Tag: NASA
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NASA moon rocket SLS rolls out to “rebuilt” LC-39B ahead of Artemis 1 rehearsal
A moment more than a decade in the making. NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for the Artemis 1 mission made its first trip down the crawlerway at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday evening, March 17. Rollout first motion happened just before 6:00 pm EDT (22:00 UTC) for a planned 11-hour journey…
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Astra finds electrical, software failures as root causes of ELaNa 41 mission failure
Astra has determined the causes of two failure points that led to the loss to the LV0008 Rocket 3 mission, also known as ELaNA 41, on February 10, 2022. During the launch, a failure occurred around the time of stage separation, with Astra announcing not one but two separate failures – one affecting payload fairing…
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NOAA, NASA’s GOES-T weather satellite launches on ULA Atlas V
United Launch Alliance (ULA) has launched the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-T advanced weather satellite for the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). GOES-T launched on an Atlas V 541 from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-41 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). The launch took place on March 1, 2022, at 4:38 PM EST…
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Starlink loss highlights current space weather prediction capabilities, coming advancements
On February 8, 2022, SpaceX announced the loss of around 40 of the 49 Starlink satellites launched on the Starlink Group 4-7 mission from LC-39A on February 3. For spacecraft initially orbiting at low altitudes, as the Starlinks did at the time upon deployment, many factors can lead to a craft not reaching its final…
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Starlink loss highlights current space weather prediction capabilities, coming advancements
On February 8, 2022, SpaceX announced the loss of around 40 of the 49 Starlink satellites launched on the Starlink Group 4-7 mission from LC-39A on February 3. For spacecraft initially orbiting at low altitudes, as the Starlinks did at the time upon deployment, many factors can lead to a craft not reaching its final…
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Artemis 1 rollout timing remains uncertain as NASA leadership deliberates the schedule
The first rollout of NASA’s first integrated Orion and Space Launch System (SLS) vehicle for Artemis 1 is now tentatively targeted for mid-March, but the schedule towards that milestone and eventual attempts to launch the vehicle are shrouded in uncertainty. In early February, the space agency announced another multi-week delay in the planned date for…
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Artemis 1 rollout timing remains uncertain as NASA leadership deliberates the schedule
The first rollout of NASA’s first integrated Orion and Space Launch System (SLS) vehicle for Artemis 1 is now tentatively targeted for mid-March, but the schedule towards that milestone and eventual attempts to launch the vehicle are shrouded in uncertainty. In early February, the space agency announced another multi-week delay in the planned date for…
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Astra suffers failure on ELaNa 41 mission
Astra has launched the ELaNa 41 mission for NASA, the company’s first flight from Space Launch Complex 46 (SLC-46) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The LV0008 launch vehicle, the third Rocket 3.3 vehicle, lifted off at 3:00 PM EST (20:00 UTC). An anomaly occurred near the time of stage separation which…
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Curiosity detects potentially biologically-produced carbon signature on Mars
NASA’s Curiosity rover, which has been scouring Gale Crater and the slopes of Mount Sharp (Aeolis Mons) since 2012, has detected an important carbon signature in samples collected using its assortment of research instruments. The samples feature a rich carbon signature that is associated with biological processes on Earth. Scientists were able to detect the…
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NASA puts Blue Origin and Spaceflight on a new list for commercial launch contracts
An artist’s conception shows Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket on its launch pad. (Blue Origin Illustration) NASA has chosen a dozen companies to provide commercial launch services for relatively small-scale space missions over the next five years, including two ventures with Washington state connections. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space venture and Seattle-based Spaceflight Inc. will…