Whenever you think of a rocket, you most probably think of a tall round vehicle that flies into space. But actually, a rocket is much more than that. With the advancement of technology, they have become an integral part of our life.
Rockets are nowadays used in large number fronts like warfare, exploring space, launching satellites etc. Therefore, it has become necessary for us to stay notified of whatever happens in the world of lift. To make your life easier, we have here compiled the latest small to heavy launches.
First launch contract for Relativity.
Relativity is a California-based rocket company. On Friday it announced the global satellite operator Telesat as its first customer. The Terran 1 rocket will be used for “multiple” launches. Relativity’s Terran 1 booster has a capacity of 1.25 tons to low Earth orbit which is perfect to launch a major low Earth orbit satellite constellation that will help Telesat provide global broadband connectivity.
Virgin to fly from Guam.
On Wednesday, a US Pacific Air Forces official issued a letter of support for Andersen Air Force Base to host launches and other exercises with LauncherOne. Following which Virgin Orbit officially added Guam launch site. A launch is expected to take place in less than a year.
SpaceX to launch the Starlink mission by May 2019
SpaceX has announced a launch target of May 2019, for the launch of its first batch of operational Starlink satellites. Research and development are underway as planned and engineers are working diligently to implement the true final design of the satellites. Meanwhile, another team is working on to produce as many Starlink satellites as possible under the short span.
Omega rocket’s future depends on the Air Force
Northrop Grumman is hopeful about receiving a contract from Air Force for military launches for 2022 to 2026. “If we don’t win (the contract), we’re evaluating what we would do with Omega,” told Kent Rominger, who is Northrop Grumman’s vice president for strategic programs.
“Depending on the outlook and other factors, we could easily decide to press on with Omega. But there is a chance, too, depending on what we see, that we would decide at the time to not continue, or maybe put it on the shelf,” he added. It has to be noted that if the Omega rocket is not chosen by the military, it does not have a commercial future.
The Moon Mission drama.
NASA’s new plans to make a lunar return by 2024 is facing political and hardware issues. For now, the NASA administrator is trying to solve the hardware issue by using a mix of NASA vehicles, such as the SLS rocket and different private rockets.
They realise that encouraging a dispute between Alabama and SpaceX will be the end of the Moon program. This is also a reason why SpaceX has been silent about the use of its Falcon Heavy for a lunar return.
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