A sampling of recent articles, videos, and images dealing with space transport (find previous roundups here):

SpaceX intended to fly the Starship SN9 prototype last Thursday and again on Friday but the vehicle remained grounded due to a failure to obtain a FAA license. The exact reason for the refusal has not been revealed to the public but it apparently involves issues regarding non-compliance with the license for the flight of SN8.

For Tuesday Feb.2, an air traffic clearance bulletin has been issued and it appears likely that the FAA will grant SpaceX a launch license according to Christian Davenport on Twitter:

Now hearing the FAA could approve the SpaceX modification to its license for SN9 as early as today, possibly “within the next couple of hours.” Could see Starship fly as soon as tomorrow.

For more details about the FAA and the test flight , see:

• What’s really going on with Elon Musk, the FAA, and Starship? | Ars Technica
• Elon Musk’s SpaceX violated its FAA launch license, prompting investigation – The Verge
• Starship SN9 delayed until Friday as FAA deny permission to launch – NASASpaceFlight.com
• Watching Starship #9’s flight – Behind the Black

The SpaceX Starship webpage includes the following statement about the SN9 test:

** Starship SN10  prototype moved to the launch area. The largest crane at Boca Chica had been moved earlier in the week to the launch site and with the SN9 flight/landing canceled, SpaceX decided to move SN10 on Friday from the assembly area to the launch pad and lift it onto the second launch mount. There were no Raptor engines installed and Elon Musk later said they would do cryo pressure tests before installing them.

Find more about other SpaceX activities below.

** Virgin Galactic aims to fly SpaceShipTwo Unity during a window that opens on February 13th. Virgin Galactic Flight Test Program Update – Virgin Galactic

The flight window will open on February 13 with opportunities to fly throughout February, pending good weather conditions and technical readiness. The test flight will be crewed by two pilots and will carry research payloads as part of the NASA Flight Opportunities program.

Pre-flight preparations are already underway at Spaceport America, New Mexico, including rigorous steps to prepare the vehicles, pilots, teams and facilities, with safety procedures as a top priority. In addition, the Virgin Galactic Pilot Corps has completed two flights with its mothership, VMS Eve, for routine pilot proficiency training. This training included using the mothership to simulate the glide and approach-to-land phase of flight for SpaceShipTwo, showing the versatility of VMS Eve as more than just a mothership.

A key objective of the upcoming flight will be to test the remedial work that has been completed since the December 12, 2020 flight when the onboard computer halted ignition of the rocket motor. The team has since conducted the root cause analysis, completed the corrective work required, and carried out extensive ground testing. The next stage will be to assess and verify this work during a rocket-powered flight.

The flight will incorporate all of the original test objectives from the previous test flight, including evaluating elements of the customer cabin, testing the live stream capability from the spaceship to the ground, and assessing the upgraded horizontal stabilizers and flight controls during the boost phase of the flight.

See also

• Virgin Galactic to resume SpaceShipTwo test flights in mid-February – SpaceNews
• As Virgin Galactic gets swept up in GameStop mania, it gets back to flying | Ars Technica

** Feb.1: The iSpace Hyperbola-1 fails on its second launch attempt. Amateur footage of the launch from the inland Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center shows the vehicle in trouble shortly after liftoff. The 4-stage solid-fueled rocket, most likely derived from a Chinese missile, was carrying the Fangzhou-2 (Ark-2) satellite.

• Chinese Hyperbola-1 rocket fails during its second launch – NASASpaceFlight.com
• China’s iSpace suffers failure with second orbital launch attempt – SpaceNews

** Jan.29: Chinese Long March 4C carries three Yaogan 31 remote sensing satellites into low earth orbit. These satellites are generally believed to be military reconnaissance satellites that provide optical and radio-electronic surveillance of the US Navy and other maritime activities.

• Long March 4C has successful launch – Chinadaily.com.cn
• China launches new remote sensing satellites – Xinhua
• Long March 4C lofts three Yaogan Weixing-31 satellites – NASASpaceFlight.com

** Jan.20: Rocket Lab’s first Electron launch of 2021 puts OHB satellite into orbit. There was no attempt to recover the first stage booster on this launch.

• Rocket Lab launches communications satellite for OHB – Spaceflight Now
• Rocket Lab launches secretive communications satellite for OHB – SpaceNews

The payload for this mission has been shrouded in secrecy since Rocket Lab announced the planned launch Jan. 5. The name of the satellite itself was not disclosed by OHB until after liftoff, and a press kit for the mission did not include the satellite’s mass or orbital altitude, stating only that it was going into an orbit at an inclination of 90 degrees.

Rocket Lab said in its announcement of the upcoming launch that the payloads “will be a single communication microsatellite that will enable specific frequencies to support future services from orbit.” OHB, which built the satellite, procured the launch last August. At the time it cited “an unmatched delivery time” by Rocket Lab, who agreed to launch the payload within six months.

…

The ultimate customer for the satellite may be GMS Zhaopin, a Chinese company planning a satellite constellation. It has been linked to a German company, KLEO Connect, that has announced plans for a constellation to provide internet of things services.

