Spaceflight Now The leading source for online space news

Time 2020-10-25 20:04:22

Web Name: Spaceflight Now The leading source for online space news

WebSite: http://www.spaceflightnow.com

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SpaceX successfully deployed 60 more Starlink internet satellites in orbit Saturday, continuing a record launch cadence while engineers assess a concern with Falcon 9 rocket engines that has delayed other missions, including the next crew flight to the International Space Station. The sampling mechanism on NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is stuffed with specimens captured from asteroid Bennu earlier this week so full that some of the rocks are floating out into space. Officials said Friday they will stow the samples inside the mission s Earth return capsule sooner than planned to minimize the loss of asteroid material. One week after two cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut arrived at the International Space Station, the three crew members they re replacing strapped into their own Soyuz spacecraft, undocked and returned to Earth Wednesday with a landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan to close out a 196-day mission. The first images beamed back to Earth by NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft after it briefly landed an asteroid buoyed expectations Wednesday that the probe collected enough samples to meet the mission’s minimum requirement for return to Earth. Rocket Lab canceled a launch attempt Wednesday in New Zealand to evaluate unexpected sensor data, postponing a mission that will deliver 10 small commercial Earth-imaging satellites to orbit. A three-man crew closed out a 196-day expedition in orbit late Wednesday with a parachute-assisted landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft. NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, Soyuz commander Anatoly Ivanishin, and flight engineer Ivan Vagner undocked from the International Space Station at 7:32 p.m. EDT (2332 GMT) Wednesday, and the trio landed at 10:54 p.m. EDT (0254 GMT). One week after two cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut arrived at the International Space Station for a six-month stay, the three crew members they re replacing packed up their Soyuz spacecraft for a fiery plunge back to Earth Wednesday evening to close out a 196-day mission. Rocket Lab scrubbed a planned launch from New Zealand Wednesday with 10 small Earth observation satellites for customers in the United States and Japan. Officials have not confirmed a new target launch date for the Electron rocket. Ten commercial Earth-imaging satellites are mounted on top of a Rocket Lab Electron launcher for liftoff Wednesday from New Zealand. SpaceX fired three Raptor engines on a prototype of the company’s Starship vehicle Tuesday, accomplishing another milestone on the road toward testing of the methane-fueled rocket at higher altitudes. A robotic arm extended from NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft briefly contacted the rugged surface of asteroid Bennu Tuesday to gobble up pristine samples, a climactic moment in the $1 billion mission to bring asteroid material back to Earth in 2023. NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft made a touch and go landing on asteroid Bennu at 6:12 p.m. EDT (2212 GMT) Tuesday. The craft aimed to collect samples from the asteroid s gravely surface for return to Earth in 2023 for scientists to search for clues about the origins and evolution of the solar system. Mars rovers go through seven minutes of terror when they plunge into the Martian atmosphere at hypersonic speed. NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will take a more glacial approach to its asteroid target Tuesday, and the event will be more akin to four-and-a-half hours of mild anxiety for ground teams, according to the mission s operations manager.

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