Author: starpathwp-production
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ESA’s Hera spacecraft launches on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket as Hurricane Milton takes aim at Florida
An artist’s rendering of the Hera spacecraft along with CubeSats Milani and Juventas around the asteroid, Dimorphous. Graphic: ESA The European Space Agency and SpaceX managed to find good enough weather right in the nick of time to launch a mission to a binary asteroid Monday morning. The Hera mission is a follow-on operation, which…
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Planet Data Used for Sugarbeet Crop Monitoring in New Agriculture Contract
Planet’s satellite data informs sugarbeet crop monitoring under a new contract between Planet partner SatAgro and American Crystal Sugar Company. Sugarbeet is a root crop with a high concentration of sucrose that is processed into sugar. American Crystal Sugar is a grower-owned cooperative and is the largest beet sugar producer in the U.S. Under the contract,…
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ESA’s Hera mission launched to asteroid binary as Falcon 9 returns to flight
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Hera mission, which is traveling to asteroid Didymos and its moon Dimorphos as a follow-up to NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission, beat weather odds and successfully launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This flight, the 95th Falcon flight of 2024, was the first Falcon 9 mission to…
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NASA to Provide Coverage for Europa Clipper Launch to Jupiter Moon
NASA will be providing live coverage of prelaunch and launch activities for Europa Clipper, the agency’s mission to explore Jupiter’s icy moon Europa. NASA is targeting launch at 12:31 p.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 10, on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Beyond Earth, Jupiter’s moon…
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HALO Space expands testing operations to Saudi Arabia
A render of the view of the curvature of Earth as seen from inside the Aurora capsule. Image: Halo Space The Aurora capsule is designed to lift passengers to near-space altitudes using a helium balloon, offering a zero-emission journey to view the curvature of the Earth. The full journey from takeoff, ascent, cruise, descent, and…
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Scientists use data from BepiColombo flyby to discover features within Mercury’s magnetosphere
In June 2023, the joint European Space Agency (ESA) and Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) BepiColombo mission performed a flyby of its target planet — Mercury. During the flyby, the spacecraft experienced a variety of phenomena mainly caused by the planet’s magnetic field. BepiColombo measured these phenomena, providing scientists with a preview of Mercury’s magnetic…
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Impulse Space Nabs $35M US Space Force Contract for 2 TacRS Missions
The U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) on Thursday awarded Impulse Space a $34.5 million contract for two tactically responsive space (TacRS) missions in 2026 for space domain awareness and dynamic space operations. One mission, VICTUS SURGO, involves the first launch into Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) of Impulse Space’s Helios high-energy kick stage, which will be…
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ULA gets second Vulcan launch off the ground, now hopeful for certification
Image: Steven Madow / Space Explored ULA launched its Cert-2 mission on its brand new Vulcan rocket early Friday morning. While there was an obvious anomaly in one of its solid rocket motors, the company states the mission was a success. Now ULA and the Space Force will have to review flight data in order…