Mon, Nov 23, 2020
Deployed 30 Small Satellites To Orbit
Rocket Lab has successfully launched its 16th Electron mission and deployed 30 small satellites to orbit – the largest number of satellites deployed by Electron to date on a single mission. The ‘Return to Sender’ mission also saw Rocket Lab complete a successful splashdown and recovery of the first stage of an Electron launch vehicle for the first time, bringing the stage back to Earth under a parachute after launch. The recovery of a stage is a major milestone in Rocket Lab’s pursuit to make Electron a reusable rocket to increase launch frequency and reduce launch costs for small satellites.
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Mon, Nov 23, 2020
In 2021, CREATeV Will Attempt To Set The FAI Record For Longest Unmanned Flight
On Thursday, November 12, 2020, the CREATeV solar-powered airplane flew nonstop for over 10 hours. After taking off at 9:11 am, the aircraft circled over the field of Canada's York Soaring Association for over 10 hours. The landing went well despite being two hours after sunset. This flight was a major milestone in a quest to break the world flight endurance record. The goal of the CREATeV project is to develop an ultra-long endurance solar powered aircraft capable of sustaining flight for 60 days continuously. The major challenge with sustaining multi-day flights is the ability to cruise through an entire night on battery power, without the ability to recharge the batteries from solar power.
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Mon, Nov 23, 2020
Also: Vega Flight VV17, Expanded ISS Crew, XTI Aircraft-Verdego Aero, Helo Maritime Strike Squadron 37
Special agents with the FBI this week arrested a Hollywood man on a federal charge alleging that he recklessly operated a drone that crashed into a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter. 22-year-old Andrew Rene Hernandez,was arrested pursuant to a criminal complaint that charges him with one count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft. Using data from the remains of the drone that hit an LAPD helicopter last September and other evidence, the Feds believe they have found the operator of the rogue aircraft. The drone damaged the LAPD aircraft and the pilot was forced to initiate an emergency landing. At last week's fall meeting – held in a virtual format – the EAA board of directors supported the ongoing planning efforts for EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2021, which will be held July 26-August 1 at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh. Among those preparations ar
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Sun, Nov 22, 2020
NASA Comments on NSF’s Planned Controlled Decommissioning of Arecibo Radio Telescope
On Nov. 18, NASA was informed by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that, after careful assessment and consideration, they have decided to decommission the 305m radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, which recently sustained structural damage from failed cables. The planetary radar capability at Arecibo, funded by NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Observations Program, has served as one of two major planetary radar capabilities. It has allowed NASA to fully characterize the precise orbits, sizes, and shapes of some NEOs passing within radar range after they are discovered by wide-field optical telescope survey projects.
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Sat, Nov 21, 2020
JAXA Astronaut Soichi Noguchi Is Now On His Third Space Mission
The International Space Station’s four newest crew members are fitting in a variety of space research. The quartet also continues to get up to speed with station systems and procedures. Flight Engineers Michael Hopkins and Victor Glover, the SpaceX Crew Dragon commander and pilot, respectively, researched how their dexterous manipulation is affected by microgravity. The Grip study may influence the development of future space systems and interfaces as NASA plans missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
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