October 2023 – Page 3 – Spaceflight Now

Rideshare mission on deck for penultimate Vega rocket as Vega-C successor remains sidelined

October 6, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

A pair of Earth observation satellites along with ten auxiliary payloads will launch aboard Arianespace’s penultimate Vega rocket into sun-synchronous orbit on Friday. Vega lifted off at 9:36 p.m. EDT (0138 UTC) on Sunday after a two-day delay.

Atlas 5 rocket launches Amazon’s first Kuiper satellites from Cape Canaveral

October 6, 2023 Spaceflight Now

A ULA Atlas 5 rocket is set to launch no earlier than 2 p.m. EDT (1800 UTC) on Friday, Oct. 6. It will sent up two prototype satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite internet constellation.

Atlas 5 delivers first Amazon internet satellites to orbit on Friday

October 5, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Amazon is getting its own delivery fulfilled this Friday, adding to an extensive portfolio that includes its online marketplace, streaming video, grocery and cloud services, with the launch of two prototype relay stations for a space-based internet service it calls Project Kuiper.

Northrop Grumman leaves behind solo commercial space station venture, partners with Nanoracks on ‘Starlab’

October 5, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

About a year and a half after signing a Space Act Agreement with NASA to develop a commercial space station, Northrop Grumman formally withdrew from its solo plans in order to partner with Nanoracks, a subsidiary of Voyager Space.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket threads weather needle and launches 22 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral

October 4, 2023 Steven Young

Overcoming 50-50 weather odds, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Thursday morning on its 44th Starlink delivery mission of the year. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 40 occurred at 1:36 a.m. EDT (0536 UTC), the fourth launch opportunity of the window.

Simple settings tweak should save Psyche asteroid mission from overheating thrusters

October 2, 2023 Steven Young

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft, now scheduled for launch on Oct. 12, will dial down the power of its maneuvering system after engineers discovered its thrusters were in danger of overheating during its eight-year expedition to explore a metallic asteroid.