** A Virgin Orbit LaunchOne rocket successfully put 10 smallsats into orbit on the second demo mission. The first demo mission last May failed when the engine shut off shortly after igniting due to a breach in a liquid oxygen supply line. The company now plans to move into full commercial operations. Virgin Orbit Aces Second Launch Demo and Deploys NASA Payloads – Virgin Orbit

For today’s picture-perfect mission, Virgin Orbit’s carrier aircraft, a customized 747-400 dubbed Cosmic Girl, took off from Mojave Air and Space Port at approximately 10:50 A.M. and flew out to a launch site over the Pacific Ocean, about 50 miles south of the Channel Islands. After a smooth release from the aircraft, the two-stage rocket ignited and powered itself to orbit. At the conclusion of the flight, the LauncherOne rocket deployed 10 CubeSats into the team’s precise target orbit, marking a major step forward for Virgin Orbit in its quest to bust down the barriers preventing affordable and responsive access to space.

The payloads onboard LauncherOne today were selected by NASA LSP as part of the agency’s CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI). Nearly all of the CubeSat missions were designed, built and tested by universities across the U.S., including Brigham Young University (PICS), the University of Michigan (MiTEE), and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (CAPE-3).

This flight also marks a historical first: no other orbital class, air-launched, liquid-fueled rocket had successfully reached space before today.

…

With this successful demonstration in the books, Virgin Orbit will officially transition into commercial service for its next mission. Virgin Orbit has subsequent launches booked by customers ranging from the U.S. Space Force and the U.K.’s Royal Air Force to commercial customers like Swarm Technologies, Italy’s SITAEL, and Denmark’s GomSpace.

The company’s next few rockets are already well into integration at its Long Beach manufacturing facility.

A “Mission Recap” video:

LauncherOne has successfully reached orbit! Virgin Orbit’s unique air-launched system successfully delivered small satellites for 9 different missions precisely into their target 500km circular, 60.7 degrees inclination orbit on January 17, 2021. The flight was conducted from the Mojave Air and Space Port in Kern County, California — the first orbital launch ever to occur from there. This “Launch Demo 2” flight was conducted for NASA’s Venture Class Launch Services program. Unlike traditional ground-launched rocket, Virgin Orbit’s system uses a 747 jet as its flying launch pad and mobile mission control, allowing flexible and responsive launch from almost anywhere on the planet!

https://youtu.be/yrx2PBzeRdU

https://youtu.be/7soxTQ4Mlf0

Some VO internal webcast videos posted at International Rocket Launches – YouTube:

https://youtu.be/B3SP6RtV1iI

https://youtu.be/28i_xroGm8I

See also

• LauncherOne reaches orbit on second attempt with NASA CubeSats – NASASpaceFlight.com
• Virgin’s satellite launcher reaches orbit for first time – Spaceflight Now
• Virgin Orbit reaches orbit on second LauncherOne mission – SpaceNews
• Virgin Orbit just earned the orbit part of its name | Ars Technica
• Virgin Orbit to Launch First Satellite for Dutch Ministry Of Defense | Virgin Orbit

** Jan.14: Blue Origin flew the fourth New Shepard vehicle for the first time on Thursday, January 14th at the company’s facility in West Texas.This vehicle includes additional design changes and will be used for the first flights with people on board. Mission NS-14 successfully demonstrates crew capsule upgrades – Blue Origin

Mission NS-14 featured a crew capsule outfitted with astronaut experience upgrades for upcoming flights with passengers onboard. Capsule upgrades included:

• • Speakers in the cabin with a microphone and a push-to-talk button at each seat so astronauts can continuously talk to Mission Control.
  • First flight of the crew alert system with a panel at each seat relaying important safety messages to passengers.
  • Cushioned wall linings and sound suppression devices to reduce ambient noise inside the capsule.
  • Environmental systems, including a cooling system and humidity controls to regulate temperature and prevent capsule windows from fogging during flight, as well as carbon dioxide scrubbing.
  • Six seats.

Also today during ascent, the booster rotated at 2-3 degrees per second. This is done to give future passengers a 360-degree view of space during the flight.

This flight continued to prove the robustness and stability of the New Shepard system and the BE-3PM liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen engine.

Also onboard today were more than 50,000 postcards from Blue Origin’s nonprofit Club for the Future. The Club has now flown over 100,000 postcards to space and back from students around the world. More information here.

** Blue reportedly plans to fly the  first New Shepard mission with people on board in early spring: Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin aims to fly people on New Shepard by April – CNBC

Beyond the upgrades, CNBC has learned that NS-14 also marked one of the last remaining steps before Blue Origin flies its first crew to space.

The flight was the first of two “stable configuration” test flights, people familiar with Blue Origin’s plans told CNBC. Stable configuration means that the company plans to avoid making major changes between this flight and the next.

Additionally, those people said that Blue Origin aims to launch the second test flight within six weeks, or by late February, and the first crewed flight six weeks after that, or by early April.

Blue Origin’s next flight, NS-15, will also include a test of loading and unloading the crew, the people said.

The company did not verify this info but it clearly sounds quite plausible.

** Video tour of Blue Origin’s engine production facility in Huntsville, Alabama. During the webcast of the above New Shepard test, a video tour of the company’s engine facility in Huntsville was shown.

As featured on today’s #NewShepard webcast, Jacki takes us on a tour of our full-rate engine production facility in Huntsville, AL powering the next generation of American space flight with our #BE4 and #BE3U engines. pic.twitter.com/jKWl79po30

— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) January 14, 2021

** Blue releases video of long duration, full-thrust firing of BE-4 engine: Jeff Bezos released the video on Instagram:

“Perfect night! Sitting in the back of my pickup truck under the Moon and stars watching another long duration, full thrust hotfire test of @BlueOrigin’s BE-4 engine. #GradatimFerociter”

The BE-4 will power the first stages of Blue’s New Glenn rocket and ULA’s Vulcan.

