Science

WASHINGTON — A NASA astronaut will fly on a Soyuz mission to the International Space Station in April, as the agency confirmed a peculiar arrangement for obtaining a seat on the Russian spacecraft. NASA said March 9 that Mark Vande Hei will join the crew of the Soyuz MS-18 mission to the station, launching April

A volcanologist travels to and descends down the rim of a caldera. A geophysicist travels to and scales a glacier to drill samples. Scientists travel and work across Antarctica. A scientist studying phenomena of liquids and gases for use in the weightlessness of spaceflight sits on the ground. Play the child’s riddle: which one of

HELSINKI — China has quietly rolled a new-generation Long March 7A rocket at Wenchang ahead of a launch in the coming days. The 60-meter-long kerosene-liquid oxygen fueled Long March 7A was rolled out late March 7 Eastern. Launch could take place as soon as late March 10 Eastern from the coastal Wenchang launch center. The

WASHINGTON — Proponents of a proposed Georgia launch site remain optimistic they will win approval from the Federal Aviation Administration despite another delay in the environmental review process. The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation informed stakeholders in the ongoing assessment of Spaceport Camden in Camden County, Georgia, March 5 that a final version of

Is NASA’s ISS price hike a conspiracy to kill entrepreneurial space? I am not into conspiracies. Kennedy was shot by a lone gunman. The World Trade Center was taken down by terrorists. And yes, we really did go to the moon. However, the recent move by NASA to essentially gut private sector activities on the

Reps. Frank Lucas and Brian Babin, who oversee civil and commercial space, expressed concerns about the administration’s push for international regulation of space activities. WASHINGTON — The top House Republicans on the committee that oversees civil and commercial space are asking the Biden administration to update lawmakers on its plans regarding space security and space

WASHINGTON — NASA’s Perseverance rover has started moving on the Martian surface as project scientists prepare to send the rover toward the remnants of a river delta in search of signs of past life. At a March 5 press briefing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, project officials said that the rover made its first movements

SEOUL, South Korea — Kencoa Aerospace Corp., a South Korean aircraft assembler and parts supplier that has NASA, SpaceX and Blue Origin as clients, is planning to expand its U.S. parts manufacturing plant in Georgia. The company raised 30 billion won ($26.6 million) in February by issuing convertible bonds to domestic institutional investors and will

Updated March 5 with NASA comment. WASHINGTON — NASA has sharply increased the prices it charges commercial users of the International Space Station for cargo and other resources, a move that has left some companies confused and frustrated. NASA announced Feb. 25 that it was revising the commercial marketing pricing policy it first published in

The contract is for “tradespace analysis support” for the Space Acquisition Management Directorate, at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force awarded LinQuest Corp. a $500 million contract for analysis work over five years. The contract was awarded Jan. 4 but the Defense Department announced it March 5. Based in Los

Updated 9:45 a.m. Eastern. WASHINGTON — The longtime chief executive of Virgin Galactic, who moved into a new position at the company last year, has left the company but will continue to be an adviser to it. Whitesides is leaving the position of Virgin Galactic’s chief space officer to pursue unspecified opportunities in public service,

AFRL: ‘While the fundamental processes forming the ionosphere are generally known, it is a very complex system and there are many details yet to be understood.’ WASHINGTON — A three-stage suborbital sounding rocket on March 3 launched an Air Force Research Laboratory experiment from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.  This was the first sounding

The Space Development Agency expects Tranche 1 satellites to cost “significantly less” than the $14 million average price it paid for Tranche 0 satellites. WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s Space Development Agency will solicit bids for an upcoming procurement of up to 150 satellites to be launched in late 2024, agency director Derek Tournear said March

WASHINGTON — A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched a new set of Starlink satellites and landed the booster March 4, two and a half weeks after the landing failed on the previous launch. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center at 3:24 a.m. Eastern. The rocket deployed its payload

WASHINGTON — SpaceX launched a prototype of its Starship next-generation vehicle March 3, landing it safely only to have the vehicle explode minutes later. The Starship SN10 vehicle lifted off from the company’s Boca Chica, Texas, test site at about 6:15 p.m. Eastern. A launch attempt three hours earlier was aborted at engine ignition because

