Tag: Space
-
Amazon’s Project Kuiper highlights new connections to AWS and partners in Japan
A Project Kuiper satellite terminal is set up with a wind farm in the background. (Amazon Photo) As Amazon gears up to build and launch thousands of satellites for its Project Kuiper constellation, it’s talking up the space-based broadband network’s potential to enable new options for managing data traffic with Amazon Web Services — including…
-
Rocket Report: Beyond Gravity to study fairing reuse; North Korea launches satellite
Welcome to Edition 6.20 of the Rocket Report! We apologize for missing last week, but both Stephen and I were in transit to South Texas for the Starship launch. To make up for it this week’s report is extra long, and a day early due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States. But that…
-
With budget cuts and an aging station, can NASA learn to love a gap in orbit?
Just in case you were under any illusions about the age of the International Space Station, Monday marked the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Zarya module. This Russian-built power and propulsion module formed the cornerstone of the space station, and the first residents arrived two years later. In other words, some hardware on…
-
Sorry, doubters: Starship actually had a remarkably successful flight
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas—Starship launches are clarifying events. Pretty quickly after liftoff you find out who understands the rocket business, and who are the casual observers bereft of a clue. Before I had even left the launch viewing area in South Padre Island on Saturday morning headlines started to fill my news feed. The Wall…
-
Here’s why SpaceX really needed to change out that part on Starship
SpaceX’s Starship rocket did not launch on Friday morning from South Texas as intended because the company had to replace the actuator on a grid fin. The rocket is now being prepared for a launch during a tight window on Saturday morning, from 7 to 7:20 am local time. Here’s an explanation of why grid…
-
Space companies say ASAT tests threaten economic development
More than two dozen private space companies have signed on to a statement that supports an end to destructive anti-satellite testing in space. The statement comes two years after Russia shot down one of its older satellites, Kosmos 1408, with a Nudol missile launched from the ground. The test, intended to demonstrate Russia’s capability to…
-
ULA chief on the Vulcan rocket: “The path to flight one is clear”
United Launch Alliance is closing in on the debut flight of the Vulcan rocket, and it remains on track to fly the vehicle for the first time on December 24. During a media roundtable on Wednesday afternoon, the chief executive of United Launch Alliance, Tory Bruno, said, “The path to flight one is clear” for…
-
Sale of United Launch Alliance is nearing its end, with three potential buyers
Lockheed Martin and Boeing are close to selecting a buyer for United Launch Alliance, two sources told Ars. The jointly owned rocket company, which was founded in 2006 and for a time had a monopoly on US government launch contracts, has been up for sale most of this year. The sources say three buyers have…
-
SpaceX founding employee successfully moves from rockets to in-space propulsion
SpaceX launched its ninth “Transporter” mission on Saturday from California, carrying dozens of small- and medium-sized satellites into low-Earth orbit. The upside of these launches for customers is that they can rely on regular, low-cost access to space aboard the reliable Falcon 9 rocket. The downside is that the satellites are all released into a…
-
Ariane 6 cost and delays bring European launch industry to a breaking point
European space officials will convene on Monday and Tuesday to discuss the future of space policy for the continent. The “Space Summit” gathering in Seville, Spain, will encompass several topics, including the future of launch. “Seville will be a very decisive moment for space in Europe,” said the director general of the European Space Agency,…