SPACEX: LOWERING STARLINK SATELLITE ORBITS REDUCES IMPACT ON ASTRONOMY - SpaceX has found a new way to prevent Starlink satellites from interfering with astronomy: Bring them closer to Earth. The satellites can reflect sunlight and accidentally photobomb astronomical observations. But last week, SpaceX told the Federal Communications Commission that its effort to op... More (Source: PCMag - Jan 8)
JAXA’S FIRST WOODEN SATELLITE DEPLOYS FROM SPACE STATION - In December 2024, five CubeSats deployed into Earth’s orbit from the International Space Station. Among them was LignoSat, a wooden satellite from JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) that investigates the use of wood in space. Findings could offer a more sustainable alternative to convent... More (Source: NASA - Jan 8)
CHINA LAUNCHES SHIJIAN-25 SATELLITE TO TEST ON-ORBIT REFUELING AND MISSION EXTENSION TECHNOLOGIES - China has kicked off its 2025 launch activities with the successful launch of the Shijian-25 satellite, aiming to advance key technologies for on-orbit refueling and extending satellite lifespans. A Long March 3B rocket lifted off at 3:00 p.m. Eastern, Jan. 6 (2000 UTC), climbing into a night sky... More (Source: SpaceNews - Jan 7)
SPACEX LAUNCHES FIRST DEDICATED STARLINK MISSION OF 2025 - SpaceX completed its first Starlink mission of the year on the first Monday of 2025. Onboard the Starlink 6-71 mission were 24 V2 Mini satellites headed to low Earth orbit. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 3:43 ... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 7)
HOW US-INDIAN NISAR SATELLITE WILL OFFER UNIQUE WINDOW ON EARTH - The upcoming U.S.-India NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) mission will observe Earth like no mission before, offering insights about our planet’s ever-changing surface. The NISAR mission is a first-of-a-kind dual-band radar satellite that will measure land deformation from earthquakes,... More (Source: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Jan 7)
TOP SATELLITE LAUNCHES TO WATCH IN 2025 - To kick off 2025, Via Satellite’s annual roundup of Top Launches to Watch is back, highlighting some of the top commercial satellites expected to launch this year. This list is not exhaustive. But first, a quick recap of 2024. We saw quite a few of the satellites on last year’s list take off... More (Source: Via Satellite - Jan 7)
SPACEWALK PREPS, SCIENCE, AND CARGO WORK KICK OFF NEW YEAR - Two NASA astronauts are scheduled to exit the orbital outpost’s Quest airlock this month for a spacewalk to checkout a pair of astrophysics experiments attached to the outside of the space station, as well as conduct other tasks. First, the NICER X-ray telescope will be serviced with a patch to pr... More (Source: NASA - Jan 7)
SPACEX TO ATTEMPT FIRST PAYLOAD DEPLOYMENT, ENGINE REUSE DURING STARSHIP FLIGHT 7 - SpaceX is launching into 2025 with what is poised to be a blistering pace of launch for its super heavy lift rocket, Starship. The company is angling for as many as 25 launches of the nearly 40-story-tall rocket, if approved by federal regulators. In a lengthy post to its website, SpaceX laid out... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 6)
SMALL SATELLITE CONSTELLATION COULD REVEAL BLACK HOLES LIKE NEVER BEFORE - Researchers in South Korea are developing a constellation of satellites that could reveal what goes on in the vicinity of supermassive black holes like never before. The constellation, dubbed Capella, is a brainchild of Seoul National University astronomy professor Sascha Trippe. An expert in bla... More (Source: Space.com - Jan 5)
ON A LONG-DORMANT PAD IN FLORIDA, A ROCKET THAT COULD CHALLENGE SPACEX’S DOMINANCE IS POISED TO LAUNCH - On a Florida launchpad that has been dormant for almost two decades, a new, roughly 320-foot (98-meter) rocket — developed by Jeff Bezos’ company Blue Origin — is poised for its maiden flight. The uncrewed launch vehicle, called New Glenn, will mark Blue Origin’s first attempt to send... More (Source: CNN - Jan 5)
