As 2018 comes to an end, we would like to take a moment and look back at some of the high - and low points of the last year. 2018 was a great year - no deadly accidents, more launches then ever and new space agencies around the globe.
Read More »Iran Claims To Have SSA Radar Capable Of Detecting Satellites In LEO
The deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Brigadier General Hossein Salami, announced on 29 December 2018 that Iranian experts have successfully built radars capable of monitoring satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), according Iranian news reporting.
Read More »Indian Human Spaceflight: Gaganyaan Mission In 2022 To Orbit Three Astronauts, Cost $1.4 Billion
The Indian government announced on 28 December 2018 that its Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission expected to take place in 2022 will consist of three crew members, last for five to seven days in orbit, and is budgeted for the equivalent of U.S.$1.43 billion, according to Indian media reports.
Read More »China’s BeiDou GNSS Now Available Globally Ahead of Schedule
China has announced the completion of its BeiDou global navigation satellite system (GNSS) and the start of worldwide service on 27 December 2018, marking a victory for Beijing's "Made in China 2025" strategy that promotes strategically autonomous high technologies such as autonomous driving, satellite technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and 5G networks, among others.
Read More »Saudi Arabia Establishes Space Agency In Leadership Shakeup
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has established the Saudi Space Agency as part of a leadership shakeup enacted by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, in a Royal decree issued late on 27 December 2018.
Read More »#SpaceWatchGL Column: Big Ambitions From China’s SmallSat Companies
By Blaine Curcio and Tianyi Lan Over the past five years, and in particular over the past two to three years, the Chinese space industry has seen a dramatic increase in private company involvement. While these companies tend to be relatively small, they are great in number, with over 60 …
Read More »Russian Soyuz 2-1A Successfully Lofts Multiple Satellites From Vostochny Cosmodrome
The last Russian satellite launch of 2018 took place on 27 December 2018 when a Soyuz 2-1A launch vehicle lifted off from the Vostochny Cosmodrome, lofting two Kanopus-V remote sensing satellites and twenty-six secondary payloads into orbit with the aid of a Fregat upper stage.
Read More »India’s ISRO Seeking To Develop ADMIRE VTVL Reusable Launch Vehicle
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is looking to develop a reusable satellite launch vehicle similar to the reusable Grasshopper booster rockets from the SpaceX Falcon 9 satellite launch vehicle, The Times of India reports.
Read More »Chinese Commercial Space: First Of 156-Satellite Hongyun Satellite Broadband Constellation Successfully Launched
A Chinese Long March 11 launch vehicle successfully placed the Hongyan-1 satellite into orbit on 21 December 2018, making the first satellite launch of a planned 156-satellite communications constellation in low-Earth orbit (LEO), according to Andrew Jones at GBTimes.
Read More »Denmark’s GomSpace Signs GOMX-5 Contract With ESA
GomSpace has signed a 300,000 Euro (U.S.$341,000) development contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) for the initiation of a new GOMX-5 satellite mission to demonstrate new nanosatellite capabilities for the next generation of constellations requiring high speed communications links and high levels of manoeuvrability.
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