Author: starpathwp-production
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Artemis 2 astronauts get first look at their Orion moonship
The Artemis 2 crew, standing in from of their Artemis spacecraft, discusses their planned 2024 around-the-moon flight with reporters at the Kennedy Space Center. Left to right: commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now. NASA’s four Artemis 2 astronauts, getting their first look at the Orion…
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Starliner undergoing three independent investigations as flight slips to 2024
A Boeing official said Monday that the company has delayed a crewed flight test of its Starliner spacecraft until at least March 2024. The manager for the company’s Commercial Crew Program, Mark Nappi, said the spacecraft should be ready for flight by early March, or seven months from now. However, Nappi said that date is…
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New Lockheed Martin Smallsat Facility Will Support SDA Contract
Lockheed Martin is opening a new smallsat processing facility in Colorado to support the company’s Space Development Agency (SDA) contract and capitalize on other smallsat opportunities. Lockheed announced the new 20,000-square-foot low bay clean room on Monday. The Tranche 1 Transport Layer (T1TL) satellites will be the first anchor customer for the facility, Chris Winslett,…
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Dish and EchoStar to Combine, Pitching the Value of Satellite-Terrestrial Convergence
EchoStar Corporation and Dish Network are getting back together. The two Charlie Ergen-founded companies announced a deal to combine on Tuesday, with a plan to bring together satellite and terrestrial technologies to gain an advantage in the 5G ecosystem. “By integrating Dish spectrum with EchoStar’s technological capabilities, we will have the ability to amplify 5G…
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Ariane 6 Won’t Launch Until 2024, ESA Says
The Ariane 6 rocket officially won’t launch until 2024. The European Space Agency (ESA) gave an update to the Ariane 6 development on Tuesday, formally announcing a launch period for the inaugural flight is projected for 2024. Previous ESA updates indicated a very tight timeline to make a 2023 debut. ESA said a July 18…
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First piloted flight of Boeing’s oft-delayed Starliner spacecraft slips to at least March
A Starliner capsule and its service module during processing at Boeing’s assembly hangar at the Kennedy Space Center. Image: NASA. The first piloted launch of Boeing’s oft-delayed Starliner crew capsule is slipping to next March at the earliest because of ongoing work to test and replace the capsule’s parachute system and to resolve issues with…
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NanoAvionics, RIKEN and Mitsui Bussan Aerospace Collaborate on X-ray Observatory Launch
RIKEN, Japan’s largest comprehensive research institution, Mitsui Bussan Aerospace, and mission integrator Kongsberg NanoAvionics have announced their collaboration on the astronomical NinjaSat1 X-ray observatory mission. The aim of this two-year mission in a low Earth orbit (LEO) is to observe X-ray photons from bright X-ray objects in the universe. The NinjaSat team aims to observe…
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Benchmark Introduces First-Ever Autopilot For Satellites at SmallSat 2023
With operational small satellite constellations scaling fast, and regulatory controls for sustainability quickly emerging, Benchmark Space Systems has announced the commercial launch of the first-ever driver-assist control system capable of managing highly precise satellite maneuvers and travel through increasingly congested space. The category-defining propulsion solution called SmartAIM (Smart Advanced In-Space Mobility) features an onboard software…
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The helicopter on Mars just flew again after surviving an emergency landing
By the standard of some of its previous flights, the most recent voyage of NASA’s intrepid Ingenuity helicopter on Mars was nothing special. Over a period of 24 seconds, the small helicopter rose to an altitude 5 meters above the red planet’s dusty surface and then touched back down in the same spot. During some…
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Phase Four Announces its New Maxwell Block 3 Plasma Propulsion Thruster
Phase Four, the creator of the radio-frequency thruster for satellite propulsion, announced its highly anticipated Maxwell Block 3 turn-key plasma propulsion thruster. The Maxwell Block 3 offers satellite manufacturers performance that exceeds Hall Effect Thrusters when operated with krypton, a first for any electrodeless thruster. Maxwell Block 3’s innovative architecture builds on the flight heritage…