It is said that any landing you can walk away from is a good one. But, if there had been anyone aboard SpaceX’s Starlink SN10 rocket ton Wednesday, they would have had to run away. Even then, they might not have made it. SpaceX successfully landing the SN10 vehicle on Wednesday after a 10 km (6.2 mile) hop from the company’s test site in Boca Chica, Texas. It was a […]

Chinese launch provider iSpace (aka, Beijing Interstellar Glory Space Technology Co.) says that a piece of foam insulation caused the failure of its Hyperbola-1 rocket on Feb. 1. “The flight failure…was located at a piece of insulation foam that should have fallen off. After falling off, it fell on the No. 4 grid rudder, causing the IV grid rudder to be blocked under the action of aerodynamic pressure,” the company […]

by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to build a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant to produce dishes, Wi-Fi routers and related devices for the Starlink satellite broadband network in Austin, Texas, and establish the “city of Starbase” at Boca Chica, Texas.

“Specifically, they will design and develop control systems and software for production line machinery – ultimately tackling the toughest mechanical, software, and electrical challenges that come with high volume manufacturing, all while maintaining a focus on flexibility, reliability, maintainability, and ease of use,” said a job posting for the position of automation and controls engineer.

By Thaddeus Cesari
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

GREENBELT, Md. — February marked significant progress for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, which completed its final functional performance tests at Northrop Grumman in Redondo Beach, California. Testing teams successfully completed two important milestones that confirmed the observatory’s internal electronics are all functioning as intended, and that the spacecraft and its four scientific instruments can send and receive data properly through the same network they will use in space. These milestones move Webb closer to being ready to launch in October.

DENVER, March 1, 2021 (Lockheed Martin PR) — Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) have signed a joint collaboration agreement to extend their partnership utilizing NEC’s System Invariant Analysis Technology (SIAT). The companies are also finalizing a licensing agreement with a multi-year option.

• Polar Vigilance Mission (KSF1) satellites have passed a hardware critical design review milestone with satellite builder ISISPACE
• Satellites now enter Assembly Phase with ISISPACE for a mid-2021 launch onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle
• Kleos’ Scouting Mission satellites (KSM1) in commission and test phases

Luxembourg – Kleos Space S.A. (ASX: KSS, Frankfurt: KS1,) a space-powered Radio Frequency Reconnaissance data-as-a-service (DaaS) company, confirms its second satellite cluster, the Polar Vigilance Mission (KSF1), has successfully completed a hardware critical design review milestone for a launch mid-year onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9.

Satellite developer ISISPACE, conducts the design progress in the Netherlands. Passing this milestone ensures that Kleos’ Polar Vigilance Mission satellites can enter the assembly and verification phase. This exciting stage leads to final integration, testing and delivery of the satellites for launch.

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase I Award
Funding: up to $125,000
Study Period: 9 months

Atomic Planar Power for Lightweight Exploration (APPLE)
E. Joseph Nemanick
The Aerospace Corporation
Santa Monica, Calif.

The Atomic Planar Power for Lightweight Exploration (APPLE) is an enabling architecture for deep solar system missions on low mass, fast transit space platforms. We explore an alternative vehicle architecture that integrates a long-lived, peak power capable, rechargeable, and modular power system with solar sail propulsion, and examine the new missions this architecture enables.

Eight crew members wanted! Join Yusaku Maezawa on the journey to the Moon! ▼dearMoon official website https://dearmoon.earth/​ “dearMoon” – the first civilian lunar orbital mission – is planned to lift off in 2023. Two years after the press conference that drew international attention, MZ has a big update to share. The video also contains a special message from SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk.

Video Caption: Want to know more about space weather? Comment with your questions for a Q&A with NOAA space weather experts. Just like we experience weather on Earth, there’s weather in space! The Sun may look very constant and quiet from Earth, but it’s constantly spewing out a stream of particles called the solar wind. Space weather is activity on the Sun that can affect Earth and interact with our […]

The partnership combines ICEYE’s flood monitoring competence with Swiss Re’s risk knowledge to provide enhanced insights and tailored solutions for reinsurance and insurance clients worldwide.

HELSINKI, Finland, March 2, 2021 (ICEYE PR) – ICEYE, the largest commercial synthetic-aperture Radar (SAR) satellite operator and flood monitoring provider, announces its strategic partnership with Swiss Re, one of the world’s leading providers of reinsurance and insurance. Building on ICEYE’s innovative technology, the partnership will advance flood risk management, assist disaster response and speed up claims payments globally. Swiss Re’s clients will benefit from enhanced insights and bespoke solutions.

LAS CRUCES, NM, March 2, 2021 (NMSA PR) — Scott A. McLaughlin, a New Mexico native and a long- time business and engineering professional, has been selected by the New Mexico Spaceport Authority Board of Directors as the new executive director of Spaceport America, Cabinet Secretary Alicia J. Keyes announced today.

McLaughlin graduated from New Mexico State University with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering, and has worked at several government agencies, including the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as well as in the private sector with tech and engineering companies.

He served as Director of Business Development at Spaceport America prior to being named interim Executive Director of Spaceport America in July 2020.

HOUSTON (NASA PR) — NASA astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover concluded their spacewalk on Sunday at 1:16 p.m. EST, after 7 hours and 4 minutes. In the third spacewalk of the year outside the International Space Station, the two NASA astronauts began work to install modification kits required for upcoming solar array upgrades.