Satellite News

For its 10th launch of 2018, the sixth of the year using an Ariane 5 vehicle, Arianespace will orbit GSAT-11 for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and GEO-KOMPSAT-2A for the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI).

The Characterising Exoplanet Satellite, Cheops, will target 15 October to 14 November 2019 for launch.

New launch dates have been announced for SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and ULA’s Delta IV Heavy.

The launch of the third Blagovest military communications satellite is planned for 21 December from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, a source in the domestic space industry was quoted as saying by TASS.

Rocket: Vega; Payload: MOHAMMED VI-B; Date: 21 November 2018, 0142 UTC; Launch site: Kourou, French Guiana. The mission – which lasted 55 minutes from lift-off to payload separation – placed its passenger into a Sun-synchronous orbit.

Rocket: Soyuz-FG; Payload: Progress MS-10 [ISS 71P]; Date: 16 November 2018, 1814 UTC; Launch site: Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Progress MS-10 has arrived at the International Space Station and performed an automated docking to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module on 18 November, 1928 UTC.

Rocket: Antares 230; Payload: Cygnus [NG-10, CRS 10]; Date: 17 November 2018, 0901 UTC; Launch site: Wallops Flight Facility, USA. The spacecraft, which is carrying carrying about 3,300 kg of vital supplies and scientific equipment, is scheduled to arrive at the ISS on 19 November.

The upcoming Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base has been delayed to give the launch team time to complete more inspections.