The Bluebird 7 satellite blasts off on a New Glenn rocket (Image courtesy Blue Origin)

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Confirmation has been received that AST SpaceMobile’s Bluebird 7 satellite will fall back to Earth after entering an orbit too low to reach the required level for direct cell phone communications. The problem emerged on Sunday, shortly after separation from Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket’s second stage. Initial investigations quickly identified the mishap as a consequence of a malfunction of the second stage.

The Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft captured by the Canadarm2 robotic arm in its NG-24 mission (Image NASA)

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Yesterday, Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft, launched last Saturday, April 11, reached the International Space Station and was captured by the Canadarm2 robotic arm. Astronaut Jack Hathaway, assisted by his colleague Chris Williams, conducted the slow maneuver to move the Cygnus until it docked with the Station’s Unity module after about two hours.

The Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft blasting off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to start its NG-24 mission (Image NASA+)

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A few hours ago, Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft blasted off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral on its NG-24 or CRS NG-24 mission. After about 15 minutes, it successfully separated from the rocket’s last stage and set on its course. This is the 4th resupply mission to the International Space Station with various payloads launched using the Falcon 9 rocket while waiting for the new version of Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket to be ready. It’s also the 2nd to see the use of the new version of the Cygnus cargo spacecraft.

The Orion Integrity spacecraft splashing down (Photo NASA/Bill Ingalls)

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It was afternoon in the USA when NASA’s Orion Integrity spacecraft concluded its Artemis II mission by splashing down off the coast of San Diego. It launched on April 2 atop NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS). Some support ships were in the area to recover Integrity and rescue astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Jeremy Hansen. Everything salvageable was recovered, such as the splashdown system’s parachutes, to gather as much data as possible on the critical phase of the return to Earth.

The Orion Integrity spacecraft and the Moon in the background (Image NASA)

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NASA’s Orion Integrity spacecraft has completed a record-breaking journey around the Moon as part of the Artemis II mission. It didn’t enter lunar orbit, but “merely” circled it to boldly go where no one has gone before, approximately 406,771 kilometers (252,756 miles) from Earth, breaking the record for the maximum distance for a human spaceflight that was held by Apollo 13. That 1970 mission reminds us of the risks astronauts face in space, and after completing that feat, astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Jeremy Hansen set course for their return to Earth, scheduled for Friday, April 10.