New Hypernova Type Explains Stellar Mystery
An early massive star, given enough spin and a large enough magnetic field, would be able to produce all the heavy elements seen in an older star.
This Week in Rocket History: Apollo-Soyuz
This week in rocket history is another mission of cooperation: the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, which docked the spacecraft of the U.S. and USSR together in the name of science.
Space Tourism Starts with VSS Unity Flight
On July 11 at 15:25 UTC, Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity launched on a suborbital trajectory from New Mexico’s Spaceport America, carrying six people onboard, including Sir Richard Branson.
China Goes on a Rocket Launching Spree
China launched four rockets in a week’s time, carrying a dozen payloads to a variety of orbits for a range of purposes.
More OneWeb Sats Added to Constellation
On July 1 at 12:48 UTC, Arianespace and its affiliate, Starsem, launched a Soyuz 2.1b/Fregat with 36 satellites that made up the OneWeb 8 mission onboard.
SpaceX Launches Transporter 2 Rideshare
On June 30 at 19:31 UTC, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Booster 1060 launched the Smallsat Transporter 2 rideshare mission, which only included three Starlink satellites.
Tubular Bells Takes Off
On June 30 at 14:00 UTC Virgin Orbit Launcher One successfully launched the Tubular Bells Part One mission, which carried six satellites into space.
Chinese Astronauts Conduct Spacewalk
At 00:11 UTC on July 4, 2021, two Chinese astronauts conducted the country’s second-ever spacewalk, this one from their new Tianhe core module.
Impacts Churn the Surface of Europa
New research helps understand the effects of constant impact gardening on the surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa and how that may affect the search for life.
Virgin Galactic’s Unity 22 Takes Flight
It finally happened: Virgin Galactic took civilians to the edge of space. These tourism rockets will increase access to suborbital opportunities for research and technology development.
