FAA Grants Safety Waiver to SpaceX for West Coast Launch
The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) has granted SpaceX a waiver related to one of three safety factors for its first west coast launch next month. SpaceX plans …
ISS Crew Recreates Spacesuit Leak, Cause Still a Mystery
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) recreated the spacesuit leak that endangered European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano last month, but the root cause of the leak remains undetermined. As …
Russian News Source Claims Russia Reconsidering Exports of RD-180 Engines to US
Russia Today (RT) is reporting that Russia’s Security Council is reconsidering exports of Russian RD-180 rocket engines to the United States. RD-180s are used for the United Launch Alliance’s (ULA’s) Atlas V rocket. …
Japan Set for Inaugural Launch of New Epsilon Rocket – Update 2
UPDATE 2, 7:30 am August 27 EDT: JAXA issued a press release saying that the launch was aborted when “an automatic stop alarm was issued as an attitude abnormality was …
Space Policy Events for the Weeks of August 26-September 6, 2013
Space policy events are not likely to interfere in back-to-school activities in the coming week — there is nothing on the schedule as of today (though that can always change). The pace …
Kennel: Decadal Surveys Still Important Despite Challenges
Charles Kennel, chair of the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Space Studies Board (SSB), believes that Decadal Surveys are still valuable strategy tools for the space and earth sciences communities despite the …
Three Russian Industry Officials Fired Over Proton Failure
Three officials of the company that manufactures Proton rockets have been fired because of the Proton launch failure last month. The fate of Russian government officials is pending. A Proton-M …
Orbital's COTS Demonstration Launch Slips to September 17
Orbital Sciences Corporation announced today that the test launch of its Antares rocket with a Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) is now targeted for September 17 instead of …
Speaking of the Moon–Stunning Photo of Blue Moon Over DC As LADEE Gets Ready to Launch
A day before NASA holds a pre-launch press briefing about its latest Moon probe, the Washington Post’s Capital Weather Gang (CWG) has posted a stunning photograph of the “Blue Moon” over …
Luca Shares Chilling Details of Spacesuit Leak Ordeal – "Like a Goldfish in a Fishbowl"
European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Luca Parmitano shares chilling details of what transpired on July 16, 2013 when his spacesuit helmet filled with water during a spacewalk in a blog …