Home 2010 Summary 2009 Spacecrafts 2011 Spacecrafts

. The 129 Spacecrafts launched in 2010:
.

1)	Beidou 7 / Compass G1	2)	Raduga 1M / Globus 1M	3)	Progress M-04M / ISS 36P	--	Kavoshgar-3 ((Explore 3)
4)	STS-130 / ISS 20A	5)	Tranquility / Node 3	6)	SDO / Solar Dynamics Observatory	7)	Intelsat 16 / IS-16
8)	Kosmos 2459 / Uragan-M 731	9)	Kosmos 2460 / Uragan-M 732	10)	Kosmos 2461 / Uragan-M 735	11)	GOES 15 / GOES P
12)	YW-9 / Yaogan IX	13)	YW-9 subsat 1	14)	YW-9 subsat 2	15)	EchoStar XIV
16)	Soyuz TMA-18 / ISS 22S	17)	STS-131 / ISS 19A	18)	CryoSat-2	19)	GSAT-4
20)	Kosmos 2462 / Kobalt-M	21)	OTV-1 (USA 212)	22)	SES-1	23)	Kosmos 2463 / Parus
24)	Progress M-05M / ISS 37P	25)	STS-132 / ULF-4	26)	Rassvet / MRM-1	27)	Planet-C / Akatsuki
28)	IKAROS	29)	Unitec-1	30)	Negai*	31)	Waseda-Sat 2
32)	KSAT	33)	Astra 3B	34)	ComsatBw-2	35)	Navstar 65 (USA 213)
36)	SERVIS 2	37)	Beidou 8 /Beidou G3	38)	Arabsat 5B / Badr 5	39)	Dragon Qual Unit
40)	STSAT-2B	41)	SJ-12 / Shijiun 12	42)	Picard	43)	PRISMA-Mango
44)	PRISMA-Tango	45)	BPA-1	46)	Soyuz TMA-19 / ISS 23S	47)	Tandem-X
48)	'Ofeq-9	49)	Arabsat 5A	50)	COMS 1 / Chollian	51)	Progress M-06M / ISS 38P
52)	EchoStar XV	53)	Cartosat 2B	54)	Alsat 2A	55)	AISSAT-1 / NLS-6.1
56)	TISat-1 / NLS-6.2	57)	Studsat	58)	Beidou 9 (IGSO 1)	59)	Nilesat 201
60)	RascomQAF-1R	61)	YW-10 / Yaogan X	62)	AEHF SV-1 (USA 214)	63)	Tianhui 1
64)	Kosmos 2464 / Glonass-M 736	65)	Kosmos 2465 / Glonass-M 737	66)	Kosmos 2466 / Glonass-M 738	67)	Zhongxing 6 / Chinasat 6A / SinoSat-6
68)	Kosmos 2467 / Strela-3	69)	Gonets-M	70)	Kosmos 2468 / Strela-3M	71)	Progress M-07M / ISS 39P
72)	QZS 1 / Michibiki	73)	NROL-41 (USA 215)	74)	YW-11 / Yaogan XI	75)	ZP 1A-1 / Zheda Pixing 1A-1
76)	ZP 1A-2 / Zheda Pixing 1A-2	77)	SBSS 1 (USA 216)	78)	Kosmos 2469 / Oko	79)	Chang'e 2
80)	SJ-6/4A / Shijian 6/4A	81)	SJ-6/4B / Shijiun 6/4B	82)	Soyuz TMA-01M / ISS 24S	83)	Sirius XM-5
84)	Globalstar II-1	85)	Globalstar II-2	86)	Globalstar II-3	87)	Globalstar II-4
88)	Globalstar II-5	89)	Globalstar II-6	90)	Progress M-08M / ISS 40P	91)	Eutelsat W3B
92)	BSAT-3B	93)	Beidou 10 / Beidou G4	94)	Meridian 3	95)	FY-3 (01) B / Fengyun 3 (01) B
96)	COSMO-SkyMed 4	97)	SkyTerra 1	98)	STPSat-2 (USA 217)	99)	RAX (USA 218
100)	O/OREOS (USA 219)	101)	Fastsat-HSV (USA 220)	102)	Falconsat-5 (USA 221)	103)	Fastrac 1 / ST 1 (USA 222)
104)	Fastrac 2	105)	Nanosail-D2	106)	S26 Ballast A	107)	S26 Ballast B
108)	NROL-32 (USA 223)	109)	Zhongxing 20A / Chinasat 20A	110)	Intelsat 17 / IS-17	111)	HYLAS 1
112)	Glonass-M	113)	Glonass-M	114)	Glonass-M	115)	Dragon C1
116)	QbX-1	117)	SMDC-One	118)	QbX-2	119)	Perseus 000
120)	Perseus 001	121)	Perseus 002	122)	Perseus 003	123)	Caerus/Mayflower
124)	Soyuz TMA-20 / ISS 25S	125)	Beidou DW7 / Compass I2	126)	GSAT-5P	127)	KA-SAT
128)	Hispasat 1E	129)	Koreasat 6

.

Beidou 7 / Compass G1 Spacecraft: Beidou DW3 (“Third orbiter”) Chronologies: 2010 payload #1 ; 2010-01A ; 6,855th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Credit: China Daily Launch: 16 January 2010 at 16h12 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3C. Orbit: Geostarionary at 160° East longitude. Mission: Beidou DW3 or Compass G1 is a navigation satellite. It joins two other Beidou already in orbits to form a network which will eventually includes a total of 35 satellites, capable of providing global navigation service to users around the world in 2020. The network will have five satellites in geostationary orbit and 30 in lower orbits. The COMPASS system will provide navigation, time signal and short message services in the Asia and Pacific region. The satellites were developed by Chinese Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. They are reportedly based on the DFH-3 communications satellite.       China Daily reports that one of the Long-March rocket boosters that launched Beidou DW3 fell seven minutes after lift-off in Renhuai (Guizhou province) and forced authorities to evacuate more than 100,000 people. There was no report of any casualties.) Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 621 & 622 ; Spacewarn No. 675 ; China Daily's 16 Jan 10, 17 Jan 10, 18 Jan 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 16 Jan 10 ;

.

Raduga 1M Spacecraft: Globus-1M Chronologies: 2010 payload #2 ; 2010-02A ; 6,856th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 28 January 2010 at 0h18 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/34, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geosynchrnous Mission: The satellite is the second new-generation Globus-1M (or Globus-M) military communications satellite, with the cover name Raduga-1M. This is a new type of satellite, which would allow expanding the capability of the military communication network. The first satellite of this type, Raduga 1M-1, was launched in December 2007. It is now deployed at 70° East longitude. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 622 ; Spacewarn No. 675 ; RSNF's 28 Jan 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 27 Jan 10 ; ILS's 24 Jan 10 ;

.

Progress M-04M / ISS 36P Spacecraft: Progress M (7K-TGM) No.  Chronologies: 2010 payload #3 ; 2010-03A ; 6,857th spacecraft. Type: Cargo delivery to the International Space Station Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: RSC Energia Launch: 3 February 2010 at 3h45 UT, from  Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-U. Orbit: Initial: 191.8 km x 232.41 km x 51.65° x 88.47 min.  At docking: 335.3 km x 349.8 km x 51.64° x 91.39 min. De-orbit Impact in the south Pacific on 1 July 2010 at 14h40 UT. Mission: Progress M-04M is a logistics spacecraf that delivers to the International Space Station about 2.7 tons of various cargoes needed. They include: supplies of propellants, water, food, oxygen and air, medical equipment, scientific equipment and hardware of the ISS RS systems, on-board documentation, parcels for the crew, video and photographic equipment. After two days in free flight, it docked with ISS. Approach to the space station, its fly-around, stationkeeping and docking were performed in automatic mode on 5 February 2010. The initial contact with the docking port on Zvezda occurred at 4h26 UT. IFor the first time, four Russian vehicles are docked at ISS: two Progress and two Soyuz vehicles.)       The Progress undocked from Zvezda on 10 May 2010  at 10h16 UT, and remained in orbit until 1 JUly 2010, carrying out experiments.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 622, 627 & 630 ; Spacewarn No. 676 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Feb 10 & 4 Feb 10 ; Energiya's 3 Feb 10 & 5 Feb 10 ; Iss On-orbit 3 Feb 10, 5 Feb 10, 10 May 10 ;

.

Kavoshgar-3 (Explore 3) Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload n/a ; 2010 n/a ; n/a. [n/a = not applicable] Type: [Biological / Propaganda ?] Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Iran Launch: 3 February 2010, from Iran, by a Kavosh 3. Orbit: n/a Mission: On 3 February 2010, Iran's English-language satellite channel Press TV reported that this country successfully test-fired a satellite rocket. The report said the "Kavosh 3" (Explore 3) rocket carrying an “experimental capsule has been successfully test-fired and will transfer telemetric data, live pictures and flight and environmental analysis data.” “Live video transmission and the mini-environmental lab will enable further studies on the biological capsule, which carries a rat, two turtles and worms”, the Iranian Aerospace Organization (IAO) was quoted as saying. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the satellite launch was a huge breakthrough which help break “the global domineering system,” a reference to the West.  The Islamic Republic hoped to send astronauts into space soon, he added.       But, according to Western analysis, the Kavoshgar is believed to be a sounding rocket and thus it is not a satellite carrier. (The rocket resembled the U.S. Army Honest John battlefield rocket deployed in the 1950s.) After the rocket reaches an altitude of about 100 kilometers, the payload separates and returns to Earth with a parachute. Craig Covault reports: “As part of the commemoration, Iran launched a 3-meter long sounding rocket off a truck mounted rail system. But the test created global confusion when Iran used the word 'satellite' to describe the suborbital payload. It also said it was housed in a 'capsule.'" The suborbital flight fell back to Earth near its launch site within about 15 minutes of liftoff. "The Iranian rocket reached 200 km altitude, providing the animals with several minutes of zero-g as the vehicle arched over at apogee. It then descended and landed by parachute a few kilometres from its launch point.” (Photo: An image grab taken on February 3, 2010 from Iran's Press TV station shows the launching of the Kavoshgar 3 rocket from an undisclosed location. Credit: Xinhua/China Daily) Source: China Daily's 3 Feb 10, 4 Feb 10, 4 Feb 10 ; NYT 4 Feb 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 13 Feb 10 ;

.

STS-130 / ISS 20A Spacecraft: Space Shuttle's 130th flight, Endeavour's 24th flight and 32nd Shuttle flight to ISS. Chronologies: 2010 payload #4 ; 2010-04A ; 6,858th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spacecraft Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Credit: NASA Launch: 8 February 2010 at 9h14 UT, from Kennedy Space Center's LC-39A, by the Space Shuttle. Orbit: Landing: 22 February 2010 at 1h20 UT at the Kennedy Space Center. Mission: STS-130 was a piloted spacecraft carrying six astronauts, hardware and a module for the International Space Station. The Shuttle lifted off successfully on time, after a one-day slip due to inclement weather. Endeavour docked with ISS on 10 February 2010 at 5h06 UT (51 minutes late due to misalingment). The mission objectives included installation of the Tranquility module, with its attached cupola, to the Unity module, as well as the transfer of supplies, hardware and experiments to the station. Endeavour undocked from ISs on 20 February at 0h54 UT and lands at Cape Canaveral two days later. (Landing was the 73rd at the Cape Canaveral and the 17th night landing there.) Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 621, 622, 623 & 624 ; Spacewarn No. 676 ;  NASA's Press Kit ; Spaceflight Now's 8 Feb 10, 9 Feb 10, 10 Feb 10, 11 Feb 10, 12 Feb 10, 12 Feb 10, 13 Feb 10, 14 Feb 10, 15 Feb 10, 15 Feb 10, 17 Feb 10, 17 Feb 10, 19 Feb 10, 19 Feb 10, 19 Feb 10, 20 Feb 10, 21 Feb 10 ; NASA STS-130 & Press Kit ; ISS On-orbit 8 Feb 10, 10 Feb 10, ; 11 Feb 10, 12 Feb 10, 13 Feb 10, 14 Feb 10, 15 Feb 10, 16 Feb 10, 17 Feb 10, 18 Feb 10, 19 Feb 10, 20 Feb 10, 22 Feb 10 ;

The International Space Station at the end of STS-130. (Credit: NASA & NASA) .

