Monthly Archives: November 2012
NASA interest in 2024 Mars Sample Return Mission using SLS and Orion
The Mars Program Planning Group (MPPG) have added meat to the bones of a proposal that would result in the Space Launch System (SLS), Orion and a Mars…
AsiaSat sign up Sea Launch as SpaceX backup option
Asia Satellite Telecommunications have signed up Sea Launch to provide the backup option of launching “a future AsiaSat satellite” on their Zenit 3SL. Currently, both AsiaSat 6 and…
China’s 18th launch of 2012 sees Long March 3B loft ChinaSat-12
The Chinese have launched the ChinaSat-12 (Zhongxing-12) communications satellite into orbit via a Long March 3B/E (Chang Zheng-3B/E) on Tuesday – their 18th orbital launch of the year….
Long duration ISS crew to lay the foundations for BEO missions
NASA and Roscosmos have selected two of their best astronauts to spend a one year period on the International Space Station (ISS), providing vital data into how the…
Long March 4C launches Yaogan Weixing-16 spy satellite for China
Following the postponement of the Zhongxing-12 (ChinaSat) communications satellite launch, the Chinese kept up their impressive launch pace with the lofting of the Yaogan Weixing-16 satellite by a…
All hail the Super Crawler – CT-2 put through its paces ahead of SLS
One of the unsung workhorses of the space program, the Crawler Transporter, is ready for its own transition back to exploration – with CT-2 testing out its array…
UK steps up, as ESA commit to ATV Service Module on NASA’s Orion
The European Space Agency (ESA) have announced they will inform NASA they are ready to build an ATV derived Service Module for Orion, to be ready for the…
ILS Proton-M launches with EchoStar XVI
International Launch Services (ILS) have launched their Proton-M rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch was on schedule at 18:31 GMT, with the Proton’s Briz-M (Breeze-M) Upper Stage…
ULA: Launch services customers class reliability as their main consideration
The ever-competitive launch services market has once again been thrown into the spotlight, with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk promoting the low cost of his vehicles, claiming Arianespace’s Ariane…
Chinese Long March 2C lofts Huanjing-1C into orbit
China conducted its 16th orbital launch of the year by orbiting the third satellite on its Environmental Protection & Disaster Monitoring Constellation. The Huanjing-1C (Environment-1C) satellite was launched at 22:53…
Three ISS crewmembers make pre-dawn Earth return following ISS departure
Three crewmembers of the International Space Station (ISS) Expedition 33 crew – comprising American astronaut Suni Williams, Japanese astronaut Aki Hoshide, and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko – undocked…
AEHF-2 handed over to the USAF after completing on-orbit testing
Lockheed Martin have completed the on-orbit testing of the second Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) military communications satellite, allowing for Satellite Control Authority (SCA) to be turned over…
Exploration Alternatives: From Propellant Depots to Commercial Lunar Base
As NASA managers continue to work modifications to an unreleased exploration plan, one that has a Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) at its center, the highly popular concept…
Soyuz 2-1A launches latest Meridian satellite for the Russian military
A Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat rocket has launched a communications satellite for the Russian military on Wednesday. The rocket, carrying the latest Meridian spacecraft, lifted off from pad 43/4 at the…
NASA interested in payload fairing options for multi-mission SLS capability
SLS managers have asked the aerospace industry for information about the potential use of existing payload fairings for the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV). It is hoped that…
Ariane 5 ECA conducts dual satellite launch from Kourou
Arianespace have launched their Ariane 5 ECA on another mission, lofting two satellites into orbit – namely Star One C3 & Eutelsat21B/W6A – from the European Spaceport in…
Dynetics and PWR aiming to liquidize SLS booster competition with F-1 power
One of the most famous rocket engines in history – the Apollo/Saturn’s F-1 – could one day fly again, providing Alabama company Dynetics, teamed with Pratt and Whitney…
Modifications planned for Atlas V SLC-41 Pad and SLS Mobile Launcher
United Launch Alliance (ULA) have recruited Hensel Phelps to design the modifications to their Atlas V pad at Space Launch Complete 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral ahead of…
EFT-1 September, 2014 launch date “paced” by the Delta IV-H
The first test launch of NASA’s new Orion spacecraft is currently being paced by its “surrogate” launch vehicle, the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta IV-Heavy. The EFT-1 carrier…
NASA outlines SLS Mobile Launcher umbilical plans
Continuing toward a debut of late-2017, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is one step closer to that ultimate goal as the U.S. space agency continues to baseline…
