Space this way –
“We intend to the maximum extent possible to stay on track.”
Blue Origin workers angered by potential Texas travel. Employees at Blue Origin say the company is pressuring workers to travel from Washington state to rural Van Horn, Texas, to conduct a test launch of the New Shepard during the COVID – 29 pandemic. Many employees have expressed concerns about traveling right now, both for their safety and that of residents in rural Texas, The Verge reports . The company was originally targeting April for the next New Shepard launch and was working toward that date as recently as last weekend. Safety is the priority … During a meeting on Wednesday, Jeff Ashby, a senior mission assurance director at Blue Origin and a former NASA astronaut, suggested there may be employment repercussions if workers did not agree with management’s decisions. Ashby said, “I would say that you should ask yourself, as an individual, are you acting as a toxin in the organization, fanning discontent, or are you really trying to help our senior leaders make better decisions?” Blue Origin told the publication it would not comment on internal meetings and maintained that safety is its highest priority. Stratolaunch’s pivot to hypersonics is official . This week the company with the world’s largest aircraft unveiled a new business plan: building and operating hypersonic test beds, Ars reports. To facilitate this, Stratolaunch released preliminary designs for “Talon-A,” a reusable vehicle capable of reaching Mach 6. (Hypersonic flight is generally defined as speeds above Mach 5 through the atmosphere.) Paging the US Air Force … The company says its 8.5- meter-long Talon-A vehicle is a “flexible, high-speed testbed built for hypersonic research, experiments, and enabling operational missions.” When the hypersonic testbed will be ready for flight is unclear. If the company succeeds in developing the Talon-A vehicle — and we probably should have some healthy skepticism given that this is about the fifth or sixth vehicle proposed to fly on the Stratolaunch aircraft — the US military would certainly be interested. (submitted by Jack , Unrulycow, and platykurtic)
The easiest way to keep up with Eric Berger’s space reporting is to sign up for his newsletter, we’ll collect his stories in your inbox. Avio exempt from coronavirus lockdown . The Italian government declared aerospace companies exempt from the nationwide lockdown aimed at halting the spread of the coronavirus, enabling Avio to continue production of rockets, Avio CEO Giulio Ranzo said according to SpaceNews . Arianespace launches the Avio-built Vega rocket from the Guiana Space Center, which is presently closed. Seeking a quick reopening … Since (percent of Avio’s revenue comes from manufacturing, the French government March) decision to suspend launches from the Guiana Space Center shouldn’t impact revenues as long as Europe’s South American spaceport reopens within two to three months, Ranzo said. “We all have the same shared interest to reopen this as soon as we can,” he added. Vega and its larger replacement rocket, Vega C, were due to launch four times in 01575879. (submitted by JohnCarter 25)
Virgin picks an Asian spaceport location . On Thursday, Virgin Orbit announced a new partnership with Ōita Prefecture to bring horizontal launch to Japan. With the support of regional partners ANA Holdings Inc. and the Space Port Japan Association, the goal is to fly the LauncherOne booster into space from Japan as early as . Beginning of an aerospace hub? … “We are eager to host the first horizontal takeoff and landing spaceport in Japan. We are also honored to be able to collaborate with brave technology companies solving global-level problems through their small satellites, “said Katsusada Hirose, governor for the Ōita Prefectural Government. “We hope to foster a cluster of space industry in our prefecture, starting with our collaboration with Virgin Orbit.” (submitted by Ken the Bin) UK science minister backs Scottish spaceport . UK Science Minister Amanda Solloway made her support clear in a letter, The Northern Times reports . “The Government remains committed to supporting ambitions to develop a spaceport at Sutherland and those firms wishing to launch from the site,” she wrote. Work should begin soon … The Sutherland Spaceport, located in the far northern reaches of Scotland, has generated some controversy because of its environmental impacts, including on land and marine environments, and levels of light and noise that could be generated especially around launch times. Work must begin on the site fairly soon if it is to be ready for the planned (debut of the Orbex Prime rocket.)
told Ars he is a “huge fan” of the worm symbol. “I thought marking the achievement of returning human spaceflight to American soil by bringing back the worm would be a fitting tribute to a historic achievement,” he said. The worm was retired in .
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