Tranquility / Node 3 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #5 ; 2010 n/a ; 6,859th spacecraft. Type: Space Station Component Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Credit: NASA   The European-built Node 3 during ground-based proessing. Internal view of Node 3 Launch: 8 February 2010 at 9h14 UT, from Kennedy Space Center's LC-39A, by the Space Shuttle. Attached to ISS' Unity module on 12 February between 5h56 and 6h20 UT. Orbit: Part of the International Space Station Mission: The European-built Node-3, called Tranquility, is the final of the three ISS nodes which are the interconnecting elements between the various pressurized modules on the International Space Station. It consists of a pressurized cylindrical hull 4.5 meters diameter, 7 meters long and weigh with the Cupola more than 16.5 tons. Node 3 housed on its nadir side the Cupola, a 3-meter in diameter and 1.5-meter high dome-shaped module with windows that is the panoramic control tower for ISS. The Cupola (photo) is an observation and work area through which operations on the outside of the station can be observed and guided.  It served as a robotic control station with six windows around its sides and a seventh in the center. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 623 ; NASA STS-130 & Press Kit ;

The International Space Staton at the end of STS-130. (Credit: NASA & NASA)
(Total mass of ISS: 362½ tons, and 98% compleed. [Source: On0orbit 22 Feb 10] .

SDO / Solar Dynamics Observatory Spacecraft: SDO stands for Solar Dynamics Observatory Chronologies: 2010 payload #6 ; 2010-05A ; 6,860th spacecraft. Type: Earth/Space Science Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Launch: 11 February 2010 at 15h23 UT, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's SLC-41, by an Atlas V 401. Orbit: Geostationary at 102.9° West longitude. Mission: SDO is the lead mission in NASA's Living With a Star (LWS) program. It studies the Sun at optical, ultraviolet and soft X-ray wavelengths from an inclined geosynchronous orbit, which allows continuous contact with a ground station at White Sands, NM. It images the whole Sun at very high cadence, typically returning new high resolution solar images every ten seconds, allowing the rapid evolution of solar activity to be studied. SDO will replace many of the capabilities of the elderly SOHO spacecraft which has been monitoring the Sun for 15 years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 622, 623 & 625 ; Spacewarn No. 676 ; Spaceflight Now's 11 Feb 10, 21 Apr 10 ;

.

Intelsat 16 / IS-16 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #7 ; 2010-06A ; 6,861st spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Intelsat Intelsat 16's Proton launcher preparations (Credit: ILS) Launch: 12 February 2010 at 0h39 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-200/39, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 58° West longitude. Mission: Intelsat 16 (IS 16) is a communications satellite which carries 24 Ku-band transponders to provide direct-to-home programming to customers in Mexico and Brazil. It is an Orbital Sciences Star-2.4 Ku-band satellite which will backup SKY's Latin America services. It provides expansion capacity for SKY Mexico’s direct-to-home services, including High Definition programming. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 623 ; Spacewarn No. 676 ; Spaceflight Now's 11 Feb 10 ; ILS's 12 Feb 10 ; Intelsat's 11 Feb 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2459 Spacecraft: Glonass 731 (Uragan-M) Chronologies: 2010 payload #8 ; 2010-07A ; 6,862nd spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 2 March 2010 at 21h19 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/24, by a Proton-M/DM-2. Orbit: Mission: Three Glonass-M spacecraft were added to the Russian global navigation satellite system. This system requires satellites in three orbital planes and global service requires 24 satellites. As of 1 March 2010, the constellation consisted of 20 satellites, of which 18 are operational (one satellite has been withdrawn from the constellation around the time of the launch). These recent additions to the constellation will occupy the third plane, orbital slots 22, 24, and 23, respectively. Each spacecraft has a mass of 1,360 kg and are designed to last seven years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 624 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Mar 10 ; RSNF's 1 Mar 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2460 Spacecraft: Glonass 732 (Uragan-M) Chronologies: 2010 payload #9 ; 2010-07B ; 6,863rd spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 1 March 2010 at 21h19 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome, by a Proton-M/DM-2. Orbit: Mission: Three Glonass-M spacecraft were added to the Russian global navigation satellite system. The system requires satellites in three orbital planes and global service requires 24 satellites. As of 1 March 2010, the constellation consisted of 20 satellites, of which 18 are operational (one satellite has been withdrawn from the constellation around the time of the launch). These recent additions to the constellation will occupy the third plane, orbital slots 22, 24, and 23, respectively. Each spacecraft has a mass of 1,360 kg and are designed to last seven years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 624 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Mar 10 ; RSNF's 1 Mar 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2461 Spacecraft: Glonass 735 (Uragan-M) Chronologies: 2010 payload #10 ; 2010-07C ; 6,864th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 1 March 2010 at 21h19 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome, by a Proton-M/DM-2. Orbit: Mission: Three Glonass-M spacecraft were added to the Russian global navigation satellite system. The system requires satellites in three orbital planes and global service requires 24 satellites. As of 1 March 2010, the constellation consisted of 20 satellites, of which 18 are operational (one satellite has been withdrawn from the constellation around the time of the launch). These recent additions to the constellation will occupy the third plane, orbital slots 22, 24, and 23, respectively. Each spacecraft has a mass of 1,360 kg and are designed to last seven years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 624 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Mar 10 ; RSNF's 1 Mar 10 ;

.

GOES 15 / GOES P Spacecraft: GOES stands for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #11 ; 2010-08A ; 6,865th spacecraft. Type: Meteorology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NOAA Launch: 4 March 2010 at 23h57 UT, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's SLC-37B, by a Delta 4M+(4,2). Orbit: Geostationary Mission: GOES 15 is a 3,215-kg weather satellite and the final spacecraft in the latest series of NOAA geostationary satellites capturing high resolution images of weather patterns and atmospheric measurementss. The craft is the third in an updated series of GOES which carry a Solar X-Ray Imager (which is to space weather forecasting what satellite images are to hurricane forecasting), the Space Environment Monitor System and a search and rescue transponder which relays distress signals to the ground.  GOES 15 was placed in orbit originally as a spare and has an expected mission lifetime of 10 years. It joins four other GOES; GOES-12, in the east, and GOES-11, in the west – each provide continuous observations of environmental conditions of North, Central and South America and surrounding oceans. GOES-13, currently in a storage orbit, is being moved to replace GOES-12, which will be positioned to provide coverage for South America.. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 624 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; Spaceflight Now's 4 Mar 10 ; NOAA's 4 Mar 10 ;

.

YW-9 / Yaogan IX Spacecraft: Yaogan means resource (satellite) in Chinese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #12 ; 2010-09A ; 6,866th spacecraft. Type: Presumably Ocean Surveillance (Radar)  Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 5 March 2010 at 4h55 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4C. Orbit: 1,083 km x 1,100 km x 63.4° Mission: According to Chinese sources: “China has successfully put into orbit another remote-sensing satellite, Yaogan IX… The satellite would be used to conduct scientific experiment, carry out surveys on land resources, forecast grain output and help with natural disaster-reduction and prevention endeavor.” But most experts believe the Yaogan are military surveillance satellites, the series includes two variants with high-resolution electro-optical cameras and cloud-piercing radars designed to see targets through inclement weather or darkness. The satellite could have both civilian and military applications. The large fairing on the CZ-4C launch vehicle suggests the possibility of a big SAR radar antenna. Its orbit is similar to the U.S. Navy ocean surveillance satellites. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 624 & 625 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; China Daily's 5 Mar 10, 5 Mar 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 5 Mar 10 ;

.

YW-9 subsat 1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #13 ; 2010-09B ; 6,867th spacecraft. Type: Presumably Ocean Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 5 March 2010 at 4h55 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4C. Orbit: 1,080 x 1,100 km x 63.4° Mission: Yaogan IX is accompanied by two manueverable subsatellites, presumably in some way analogous to the U.S. ocean surveillance satellite triplets which used similar orbits.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 625 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ;

.

YW-9 subsat 2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #14 ; 2010-09C ; 6,868th spacecraft. Type: Presumably Ocean Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 5 March 2010 at 4h55 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4C. Orbit: 1.080 x 1.100 km x 63.4 Mission: Yaogan 9 is accompanied by two manueverable subsatellites, presumably in some way analogous to the US ocean surveillance satellite triplets which used similar orbits.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 625 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ;

.

EchoStar XIV Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #15 ; 2010-10A ; 6,869th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: DISH Network  Launch: 20 Narch 2010 at 18h26 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-200, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 119° West longitude. Mission: Echostar 14 is a 6,379-kg communications satellite that broadcasts direct-to-home programming to more than 14 million subscribers across the United States. The satellite carries 103 Ku-band transponders, double the communications power of earlier EchoStar satellites. It has a design lifetime of 15 years and replaces Echostar 7 launched in 2002. The craft brings the size of DISH Network's satellite constellation to 15, the largest fleet in the industry. DISH Network currently broadcasts more than 160 HD channels to its satellite TV customers Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 625 ; Spacewarn No. 677 ; Spaceflight Now's 20 Mar 10 ; DISH's 21 Mar 10 ; ILS's 21 Mar 10 ;

.

Soyuz TMA-18 / ISS 22S Spacecraft: 11F732A17 No. 228 Chronologies: 2010 payload #16 ; 2010-11A ; 6,870th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 2 April 2010 at 4h04 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-FG. Orbit: Initial: 198.47 km x 260.5 km x x 51.66° x 88.81 min. At docking: 342.5 km x 350.6 km x 51.64° x 91.47 min. Landing: 25 September 2010 at 5h23 UT. Duration: 176 d. 1 hr. 19 min. (173 d. 15 hr. 16 min. onboard ISS) Mission: Soyuz TMA-18 is a passenger craft which carried two Russian cosmonauts (Alexander Skvortsov and Mikhail Kornienko) and a NASA astronaut (Tracy Caldwell-Dyson) to the International Space Station in order bring the crew of the station to six (Expedition 23-24). The craft docked with the Poisk module on 4 April 2010 at 5h25 UT, 3 minutes ahead of schedule. This brings the total number of docked Russian vehicles to 4.      On 24 September 2010, the Expedition 23-24 crew transferred to Soyuz TMA-18 and prepared to undock from the Poisk module, but the latches failed to work correctly and the landing was cancelled. The crew returned to the station while troubleshooting continued.     On 25 September, Soyuz TMA-18 undocked from the MRM2 Poisk port at 2h02 UT and landed successfully in central Kazakhstan near the city of Arkalyk. The descent capsule remained upright and the crew was in excellent condition. The crew was flown by helicopter to Karaganda where Tracy Caldwell-Dyson boarded a NASA airplane which bringing her back to Houston. Sasha Skvortsov & Misha Kornienko meanwhile were flown to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center at Zvesdniy Gorodok (Star City). Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 625, 633 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; RSC Energia's 2 Apr 10, 4 Apr 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Apr 10, 4 Apr 10 ; ISS On-orbit 2 Apr 10, 24 Sep 10, 25 Sep 10 ;

.

