Satellite News

Expedition 24 Commander Alexander Skvortsov and Flight Engineers Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mikhail Kornienko landed their Soyuz TMA-18 spacecraft in Kazakhstan on 25 September, wrapping up a six-month stay aboard the International Space Station.

Orbital Sciences Corporation said it is prepared to launch the first orbital mission of the Minotaur IV rocket in support of the Air Force’s Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) satellite, also known as SBSS Block 10.

Three departing Expedition 24 crew members are spending another day on the International Space Station following an unsuccessful attempt to undock their Soyuz spacecraft.

Rocket: Chang Zheng 2-D; Payload: Yaogan XI (YG 11; Yaogan-Weixing 11); Date: 22 September 2010, 0242 UTC; Launch Site: Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China. According to Chinese state media, the launch was successful.

Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne successfully completed the latest round of tests on the workhorse gas generator for NASA’s J-2X rocket engine. With the first NASA J-2X engine far along in development, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne is on track to begin testing in 2011 at Stennis Space Center.

Rocket: Atlas V 501; Payload: NROL-41 (USA 215); Date: 21 September, 0403 UTC; Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, USA. The rocket carried a classified satellite for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
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The Board of Directors of Arianespace approved the launch manifest for 2010 and 2011, which includes a delay of the launch of the Johannes Kepler ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle).
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China will shortly launch yet another remote-sensing satellite, Yaogan XI, state media said.
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