Van Allen Probes – Spaceflight Now

April 21, 2019

Breaking News

[ April 20, 2019 ] SpaceX confirms anomaly during Crew Dragon abort engine test Mission Reports
[ April 19, 2019 ] Cygnus supply ship delivers 3.8-ton cargo load to International Space Station Mission Reports
[ April 18, 2019 ] Errant command doomed Israeli moon lander, officials vow to try again Mission Reports
[ April 18, 2019 ] Antares rocket boosts Cygnus supply ship toward International Space Station Antares
[ April 17, 2019 ] Photos: Ground crews load final cargo into Cygnus supply ship Antares

Research platform launched to brave Van Allen radiation belts

December 20, 2016

Japan launched a research satellite Tuesday to repeatedly fly through the Van Allen belts high above Earth, helping scientists sort out how chaotic geomagnetic storms form and evolve and potentially endanger astronauts, spacecraft and infrastructure vital to life on the ground.

Japan prepares launch of satellite to probe Earth’s radiation belts

December 19, 2016

Japanese engineers aim to launch an upgraded Epsilon booster Tuesday with a satellite to study the origins of powerful geomagnetic storms, phenomena that trigger picturesque polar auroras but could disrupt communications and and damage electric grids.