2015 – Page 11 – Spaceflight Now

Europe to develop satellite to map plant fluorescence

November 20, 2015 Stephen Clark

The European Space Agency has selected a satellite mission to monitor the health of global vegetation over an atmospheric research project to track carbon in Earth’s atmosphere, officials announced Thursday.

ULA says it will launch some CubeSats for free

November 19, 2015 Stephen Clark

United Launch Alliance chief executive Tory Bruno said Thursday the company will offer more rides for CubeSats aboard future Atlas 5 rocket flights, and give some away for free, in a bid to tap into a growing market of small satellites with applications in education, scientific research and commercial business.

Mars rover steers toward active sand dunes

November 18, 2015 Stephen Clark

The Curiosity rover’s next destination is a moving mound of wind-blown dark sand blanketing the base of Mount Sharp, the focal point of the Mars mission’s research, scientists said this week.

Tiny thrusters to do heavy lifting as Japanese probe approaches Venus

November 18, 2015 Stephen Clark

Inside a month until its next chance to swing into orbit around Venus, Japan’s Akatsuki spacecraft has weathered unexpectedly “severe” conditions after missing an arrival opportunity in 2010, according to the mission’s project scientist.

Explained: Why Atlas 5 will have longer windows for station flights

November 18, 2015 Justin Ray

Expanding a single instant in time to 30 minutes, the upcoming Atlas 5 rockets with Cygnus cargo-delivery freighters bound for the International Space Station will have an unprecedented opportunity available to launch each day.

First satellite launched for Russia’s new missile warning network

November 17, 2015 Stephen Clark

Russia launched an early warning satellite Tuesday, deploying the first in a new fleet of military satellites to detect missile launches heading for Russian territory.

ULA sits out Air Force launch competition

November 16, 2015 Stephen Clark

United Launch Alliance said Monday it did not submit a proposal in a competition to launch a U.S. Air Force GPS navigation satellite, apparently relinquishing the contract to rival SpaceX, the only other company certified to launch the mission.

Spacewalk snapshots show recent station EVAs

November 16, 2015 Stephen Clark

Clad in white spacesuits, astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren recently floated outside the International Space Station on a pair of spacewalks, and the duo carried cameras with them to document the excursions.

Airborne researchers catch up with falling space debris

November 16, 2015 Stephen Clark

Stationed aboard a Gulfstream business jet over the Indian Ocean, an international team of scientists observed a mysterious fragment of space junk falling through Earth’s atmosphere Friday years after it was discarded on a deep space mission.

ESA plans for Rosetta’s grand finale on comet 67P

November 14, 2015 Stephen Clark

European Space Agency flight controllers are plotting to send the Rosetta spacecraft on a controlled descent to the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko next year to join the Philae landing probe, which made a bouncy touchdown on the comet’s craggy nucleus one year ago this week.