More about the BE-4 status: Jeff Bezos kicks back with a BE-4 rocket engine test in Texas – GeekWire.

Scott Manley reviews all of the engines developed so far by Blue:

Blue Origin has been around longer than SpaceX, but they’re a lot more secretive about their technology and the things they’ve built. I wanted to make an overview of the 6 different rocket engines they’re designed and tested and the vehicles that have been propelled by them.

** Jan.19: Chinese Long March 3B rocket takes communications satellite into orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in the Sichuan province. The third of the Tiantong-1 series of S-Band mobile communications services satellite will move into a geostationary orbital slot.

• China opens 2021 with Tiantong-1 launch via Long March 3B – NASASpaceFlight.com
• China’s first launch of 2021 orbits communications satellite – Spaceflight Now

Continue reading Space transport roundup – Feb.1.2021 →

A sampling of recent articles, videos, and images dealing with space transport (find previous roundups here):

** Dec.9: First high altitude flight test of a SpaceX Starship prototype successfully demonstrated two key requirements for returning from orbit: (1) controlled stable flight while in a horizontal orientation during unpowered descent and (2) the flip to vertical maneuver after restarting the engines. The vehicle was powered by three Raptors, which fired for nearly five minutes before reaching the 12 km altitude. (Two of the engines shut down sequentially during the later phase of the ascent.) This provided a big gain in the amount of data on in-flight performance of the LOX/Methane engines compared to the short hops with earlier prototypes.

Unfortunately, during the SN8 vehicle’s relatively short vertical descent to the bullseye of the landing pad, a drop in pressure from the propellant tank in the tip of the nosecone reduced the thrust of the Raptor engine and the vehicle landed too hard and exploded. This operational problem can be prevented in a straight-forward manner in future flights. After 60+ successful Falcon 9 booster recoveries, the company knows how to land a rocket vertically.  However, SpaceX has had no experience with flying a rocket in a horizontal attitude and controlling it with side fins. It also had never swung a vehicle from horizontal to vertical. So this was a very successful test. While it might have flown again if it landed safely, SN8 was never intended to provide more than suborbital test data.

This multi-exposure image nicely captures the liftoff and return of Starship SN8’s epic test flight:

Omg. Only image I had in my mind for SN8 & it worked perfectly!
Big thx to @Erdayastronaut, @SpacePadreIsle @considercosmos & @thejackbeyer for helping me make the trip to TX/a huge success🚀

⚙️/⬇️/🖼: https://t.co/VvOyEejkx0
2021 starship calendar: https://t.co/DTkCXERMvo pic.twitter.com/wMa9v0yYpq

— Trevor Mahlmann (@TrevorMahlmann) December 11, 2020

A view of SN8 from the landing pad:

Starship landing flip maneuver pic.twitter.com/QuD9HwZ9CX

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 10, 2020

An analysis by Scott Manley: SpaceX’s Biggest Starship Flight Is A Spectacular Success Even After Crash Landing

Articles and commentary about the test:

• From hops to hopes – Starship SN8 set to advance test program into the next phase – NASASpaceFlight.com
• On the Spectacular Flight of Starship SN8 and the Future of Starship Development – Main Engine Cut Off
• So, it turns out SpaceX is pretty good at rocketing | Ars Technica
• Fiery crash of SpaceX’s Starship rocket ignites dreams of future spaceflight – National Geographic
• Space advocacy organizations congratulate SpaceX – Space Development Network
• Starship contradictions – The Space Review
• Starship flies! – Behind the Black
• Starship: Old-fashioned American know-how – Behind the Black

Find more on SpaceX activities below

** Dec.16: Astra reaches space for first time but falls just short of orbit: The launch from the Alaskan spaceport sent the upper stage of the two-staged Rocket 3.2 to 390 kilometers in altitude and “just a half a kilometer per second short” of orbital velocity according to Astra CEO Chris Kemp. According to Eric Berger,

The company had not quite gotten the mixture of kerosene to oxidizer correct—something that is difficult to test on the ground—and wound up with an excess of liquid oxygen. Had the upper stage burnt kerosene for a few more seconds, the upper stage would have reached orbit. As it was, the booster peaked at an apogee of 390km above the Earth’s surface.

Kemp claimed this flight nevertheless exceeded the team’s expectations for the rocket, which did not have a payload on board.

A quick video recap of our 8.5-minute flight to space today! pic.twitter.com/gvElF4fbAZ

— Astra (@Astra) December 16, 2020

Kemp has said that it would take three launches before they achieved orbit. Last March, Rocket 3.0 was destroyed in a fire on the pad and, in September, Rocket 3.1 flew for 30 seconds before a guidance problem led to a shutdown of the engines and the loss of the vehicle. Rocket 3.3 is expected to fly early in 2021 and it will carry a payload for a customer.

The company’s goal is to offer very low cost access to orbit for small satellites. To achieve this they have sought a simple but robust rocket design that can be built at low cost. According to Astra,

Rapid test and iteration are the cornerstones of our development process. We’ve performed thousands of rocket engine tests at our headquarters in Alameda, a few hundred feet away from where those engines are designed and built. We can afford to experiment quickly and repeatedly because our rockets are far less expensive. The rockets are primarily constructed from lightweight aluminum, instead of costly composite and 3D printed materials.

