US GIRDS ITS SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE IN SPACE DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC - In 2016 a Navy satellite called MUOS-5 wasn’t doing well. Partway to its intended orbit, it simply stalled out — but because the spacecraft was already so far away, the dilemma’s details were hard to discern. That’s where the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program came in: GSSAP satellites can sidle up to and take pictures of other orbiters, beaming the portraits back to Earth. So from Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado, operators maneuvered the agile GSSAP satellite close to the inert MUOS-5 to inspect it.   More
(Source: CNBC - Apr 19)

AN OLD SATELLITE GETS A NEW LEASE ON LIFE, THANKS TO THE HELP OF A SERVICING SATELLITE - An old communications satellite in orbit around Earth is back in service again after being nudged into new life-saving orbit by another satellite. Intelsat 901, which has been in space since 2001, is now providing telecommunications coverage over the Atlantic again after being moved to a new location in space by a servicer satellite, extending the vehicle’s mission by at least five years.   More
(Source: The Verge - Apr 19)

SPACEX WILL LAUNCH TWO ASTRONAUTS TO INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ON MAY 27, NASA SAYS - Nine years after the last space shuttle flight, NASA plans to launch two U.S. astronauts aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule May 27 for a trip to the International Space Station, the agency announced Friday. The historic test flight will herald the end of America's sole reliance on Russia for basic space transportation.   More
(Source: CBS News - Apr 18)

SOYUZ WITH CREW OF THREE LANDS SAFELY IN KAZAKHSTAN - A Russian cosmonaut and his two NASA crewmates undocked from the International Space Station and landed in Kazakhstan early Friday, returning to an unfamiliar world in the grip of a pandemic that will force them to extend the social isolation they were hoping to end. “It’s a little bit surreal to think that we’re going back, especially given the situation that’s been unfolding on the ground,” flight engineer Jessica Meir told a reporter Wednesday. “It looks like we are going back to a completely different planet. So it will be certainly an interesting experience for us.”   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 18)

THREE SPACE TRAVELERS WILL RETURN TO EARTH TONIGHT! HERE'S HOW TO WATCH LIVE. - Three spaceflyers will return to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) early Friday morning (April 17), and you can watch their homecoming live. The action starts this evening (April 16) at 6 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT), when NASA astronauts Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir and cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka start saying goodbye to the three crewmembers who will remain aboard the orbiting lab. Watch the farewells live online here and on the Space.com homepage, courtesy of NASA, or directly via the space agency.   More
(Source: Space.com - Apr 17)

SPACEX COMPETITOR TO LAUNCH JAPANESE SATELLITE CONSTELLATION IN 2020 - Rocket Lab, the startup space company that is aiming for reusable rockets to compete with SpaceX’s, will launch the first satellite of a planned Japanese constellation, the company announced. The U.S. rocket company will launch the StriX-α satellite for Synspective, marking the first member of a set of satellites that will scour the Earth in synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The satellites will thus be able to peer at the surface, even in rainy or cloudy or dark conditions — allowing for better monitoring.   More
(Source: Forbes - Apr 16)

RUSSIA TESTS DIRECT-ASCENT ANTI-SATELLITE MISSILE - U.S. Space Command is aware and tracking Russia’s direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) missile test April 15. “Russia’s DA-ASAT test provides yet another example that the threats to U.S. and allied space systems are real, serious and growing,” said Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond, USSPACECOM commander and U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations. “The United States is ready and committed to deterring aggression and defending the Nation, our allies and U.S. interests from hostile acts in space.”   More
(Source: Spacecom - Apr 16)

ROCKET LAB INKS DEAL TO CARRY JAPANESE STARTUP SYNSPECTIVE’S FIRST SATELLITE INTO ORBIT - The well-funded Japanese space startup Synspective has tapped launch provider Rocket Lab to take its first Earth observation satellite to orbit. Launch is planned for late 2020, and the company’s StriX–α craft will be the sole payload. Synspective was founded in 2018 and by mid-2019 had raised about $100 million, making it one of the most successful recent funding stories in the country. It’s going to need all that and more, though, to realize its ambition of a 25-satellite constellation regularly imaging the whole planet.   More
(Source: TechCrunch - Apr 15)

FLORIDA LAUNCH RANGE REMAINS OPEN; FALCON 9 MISSION POSTPONED - Range personnel at Cape Canaveral will employ physical distancing, face covers and other cautionary measures to reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus during launch operations, the commander of the U.S. military’s 45th Space Wing said. But the next launch from Cape Canaveral has been postponed from Thursday until no earlier than next week, sources said. SpaceX is planning to fire off a Falcon 9 rocket with the next batch of Starlink Internet satellites.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 15)

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