News
Dawn Enters Orbit Around Ceres
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft arrived in orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres March 6, completing a journey of nearly seven and a half years and five billion kilometers.
Higher-speed Globalstar Service To Roll Out This Year in North America
Globalstar said its upgraded ground segment, which allows customers to take full advantage of its second-generation satellite constellation, should be in service late this year in North Amercia, with Brazil and Europe to follow.
SES Selects Ariane 5 To Launch SES-15 Satellite
SES announced that Europe’s Arianespace launch consortium would launch the SES-15 satellite in mid-2017 aboard an Ariane 5 rocket.
Inmarsat Sticks to Global Xpress Projections Despite Military Sales Downturn
Inmarsat said it expects its third Global Xpress high-throughput Ka-band satellite to be launched by June, with global commercial service to begin later this year, a timeline the company said gives it first-to-market advantage over its competitors.
French Space Minister Who Paved Way for Ariane 6 Resigns
French space minister Genevieve Fioraso on March 5 resigned from her position, citing health reasons that had been known for several months.
India To Fly RLV Tech Demo by June
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will conduct its long-delayed initial test flight of a reusable launcher technology demonstrator by midyear.
SpaceX Gets “Partial Win” in Blue Origin Patent Dispute
A patent board offered SpaceX a split decision on its protest of a reusable launch vehicle patent held by Blue Origin, approving a review of some, but not all, claims of that patent.
ESA: U.S. Silence on Satellite Explosion No Cause for Alarm
The French and European space agencies have received no word from the U.S. Air Force in the month since the Feb. 3 debris-producing explosion aboard a military weather satellite in a heavily trafficked orbit but said they hadn’t expected any.
NASA Making Plans for Russia’s Secession From ISS
NASA is mulling how it will keep the International Space Station in orbit past 2024 if Russia follows through on plans to detach the orbital outpost’s Russian modules and form a new space station.
Weather Satellite Breakup No Big Risk to Nearby ESA Missions
Space debris experts at the European Space Agency said March 4 that they have concluded the explosive breakup of a U.S. Air Force weather satellite last month does not present a threat to nearby ESA spacecraft.