Tag: European Space Agency
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Spaceflight reserves two rideshare missions on Vega rocket
Artist’s concept of the Vega rocket’s Small Spacecraft Mission Service dispenser deploying multiple satellites in orbit. Credit: ESA Spaceflight Industries has booked reservations for two commercial rideshare missions on Arianespace’s Vega rocket, officials announced Tuesday, beginning with a proof-of-concept flight in early 2019 of a new Italian-built multi-payload dispenser tailored to accommodate small satellites and…
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Potential contamination not a concern for space station’s new lightning instrument
A view inside the Dragon spacecraft’s trunk, housing (clockwise from upper left) the Atmosphere-Space Interactions Monitor, the Materials ISS Experiment Flight Facility — a materials exposure experiment platform — and the Pump Flow and Control Subassembly. Credit: SpaceX Scientists working on a new lightning detection instrument mounted outside the International Space Station said Tuesday they…
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Dragon cargo capsule reaches space station for second time
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft arrives at the International Space Station Wednesday. Credit: NASA/JAXA/Norishige Kanai A commercial Dragon spacecraft glacially approached the International Space Station on Wednesday, allowing a robotic arm controlled by Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai to reach out and grapple the supply ship as it soared 250 miles over Africa, completing SpaceX’s 14th mission to…
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Video: Falcon 9 rocket lifts off on SpaceX’s 14th station cargo mission
Packed with food, hardware and experiments in biology, Earth science and space technology, a Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon supply ship lifted off Monday from Cape Canaveral destined for the International Space Station. The 213-foot-tall (65-meter) rocket took off at 4:30:38 p.m. EDT (2030:38 GMT) from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 40 launch pad, then turned to…
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Live coverage: SpaceX resupply mission arrives at space station
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral with SpaceX’s 14th operational Dragon resupply flight to the International Space Station. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter.
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Video: Multi-angle replays of Falcon 9’s liftoff from Cape Canaveral
Watch views of the Falcon 9 rocket’s fiery liftoff Monday at Cape Canaveral from multiple angles as the slender, kerosene-fueled launcher climbed into space on the way to the International Space Station. The 213-foot-tall (65-meter) rocket took off at 4:30:38 p.m. EDT (2030:38 GMT) from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 40 launch pad, then turned to the…
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Timeline for SpaceX’s next station cargo launch
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will go from Cape Canaveral to low Earth orbit in 10 minutes Monday with a Dragon capsule heading for the International Space Station carrying more than 5,800 pounds of supplies and experiments. Liftoff is set for 2030 GMT (4:30 p.m. EDT) Monday from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 40 launch pad. It will…
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SpaceX supply ship departs Cape Canaveral for space station
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off Monday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. Credit: SpaceX Hauling nearly three tons of supplies, hardware and experiments, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket shot into orbit Monday from Cape Canaveral, with a previously-flown Dragon cargo carrier riding a reused first stage booster to kick off a nearly…
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Webb telescope’s launch delayed until 2020
The James Webb Space Telescope’s mirror and instrument section, known as the Optical Telescope element and Integrated Science (OTIS) module, is unpacked from its shipping container after arriving at Northrop Grumman’s satellite factory in Redondo Beach, California, earlier this year. JWST’s sunshield is visible at left. Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn Blaming a slew of technical snags…
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Exoplanet telescope selected as ESA’s next space science mission
Artist’s concept of the ARIEL space telescope. Credit: UCL A mission to investigate the atmospheres of planets around other stars has been selected by the European Space Agency for launch in the late 2020s, officials announced this week. The space telescope will observe 1,000 exoplanets, using a spectrometer to measure the chemical make-up of their…