Space Missions

The General Assembly of the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) appointed Hermann Ludwig Moeller as the Director of the Institute, effective 1st September 2022, ESPI said. Mr. Moeller is succeeding Jean-Jacques Tortora, who became ESPI’s Director in June 2016.

In this Space Café Radio -  SpaceWatch.Global publisher Torsten Kriening spoke with Dr. Charlotte Bewick, Head of Scientific Missions Department, Directorate of Predevelopment, Space System Studies and Proposals at OHB Systems AG at the LEO Kinetic Space Safety Workshop in Lausanne about threats and risks in Low Earth Orbit and how to move forward to a sustainable future in space.

SpaceX is launching a new round of funding, aiming for US $1.725 billion at US $70 per share, bringing the company’s valuation to US $127 billion, CNBC reported. SpaceX remains a private company even over 20 years after its founding. SpaceX is holding a secondary sale to company insiders and existing shareholders as well, for up to US $750 million.

Several pieces of suspected space debris fell onto the rural parts of western India, Indian media reported. The time of the incident suggests these could be Chinese rocket parts re-entering Earth’s atmosphere.  The objects crashed into the ground in Gujarat within a 15-km radius, accompanied by a loud noise.

The Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft reached the intended orbit and continues to perform nominally on its way to the International Space Station (ISS) after a successful launch atop United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket. The spacecraft is expected to dock with the space station’s Boeing-built module after a 24-hour journey.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is launching the Ouija program to provide new insights into high-frequency (HF) radio wave propagation in the ionosphere with the help of sensors on low-orbiting satellites.  HF radio transmissions are important to military systems across all domains including space, air, ground, and maritime.

Airbus announced it has been awarded a contract from ESA to further develop the implementation of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). The mission design and final technology development are due to be completed by 2024, with a planned launch in the late 2030s.

German-based risk and disaster intelligence company Mayday.ai, and Airbus have entered into a strategic partnership to enhance risk and disaster intelligence. Airbus’ data will power Mayday.ai’s next-generation platform supporting decision-makers in protecting lives, property and the environment.

Norwegian Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has placed an order for three microsatellites with Lithuanian mission integrator NanoAvionics for a space-based maritime surveillance mission covering the North Sea area, Kongsberg said. The satellites will be based on NanoAvionics’s MP42 microsatellite bus.

Australian in-space transportation and  logistics startup Space Machines Company (SMC), announced it has secured SpaceX as a launch provider to carry its Optimus Orbital Transfer Vehicle (OTV) to space as part of its April 2023 rideshare mission. The mission will demonstrate the 270-kg Optimus OTV’s in-space logistics services and reinforce SMC’s role as a last-mile delivery services provider.