August 2018 Space News

Deputy Secretary Discusses Future of Space Force at Space and Missile Systems Center AFPS 31 Aug 2018 -- Space is a contested environment, and the United States must deploy new tools, new capabilities and the right leadership to ensure dominance in that environment , Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan said recently.
Russia Says Contract To Ferry U.S. Astronauts To ISS Ends In April RFE/RL 31 Aug 2018 -- Russia's contract with the United States to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) is due to expire in April, Russia's deputy prime minister for defense and space agency said on August 31.
International Space Station Crew Repairs Air Leak With Epoxy, Tape RFE/RL 31 Aug 2018 -- Retired Russian cosmonaut Maksim Surayev says a "micro" pressure leak in a compartment of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft docked with the International Space Station (ISS) has been repaired with epoxy resin and tape.
India Readies Baby Rockets to Tap Small Satellites' Market Sputnik 30 Aug 2018 -- The ISRO is developing a small rocket of not more than 100 tons that can send a 500 kg satellite into a 500 km orbit. The ISRO, which is earning around $40 million annually through launching small satellites of foreign customers, aims to increase its revenue manifold by using the baby rocket.
UK Vows to Develop its Own Satellite Navigation if Pushed out of Galileo Sputnik 29 Aug 2018 -- Theresa May adopted an "everything or nothing" stance on the EU's joint global navigation project.
China Calls for Multilateral Space Arms Control Deal Sputnik 29 Aug 2018 -- China and Russia submitted a draft Treaty on the Prevention of the Placement of Weapons in Outer Space, the Threat or Use of Force Against Outer Space Objects to the CD in 2008 and provided an updated draft in June 2014.
India's First Manned Space Mission to Focus on Micro-Gravity Experiment Sputnik 28 Aug 2018 -- The Indian Space Research Organisation said that prior to its manned mission scheduled for 40 months from now, it will conduct two unmanned missions – the first in 30 months and the second in 36 months – to ensure the success of its manned mission.
Japan's defense report: Anti-missile system needed NHK 28 Aug 2018 -- Japan's annual defense report stresses the need to introduce a new ballistic missile defense system, citing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea.
UK to start work on post-Brexit satellite system to rival EU's Galileo: Report Press TV 26 Aug 2018 -- UK Prime Minister Theresa May has ordered officials to start work on a British satellite navigation system to rival the European Union's Galileo because the UK's access to sensitive security information could be restricted after Brexit, according to British media.
China launches new twin BeiDou-3 navigation satellites People's Daily 25 Aug 2018 -- China sent twin BeiDou-3 navigation satellites into space on a Long March-3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province at 7:52 a.m. BJT Saturday.
Russia Restores Defunct Soviet Network to Monitor Near-Earth Objects Sputnik 25 Aug 2018 -- Russia has restored a global network of mothballed Soviet observatories to monitor near-Earth objects, according to a report by a state research institute.
Taiwan hoping for further cooperation with U.S. in space exploration CNA 20 Aug 2018 -- President Tsai Ing-wen's (蔡英文) visit to the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space center in Houston, Texas Saturday has sparked hope in Taiwan for further collaboration with the United States in the field of space exploration.
US Awards $2.9 Billion for Early Warning Missile Defense Satellites Sputnik 16 Aug 2018 -- The US Air Force announced Tuesday it had awarded Lockheed Martin a contract for a set of satellite-based missile warning systems, to the tune of $2.9 billion.
Beijing to Launch Satellite Network to Monitor South China Sea Traffic Sputnik 16 Aug 2018 -- Officials in China's Hainan province are preparing to send a series of satellites into space starting in 2019 in order to keep track of "every reef and ship" within the contested waters of the South China Sea.
China unveils Chang'e-4 rover to explore Moon's far side People's Daily 16 Aug 2018 -- China's moon lander and rover for the Chang'e-4 lunar probe, which is expected to land on the far side of the moon this year, was unveiled Wednesday.
