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The US Space Force’s secret-but-not-really-secret spaceplane will carry out a novel maneuver called aerobraking to change its orbit. Instead of using thrusters, the robotic spacecraft will dip into the Earth’s atmosphere to change its trajectory.Contin… Continue reading Not-so-secret spaceplane to use “first-of-a-kind maneuver” to change orbit
A spacecraft about the size of a gas pump is being developed for the US Space Force program to refuel orbiting satellites. The goal is to extend the lifespan of craft that have run out of juice instead of simply decommissioning them.Continue ReadingCat… Continue reading Space Force orders orbital service station to revive dead satellites
SpaceX plans to regularly launch its monster Starship booster from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and to do so it will refurbish an Apollo-era launch site and also construct a new one, according to a new environmental impact statement.Continue Re… Continue reading Is Kennedy Space Center ready to withstand the power of Starship?
Northrop Grumman’s Passive Refueling Module (PRM) has been tapped by the US Space Force as the preferred model to set the standard for Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) to refuel satellites in orbit to extend their mission life.Continue Reading… Continue reading US Space Force wants orbital filling stations for its satellites
The US Space Force’s X-37B spaceplane has launched successfully on its multi-year orbital mission. At 8:07 pm EST, the unmanned vehicle set atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy booster lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.Con… Continue reading US Space Force’s not-so-secret X-37B spaceplane roars into orbit
The US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has completed a major test (FTG-12) of a stage-selectable Ground-Based Interceptor (GBI) missile system that destroyed an air-launched Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) target vehicle.Continue ReadingCatego… Continue reading US flexible interceptor destroys ballistic missile in major test
The US Space Force has announced the launch date of its not-so-secret top secret spaceplane. The X-37B Mission 7 will lift off from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida on December 7 atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time.Continue ReadingCat… Continue reading Launch date set for “secret” X-37B spaceplane mission
A team of scientists led by University of Virginia professor Patrick Hopkins is developing a plasma “freeze ray” that will be less interesting to super villains than to engineers looking for ways to cool electronics in the vacuum of space.Continue Read… Continue reading Plasma pulses promise real-life ‘freeze ray’
NASA and DARPA have agreed to develop and test a nuclear rocket engine in space as soon as 2027. Using a nuclear reactor as its power source, it would outperform chemical rockets and greatly reduce the time for the first crewed Mars mission.Continue Re… Continue reading DARPA and NASA plan orbital nuclear rocket test
As part of a fast-track program to protect military satellite communications (SATCOM), Boeing recently demonstrated its new system at White Sands, New Mexico, that can autonomously detect and counter jamming efforts at the source in real-time.Continue … Continue reading Boeing smart beams counter military com attacks in real-time