NASA implements changes to planetary protection policies for moon and Mars missions
WASHINGTON — NASA announced July 9 two new directives regarding planetary protection for missions to the moon and Mars that implement recommendations of an independent review board last year. The two directives, announced by NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine during a “Moon Dialogs” webinar, are part of an effort by NASA to modernize guidelines that are decades old and which the [...]
Loft Orbital satellite to carry experiment for DARPA’s Blackjack program
WASHINGTON — Loft Orbital’s YAM-3 satellite — scheduled to fly on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare mission — will carry a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency experiment for the Blackjack program. Loft Orbital, a San Francisco-based startup, is working under a contract from Scientific Systems Company Inc. Boston-based SSCI received a DARPA contract to fly a demonstration of the Blackjack [...]
Senior Air Force, Army officers outline practices protecting recruits from coronavirus
Air Force Maj. Gen. Andrea D. Tullos, commander, Second Air Force, Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, and Army Maj. Gen. Lonnie G. Hibbard told reporters during a virtual news conference from the Pentagon that training goals are being met and that, to date, only about 2% of the tens of thousands of recruits who cycle through the two service’s training [...]
Eumetsat shifts two tardy satellites to Ariane 6
WASHINGTON — Program delays have forced Eumetsat to reserve a pair of Ariane 6 rockets for two European weather satellites originally anticipated to launch on Ariane 5 rockets. Eumetsat had signed a contract with Arianespace in 2015 to launch two or three Meteosat Third Generation satellites on Ariane 5 rockets between 2019 and 2023. Of those satellites, only one, MTG-I1, [...]
Air Force building more inclusive culture through Dress and Appearance updates
The changes, as outlined in an Air Force Guidance Memorandum dated July 1, 2020, include the removal of subjective language and other rules that may have been creating unintentional or unfair barriers for Air and Space Force uniformed members.
DoD awards $15 million Defense Production Act contract to LeoLabs
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department announced on July 10 it has awarded LeoLabs, a provider of space surveillance data services, a $15 million contract funded under the Defense Production Act to shore up domestic industries financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. LeoLabs, a startup based in Silicon Valley, tracks satellites and debris in low Earth orbit using ground-based phased array [...]
Thanking those who saluted America
The U.S. Air Force performed this year’s “Salute to America” with a series of military flyovers at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in Keystone, South Dakota, July 3, and Washington, D.C., July 4, to celebrate Independence Day – the nation’s 244th birthday.
AF Week in Photos
This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.
DoD launches effort to collect 8,000 units of COVID-19 convalescent plasma
The Air Force is participating in a Department of Defense-wide effort to further investigate the benefits of convalescent blood plasma.
SecAF beholds Alaska airpower during visit, emphasizes Arctic’s importance to national security
While at Eielson AFB, Barrett got an in-depth look at the 353rd Combat Training Squadron and 18th Aggressor Squadron missions and their roles for Pacific Air Forces-sponsored exercise Red Flag-Alaska. She toured a portion of the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, which provides 77,000 square miles of airspace for pilots to train in during the exercise.
Cost growth prompts changes to Europa Clipper instruments
WASHINGTON — Cost overruns on three instruments for NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft led NASA to consider dropping them from the mission and ultimately requiring significant changes to some of them. At a July 9 briefing to the Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences of the National Academies, NASA officials said they recently conducted “continuation/termination reviews” for the three instruments: a [...]
Op-ed | U.S. satellites increasingly vulnerable to China’s ground-based lasers
The Defense Intelligence Agency warned in January 2019 that China likely will field in 2020 a ground-based laser weapon that can counter low-orbit space-based sensors. By the mid-to-late 2020s it may field higher power systems that could damage the structures of non-optical satellites. How real is the threat? Analysts have already identified five Chinese laser bases. One in Xinjiang has [...]
First launch of Chinese Kuaizhou-11 rocket ends in failure
HELSINKI — Launch of a new Chinese Kuaizhou-11 commercial solid rocket ended in failure Friday resulting in the loss of two satellites. The Kuaizhou-11 lifted off at 12:17 a.m. Eastern from a transporter erector launcher at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China. Video footage of the launch taken from a delayed stream indicates the rocket performed well for at [...]
ESA confirms Ariane 6 delay to 2021
This story was updated July 10 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern to reflect an updated translation of ESA Director of Space Transportation Daniel Neuenschwander’s remarks at a July 9 press briefing. WASHINGTON — Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket won’t launch until the second half of 2021 at the earliest, a delay of at least six months, the European Space Agency confirmed July [...]
Ex-Im Bank to step up support for space industry challenged by Chinese competitors
WASHINGTON — The Export-Import Bank of the United States is reaching out to the space industry and offering to help exporters take on Chinese competitors, officials said July 9. U.S. companies in the space sector face tough competition from Chinese government-backed companies and the Ex-Im Bank now has a mandate from Congress to help level the playing field, David Trulio, [...]