Boeing’s uncrewed CST-100 Starliner successfully completed a six-day roundtrip test flight to the International Space Station (ISS) May 25, with an undocking, re-entry and parachute descent at White Sands Space Harbor on the grounds of the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
A botched formation approach caused two T-38s to crash upon landing in November 2021 at Laughlin AFB, Texas, shortly after the U.S. Air Force had banned formation landings of the aircraft because of another fatal crash.
SpaceX continued its weekly launch pace with liftoff of a Falcon 9 rocket on May 25 carrying 59 small satellites and hosted payloads, marking the company’s fifth rideshare mission. Following launch at 2:35 p.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the rocket’s first stage returned to the launch site while the upper stage fired to place the Transporter-5 payloads into a preliminary polar orbit.
The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) has awarded its largest-ever commercial imagery contract effort—up to billions over the next decade—to BlackSky, Maxar and Planet at a critical time for the industry.
Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner departed the International Space Station’s U S. segment as scheduled, setting up its autonomous return to Earth under parachute at New Mexico’s White Sands Space Harbor late May 25 to end NASA’s six-day Commercial Crew Program Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2).
BAE Systems has taken delivery of and is preparing flight tests for a Pipistrel Electro Velis electric-powered light aircraft as part of an arrangement with the Slovenian manufacturer. The UK defense company announced in March that it was working with Pipistrel to examine military training applications for electric aircraft. The work is continuing after Textron’s acquisition of the light aircraft manufacturer.
Axiom Space and Italy’s minister for Technological Innovation and Digital Transition have signed a memorandum of understanding to advance existing collaboration, the Houston-based firm announced May 25.
Leonardo is set to deliver components for the first Radar 2 variant of the active electronically scanned array radar for the Eurofighter Typhoon by year’s end,
Another lunar buggy contender is emerging, this time with an autonomous explorer angle: Lunar Outpost on May 24 unveiled a $12 million seed round, promising a new class of autonomous Moon rovers.
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station secured hatches between Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner and the seven-person orbital laboratory May 24, preparing the uncrewed capsule for departure and a return to Earth at White Sands, New Mexico, weather permitting.
The U.S. Navy will select a mission integrator in fiscal 2023 to convert the Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 airlifter into the next Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) platform.
The U.S. Space Force’s Space Rapid Capabilities Office has awarded BlueHalo a $1.4 billion contract to increase the capacity of the Satellite Control Network as the service projects an increase in demand.
The Outpost Mars Demo-1 payload, an on-orbit metal cutting robotic arm, is being prepared to launch aboard SpaceX’s Transporter 5 rideshare flight on May 25.