Small crews for launch are also a part of the plan: Astra set up a rocket launch with five people and came within seconds of orbit | Ars Technica

Astra was founded to provide rapid, low-cost access to space for small satellites. The quick turnaround between its first and second flights suggests it may make good on this promise. It’s impressive, too, that the company needs just five people to set up its launch site. At Kodiak, Astra has a concrete pad and a tent. A week before launching the rocket, its launcher, propellant, and other equipment arrived in four shipping containers from California. A team of five set the launch system up, and employees back at Astra’s headquarters in Alameda, California, controlled the launch through cloud computing.

The company needs to prove in 2021 that it can build and operate rockets that not only get to orbit but do so reliably and frequently.

More at:

• Astra Rocket 3.2 reaches space after launch from Alaska – CNBC
• Astra succeeds in reaching space with Rocket 3.2 – NASASpaceFlight.com
• Astra narrowly misses reaching orbit on second launch – SpaceNews
• Rocket 3.2 Ready To Launch! | Astra
• Astra (@Astra) / Twitter

** Dec.15: Rocket Lab Electron rocket puts Synspective StriX-α synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite into a 500km circular orbit. This was the 17th Electron launch. There was no attempt to recover the first stage.

• Rocket Lab Successfully Launches 17th Electron Mission, Deploys SAR Satellite for Synspective | Rocket Lab
• Rocket Lab closes out year with launch of Synspective’s first radar satellite – Spaceflight Now
• The Owl’s Night Begins: Japan’s StriX-α satellite launches with Rocket Lab – NASASpaceFlight.com

** Dec. 12: Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo test flight aborted after avionics failure prevents engine ignition: Virgin Galactic Update on Test Flight Program – Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SPCE), a vertically integrated aerospace and space travel company, announced an update following its recent test flight on December 12, 2020. During the test flight, the rocket motor did not fire due to the ignition sequence not completing. Following this event, the pilots conducted a safe landing and return to Spaceport America, New Mexico as planned.

Virgin Galactic is now conducting post-flight analysis and can so far report that the onboard computer which monitors the propulsion system lost connection, triggering a fail-safe scenario that intentionally halted ignition of the rocket motor. This system, like others on the spaceship, is designed such that it defaults to a safe state whenever power or communication with sensors is lost. The pilots in the spaceship, as well as the engineers and pilots in mission control, are well prepared for any off-nominal results, as they plan and rehearse many potential scenarios during pre-flight simulation practice sessions, including a scenario where the rocket motor does not ignite after release from the mothership.

More at:

• Virgin Galactic pilots land safely after aborting suborbital flight – Spaceflight Now
• VSS Unity aborts after engine start, safely lands with crew back at Spaceport America – NASASpaceFlight.com
• Virgin Galactic aborts SpaceShipTwo suborbital spaceflight – SpaceNews

Continue reading Space transport roundup – Dec.16.2020 →

A sampling of recent articles, videos, and images dealing with space transport (find previous roundups here):

** SpaceX set to launch Starship prototype SN8 to 15 km following successful static firing of its three Raptor engines on Nov. 24th. The company currently has a FAA permit for a flight during a 3 day window opening on Dec. 4th. (There are local restrictions on closing access to the beach on weekends so the window may effectively be 1 day long.) A wet dress rehearsal took place on Wed. Dec. 2nd. Elon Musk had indicated that there would be another static firing before the flight but it looks like they may skip this.

[ Update: The flight has been postponed till Monday Dec. 7th at the earliest. Also, the max altitude will be 12.5 km rather than 15 km.]

• It’s happening: Starship may fly to 15km as early as Friday | Ars Technica
• SpaceX plans for Starship test flight next week, which Elon Musk gives 1-in-3 odds of landing intact – CNBC
• Starship SN8 successfully completes final testing ahead of flight – NASASpaceFlight.com

Find more about this and other SpaceX activities below

** Arianespace launches Soyuz with reconnaissance satellite for UAE on Dec.1st from the spaceport in French Guiana: Flight VS24: Soyuz lifts off from the Spaceport in French Guiana – Arianespace

On Tuesday, December 1, at 10:33 p.m. (local time), Arianespace successfully launched the FalconEye optical observation satellite using a Soyuz rocket from the Guiana Space Center (CSG), Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. FalconEye is a very-high-performance optical Earth observation satellite developed in a consortium led by Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space for the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces (UAEAF).

See also Soyuz rocket launches Emirati military satellite after lengthy delay – Spaceflight Now.

Continue reading Space transport roundup – Dec.3.2020 →

A sampling of recent articles, videos, and images dealing with space transport (find previous roundups here):

** Crew Dragon docks to ISS a day after launch from KSC. The Falcon 9 lifted off on Sunday evening and 27 hours later the Dragon with four astronauts (Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s (JAXA) Soichi Noguchi) aboard reached the station. The F9 booster successfully landed on a droneship in the Atlantic. This was the first operational mission for the Crew Dragon. Last week the system obtained official certification from NASA as a human-rated transport.

