October 2016 – Page 5 – Spaceflight Now

European Mars lander released from ExoMars mothership

October 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

A saucer-shaped entry, descent and landing demonstrator separated from Europe’s ExoMars orbiter Sunday, beginning a three-day approach aiming to become the first European-built craft to set down on the red planet and return data.

Chinese astronauts launch on month-long space mission

October 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

Two Chinese military pilots rode a Long March 2F rocket into orbit Sunday, heading for the Tiangong 2 research lab to conduct experiments and practice procedures to be used on China’s future space station.

Key events during Shenzhou 11’s ascent to orbit

October 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

It will take less than 10 minutes for a Long March 2F rocket to send two astronauts inside the Shenzhou 11 space capsule on course toward a docking with China’s Tiangong 2 space lab.

Video: Soyuz rocket rolled to pad for Expedition 49 crew launch

October 16, 2016 Justin Ray

The Russian Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft and booster rocket were rolled out to the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Sunday in preparation for liftoff Wednesday on a two-day trek to the International Space Station.

Faulty cable delays Antares launch 24 hours

October 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

Orbital ATK launch managers have pushed back liftoff of an Antares rocket until Monday to replace a faulty cable on the booster’s launch pad in Virginia.

Live coverage: Chinese space capsule docks with Tiangong 2

October 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

Soaring more than 200 miles above Earth, a Chinese spacecraft with two astronauts on-board closed in for docking with the Tiangong 2 space lab just before 1930 GMT (3:30 p.m. EDT).

Chinese spacecraft poised for launch with two astronauts

October 16, 2016 Stephen Clark

China is gearing up to launch two astronauts on a month-long expedition to the country’s new orbiting space lab module Sunday.

Video: Antares/Cygnus pre-launch news conference

October 16, 2016 Justin Ray

Officials from NASA, Orbital ATK, Wallops Flight Facility and the Commonwealth of Virginia preview Sunday night’s flight of the Antares rocket during the pre-launch news conference held on the eve of liftoff.

Mission managers keeping Juno in elongated orbit until December

October 15, 2016 Stephen Clark

Ground teams are buying more time to study two sluggish valves inside the Juno spacecraft’s fuel pressurization system and postponing a major engine burn that was scheduled for next week to reshape the probe’s orbit around Jupiter, officials said Friday.

Photos: Antares rolls out for first time since 2014

October 14, 2016 Stephen Clark

An Antares rocket is being prepared for launch for the first time in two years after emerging from the Horizontal Integration Facility at Wallops Island, Virginia, on Thursday evening for a one-mile trip to the launch pad.