STS-131 / ISS 19A Spacecraft: Space Shuttle's 131sh flight, Discovery's 38th flight and 33rd Shuttle flight to ISS. Chronologies: 2010 payload #17 ; 2010-12A ; 6,871st spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Credit: NASA Launch: 5 April 2010 at 10h21 UT, from Kennedy Space Center LC-39A, by the Space Shuttle. Orbit: At docking: 342.3 km x 350.0 km x 51.65° x 91.46 min. Landing: 20 April 2010 at 13h08 UT Mission: STS-131 was a crew transport craft that carries seven astronauts, supplies and hardware to the International Space Station. It docked with ISS on 7 April 2010 at 7h44 UT. The mission objectives included the transfer of approximately 7.7 tons of materials and scientific hardware from the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module and performing three spacewalks to replace an ammonia coolant tank on the exterior of the ISS. The Orbiter left the station carrying back to Earth a payload rack from the exterior of the European Columbus module and the Japanese Experiment Module SEED payload. Discovery undocked on 17 April 2010 at 12h52 UT and lands at Cape Canaveral. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 625, 626 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; NASA's Press Kit ; Spaceflight Now's 5 Apr 10, 5 Apr 10, 6 Apr 10, 7 Apr 10, 8 Apr 10, 9 Apr 10, 9 Apr 10, 10 Apr 10, 11 Apr 10, 11 Apr 10, 12 Apr 10, 13 Apr 10, 14 Apr 10, 15 Apr 10, 15 Apr 10, 16 Apr 10, 17 Apr 10, 19 Apr 10, 20 Apr 10 ; NASA's STS-131 & Press Kit.

.

CryoSat-2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #18 ; 2010-13A ; 6,872nd spacecraft. Type: Earth Science Families: Ranks: Sponsor: ESA / European Space Agency Launch: 8 April 2010 at 13h57 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-109/95, by a Dnepr. Orbit: 710 km x 726 km x 92.0°  Mission: Cryosat 2 is an Earth science satellite that is to spend more than three years monitoring the precise changes in the polar ice caps and floating sea ice to determine the rate the planet's ice cover is diminishing. It replaces one that was lost in a launch failure in 2005. The primary instrument on Cryosat 2 is the Synthetic Aperture Interferometric Radar Altimeter, which will scan the sea surface and stable continental ice sheets in Antarctica, measure the elevation of floating sea ice to determine its thickness, and gather high resolution data on the borders of ice sheets. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 626 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; Spaceflight Now's 8 Apr 10 : RSNF's 8 Apr 10 ; ESA's 8 Apr 10 ;

.

GSAT-4 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #19 ; 2010 1st failure ; 6,873th spacecraft. Type: Communictions Families: Ranks: Sponsor: ISRO / Indian Space Research Organization Launch: 15 April 2010 at 10h57 UT, from the Satish Dhawan Space Center's Second Launch Pad, by a GSLV Mk II. Orbit: n/a Mission: Third developmental flight of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3) and the first flight-test of the indigenous Cryogenic Stage conducted on the GSLV. The flight was unsuccessful. The rocket lifted off as planned and its performance was normal until 293 seconds, up to the end of the second stage. Afterwards, the Cryogenic Stage was to ignite to provide the necessary velocity to inject GSAT-4 satellite into the geosynchronous transfer orbit. But the vehicle lost altitude and finally splashed down in the sea, probably over the Andaman Sea.      The Failure Analysis Committee observet that the launcher performance was normal up to the burn-out of the second stage. Then, the Cryogenic Upper Stage start sequence got initiated as planned at 294.06 seconds. However, the thrust build up did not progress as expected due to non-availability of liquid hydrogen supply to the thrust chamber of the Main Engine. The failure is attributed to the anomalous stopping of Fuel Booster Turbo Pump.      GSAT 4 was a 2,220-kg  all-purpose spacecraft with communications and navigation instruments. It carries a regenerative Ka-band transponder with several key new technologies enabling more efficient communications, increased capacity and higher flexibility. Applications for the Ka-band technology includes multimedia services and high-bandwidth Internet. GSAT 4's navigation payload was to have augment signals from the U.S. Global Positioning System constellation for the Indian aviation industry and provide more accurate and reliable navigation data over Indian territory, Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 626 ; Spaceflight Now's 14 Apr 10 & 15 Apr 10, 9 Jul 10 ; IsRO's 15 Apr 10, 9 Jul 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2462 Spacecraft: Kobalt-M Chronologies: 2010 payload #20 ; 2010-14A ; 6,874th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 16 April 2010 at 15h00 UT, from Plesetsk, by a Soyuz-U. Orbit: 180 km x 350 km x 67.2° x 89 min. 169 km x 327 km x 67.2°  Recovered: 21 July 2010 at around 9h10 UT. Mission: Kosmos 2462 is an optical reconnaissance satellite of the Kobalt-M type. Previous launch of a  Kobalt-M - Cosmos-2450 - took place in April 2009. The satellite worked about three month, which is normal for these satellites. It completed its mission and reentered on 21 July 2010.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 626, 629, 631 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; RSNF's 16 Apr 10 & 21 Jul 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 16 April 10 ;

.

OTV-1 (USA 212) Spacecraft: OTV stands for Orbital Test Vehicle Chronologies: 2010 payload #21 ; 2010-15A ; 6,875th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. DARPA/Air Force Launch: 22 April 2010 at 23h52 UT, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station 's SLC-41, by an Atlas V 501. Orbit: Mid-May 2010: 399 km x 419 km x 40.0°. Recovered: 3 December 2010at 9h16 UT. Mission: OTV 1 is the first orbital test flight of the X-37B, a 5,000 kg, 8.8 meter-long reusable unmanned mini-spaceplane capable of autonomous re-entry and landing. The mission is designed to test new technologies and develop ways to make space access more routine, affordable and responsive. Originally designed under a NASA program, it is now a DARPA/Air Force project developed by the Air Force Research Lab at Kirtland AFB and built by Boeing Phantom Works at Huntington Beach, California. The OTV is the first vehicle since NASA's Space Shuttle Orbiter capable of returning experiments to Earth for further inspection and analysis. The OTV-1 mission lasted seven months, with an automated landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base. A significant aspect of the program is testing vehicle ground processing which is designed to be quicker and simpler than for the Shuttle. This first mission will be followed in 2011 by flight 1 of OTV-2, and then by flight 2 of OTV-1.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627, 628, 636 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Apr 10, 22 Apr 10 ; China Daily's 24 Apr 10 ;

.

SES-1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #22 ; 2010-16A ; 6,876th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: SES World Skies Launch: 24 April 2010 at 11h19 UT, from Baykonur, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostarionary at 101° West longitude. Mission: SES-1 is a 2,560-kg communications satellite which carries 24 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders to provide service to North American customers. The spacecraft is the 42nd satellite in SES global fleet, but the first to carry the ‘SES' prefix. The company, SES World Skies, is the new division of SES, created through the combination of the former SES New Skies and SES Americom. It operates a fleet of 25 satellites, part of the 41 spacecraft of the SES group.  STS-1 replaces the AMC 2 and AMC 4 satellites and has an expected lifetime of 15 years. The SES satellites are based on Orbital's enhanced STARTM 2.4 bus.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; Spaceflight Now's 24 Apr 10 ; SES's 26 Apr 10 ; ILS's 24 Apr 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2463 Spacecraft: Parus Chronologies: 2010 payload #23 ; 2010-17A ; 6,877th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 27 April 2010 at 1h05 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome's LC-132/1, by a Kosmos-3M. Orbit: 990 km z 1,030 km x 82.9° x 105 min.  Mission: Kosmos 2463 is a navigation satellite of the Parus system. Previous Parus launch, of Kosmos 2454 satellite, took place in July 2009. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; RSNF's 27 Apr 10 ;

.

Progress M-05M / ISS 37P Spacecraft: Progress M (7K-TGM) No. 405 Chronologies: 2010 payload #24 ; 2010-18A ; 6,878th spacecraft. Type: Cargo delivery to the International Space Station Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: RSC Energisa Launch: 28 April 2010 at 17h15 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-U. Orbit: Initial: 193.42 km x 249.67 km x 51.65° x 88.63 min. At docking: 342.4 km x 355.4 km x 51.64° x 91.52 min. Deorbit: 15 November 2010. Mission: Progress M-05M is an unmanned supply vessel for the International Space Station which carried nearly 2.4 tons of equipment, food, propellant, oxygen and air. The space station crew carried out a manual docking during the final approach of the spacecraft. The vessel was docked to the ISS Pirs module on 1 May 2010 at 18h30 UT. It undocked on 25 October 2010 at 14h22 UT and was deorbited over the Pacific on 15 November 2010. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627, 634 ; Spacewarn No. 678 ; Spaceflight Now's 28 Apr 10 & 1 May 10 : RSC Energiya's 28 Apr 10 & 1 May 10 ; ISS On-orbit 28 Apr 10, 1 May 10, 25 Oct 10 ;

.

STS-132 / ULF-4 Spacecraft: Space Shuttle's 132nd flight, Atlantis' 32nd flight and 34th Shuttle flight to ISS. ULF stands for Utilization and Logistics Flight. Chronologies: 2010 payload #25 ; 2010-19A ; 6,879th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Credit: NASA Launch: 14 May 2010 at 18h20 UT, from Kennedy Space Center's LC-39A, by the Space Shuttle. Orbit: At docking: 340.8 km x 353.9 km x 51.65°x 91.48 min. Landing: 26 May 2010 at 12h48 UT. Mission: STS-132 is a transport mission toward the International Space Station, carrying six astronauts and the Rassvet Russian Mini-Research Module 1 that was attached to the Zarya module. It also carried maintenance supplies and spare parts on an integrated cargo carrier. Atlantis docked with ISS on 16 May 2010 at 14h28 UT. The mission concluded with Atlantis undocking on 23 May at 15h22 UT and a landing on runway 33 at Kennedy Space Center,  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627, 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Spaceflight Now's 14 May 10, 15 May 10, 16 May 10, 17 May 10, 18 May 10, 19 May 10, 20 May 10, 21 May 10, 22 May 10, 23 May 10, 24 May 10, 25 May 10, 26 May 10 ; NASA's STS-132 & Press Kit.

. The International Space Station at the end of STS-132. (Credit: NASA& NASA) .

Rassvet / MRM-1 Spacecraft: 521GK, Mini-Research Module 1 Chronologies: 2010 payload #26 ; 2010 n/a ; 6,880th spacecraft. Type: Space Station Component Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Launch: 14 May 2010 at 18h20 UT, from Kennedy Space Center's LC-39A, by the Space Shuttle. Attached to ISS on 18 May 2010 at 12h20 UT.  Orbit: Part of the International Space Station. Mission: The 521-kg Rassvet, or Mini-Research Module 1, provides a parking place for Russians spaceships further from the axis of the station, avoiding crowding by the nearby Tranquility module. The module also provides extra storage space. It is 6.6 meters long and 2.4 meters in diameter. Built by Energiya, it is somewhat similar to the Pirs and Poisk modules and to a stretched Soyuz orbital module. (It was originally intended for the now cancelled NPP (Science Power Platform) module.) Rassvet was attached to the nadir port of Zarya. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 627 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Spaceflight Now's  18 May 10 ;

.

