Ireland celebrated a historic milestone with the successful launch of its first satellite, EIRSAT-1, on January 12, 2023. The Educational Irish Research Satellite was developed by students from University College Dublin (UCD) as part of the European Space Agency (ESA) Academy’s Fly Your Satellite! program. The students designed, built, and tested the satellite under the guidance of ESA experts, and also received training at ESA facilities in Belgium and Germany. EIRSAT-1 will

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission has captured a stunning image of Tutuila, the largest island in the American Samoa archipelago. The image, taken from space, allows for a detailed exploration of the island at a resolution of 10 meters. American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the US and consists of five volcanic islands and two coral atolls. Tutuila, the focus of the image, is a small and narrow island with volcanic mountains and a rugged landscape.

Blue Origin, the spaceflight company founded by Jeff Bezos, is making significant strides towards achieving major milestones with its New Glenn rocket. The company’s Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral facilities have seen increased activity, with sightings of various components of the New Glenn rocket. Notably, a captured tank section known as the “First Stage Mid Module” has been seen outside Blue Origin’s manufacturing facility. This section houses both the liquid natural gas and liquid oxygen tanks and will soon receive its Aft

Laurent Brouard, the Project Manager at Airbus Defence and Space, recently discussed the Euclid payload module (PLM) and its role in the Euclid telescope’s mission to map the dark matter and dark energy of the Universe. Brouard explained the technology behind Euclid and highlighted its ability to simultaneously observe the sky in both infrared and visible wavelengths. The cooling mechanisms of Euclid, which are crucial for maintaining its functionality in space, were also emphasized. Brouard demonstrated how light

In a busy week for space launches, SpaceX and Roscosmos both achieved successful missions to resupply the International Space Station (ISS), while China conducted three consecutive launches. Roscosmos launched the Progress MS-25 resupply capsule using a Soyuz 2.1a rocket, delivering crucial supplies such as fuel, water, and compressed nitrogen to the seven astronauts aboard the ISS. SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenburg Space Force Base, carrying multiple payloads to a Sun-synchronous orbit

The European Space Agency’s Ariane 6 rocket has successfully undergone a hot-fire test, simulating the conditions of an actual launch into space. The test, which took place in French Guiana on November 23, 2023, involved the full firing of the rocket’s core stage engine, known as the Vulcain 2.1. During the seven-minute test, the engine burned through 150,000 kilograms of supercooled liquid oxygen and hydrogen fuel. The successful completion of

Jean-Charles Cuillandre, an astronomer specializing in wide-field imaging, has joined Space Team Europe for the Euclid mission. Cuillandre was involved in selecting celestial targets for Euclid’s ‘Early Release Observations’ and processing the data. The full-color images captured by Euclid left him speechless, showcasing the telescope’s scientific potential. The Euclid Consortium, consisting of over 2000 scientists from 300 institutes, will analyze Euclid’s data to unravel the mysteries of the

LandSpace, the Chinese aerospace company, is preparing for its third launch as it unveils an upgraded version of its methane-based rocket, ZhuQue-2. The rocket made history on its second flight by becoming the first methane-based rocket to reach orbit successfully. Despite a setback in its previous launch, the rocket still claimed the title of being the first to use methane propellant to reach space. The upcoming launch’s payload remains unknown, but LandSpace is generating excitement among space enthusiasts. In addition,

Virgin Galactic’s suborbital space plane, VSS Unity, recently completed its second mission as a science laboratory. Crewmember Kellie Gerardi shared her experience and the extensive training she underwent to conduct commercial suborbital research. Gerardi’s journey began when she volunteered at the Explorers Club in New York City, where she met Richard Garriott de Cayeux and was introduced to the concept of commercial spaceflight. Inspired by democratizing access to space, Gerardi pursued a career

The European Space Agency (ESA) recently conducted a full-duration test of the main engine of Ariane 6, a new rocket developed by the agency. Although the test model did not leave the ground, it provided valuable insights into the rocket’s performance and set the stage for future missions. The main engine, known as Vulcain, was fueled by a combination of oxygen and hydrogen propellants, creating an impressive display of power and precision. The successful completion of the test brings ESA one step