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[Via Satellite 04-30-2015] The United States Air Force wants to compete as many as nine national security launches between this year and 2017, and another 25 between 2018 to 2022, according to officials’ testimonies during an April 29 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on military space programs. With confidence that SpaceX’s certification of the Falcon...

[Via Satellite 04-30-2015] International Launch Services (ILS) and Dauria Aerospace have signed an agreement to study dual launch opportunities with Dauria’s Atom spacecraft and ILS launch vehicles. Officials from both companies will meet on a regular basis to study the commercial environment and explore mutually beneficial joint initiatives. The partnership paves the way for Atom...

[Via Satellite 04-30-2015] On April 29, Blue Origin conducted the first developmental test flight of its New Shepard Vertical Takeoff, Vertical Landing (VTVL) space vehicle. New Shepard reached a planned test altitude of 307,000 feet, reaching a speed of Mach 3 using the liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen BE-3 engine, capable of 110,000-lbf. Blue Origin reported...

[Via Satellite 04-28-2015] SpaceX successfully launched the TurkmenÄlem52E/MonacoSat satellite to Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) on April 27 aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. The Thales Alenia Space-built satellite reached GTO in approximately 32 minutes, where orbit raising will bring the satellite to its final orbital location at 52 degrees east. The launch included firsts for both...

[Via Satellite 04-27-2015] Iridium announced the production of the qualification dispenser for the company’s initial Iridium Next launch with ISC Kosmotras is complete. Qualification testing is on-track for completion in June 2015. Dispenser qualification includes static load testing, shock testing, separation testing, vibration testing and interface testing. Yuzhnoye State Design Office and Yuzhny Machine Building...

[Via Satellite 04-27-2015] Arianespace and Airbus Safran Launchers successfully launched the Thor 7 satellite for Telenor Satellite Broadcasting and the Sicral 2 joint French-Italian military satellite on April 26 aboard an Ariane 5 rocket. The mission was the 222nd for the Ariane-series, and the first for Airbus Safran launchers, which became the prime contractor for...

[Via Satellite 04-27-2015] Russian Satellite Communications Company’s (RSCC’s) latest satellite, Express AM7, began commercial operations on April 24, following the completion of in-orbit testing. Launched in March 2015, the satellite provides coverage over Russia, Europe and the Middle East as well as the new markets of Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia from the 40 degrees...

[Via Satellite 04-15-2015] Small satellite launch services provider Rocket Lab has created an engine for its Electron rocket that can be manufactured in three days time. The recently unveiled 4,600 lbf Rutherford engine is primarily produced via additive manufacturing, or 3-D printing, to accelerate the rate of production. The Electron rocket uses nine Rutherford engines...

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — United Launch Alliance (ULA) plans to recover the first stage engine of its Next-Generation Launch System (NGLS), called Vulcan, in mid-air after flight in an effort to dramatically reduce the cost of launch, company President and CEO Tory Bruno said Monday at the National Space Symposium (NSS). After launch, the Centaur...

[Via Satellite 04-14-2015] Arianespace has announced that, during the preparations for the roll-out of the Ariane 5 launcher for flight VA222, an anomaly occurred on a fluid connector between the cryogenic upper stage and the launch table. As a result, Arianespace has decided to postpone the launch initially scheduled for April 15, in order to...