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August 06, 2023

NASA Crew-8 Mission Announced

Long-Duration ISS Tenants Selected for 2024 Launch

The 8th rotational mission to the ISS has been announced, with Commander Matthew Dominick, Pilot Michael Barratt, and Mission Specialist Jeanette Epps chosen to accompany cosmonaut Mission Specialist Alexander Grebenkin for the mission in "early 2024." The team will join Expedition 70 and 71 crew members aboard the station for a long stay, carrying out the usual chores and errands involved in keeping the ISS operational along with a wide-ranging set of operational and research activities.

Drones to Serve As Human Rights Survey Assistants

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced the delivery of 9 autonomous drones donated by Skydio to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine. The shipment was made up of Skydio 2+ drones, each boasting a 4K camera suite. USAID intends for the aircraft to be used to document war crimes throughout the Ukrainian front, assessing civilian infrastructure, damage, and human impacts wherever necessary. USAID says that 2 of its selected coalitions have documented "more than 40,000 incidents of Russia’s war crimes since February 24, 2022", both assisted by continued visits from USAID experts.

Quantum to Serve as Basis for Future SkyDrive Flight Deck

Japanese eVTOL manufacturer-to-be SkyDrive announced the selection of Avidyne’s Quantum system at the recently concluded AirVenture 2023, choosing the flexible suite to provide “customized, certified avionics” for its upcoming 3-seat electric aircraft. The company has continued to press onwards in recent months, tweaking and modifying their basic design while adding a little more capacity and performance wherever possible.