Satellite News
Boeing cleared to continue development of WGS-11+ military satellite
WGS-11+ will join the WGS constellation that provides broadband communications to the U.S. military and allies.
Schedule is king for C-band replacement satellites
Rather than pushing the state-of-the art, Boeing, Maxar Technologies and Northrop Grumman are emphasizing reliability in satellites they are manufacturing to help Intelsat and SES clear C-band spectrum, according to speakers at the Satellite Innovation 2020 conference.
Exploration News
U.S. Transportation Command to study use of SpaceX rockets to move cargo around the world
“Think about moving the equivalent of a C-17 payload anywhere on the globe in less than an hour.”
Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson withdraws from Starliner test flight
Chris Ferguson, the former NASA astronaut who was to command the first crewed flight of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle, has withdrawn from the mission for personal reasons, the company announced Oct.
Launcher News
Europe’s P120C booster completes third and final static fire test
A solid rocket booster designed for Europe’s next-generation Ariane 6 and Vega C launch vehicles completed a third and final static fire test Oct 7.
Exolaunch Signs Long-Term Launch Agreement With SpaceX
Under the agreement, Exolaunch manifests multiple microsatellites and cubesats on Falcon 9 rideshare missions to a sun-synchronous orbit throughout 2020 – 2021. Photo of a SpaceX Falcon 9 lift off.
Equatorial Space Adds Subject-Matter Experts To The Firm’s Board of Advisors
Equatorial Space Systems aims to revolutionize space launch operations with a launcher safer, simpler and more affordable than incumbents, by using the company’s proprietary hybrid propulsion technology. The company’s inaugural suborbital launch of the Dorado sounding rocket is slated for the first half of 2021.
NewSpace News
BlackSky’s 5th + 6th Smallsats Now In Full Constellation Operation
BlackSky’s fifth and sixth satellites are already delivering enhanced image performance and growing revisits for BlackSky customers. By flying at lower altitudes than other satellites in BlackSky’s constellation, these latest two satellites can produce images with resolution up to 80 cm —a 20 percent improvement over the existing satellites in the constellation. The position of these satellites at an inclination of 53 degrees will allow additional revisits across all markets with heightened performance in Europe and Asia. These advances will unlock more analytic and data driven opportunities for BlackSky’s customers.
Capella Space unveils first radar satellite images
Capella Space unveiled images Oct. 6 from Sequoia, the first of 36 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites the San Francisco startup plans to send into a constellation to collect global imagery with hourly updates.
AAC Clyde Space Adds a New Member to Their Family … Hyperion Technologies
There’s a Dutch company that will be joining the Swedish-Scottish Group at AAC Clyde Space, subject to approval by an AAC Clyde Space Extraordinary General Meeting. Based on a cash and shares deal, Hyperion Technologies has agreed to be acquired by AAC Clyde Space.
Space Safety News
Startup seeks to automate process of avoiding satellite collisions
A startup Kayhan Space says it is developing tools that can ultimately automate the process for assessing potential collisions and maneuvering satellites to avoid them
NASA, space industry seek new ways to cope with space debris
Members of NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel said during a regular meeting last week that the agency has made some progress, but it needs to focus on space debris as a top priority.
Science & Technology News
Scientists peer inside an asteroid
New findings from NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission suggest that the interior of the asteroid Bennu could be weaker and less dense than its outer layers – like a creme-filled chocolate egg flying though spa