Back in the 1990s, space advocates had visions of reusable launch vehicles that would lower the cost of getting to orbit, opening the door to everything from space hotels to space solar power satellites. The problem, they argued at conferences as they showed viewgraphs of their designs, was not technical but financial: few were willing

NGA is pushing for innovation and agility as China continues to advance its space-based remote sensing capabilities. WASHINGTON — The United States is in a “great power competition” and the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency is being challenged to provide faster and better products and services, the agency’s deputy director Stacey Dixon said March 2. To

TAMPA, Fla. — KVH Industries, the U.S. maritime satellite-connectivity specialist, expects clear sailing ahead after growing quarterly revenues despite shaky seas for cruise ships. KVH said cost-containment measures, and strong sales of its TACNAV tactical navigation products to military customers increasingly worried about GPS resiliency, delivered one of its strongest fourth-quarter results from continuing operations

WASHINGTON — A growing realization of the need for a medium-class launch vehicle led Rocket Lab to speed up its plans to go public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Rocket Lab announced March 1 it would merge with Vector Acquisition Corporation, a SPAC established by venture fund Vector Capital. The deal, expected

WASHINGTON — A Falcon 9 first stage failed to land after a launch last month because one of its engines shut down during flight after hot gas breached a worn-out cover. During a NASA press conference March 1 about the upcoming Crew-2 commercial crew flight, Benji Reed, senior director for human spaceflight programs at SpaceX,

AFRL is researching advanced manufacturing technologies for hypersonic air and space vehicles. WASHINGTON — The Air Force Research Laboratory awarded SpaceX an $8.5 million contract to investigate advanced materials and manufacturing techniques for heat shields that protect hypersonic vehicles in flight. Heat protection is a critical technology to shield hypersonic vehicles from the intense heat experienced

WASHINGTON — Rocket Lab, a developer of launch vehicles and smallsats, will merge with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to support development of larger launch vehicle, part of the latest wave of deals to take space companies public. Rocket Lab announced March 1 that it will merge with Vector Acquisition Corporation, a SPAC established last

VALETTA, Malta — On the heels of raising $24 million in December, Orbex announced Feb. 24 that it has commissioned AMCM to build a large-volume 3D printer for manufacturing its rocket engines.  The Scottish microlauncher startup is currently developing Prime, a two-stage launch vehicle powered by six first-stage and one second-stage biopropane engines. The maiden

HELSINKI — India launched its first mission of the year late Saturday, sending Brazil’s Amazonia-1 Earth observation satellite and 18 smaller payloads into orbit. The 44-meter-high PSLV-C51 rocket with two solid side boosters lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center on the Indian island of Sriharikota at 11:54 p.m. Eastern Feb. 28. The  PSLV

WASHINGTON — It is increasingly likely that a NASA astronaut will fly on a Russian Soyuz mission to the International Space Station in April as the agency finalizes an agreement with its Russian counterpart. In a Feb. 25 statement, Roscosmos said that its director general Dmitry Rogozin, spoke that day with NASA Acting Administrator Steve

WASHINGTON — Astra has won a NASA contract to launch a small constellation of Earth science cubesats, while General Atomics selected Rocket Lab for the launch of a small satellite with a NOAA hosted payload. NASA announced Feb. 26 that it awarded a $7.95 million contract to Astra for three launches of the company’s Rocket

SAN FRANCISCO – After 14 years at satellite communications fleet operator SES, Nicole Robinson is taking on a new role: president of Ursa Space Systems, a geospatial analytics firm based in Ithaca, New York. Robinson was SES senior vice president of global government when she began talking in 2020 with Adam Maher, Ursa Space CEO

Chinese private automaker’s plans follow central government policy shifts and development of new commercial space supply chains. HELSINKI — Chinese private automaker Geely has got the green light to begin manufacturing satellites for navigation, connectivity and communications needed for self-driving cars. China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) approved a license for a new facility