See also:

• With Resilience, NASA & SpaceX to begin operational Commercial Crew flights – NASASpaceFlight.com
• NASA, SpaceX Complete Certification of Commercial Space System | NASA
• NASA Certifies First Commercial Human Spaceflight System – Commercial Crew Program/NASA

Updated graphic: Congratulations @SpaceX & @NASA on the successful delivery of the four heroes of Crew-1 to the International Space Station. Here is my updated infographic celebrating how they achieved this historic journey. Larger free version go to https://t.co/arXjhichpB pic.twitter.com/jnMhWxxjQ3

— Tony Bela – Infographic news (@InfographicTony) November 17, 2020

Find more about SpaceX activities below

** Arianespace Vega rocket fails to reach orbit. This is the second Vega failure in past three launches. The payload included the Earth observation satellites SEOSAT-Ingenio from Spain and TARANIS  from France, representing about $400M in value. A mix-up in cabling appears to be the prime suspect: Human error blamed for Vega launch failure – SpaceNews. See also

• Flight Vega VV17 – SEOSAT-Ingenio / TARANIS: Mission failure – Arianespace
• Vega flight VV17 failure: Arianespace and ESA appoint an independent Inquiry Commission – ESA
• Vega fails during launch of European Earth observation satellites – NASASpaceFlight.com

From ESA:

Two and a half months after Vega’s successful return to flight, the Vega launch vehicle lifted off as scheduled on 17 November at 02:52 CET / 22:52 local time on 16 November from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The first three stages functioned nominally until the ignition of the AVUM upper stage, eight minutes after departure from the launch pad. At that time, a degraded trajectory was detected, followed by a loss of control of the vehicle and the subsequent loss of the mission.

The launcher fell in a completely uninhabited area close to the drop zone planned for the Zefiro-9 stage.

Initial investigations, conducted overnight with the available data, indicate that a problem related to the integration of the fourth-stage AVUM nozzle activation system is the most likely cause of the loss of control of the launcher.

** ULA Atlas V puts NRO spysat into orbit with launch from Cape Canaveral. This was the first Atlas V launch using Northrop Grumman GEM 63 rocket motors for the three side boosters.

• United Launch Alliance Successfully Launches NROL-101 Mission in Support of National Security – ULA
• Atlas V successfully launches NROL-101 – NASASpaceFlight.com
• ULA Atlas 5 launches National Reconnaissance Office satellite – SpaceNews
• ULA declares success on Atlas 5 launch with new solid rocket boosters – Spaceflight Now

** Recent launches in China:

*** China aims to launch lunar sample return mission on a Long March 5 rocket before the end of November. The LM-5 provides the largest payload capability in the Chinese LM family. This will be the 6th launch of a LM-5 variant. The vehicle rolled out to the pad at the Wenchang spaceport  in Hainan Province in southern China on Nov. 17th. Rocket to lift Chang’e 5 moved to launch pad – Chinadaily.com.cn

Video from CCTV of the rollout:

*** Long March 3B rocket puts Tiantong 1-02 comm-sat into orbit on Nov.12th.

• Long March 3B lofts second Tiantong-1 spacecraft – NASASpaceFlight.com
• China launches mobile telecom satellite – Spaceflight Now

*** Long March-6 puts 10 Satellogic Aleph-1 Earth observation satellites into orbit after lift off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center on Friday, Nov.6.2020.

• Long March 6 lofts ten Argentinian satellites – NASASpaceFlight.com
• Ten Satellogic Earth-imaging satellites successfully launched – Spaceflight Now

*** China’s Galactic Energy company sends payload to orbit on first orbital launch of the CERES-1 rocket. The vehicle uses solid-fuel motors in the first 3 stages and the final stage uses a hydrazine based liquid fueled engine. The company is developing the Pallas-1 with all liquid propulsion stages for launch in 2021.

• Chinese rocket firm Galactic Energy succeeds with first orbital launch, secures funding – SpaceNews
• China’s commercial rocket CERES-1 completes maiden flight – Xinhua

** Indian PSLV sends remote sensing satellite and nine commercial smallsats into orbit. This was the first PSLV launch this year due to postponements caused by the COVID-19 pandemic: PSLV successfully launches EOS-01 and nine customer satellites from Sriharikota – ISRO

Today, India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its fifty first flight (PSLV-C49), successfully launched EOS-01 along with nine international customer satellites from the First Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.

PSLV-C49 lifted-off at 1511 Hrs (IST), after a delay of nine minutes because of inclement weather conditions observed during countdown. After 15 minutes and 20 seconds, EOS-01 was successfully injected into its orbit. Subsequently, nine commercial satellites were injected into their intended orbits. After separation, the two solar arrays of EOS-01 were deployed automatically and the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network at Bengaluru assumed control of the satellite. In the coming days, the satellite will be brought to its final operational configuration.

…

EOS-01 is an earth observation satellite, intended for applications in agriculture, forestry and disaster management support.

The nine customer satellites from Lithuania (1), Luxembourg (4) and USA(4) were launched under a commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL).

** Rocket Lab to attempt recovery of first stage booster on launch set for November 20. This will be the first attempt to recover an Electron booster. The company has been carrying out tests of booster return during recent flights.

• Rocket Lab to Attempt First Stage Recovery on Next Mission | Rocket Lab
• Rocket Lab to attempt booster recovery on next mission – Spaceflight Now

Rocket Lab:

“Recovering the first stage of a small launch vehicle is uncharted territory. What we’re trying to achieve with Electron is an incredibly difficult and complex challenge, but one we’re willing to pursue to further boost launch cadence and deliver even more frequent launch opportunities to small satellite operators,” says Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s founder and CEO. “Bringing a whole first stage back intact is the ultimate goal, but success for this mission is really about gaining more data, particularly on the drogue and parachute deployment system. Regardless of the condition the stage comes back in, we’ll learn a great deal from this test and use it to iterate forward for the next attempt.”

