The USA-193 was a US spy satellite launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on December 14th, 2006 atop a Delta II rocket. Its launch was the first operated by the United Launch Alliance (ULA). Owned by the National Reconnaissance Office, its precise function was classified; however, it is categorized as “Surveillance and Other Military” in the National Space Science Data [...]
Post Tagged with: “Rocket”
Russia and Korea Still Disagree on Naro-1 Failure
Fifteen months after Naro-1 rocket’s failure, Russia and the South Korean government still disagree on the cause of the mid-air explosion, just 137 seconds after liftoff, according to Yonhap news reports. With a cost of 407 million US$, covered by the South Korean government, South Korea’s first space rocket included a Russian first stage and a South Korean second stage. On [...]
Images of Chinese Rocket in Orbit
The development of the Chinese Long March 2 rocket family started in 1970 with the first attempted launch in 1974. The original Long March 2 was followed by several iteration, identified by capital letters (A, B, C and so on). The 2C version, whose first launch took place in 1982, it’s 42 meters 2 stage rocket, with a diameter of 3.35 meters. The rocket has [...]
NASA Offers Assurances on Soyuz Return to Flight Plans
Source Science, Space, and Technology Committee: Washington DC – Today, the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics held a hearing to review the findings of the Soyuz launch vehicle failure investigation in the wake of the recent crash of an unmanned Russian space vehicle called Progress, and the impacts that a short-term loss of crew access has on the safe operation and utilization of [...]
Roscosmos Reprioritizes Space Program
On October 7, 2011, Roscosmos Head Vladimir Popovkin was summoned to speak before the State Duma (Parliament) of Russia on the subject of the recent space failures that plagued the Agency in 2011. Mr. Popovkin made a frank report about the causes and aftermath of the recent anomalies, then proposed a detailed review of the prospects of Russian space industry as far forward as 2050; finally, he [...]
Space Safety Magazine – Issue 1 – Fall 2011
Inside the Fall Issue of the Space Safety Magazine Welcome to the First Issue of the Space Safety Magazine The Need for an Integrated Regulatory Regime for Aviation and Space Space Toxicology The Vision: An International Institute for Space Safety Introducing IAASS Jerome Lederer Space Safety Pioneer Award Vladimir Syromiatnikov Safety-by Design Award Commercial Space Debris Removal Safety of Nuclear [...]
Roscosmos Restructures Khrunichev and Cancels RUS-M
The reorganization of the Russian space industry, following the failure of 4 rocket launches within the last year, has now reached the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. Vladimir Popovkin, Roscosmos Head, announced the plan to create of a new rocket building holding organization and to replace the management of the production center where the Proton and Rockot launch vehicles, as well [...]
Camera Captures Meteor and Space Junk
Source Space News: A NASA camera utilized to record meteor falling in the night sky caught a stunning picture of meteor breaking apart while a piece of an old Russian rocket was passing overhead. The space light show occurred Friday (Sept. 30) over NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., at about 8:37 p.m. EDT (0037 GMT). A wide-field meteor camera, [...]
A Progress Report on Commercial Cargo and Crew
Source Jeff Foust on The Space Review: NASA’s commercial cargo and crew programs have together become something of a lightning rod of debate in the last couple of years. Some see these programs as essential to both the agency and the nation by providing new means of accessing and sustaining the International Space Station (ISS), freeing up NASA resources for exploration and other endeavors, [...]
NASA Tests Deep Space J-2X Rocket Engine
Source NASA: NASA conducted a 40-second test of the J-2X rocket engine Sept. 28, the most recent in a series of tests of the next-generation engine selected as part of the Space Launch System architecture that will once again carry humans into deep space. It was a test at the 99 percent power level to gain a better understanding of start [...]
