HISTORIC ISRAELI MINI-SATELLITE TO BE LAUNCHED WITH FRENCH COOPERATION - Israel’s first environmental satellite, named “Venus” – the major project of the Israel Space Agency and the French space agency CNES – will be launched from French Guinea at 4:58 a.m. on August 2. Science and Technology Minister Ofir Akunis called the upcoming launch an “important national event.” Israel, he said, is “known around the world for its boldness and innovation, which are expressed also in the technological developments of ‘Venus.’    More
(Source: The Jerusalem Post - Jul 26)

SPACE STATION TO PERFORM THREE ORBIT CHASE OF SOLAR ECLIPSE - Astronauts aboard the International Space Station may have the best windows for viewing the Great American Eclipse as they photograph and record August’s astronomical event during three consecutive orbits. Soaring 255 miles above, the six person crew of Expedition 52 will have detailed observation objectives in place as they point cameras from the Cupola’s windows while they trek across North America once every 91 minutes. They will also be the first humans to witness this solar eclipse thanks to orbital mechanics.   More
(Source: Avgeekery - Jul 26)

BROKEN ANTENNA DELAYS LAUNCH OF NASA COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE - NASA is postponing the launch of one of its communications satellites after an antenna on the vehicle was somehow damaged during mission preparations over a week ago. That satellite is the TDRS-M, for Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, and it was scheduled to launch on August 3rd from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on top of an Atlas V rocket made by the United Launch Alliance. But now, NASA, ULA, and Boeing — the manufacturer of the satellite — are trying to figure out a new time to launch the probe in August, so the satellite’s antenna can be replaced before then.   More
(Source: The Verge - Jul 25)

LAUNCH PREPS IN KAZAKHSTAN; CANCER THERAPIES RESEARCHED ON STATION - A new International Space Station crew is less than a week away from beginning a 4-1/2 month mission living and working in space. The trio from the United States, Russia and Italy is in Kazakhstan counting down to a Friday launch at 11:41 a.m. EDT inside the Soyuz MS-05 spacecraft. Cosmonaut Sergey Ryazanskiy will command the Soyuz vehicle during the six-hour, 19-minute ride from Earth to the station’s Rassvet module.    More
(Source: NASA - Jul 25)

RUSSIAN FIRST 3D PRINTED SATELLITE TO GO INTO SPACE - The Russian crew of the International Space Station (ISS) on August 17 will launch into the open space the first 3D printed Russian satellite. The Tomsk-TPU-120 satellite has been at ISS since spring, 2016, awaiting going into the space, press service of the Tomsk Polytechnic University said on Monday. "On Monday, the satellite’s systems will be checked, and its batteries will be charged from the Station onboard equipment," the press service said. "The launch is scheduled for August 17."    More
(Source: TASS - Jul 25)

BRITAIN WANTS TO REMAIN WITH COPERNICUS AFTER BREXIT - Britain wants to remain a part of the European Union’s Copernicus Earth observation satellite program even after the country exits the EU. Greg Clark, business secretary in the British government, said this week that “we want our companies and universities to continue participating in key EU space programs” such as Copernicus. Such participation would have to be negotiated as part of the U.K.’s Brexit talks with the EU. The comments came at an event to mark the completion of the latest Copernicus satellite, Sentinel-5P, at an Airbus factory in the U.K.    More
(Source: SpaceNews - Jul 23)

SOYUZ LIFTOFF GLIMPSED BY ORBITING OBSERVER AND LAUNCH PAD CAMERAS - The launch of a Russian Soyuz rocket July 14 with more than 70 satellites was captured in multiple views from a sharp-eyed orbiting nanosatellite and cameras positioned around the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Russian state space corporation, Roscosmos, released a video clip containing imagery of last week’s blastoff from several cameras placed around Launch Pad No. 31 at Baikonur, where the Soyuz rocket soared into space at 0636 GMT (2:36 a.m. EDT; 12:36 p.m. Baikonur time) July 14.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Jul 22)

GERMANY’S LONG-AWAITED HEINRICH HERTZ SATELLITE NOW EXPECTED TO LAUNCH IN 2021 - Germany’s space agency, DLR, signed a delayed but long-expected contract with Bremen-based satellite manufacturer OHB Systems for an experimental telecommunications satellite that will be used in part by the Bundeswehr, Germany’s Federal Armed Forces. The 310.5 million euro ($362.2 million) contract for the production and launch of the satellite, known as Heinrich Hertz, follows an 11 million euro contract to OHB in 2011, at which point the satellite was scheduled to launch in 2016. DLR and OHB said in June that they now anticipate launching the satellite in 2021. In a July 20 interview with SpaceNews, Gerd Gruppe, a member of the DLR executive board, attributed the five-year delay in part to the mission concept changing during the early planning phase.   More
(Source: SpaceNews - Jul 22)

GOOGLE MAPS ADDS THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - The International Space Station has become the first "off planet" addition to Google Maps' Street View facility. Astronauts helped capture 360-degree panoramas of the insides of the ISS modules, as well as views down to the Earth below. Some of the photography features pop-up text descriptions, marking the first time such annotations have appeared on the Maps platform. This is not the first time 360-degree imagery has been captured beyond Earth.   More
(Source: BBC News - Jul 21)

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