The Space Roundup - Oct 24th, 2021
Hello, hello, my dear space lovers!
Get ready for yet another week of space awesomeness!
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3, 2, 1, zero! Lift-off!
Busy week for NASA!
After a successful launch last week, NASA's Lucy asteroid probe is now on an Earth-orbiting cruise as engineers try to fix a problem with a solar array that didn’t fully open. The mission can continue but they are trying to see how serious is the issue. Good luck, Lucy!
NASA’s mega-moon-rocket is now fully stacked! YAY!!! The Orion capsule is now on top of the big orange SLS rocket, ahead of a first Artemis-1 mission to the Moon. So exciting! Now, the integration tests begin ahead of the planned launch date, next February.
Talking about the Moon, check out this amazing motorcycle prototype for lunar exploration. Designed by a German company, it is one of the ideas NASA is considering for future lunar missions. How cool is it? I want one!
Also, the DART spacecraft is now arrived at the launch site, ready to be launched by next month. This spacecraft will be launched against an asteroid on purpose to alter its trajectory and learn how to deviate potential threats to our planet … what an important mission!
Commercial updates
SpaceX is making progress towards Starship’s first orbital flight. This week they have fired a Raptor vacuum engine integrated onto a Starship for the first time and performed a static fire test with the SN20 prototype. They have also started installing the arms designed to catch Starship rockets. According to Elon Musk's latest tweets, “If all goes well, Starship will be ready for its first orbital launch attempt next month, pending regulatory approval”. Will he be right this time? Crossing fingers!
Rocket Lab will be adding helicopter operations during the next launch. EPIC. This will be an initial step towards being able to recover the rocket’s first stage during its descent. Reusability is key to keeping launch costs low and making space more accessible to smallsat operators.
Two massive companies, Nanoracks, and Lockheed Martin have announced they are partnering to build a commercial space station that will be launched in 2027. They are following the steps of Axiom and Sierra Space, as they all plan to boost the future orbital marketplace with commercial stations. It’s going to be crowded up there!
South Korea
South Korea successfully launched its first national rocket and reached orbit, although they failed to orbit the dummy payload it was carrying. The third stage engine shut down sooner than planned and the payload didn’t get to orbital speed. They were so close! It is an amazing milestone very few countries have been able to achieve yet
Launches of the week
Sunday, Oct 24th - Ariane 5 ECA | SES-17 & Syracuse 4A
Monday, Oct 25th - MHI H-IIA 202 | QZS-1R
Monday, Oct 27th - Astra - Rocket 3 | STP-27AD2
And that’s it for this week!
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Cheers from sunny Spain!
Juan, the Curious Astronaut