Electron’s first stage will undertake the following complex maneuvers on its journey back to Earth:

• • Approximately two and a half minutes after lift-off, at an altitude of around 80 km, Electron’s first and second stages will separate per standard mission procedure. Electron’s second stage will continue into orbit, where the Kick Stage will separate and deploy the satellites.
  • With the engines now shut down on Electron’s first stage, a reaction control system will re-orient the stage 180-degrees to place it on an ideal angle for re-entry, designed to enable it to survive the incredible heat and pressure known as “the wall” during its descent back to Earth.
  • After decelerating to <Mach 2, a drogue parachute will be deployed to increase drag and to stabilize the first stage as it descends.
  • In the final kilometres of descent, a large main parachute will be deployed to further slow the stage and enable a controlled splashdown.
  • A Rocket Lab vessel will rendezvous with the stage after splashdown and retrieve it for transport back to Rocket Lab’s Production Complex for inspection.

If tests with splashdowns are successful, the plan for subsequent flights is to use a helicopter to grab the booster in the air by its parachute and return the booster to the launch site for refurbishment and re-use on future launches.

** Rocket Lab’s first Electron launch from the US is postponed till 2021 due to system certification issues. First Rocket Lab U.S. launch delayed to 2021 – SpaceNews

One reason for the delay, Rocket Lab said, was that it was waiting on NASA to certify the autonomous flight termination system (AFTS) that will be used on the rocket to provide range safety. NASA controls the launch range at the Wallops Flight Facility, where LC-2 is located. “There’s a very long certification process that, quite frankly, we probably underestimated how long it would take,” Peter Beck, chief executive of Rocket Lab, said in an interview in August.

That certification process is ongoing. In a Nov. 10 talk at a Maryland Space Business Roundtable webinar, David Pierce, director of NASA Wallops, mentioned preparations for Rocket Lab’s first launch as part of an overview of the facility’s activities. “We’re really proud of our work with Rocket Lab,” he said. “We’re working really hard to support Rocket Lab with a launch in ’21.”

** Update on Firefly‘s first launch of the Alpha rocket: Firefly closes in on debut flight with rocket delivery to Vandenberg launch site – NASASpaceFlight.com

ICYMI: Alpha Flight 1 Stage 1 arriving at Vandenberg Air Force Base. #Firefly #MakingSpaceForEveryone pic.twitter.com/Yk6S732GXi

— Firefly Aerospace (@Firefly_Space) November 16, 2020

** Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo flight postponed due to pandemic restrictions. including a “stay at home” order from the New Mexico governor for the rest of November. The first rocket powered SS2 flight to high altitude since February 2019 had been set for late this week. It would also be the first space flight for a SS2 from the New Mexico spaceport, which is now VG’s primary operating site.

• Virgin Galactic delays SpaceShipTwo test flight because of pandemic – SpaceNews
• Virgin Galactic prepares to transition to operations – SpaceNews
• Launch set this month at New Mexico spaceport – santafenewmexican.com

Before starting commercial flights, VG plans for a second test flight after this one and then a flight with Richard Branson on board in first quarter of 2021.

** Spaceflight Inc expands its space tug options with two additional next-generation orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs). Spaceflight Inc. Unveils Propulsive Orbital Transfer Vehicles to Launch Smallsats to Custom Orbital Destinations – Spaceflight

The company says

it is developing two additional next-generation orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs) that will debut in 2021. Its first, Sherpa-FX, will fly on a fully dedicated rideshare mission with SpaceX, dubbed SXRS-3 by Spaceflight, no earlier than December 2020. The next two ESPA-class space vehicles in the company’s portfolio are designed to provide more orbital diversification, including flexible manifest changes, deployment to multiple altitudes and orbital planes, and rapid launch solutions.

• • Sherpa-FX, the first innovative orbital transfer vehicle to debut, is capable of executing multiple deployments, providing independent and detailed deployment telemetry, and flexible interfaces, all at a low cost. This free flyer separates from a launch vehicle prior to deploying any satellites, with satellite separations initiated by onboard avionics once clear of the launch vehicle. It is quickly configurable and can move from vehicle to vehicle and mission to mission. It includes independent, near real-time, worldwide telemetry via GlobalStar. It will carry 14 spacecraft, including hosted payloads, on the upcoming SXRS-3 mission.

• • Sherpa-LTC features a high thrust, bi-propellant, green propulsion subsystem integrated seamlessly within the available space of the original free flyer. By including this new propulsion technology from Benchmark Space Systems, Sherpa-LTC provides a low cost, rapid orbital transfer for many sizes of small spacecraft. It’s compatible with all launch vehicles Spaceflight currently works with and enables reaching higher orbits quickly through SpaceX Starlink missions and similar flights. It is scheduled to fly the second half of 2021.