Planet-C / Akatsuki Spacecraft: Akatsuki is Japanese for 'Dawn' or 'Daybreak Chronologies: 2010 payload #27 ; 2010-20D (failure) ; 6,881st spacecraft. Type: Planetary Probe (Venus) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: JAXA / Japan Aerospace Exploration agency Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 0.72 AU x 1.07 AU x 2.0° solar orbit Mission: Planet-C, also called Akatsuki or Venus Climate Orbiter, was launched to study the planet's thick atmosphere from orbit. It is the first interplanetary weather craft, and carries two  infrared imagers that was supposed to observe low-altitude cloud patterns, chart the distribution of water vapor and carbon monoxide, and map the surface of Venus with a goal of finding active volcanoes. Akatsuki also carries an infrared camera and an ultraviolet instrument that was to have looked at the super-rotating cloud structures in the upper atmosphere.      Unfortunately, on 6 December 2010, the probe failed to enter orbit around Venus. It was supposed to fire its primary engine at 23h49 UT. Officials anticipated a communications blackout of about 22 minutes, but ground controllers did not regain contact with the probe for more than 90 minutes. When they heard from craft again, it was only communicating through a low-gain antenna and officials concluded the spacecraft was in safe mode. After more than a day of analysis, JAXA finally declared the probe failed to enter orbit. “The Venus Climate Orbiter is believed to have encountered an unexpected accident,” report JAXA officials. “Fortunately, we still have maintained contact with the Akatsuki, thus the mission has not been terminated… We are striving to keep the probe flying in a stable manner in its current status.“ Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628, 636 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Spaceflight Now's 20 May 10, 3 Dec 10, 8 Dec 10 ; JAXA's Planet'C ;

.

IKAROS Spacecraft: IKAROS stdnds for Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun Chronologies: 2010 payload #28 ; 2010-20E ; 6,882nd spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: JAXA / Japan Aerospace Exploration agency Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 0.72 AU x 1.07 AU x 2.0° solar orbit Mission: IKAROS is an experimental solar sail. It was the first solar-powered sail craft employing both photon propulsion and thin film solar power generation during its interplanetary cruise. It was sent into Venus transfer orbit with Akatsuki. When deployed, the sail stretches 14 metres wide on each side and 20 metres in diameter from corner to corner. Its membrane is made of heat-resistant yellowish polyimide resin with a thickness of 7.5 micrometers, more than 13 times thinner than the width of a human hair. One side of the sail is coated with silver aluminum material to better reflect sunlight.       On 11 June 2010, Japan's space agency confirmed that its Ikaros mission successfully unfurled its solar sail nearly 8 million kilometres from Earth, en route to Venus. Ikaros will fly by the planet and continue circling through the inner solar system. Small solar cells covering part of the sail membrane are already producing electricity. JAXA will track the craft's trajectory through the inner Solar system, attempting to detect small changes in its velocity that can be attributed to the sail. Ikaros solar flew past Venus at 80,000 km on 8 December 2010 at 7h39 UT. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628, 629, 636 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Spaceflight Now's 20 May 10, 11 Jun 10, 9 Jul 10 ;

.

Unitec-1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #29 ; 2010-20F ; 6,883rd spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Japan Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 0.72 AU x 1.07 AU x 2.0° solar orbit Mission: Unitec-1 was launched into a Venus transfer orbit along with Akatsuki for on-board computers to be tested in harsh space environment as a form of competition to see which will last longer; technologies to receive and decode very weak and low bit-rate signals coming from deep space to be tested; and, technologies to estimate the Doppler shift on the satellite based on the received RF signal to be tested. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ;

.

Negai* Spacecraft: Negal* stands for "Negai-star" and is always written with a star symbol. Chronologies: 2010 payload #30 ; 2010-20A ; 6,884th spacecraft. Type: Student (Technology) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Tokyo's Soka University Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 290 km x 305 km x 30.0° Mission: Negai* is a CubeSat for a space verification of an advanced information processing system using commercial FPGA. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ;

.

Waseda-Sat 2 Spacecraft: Waseda-Sat stands for Waseda University Chronologies: 2010 payload #31 ; 2010-20B ; 6,885th spacecraft. Type: Student (Technology) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Tokyo's Waseda University Students Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 290 km x 305 km x 30.0°  Mission: Waseda-Sat2 is a small satellite that features a camera for Earth observation.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ;

.

KSAT Spacecraft: KSAT stands for Kagoshima University Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #32 ; 2010-20C ; 6,886th spacecraft. Type: Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Kagoshima University Launch: 20 May 2010 at 21h58 UT, from Tanegashima Space Center, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 290 km x 305 km x 30.0° Mission: K-Sat is a small CubeSat mission for observation of atmospheric water vapor distribution, Earth imagery, high-speed communications and basic communications experiment for super-small positioning satellites. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ;

.

Astra 3B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #33 ; 2010-21A ; 6,887th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: SES Astra Launch: 20 May 2010 at 22h01 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 23.5° East longitude  Mission: Astra 3B is a 5,472-kg communication satellite which carries 60 Ku-band and four Ka-band transponders and is designed for the distribution of both direct-to-home broadcast services and two-way broadband services across Europe and the Middle East. It has a design life of 15 years and will replace two aging satellites, Astra 1E and Astra 1G. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ;  Arianespace's 21 May 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 21 May 10 ;

.

ComsatBw-2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #34 ; 2010-21B ; 6,888th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: German Ministry of Defense. Launch: 20 May 2010 at 22h01 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostarionary at 13.2° East longitude Mission: COMSATBw 2 is a  2,495-kg military communication satellit which provide a secure relay platform to deliver key services for the German armed forces. It is a follow-on spacecraft to COMSATBw 1, which was orbited in October 2009. Together, the COMSATBw satellites provide a secure broadband network which guarantees uninterrupted communications between the government, military authorities and armed forces deployed around the world. The craft has a design life of 15 years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 628 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Arianespace's 21 May 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 21 May 10 ;

.

Navstar 65 (USA 213) Spacecraft: Block 2F 1 / Navstar SVN 62 / GPS IIF SV-1 Chronologies: 2010 payload #35 ; 2010-22A ; 6,889th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. Department of Defense Launch: 28 May 2010 at 3h00 UT, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's SLC-37B, by a Delta 4M+(4,2). Orbit: 20,437 km x 20,460 km x 55.0° Mission: Navstar 65 is a 1,630-kg navigation satellite, the first in a new breed of GPS navitation satellites which features even higher accuracy, enhanced internal clocks, longer life and reprogrammable on-board processors able to evolve with future needs. It will take over the position presently held by the GPS 2A-27 satellite (Plane B, Slot 2), which is considered one of the primary positions in the constellation.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 679 ; Spaceflight Now's 28 May 10 ;

.

SERVIS 2 Spacecraft: SERVIS stands for Space Environment Reliability Verification Integrated System. Chronologies: 2010 payload #36 ; 2010-23A ; 6,890th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Japan's Institute for Unmanned Space Experiment Free Flyer (USEF) Launch: 2 June 2010 at 1h59 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome's LC-133/3, by a Rokot. Orbit: 1,186 km x 1,210 km x 100.4° Mission: SERVIS 2 is 740-kg engineering test spacecraft intended to conduct experiments related to the demonstration of technology to be used in future missions, particularly research in the use of commercial off-the-shelf equipment. The spacecraft has a design life of one year. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Jun 10 ;

.

Beidou 8 / Beidou G3 Spacecraft: Beidou DW4 (“Fourth orbiter”) Chronologies: 2010 payload #37 ; 2010-24A ; 6,891st spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Credit: China Daily Launch: 2 June 2010 at 15h53 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3C. Orbit: Geostationary Mission: Beidou DW4 is the fourth spacecraft launched in this constellation of navigation system that uses both geostationary satellites and in intermediate orbit. This Beidou is to join three other satellites in orbit to form a network that will eventually total 35 satellites. This series. which is also called Compass-G, provide navigation, time signal and short message services in the Asia and Pacific region. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; China Daily's 3 Jun 10, 3 Jun 10, 4 Jun 10 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Jun 10 ;

.

Arabsat 5B / Badr 5 Spacecraft: Badr means "full moon" in Arabic. Chronologies: 2010 payload #38 ; 2010-25A ; 6,892nd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Arab Satellite Communications Organization Launch: 3 June 2010 at 22h00 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-200/39, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 26° East longitude Mission: Arabsat 5B, also known as Badr 5, is a telecommunications satellite equipped with 56 Ku-band and four Ka-band transponders to provides direct broadcasting, HDTV programming and interactive services to the Middle East. It is a Eurostar E3000-style satellite with a 15-year life. It provide full in-orbit back-up capacity for both Badr 4 and Badr 6. The Arabsat system reaches millions of homes in over 100 countries across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia, relaying hundreds of television channels and radio stations. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 3 Jun 10 ; ILS's 4 Jun 10 ;

.

Dragon Qual Unit Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #39 ; 2010-26A ; 6,893rdth spacecraft. Type: Technology (Dummy) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: SpaceX Launch: 4 June 2010 at 18h45 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC'40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: Initiai: 235 km x 276 km x 34.5° Mission: Dragon Qualification Unit was a 4-5-tons ground test article of the Dragon spacecraft that was launched by the first Falcon 9 test flight. It is a simplified version of the cargo ship that will be used to send supplies to the International Space Station. The Falcon 9 rocket completed a nearly flawless flight. The Dragon capsule remained mounted to the upper stage of the rocket. The dormant upper stage of the rocket plunged back into the atmosphere three weeks after launch. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 4 Jun 10, 28 Jun 10 ; SpaceX 7 Jun 10 ;

.

STSAT-2B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #40 ; 2010 2nd Failure ; 6,894th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: South Korea's Korea Aerospace Research Institute Launch: 10 June 2010 at 8h01 UT, from Naro Space Center, by KSLV-1 (Naro 1). Orbit: n/a Mission: The Korea Space Launch Vehicle, or KSLV 1, a half-Russian, half-Korean rocket, exploded two minutes after liftoff, dealing a second blow the South Korea's $400 million program to develop its own satellite launcher. Contact with the rocket was lost 137 seconds into flight, while it was about 70 kilometres altitude. The launcher was carrying the 100-kg STSAT-2b satellite with instruments to observe Earth and a laser reflector to help engineers track the craft's orbit. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; SpacflightNow's 10 Jun 10 ; China Daily's 10 Jun 10 ;

.

SJ-12 / Shijiun 12 Spacecraft: Shijian means "practice" in Chinese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #41 ; 2010-27A ; 6,895th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China (Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology) Launch: 15 June 2010 at 1h39 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 2D. Orbit: Initial: 575 km x 597 km x 97.7° September 2010: 580 km x 606 km x 97.8° Mission: Officially, Shijian 12 is a research satellite that is intended to conduct various technology and environmental experiments. China has previously launched Shijian satellites to test new technologies and carry out space experiments.       In June-August 2010, SJ-12 conducted a series of maneuvers to rendezvous with SJ-06F, an older Chinese satellite launched in 2008. SJ-12 conducted a series of maneuvers between 12 June and 16 August 2010, to rendezvous with SJ-06F. According to a detailed analysis of the maneuvers, “The rendezvous of two Chinese satellites demonstrates that China is broadening its space capabilities, but also touches on the greater issue of perceptions, trust, and safety in space activities that could impact the long-term sustainability of the space regime.” In December 2010, SJ-12 made a rendezvous with the SJ-6/4A satellite.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629, 632, 635 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; SpaceflightNNow's 16 Jun 10, 8 Sep 10 ; China Daily's 16 Jun 10 ; Xinhua 20 Aug 10 ; Space Review's 30 Aug 10 ;

.

Picard Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #42 ; 2010-28A ; 6,896th spacecraft. Type: Solar Observatory Families: Ranks: Sponsor: France's CNES Launch: 15 June 2010 at 14h42 UT, from Yasniy, by a Dnepr. Orbit: 726 km x 728 km x 98.3° Mission: Picard is a 143-kg solar physics satellite dedicated to the simultaneous measurement of the absolute total and spectral solar irradiance, the diameter and solar shape, and to studying the Sun's interior through helioseismology. Its a two-year mission to watch the Sun with three instruments. Scientists hope Picar will provide insights into the Sun's variability and its link to Earth.  The craft is named for Jean Picard, the French astronomer who first accurately measured the Sun's diameter in the 17th century. The CNES French space agency, is managing the 70 million euros mission with the help of Belgium, Switzerland and French research institutions. Picard will complement observations by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory launched in February, SDO and Picard use different methods in their observations, providing a check on each mission's results. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 15 Jun 10 ; RSNF's 15 Jun 10 ;

.

