Russia blames Progress leak on ‘external influences’ as new Soyuz preps for launch

Russia’s Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft, perched atop a Soyuz rocket, rolled to its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome Tuesday, Feb. 21. Credit: Roscosmos Russia’s space agency said Tuesday that preliminary data suggest a coolant leak on a Progress cargo freighter docked at the International Space Station earlier this month was caused by “external influences” — …

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Watch live: SpaceX to complete Friday doubleheader with launch for Inmarsat

Watch our live coverage of the countdown and launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. The Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Inmarsat 6 F2 communications satellite. Follow us on Twitter. SpaceX Webcast SpaceX will try to complete a launch doubleheader Friday night with …

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Watch live: Russian cargo ship set to depart space station after coolant leak

Russian cosmonauts will try to take pictures of the location where coolant leaked out of a Russian Progress cargo ship earlier this month when the supply freighter departs the International Space Station Friday night, as scheduled, to head for a destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean. The Progress MS-21 cargo ship is scheduled to undock …

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Falcon 9 launch from California adds 51 more satellites to Starlink network

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, powered by nine Merlin engines, climbs through the atmosphere after liftoff from California Friday with 51 more Starlink internet satellites. Credit: SpaceX A Falcon 9 rocket delivered 51 more Starlink internet satellites into orbit Friday after launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, adding to SpaceX’s global broadband network that …

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ep.364: Shaking Up The Sheetmetal Industry, with Ed Mehr

Conventional sheet metal manufacturing is highly inefficient for the low-volume production seen in the space industry. At Machina Labs, they developed a novel method of forming sheet metal using two robotic arms to bend the metal into different geometries. This method cuts down the time to produce large sheet metal parts from several months down …

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Robot Talk Episode 37 – Interview with Yang Gao

Claire chatted to Professor Yang Gao from the University of Surrey all about space robotics and planetary exploration. Yang Gao is Professor of Space Autonomous Systems and Founding Head of the STAR LAB that specializes in robotic sensing, perception, visual guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) and biomimetic mechanisms for industrial applications in extreme environments. She brings …

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First launch of Japan’s H3 rocket aborted moments before liftoff

The first launch of Japan’s H3 rocket was aborted moments before liftoff Thursday (U.S. time). Credit: JAXA Japan’s first H3 rocket, nearly a decade in development, was moments from liftoff Thursday (U.S. time) when the launch vehicle detected a problem and cut off the countdown just before sending a command to ignite two strap-on solid-fueled …

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Inmarsat satellite poised to provide connectivity over Atlantic Ocean

Artist’s illustration of the Inmarsat 6 F2 communications satellite with solar arrays and its L-band antenna deployed in orbit. Credit: Inmarsat A large European-built communications satellite owned by London-based Inmarsat is set to ride a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket into orbit Friday night from Cape Canaveral, kicking off a mission to connect ships and airplanes …

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Watch live: Japan’s new H3 rocket ready for first test flight

Japan is set to test its new flagship launch vehicle, the H3, with a demonstration flight Thursday night from the Tanegashima Space Center, debuting a rocket that is less expensive, more capable, and more flexible than the country’s previous generation of launchers. Covered in orange foam insulation, the first H3 rocket rolled out to its …

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