Tag: Spaceflight
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Spaceflight signs up Brazil for Amazonia-1 satellite launch on Indian rocket in 2020
An artist’s conception shows the Amazonia-1 satellite. (INPE Illustration) Seattle-based Spaceflight says it’s struck one of its biggest deals for a satellite launch with Brazil’s space research institute, focusing on putting the Amazonia-1 satellite into low Earth orbit in mid-2020. The contract was awarded on Tuesday during a ceremony in São José dos Campos, attended by…
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Third time’s the charm: SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launches a record 64 satellites for Spaceflight
SpaceX’s first triple-launched Falcon 9 booster lights up to send 64 satellites into space. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched Seattle-based Spaceflight’s first-ever dedicated rideshare mission, a satellite extravaganza aimed at placing 64 spacecraft in low Earth orbit. Today’s liftoff from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California came off at 10:34 a.m. PT, sending…
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Spaceflight’s 64-satellite extravaganza inches closer to SpaceX launch
A twice-flown SpaceX Falcon booster is readied for its third mission, set for launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Scorch marks give the first-stage booster a “sooty” appearance. (SpaceX Photo via Twitter) Seattle-based Spaceflight Industries is closing in on what’s shaping up as a grand convergence in commercial space. Spaceflight, which handles launch logistics…
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India’s PSLV rocket launches BlackSky’s Global-1 satellite (plus 30 other satellites)
India’s PSLV rocket lifts off to send 31 satellites into orbit. (ISRO Video) The first Earth observation satellite for Seattle-based BlackSky’s Global constellation has been sent into orbit aboard an Indian rocket. Global-1 was just one of 30 secondary payloads for the PSLV-C43 mission, launched at 9:57 a.m. local time Thursday (8:27 p.m. PT Wednesday)…
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Israeli moon lander to ride SpaceX rocket in Spaceflight’s first move beyond low Earth orbit
An artist’s conception shows SpaceIL’s Sparrow lunar lander on the moon’s surface. (SpaceIL Illustration) SpaceIL’s lunar lander is go for launch as a secondary payload on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that’s due to send a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous orbit, Seattle-based Spaceflight announced today. The launch, expected early next year, would represent the first…
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Spaceflight’s SmallSat Express rounds up more than 70 satellites for SpaceX launch
An artist’s conception shows Spaceflight’s satellite deployers emerging from their SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. (Spaceflight Illustration) LOGAN, Utah — Seattle-based Spaceflight is confirming that it has more than 70 satellites from 18 countries signed up for launch on a first-of-its-kind dedicated rideshare mission, due to fly on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket by the end…
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How a snafu over swarming satellites led Spaceflight to sharpen its launch policy
India’s PSLV-C40 rocket stands on its launch pad in advance of January’s liftoff. (ISRO Photo) When India’s PSLV rocket launched a host of satellites into orbit in January, one big piece was missing: the Federal Communications Commission’s authorization for Swarm Technologies’ super-miniaturized satellites. The FCC had nixed Swarm’s application on the grounds that the wallet-sized…
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Spaceflight launch services company adds Virgin Orbit and Cosmic Girl to its lineup
An artist’s conception shows Virgin Orbit’s “Cosmic Girl” 747 jet carrying a LauncherOne rocket in preparation for air launch. (Virgin Orbit Illustration) Seattle-based Spaceflight has a new product to offer customers who want to get small satellites up and running: Virgin Orbit’s air-launch system. Virgin Orbit’s system, which involves sending its two-stage LauncherOne rocket into…
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Spaceflight strikes deal with Rocket Lab for three satellite launch extravaganzas
Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket lifts off from its New Zealand launch pad in January. (Rocket Lab Photo via Spaceflight) Seattle-based Spaceflight has partnered with Rocket Lab for three launches over the next year, including one of the first launches for BlackSky’s Earth observation constellation. All three launches will send an assortment of small satellites into low…
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FCC stings Swarm Technologies after an unauthorized launch of tiny satellites
India’s PSLV rocket lifts off in January, carrying controversial satellites into orbit. (ISRO Photo) A stealthy California startup called Swarm Technologies is facing the wrath of the Federal Communications Commission after its super-miniaturized satellites were launched without proper authorization. The flap was first reported last Friday in IEEE Spectrum. It all started when Swarm Technologies…