PRISMA-Mango Spacecraft: PRISMA stands for Prototype Research Instruments and Space Mission Advancement Chronologies: 2010 payload #43 ; 2010-28B ; 6,897th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Swedish National Space Board Launch: 15 June 2010 at 14h42 UT, from Yasniy, by a Dnepr. Orbit: 725 km x 785 km x 98.3° Mission: PRISMA consists of two satellites, nicknamed Mango and Tango, which will attempt a daring demonstration of new technologies for automated formation-flying and rendezvous of spacecraft in orbit. Playing the role of the active satellite, Mango will repeatedly approach and back away from Tango for up to ten months, demonstrating each of the technologies one-by-one. The satellites will test autonomous rendezvous technology from Sweden, a GPS system from Germany, a radio frequency instrument from France, and a vison-based navigation sensor from Denmark. This choice of formation-flying was made because it was an area nobody has tried before, at least not with the precision that's going to be shown with the Prisma satellites.  Mango is a 150-kg cube-shaped craft about the size of a kitchen stove and Tango is a 40-kg satellite which has roughly the dimensions of an average microwave. The mission cost Sweden about $50 million, but that figure doesn't include contributions from European partners. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ;

.

PRISMA-Tango Spacecraft: PRISMA stands for Prototype Research Instruments and Space Mission Advancement Chronologies: 2010 payload #44 ; 2010-28B ; 6,898th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Swedish National Space Board Launch: 15 June 2010 at 14h42 UT, from Yasniy, by a Dnepr. (Separated from Mango on 11 August 2010 at 17h51 UT) Orbit: 725 km x 785 km x 98.3° August 2010: 784 km x 787 km x 98.3°  Mission: PRISMA consists of two satellites, nicknamed Mango and Tango, which will attempt a daring demonstration of new technologies for automated formation-flying and rendezvous of spacecraft in orbit. Playing the role of the active satellite, Mango will repeatedly approach and back away from Tango for up to ten months, demonstrating each of the technologies one-by-one. The satellites will test autonomous rendezvous technology from Sweden, a GPS system from Germany, a radio frequency instrument from France, and a vison-based navigation sensor from Denmark. This choice of formation-flying was made because it was an area nobody has tried before, at least not with the precision that's going to be shown with the Prisma satellites. Mango is a 150-kg cube-shaped craft about the size of a kitchen stove and Tango is a 40-kg satellite which has roughly the dimensions of an average microwave. The mission cost Sweden about $50 million, but that figure doesn't include contributions from European partners. Tango separated from Mango on 11 August 2010 at 17h51 UT to begin formation flying experiments.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629, 632 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ;

.

BPA-1 Spacecraft: BPA-1 stands for Advanced Avionics Block-1 Chronologies: 2010 payload #45 ; 2010-28C ; 6,899th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Ukraine Launch: 15 June 2010 at 14h42 UT, from Yasniy, by a Dnepr. Orbit: 714 km x 1268 km x 98.3° Mission: BPA 1 is a an experimental avionics package which remained mounted to the third stage of the Dnepr launch vehicle. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ;

.

Soyuz TMA-19 / ISS 23S Spacecraft: Soyuz 11F732 (7K-STMA) No. 229 Chronologies: 2010 payload #46 ; 2010-29A ; 6,900th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 15 June 2010 at 2135 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-FG. Orbit: Initial: 200.16 km x 259.16 km x 51.62° x 88.8 min. At docking: 347.4 km x 359.6 km x 51.65° x 91.61 min Landing: 26 November 2010 at 4h46 UT. Duration: 163 d. 07 hr. 11 min. (160 d. 21 hr. 22 min. onboard ISS) Mission: Soyuz-TMA-19 is a crew transport spacecraft which delivers Expedition 24-24 crew of a Russian cosmonaut (Fyodor Yurchikhin) and two American astronauts (Shannon Walker and Douglas Wheelock) to the International Space Station. The craft docked with Zvezda on 17 June 2010 at 22h21 UT, thus brigning Expedition 24 to six crewmembers. This is the 100th mission to ISS; with the first launch of the FGB Zarya module in November 1998, there have been a total of 34 U.S. missions, 64 Russian missions, 1 European mission and 1 Japanese mission.       On 26 November 2010, Soyuz TMA-19 undocked from the Rassvet port at 1h23 UT. It landed successfully at 4h46 UT in central Kazakhstan, about 84 km northeast of the city of Arkalyk. The descent capsule tipped on its side. The crew was in excellent condition. U.S. astronauts were flown back to Houston, while the Russian cosmonaut was flown to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center at Zvesdniy Gorodok (Star City).      During their 160-day mission, the Expedition 24-25 crewmembers worked on more than 120 microgravity experiments in human research; biology and biotechnology; physical and materials sciences; technology development; and Earth and space sciences. They also responded to an emergency shutdown as half of the station's external cooling system and supported three unplanned EVAs to replace the faulty pump module that caused the shutdown. Their efforts restored the station's critical cooling system to full function. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629, 635 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 16 Jun 10, 17 Jun 10 ; RSC Energia's 16 Jun 10, 18 Jun 10 ; ISS On-orbit 16 Jun 10, (8 Oct 10) 26 Nov 10 ;

.

Tandem-X Spacecraft: TanDEM-X stands for TerraSAR-X add-on for Digital Elevation Measurement. Chronologies: 2010 payload #47 ; 2010-30A ; 6,901st spacecraft. Type: Earth Remote Sensing Families: Ranks: Sponsor: German's DLR Launch: 21 June 2010 at 2h14 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-109/95, by a Dnepr. Orbit: 496 km x 511 km x 97.5°  Mission: TanDEM-X is a 1,350-kg radar mapping satellite that flies in close formation with the TerraSAR-X to gather precise elevation data. The satellite provides homogenous 3D elevation models of the Earth. It flies in formation with TerraSAR-X to illuminate Earth with two radars from slightly different vantage points in space, creating the most precise civilian three-dimensional maps of Earth using dual high-resolution radars. The satellites will be separated by several hundred meters during normal operations, occasionally approaching within 200 meters of each other. The radars can map Earth during day and night passes and see through clouds and precipitation. It is designed to work for at least five years, including a three-year overlap with TerraSAR-X. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 21 Jun 10 ; RSNF's 21 Jun 10 ;

.

'Ofeq-9 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #48 ; 2010-31A ; 6,902nd spacecraft. Type: Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Israel Launch: 22 JUne 2010 at 19h00? UT, from Palmachim, by a Shaviyt-1. Orbit: 343 km x 588 km x 141.8° Mission: ‘Ofeq 9 is a 300-kg military imaging satellite carrying an imaging reconnaissance payloads.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 22 Jun 10 ;

.

Arabsat 5A Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #49 ; 2010-32A ; 6,903rd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Arab Satellite Communications Organization Launch: 26 June 2010 at 21h41 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 30.5° East longitude Mission: Arabsat 5A is a 4,939-kg communications satellite equipped with 26 C-band and 24 in the Ku-band transponders. It provides additional capacity for a large range of services for television, telephony, business communications, Internet and the provision of VSAT and other interactive services over sub-Saharan Africa, North Africa and the Middle East.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Jun 10 ; Arianespace's 26 Jun 10 ;

.

COMS 1 / Chollian Spacecraft: COMS stands for Communication, Ocean and Meteorological Satellite ; Chollian means “an ability to see out to very long distance”  in Korean. Chronologies: 2010 payload #50 ; 2010-32B ; 6,904th spacecraft. Type: Meteorology (and Communications) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) Launch: 26 June 2010 at 21h41 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 128° East longitude. Mission: COMS 1 is a 2,460 kg advanced multi-mission satellite with three payloads: meteorology, ocean observation and communications. It provide meteorology data to end-users around the globe, oceanography data for the Korean peninsula and experimental communications services in the Ka-band. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 629 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Jun 10 ; Arianespace's 26 Jun 10 ;

.

Progress M-06M / ISS 38P Spacecraft: Progress M (7K-TGM) No. 406 Chronologies: 2010 payload #51 ; 2010-33A ; 6,905th spacecraft. Type: Cargo delivery to the International Space Station Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 30 June 2010 at 15h35 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-U. Orbit: Initial: 192.8 x 242.0 km x 51.64° x 88.56 min. At docking: 345.6 km x 359.3 km x 51.65° x 91.59 min. Deortibed: 6 September 2010 at 12h13 UT. Mission: Progress-M 06M is an unmanned cargo delivery vessel that carries supplies to the International Space Station. It carries 1,210 kg in parts, life support and equipment hardware, as well as 870 kg of propellant, 100 kg of water and 50 kg of oxygen and air. On 2 July 2010, at around 16h30, the Progress approached the station, but radio interference caused the onboard computers to abort the rendezvous and the vehicle flew past at a distance of around 3 km. It returned to ISS on 4 July and successfully docked at 16h17 UT. It undocked from Zvezda on 31 August 2010 at 11h21 UT to begin the free flying part of its mission. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630, 632 ; Spacewarn No. 680 ; Spaceflight Now's 29 Jun 10, 2 Jul 10 & 4 Jul 10 ; RSC Energia's 30 Jun 10 & 4 Jul 10 : ISS On-orbit 30 Jun 10, 2 Jul 10, 4 jul 10 ;

.

EchoStar XV Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #52 ; 2010-34A ; 6,906th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: DISH Network Launch: 10 July 2010 at 18h40 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-200/39, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostarionary at 61.5° West longitude Mission: EchoStar XV is a 5,521-kg communications satellite which carries 32 Ku-band transponders to broadcast direct-to-home programming service to the eastern half of the United States. The craft has a design life of 15 years and it replaces EchoStar III. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No. 681 ; Spaceflight Now's 11 Jul 10 ; DISH's 11 Jul 10 ; ILS's 11 Jul 10 ;

.

Cartosat 2B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #53 ; 2010-35A ; 6,907th spacecraft. Type: Earth Remose Sensing Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Indian Space Research Organzation (ISRO) Credit: ISRO Launch: 12 July 2010 at 3h52 UT, frodm the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, by a PSLV-CA. Orbit: Circular Sun-synchronous orbit at 637 km x 98.1° Mission: Cartosat 2B ia a 694-kg Earth observation satellite that carries a panchromatic, high-resolution, stereoscopic vision camera. The satellite's black and white camera has a resolution of 0.8 meter to observe Earth land and ocean surfaces from orbit. The Panchromatic camera, similar to those of its predecessors (Cartosat 2 and 2A), is capable of imaging a swath of 9.6 km with a resolution of better than 1 metre. It is the 17th satellite in the Indian Remote Sensing Satellite series (IRS). Its imagery has applications in resource mapping, urban planning, transportation studies, water monitoring, and crop inventories. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No. 681 ; Spaceflight Now's 12 Jul 10 ;ISRO's 12 Jul 10 & Cartosat-2A, 21 Jul 10 ;

.

Alsat 2A Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #54 ; 2010-35D ; 6,908th spacecraft. Type: Earth Remose Sensing  Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Centre National des Techniques Spatiales of Algeria Credit: ISRO Launch: 12 July 2010 at 3h52 UT, frodm the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, by a PSLV-CA. Orbit: Circular Sun-synchronous orbit at 637 km x 98.1° Mission: Alsat 2A IS a 116-kg remote-sensing satellite, which is part of a two-satellite system that enables Algeria to obtain very high-quality images for use in a wide variety of applications, including cartography, management of agriculture, forestry, water, mineral and oil resources, crop protection, management of natural disasters and land planning. Alsat 2B, the second part of the satellite system, will launch at a later date. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No. 681 ; Spaceflight Now's 12 Jul 10 ;ISRO's 12 Jul 10 & Aisat ;

.

