ATMOSPHERIC RESEARCH SATELLITES LAUNCHED BY CHANG ZHENG 11 - China successfully launched three Tianping-2 satellites from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Wednesday morning using the Chang Zheng 11 rocket. The information surrounding the payload of Tianping-2 satellites is not comprehensive, however, they are built by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC). Three individual satellites, Tianping-2 A, Tianping-2 B, and Tianping-2 C, were successfully inserted into Earth orbit and will perform atmospheric research, data collection, forecasting, and modeling.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlignt.com - Mar 31)

SOYUZ RETURNS ASTRONAUT AND COSMONAUTS FROM SPACE STATION - A Soyuz spacecraft carrying an American astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts landed in Kazakhstan March 30, an ordinary end of a mission in extraordinary times. The Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft landed in the designated landing zone in Kazakhstan at 7:28 a.m. Eastern, four hours after undocking from the International Space Station. The landing appeared to go as planned, with the Soyuz commander, Anton Shkaplerov, saying “we’re feeling great” as the Soyuz descended. The Soyuz returned Shkaplerov, who flew to the station on that Soyuz spacecraft nearly six months ago, as well as Pyotr Dubrov and NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Mar 31)

NASA ASTRONAUT BACK ON EARTH AFTER RECORD-SETTING FLIGHT - NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei joined two Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz spacecraft, undocked from the International Space Station and plunged back to Earth Wednesday, landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan to close out a U.S.-record 355-day stay in space. Despite a break in East-West relations following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, station operations have continued normally and Vande Hei was ferried home as planned with Soyuz MS-19/65S commander Anton Shkaplerov and flight engineer Pyotr Dubrov.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 31)

RUSSIAN COSMONAUT HANDS OVER SPACE STATION COMMAND AS NASA ASTRONAUT BIDS FAREWELL - Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov handed over "the keys" to the International Space Station today (March 29) as NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei said goodbye to the international space crew. In a ceremony aboard the orbiting lab that NASA broadcast on a livestream this morning, Shkaplerov formally shifted his command of the station to NASA astronaut Thomas Marshburn.    More
(Source: Space.com - Mar 30)

SOYUZ MS-19 TO LAND IN KAZAKHSTAN AMID TENSE U.S.-RUSSIAN RELATIONS - At 07:21 UTC on March 30, Soyuz MS-19 will undock from the International Space Station (ISS) and subsequently land on the Kazakh Steppe around 11:29 UTC later that day. This will conclude a five-month mission for the spacecraft, and the second-ever one-year mission by an American astronaut. The landing crew of Soyuz MS-19 consists of Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov – serving as the commander – and Pyotr Dubrov of Roscosmos as well as American astronaut Mark Vande Hei of NASA. Both Dubrov and Vande Hei launched on Soyuz MS-18 on April 9, 2021, and have had long-term stays at the ISS.   More
(Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Mar 30)

BIDEN’S 2023 DEFENSE BUDGET ADDS BILLIONS FOR U.S. SPACE FORCE - President Biden’s $773 billion budget request for the Defense Department for fiscal year 2023 includes $24.5 billion for the U.S. Space Force and the Space Development Agency — about $5 billion more than what Congress enacted in 2022. The White House on March 28 unveiled the president’s funding request for the coming fiscal year that begins Oct 1. The proposed $773 billion would give the Pentagon $17 billion more than what Congress enacted for 2022.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Mar 30)

SPUDNIK-1, A UPEI-MADE SATELLITE, BEGINS TESTS FOR SPACE ORBIT - A tiny satellite being designed at UPEI is one step closer to blasting off into orbit later this year. The team behind the satellite, dubbed SpudNik-1, met with members of the Canadian Space Agency last week to go over design and testing plans before starting the testing phase of the project. "It's exciting to actually get to the point where we'll be able to start hooking everything up together, seeing how it performs and doing the last modifications before it's ready for launch,"...   More
(Source: CBC - Mar 29)

TRIO SET TO GO HOME WEDNESDAY; FIRST PRIVATE ASTRONAUT MISSION NEARS - Three Expedition 66 Flight Engineers are returning to Earth in less than two days as four private astronauts prepare for their mission to the International Space Station. The crew activities haven’t stopped the ongoing space research as the orbital residents studied biology, botany, and physics on Monday. NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei is nearing the end of his mission as he prepares to return to Earth on Wednesday after a NASA-record breaking 355 days in space.    More
(Source: NASA - Mar 29)

SPACEX'S AX-1 ASTRONAUT MISSION TO THE SPACE STATION DELAYED TO APRIL 6 - The first all-private crewed mission to the International Space Station won't launch this weekend after all. Axiom Space's Ax-1 mission had been targeting a Sunday (April 3) liftoff from NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. But on Monday (March 28), NASA officially approved Friday (April 1) through Sunday for the crucial "wet dress rehearsal" of its Artemis 1 moon mission, a practice session that's also taking place at KSC. So Ax-1 is getting pushed a few days.    More
(Source: Space.com - Mar 29)

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