SpaceX cargo craft will soon reach much farther out into the final frontier, if all goes according to plan.
The California-based company already flies cargo missions to and from the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA. Now, SpaceX has scored a contract to supply Gateway , the moon-orbiting space station that the agency aims to start building in 2022, agency officials announced Friday (March 27).
Gateway is a key part of NASA's Artemis exploration program , which seeks to establish a sustainable, long-term human presence on and around the moon by the late 2020s. The small space station will serve as a jumping-off point for sorties, both crewed and uncrewed, to the lunar surface.
And here's another article:
SpaceX puts 60 satellites into orbit despite engine failure
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX launched 60 more of its internet satellites into orbit Wednesday despite an engine failure shortly after liftoff on a recycled rocket flying a record five times.
"Shows value of having 9 engines! Thorough investigation needed before next mission," Musk tweeted.
"Last launch aborted due to slightly high power. Possibly, but not obviously, related to today," Musk said.
This particular first-stage booster won't be flying again. Instead of landing upright on a floating offshore platform, the booster missed and slammed into the Atlantic Ocean.
US Space Force sends its first payload into orbit
The US Space Force has delivered its first national security payload into orbit, with a satellite successfully lifting off atop a United Launch Alliance rocket today. The spacecraft is the final piece of the puzzle in a network of protected communications satellites for US armed forces, with the launch running smoothly following a slight hiccup on the launchpad.
Built by Lockheed Martin, the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) family of satellites is designed to provide constant, protected communications services for US warfighters on the ground, sea and air. The first five of these were launched between 2010 and 2019 using the United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket, before the US Space Force was established last December.
NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 26 March 2020 - Engineered Heart Tissues - SpaceRef
NASA astronaut and Expedition 62 Flight Engineer Andrew Morgan retrieves gut microbe samples from a science freezer for the Rhodium Space Microbiome experiment to understand how microgravity enriches or depletes the microbes that affect astronaut health. Credit: NASA. (Mar. 23, 2020)
Cardiac research and 3D bioprinting aboard the International Space Station today are helping NASA improve health for humans in space and on Earth.
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Three new Expedition 63 crewmembers are in Kazakhstan just two weeks away from beginning a 195-day mission on the station. NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy joined Roscosmos cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner for a traditional flag-raising ceremony today outside the Cosmonaut Hotel at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The trio is due to liftoff April 9 at 4:05 a.m. EDT and arrive at their new home in space about six-and-a-half hours later.
Not to change the topic here:
The strange orbits of 'Tatooine' planetary disks (w/video)
Xplore selects Orbit Fab's RAFTI design standard for deep space missions
Airbus Successfully Completes In Orbit Commissioning Of CHEOPS - SpaceWatch.Global
Airbus announced on 26 March 2020 that it has received confirmation from ESA of a successful end to the In Orbit Commissioning (IOC) of CHEOPS after the IOC review on 25 March. This critical phase was performed by Airbus in Spain with the support of the Instrument Team (University of Bern), Mission Operation Centre (INTA), Science Operation Centre (University of Geneva) and ESA.
The IOC phase started on 7 January and over the past two and a half months Airbus has conducted the operations to verify the performance of the satellite (platform and instrument), the ground segment and the science package. During this time the main goal was to consolidate the documentation, processes and procedures for use during the operational phase.
SpaceX Rival OneWeb To File For Bankruptcy As Soon As Today, With 74 Satellites Still In Orbit
According to reports circulating today, Friday, March 27, the U.K. space internet company OneWeb has filed for bankruptcy, after failing to raise enough funding to keep the company operational.
OneWeb was in competition with SpaceX and other companies to beam global high-speed internet to Earth from space. Last Sunday, March 22, a Russian Soyuz rocket launched 34 satellites for the company, bringing its total number of satellites in orbit up to 74.
Happening on Twitter
NASA picks SpaceX to fly cargo to moon-orbiting Gateway space station https://t.co/yBFMPwt6yq https://t.co/2ghloFjcKb SPACEdotcom (from NYC) Fri Mar 27 23:37:05 +0000 2020
SpaceX will use Falcon Heavy rockets and a new spacecraft variation called "Dragon XL" to send cargo to NASA's luna… https://t.co/FSgw3lcAgM thesheetztweetz (from Southern California & New York) Fri Mar 27 19:00:01 +0000 2020