Russian Cosmonauts Set Up Animal-Tracking System In Eight-Hour Spacewalk RFE/RL 16 Aug 2018 -- Two Russian cosmonauts on August 15 spent nearly eight hours on a spacewalk setting up an antenna for tracking birds and animals on Earth and sending a series of tiny satellites flying into orbit.
PM addresses nation from ramparts of Red Fort on 72nd Independence Day India Prime Minister's Office 15 Aug 2018 -- The Prime Minister said that India is proud of its scientists. He announced "Gagan-Yaan" a manned space mission, to be undertaken by India by 2022, using its own capabilities. He said India would become the fourth nation in the world to do so.
India to Launch Manned Space Mission by 2022, PM Declares on Independence Day Sputnik 15 Aug 2018 -- As India is celebrating its 72nd Independence Day with gaiety and fervor, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation from the ramparts of Delhi's historic Red Fort amid tight security. The first all-women anti-terror squad was the major highlight of the event.
Russian Cosmonauts to Spend Almost 7 Hours Outside ISS on Wednesday Sputnik 15 Aug 2018 -- Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Sergei Prokopyev will spend almost seven hours in the open space on Wednesday on a mission to install an antenna as part of a birds monitoring the experiment.
Lockheed Martin to Build Infrared Spacecraft for US Air Force - Pentagon Sputnik 15 Aug 2018 -- US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin won almost $3 billion to build three space vehicles to operate in geosynchronous high earth orbits (HEO) 22,000 miles above the planet, the Defense Department said in a press release.
Remarks on Recent Russian Space Activities of Concern US Dept. of State 14 Aug 2018 -- Remarks by Yleem D.S. Poblete, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance
NRL Provides 'Eyes' for NASA Solar Probe Mission NNS 13 Aug 2018 -- U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL) Wide-Field Imager for Solar Probe (WISPR) launched at 3:31 a.m., Aug.12, from Space Launch Complex 37 aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket for the historic NASA Parker Solar Probe mission.
India's Second Moon Mission as Complex as NASA's Apollo Mission - Space Agency Sputnik 13 Aug 2018 -- The Indian Space Agency had planned the launch of its second moon mission for October this year, but scientists reviewing their preparedness suggested that more tests were needed before the launch. The mission is now likely to be preceded by Israel's moon mission, planned for December this year.
NASA sends spacecraft to Sun after delay Press TV 12 Aug 2018 -- NASA has blasted off a spacecraft toward the Sun on a mission to explore the mysteries of dangerous solar storms.
Mattis: 'I Was Not Against Setting up a Space Force' VOA 12 Aug 2018 -- Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said he was not against establishing a sixth branch of the military for space when he wrote Congress about it last year.
Beyond Space Force: Staying Ahead of the 'Speed of War' VOA 11 Aug 2018 -- It might sound like science fiction, but the general in charge of the U.S. military's air transports across the globe says refueling and resupplying the military may soon be a job that's literally out of this world.
NRL's Sun Imaging Telescopes Fly on NASA Parker Solar Probe NNS 10 Aug 2018 -- The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's unique expertise in sun-viewing telescopes will be an integral part of the historic NASA Parker Solar Probe mission scheduled to launch Aug. 11 to better understand how the Sun affects our solar system.
Proposed Space Force to Protect, Expand U.S. Cosmic Capabilities AFPS 10 Aug 2018 -- The proposal to form the U.S. Space Force is rooted in protecting America's advantages in space and in ensuring such advantages continue, Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan said during a roundtable discussion with Pentagon reporters yesterday.
Trump Administration Wants Space Force by 2020 VOA 10 Aug 2018 -- The Pentagon is taking new steps to create a space force by 2020 in order to "meet the emerging threats on this new battlefield," U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday.
U.S. to establish Space Force by 2020: Pence People's Daily 10 Aug 2018 -- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday that the United States plans to establish a Space Force by 2020, an idea floated by President Donald Trump and questioned by many top officers at the Pentagon.
US Vice President Mike Pence announces plan for new Space Force by 2020 Press TV 10 Aug 2018 -- US Vice President Mike Pence has called for the establishment of a Space Force by 2020, a plan that would add a sixth branch to America's massive military and fulfill President Donald Trump's wish to seek US dominance in space.
