Hyperbola

Lockheed Martin gets options converted to orders for GOES T and GOES U

2013-05-17T10:13:10Z

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has formally converted two optons to construction orders for two weather satellites GOES T and GOES U from Lockheed Martin. The satellites were originally ordered as options in 2010 of the batch deal for GOES R and GOES S (delayed after a contract appeal from 2008). According to space news, the new deal is GOES T option/order is worth $175.9 million, and the GOES-U option/order is worth $139.7 million,

Boeing is selected to build Viasat-2 broadband comsat

2013-05-17T09:04:19Z

On 17 May, Boeing's spacecraft manufacturing arm, Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems,announced that it had been selected to build the new ViaSat-2 satellite for ViaSat Inc. Taking its lead from its European manufacturing counterparts, as part of the deal, Boeing is moving into sateliltes services by agreeing to partner Viasat in offering ViaSat-2's Ka-band broadband services..The spacecraft will use a version of Boeing's 702HP bus design and will be launched in 2016. Boeing beat out competition from Lockheed Martin to build the satellite. Its other US competitor Space Systems/Loral was effectvely ruled out as it is in legal dispute over patent infringements with Viasat.

Was extreme altititude suborbital launch by China an anti-satellite weapon?

2013-05-17T08:20:00Z

Reuters reports that China has made an extreme alititude suborbital rocket launch which may be an anti-satellite weapon. The launch of the rocket on 15 May, elements of which reached 10,000km altititude, is thought by US government experts to be a possible test of a new anti-satellite missile. The remnants of the test fell into the Indian Ocean. The altitide achieved was the highest ever achieved by a non-orbiting object since 1976.

Meantime, on 15 May, the US Navy made its third successful inteception test of its Standard Missile SM-3 Block 1B variant which is known to have both anti-ballistic missile and anti-satellite applications. This new variant of hte missile is now expected to go into full production. The Standard SM-3 Block 1B was launched from the U.S.S. Lake Erie striking and destroying a target missile launched from Kauai, Hawaii.

Standard Missiles were originally developed to arm cruisers and destroyers of the US Navy in a more conventional endoatmospheric anti-aircraft and anti-missile role. The latter role may soon be needed as it has emerged that Russia has delivered the latest versions of its supersonic anti-ship missile, the Yakhont to Syria's government. With a range of 300km and in having such fast attack speeds, these impressive missiles (India's Brahmos is a licenced copy) could hold off Western naval forces from making an intervention in the current civil war in Syria. Having said that, at such ranges, such missiles usuually have to be targeted remotely; either via satellite targeting or via maritime aircraft.

GPS II-F4 is sent into orbit by an Atlas V 401 rocket

2013-05-16T13:46:52Z

At 2138 GMT on 15 May 2013, an Atlas V 401 launch vehicle successfully lifted off from its Cape Canaveral Air Station launch pad in Florida, USA, to deliver the latest GPS spacecraft, GPS IIF-4 into orbit. Built by Boeing, the satellite will be operated by the US Air Force as part of its GPS navigation constelllation in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO). GPS signals are also used by civilian and commercial users.

Reaction wheel failure means only two left on Kepler and it may be the end for the mission

2013-05-16T13:34:42Z

During a routine call up of NASA's planet-hunting Kepler mission on 14 May, the spacecraft was found to have fallen into a safe mode with an attitude error. During an attempt to return to reaction wheel control as the spacecraft rotated into communication, and commanded a stop rotation, it appeared that all three wheels responded and that rotation had been successfully stopped. However reaction wheel 4 remained at full torque while the spin rate dropped to zero. According to NASA, this is a clear indication that there has been an internal failure within the reaction wheel, likely a structural failure of the wheel bearing. The spacecraft was then transitioned back to Thruster-Controlled Safe Mode. NASA may now elect to retire the spacecraft which has exceeded its three year old design life by over a year. During its service the spacecraft has discovered hundreds of planets orbiting distant stars.

