Tag: JAXA
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Japan launches joint military, scientific optical data relay satellite
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan plans launched an H-IIA rocket on Sunday, 29 November to deploy a top secret communications satellite to support the country’s reconnaissance and scientific programs. Liftoff occurred at the start of a two-hour window that opened at 16:25 local time (07:25 UTC or 02:25 EST) from the Tanegashima Space Center. The…
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With Resilience, NASA & SpaceX begin operational Commercial Crew flights
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, at 19:27 EST on 15 November (00:27 UTC on 16 November) lofting four space travelers into orbit ahead of a planned six month stay aboard the International Space Station. The launch of SpaceX’s Crew-1 mission marks the first operational Commercial Crew Program mission…
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Examining Crew-1 launch weather criteria and abort modes
With each new crew launch from the U.S. comes the inevitable questions: Why all the weather rules? What are the vehicle’s abort modes and how will it perform a launch abort and aim itself to a predetermined location in the Atlantic Ocean stretching from the Kennedy Space Center across to the western Irish coast? The…
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SpaceX, NASA, JAXA clear Crew-1 for launch; static fire delayed to Wednesday
For the first time since 1982, NASA has certified a spaceship to operationally carry humans into low Earth orbit. At the Kennedy Space Center today, NASA and SpaceX — with JAXA’s participation — formally certified the Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to transport people to and from the Space Station and cleared the…
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Crew-1 astronauts arrive for launch as Tropical Storm Eta looms
Astronauts Victor Glover, Michael Hopkins, Shannon Walker, and Soichi Noguchi have arrived at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for their upcoming launch to the International Space Station (ISS). SpaceX’s Crew-1 will be the first operational, long-duration mission to the ISS onboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft and NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff from Launch Complex…
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Mercury-bound spacecraft gets an assist from Venus
A sequence of images taken by one of the monitoring cameras on board the European-Japanese BepiColombo mission to Mercury, as the spacecraft made a close approach of Venus on Oct. 15, 2020. Credit: ESA/BepiColombo/MTM The European-Japanese BepiColombo spacecraft flew by Venus late Wednesday, using the planet’s gravity to help redirect the probe toward its ultimate…
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NASA, JAXA look to Sun to understand life in other star systems
The Sun is both creator and destroyer. The one that can foster life one second and eliminate it the next. Most people are familiar with the harmful and hazardous effects the Sun can have to life on Earth if solar flares and Coronal Mass Ejections, and their associated radiation, are delivered in just the right…
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NASA, JAXA look to Sun to understand life in other star systems
The Sun is both creator and destroyer. The one that can foster life one second and eliminate it the next. Most people are familiar with the harmful and hazardous effects the Sun can have to life on Earth if solar flares and Coronal Mass Ejections, and their associated radiation, are delivered in just the right…
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ESA roundup: Ariane 6, James Webb, & BepiColombo
Three flagship European Space Agency (ESA) projects have or will reach critical milestones this month, both on Earth and in space. On the ground, the Agency’s upcoming Ariane 6 launcher’s solid rocket boosters passed their final test firing while the James Webb Space Telescope — a partnership with NASA and the Canadian Space Agency —…
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ESA roundup: Ariane 6, James Webb, & BepiColombo
Three flagship European Space Agency (ESA) projects have or will reach critical milestones this month, both on Earth and in space. On the ground, the Agency’s upcoming Ariane 6 launcher’s solid rocket boosters passed their final test firing while the James Webb Space Telescope — a partnership with NASA and the Canadian Space Agency —…