AISSAT-1 / NLS-6.1 Spacecraft: AISSAT stands for Automatic Identification System SATellites. Chronologies: 2010 payload #55 ; 2010-35C ; 6,909th spacecraft. Type: Communications (Maritime) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Norway Credit: ISRO Launch: 12 July 2010 at 3h52 UT, frodm the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, by a PSLV-CA. Orbit: Circular Sun-synchronous orbit at 637 km x 98.1° Mission: AISSat 1 is a 6.5-kg satellite equipped with an instrument that receives and forwards Automatic Identification System (AIS) signals, a radio communications network with transmitters on most large vessels. Using AIS, the satellite will demonstrate maritime ship-tracking technologies. The spacecraft was built by Space Flight Laboratory of the University of Toronto for testing various satellite technologies. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No. 681; Spaceflight Now's 12 Jul 10 ;ISRO's 12 Jul 10 & AISSAT-1 ;

.

TISat-1 / NLS-6.2 Spacecraft: TISat stads for Ticino Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #56 ; 2010-35B ; 6,910th spacecraft. Type: Student Families: Ranks: Sponsor: University of Applied Sciences of Southern Switzerland Credit: ISRO Launch: 12 July 2010 at 3h52 UT, frodm the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, by a PSLV-CA. Orbit: Circular Sun-synchronous orbit at 637 km x 98.1° Mission: TISat 1 is a 1-kg student-developed, low-cost CubeSat mission to monitor the durability of exposed thin bonding wires, PCB tracks and lines (atomic Oxygen effects), verification of the system fault tolerance scheme, acquisition of spacecraft environment and operating data. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No. 681 ; Spaceflight Now's 12 Jul 10 ;ISRO's 12 Jul 10 & TISat-1 ;

.

Studsat Spacecraft: STUDSAT stands for STUDent SATellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #57 ; 2010-35G ; 6,911st spacecraft. Type: Student / Earth Remoste Sensing Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Seven engineering colleges from Bangalore and Hyderabad. Credit: ISRO Launch: 12 July 2010 at 3h52 UT, frodm the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, by a PSLV-CA. Orbit: Circular Sun-synchronous orbit at 637 km x 98.1° Mission: Studsat is a 1-kg student-built satellite with primary objectives of promoting space technology in educational institutions and encourage research and development in miniaturized satellites, establishing a communication link between the satellite and ground station, capturing the image of Earth with a resolution of 90 meters and transmitting the payload and telemetry data to the earth station. IIt is the first pico-satellite developed in India by a consortium of seven engineering colleges. Its mission life was slated to be six months. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 630 ; Spacewarn No.  ; Spaceflight Now's 12 Jul 10 ;ISRO's 12 Jul 10 & Studsat ;

.

Beidou 9 (IGSO 1) Spacecraft: Beidou DW5 (“Fifth orbiter”) IGSO stands for the 4th Inclined Geo Synchronous Orbit satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #58 ; 2010-36A ; 6,912nd spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 31 July 2010 at 21h30 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3A. Orbit: Geosynchronous orbit inclined at 55.1° Mission: Beidou DW5, or Beidou IGSO 1, is the fifth second-generation Chinese navisation satellite and the first Beidou targeted for an inclined geosynchronous orbit. Two craft launched earlier this year are parked over the equator, while another satellite circles about 20,000 kilometres above Earth. Beidou DW5 has an orbital inclination of 55° to cover territory near Earth's poles to provide global positioning and timing services. It is intended to form part of a system known as Compass, composed of 35 satellites in geostationary and medium-altitude orbits. The Compass system is expected to be operational for Asian-Pacific users by 2012 and to global users by 2020. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 631 ; Spacewarn No. 681 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Aug 10 ; China Daily's 2 Aug 10 ;

.

Nilesat 201 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #59 ; 2010-37A ; 6,913rd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Egypt's Nilesat Launch: 4 August 2010 at 20h59 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 7° West longitude Mission: Nilesat 201 is a 3,200-kg communications satellite which carries 24 Ku-band and four Ka-band transponders. It joins two other Nilesat spacecraft and a European-owned satellite to provide direct-to-home television, radio, and broadband internet services to Africa and the Middle East. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 631 ; Spacewarn No. 682 ; Spaceflight Now's 4 Aug 10 ; Arianespace's 4 Aug 10 ;

.

RascomQAF-1R Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #60 ; 2010-37B ; 6,914th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Pan-African operator RascomStar-QAF Launch: 4 August 2010 at 20h59 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 2.85° East longitude  Mission: Rascom QAF 1R is a 3,050-kg communications satellite which carries 12 C-band and eight Ku-band transponders to provide television, telephone, and internet services across Africa. It replaces the nearly identical satellite, Rascom QAF 1, that experienced a helium leak after it was launched in 2007. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 631 ; Spacewarn No. 682 ; Spaceflight Now's 4 Aug 10 ; Arianespace's 4 Aug 10 ;

.

YW-10 / Yaogan X Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #61 ; 2010-38A ; 6,915th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance (Radar)? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 9 August 2010 at 22h49 UT, from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4C. Orbit: 607 km x 621 km x 98.7° Mission: Illustration suggests that the satellite carries a radar imaging instrument. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 631 ; Spacewarn No. 682 ; Spaceflight Now's 10 Aug 10 ; China Daily's 10 Aug 10, 10 Aug 10 ;

.

AEHF SV-1 (USA 214) Spacecraft: AEHF stands for Advanced Extremely High Frequency Chronologies: 2010 payload #62 ; 2010-39A ; 6,916th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. Department of Defense Launch: 14 August 2010 at 11h07 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-41, by an Atlas V 531. Orbit: Geostationary  inclidned at 4.8° Mission: AEHF 1 is a 6,900-kg military communications satellite, the first of four Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellites that will replace the earlier Milstar system. The AEHF spacecrafts provide highly-secure communication and has more capacity and faster data rates that will benefit tactical military communications, enabling higher quality maps, targeting data and live video to be transmitted ensuring a survivable line of contact in times of nuclear warfare. The craft has a 14-year design life from an orbital location dictated by the needs at that time..      The Atlas 5 launcher deployed the satellite into a super-synchronous transfer orbit with an apogee of 50,200 kilometers and a perigee of 225 kilometres, inclined at 22.2 degrees. It was schedule that, during the following days, thrusters onboard the craft would have adjusted the orbit to a geostarionary trajectory inclined at 4.8 degrees. But those plans were thwarted a day after launch during the initial orbit raising burn when the satellite's main engine shut down shortly after ignition. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 682 ; Spaceflight Now's 14 Aug 10, 30 Aug 10, 2 Sep 10, 5 Sep 10, 3 Jan 12 ;

.

Tianhui 1 Spacecraft: Tianhui means Mapping Satellite in Chinese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #63 ; 2010-40A ; 6,917th spacecraft. Type: Earth Remote Sensing Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 24 August 2010 at 7h10 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 2D. Orbit: Circular at 500 km x 97° Mission: Tianhui 1 is a mapping satellite used for scientific research, mapping and land resource surveys to help promote economic development. It  is equipped with a 3-D survey camera, a CCD camera capable of a ground resolution of 5 meters and a multi-spectrum camera with a ground resolution of 10 meters. The cameras can cover imagery that is 60 km wide from a 500-km high orbit. The satellite was built by the Spaceflight East Is Red Satellite Corp.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 682 ; Spaceflight Now's 24 Aug 10 ; China Daily's 24 Aug 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2464 Spacecraft: Glonass-M 736 Chronologies: 2010 payload #64 ; 2010-41A ; 6,918th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 2 September 2010 at 0h53 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/24, by a Proton-M/DM2. Orbit: 19,115 km x 19,140 km x 64.8  Mission: Kosmos 2464, Kosmos 2465 and Kosmos 2466 are the latest to join the Russian fleet of Glonass navigational satellites. Each satellite weighed about 1,360 kg at launch, including maneuvering fuel to maintain the craft's orientation in space. They broadcasts navigation signals to military and civilian users, reaching ground receivers across a swath of Earth stretching nearly from pole to pole. These spacecraft joined the Glonass constellation that consists of 21 operational satellites with two more satellites which are considered spares. In 2010 there are expected to be 27 Glonass satellites of which 24 will be operational. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Sep 10 ; RMSF's 2 Sep 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2465 Spacecraft: Glonass-M 737 Chronologies: 2010 payload #65 ; 2010-41B ; 6,919th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 2 September 2010 at 0h53 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/24, by a Proton-M/DM2. Orbit: 19,115 km x 19,140 km x 64.8 Mission: Kosmos 2464, Kosmos 2465 and Kosmos 2466 are the latest to join the Russian fleet of Glonass navigational satellites. Each satellite weighed about 1,360 kg at launch, including maneuvering fuel to maintain the craft's orientation in space. They broadcasts navigation signals to military and civilian users, reaching ground receivers across a swath of Earth stretching nearly from pole to pole. These spacecraft joined the Glonass constellation that consists of 21 operational satellites with two more satellites which are considered spares. In 2010 there are expected to be 27 Glonass satellites of which 24 will be operational. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Sep 10 ; RMSF's 2 Sep 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2466 Spacecraft: Glonass-M 738 Chronologies: 2010 payload #66 ; 2010-41C ; 6,920th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 2 September 2010 at 0h53 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/24, by a Proton-M/DM2. Orbit: 19,115 km x 19,140 km x 64.8 Mission: Kosmos 2464, Kosmos 2465 and Kosmos 2466 are the latest to join the Russian fleet of Glonass navigational satellites. Each satellite weighed about 1,360 kg at launch, including maneuvering fuel to maintain the craft's orientation in space. They broadcasts navigation signals to military and civilian users, reaching ground receivers across a swath of Earth stretching nearly from pole to pole. These spacecraft joined the Glonass constellation that consists of 21 operational satellites with two more satellites which are considered spares. In 2010 there are expected to be 27 Glonass satellites of which 24 will be operational. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Sep 10 ; RMSF's 2 Sep 10, ;

.

Zhongxing 6 / Chinasat 6A / SinoSat-6 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #67 ; 2010-42A ; 6,921st spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASTC) Launch: 4 September 2010 at 16h14 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3B. Orbit: Geostationary at 126.4° East longitude.  Mission: Zhongxing 6, or SinoSat-6 (Chinasat 6A), is a communications satellite that delivers television and radio programming to customers across China. It is equipped with 1 S-band, 24 C-band, and 8 Ku-band transponders. It mainly serves for relaying TV and radio live broadcast signals to improve cultural life for people living in remote and mountainous regions,. It is the ninth satellite operated by the China Satellite Communications Corporation under the CASC. Designed to last 15 years, SinoSat 6 replaces SinoSat-3, launched in 2007, which experienced a malfunction in July 2009. The craft is based the Dongfanghong IV (DFH-4) satellite platform, which iis China's third-generation, large-capacity communications satellite platform. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 4 Sep 10 ; China Daily's 5 Sep 10, 6 Sep 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2467 Spacecraft: Strela-3 (17F13)   Chronologies: 2010 payload #68 ; 2010-43A ; 6,922nd spacecraft. Type: Communicaions (Military) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 8 September 2010 at 3h30 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome's LC-133/3, by a Rokot/Briz-KM. Orbit: 1,497 km x 1,507 km x 82° Mission: Three Russian communication satellites were launched, two Kosmos military satellites and a Gonets civilian communication satellite. They were deployed in the same orbital plane that is occupied by satellites launched in the previous launch (July 2009). Gonets-M appears to be a civilian version of the Strela-3M satellites (sometimes also known as Rodnik). The Gonets satellite is designed to store and relay personal messages. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 8 Sep 10 ; RSNF's 8 Sep 10 ;

.

