery even after one year on Earth. The sustained bone losses after one year are equivalent to ten years of normal age-related bone loss on Earth. Adding in more resistance-based exercises during spaceflight may help limit bone loss.
Independent reanalysis of the M87 galactic center radio observational data
Independent reanalysis of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT)'s observational data for the center of the elliptical galaxy M87 has produced images with different features, according to a new study. This study is part of the research process in modern science, in which observational data and analysis methods are open to the public.
The rings of Uranus and Neptune could help map their interiors
Scientists have come up with a way to look at the structure of Neptunes' and Uranus' rings. Previous efforts have attempted to use the common technique of photometry to detect oscillations on the planet's surface. The gravitational effects of normal mode oscillations in the planet's interior can be felt outside and reflected in the rings.