Astrium gets construction contract for Express-AMU1/Eutelsat 36C

2013-05-16T08:37:40Z

Astrium has been awarded a contract by the Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) to build the Express-AMU1/Eutelsat 36C satellite. The Eurostar E3000 bus spacecraft will be placed into orbit by the Russian launcher Proton in 2015 and will be operated over 36 degrees East.The Express-AMU1/Eutelsat 36C will have 70 transponders to provide broadcast services in the European part of the Russian Federation in Ku and Ka bands and for broadcast markets developed by Eutelsat in sub-Saharan Africa. The multibeam Ka-band antennas feature a highly innovative array fed reflector antenna technology developed by Astrium. Express-AMU1/Eutelsat 36C will have a launch mass of 5,700 kg and a spacecraft power in excess of 15 kW. Its design lifetime is 15 years in orbit.

Artists impression of Express-AMU1/Eutelsat 36C. Courtesy: Astrium

After successful Proton launch Eutelsat wants another

2013-05-15T14:20:49Z

The launch provider International Launch Services (ILS) and the commercial satellite operator Eutelsat announced a contract for the launch of a Eutelsat satellite in the 2014-2016 timeframe by ILS Proton M/Breeze M from the Baikonur Cosmodrome near Tyuratam in Kazakhstan. This announcement was made the day after the successful Proton M/Breeze M launch of the Eutelsat 3D satellite.

Eutelsat 3D communications satellite is launched by Proton M/Breeze M

2013-05-15T11:27:18Z

At 1402GMT on 14 May 2013, a Proton M/Breeze M launch vehicle successfully lifted off from the Baikonur launch site near Tyuratam in Kazakhstan. On board was the Eutelsat 3D communications satellite being launched for the European satellite operator Eutelsat. Built by Thales Alenia Space and weighing in at 5470kg, the spacecraft was injected into a Geostationary Transfer Orbit. The satellite will use its own on-board engine to circularise itself into a Geostationary position and will be operated over 3 degrees East longitude.

ILS Proton gets launch order from Echostar

2013-05-14T07:50:10Z

Commercial launch provider International Launch Services (ILS) and commercial satellite operator, EchoStar Satellite Services, have signed an agreement for an ILS Proton M/Breeze M rocket to launch an unnamed satellite weighing in at more than 6,900kg in the late 2015 or early 2016 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The Russian rocket firm Khrunichev is the majority shareholder of ILS and maker of the Proton launch vehicle.

Chris Hadfield, ISS Chief Musician, Bids Farewell

2013-05-13T14:43:11Z

In case you haven't yet seen it, here's Canadian astronaut covering David Bowie's 'A Space Oddity' as a farewell to the ISS. He and two others should be returning home in a Soyuz capsule on 12 May.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo

Astronauts fix ISS ammonia leak

2013-05-13T14:41:10Z

By Phil Hylands

Astronauts on the International Space Station spotted a leak of ammonia from the station's cooling system. The crew first saw the leak, in the vicinity of the P6 truss section, around 1530 GMT on 9 May. The leak was in the same area as another leak that astronauts attempted to fix during an EVA on 1 November last year.

The leak was from the cooling loop on the 2B power channel and due to the rate of the leakage the equipment that was powered from that channel were moved to the 2A power channel on 10 May and the 2B power channel was shut down to preserve what was left of the ammonia coolant.

On 11 May NASA Astronauts Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn started a five and a half hour EVA at 1244 GMT in an attempt to trace the source of the ammonia coolant leak on the P6 Truss. Even though they could find no trace of the leak they replaced the pump controller box on the P6 Truss. Tests immediately after the pump controller box was replaced showed no signs of leaking but the equipment will be regularly checked in the future.

Second Vega launches three satellites

2013-05-08T13:27:33Z

Arianespace's second Vega launch was successfully conducted at 0206 GMT on 7 May from its dedicated launch pad at Kourou in French Guiana. The three satellites launched were the 140 kg Proba V, the 120 kg VNREDSat 1A and the 1kg ESTCube 1.

