TOP NEWS
“Be ready for catastrophe” Chinese satellite that exploded in space threatens 1000 satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
Chinese rocket breaks apart in space, disintegrating after launching 18 internet satellites, resulting in a massive debris cloud that threatens more than 1000 satellites and objects in the LEO.
Initial estimates suggested around 300 debris pieces, but recent assessments indicate the count has exceeded 700, possibly reaching 900, as the fragments drift at an altitude of approximately 800 kilometers.
Read more: Business Today
NASA’s Starliner decision was the right one, but it’s a crushing blow for Boeing

Ten years ago next month, NASA announced that Boeing, one of the agency’s most experienced contractors, wo
n the lion’s share of government money to end its sole reliance on Russia to ferry its astronauts to and from low-Earth orbit.
Although Boeing did not make an official statement Saturday on its long-term plans for Starliner, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told reporters he received assurances from Boeing’s new CEO, Kelly Ortberg, that the company remains committed to the commercial crew program. And it will take a significant commitment from Boeing to see it through. Under the terms of its fixed-price contract with NASA, the company is on the hook to pay for any expenses to fix the thruster and helium leak problems and get Starliner flying again.
Read more: Ars Technica
SPACE HAZARDS and STM
Massive solar wind disturbance caused Earth’s magnetosphere to fly without its usual tail

Just like wind around a jet or water around a boat, solar wind streams curve around Earth’s magnetic field, or magnetosphere, forming on the sunward side of the magnetosphere a front called a bow shock and stretching it into a wind sock shape with a long tail on the nightside.
Dramatic changes to the solar wind alter the structure and dynamics of the magnetosphere. An example of such changes provides a glimpse into the behavior of other bodies in space, such as Jupiter’s moons and extrasolar planets.
Read more:Phys.org
‘Double asteroid alert’: NASA reports two giant space rocks to pass close to Earth today
NASA has issued a warning regarding two large asteroids, 2024 OE and 2024 OO, set to make a close flyby of Earth on August 1. Two asteroids are approximately 190 feet and 88 feet in diameter respectively. This size is comparable to that of a commercial airplane.
According to NASA’s JPL, the asteroids do not pose an immediate threat to Earth and are projected to pass by without incident.
Read more: Business Today
Chinese mega constellation launch creates a field of space debris
A Chinese launch to deploy the first batch of communications satellites has created more than 50 pieces of debris that could threaten spacecraft in low Earth orbit. The Long March 6A launched on Aug. 6, from a specifically constructed launch pad at Taiyuan Spaceport.
The rocket’s upper stage, modified for restarts and deploying numerous satellites, deployed 18 flat panel Qianfan (“Thousand Sails”), or G60, satellites into roughly 800-kilometer-altitude polar orbit for Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology (SSST). The satellites are the first of a planned mega-constellations of more than 14,000 low Earth orbit (LEO) communications satellites.
Read more: SpaceNews
Commerce Department preparing to turn on the initial version of the space traffic coordination service

The Department of Commerce remains on schedule to begin the initial version of its space traffic coordination service by the end of September while it works to add capabilities to it.
In an Aug. 6 presentation at the Small Satellite Conference here, Christine Joseph, policy advisor in the Office of Space Commerce, said phase 1.0 of the Traffic Coordination System for Space, or TraCSS, will be turned on in September, maintaining a schedule that the office outlined more than a year ago.
Read more: SpaceNews
Human-made debris left behind in outer space is a growing problem down on Earth
From defunct satellites to rocket parts, debris from everything humans have launched into space since the 1950s is orbiting the Earth. That space junk is threatening our technology, both up there and down here. Marcus Holzinger, a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, joins Laura Barrón-López to discuss what’s at stake.
Mankind’s trash litters our planet from local parks to the depths of the ocean. But it’s not just on Earth, the debris from everything we’ve launched into space since the 1950s is clogging Earth’s orbit, and that space junk is threatening our technology down here and up there.
Read more: PBS News Weekend
COMMERCIAL SPACE
Dawn Aerospace Introduces On-Orbit Docking and Refueling System
Delft-based Dawn Aerospace has introduced its Docking and Fluid Transfer port, which will be used in conjunction with its SatDrive propulsion system.
The company’s new Docking and Fluid Transfer (DFT) port includes provisions for data connections and two propellants: nitrous oxide and propene or ethane. According to the company, nitrous-based propulsion systems are ideally suited for on-orbit refueling as they require no pumps. Once a connection is made, the transfer of propellants is enabled by temperature differential alone.
“With low mass, low risk, and zero cost, we believe it’s getting close to a ‘no-brainer’ decision for any Dawn customer who sees value in refueling,” explained Dawn CEO Stefan Powell in a statement.
Read more: European Spaceflight
Viability of Scots spaceport questioned as no rockets launched after £80m taxpayer cash award
A Scottish spaceport awarded £80million of taxpayers’ cash three years ago has failed to launch any rockets and serious questions have been raised over its viability.
We can reveal Astraius – the “horizontal launch” specialist partnering with nationalized Prestwick Airport on the scheme – has missed targets, doesn’t own any aircraft, and had no employees in 2022 or 2021 according to accounts.
Read more: Daily Record
China will launch first satellites of constellation to rival Starlink, newspaper reports
A Chinese state-owned enterprise is close to launching the first batch of satellites for a mega constellation designed to rival U.S. company Space X’s Starlink’s near-global internet network, a state-backed newspaper reported on Monday.

A successful launch would mark an important step in Beijing’s strategic goal of creating its own version of Starlink, a growing commercial broadband constellation that has about 5,500 satellites in space and is used by consumers, companies, and government agencies.
The competition to occupy Earth’s lower orbits also has military implications, with the potential to affect the balance of power between warring countries.
Read more: Reuters
Viasat developing a small satellite constellation management service
Viasat’s team presenting the Multi-Mission Orchestration service at the Smallsat Conference in Logan, Utah. Viasat plans to demonstrate automated constellation management software in 2026 to help small satellites operate independently in increasingly congested low Earth orbit (LEO).
The Multi-Mission Orchestrator’s (MMO) algorithms would draw from publicly available orbital data and information from participating satellite operators to reduce the need for ground-based control crews, the geostationary fleet operator announced on Aug. 5.
Read more: SpaceNews
India’s EtherealX puts $5M seed toward fully reusable launch vehicles
EtherealX, an Indian space startup, has raised $5 million in a seed funding round as it plans to develop fully reusable medium-lift launch vehicles, making satellite launches cost-effective and time-efficient.

EtherealX aims to solve this problem with a new fully reusable medium-lift vehicle, offering absolute reusability to help reduce transportation costs and cut launch timeframes. Unlike SpaceX’s Falcon 9, which provides partial reusability by bringing its booster back to Earth after successful launches, EtherealX is designing its vehicles to get both the upper stage and booster back.
Read more: TechCrunch
Airbus and Astroscale expand in-orbit servicing partnership
An illustration of Astroscale’s ADRAS-J inspector satellite approaching an H-2A upper stage in low Earth orbit. Airbus is expanding its partnership with in-orbit servicing venture Astroscale to explore ways to collaborate beyond potentially removing space junk and refueling satellites.

The companies announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Aug. 12 — between Airbus Defense and Space and the Japanese venture’s British subsidiary — to focus on U.K.-based in-orbit servicing and manufacturing opportunities in particular.
Astroscale UK is already looking into using robotic arm technology from Airbus for future debris removal and satellite refueling missions.
Read more: SpaceNews
SCIENCE and TECHNOLOGY
NASA found a cave on the moon, have a look.
The discovery of what looks to be the first cave on the moon – at the bottom of a lunar pit 200 feet deep – has jolted the scientific community and spurred hope it could be used as a base to protect future astronauts from the harsh lunar surface.
The pit, known as the Mare Tranquillitatis Pit, is in the Sea of Tranquility, or Mare Tranquillitatis, about 230 miles northeast of the Apollo 11 landing site, where humans first landed on the moon on July 20, 1969.
Read more: USA Today
NASA Made a World-Shaking Discovery: Compelling Evidence of Past Life on Mars
“Is there life on Mars” is a question that has vexed astrobiologists and David Bowie alike. While the latter imagined some macabre collection of arachnids on the Red Planet, NASA scientists are fixated on finding evidence that microbial life once flourished on the fourth rock from the Sun. So fixated, in fact, that the space agency has spent more than $5 billion getting two immensely complicated robotic rovers—Curiosity and Perseverance—onto the Martian surface with this specific microbial mission in mind.
Read More: Popular Mechanics
Starship is getting a new environmental assessment
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released the details on the new Tiered Environmental Assessment (TEA) for Starbase. This proposal will help SpaceX expand operations in Starbase and better define operations for the Starship program.
In the original 2022 Programmable Environment Assessment (PEA), SpaceX was permitted to build two Orbital Launch Pads (OLPs) at Boca Chica. The original plans called for Pad B to be south of Pad A and use no deluge equipment. Since that PEA, many things have changed. SpaceX has since added a deluge and wants to construct a flame trench for Pad B, which has now moved to the west of Pad A.
Read More: NASA SpaceFlight.com
NASA teams up with energy giant BP to drill for hidden Moon, and Mars resources
BP America and NASA have signed an agreement to explore the cosmos and advance energy production on Earth. Interestingly, BP’s technology may one day enable drilling on Mars or the moon to unlock the hidden resources. This partnership will enable them to test new technology on Mars before it ever leaves Earth. This is where digital modeling and simulation come in. This agreement will enable the use of digital models and simulations to visualize equipment in challenging, remote locations.