NASA SEES STRONG SUPPORT FOR STRATEGY TO MAINTAIN CONTINUOUS HUMAN PRESENCE IN LEO - NASA’s deputy administrator says there is nearly unanimous support for its low Earth orbit microgravity strategy that endorses keeping humans in orbit continuously during the transition to commercial space stations. NASA released Dec. 16 a final version of LEO Microgravity Strategy that backed ... More (Source: SpaceNews - Jan 4)
SPACEX NOTCHES FIRST ORBITAL LAUNCH OF 2025 WITH MISSION FOR UAE-BASED SPACE42 - SpaceX kicked off the year of orbital launches around the globe when it completed its first Falcon 9 flight of 2025. Onboard was a telecommunications satellite designed to serve regions in Africa, Central Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Liftoff of the Thuraya 4-NGS (Next Generation System) miss... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 4)
INDIA LAUNCHES ITS FIRST ON-ORBIT DOCKING DEMONSTRATION IN 5TH AND FINAL LAUNCH OF 2024 - India made another important leap forward in its space program with the launch of its first on-orbit docking demonstration mission on Friday, Dec. 30. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched a PSLV C60 rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 10 p.m. IST (11:30 a.m. EST, 1630 ... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 3)
SPACE LAUNCH DELTA 45 BREAKS RECORDS, REMAINS WORLD'S BUSIEST SPACEPORT IN 2024 - Space Launch Delta 45 continued to “set the pace for space” as the world’s busiest spaceport in 2024. The SLD 45 team, composed of military and civilian Guardians and Airmen at Patrick Space Force Base and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, enabled 93 launches from the Eastern Range in 2024. ... More (Source: Vandenberg Space Force Base - Space Force - Jan 3)
ISRO TO LAUNCH US SATELLITE TO ENABLE VOICE CALLS VIA SMARTPHONES FROM SPACE - The Indian Space and Research Organisation (ISRO) will most likely launch an American communications satellite, which will allow phone calls to be made directly from space. This will be the first time when a US company introduces a massive communications satellite in a rocket from India, accordi... More (Source: Mint - Jan 2)
EARTH'S SPACE DEBRIS PROBLEM IS GETTING SO BAD IT'S JEOPARDIZING THE INTERNET AND ASTRONAUT MISSIONS - On October 19, the US Space Command revealed a troubling incident: the Intelsat 33e satellite broke into approximately 20 pieces, littering an already crowded space with large chunks of space debris. The cause remains unknown, but the event has reignited serious concerns about the increasing accu... More (Source: Earth.com - Jan 1)
OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD SPACE MISSIONS TO WATCH IN 2025 - In 2024, space exploration dazzled the world. NASA’s Europa Clipper began its journey to study Jupiter’s moon Europa. SpaceX’s Starship achieved its first successful landing, a critical milestone for future deep space missions. China made headlines with the Chang’e 6 mission, which succes... More (Source: PBS - Jan 1)
US PREPARES TO DEORBIT INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION AMID CHINA COMPETITION - Before the International Space Station was launched into orbit in 1998, the U.S. signed a document with several other countries to agree to the peaceful use of the orbital laboratory. The agreement included Russia, Japan, Canada and 11 European countries. China was left out of the plan. Nearly a... More (Source: FoxNews - Jan 1)
SPACEX LAUNCHES 21 STARLINK SATELLITES DURING FINAL ORBITAL LAUNCH OF 2024 - SpaceX ended its orbital launch year in the same way it began, by launching a batch of Starlink V2 Mini satellites including multiple featuring direct to cell phone capabilities. The Starlink 12-6 mission launched onboard the company’s 132nd and final Falcon 9 flight of 2024. Liftoff from Launc... More (Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jan 1)