The Proba V satellite's main sensor is a Vegetation imager which will take images with a best resolution of 100 metres. Proba V was built by QinetiQ Space for the European Space Agency. The VNREDSat 1 satellite was built by Astrium for the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology. The satellite will be used to provide the Vietnam Government with panchromatic imagery with a best resolution of 2.5 metres and multi-spectral imagery with a best resolution of 10 metres. The collected imagery will be used for environmental and natural disaster protection.

ESTCube 1 is Estonia's first satellite and was built at Tartu University with the assistance of students from Tallinn University and the Estonian Flight Academy and some input from the University of Surrey in the UK and the International Space University in France. The single cubesat will be used test solar sail steering technologies using electron emitters via a wire to affect rotational speed.

ILC-Dover wins NASA new spacesuit contract

2013-05-03T11:16:40Z

In late April, it was announced that that ILS Dover, a US firm specialising in spacesuit design, had won a $4.4 million contract from NASA to design, manufacter and test an new design dubbed Z-2. The firm beat competitor Dave Clark Co for the contract.Unlike the current NASA spacesuit used on the International Space Station and formerly on the Space Shuttle, the design is to have constant volume joints to allow significant leg movements. this will allow astronauts to walk on lunar, asteroid and planetary bodies The Z-2 is also designed to operate at higher pressures and be compatible with the latest airlock designs.

Chinese NASA "fugitive" may not be a spy but he could be embarrassed

2013-05-02T14:10:08Z

Bo Jiang, the Chinese scientist who was accused of spying on stage secrets during his work with NASA via the National Institute of Aerospace, and who was arrested after booking a one way ticket back to China in March, is now likely to be cleared of spying. According to various news sources including Bloomberg, while suspected of spying (Jiang was also accused of taking a NASA computer to China without authorisation during a previous trip). Jiang had been formally arrested at Dulles International Airport, Washington D.C. under the charge of not fully declaring all of the computer equipment he was carrying.

Jiang will however not be fully celebrating a likely acquittal on the non-disclosure charges as he is likely to be embarrassed over new charges he faces. During the FBI investigation of his electronic equipment, Jiang was found to have downloaded mainstream movies illegally and had allegedly also downloaded explicit pornographic movies on his NASA supplied laptop computer, both actions being minor misdemeanour offences.

Also embarrassed will be Frank Wolf, Republican congressman, who had publically noted that NASA's security was at risk from foreign spying and had specifically named Chiang as a possible suspect.

On a lighter note: Hyperbola sic transit gloria ad Roma

2013-05-02T10:55:23Z

"Sinister! Dexter! Sinister! Dexter!" (Left, Right, Left, Right)...Flightglobal will be marching its Hyperbola legion to Rome next week for the 17th International Space Conference being held at the Hotel Parco dei Principi in Rome on 8, 9 and 10 May 2013.

Organised by Pagnanelli Risk Solutions, this year's conference's expert presenters and panelists will be covering solar storms and other natural and man made space hazards to spacecraft and the Earth.

Flightglobal is a media partner and, along with details about our excellent Flightglobal/Ascend SpaceTrak launch and satellite database along with its Space Review online analysis partner, we will be handing out a folded cutaway print of the International Space Station. Full details of the conference programme and registration can be found here: http://www.prsforspace.com/

Modern telecommunications has reached the "Eternal city" - a Roman Centurion checks his mobile phone outside the Colosseum. Courtesy: Flightglobal/David Todd

Rome by the way is a lovely city and an eternal one, and is well worth a visit if you have never been before. Hyperbola sic transit gloria ad Roma. (Hyperbola thus passes the glory to Rome).

Of course, when it comes to Latin phrases and mottos, perhaps the Royal Air Force's "Per Ardua ad Astra" ("Through adversity to the stars") would be most apt for a space conference. That said, perhaps the key phrase to learn for this town is: "Infamia! Infamia! Omnes me oderunt!" ("Infamy! Infamy! They've all got it in for me!")...Apologies to Carry on Cleo.