Patrick BlauComments Off on Atlas V Pierces into Vandenberg Fog on first West Coast Interplanetary Mission
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket (AV-078) launched from Space Launch Complex 3E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, at 11:05 UTC on May 5, 2018 with NASA’s InSight Mars Lander and two MarCO CubeSats
Patrick BlauComments Off on NASA Delays James Webb Space Telescope to 2020, cites Technical Challenges, Overly Optimistic Schedules
NASA’s next flagship space telescope and Hubble successor is facing another significant launch delay and potential budget overruns after testing on the spacecraft fell behind schedule and a number of unforeseen problems
Patrick BlauComments Off on Eyes on Target: Japan’s Hayabusa 2 Takes First Images of Asteroid Ryugu
Japan’s Hayabusa 2 spacecraft – on a quest to touch an asteroid – has set its sight on its destination in late February via the first detection of asteroid Ryugu by the craft’s Telescopic Optical Navigation Camera that will be used to guide it into close proximity to the distant world later this year.
Patrick BlauComments Off on Trace Gas Orbiter Concludes Aerobraking ahead of Final Orbit Trimming, Science Operations
ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter circling Mars since October 2016 this week finished a delicate aero-braking campaign of nearly one year that moved the spacecraft from a highly elliptical orbit into a nearly circular Low Mars Orbit in preparation for a final set of trimming maneuvers and the start of a highly anticipated science mission.