First RFA launch in a “matter of weeks”
WASHINGTON — Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) is “a matter of weeks” away from attempting its first orbital launch, according to the chief executive of its corporate parent.
WASHINGTON — Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) is “a matter of weeks” away from attempting its first orbital launch, according to the chief executive of its corporate parent.
WASHINGTON — SpaceX launched the latest in its series of dedicated rideshare missions Aug. 16, putting more than 100 satellites for commercial and government customers into orbit.
FARNBOROUGH, England — The European Space Agency is optimistic that its “launcher crisis” is behind it after the mostly successful inaugural launch of the Ariane 6 earlier this month.
HELSINKI — China is aiming to work with 50 countries on its ILRS lunar south pole base program as efforts to attract partners continue.
WASHINGTON — U.S. defense contractor Raytheon on July 23 announced a strategic partnership with Italian aerospace firm Avio to develop solid rocket motors for military applications and help address shortages in the U.S. defense industrial base.
TAMPA, Fla. — Astranis has raised $200 million to fully fund its Omega program up to the launch of the first next-generation broadband spacecraft in 2026, the geostationary satellite maker announced July 24.
The 212-foot (65-meter) stage then made the half-mile (0.8 km) journey to NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building where it will eventually be joined to the rest of the Space Launch System rocket for a launch no earlier than September 2025.
The extrasolar planet or “exoplanet” is located in the triple star system Epsilon Indi, which sits around 12 light-years away. The planet is designated Eps Ind Ab and has a mass around six times that of Jupiter; it orbits its red dwarf parent star at a distance similar to that between Neptune and the sun. This gives the world a surface temperature of around 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) and means one orbit of the planet takes around 200 Earth years.
The solar system’s tiniest planet may be hiding a big secret. Using data from NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft, scientists have determined that a 10-mile-thick diamond mantle may lie beneath the crust of Mercury, the closest planet to the sun.
WASHINGTON — Orbital Insight, a geospatial data analytics firm recently acquired by space data company Privateer, has secured a $2 million contract from the U.S. National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) for commercial geospatial data services, the agency announced July 23.
LONDON — A NASA committee concluded there is no way to continue operating the Chandra X-ray Observatory at the reduced funding level proposed by NASA in its 2025 budget proposal.
When Space.com opened its doors to the world on July 20, 1999, humanity knew about fewer than 30 exoplanets. Today, as you read this article, that number shoots well beyond 5,000.
NASA will perform its own re-authorization of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 before the rocket launches its next astronaut crew or cargo mission, the agency confirmed Wednesday (July 17).
Humans have occupied low Earth orbit (LEO) over the past half century thanks to the Salyut, Skylab, Mir and Tiangong programs and, of course, the International Space Station (ISS). Aside from providing incredible views of Earth, these space stations have proved that humans can live and work in space while bringing unique lessons about microgravity and the cosmos. They have taught us about the challenges of living in microgravity and the fragility of life beyond our planetary cradle.