Industry News
Headlines from space publications, linked back to the original articles
Industry / News
- NASA Awards Contract for LISA Charge Management Device NASA · 21 Dec 2020 NASA has awarded the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) Charge Management Device (CMD) contract to the University of Florida, Gainesville.
- The more things change: Ansys acquisition isn’t likely to alter AGI or Comspoc SpaceNews · 21 Dec 2020 AGI announced plans to become a wholly owned subsidiary of Ansys in late October in a deal expected to close by the end of the year. In preparation, AGI is spinning off its Commercial Space Operations Center subsidiary a...
- Lockheed Martin to buy rocket engine-builder Aerojet Rocketdyne Spaceflight Now · 21 Dec 2020 Lockheed Martin, the largest U.S. defense contractor, announced late Sunday that has reached a deal valued at $4.4 billion to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne, a supplier of engines to NASA’s Space Launch System moon rocket an...
- NASA Discoveries, R&D, Moon to Mars Exploration Plans Persevere in 2020 NASA · 21 Dec 2020 “NASA has impressed the nation with our resilience and persistence during the pandemic,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine.
- Starship SN9 rolled to launch site – Super Heavy construction ramps up NASASpaceflight · 21 Dec 2020 SpaceX Boca Chica is now transitioning towards the next launch campaign, with Starship SN9 rolled out to the launch site on Tuesday. There remains a slim chance SN9 will be ready to launch before the end of the year, rep...
- Russia’s space chief cannot seem to get “gentle” SpaceX out of his mind Ars Technica · 21 Dec 2020 "I wonder if gentle SpaceX is able to work in such conditions?"
- Chang’e-5 orbiter embarks on extended mission to Sun-Earth Lagrange point SpaceNews · 21 Dec 2020 China’s Chang’e-5 orbiter is heading for a gravitationally stable point in space on an extended mission after delivering fresh lunar samples to Earth.
- Euclid's optical and infrared instruments integrated in spacecraft ESA · 21 Dec 2020 The optical and infrared instruments of Euclid, ESA's mission to study dark energy and dark matter in space, have passed their qualification and acceptance reviews and are now fully integrated into the spacecraft's paylo...
- SpaceX Starship factory sprouts another nosecone as ‘SN10’ nears completion Teslarati · 21 Dec 2020 Days after SpaceX’s second full-height Starship prototype took a minor tumble in an assembly bay, the company’s South Texas rocket factory has...
- Canadian astronaut to join NASA’s first crewed Artemis mission around the moon Spaceflight Now · 21 Dec 2020 A Canadian space flier will join three NASA crew members on the first piloted flight of the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft around the moon, becoming the first non-U.S. astronaut to fly on a lunar voyage, offici...
- SpaceX Falcon 9 ends year as the most-launched rocket of 2020 Teslarati · 20 Dec 2020 With just a few global launches left before 2021 and SpaceX’s last December launch behind it, it’s now safe to say that...
- Lockheed Martin to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne for $4.4 billion SpaceNews · 20 Dec 2020 Lockheed Martin announced Dec. 20 it has inked a deal to acquire rocket engine manufacturer Aerojet Rocketdyne for $4.4 billion.
- SpaceX closes out record-setting year of launches from Florida’s Space Coast Spaceflight Now · 19 Dec 2020 SpaceX hurled a secret cargo into space for the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency Saturday, the 30th rocket launch to fly into Earth orbit from pads on Florida’s Space Coast in 2020. The Falcon 9 flight broke an ann...
- SpaceX wraps up 2020 with Falcon 9 launch of classified NRO satellite SpaceNews · 19 Dec 2020 A Falcon 9 carrying the NROL-108 mission lifted off at Dec. 19 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern from Space Launch Complex 39 at Kennedy Space Center.
- SpaceX completes 2020 manifest with covert flight for NRO NASASpaceflight · 19 Dec 2020 Rounding off a record-breaking and historic launch manifest for 2020, SpaceX conduct its second dedicated launch for the United States National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) on Saturday – following a scrub on Thursday – wi...
- NASA moves Mars Sample Return program into next phase of development SpaceNews · 19 Dec 2020 NASA is moving ahead with work on a pair of Mars sample return missions, although some in the planetary science community worry how the cost of that effort will affect other projects.
- Senate passes NASA authorization act SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 The Senate unanimously approved a NASA authorization bill Dec. 18, a largely symbolic move intended to set up work on a new version of the legislation next year.
- NASA to skip repair of Orion electronics unit SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 NASA will not repair a faulty electronics unit on the Orion spacecraft recently completed for the Artemis 1 mission after concluding there was sufficient redundancy in the overall system.
- OneWeb resumes deployment of 650-satellite broadband network Spaceflight Now · 18 Dec 2020 The next 36 satellites for OneWeb’s broadband internet network fired into orbit from Russia’s Far East Friday on a Soyuz rocket, giving OneWeb 110 of a planned fleet of 650 spacecraft after the company emerged from bankr...