Read more: Interesting Engineering
China produced large quantities of water using the Moon’s soil
Researchers from China might have made a big step towards setting up a permanent mission on the Moon. They turned lunar soil into large quantities of water, using soil that the 2020 Chang’e-5 mission brought back from the Moon for their experiments.
According to China’s state broadcaster CCTV, via Reuters, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered that minerals in the lunar soil contain large amounts of hydrogen. Heated to very high temperatures, the soil reacts to other elements. The chemical reaction produces water vapor that can then be collected.
Read more: BGR
SPACE POLICY
US senator to propose bill to require new FAA safety efforts
U.S. Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell said she plans to introduce legislation on Thursday to require the Federal Aviation Administration to use advanced safety measures after a series of problems with Boeing jets.
“We really think the FAA needs to have its own process,” Cantwell said of safety management systems, which are sets of policies and procedures to proactively identify and address potential operational hazards.
Read more: US Senator to propose bill to require new FAA safety efforts
AST SpaceMobile Receives Only Partial FCC Approval for Its Starlink Rival
The FCC on Friday gave AST SpaceMobile limited authority to operate its satellite system for smartphones, one of the first regulatory hurdles the company needs to overcome in its bid to compete with SpaceX’s upcoming cellular Starlink tech.
The approval means Texas-based AST SpaceMobile can operate its first five “BlueBird” satellites, which the company is slated to launch in September. However, the FCC decided to defer a decision on AST SpaceMobile’s request to fully use the radio frequencies it needs to offer cellular satellite coverage.
Read more: PCMag
A Regulatory Scheme for the Dawn of Space Tourism A Regulatory Scheme for the Dawn of Space Tourism
Molly M. McCue, A Regulatory Scheme for the Dawn of Space Tourism, 55 Vanderbilt Law Review 1087 (2023)
Read more: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:786e2fc8-4989-45dd-901a-d6b9e2cf447f
Private space launches could double by 2028, FAA says
We could see up to 338 U.S. commercial launches a year by 2028, according to an FAA forecast. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) expects the number of licensed launches each year to continue rising steeply, potentially doubling in just four years.

Coleman writes that the office is seeing “swelling demand” for launch licenses and other services, adding that while there are still two months to go in fiscal year 2024, the office has already surpassed the record number of launches seen in 2023. And it’s only going up from there. The FAA predicts that it could oversee 338 launches by 2028, compared to its forecasted 156 for this fiscal year.
Read more: Space.com
Petition calls for halt of mega constellation launches for environmental review
Over the last few years, scientists have begun calling attention to the risks large numbers of satellites pose to our atmosphere, climate, orbital safety, and astronomical research.
A study by University of California researchers, published in June, concluded that chemicals produced by the incineration of large numbers of satellites during atmospheric reentry have a potential to “significantly” damage Earth’s recovering ozone layer. Another study, presented by a team with the U.S. National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) in January, found that the expected increase in concentrations of those chemicals in Earth’s upper atmosphere will produce “statistically significant stratospheric temperature anomalies.”
Read more: Space
FCC deals a blow to T-Mobile and SpaceX’s satellite ambitions but there’s still hope
T-Mobile and SpaceX have been trying to convince the Federal Communications Commission to reconsider its out-of-band power flux-density (“PFD”) limit of -120 dBW/m2 /MHz so that they can go forward with their plan of introducing satellite texting this year. They might want to prepare themselves for some bad news.
In a new report that states the current rules for the deployment of supplemental coverage from space (SCS), the FCC has laid down its technical requirements. According to the rules, there won’t be any relaxation on the power flux density limit of -120 dBW/m2 /MHz.
Read more: PhoneArena
SPACE DEFENCE
CACI secures $450 million contract to support U.S. Space Command’s navigation warfare center
CACI International, a professional services and information technology company, has secured a 10-year contract worth up to $450 million to support the Joint Navigation Warfare Center (JNWC), the company announced on July 31.
Under the contract, CACI will assist combatant commanders in enhancing their ability to operate in PNT-disrupted, denied, and degraded areas. This includes operational field assessments, war gaming scenarios, and modeling and simulating threats.
Read more: SpaceNews
Deep space radar site in Wales to go ahead to protect UK from ‘space warfare’
Plans for a network of radars tracking deep-space activity to help protect the UK from “space warfare” are to go ahead in Pembrokeshire, despite the opposition of local campaigners.
The 27 radar dishes planned for the St Davids peninsula, which will be 20 metres high and can track objects as small as a football, are part of a network planned around the globe.
The Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (Darc) will be developed at Cawdor barracks in south-west Wales by the Ministry of Defence. Ministers have said the plans are crucial as long-term defence against the possibility of threats in deep space.
Read more: The Guardian
The Space Force Is Calling for Space Weapons to Dominate the Final Frontier

