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Saturday’s DARC SkyNet is at 9PM CT.
Recent Astronomical Discoveries
Cosmic mystery deepens as astronomers find object flashing in both radio waves and X-rays
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/05/250528131647.htm
ASKAP-J1832
https://gizmodo.com/app/uploads/2025/05/ASKAP-J1832-0911-680×453.jpg
Discussion Topic of the Evening.
The Carrington Event
Waz Up
Space Exploration and Space History
Space Exploration News
NASA’s MAVEN Makes First Observation of Atmospheric Sputtering at Mars
‘Cosmic miracle!’ James Webb Space Telescope discovers the earliest galaxy ever seen
This previous record galaxy has a redshift of z =14.32, while MoM z14 has a redshift of z = 14.44.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/rRzkAXFXLWy6XDm2kWjUSL-650-80.png.webp
Space-Related Birthdays
Sally Ride May 25, 1951 STS-7, STS-41-G
Paul Scully-Power May 28, 1944 STS-41-T
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Astronaut_paul_desmond_scully_power.jpg
Michael Lopez-Alegria May 30, 1958 KE5GTK STS-73, STS-92, STS-113, Exp 14, April 2022 – SpaceX Axiom Mission AX-1; has the most EVA time of all American astronauts)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Michael_Lopez-Alegria.jpg
This Week in Space History
May 25-31
1961:
May 25
Kennedy Gives “Moon” Speech
http://history.nasa.gov/1658.jpg
1983:
May 26
The European Space Agency launched its first X-ray observatory into space.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/xrrCr8DKuC6aRGSC2vEDbW-970-80.jpg
1973:
May 25:
Skylab 2 Launches on Rescue Mission
May 28:
2002:
NASA announced that the Mars Odyssey spacecraft had detected large quantities of water ice below the surface of Mars.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/REpvNAHQnZJbXWfBqPEy8h-1920-80.jpg.webp
May 29:
1999:
Space Shuttle Discovery STS-96 became the first spacecraft to dock with the International Space Station (ISS).
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Tamara_E._Jernigan_Discovery_crew.jpg
May 30:
1971:
The Mariner 9 probe launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/mariner_9_2_launch_897_ksc-71p-0354.jpg
May 31:
2015:
The Cassini spacecraft made its final flyby of Saturn’s nonspherical moon Hyperion, which is the largest of Saturn’s irregular, potato-shaped moons. https://d2pn8kiwq2w21t.cloudfront.net/original_images/jpegPIA17193.jpg
‘Miss Carolyn’s Constellation of the Week
Constellation “Lupus the Wolf”
Space Launches For This Week
Space Flight Now Launch Schedule
TBD Eris • TestFlight1
Launch time: Window opens 7:30 a.m. AEST on May 16 (5:30 p.m. EDT, 2130 UTC on May 15)
Launch site: Pad 1, Bowen Orbital Spaceport
Gilmour Space in Australia is preparing to launch the inaugural flight of its Eris Block 1 rocket. The three-stage launch vehicle is 25 m (82 ft) tall and is equipped with 1.5 m (4.9 ft) diameter payload fairings. The rocket is designed to send up to 305 kg up to low Earth orbit. This first mission, called “TestFlight1,” does not appear to have a payload on board. Delayed from May 4, 2024, due to a lack of launch permit. Delayed from May 14/15 due to a ground support system issue. Delayed from May 15/16 due to unintended triggering of the payload fairing deployment at the pad.
Updated: May 15
June 2 Falcon 9 • Starlink 12-19
Launch time: Window opens at 12:57 a.m. EDT (0457 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch another batch of Starlink V2 Mini satellites into low Earth orbit. A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage booster will target a landing on a droneship, positioned in the Atlantic Ocean to the east of The Bahamas.
Updated: May 29
NET June 2/3 Electron • ‘Full Stream Ahead’
Launch time: Window opens on June 3 at 11:30 a.m. NZT (7:30 p.m. EDT, 2330 UTC on June 2)
Launch site: Launch Complex 1, Pad A, Mahia, New Zealand
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket will launch the next of BlackSky’s Gen-3 satellites into a mid-inclination, circular orbit at 470 km in altitude. These are Earth-imaging satellites that use “AI-enabled analytics for daily intelligence operations.” This will be Rocket Lab’s 10th launch for BlackSky to date and its seventh Electron mission of the year. Delayed from May 28 due to weather. Delayed from May 28/29 due to unfavorable weather and a need for additional checkouts by BlackSky.
Updated: May 28
June 8 Falcon 9 • Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4)
Launch time: 9:11 a.m. EDT (1311 UTC)
Launch site: Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. Former NASA astronaut and Axiom Space’s Director of Human Spaceflight will serve as the commander of the mission. This will be her fifth trip to space and her second time commanding a private astronaut mission. Shubhanshu Shukla, an Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot and astronaut with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will be the pilot onboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon. Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, a Polish member of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Astronaut Reserve Class of 2022, and Tibor Kapu, a Hungarian member of the Hungarian to Orbit (HUNOR) Astronaut Program, will serve as the Mission Specialists. These four astronauts will spend up to 14 days docked to the ISS after launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on a Falcon 9 rocket. Following stage separation, the booster will target a touchdown at Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Updated: May 14
NET June 13 Atlas 5 • Kuiper 2
Launch time: 2:29 p.m. EDT (1829 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, in a 551 configuration, will launch the second batch of 27 Project Kuiper satellites for Amazon. The mission is referred to as Kuiper Atlas 02 (KA-02) by Amazon.
Updated: May 29
NET June 23/24 H-2A • GOSAT-GW
Launch time: 1:33:03 a.m. JST on June 24 (12:33:03 p.m. EDT, 1633:03 UTC on June 23)
Launch site: Launch Pad 1, Tanegashima Space Center, Japan
A Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. H-2A rocket will launch the Global Observing SATellite for Greenhouse gases and Water cycle (GOSAT-GW), a Japanese Earth-observing satellite. The roughly 2,900 kg (6,393 lbs) satellite will operate in a Sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 666 km (414 mi). This spacecraft comes from a partnership between the Japanese Ministry of Environment (MOE), National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The two primary instruments are the Total Anthropogenic and Natural emissions mapping SpectrOmeter-3 (TANSO-3) and the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 3 (AMSR3). This will be the 50th and final launch of a H-2A rocket.
Updated: April 25
NET June Falcon 9 • Transporter-14
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch dozens of payloads on its latest Smallsat rideshare program, called Transporter. This mission, dubbed Transporter-14, will include a variety of customers, including the MayaSat-1 capsule from The Exploration Company, the OSSIE OTV (orbital transfer vehicle) from UARX Space and three Erminaz PocketQubes from AMSAT-DL. The Falcon 9 first stage booster will perform a return to landing site touchdown at Landing Zone 4 less than eight minutes after liftoff.
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
All times are “local” (Dallas) time.
ISS
May 31
Tiangong
Jun 6
Jun 7
Jun 8