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[Via Satellite 08-14-2014] An Atlas 5 rocket launched DigitalGlobe’s WorldView 3 remote sensing satellite into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services and subcontractor United Launch Alliance conducted the mission. The multi-payload, high-resolution satellite is capable of collecting 680,000 square kilometers of imagery per day. Equipped with the Ball...

[Via Satellite 08-13-2014] United Launch Alliance (ULA) president and CEO Michael Gass is stepping down from his leadership position effective immediately. Tory Bruno, formerly Lockheed Martin’s vice president and general manager of strategic missile defense systems, has been appointed as the new CEO. Gass said he will support Bruno for the next several months as...

[Via Satellite 08-07-2014] Small satellite launch company Firefly Space Systems has recruited General Astronautics to join the startup’s strategic team. In this role, General Astronautics will help guide Firefly to new opportunities, assist in engaging government and industry, and provide long term strategic planning. Firefly is developing a dedicated SmallSat launch vehicle dubbed Firefly Alpha....

[Via Satellite 08-06-2014] Generation Orbit Launch Service successfully completed a captive-carry test flight for its Flight Bed Experiment (GO-FET) from Florida’s Cecil Spaceport. The three-hour test met all primary and secondary objectives using a Learjet 35 carrier aircraft with a standardized pod integrated to a wing hardpoint. The primary purpose of the test was to...

[Via Satellite 08-05-2014] SpaceX has announced its plans to build a private spaceport in Brownsville, Texas. The news came on Aug. 4 from Gov. Rick Perry’s office.  The company, which already has property in the state, had been eyeing the state’s coast for a launch site. “SpaceX is excited to expand our work in Texas...

[Via Satellite 08-04-2014] United Launch Alliance delivered the United States Air Force’s seventh Global Positioning System (GPS 2F-7) satellite to space on Friday Aug. 1, 2014 aboard an Atlas 5 rocket. An RD-180 engine supplied by RD Amross powered the Atlas 5 booster. Aerojet Rocketdyne’s RL10A-4-2engine was used for the Centaur upper stage. “This launch...

[Via Satellite 07-31-2014] Airbus Group and Safran have selected a chief executive officer and outlined the board of directors for their new 50-50 joint European launch venture. Alain Charmeau the current head of operations at space systems for Airbus Defence and Space was appointed to CEO, while Safran’s Deputy CEO & COO Marc Ventre was...

[Via Satellite 07-29-2014] Rocket Lab revealed plans to build a carbon-composite dedicated small satellite launch vehicle named Electron. Currently under construction in New Zealand, the company anticipates launching payloads of up to 100-kg to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for less than $5 million. Silicon Valley venture firm Khosla Ventures is the principal funder. The Electron...

[Via Satellite 07-29-2014] United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, launched three Air Force satellites on July 28, 2014. Using a Delta 4 rocket, the company carried two Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP) satellites and the Automated Activation and Guidance Experiment for Local Space (ANGELS) satellite to near-Geostationary Orbits...

[Via Satellite 07-25-2014] Interns from United Launch Alliance and Ball Aerospace are planning to launch Colorado’s largest rocket on July 26, 2014. More than 100 students are participating in the seventh annual Student Rocket Launch, where a total of 18 payloads will be carried on three high-power sports rockets. The Ball Aerospace interns collectively known...