The head of Space Command has called for the United States to develop what he calls “space fires”—a clear reference to some kind of weapons system.
General Stephen Whiting stated that the U.S. must develop these weapons to ensure “space superiority” over adversaries, deter others from attacking American space assets, and use them operationally in the event of war. While space has remained free of weapons for the better part of a century, a new Cold War with China and Russia could quickly result in orbital weaponry sooner than anyone expects.
Read more: Popular Mechanics
VARIOUS
No, Boeing Starliner’s NASA astronauts are not stranded in space.
Boeing Starliner’s two astronauts knew to expect the unexpected when they took off on the spacecraft’s first crewed mission on June 5.
“With an experimental spacecraft, there are things that haven’t been done before. We want to make sure that that all works and is fine,” Williams said in a small-group interview at JSC on March 24. She explained that dynamic events, like docking and manual flying, would be especially tricky despite all the simulator hours: “Our hair on the back of our neck is going to stand up a little bit more when we do these things.”
Read more: Space.com
Satellite Captures 360 View of Space Junk During First-Ever Fly Around
A satellite designed to remove space junk out of orbit made two successful fly-around of a discarded rocket upper stage taking photos from multiple angles. The Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan (ADRAS-J) was approximately 164 feet (50 meters) from the piece of space junk which is about 36 feet long or about the same size as a city bus.
ADRAS-J made two successful fly-arounds on July 15 and July 16 as the satellite and piece of space junk traveled in low Earth orbit (about 1,200 miles above the surface) at a speed of approximately 4.6 miles per second (7.5 kilometers per second).
Read more: PetaPixel
Deconflicting activities in new frontiers: the Moon versus Antarctica
In 2020, the United States, together with its key partners in space exploration, drew up the Artemis Accords to expand on the provisions of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. The goal was to create principles that would facilitate the colonisation of the Moon. One of the key provisions of the accords is a license for lunar operators to establish ‘safety zones’ around their activities ‘to avoid harmful interference.’
The stalemate under the Antarctic Treaty over China’s 2013 request for an Antarctic Specially Managed Area (ASMA) around its Kunlun Station on Dome A should inform the Artemis Accords.
Read more: The Strategist
SpaceX refutes reports that its Starship launch pad system polluted Texas waters
SpaceX has strongly refuted a media report claiming the company violated environmental regulations by releasing pollutants related to Starship launches in South Texas.
CNBC reported on Aug.12 that “Elon Musk’s SpaceX violated environmental regulations by repeatedly releasing pollutants into or near bodies of water,” through its water deluge system at its Starbase launch facility, South Texas, citing a state agency.
Read more: Space
Inside NASA’s $1 BILLION plan to obliterate the ISS: Step-by-step graphic reveals how the doomed space station will be destroyed in 2030 – with up to 100 TONNES expected to slam into Earth
The International Space Station (ISS) is not just a remarkable feat of scientific progress but, for many, is humanity’s crowning achievement. After 24 years in orbit, NASA has now revealed its plans to bring the ISS crashing back to Earth in 2030.
For the last 24 years, this football field-sized testament to human ambition and cooperation has whizzed silently over our heads 16 times a day without fail. But it will soon be time to say goodbye to our outpost among the stars as NASA begins to lay out its $1 billion plan to bring the ISS crashing back to Earth.
Read more: Daily Mail Online
Spacesuit Designs Could Stall Boeing Starliner Astronauts’ Return From the International Space Station
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the two astronauts Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft ferried into space in June, face an interesting conundrum about how they finally get home. Their ride back to Earth is in question thanks to issues with Starliner, and NASA is poised to make critical decisions on the issue soon. One of the toughest questions about their return trip from space has nothing to do with rockets. Instead, the latest issue centers around space suit sockets and seats.
The problem is simple: Should Butch and Suni need to fly back aboard SpaceX’s vehicle, their suits won’t fit in Dragon’s seats.
Read more: Inc.com