Discussion Topic of the Evening.

The Dream Chaser Space Planehttps://i0.wp.com/spacenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/dc-shootingstar.jpg?w=879&ssl=1
Dream Chaser Compared to HL-20https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Loveneesh-Rana/publication/319870509/figure/fig3/AS:539623942492162@1505667781549/Physical-similarities-between-DreamChaser-and-HL-20-12.png
RCS Testinghttps://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/wp-content/uploads/sites/230/2014/12/SNC-and-ORBITEC-Complete-RCS-Testing-In-Vacuum-Chamber-to-Simulate-Orbit-Environment.jpg
Thermal Protection System (TPS)https://www.datocms-assets.com/53444/1669110662-dream-liner-heat-protection-tiles.jpg?auto=format&w=1024&dpr=1.5
Human-Rated Dream Chaserhttps://360view.hum3d.com/zoom/Space/Dream_Chaser_1000_0001.jpg
Orbital Reef and Dream Chaserhttps://spaceflightnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/orbitalreef.jpg
Cargo Version Dream Chaserhttps://space.skyrocket.de/img_sat/dreamchaser-cargo__3a.jpg
Dream Chaser Docked to ISShttps://media2.spaceref.com/news/2016/DreamChaserISS.jpg
National Security versionhttps://www.sierraspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/shootingstar-disposal-services-1.jpg
“Tenacity” Assemblyhttps://www.americaspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/IMG_20200504_083714-1536×1024.jpg

