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Category: satellites – Page 68

Virgin Orbit readies modified 747 for the first-ever UK orbital space launch

A modified Boeing 747 aircraft, nicknamed Cosmic Girl, will launch a rocket from under its wing around midnight local time.

S SpaceX works towards the first orbital launch of its fully reusable Starship rocket, Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit is looking to perform the first-ever orbital launch from British soil.

If all goes to plan, the Virgin Orbit launch will kickstart an exciting year for the British space industry.

Virgin Orbit / Twitter.

The company, an offshoot of Virgin Galactic, will use a repurposed 747 jumbo jet tonight, Jan. 9, to launch nine satellites into orbit. The launch is set to take place just before midnight GMT from Newquay Airport in Cornwall in the south of England, as per the BBC.

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Remains of retired NASA satellite that spent 38 years in service set to fall on Earth

“The 5,400-pound satellite will reenter the atmosphere at approximately 6:40 pm EST on Sunday, January 8,” with no risk to humans.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) defunct satellite is poised to hit the ground on Sunday.

“The Department of Defense predicted that the 5,400-pound satellite will reenter the atmosphere at approximately 6:40 p.m. EST on Sunday, January 8, with an uncertainty of +/- 17 hours,” read the statement.

Wikimedia Commons.

Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS), launched in 1984, spent nearly 40 years in orbit as part of the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) mission, according to a press release by the U.S. Space Agency on Friday.

Physicists confirm effective wave growth theory in space

A team from Nagoya University in Japan has observed, for the first time, the energy transferring from resonant electrons to whistler-mode waves in space. Their findings offer direct evidence of previously theorized efficient growth, as predicted by the non-linear growth theory of waves. This should improve our understanding of not only space plasma physics but also space weather, a phenomenon that affects satellites.

When people imagine , they often envision it as a perfect vacuum. In fact, this impression is wrong because the vacuum is filled with charged particles. In the depths of space, the density of charged particles becomes so low that they rarely collide with each other.

Instead of collisions, the forces related to the electric and magnetic fields filling space, control the motion of charged particles. This lack of collisions occurs throughout space, except for very near to celestial objects, such as stars, moons, or planets. In these cases, the charged particles are no longer traveling through the vacuum of space but instead through a medium where they can strike other particles.

The Concept of Unlimited Solar Energy From Space is One Step Closer to Reality

Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD) launched on January 3rd may be a breakthrough for harvesting solar energy from space.

A Caltech-designed prototype satellite containing an experiment, the Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD), was launched on January 3rd of this year in what could prove to be a breakthrough for harvesting the energy of the Sun from space. The satellite goes by the name Momentus Vigoride and hitched its ride into space on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Solar energy from space has been the dream of science fiction writers beginning with Isaac Asimov back in 1941 in a short story called Reason which later was included in a collection that Asimov published in 1950 entitled I, Robot. In the story, Asimov described a space station that collected energy from the Sun and transmitted it by microwave beam to various locations. Asimov recognized the distinct advantage of building solar power generating stations in space out of the Earth’s shadow and therefore continuously being able to harvest the energy of the Sun.

When the first telecommunication satellites were launched into geosynchronous orbits around Earth, it became obvious that not just communications could be offered in a continuous stream using satellite technology. A photovoltaic array parked in a similar orbit would stream electrical energy to Earth ground receivers. And depending on the size of an array deployed at that altitude, a satellite or a few of them to ensure no single failure, could become an endless supplier of all the energy the planet would need. There were technical problems still to work out.

Nigeria becomes the first country in Africa to have access to SpaceX Starlink, Engineer is ‘pretty impressed’ by the high-speed internet service

SpaceX Starlink Internet service will soon be available across the West African country of Nigeria, according to Nigeria’s Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Ali Pantami. SpaceX already delivered some Starlink user terminals to the country to commence services. “As part of the partnership, SpaceX is to provide broadband access across the whole of Nigeria, enabling nationwide access to broadband connectivity way ahead of the December 2025 schedule, as outlined in our national broadband plan,” said Pantami. “With this collaboration with SpaceX’s Starlink, Nigeria is set to be the first African country to introduce the service.” Nigeria’s goals was to cover 90% of the country’s population with reliable internet access by 2025, the goal is now attainable because the Starlink satellite network is easy to set up and capable of beaming high-speed internet to rural and remote communities. SpaceX’s official Starlink Coverage Map says the service is ‘coming soon’ to Nigeria, users must input their address on the website to find out if its already available in their specific area.

On the partnership with SpaceX and StarLink. They have now commenced the deployment of their facilities in Nigeria is the first African country to reach that partnership & also approval for the deployment. pic.twitter.com/QamCN2AG4z — Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim (@ProfIsaPantami) December 29, 2022

The company sent an email to potential customers living in Nigeria, stating that the service is available for pre-order. “Order now to reserve your Starlink expects to expand service in your area [Nigeria] in 2023. You will receive a notification once your Starlink is ready to ship,” the email says. The hardware to access the satellite internet service costs $600 [N438,000] in Nigeria with an internet subscription of $43 [N31,390] per month.

New Lunar Satellites Will Enable Autonomous Space Travel to the Moon for Astronauts

Both the European Space Agency and NASA are planning to test even more sensitive sensors on future moon missions to try and hone in on satellite signals. If they can truly connect with sats back home, we could get closer to achieving autonomous moon travel. But eventually that won’t be enough. To help direct humans on the lunar surface, we’re going to need a fleet of satellites specifically around the moon. NASA calls its project LunaNet, and it’s part of the Gateway space station, which is the culmination of America’s plan to return to the moon. It needs to be designed to play well with ESA technology and, eventually, will be the source of high-speed internet on the moon.

Artemis I launched back in November, rounded the moon just 81 miles above the lunar surface and touched down Earth-side in December. Artemis II, which will carry astronauts around the moon in a similar trajectory, is slated to launch in late 2024, according to Space.com. Artemis III, which will be humanity’s first boots on the moon since 1972, could launch as early as 2025.

SpaceX launches its first mission of 2023 following a record-smashing 2022

The company almost doubled its launch record set the previous year. This year, it will likely break new ground with Starship.

SpaceX’s first mission of 2023 launched a massive 114 satellites into orbit. The Falcon 9 rideshare mission, called Transporter-6, launched at 10:56 a.m. EST (1456 GMT) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The new mission kickstarts what is set to be a massive year for SpaceX as the company readies for the orbital launch of its next-generation Starship rocket.

It also follows on from what was a record-breaking year for SpaceX in 2022, with the company almost doubling its previous launch record.

SpaceX / YouTube.

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