The European Space Agency (ESA) has opened a new Space Weather Coordination Centre (SSCC) under the Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Programme, in Belgium. SSCC. The centre, located at the “Space Pole” in Brussels, was inaugurated on April 3. “With the SSCC inauguration, our SSA Programme is taking concrete steps to develop a European capability to operationally monitor space weather, enhance [...]
Post Tagged with: “navigation”
SEXTANT: NASA’s “Cosmic Beacon”
A sextant is an old-fashioned tool used for measuring angles between celestial objects. Sextants were used for navigation onboard ships to measure the angle of elevation from the horizon to reference stars, and other variants developed for astronomers to ascertain the positions of stars and planets. Now a team at NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight Center is proposing a new type of [...]
Masten Aerospace Simulates Planterary Landing Trajectories in Mojave
The Xombie suborbital Reusable Launch Vehicle (sRLV) developed by Masten Space Systems completed a successful flight in the framework of NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program, on March 22. “Today [March 22] saw the first successful test flight in a new campaign testing GENIE flight control system integrated onboard Masten’s Xombie platform” reported a statement of NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program. The test [...]
Europe Addressing Space Weather Effects on Aviation
The eruptions of the infamous Icelandic volcanoes Eyjafjallajökull and Grímsvötn, in 2010 and 2011 respectively, caused disruption of the air traffic over Europe resulting in a huge financial loss. The events showed the necessity of measures for Europe to effectively react when other similar crises affecting air traffic arise. Space weather is one of the phenomena that can trouble aviation, [...]
Not If But When: UK Scientists Release Report on Consequences of Solar Superstorm
At the beginning of February, the UK Royal Academy of Engineering released a report assessing the impact a solar superstorm would have on the United Kingdom. What scientists have in mind when talking about a solar superstorm is an event similar in strength and size to the infamous 1859 Carrington event. This, so far the most intense geomagnetic storm measured, [...]
NASA, ESA Try Out “Interplanetary Internet” Technology
NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have successfully demonstrated an ”interplanetary” communication network that one day may enable internet-like communications between space mission controllers and deep space spacecraft or robotic rovers on another planet. U.S. astronaut Sunita Williams, commander of the International Space Station’s Expedition 33 mission, used NASA’s experimental Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN) protocol to transmit two-way messages [...]
Pakistan to have Functioning Global Navigational Satellite System by June 2013
Pakistan’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) is set to receive a new global navigation satellite system (GNSS) with the assistance of China. China, who is a strategic partner of Pakistan, will provide satellites similar to the Beidou satellite system currently being deployed as part of China’s indigenous global positioning system. While there are not many details surrounding Pakistan’s [...]
China’s Bediou Satellite Navigation System Soon to Offer Regional Service
China’s plan to launch the 16th satellite of the Bediou constellation this month will usher in the capability for the navigation system to begin providing free civilian navigation services in the Asia-Pacific region beginning in early 2013. There are currently fifteen satellites in orbit with five launched so far in 2012. The current constellation of satellites consists of five in [...]
ESA Deploys First Orbital Debris Test Radar in Spain
Source: ESA A new radar designed to test methods for finding orbital debris that can be hazardous to space navigation has been installed in Spain. The radar will be used to develop future debris warning services, helping to boost safety for European satellite operators. Following an 18-month design and development phase, the radar was installed near Santorcaz, about 30 km [...]
The International Space Safety Foundation Advisory Council
Dear Reader, The International Space Safety Foundation (ISSF) is a recently established US based non-profit organization dedicated to furthering international cooperation and scientific progress in the field of space safety. The final aim of the Foundation is to pursue the advancement of space safety on a worldwide scale and to contribute to making space missions, vehicles, stations, extra-terrestrial habitats, equipment, and payloads safer for the general public, ground personnel, astronauts, and space travellers. Concurrently, the Foundation is [...]
