Posted on 04/03/2019 6:43:57 PM PDT by BenLurkin
The day begins early with the launch of an uncrewed Russian Progress 72 cargo ship (also known as 72P) by Russia's Roscosmos space agency. Liftoff is scheduled for 7:01 a.m. EDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. NASA's webcast will begin at 6:45 a.m. EDT, courtesy of NASA TV.
Progress 72 is carrying about 3 tons of food, fuel and other vital supplies for the Expedition 59 astronaut crew living on the International Space Station....
Progress 72 is scheduled to dock itself at the station's Russian-built Pirs docking compartment at 10:25 a.m. EDT. You can watch that event, too. NASA's live docking webcast will begin at 9:45 a.m. EDT.
The 5-foot-tall (1.5 meters) lander, called Beresheet, is Israel's first spacecraft ever launched toward the moon. It is also the world's first private lunar lander - it was built by Israel's SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industry (IAI) for $100 million.
Beresheet launched toward the moon on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Feb. 21 and has been steadily raising its orbit around Earth in order to reach the moon. If Thursday's engine maneuver is a success, Beresheet continue refining its orbit until it is in place for a planned April 11 landing on the moon's Sea of Serenity
Thursday's epic day of space continues with the scheduled 12:30 p.m. EDT (1630 GMT) launch of an Arianespace Soyuz rocket carrying four 03b communications satellites into orbit for the satellite communications provider SES. Arianespace's launch webcast will begin about 20 minutes before launch, and you'll be able to watch it on Space.com, courtesy of the European launch provider. You can also watch it directly from Arianespace.
The four 03b satellites will join 16 other satellites already in orbit for SES's growing constellation to provide video and data connectivity to customers on the ground.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
The 5-foot-tall (1.5 meters) lander, called Beresheet, is Israel's first spacecraft ever launched toward the moon. It is also the world's first private lunar lander - it was built by Israel's SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industry (IAI) for $100 million. Beresheet launched toward the moon on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Feb. 21 and has been steadily raising its orbit around Earth in order to reach the moon. If Thursday's engine maneuver is a success, Beresheet continue refining its orbit until it is in place for a planned April 11 landing on the moon's Sea of Serenity.
Thanks BenLurkin.
That is a big day. SpaceX will also be doing a static fire test of its Falcon Heavy rocket tomorrow. It’s scheduled to launch on the 7th.
And it looks like SpaceX did the first static fire and tethered hop of its Starship Hopper this evening in Boca Chica, TX.
https://twitter.com/NASASpaceflight/status/1113606734818545664
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1113613409767964673?s=21
It’s all a waste of money. If the same would be spent studying the oceans it would benefit man to no end.
Leaked vid:
For us older folks this is like a video replay of NASA in the 1960s—this “new technology” excitement is somebody’s bad joke—unless of course the 1960s manned moon “giant step for a man, giant leap for mankind” was the bad joke.
Reproduce the manned moon landing or stop with the hype—time for the countries and private companies to put up or shut up.
And the NASA student launch on Saturday, April 6 in Huntsville.
Did NASA ever make a decision on a replacement for SLS ?
You’re really missing out on something special.
SLS is still alive and burning money like rocket fuel.
It’s a shame they couldn’t make an affordable rocket out of mature and safe Shuttle parts in a timely manor.
https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
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