February 2018 – Page 6 – Spaceflight Now

Souped-up sounding rocket lifts off from Japan with tiny satellite

February 2, 2018 Stephen Clark

A modified sounding rocket originally designed to loft science instruments on high-altitude suborbital arcs blasted off Saturday from the Uchinoura Space Center in southern Japan and soared into orbit to become the world’s smallest satellite launcher.

China lofts earthquake research craft with cluster of smaller satellites

February 2, 2018 Stephen Clark

A Chinese Long March 2D rocket successfully delivered seven satellites into a 300-mile-high orbit Friday, boosting international missions to measure seismic signals that could help predict future earthquakes, take detailed imagery of planet Earth and test compact camera, propulsion and radio technology.

Cosmonauts upgrade station high-gain antenna on record-breaking spacewalk

February 2, 2018 Stephen Clark

Russian cosmonauts Alexander Misurkin and Anton Shkaplerov floated outside the International Space Station on Friday and installed an upgraded electronics box on a high-gain communications antenna at the aft end of the Zvezda service module.