Gonets-M Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #69 ; 2010-43B ; 6,923rd spacecraft. Type: Communication (Civilian) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 8 September 2010 at 3h30 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome's LC-133/3, by a Rokot/Briz-KM. Orbit: 1,497 km x 1,507 km x 82° Mission: Three Russian communication satellites were launched, two Kosmos military satellites and a Gonets civilian communication satellite. They were deployed in the same orbital plane that is occupied by satellites launched in the previous launch (July 2009). Gonets-M appears to be a civilian version of the Strela-3M satellites (sometimes also known as Rodnik). The Gonets satellite is designed to store and relay personal messages. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 8 Sep 10 ; RSNF's 8 Sep 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2468 Spacecraft: Strela-3M (17F132) Chronologies: 2010 payload #70 ; 2010-43C ; 6,924th spacecraft. Type: Communicaions (Military) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 8 September 2010 at 3h30 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome's LC-133/3, by a Rokot/Briz-KM. Orbit: 1,497 km x 1,507 km x 82° Mission: Three Russian communication satellites were launched, two Kosmos military satellites and a Gonets civilian communication satellite. They were deployed in the same orbital plane that is occupied by satellites launched in the previous launch (July 2009). Gonets-M appears to be a civilian version of the Strela-3M satellites (sometimes also known as Rodnik). The Gonets satellite is designed to store and relay personal messages. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 8 Sep 10 ; RSNF's 8 Sep 10 ;

.

Progress M-07M / ISS 39P Spacecraft: Progress M (7K-TGM) No. 407 Chronologies: 2010 payload #71 ; 2010-44A ; 6,925th spacecraft. Type: Cargo delivery to the International Space Station Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 10 September 2010 at 10h22 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-31, by a Soyuz-U.  Orbit: Initial: 194.49 km x 238.68 km x 51.64° x 88.53 min. At docking: 348.2 km x 359.6 km x 51.64° x 91.62 min. Reentry: De-orbit burn occured on 20 February 2011 at 16h12 UT. Mission: Progress M-07M is a resupply carg oship that services the International Space Station, It carries a total mass of 2.5 tons, consisting of 1,198 kg of spare parts, life support gear and equipment hardware, 870 kg of propellant, 170 kg of water, and 50 kg of oxygen and air. Launched after a 2-day delay due to bad weather (which is a rare occurrence for Russian rocket), it docked to the Zvezda service module on 12 September 2010 at 11h58 UT. Yhe cargocraft undocked from ISS on 20 February 2011 at 13H12 UT and la destroyed later on.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; SpaceflightNos'w 10 Sep 10, 12 Sep 10 ; RSC Energia's 10 Sep 10, 12 Sep 10 ; ISS ON-orbit 8 Sep 10, 10 Sep 10, 12 Sep 10, 20 Feb 11 ;

.

QZS 1 / Michibiki Spacecraft: QZS stands for Quasi-Zenith Satellite Michibiki means "guiding" or "showing the way" in Japanese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #72 ; 2010-45A ; 6,926th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: JAXA / Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Credit: JAXA Launch: 11 September 2010 at 11h17 UT, from Tanegashima, by a H-IIA. Orbit: 32,611 km x 38,941 km x 24 h. x 45°  (a “quasi-zenith orbit” locked in at 135° East longitude) Mission: QZS 1 (Michibiki) is a 4,100-kg navigation satellite to improved navigation services amid the country's numerous mountains and high-rise buildings. It is part of the QZSS (Quazi-Zenith Satellite System; illustration) that is aimed to fill coverage gaps from U.S. Global Positioning System satellites caused by signal blockage from mountains and skyscrapers. The QZSS consists of a constellation of three spacecraft. QZS 1 Michibiki is phase 1 of the QZSS project, it is demonstrating the system's navigation instruments and proving the satellite works before Japan commits to launching the other two spacecraft. The satellite has a design life of 10 years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 11 Sep 10, 27 Sep 10 ; JAXA'S QZS, QZS-1, 26 Sep 10, 15 Dec 10 ;

.

NROL-41 (USA 215) Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #73 ; 2010-46A ; 6,927th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance (Radar)? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. National Reconnaissance Office Launch: 21 September 2010 at 4h03 UT, from Vandenberg Air Force Base's SLC-3E, by an Atlas V 501. Orbit: 21 September 2010: 1,057 km x 1,072 km x 123.0° 17 October 2010: 1,102 km x 1,105 km x 123.0° Mission: NROL-41 belongs to the agency responsible for designing and operating the country's fleet of intelligence-gathering satellites. Neither the identity nor the purpose of the new craft has been revealed. But it is suspected that the craft may be a radar imaging satellite. The NROL-41 payload was put in a retrograde orbit, which is unusual (this is the equivalent but going westward instead of eastward). The altitude is also rather higher than earlier surveillance satellites. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 632, 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 21 Sep 10 ; NRO'S 21 Sep 10 ;

.

YW-11 / Yaogan XI Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #74 ; 2010-47A ; 6,928th spacecraft. Type: Reconnaisance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 22 September 2010 at 2h42 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 2D. Orbit: 625 km x 656 km x 98.0° Mission: According to Chinese sources, Yaogan 11 is a remote sensing satellite used to conduct scientific experiments, carry out surveys on land resources, estimate crop yields and help with natural disaster-reduction and prevention endeavors. But the Yaogan series are believed to provide the Chinese military with high-resolution reconnaissance imagery through electro-optical cameras and night-vision radar systems.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now's 23 Sep 10 ; China Daily's 23 Sep 10 ;

.

ZP 1A-1 / Zheda Pixing 1A-1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #75 ; 2010-47B ; 6,929th spacecraft. Type: Student Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China's Zhejiang University Launch: 22 September 2010 at 2h42 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 2D. Orbit: 625 km x 656 km x 98.0° Mission: Zheda Pixing are 3.5-kg picosat experiments developed for microelectronics studies to provide a testbed in near-Earth space for MEMS devices, such as an accelerometer, micro-gyros and infrared sensors. According to Chinese sources, the Zheda Pixing satellites carry cameras for Earth imaging. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ;

.

ZP 1A-2 / Zheda Pixing 1A-2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #76 ; 2010-47C ; 6,930th spacecraft. Type: Student Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China'sZhejiang University Launch: 22 September 2010 at 2h42 UT, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 2D. Orbit: 625 km x 656 km x 98.0° Mission: Zheda Pixing are 3.5-kg picosat experiments developed for microelectronics studies to provide a testbed in near-Earth space for MEMS devices, such as an accelerometer, micro-gyros and infrared sensors. According to Chinese sources, the Zheda Pixing satellites carry cameras for Earth imaging. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ;

.

SBSS 1 (USA 216] Spacecraft: SBSS stands for Space Based Space Surveillance Chronologies: 2010 payload #77 ; 2010-48A ; 6,931st spacecraft. Type: Space Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. Department of Defense Launch: 26 September 2010 at 4h41 UT, from Vandenberg Air Force Base's SLC-8, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 631 km x 633 km x 97.8° Mission: SBSS 1 is designed to track and detect other spacecraft in orbit, and will form part of the United States Strategic Command's Space Surveillance Network. Equipped with a 30-cm telescope and 2.4-megapixel focal plane, the craft uses its optical eyes to image the sky and provide analysts the data they need to keep better tabs on space debris and guard against accidental collisions. The satellites tracking abilities will watch for potential risks posed to the military's communications, navigation, weather and spy satellites by enemy interference. The SBSS has a seven-year design life. It was developed following the success of the experimental SBV sensor on the MSX satellite in the 1990s. The satellite was built by Ball Aerospace, with overall mission development by Boeing/Huntington Beach. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; Spaceflight Now 26 Sep 10, 6 Oct 10 ;

.

Kosmos 2469 Spacecraft: OKO, 73D6 Chronologies: 2010 payload #78 ; 2010-49A ; 6,932nd spacecraft. Type: Missile Early Warning Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 30 September 2010 at 17h01 UT, from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, by a Molniya-M. Orbit: 600 km x 39,000 km x 62.8° x 702 min. 576 km x 39,616 km x 62.8°  Mission: Kosmos 2469 is an early warning satellite that works as part of the first-generation US-KS early-warning system (also known as Oko). The satellite joins two working satellites of the constellation: Kosmos 2430, launched in October 2007, and Kosmos 2446, launched in December 2008. It is deployed in an orbital plane that is located between the orbital planes of these two satellites, which means that it will complement the constellation rather than replace one of the currently operational satellites.       According to a Space Forces representative, the launch was the last launch of the Molniya-M rocket. Some reports also suggested that Kosmos 2469 might be the last 73D6 spacecraft available.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 683 ; RSNF's 30 Sep 10 ;

.

Chang'e 2 Spacecraft: Chang'e is named after a mythical Chinese goddess who flew to the Moon. Chronologies: 2010 payload #79 ; 2010-50A ; 6,933th spacecraft. Type: Planetary Probe (Moon) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Credit: China Daily Launch: 1 October 2010 at 11h00 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3C.  Orbit: Initial Earth orbit: 200 km x 380,000 km  Initial Lunar orbit: 119 km x 8,599 km  Solar orbit (2012): 1.02 AU x 1.03 AU x 0.2° Mission: Chang'e 2 is a 2,480-kg lunar-lunar probe, the second Chinese planetary mission. It enters lunar orbit on 6 October 2010 at around 3h14 UT to test key technology involved in a soft-landing (Chang'e-3). The probe is designed to observe the Moon for at least six months, but it carries enough fuel to operate much longer. From a lunar elliptical orbit with the closest point only 15 km, it takes high-resolution photos of the Bay of Rainbows area, the expected landing site of Chang'e-3.       The $134 million spacecraft was first built as a ground spare for Chang'e 1, in case that mission ran into problems. Instead of building a new probe, China bolted improved science instruments and cameras on the spare and launched it on a more powerful rocket. The probe was launced on the 61st anniversary of Communist rule there, but spokesmen denied that the launch time was chosen to mark the National Day, saying the launch date was purely coincidental and determined by other factors. The mission planners have three possible scenarios for how Chang'e-2 will end its mission: itt might crash on the Moon, fly further into deeper space, or come back to Earth. In its second stage of its lunar exploration program, China plans to send three spacecraft to the Moon, including Chang'e-3, which is slated to soft-land in about 2013, and Chang'e-4 as a backup for Chang'e-3.       By 1 April 2011, Chang'e-2 has been safely operating for 180 days in lunar orbit and has reached its six-month designed life. Its system status is normal and stable, and the craft has fully realized its given project targets. It was then sent out of lunar orbit into deep space. On 13 December 2012, Chang'e-2 made a remarkable 3.2 km flyby of minor planet (4179) Toutatis at 8h30:09 UT and returned images of the asteroid. By early 2014, it has traveled more than 70 million km into deep space in good condition, so far the longest voyage of a Chinese spacecraft. Chang'e-2 is expected to travel as far as 300 million km from Earth, after which it will return to perigee of about 7 million km around 2029. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633, 672 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Oct 10, 4 Oct 10 , 6 Oct 10, 17 Dec 12 ; China Daily's 29 Sep 10, 29 Sep 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 2 Oct 10, 2 Oct 10, 6 Oct 10, 9 Oct 10, 9 Nov 2010, 2 Apr 11, 15 Dec 12 ; Xinhua's 29 Sep 10, 29 Sep 10, 30 Sep 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 1 Oct 10, 2 Oct 10, 2 Oct 10, 3 Oct 10, 6 Oct 10, 6 Oct 10, 8 Oct 10, 13 Oct 10, 8 Nov 10, 8 Nov 10, 23 Nov 10, 20 Dec 10, 20 Dec 10, 20 Dec 10, 1 Apr 11, 2 Apr 11, 9 Jun 11, 27 Aug 11, 30 Aug 11, 21 Sep 11, 21 Sep 11, 6 Feb 12, 6 Feb 12, 7 Feb 12, 13 Mar 12, 15 Dec 12,14 Feb 14 ;

.

