Stephen Clark – Page 226 – Spaceflight Now

China launches new Gaofen Earth-imaging satellite

October 6, 2019 Stephen Clark

A Chinese Long March 4C rocket delivered into orbit Friday the Gaofen 10 Earth-imaging satellite, a likely replacement for a spacecraft lost in an August 2016 launch failure.

Astronauts complete extra work on first in series of battery upgrade spacewalks

October 6, 2019 Stephen Clark

Astronauts Christina Koch and Andrew Morgan floated outside the International Space Station Sunday and completed a 7-hour, 1-minute spacewalk to begin replacing batteries on the far left side of the research outpost’s solar array truss, the first of up to six excursions scheduled before the end of October.

Oceanography satellite ends 11-year mission

October 4, 2019 Stephen Clark

A joint U.S.-European satellite mission that measured rising sea levels for 11 years is ending due to the deteriorating condition of the spacecraft’s power system, officials said Friday.

Hardware arrives in Florida for Crew Dragon in-flight abort test

October 3, 2019 Stephen Clark

Images taken inside SpaceX facilities at Cape Canaveral and released by NASA Thursday show the Crew Dragon capsule and Falcon 9 booster assigned to an in-flight abort test of the new human-rated spaceship later this year, a prerequisite before astronauts climb aboard for a mission to the International Space Station.

Relativity scores $140 million funding round for smallsat launcher

October 3, 2019 Stephen Clark

Relativity Space says it has secured $140 million in new funding from venture capital firms and private investors, enough to carry the company’s 3D-printed small satellite launcher through its first orbital flight from Cape Canaveral in early 2021.

Live coverage: Three-man crew, including first UAE astronaut, lands in Kazakhstan

October 3, 2019 Stephen Clark

A Russian commander, his NASA co-pilot and the first Emirati to fly in space returned to Earth Thursday with a fiery re-entry inside the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft on the way to an on-target parachute-assisted landing in Kazakhstan at 6:59 a.m. EDT (1059 GMT), a few hours after undocking from the International Space Station.

Intuitive Machines selects SpaceX to launch commercial lunar lander

October 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

Intuitive Machines confirmed plans Wednesday to launch a commercial lunar lander aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida’s Space Coast in 2021 on a mission to deliver multiple payloads to the moon, including up to five science instruments for NASA.

NASA to proceed with asteroid surveillance mission

October 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

After years of studies, NASA plans to move forward with a space-based telescope that could launch as soon as 2025 to scan the solar system for asteroids that could be on a collision course with Earth.

Air-launched rocket arrives at Cape Canaveral for satellite delivery mission

October 1, 2019 Stephen Clark

A Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket is back at Cape Canaveral after a cross-country ferry flight Tuesday under an L-1011 carrier jet, ready for final checkouts and a countdown dress rehearsal before an airborne launch off Florida’s east coast Oct. 9 with NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer satellite.

SLS pathfinder stage arrives at Florida launch site

October 1, 2019 Stephen Clark

A steel tube built as a stand-in for the core stage of NASA’s Space Launch System has arrived at the Kennedy Space Center for a series of rehearsals to hone the skills of technicians before the real rocket reaches the spaceport, an oft-delayed milestone that could still be a year or more away.