Posted: Sat, Sep 5 10:05 AM ET (1405 GMT)
The Indian space agency ISRO successfully launched an Earth imaging satellite in its first mission since a January failure. A GSLV Mark 2 rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 5:25 pm EDT (2125 GMT) Thursday, deploying the EOS-05 satellite into a transfer orbit nearly 20 minutes later. EOS-05 will operate from geostationary orbit, providing continuous but low-resolution imaging of India using multispectral and hyperspectral instruments. The launch was the first by ISRO since a January failure of the PSLV rocket. After the launch, ISRO said it plans six more launches through the end of the current fiscal year in March 2027, including the first uncrewed test flight of the Gaganyaan human spaceflight vehicle.

Related Links:

•  SpaceNews article
•  PTI article
•  NDTV article
•  The Times of India article
•  Hindustan Times article

Posted: Sat, Sep 5 9:57 AM ET (1357 GMT)
The US Space Force has a new commanding general. In a ceremony Thursday at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Gen. Douglas Schiess took over as the US Space Force's third chief of space operations, succeeding Gen. Chance Saltzman. In his first message to the force, Schiess portrayed his tenure as the next stage in the development of the Space Force, which was established in 2019 and has been moving from its initial focus on building a new military service toward preparing forces for combat. The next phase, Schiess said, will require the Space Force to expand while improving how it develops, tests and operates new systems. His comments at the change-of-command ceremony signaled continuity with Saltzman, who during his tenure put greater emphasis on preparing guardians for warfare in space and on developing capabilities to protect US satellites and counter adversaries' use of space systems.

Related Links:

•  SpaceNews article
•  SpacePolicyOnline.com article
•  Air and Space Forces Magazine article
•  US Space Force release

HyImpulse raises more than 50 million euros
Posted: Sat, Sep 5 9:51 AM ET (1351 GMT)
German launch company HyImpulse has raised additional funding ahead of a suborbital launch. HyImpulse announced Wednesday it raised more than 50 million euros ($58 million)...

NASA awards Blue Origin contact for Mars telecom orbiter
Posted: Sat, Sep 5 9:49 AM ET (1349 GMT)
NASA selected Blue Origin to build a Mars telecommunications orbiter. The agency said Tuesday it awarded a contract to Blue Origin valued at about $700...

Astronauts complete fourth ISS spacewalk in a month
Posted: Sat, Sep 5 9:45 AM ET (1345 GMT)
Astronauts conducted the fourth spacewalk outside the ISS in less than a month Tuesday. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot spent six...