Media Roundtable on Space Force with Deputy Secretary Shanahan DoD 09 Aug 2018 -- Presenter: Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan
Remarks by Vice President Pence on the Future of the U.S. Military in Space The White House 09 Aug 2018
President Donald J. Trump is Building the United States Space Force for a 21st Century Military The White House 09 Aug 2018
Space Force to Become Sixth Branch of Armed Forces AFPS 09 Aug 2018 -- The Defense Department will establish a sixth branch of the armed forces, the U.S. Department of the Space Force, by 2020, Vice President Mike Pence announced today.
U.S. Unveils Plans For Space Force To Counter Russia, China 'Threat' RFE/RL 09 Aug 2018 -- Vice President Mike Pence, citing threats from Russia and China, has presented details of plans to create a U.S. Space Force by 2020 that would become the sixth branch of the military.
New Pentagon Report Names Russia, China as Threats to US Space Capabilities Sputnik 09 Aug 2018 -- A new space report by the Pentagon has named Russia and China as key threats to US space capabilities, according to a document released on Thursday.
Trump Administration Wants Space Force by 2020 VOA 09 Aug 2018 -- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday that the Pentagon was taking steps to create a space force by 2020 in order to "meet the emerging threats on this new battlefield."
China solicits int'l cooperation experiments on space station People's Daily 06 Aug 2018 -- China is asking the world to collaborate in experiments on its planned space station so as to promote international space cooperation and sustainable global development.
Russia Grants Kazakhstan Access to Military Satellite Signal – Space Agency Sputnik 04 Aug 2018 -- Kazakhstan now has access to a frequency of Russia's Glonass global navigation system used by the military to guide high-precision weaponry, a Kazakh space agency official told Sputnik.
NASA assigns crews to first test flights, missions on commercial spacecraft AFNS 03 Aug 2018 -- NASA introduced to the world on Friday the first U.S. astronauts who will fly on American-made, commercial spacecraft to and from the International Space Station – an endeavor that will return astronaut launches to U.S. soil for the first time since the space shuttle's retirement in 2011.
Sweden to buy Patriot missiles after Trump pressure Press TV 03 Aug 2018 -- Sweden says it has given the authorization to its military to purchase the Patriot air defense missile system from the United States amid what has been cited as rising threats by Russia.
Navy Satellite System Receives Green Light for Expanded Operational Use AFNS 02 Aug 2018 -- The Navy announced today that its next generation narrowband satellite communication system has been approved for expanded operational use by U.S. Strategic Command.
Air Mobility Command Chief Looks Toward Supplying Forces From Space AFPS 02 Aug 2018 -- Deliveries from space are going to happen, and the Defense Department must be ready to capitalize on the capability when it happens, the commander of the Air Force's Air Mobility Command told the Defense Writers Group here today.
Swedish Government Approves Purchase of US Patriot Missile System - Statement Sputnik 02 Aug 2018 -- The Swedish government announced in a statement on Thursday the decision to approve the purchase the US Patriot air defense missile system.
India Successfully Tests Home-Grown Low Altitude Ballistic Missile Interceptor Sputnik 02 Aug 2018 -- After almost 20 years of efforts, India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has developed both high-altitude and low-altitude missiles which can purportedly intercept medium-range ballistic missiles traveling at speeds of Mach 3 to 8.
India Working on Augmenting Power of Electric Propulsion for Heavier Satellites Sputnik 02 Aug 2018 -- Over the last five years, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has performed 26 launch vehicle missions, putting 28 Indian satellites, and 202 foreign satellites in orbit. Although ISRO has gained recognition for launching small satellites, it lacks the ability to launch communication satellites heavier than 4 metric tons.
Swedish Gov't Expected to Approve Purchase of US Patriot Systems – Reports Sputnik 01 Aug 2018 -- The Swedish government intends to decide in favor of purchasing the US Patriot air defense missile system on August 2, SR radio station reported.

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