• • Sherpa-LTE is a high specific impulse (Isp), Xenon propellant, electric propulsion OTV. It builds on the Sherpa program by incorporating ACE (Apollo Constellation Engine), a low thrust, high efficiency, radiation hardened Hall thruster propulsion system developed by Apollo Fusion, Inc. As ACE systems are able to generate over 6 km/s of delta-V, Sherpa-LTE now has the capability to deliver customers to GEO, Cislunar, or Earth-escape orbits. The Sherpa-LTE provides a low-cost alternative to purchasing full direct-inject launch vehicles and will extend the ability of small launch vehicles that are currently under development to reach beyond low Earth orbit. The Sherpa-LTE is targeted to fly mid-2021.

See also New Propulsive Sherpa OTVs Coming in 2021 – Spaceflight Blog.

** The latest on Launcher Space, a small New York based company developing smallsat rockets with an emphasis on 3D printing of the engines.

• Meet Launcher, the rocket engine builder with just eight employees | Ars Technica
• Launching into space with 3D printed rocket engines | AMCM

** Orbit Fab launching in-space propellant depot system: Fill Them Up… In Space… That’s Orbit Fab’s Plan – SatNews

Orbit Fab has signed an agreement with Spaceflight Inc. to launch the company’s first operational fuel depot to orbit. Tanker 001 Tenzing, which will provide fuel for the fast growing in-orbit servicing industry, is expected to launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 no earlier than in June 2021.

Once launched, Tanker 001 Tenzing will store propellant in sun synchronous orbit, where it will be available to satellite servicing vehicles or other spacecraft that need to replenish fuel supplies. The tanker is one of several payloads to launch on a Spaceflight Sherpa orbital transfer vehicle, which is capable of executing multiple deployments. Spaceflight’s first OTV, Sherpa-FX, is scheduled to debut no earlier than December 2020 on a SpaceX rideshare mission and provides independent and detailed deployment telemetry, and flexible interfaces, all at a low cost.

** Briefs:

• Relativity Space raising $500 million at $2 billion valuation from Tiger and others, sources say – CNBC
• SNC Dream Chaser UPDATE Thread – NSF -Nov.17.2020 – Dream Chaser cargo vehicle  “is now expected to have first-flight sometime in 2022. That’s not a long delay from the end of 2021 plan…“
• Blue Origin scientist fleshes out plans for lunar cargo delivery – Geekwire.com
• Northrop Grumman Awarded Additional Cargo Resupply Missions to the International Space Station | Northrop Grumman
• Large launch companies cast doubt on viability of small launch vehicle market – SpaceNews
• New Commercial Spaceflight Standard Supports Safety of Suborbital Vehicles | www.astm.org
• Stratolaunch makes progress on hypersonic flight plan – GeekWire.com
• November 2020 Edition of the ISEC (Int. Space Elevator Consortium) Newsletter
• China sets targets for smart, recoverable and reusable launch vehicles – SpaceNews
• Insurance and Liability Regime for UK space launch activities – Lexology
• Arianespace planning up to four more Ariane 5 launches this year – SpaceWatch.Global
• Space Café WebTalk Recap: Ole Dokka on opportunities that come with a spaceport in the North [Norway] – SpaceWatch.Global
• How do astronauts escape a failed rocket launch? | Astronomy.com
• Stratodynamics and the University of Kentucky to Conduct Test Flights at Spaceport America – Spaceport America
• Space stations:
  • Axiom Space
    • AIAA ASCEND: Axiom shares details of its space station strategy | Aerospace America
    • Israeli Eytan Stibbe second member of SpaceX private flight for Axiom – CNBC
  • Northrop Grumman Completes Preliminary Design Review for NASA’s Gateway Crew Module | Northrop Grumman
  • The Plan to Turn Scrapped Rockets Into Space Stations | WIRED

==================

Check out the
The Lurio Report
for news and analysis of key developments in NewSpace

The latest issue:
Strides and Views, Rocket Lab, Bernard Kutter, RIP
Vol. 15, No. 6, September 18, 2020

Space Frontier Foundation Award for NewSpace Journalism

==================

** SpaceX:

Following the successful launch of the Crew Dragon to the ISS (see top item), SpaceX has several more launches coming up in the next few weeks, including two set for this Saturday at opposite coasts of the country:

*** Launch of NASA’s Sentinel-1 earth observation satellite set for Nov. 21st launch from Vandenberg AFB. Static fire test of Falcon 9 booster completed:

Static fire test complete – targeting Saturday, November 21 for Falcon 9 launch of the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich mission and landing at SLC-4 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 17, 2020

*** Another Starlink constellation launch is set for the evening of Nov. 21st from Cape Canaveral. For the first time, a F9 booster will boost a payload for the 7th time: B1049’s Flight History. And the first time a F9 first stage.

Reviews of Starlink broadband Internet services by beta test users are mostly positive so far. SpaceX needs Starlink to be popular and profitable to sustain future programs:

• Starlink will be priced to be affordable – CIS 471
• From Painfully Slow to Lightning Fast: SpaceX’s Starlink Makes Rural Internet Usable | PCMag

*** Big payment for a NRO launch covers other items beside the rocket: SpaceX explains why the U.S. Space Force is paying $316 million for a single launch – SpaceNews

The $316 million contract [to launch a National Reconnaissance Office satellite in fiscal year 2022] was the first awarded to SpaceX under the National Security Space Launch Phase 2 launch service procurement. The other provider selected in this program, United Launch Alliance, was awarded $337 million to launch two missions comparable to the one awarded to SpaceX.

This raised eyebrows because SpaceX’s previous national security launch bids were priced much lower than ULA’s. A recent Falcon Heavy launch contract SpaceX won from NASA, for example, was $117 million. In the first Phase 2 award, ULA is launching two missions almost for the price of one SpaceX mission.

