Keith’s note: A few moments ago NASA Wallops completed a webcast. The audio and video were not in synch, video was jittery, and they had bad microphone issues. One might get the impression that Wallops PAO has never done a webcast before. Someone needs to buy them more bandwidth or better hardware. They also need to practice doing these things and write down their audio/video settings. Their mics were constantly […]
BETTII Balloon Mission Ends in Failure “At the conclusion of the mission Friday, June 9, NASA conducted an analysis of atmospheric conditions and a survey of the operational area as part of a safety analysis in preparation for flight termination. Once the balloon reached a safe flight termination area, characterized by sparse population but still relatively accessible via roads, flight controllers at CSBF sent flight termination commands to separate the […]
Orbital ATK Successfully Launches the Antares Rocket on its Return to Flight (with video), SpaceRef “In a successful return to flight, Orbital ATK launched the upgraded Antares rocket with the Cygnus spacecraft on a resupply mission to the International Space Station. The launch scheduled for 7:40 pm EDT (2340 GMT) was delayed briefly due to a minor engine anomaly. Mission launch control cleared the rocket to launch which it did […]
Orbital ATK Conducts Test of Antares First Stage (with video) “Orbital ATK today announced it conducted a full-power “hot fire” test of the upgraded first stage propulsion system of its Antares medium-class rocket using new RD-181 main engines. The 30-second test took place at 5:30 p.m. (EDT) on May 31, 2016 at Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) Pad 0A. Initial indications are that the test was fully successful. The […]
Accomack Supervisors Blasted With Issues, Eastern Shore Post “The rocket that malfunctioned at Wallops Island in October 2014 showed a grim picture of what could happen to nearby landowners. NASA’s blast zone is worrying those who reside inside, people whose families have lived on the farms for generations. Some are scared of property damage while others are wondering just how the designation will shape their future. “It ought to be […]
Governor McAuliffe Announces Agreement to Continue Operation of the Virginia Commercial Space Authority “The cost of repairs to Pad 0A are expected to be approximately $15 million at completion, split equally between Virginia Space, Orbital ATK and NASA, and rebuild efforts are on schedule as we continue to work with our partners to return the Spaceport to operational status,” said Virginia Space Authority Executive Director Dale Nash.”
Orbital, GenCorp spar over cause of October rocket crash, Reuters “Orbital ATK Inc and engine maker GenCorp Inc on Tuesday offered competing explanations for what caused the Oct. 28 explosion of Orbital’s Antares rocket, bound for the International Space Station. Ronald Grabe, Orbital’s executive vice president and president of its flight systems group, told the annual Space Symposium conference that an investigation led by his company had concluded the explosion […]
Orbital explosion probe said to find debris in engine: sources, Reuters “Last October’s explosion of Orbital ATK Inc’s Antares rocket may have been triggered when debris inadvertently left in a fuel tank traveled into the booster’s main engine, two people familiar with investigations into the accident told Reuters. The sources said the preliminary findings suggest that a simple assembly mistake by Orbital ATK could have caused the explosion, which destroyed […]
Spaceport awaiting federal funding to make repairs “The delay is tied to carrying out the omnibus federal spending bill’s $20 million appropriation for NASA to ensure that the money goes to repair of the spaceport, which operates at the national space agency’s Wallops Island Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. “NASA is fully aware of the intent of the $20 million they didn’t expect to get, but they got,” said […]
State assessing damage, considering future of commercial spaceport, WDBJ7 “Virginia’s Secretary of Transportation says it could take a year and up to $20 million to repair the commercial spaceport on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, after a mishap damaged the launchpad last month. Aubrey Layne says he expects the flights to resume, but with additional protections for Virginia taxpayers. “We do need to have our launch partner and the federal government take […]
