July 2019 – Page 5 – Spaceflight Now

Indian moon launch rescheduled for Monday

July 18, 2019 Stephen Clark

India’s robotic Chandrayaan 2 moon mission is set for liftoff Monday after a technical snag last weekend halted the launch from a spaceport on the Indian coast, ISRO said Thursday.

Delta 4 launch delayed as ULA probes supplier concern

July 17, 2019 Stephen Clark

Concerns over an unspecified part flying on the upper stages of United Launch Alliance’s rockets have delayed the launch of a GPS satellite on a Delta 4 booster from July 25 to no earlier than Aug. 22. The same issue has also delayed an Atlas 5 launch.

NASA boss pleads for funding to ensure 2024 moon landing

July 17, 2019 William Harwood

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine told a Senate panel Wednesday that a budget impasse and subsequent spending freeze later this year would be “devastating” to the agency’s goal of sending the first woman and next man to the moon by the end of 2024.

China set to deorbit disused Tiangong 2 space lab

July 16, 2019 Stephen Clark

China’s Tiangong 2 space lab, a precursor to the country’s planned space station, is scheduled to fall out of orbit Friday and plunge back into Earth’s atmosphere for a destructive re-entry.

SpaceX points to leaky valve as culprit in Crew Dragon test accident

July 15, 2019 Stephen Clark

Investigators believe a leak of propellant inside the Crew Dragon spacecraft’s propulsion system led to the capsule’s explosion April 20 during a ground test at Cape Canaveral, and a senior SpaceX official said Monday that delays are making it “increasingly difficult” to fly astronauts on the commercial spaceship before the end of the year.

Final assembly and test milestones on tap for NASA’s first Orion moon ship

July 15, 2019 Stephen Clark

The pressurized crew module and European-built service module for NASA’s first Orion spacecraft to travel to the moon will be joined together for the first time in the coming weeks at the Kennedy Space Center, with preparations — at least for Orion — on a pace to be ready for launch on an unpiloted test flight next year.

Launch of Indian moon lander postponed by ‘technical snag’

July 14, 2019 Stephen Clark

Indian engineers called off the launch of the Chandrayaan 2 lunar landing mission Sunday after observing a “technical snag” during the final hour of the countdown, India’s space agency said.

Made in Space wins NASA contract to 3D-print satellite structures in orbit

July 14, 2019 Stephen Clark

NASA awarded a $73.7 million contract Friday to the California-based startup Made in Space for a 3D-printing demonstration using a free-flying small satellite to additively manufacture solar array beams in space.

Video highlights from Chandrayaan 2’s launch campaign

July 14, 2019 Stephen Clark

These video highlights released by the Indian Space Research Organization show the launch campaign to prepare for liftoff of the Chandrayaan 2 moon mission aboard a GSLV Mk.3 rocket.

Live coverage: Indian moon launch scrubbed

July 14, 2019 Stephen Clark

Indian officials postponed the launch Sunday of the Chandrayaan 2 moon mission from a spaceport on the country’s southeastern coast with the Bay of Bengal. The robotic Chandrayaan 2 mission will lift off aboard the GSLV Mk.3, India’s most powerful rocket, but officials have not announced a new target launch date.