But [SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer  Gwynne] Shotwell insisted the company’s launch prices are not going up. SpaceX is however charging the government for the cost of an extended payload fairing, upgrades to the company’s West Coast launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force in California, and a vertical integration facility required for NRO missions.

*** Latest on commercial launch of a private citizens crew for Axiom in late 2021: Israeli Eytan Stibbe second member of SpaceX private flight for Axiom – CNBC

• • Former Israeli fighter pilot Eytan Stibbe is the second member of the all-private crew that SpaceX is scheduled to launch late next year for Axiom Space, the company confirmed to CNBC on Monday.
  • President of Israel Reuven Rivlin made the announcement shortly after SpaceX launched its Crew-1 mission for NASA on Sunday evening.
  • Astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, who previously worked for NASA and flew to space four times, will be the mission commander for AX-1, with Stibbe set to serve as a mission specialist.
  • Axiom has yet to name the remaining two members of the AX-1 mission

**** Starship

**** A high altitude flight of the prototype Starship SN8 was delayed when an engine failed during a test firing. The test aimed to emulate the situation during landing when the engines are fed with propellants from the spherical reserve tanks in the nosecone and in the main oxygen tank. The failure of the engine led to the failure of the pneumatic system that controls the venting of the tanks. The header tank might have blown off the top of the rocket but a burst valve gave way and saved the day.

Elon Musk commented about what happened:

About 2 secs after starting engines, martyte covering concrete below shattered, sending blades of hardened rock into engine bay. One rock blade severed avionics cable, causing bad shutdown of Raptor.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 17, 2020

Fixes planned:

Avionics cables moving to steel pipe shields & adding water-cooled steel pipes to test pad

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 17, 2020

See also Starship SN8 hoping for speedy return to testing as additional vehicles line up – NASASpaceFlight.com.

And Scott Manley talks in this video posted soon after the test and before Elon’s comments but he still provides some interesting  info about the propulsion system:  Nov.13:  Starship Test Destroys Raptor Engine, But Burst Disc Saves Rest Of Vehicle

**** Meanwhile, work continues on multiple prototypes from SN9 up through SN15.

The current status of SpaceX’s Starship & Superheavy prototypes. 15 November pic.twitter.com/NumypwB96W

— Brendan (@brendan2908) November 14, 2020

**** Elon expects costs to drop dramatically when there are lots of Starships flying often:

Yeah, looks like marginal cost of launch will be less than $1M for more than 100 tons to orbit, so it’s mostly about fixed costs divided by launches per year

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 17, 2020

**** A Sampling of recent videos from Boca Chica

***** Nov.13: SpaceX Boca Chica – SN8 Static Fire #3 and Pneumatic Anomaly – NASASpaceflight – YouTube

SN8 fired up its engines for the third time, but suffered a loss of pneumatics and was unable to drain the LOX header tank in the nosecone- luckily a burst disk prevented a potentially catastrophic overpressure event. Some liquid that looked like molten metal could be seen dripping from Raptor after firing. Also included, a comparison of all 3 SN8 static fires so far. Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@TheJackBeyer)

***** Nov.13: https://youtu.be/PwBoepMtjoY – RGV Aerial Photography

***** Nov.16 : SpaceX Boca Chica – Raptor SN42 greets Starship SN8 – Brand new SN46 arrives – NASASpaceflight – YouTube

Meanwhile, in Boca Chica! New Raptor SN42 paid a visit to Starship SN8, but wasn’t installed. Then SN46(!) turned up in the RaptorVan, sporting a pumpkin! (Fresh from Halloween testing at McGregor?) Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@TheJackBeyer)

***** Nov.17 : Boca Chica – SN9 Transporter Testing – NASASpaceflight – YouTube

SN9 was tested with the newly assembled extra wide Self Propelled Modular Transporter, work on SN8 continued, and a nosecone barrel section was worked on inside the nosecone fabrication tent. Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@TheJackBeyer)

***** Nov. 17: Waiting for SN8 and a Look Back in Time – StarshipBocaChica/Maria Pointer – YouTube

You will see in this video that I knew early on that my view (and yours) was going to be different forever and just took pictures of everything. It was a responsibility to document SpaceX progress before we had to move and I thought that was the end of BocaChica Maria. Thankfully as we sold, SpaceX asked me to continue documenting with perks because we cooperated with the buyout. I was keeping something familiar and being a SpaceX influencer.

**** Other Starship and space transport reports:

**** Nov.17: SpaceX Starship Engine: Problem solved! & Crew Dragon Crew-1 Flight Summary – What about it!?

Today amongst other things I’ll explain to you, what SpaceX is doing to fix the engine problems on Starship Serial Number 8 and I’ll give you a detailed launch summary for the SpaceX and NASA Crew-1 Dragon launch.

**** Nov.14: Super Heavy’s Super Precision, Starship Updates and the NASA/SpaceX Crew-1 Launch – Marcus House

This is quite the week for SpaceX. We, of course, have all the amazing Starship Updates for the week, including some interesting talk on Super Heavy’s Super Precision capability. On top of that we have the NASA/SpaceX Crew-1 Launch. This is going to be quite the milestone for SpaceX. The static fire is done, and the final preparations are underway. On top of that, we just witnessed the launch of ULA’s NROL-101 mission.

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