Russian Debris Briefly Threatens ISS - SpaceNews This Week

Top stories of the week from SpaceNews

Welcome to our weekly roundup of the top SpaceNews stories of the week, brought to you every Friday! This week, the ISS crew took shelter after a Russian satellite broke up, more details on the Chang-e'6 far side lunar return samples, Firefly's trip to Sweden, and more. Our Top Story Russian satellite breaks up, creating debris in low Earth orbit By Jeff Foust, June 27, 2024 A Russian satellite in low Earth orbit broke up June 26, creating more than 100 pieces of trackable debris and briefly causing the International Space Station crew to take shelter. The satellite, Resurs P1, suffered some kind of event at around 12 p.m. Eastern June 26, U.S Space Command (USSPACECOM) said in a June 27 statement, creating more than 100 pieces of debris. The statement did not indicate any potential cause for the breakup. What caused the spacecraft to break up is not clear. The leading explanation is the spacecraft itself broke apart because it was not properly passivated at the end of its mission. Passivation involves removing sources of energy, such as draining batteries and venting tanks, that have been linked to past satellite breakups. Other News From the Week CIVIL China gears up for deep space missions after collecting 1,935 grams of lunar far side samples The Chang'e-6 reentry capsule landed back on Earth June 25, successfully ending a 53-day mission. It was airlifted to Beijing and opened June 26 to retrieve the sample canister. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced Friday that it contains 1,935.3 grams of samples. Russian spy satellite reportedly continues suspicious maneuvers Slingshot reports that the Luch 2 satellite has been positioning itself near several communications satellites in what appears to be an ongoing signals intelligence-gathering mission. Luch 2's latest move was a "large maneuver" on June 23 that would indicate that the satellite is moving towards an Intelsat communications satellite. MDA Space receives contract for next phase of lunar Gateway robotic arm development MDA Space announced June 27 it received the $1 billion Canadian ($730 million) contract to continue work on the Canadarm3 system. The contract covers Phase C, the final design of the system, as well as Phase D, the assembly and test of it. The work is scheduled to run through March 2030. LAUNCH Firefly to launch Alpha rockets from Esrange in Sweden The Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and U.S. space transportation company Firefly Aerospace announced a collaborative agreement June 27 for launches of Firefly's Alpha rocket from Esrange spaceport starting in 2026. Pad modifications at Esrange Launch Complex 3C are reportedly underway. Beta Project Kuiper broadband services pushed to early 2025 Amazon had earlier aimed to start deploying more than 3,200 satellites in the first half of 2024 to begin beta trials with potential customers, including Verizon in the United States. However, the company now expects to ship the first production satellites this summer to Florida for the launch with United Launch Alliance from its recently opened factory in Kirkland, Washington. OPINION The Missing Piece of Satellite's Multi-Orbit Ambitions: A Big-picture Vision By Mark Steel, June 25, 2024 With the rapid rollout of multi–constellation satellites in lower orbits, the time has come for an industry long living in the shadow of terrestrial communications to finally emerge and shine as a primary enabler of connectivity. That is, if we can get out of our own way. The endgame is clear: satellite terminals that are as easy to use as current cell phones, and satellites that are able to talk to each other without human intervention. What multi–constellation roaming gives you is resilience: the strength of leveraging different orbits to provide enhanced connectivity. I've been part of these discussions and planning exercises but, so far, it's been a lot of talk and minimal progress. Let's face it: revolutionizing an industry isn't easy. China may need to adjust its approach toward SpaceX By Chengxin Zhang, June 24, 2024 The Space Force no longer has the luxury of time. It needs industry help to stay ahead. By Dave Broadbent, June 28, 2024 Space Mining doesn't need more international regulation from the U.N. By Chris Tolton, June 26, 2024 SpaceNews is committed to publishing our community's diverse perspectives. Whether you're an academic, executive, engineer or even just a concerned citizen of the cosmos, send your arguments and viewpoints to opinion@spacenews.com to be considered for publication online or in our next magazine. Copyright (C) 2024 Multiverse Media Inc.. All rights reserved. You signed up to receive this newsletter on Spacenews.com. At times you may receive marketing material. Our mailing address is: Multiverse Media Inc. 100 Fillmore St. 5th Floor Denver, CO 80206 USA Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe