Tag: Orbital
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Flight of the Antares – Orbital closing in on long-awaited debut
The Antares launch vehicle will soon make its debut flight, ahead of an important year for Orbital’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract requirements. The test flight of the new launch vehicle will pave the way for a demo mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in May, involving the first use of the Cygnus spacecraft.…
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Ariane 5 ECA launches Skynet 5D and Mexsat 3/Bicentenario
Arianespace launched their final Ariane 5 launch of the year by successfully lofting two satellites into orbit – Skynet 5D and Mexsat 3/Bicentenario – from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The launch was on schedule at the opening of the window at 21:49 UTC on Wednesday. Ariane 5 ECA Launch: The Ariane 5…
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ILS Proton-M returns to flight by lofting Orbital’s Intelsat 23 uphill
International Launch Services (ILS) have launched their Proton-M rocket in a daylight launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch was on schedule at 8:37 am GMT, with the Proton’s Briz-M (Breeze-M) Upper Stage successfully deploying the large telecommunications satellite into its desired orbit, after nine hours of flight. Proton M Launch: The Proton booster that launched…
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Orbital’s Antares closing in on debut launch following pad arrival
Antares, the launch vehicle tasked with lofting the Cygnus spacecraft on missions to the International Space Station (ISS), finally arrived at its Wallops launch pad on Monday. The arrival of the rocket – ahead of a hot fire at the pad – should mark the end of delays related to construction difficulties for the Mid-Atlantic…
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Ariane 5 ECA successfully launches Intelsat 20 and Hylas 2
Arianespace have launched their Ariane 5 ECA on a mission to loft two satellites into orbit – Intelsat 20 and Hylas 2 – from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The launch was on schedule at 8:54pm UTC on Thursday evening, as the workhorse carried its two passengers to GTO. Ariane 5 ECA Mission:…
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Commercial space flight shows reignited interest in the Air Launch system
Virgin Galactic unveiled their new air launch system – called LauncherOne – this week, classing it as a “revolution” in space access for small satellites. However, the concept of carrying one’s rocket to a high altitude, prior to “dropping” the vehicle and lighting its engine, isn’t new, yet appears to be gaining renewed interest –…
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SpaceX joy at Merlin 1D test – Orbital fire up their AJ-26 engine
Two loud rumbles in the south of the United States marked two milestones for the country’s drive to regain its space flight independence, as SpaceX and Orbital both fired their new engines. SpaceX’s Merlin 1D rumbled for a full mission duration firing, while Orbital’s AJ-26 continued its testing ahead of its debut on their Antares launch…
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Orbital’s Pegasus successfully launches NASA’s NuSTAR spacecraft
Orbital Sciences Corporation have launched NASA’s NuSTAR spacecraft Thursday. The spacecraft was deployed by a Pegasus-XL carrier rocket dropped from an aircraft flying from the Bucholz Army Airfield in Kwajalein Atoll. Launch came 30 minutes into a four hour window, resulting in a T-0 of 04:00 local time (16:00 UTC on Wednesday). Pegasus Mission: NuSTAR,…
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Orbital’s Cygnus debut mission to the ISS outlined
With one half of the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) puzzle enjoying a fully successful test flight, Orbital’s Cygnus spacecraft is closing in on its own debut attempt to visit the International Space Station (ISS) later this year. In a mission that is surprisingly similar to that undertaken by SpaceX’s Dragon, the success of Cygnus should…
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Space industry giants Orbital upbeat ahead of Antares debut
Orbital Science Corporation held an investor conference this week, overviewing the results of their Fourth Quarter performance in 2011, at the same time as providing an interesting insight into the near-term plans for what is one of the most established companies in the space industry. The overview covered their entire space operations, including information on…