- OneWeb resumes satellite deployment with Soyuz launch SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 OneWeb resumed deployment of its broadband satellite constellation with a Dec. 18 launch of 36 satellites, the first since the company emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
- Rocket Report: Angara finally flies again, Falcon 9 customers embrace reuse Ars Technica · 18 Dec 2020 "We've fallen below the number of staff we feel we require."
- China rolls out Long March 8 rocket for weekend test flight SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 China has rolled out a Long March 8 to the pad for the first launch of a rocket that will later be adapted for vertical landing and reuse.
- Investigation confirms improperly connected cables caused Vega launch failure SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 An independent investigation of a Vega launch failure in November confirmed that misconnected cables in the rocket’s upper stage doomed the mission and made recommendations to allow a return to flight in early 2021.
- SpaceX’s first Starship booster a step closer as custom parts arrive Teslarati · 18 Dec 2020 While SpaceX remains focused on Starship flight testing as the dust settles from SN8’s launch debut, the company continues to make slow...
- Arianespace targets early 2021 for Vega return-to-flight Spaceflight Now · 18 Dec 2020 Presenting the results of an inquiry into a European Vega rocket failure last month, officials said Friday that misleading instructions and inadequate preflight checks caused teams to overlook wrongly-installed cables on...
- Arianespace launches 36 OneWeb satellites from Russia for the U.K. NASASpaceflight · 18 Dec 2020 Arianespace, contracted through OneWeb, used a Russian Soyuz 2.1b rocket with a Fregat upper stage to place 36 new OneWeb satellites into orbit for the British government. The move resumed OneWeb launch operations after...
- U.S. Space Force members are now guardians SpaceNews · 18 Dec 2020 Vice President Mike Pence announced at a ceremony at the White House that members of the Space Force will be called guardians.
- SpaceX Starlink rollout continues to uplift rural schools, Native Americans Teslarati · 17 Dec 2020 SpaceX continues to make a point of deploying nascent Starlink internet services – often for free – in ways that prioritize and...
- ULA’s new rocket Vulcan projected to launch in late 2021 SpaceNews · 17 Dec 2020 Tory Bruno said he is confident that Vulcan and first customer — Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander — will be on the launch pad “by the end of next year.”
- NASA Awards Contract for Cold Stowage II NASA · 17 Dec 2020 NASA has awarded a contract to the University of Alabama at Birmingham to provide a suite of freezers to maintain a controlled temperature environment for science samples aboard the International Space Station, as well a...
- NASA Awards Contract for X-59 Community Overflight Operations NASA · 17 Dec 2020 NASA has selected Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company of Palmdale, California, to provide support for the community overflight response phase of the agency’s Low-Boom Flight Demonstration (LBFD) mission, part of the Inte...
- NASA Moves Forward With Campaign to Return Mars Samples to Earth NASA · 17 Dec 2020 During this next phase, the program will mature critical technologies and make critical design decisions as well as assess industry partnerships.
- NASA Moves Forward with Campaign to Return Mars Samples to Earth NASA · 17 Dec 2020 NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) are moving to the next phase in a campaign to deepen understanding of whether life ever existed on Mars and, in turn, better understand the origins of life on Earth.
- Raymond on China’s space program: “It’s alive, well and concerning” SpaceNews · 17 Dec 2020 China’s leapfrogging advances in space are cause for national security concern, the head of the U.S. Space Force said Dec. 17.
- NASA Opens Limited Media Credentialing for Mars Perseverance Rover Landing NASA · 17 Dec 2020 Due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California will credential a limited number of media for on-site access to cover the Feb. 18, 2021, landing of NASA's...
- CesiumAstro founder closes in on decades-old dream SpaceNews · 17 Dec 2020 CesiumAstro has raised $29.2 million to date to establish its business of selling phased array communications and radio frequency sensing payloads for government and commercial customers including the Aerospace Corp., Ai...
- OneWeb satellites awaiting launch on Soyuz rocket Friday Spaceflight Now · 17 Dec 2020 After a nine-month hiatus caused by bankruptcy, the deployment of OneWeb’s broadband network will resume Friday with the launch of the company’s next 36 satellites on a Soyuz rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russi...
- New ESA director general sees EU relations and commercialization as priorities SpaceNews · 17 Dec 2020 The next leader of the European Space Agency says his top priorities are to improve the agency’s relationship with the European Union and support commercial space activities in Europe.
- NASA, UN Sign Memorandum of Understanding on Peaceful Uses of Space NASA · 17 Dec 2020 NASA and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) pledging cooperation in areas of science and technology to support the peaceful use of outer space.
- PSLV delivers Indian communications satellite into orbit Spaceflight Now · 17 Dec 2020 A government communications satellite to link Indian citizens with telemedicine, education, and other services rocketed into orbit Thursday on an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.