Tag: DLR
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SSC Space Launches SubOrbital Express-5 Mission Carrying 12 Microgravity Experiments
SSC Space successfully launched its SubOrbital Express-5 mission on 31 May from the Esrange Space Centre in northern Sweden, carrying 12 scientific and commercial experiments designed to operate in microgravity conditions. The sounding rocket reached an altitude of approximately 260 kilometres and provided researchers with around six and a half minutes of microgravity during the…
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Isar Aerospace Eyes Second Spectrum Launch After Failed Debut
German launch services provider Isar Aerospace is preparing for the second flight of its two-stage Spectrum rocket, with maritime safety notices indicating launch opportunities between Jan. 21 and Jan. 23 from the Andøya Spaceport in northern Norway. A Notice to Mariners (NOTMAR) issued by Andøya Space shows 15-minute launch windows available between 21:05 and 21:20…
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Exploration Company Completes Debris-Shield Tests for Nyx Spacecraft Ahead of 2028 Debut
European space logistics startup The Exploration Company said it has completed the first test campaign of the micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) shielding for its Nyx spacecraft, a modular vehicle scheduled to make its debut in 2028. The tests were performed under the European Space Agency’s (ESA) LEO Cargo Return Services initiative, which is funding…
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BepiColombo’s fifth flyby of Mercury reveals planet’s surface in mid-infrared light
The European Space Agency’s BepiColombo spacecraft recently performed its fifth flyby of Mercury on Dec. 1, becoming the first spacecraft ever to observe the planet in mid-infrared light. BepiColombo’s observations from the flyby have revealed interesting new details on the Mercury’s surface, including temperature and composition variations. BepiColombo is only the third mission to visit…
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IDEFIX Phobos rover sent to Japan ahead of mission to Mars
The Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission is JAXA’s lead mission that plans to survey and explore Mars’ two moons, Phobos and Deimos. While the Japanese agency will build the main payload, the German Space Agency (DLR) and the National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) will contribute to the mission. “IDEFIX,” a small secondary payload, will…
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Three ongoing missions study human side of Moon and Mars missions
While a lot of the focus when it comes to space travel beyond Earth orbit is on the spacecraft, multiple studies are underway to explore the human side of what NASA calls “Moon to Mars Exploration.” Those studies include physical health, mental health, and even training astronauts to recognize geology that could answer many questions…
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Goodbye to the Ariane 5, the ‘Swiss Knife’ of Europe’s launch industry
The Ariane 5 flew for the very last time on Wednesday, July 5, sending government communication satellites for Germany and France into space. Also known as flight VA261, the rocket launched from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana, at 22:00 UTC. The satellites onboard the Ariane 5 included the Heinrich-Hertz (H2SAT), on…
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Tensions mount between Russia and Europe over joint Spektr-RG telescope
The Russian scientific community is speaking out unanimously against the unauthorized activation of the German eROSITA telescope aboard the Russian Spektr-RG space observatory, as suggested by Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin. Spektr-RG, which stands for Spectrum + Röntgen + Gamma, the Russian-German high-energy astrophysics space observatory, was launched on 13 July 2019. It has two telescopes…
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NASA gives up on salvaging InSight Mars lander’s ‘mole’
Artist’s concept of the InSight spacecraft on Mars, with the mole of its HP3 instrument illustrated at lower right. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA managers tried for the last time earlier this month to coax the InSight lander’s long-stuck subsurface heat probe into the Martian soil, but after seeing no more progress, ground teams decided to end…
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NASA’s InSight mission shows Mars is a seismically active world
In this artist’s concept of NASA’s InSight lander on Mars, layers of the planet’s subsurface can be seen below and dust devils can be seen in the background. Credit: IPGP/Nicolas Sarter While one of its two science instruments remains sidelined, NASA’s InSight probe has proven Mars is seismically active through the detection of hundreds of…