Satellite News

Successful test firings of key propulsion components marked the latest sign of progress for Virgin Galactic’s dedicated small satellite launch vehicle, LauncherOne, the company said.

Rocket: PSLV-C30; Payload: ASTROSAT, six small satellites; Date: 28 September 2015, 0430 UTC; Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota, India. ASTROSAT, the country’s Multi Wavelength Space Observatory was launched along with six foreign customer satellites into a 644.6 km x 651.5 km x 6 degrees orbit, which is very close to the intended one. This was the thirtieth consecutive success for PSLV.

Rocket: Chang Zheng 11; Payload: Tianwang-1A (SECM-1), Tianwang-1B (NJUST-2), Tianwang-1C (NJFA-1), Pujian-1; Date: 25 September 2015, 0121 UTC; Launch site: Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China.

The liquid upper stage for a November flight utilising Arianespace’s lightweight Vega vehicle has been delivered to French Guiana, supporting the company’s sustained mission pace in 2015 with its complete launcher family at the Spaceport.

Rocket: Rokot/Briz-KM; Payload: three Rodnik satellites [Kosmos-2507, Kosmos-2508 and Kosmos-2509]; Date: 23 September 2015, 2200 UTC; Launch site: Plesetsk, Russia. “The light-class Rokot carrier rocket successfully put into orbit at the designated time three Russian Defence Ministry space vehicles,” according to a Russian Defence Ministry spokesperson.

NASA and Orbital ATK are getting fired up for a second qualification ground test for the largest, most powerful boosters ever built for the agency’s new rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS).

The Russian Defence Ministry plans to launch a Rokot carrier rocket from the Plesetsk cosmodrome to put three Rodnik communications satellites into orbit on 23 September (UTC), the ministry’s press service announced.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) and Orbital ATK, Inc. announced a long-term strategic partnership in which Orbital ATK will become the sole provider of solid rocket boosters for ULA’s Atlas V and Vulcan launch vehicles, effective in 2019 when the new motors are ready for launch.