Saturday’s DARC SkyNet is at 9PM CT.
Discussion Topic of the Evening.
NASA’s Dragonfly Spacecraft
Concept Drawing
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonfly_(spacecraft)#/media/File%3ADragonfly_spacecraft.jpg
#/media/File%3ADragonfly_spacecraft.jpg){kind=link}
Dragonfly Proposed Landing Profile
Shangri-la
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Titan_globe.jpg/640px-Titan_globe.jpg
The Selk impact crater on Titan
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonfly_(spacecraft)#/media/File:Selk_crater_on_Titan.jpg
#/media/File:Selk_crater_on_Titan.jpg){kind=link}
Waz Up
Space Exploration and Space History
Astronaut Birthdays
- February 19, 1932: Joseph Kerwin (Skylab 2)
- February 19, 1948: Byron Lichtenberg (STS-9, STS-45)
- February 19, 1956: G. David Low (STS-32, STS-43, STS-57)
- February 20, 1921: Joseph Walker (X-15 Flights 77, 90 and 91)
- February 21, 1964: Mark Kelly (STS-108, STS-121, STS-124, STS-134)
- February 21, 1964: Scott Kelly (STS-103, STS-118, Exp. 25/26, Exp 43/44/45/46)
- February 22, 1952: James P. Bagian (STS-29, STS-40)
- February 23, 1959: Clayton Anderson (STS-117, Exp 15/16, STS-120, STS-131)
Miss Carolyn’s Constellation of the Week
Auriga, the Charioteer
Space Launches For This Week
Space Coast Launches
Space Flight Now Launch Schedule
NET Feb. 26
Falcon 9 • Starlink 6-1
Launch time: Approx. 1830 GMT (1:30 p.m. EST)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch another batch of Starlink internet satellites. This mission will be the first mission to launch a new larger Starlink spacecraft design known as “Starlink V2 Mini.” The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. Delayed from Feb. 23. [Feb. 23]
Feb. 27
Falcon 9 • Crew 6
Launch time: 0645 GMT (1:45 a.m. EST)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Crew Dragon spacecraft on the program’s ninth flight with astronauts. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen, Warren “Woody” Hoburg, UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi, and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev will launch on the Crew Dragon spacecraft to begin a six-month expedition on the International Space Station. The Crew Dragon will return to a splashdown at sea. Delayed from Feb. 19 and Feb. 26. [Feb. 23]
Feb. 27
Falcon 9 • Starlink 2-7
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch another batch of Starlink internet satellites. This mission will deploy the Starlink satellites into a high-inclination orbit inclined 70 degrees to the equator. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean. [Feb. 18]
March 1
Falcon 9 • OneWeb 17
Launch time: 1944 GMT (2:44 p.m. EST)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 40 satellites into orbit for OneWeb, which is developing and deploying a constellation of hundreds of satellites in low Earth orbit for low-latency broadband communications. This will be the third launch of OneWeb satellites with SpaceX, and OneWeb’s 17th launch overall. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. [Feb. 16]
TBD
H3 • ALOS 3
Launch window: 0137:55-0144:15 GMT (8:37:55-8:44:15 p.m. EST)
Launch site: Launch Pad 2, Tanegashima Space Center, Japan
A Japanese H3 rocket will launch on its first test flight with the Advanced Land Observing Satellite 3, or ALOS 3, Earth observation satellite for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. ALOS 3, also named Daichi 3, will capture high-resolution, wide-swath images of all of the world’s land surfaces, providing data for applications in disaster management, land use, urban sprawl, scientific research, and coastal and vegetation environmental monitoring. The H3 rocket for Test Flight 1, or TF1, will fly in the H3-22S configuration with two first stage engines, two strap-on solid rocket boosters, and a short payload fairing. Delayed from Feb. 11. Countdown Feb. 16 aborted after main engine start. [Feb. 16]
March 8/9
Falcon 9 • SES 18 & SES 19
Launch time: 0035 GMT on 9th (7:35 p.m. EST on 8th)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch SES 18 and SES 19 communications satellites for SES of Luxembourg. SES 18 and 19, built by Northrop Grumman, will provide C-band television and data services over the United States. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. [Feb. 16]
March 10/11
Falcon 9 • SpaceX CRS 27
Launch time: 0159 GMT on 11th (8:59 p.m. EST on 10th)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Dragon 2 spacecraft on a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. The flight is the 27th mission by SpaceX conducted under a Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA. [Feb. 16]
March
Terran 1 • “Good Luck, Have Fun”
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: LC-16, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A Relativity Space Terran 1 rocket will launch on its inaugural demonstration flight. This launch of Terran 1 is the first orbital attempt by Relativity and will not include a customer payload. [Feb. 16]
March
Proton • Olymp-K 2
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
A Russian government Proton rocket with a Breeze M upper stage will launch an Olymp-K communications satellite for the Russian military. [Feb. 16]
Mid-March
GSLV Mk.3 • OneWeb 18
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India
India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk. 3 (GSLV Mk.3) will launch 36 satellites into orbit for OneWeb, which is developing a constellation of hundreds of satellites in low Earth orbit for low-latency broadband communications. [Feb. 16]
NET March
Starship • Orbital Test Flight
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: Starbase, Boca Chica Beach, Texas
A SpaceX Super Heavy and Starship launch vehicle will launch on its first orbital test flight. The mission will attempt to travel around the world for nearly one full orbit, resulting in a re-entry and splashdown of the Starship near Hawaii. Delayed from 2022. [Jan. 8]
Check-ins or comments
At this point we should be reaching our 90 minute cut-off point, so NCS can decide whether to cut any of these topics due to lack of time.
9. Recent Astronomical Discoveries
Brenda WB5OZL
New Discovery Sheds Light on Very Early Supermassive Black Holes
Supermassive Black Holes
https://static.theprint.in/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/ANI-20230224090905.jpg
Visible satellite passages over the next couple of days.
You can use the http://www.heavens-above.com website to find out what’s in orbit and
where to look during fly-overs
Tiangong
Feb. 25
Feb. 27
All times are “local” (Dallas) time.
You must log in to post a comment.