Recent Astronomical Discoveries
Particles energized by magnetic reconnection in the nascent solar wind
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/06/250603114631.htm
Parker Solar Probe
https://scitechdaily.com/images/Parker-Solar-Probe-Rendering-scaled.jpg
3D Schematic of Dungey Cycle
Earth Magnetic Reconnection (Highlighted)
https://www.frontiersin.org/files/Articles/532404/fphy-08-00089-HTML/image_m/fphy-08-00089-g001.jpg
Discussion Topic of the Evening.
This Is Why the Sun Makes a Figure Eight in the Sky
A curious celestial phenomenon known as the analemma is a reflection of Earth’s orbit and tilted axis
The “Figure-8” in the Sky
From Scientific American
SkyPath
https://www.skymarvels.com/infopages/images/Sun’s%20Path%20North3%20001.jpg
Waz Up
Space Exploration and Space History
Space Exploration News
Moon Mascot: NASA Artemis II ZGI Design Challenge
NASA’s SunRISE Mission Reviewing Launch Date, Names New Science Lead
Space-Related Birthdays
Jeffrey Ashby, June 1, 1954 STS-93, STS-100, STS-112
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Jeffrey_S_Ashby.jpg
Pete Conrad June 2, 1930 Gemini 5, Gemini 11, Apollo 12, Skylab 2
Mark L Polansky, June 2, 1956 STS-98, STS-116, STS-127
Shannon Walker, June 4, 1965 Soyuz TMA-19 (Expedition 24/25) SpaceX Crew-1 (Expedition 64/65)
Robert S. Kimbrough, June 4, 1967 STS-126, Soyuz MS-02 (Expedition 49/50), SpaceX Crew 2 (Expedition 65/66)
Richard A. Searfoss, June 5, 1956 STS-58, STS-76, STS-90
David Scott, June 6, 1932 Gemini 8, Apollo 9, Apollo 15 (He’s 92)
https://www.ju.edu/globalcitizen/img/honoree-scott-2023.jpg
Jay C. Buckey June 6, 1956 STS-90
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Jay_Buckey.jpg/220px-Jay_Buckey.jpg
Anne McClain June 7, 1979 Soyuz MS-11 (Expedition 58/59)
This Week in Space History
June 1:
2011:
Space Shuttle Endeavour landed for the final time at 2:34 am ET at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/gemini_ix_2_crew_of_stafford_and_cernan_s66-15621.jpg?w=985
June 3:
1966:
NASA Astronauts Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene A. Cernan launched from Launch Complex 19, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 13:39:33 UTC, aboard Gemini IX-A. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/The_Angry_Alligator_-_GPN-2000-001354.jpg
June 4:
1962:
Neil Armstrong submitted his application to be an astronaut. He was selected for the second astronaut group three months later, also known as the “New Nine”. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Neil_Armstrong_pose.jpg
June 7:
1965:
On June 7, 1965, after a four-day mission and 62 orbits, NASA’s Gemini 4 mission returned to Earth with an Atlantic Ocean splashdown.
Miss Carolyn’s Constellation of the Week
Space Launches For This Week
Space Flight Now Launch Schedule
June 8 Falcon 9 • Starlink 15-8
Launch time: 6:34 a.m. PDT (9:34 a.m. EDT, 1334 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a batch of 26 Starlink V2 Mini satellites into low Earth orbit. A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage booster, tail number B1088, launching for a seventh time, will target a landing on the droneship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’
Updated: June 07
June 10 Falcon 9 • Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4)
Launch time: 8:22 a.m. EDT (1222 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. Delayed from June 9.
Updated: June 03
June 10 Falcon 9 • Starlink 12-24
Launch time: Window opens at 9:03 a.m. EDT (1303 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.
Updated: June 05
June 10/11 Electron • ‘The Mountain God Guards’
Launch time: Window opens at 3:45 a.m. NZT on June 11 (11:45 a.m. EDT, 1545 UTC on June 10)
Launch site: Launch Complex 1, Pad A, Mahia, New Zealand
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket will launch the latest synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite for Japan-based company, the Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, Inc. (iQPS). The QPS-SAR-11 satellite will head into a circular, low Earth orbit at 575 km in altitude. This is the fourth Electron launch in support of iQPS’ constellation.
Updated: June 06
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.
Updated: May 08
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 31
Summer 2025 Falcon 9 • TRACERS
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch NASA’s TRACERS (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) as the primary payload on a rideshare mission secured through the agency’s VADR (Venture-Class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare) launch services contract, providing new opportunities for science and technology payloads. The two TRACERS satellites are designed to study the interaction of the Sun’s solar particles interact with the Earth’s magnetic field to better understand the impacts of solar activity on Earth. The mission is conducted through a partnership between NASA; the University of Iowa; the Southwest Research Institute; the University of New Hampshire; the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley; and the University of California, Los Angeles. The secondary payload(s) have not been announced for this mission as of May 15.
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
Jun 16
Tiangong
Jun 7
Jun 9
Jun 11