Waz Up

Space Exploration and Space History 

Miss Carolyn’s Constellation of the Week

Lyra, the Harp 

Space Launches For This Week

Space Coast Launcheshttps://www.spacecoastlaunches.com/blog/launch-list/
Space Flight Now Launch Schedulehttps://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/
TBD Electron • ‘We Love the Nightlife’Launch time: 0500 UTC (1 a.m. EDT / 5 p.m. New Zealand time)Launch site: Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New ZealandA Rocket Lab Electron rocket is set to launch the first of Capella Space’s next-generation Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Earth-imaging satellites called “Acadia.” This will be the first launch of these four, new satellites. The mission is dubbed “We Love the Nightlife” since the SAR satellites allow for high-resolution imagery a night. The mission will launch from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 (LC-1) on the Mahia Peninsula. Delayed from July 28. Launch aborted on July 30. Delayed from Aug. 4 and 6.
Updated: August 10
August 23 Soyuz • Progress 85PLaunch time: TBDLaunch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, KazakhstanA Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the 85th Progress cargo delivery ship to the International Space Station. The rocket will fly in the Soyuz-2.1a configuration.
Updated: August 04
Aug. 25 Falcon 9 • Crew 7Launch time: 3:49 a.m. EDT (0749 UTC)Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, FloridaA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Crew Dragon spacecraft on the program’s 12th flight with astronauts. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will return to land at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov will launch on the Crew Dragon spacecraft, named Endurance, to begin a six-month expedition on the International Space Station. The Crew Dragon will return to a splashdown at sea. Delayed from Aug. 15, 17 and 21.
Updated: August 03
August 25/26 H-2A • XRISM & SLIMLaunch time: 1234 UTC (9:34:57 a.m. JST on Aug. 26 / 8:34 p.m. EDT on Aug. 25)Launch site: Launch Pad 1, Tanegashima Space Center, JapanA Japanese H-2A rocket, designated H-2A F47, will launch the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission, or XRISM, a joint project between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and NASA. XRISM is a replacement for the Hitomi X-ray astrophysics observatory, which failed about one month after launch in 2016. XRISM will perform high-resolution X-ray spectroscopic observations of the hot gas plasma wind that blows through the galaxies in the universe. These observations will enable us to determine flows of mass and energy, revealing the composition and evolution of celestial objects. JAXA’s Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, mission will fly as a rideshare on this launch, heading to the moon to test precision landing technology. The H-2A rocket will fly in the 202 configuration with two strap-on solid rocket boosters. Delayed from 2nd Quarter after H3 launch failure.
Updated: August 01
Aug. 29 Atlas 5 • NROL-107Launch time: TBDLaunch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, FloridaA United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket will launch the NROL-107 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office. The NROL-107 mission will launch a classified payload known as Silent Barker. The mission is a partnership between the NRO and the U.S. Space Force, which have disclosed little information about the payload other than it will focus on satellite threat intelligence and space situational awareness.
Updated: July 29
TBD Falcon 9 • WorldView Legion 1 & 2Launch time: TBDLaunch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, CaliforniaA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the first pair of WorldView Legion Earth observation satellites for Maxar Technologies. Maxar plans to deploy six commercial WorldView Legion high-resolution remote sensing satellites into a mix of sun-synchronous and mid-inclination orbits on three SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets. The first stage of the Falcon 9 will return to Landing Zone 4 at Vandenberg Space Force Base for landing. Delayed from April and June.
Updated: July 24
TBD Falcon 9 • O3b mPOWER 5 & 6Launch time: TBDLaunch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, FloridaA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the third pair of O3b mPOWER broadband internet satellites into Medium Earth Orbit for SES of Luxembourg. The satellites, built by Boeing, will provide internet services over most of the populated world, building on SES’s O3b network. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. Delayed from March and June 9.
Updated: July 24
TBD Falcon 9 • SDA Tranche 0BLaunch time: TBDLaunch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, CaliforniaA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 18 Tranche 0 demonstration satellites for the U.S. military’s Space Development Agency. The launch is the second of two Falcon 9 missions to carry SDA demonstration spacecraft for a future constellation of military missile tracking and data relay satellites. The Falcon 9’s first stage booster will return to Landing Zone 4 at Vandenberg. Delayed from June.
Updated: July 24
TBD Falcon 9 • WorldView Legion 3 & 4Launch time: TBDLaunch site: Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, or Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, FloridaA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the second pair of WorldView Legion Earth observation satellites for Maxar Technologies. Maxar plans to deploy six commercial WorldView Legion high-resolution remote sensing satellites into a mix of sun-synchronous and mid-inclination orbits on three SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets.
Updated: July 24
September Soyuz • Soyuz MS-24Launch time: TBDLaunch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, KazakhstanA Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the crewed Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft to the International Space Station. The mission will carry Russian commander Oleg Kononenko, Russian flight engineer Nikolai Chub, and NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara into orbit for a long-duration flight on the space station. The rocket will fly in the Soyuz-2.1a configuration.

Recent Astronomical Discoveries 

Webb Reveals Colors of Earendel, Most Distant Star Ever Detectedhttps://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230809130728.htm?fbclid=IwAR0rdJIb7yeolIGYm6c-qx9Zyy13I-vab18DSNb0asInOSQEf4b6YAENCVE
Earendel Insethttps://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/The_Sunrise_Arc_galaxy_with_lensed_star_Earendel_-b.png

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 andwhere to look during fly-overs All times are “local” (Dallas) time.
ISShttps://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx?satid=25544&lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST
Aug 20https://www.heavens-above.com/passdetails.aspx?lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST&satid=25544&mjd=60176.4732846614&type=V
Aug 21https://www.heavens-above.com/passdetails.aspx?lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST&satid=25544&mjd=60177.440245887&type=V
Tiangonghttps://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx?satid=48274&lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST
Aug 17https://www.heavens-above.com/passdetails.aspx?lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST&satid=48274&mjd=60174.091857451&type=V
Aug 19https://www.heavens-above.com/passdetails.aspx?lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST&satid=48274&mjd=60176.0767343116&type=V
Hubble Space Telescopehttps://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx?satid=20580&lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST
Aug 20https://www.heavens-above.com/passdetails.aspx?lat=33.0462&lng=-96.9942&loc=Lewisville&alt=0&tz=CST&satid=20580&mjd=60177.0810162541&type=V