SJ-6/4A / Shijian 6/4A Spacecraft: Shijian means practice in Chinese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #80 ; 2010-51A ; 6934th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 6 October 2010 at 0h49 UT, from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4B. Orbit: 588 km x 604 km x 97.8° Mission: Officially, the Shijian VI-04 group are designed to probe space environment. “With a designed lifespan of more than two years, the two satellites of the Shijian VI-04 group will carry out probes on space environment and radiation and conduct space science experiments”, according to the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. But Shijian satellites are believed to have some kind of military surveillance role. They may also test technology demonstration and space research experiments. No other details of their mission were released about this fourth pair of Shijian 6 satellites. Shijian 4A is a small satellite built by CAST/Beijing.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 6 Oct 10 ; China Daily's 6 Oct 10 ;

.

SJ-6/4B / Shijiun 6/4B Spacecraft: Shijian means practice in Chinese. Chronologies: 2010 payload #81 ; 2010-51B ; 6,935th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 6 October 2010 at 0h49 UT, from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4B. Orbit: 588 km x 604 km x 97.8° Mission: Officially, the Shijian VI-04 group are designed to probe space environment. “With a designed lifespan of more than two years, the two satellites of the Shijian VI-04 group will carry out probes on space environment and radiation and conduct space science experiments”, according to the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. But Shijian satellites are believed to have some kind of military surveillance role. They may also test technology demonstration and space research experiments. No other details of their mission were released about this fourth pair of Shijian 6 satellites. Shijian 4B spent mid-October 2010 in a lower orbit to adjust its orbital position relative to A, and then moved up again to match orbits with A. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 6 Oct 10 ; China Daily's 6 Oct 10 ;

.

Soyuz TMA-01M / ISS 24S Spacecraft: Soyuz 11F732 (7K-STMA) No. 701 Chronologies: 2010 payload #82 ; 2010-52A ; 6,936th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 7 October 2010 at 23h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-FG. Orbit: Initial: 199.9 km x 258.8 km x 51.63° x 88.81 min. At docking: 358.8 km x 348.5 km x 51.65° x 91.61 min. Recovery: 16 March 2011 at 7h54 UT. Mission: Soyuz TMA-01M is a crew transport ship carrying Russian cosmonauts Alexander Kalery and Oleg Skripochka, and NASA astronaut Scott Kelly to the International Space Station, bringing ISS Expedition 25 crew to six persons. This mission introduced new improvements to the veteran Soyuz vehicle - nikcnamed the “ditigal Soyuz”, featuring new guidance, navigation, control and data processing systems, along with an improved cooling device for the vehicle's electronics. The spacecraft features a variety of avionics and computer upgrades that allows the vehicle to be less operator intensive. The craft docked to the Poisk compartment on the Zvezda module on 10 October 2010 at 00:01 UT, 1 minute ahead of schedule.     On 16 March 2011, Soyuz TMA-01M undocked from the MRM2 Poisk port at 4h26 UT and landed successfully in central Kazakhstan, 86 km north of the city of Arkalyk, under severe winter conditions. The descent capsule fell on its side, and the crew, which was in excellent condition, was quickly extracted by the recovery personnel. Scott Kelly was directly flown back to Houston as Alexander Kalery and Oleg Skripochka were flown to Zvezdniy Gorodok (Star City). During their 47-day mission, the Expedition 26 crewmembers worked on more than 150 microgravity experiments in human research; biology and biotechnology; physical and materials sciences; technology development; and Earth & space sciences. They also supported the arrival of a fleet of international space vehicles: the Japanese HTV-2, Russia’s cargo ship Progress M-09M, the European ATV-2, and the Space Shuttle STS-133/ULF-5. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633, 639 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 7 Oct 10, 9 Oct 10, 16 Mar 11, 16 Mar 11 ; RSC Energia's 8 Oct 10, 10 Oct 10, 16 Mar 11 ; ISS On-Orbit 8 Oct 10, 10 Oct 10, 16 Mar 11 ;

.

Sirius XM-5 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #83 ; 2010-53A ; 6,937th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: SIRIUS XM Radio Launch: 14 October 2010 at 18h53 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-81/24, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 85.2° West longitude. Mission: XM-5 is a a high power telecommunication satellite intended to serve as an in-orbit spare for the existing fleet of SIRIUS and XM satellites. It helps enable the uninterrupted delivery of more than 130 channels of commercial-free music, and premier sports, news, talk and entertainment programming and traffic, weather, and data services to close to 20 million SIRIUS and XM subscribers. XM 5, with is two 9-meter-diameter mesh antennas, is designed to last for at least 15 years in space. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 14 Oct 10 ;ILS's 15 Oct 10 ; Sirius XM's 3 Dec 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-1 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M073 Chronologies: 2010 payload #84 ; 2010-54A ; 6,938th spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0°  Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-2 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M074 Chronologies: 2010 payload #85 ; 2010-54B ; 6,939th spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0° Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-3 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M075 Chronologies: 2010 payload #86 ; 2010-54C ; 6,940th spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0° Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-4 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M076 Chronologies: 2010 payload #87 ; 2010-54D ; 6,941st spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0° Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-5 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M077 Chronologies: 2010 payload #88 ; 2010-54E ; 6,942nd spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0° Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Globalstar II-6 Spacecraft: Globalstar-2 M079 Chronologies: 2010 payload #89 ; 2010-54F ; 6,943rd spacecraft. Type: Communications (Mobile Services) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Globalstar Launch: 19 October 2010 at 17h10 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome LC-31, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: 912 km x 924 km x 52.0° Mission: Each of the six 650-kg Globalstar communications satellites are equipped with 16 transponders from C- to S-band and 16 receivers from L- band to C-band to provide quality mobile satellite voice and mobile satellite handset data services. The Globalstar constellation will eventually consist of 24 second-generation spacecraft that are expected to ensure continuity for its mobile satellite voice and data services provided to businesses, governments and consumers. As the new Globalstar satellites enter service, they will replace the existing 40 satellite constellation, which have a 7.5 year life design. Globalstar plans to integrate the 24 new second-generation satellites with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007, to form a 32 satellite constellation.  The new satellites are intended to operate for fifteen years, extending the Globalstar constellation life through at least 2025.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 633 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 19 Oct 10 ; Globalstar's 20 Oct 10 ; Arianespace's 20 Oct 10 ;

.

Progress M-08M / ISS 40P Spacecraft: Progress M (7K-TGM) No. 408 Chronologies: 2010 payload #90 ; 2010-55A ; 6,944th spacecraft. Type: Cargo delivery to the International Space Station Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 27 October 2010 at 15h11 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-U. Orbit: Initial: 192.45 km x 242.99 km x 51.64° x 88.57 min.  At docking: 347.3 km x 358.7 km x 51.64° x 91.60 min. Reentry: 24 January 2011. Mission: Progress-M 08M is a resupply ship which delivers 2,418 kg of cargo to the ISS, including 870 kg of propellant, 499 kg of oxygen, 226 kg of water, and 1,272 kg of food, spare parts and supplies. It also delivers hardware for the Molniya-Gamma and Coulomb Crystal experiments, and high-speed data transmission equipment which will be installed outside the station. The craft was docked on the Pirs module on 30 October 2010 at 16h36 UT, by Alex Kaleri who, on Moscow instruction, assumed control. ON 24 January 2011, the spacecraft undocked nominally at 0h42 UT. Deorbit burn took place at about 5h16.      This Progress represents the 130th Russian cargo ship launched to resupply orbital space stations (Salyut 6 and 7, Mir and ISS). Launched four time a year every year since 1978, all these missions were successful - which represents a fabulous achievement. Progress M-08M is also the 40th to ressupply ISS; considering that each one carries about 2.5 tons of cargo, this means that in ten years, the 360-tons international space complex received about 100 tons of goods - which is also a remarkable achievement. -C.L. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634, 637 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 27 Oct 10 & 30 Oct 10 ; RSC Energia's 27 Oct 10 & 30 Oct 10 ; ISS On-orbit 27 Oct 10, 30 Oct 10, 23 Jan 11 ;

.

Eutelsat W3B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #91 ; 2010-56A (failure); 6,945th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Eutelsat Launch: 28 October 2010 at 21h51 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geosynchronous transfer orbit (failed to reach GEO orbit).  Mission: Eutelsat W3B was a 5,370-kg communications satellite carrying 53 active Ku-band transponders and 3 Ka-band transponders. Its transponders was to provide four distinct footprints: a high-power footprint of Central Europe for direct-to-home broadcasting; a wide-beam spanning Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia for professional video links and data networks; a high-power beam over Madagascar and Indian Ocean Islands for direct-to-home broadcasting; and a beam sweeping across Sub-Saharan Africa and Indian Ocean islands for regional telecoms and internet services. Built by Thales Alenia Space with an expected 15-year design life, the satellite was to have replaced Eutelsat's Eurobird 16, W2M and SESAT 1 satellites, all of which will subsequently be redeployed to alternative positions.      But the satellite fell victim of a significant propellant leak shortly after separating from its Ariane 5 rocket, prompting the company to declare it a total loss. Controllers discovered a leak in the satellite's oxidizer system "early in the night" followint the launch. The company would be filing an insurance claim on the satellite. Deciding the W3B  leaked too much propellant to drive itself back into Earth's atmosphere, Eutelsat has abandoned the crippled craft in the same transfer orbit it was left in by an Ariane 5 rocket. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 28 Oct 10, 29 Oct 10,8 Nov 10 ; Arianespace's 28 Oct 10 ; Eutelsat's 29 Oct 10 ;

.

BSAT-3B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #92 ; 2010-56B ; 6,946th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Japan's Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) Launch: 28 October 2010 at 21h51 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 110° East longitude. Mission: BSAT 3b is a 2,060-kg communications satellite which carries 12 Ku-band transponders, eight operating simultaneously, to provide direct TV broadcast links for all of Japan. Built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems, it has an expected design life of 15 years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 28 Oct 10 ;Arianespace's 28 Oct 10 ;

.

Beidou 10 / Beidou G Spacecraft: Beidou DW6 (“Sixth orbiter”) Chronologies: 2010 payload #93 ; 2010-57A ; 6,947th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 31 October 2010 at 16h26 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3C. Orbit: Geostationary at 160° East longitude. Mission: Beidou DW6 (or G4) is a navigation satellite part of China's Compass Navigation Satellite System (CNSS) which will eventually consist of 35 vehicles providing continuous, real-time passive 3D geo-spatial positioning and speed measurement. CNSS will have two levels of service, ranging from a civilian service which will allow for an accuracy of 10 meters in the user position, 0.2 m/s on the user velocity and 50 ns in time accuracy; and the military and authorized users service, providing higher accuracies. The system will provide services for users in China and its neighboring regions, covering an area of about 120° longitude in the Northern Hemisphere. Beidou DW6 is expected to have a lifespan of eight years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634, 635 ; Spacewarn No. 684 ; Spaceflight Now's 1 Nov 10 ; China Daily's 1 Nov 10 ;

.

Meridian 3 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #94 ; 2010-58A ; 6,948th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russia Defense Ministry Launch: 2 November 2010 at 0h59 UT, from Plesetsk LC-43/3, by a Soyuz-2-1a/Fregat. Orbit: Initial: 966 km x 39,800 km x 62.8° x 726 min. Initial: 966 km x 39,773 km x 62.8° 16 November 2010: 961 km x 39,388 km x 62.8° Mission: Meridian 3 is a military communications satellite providing coverage of high latitude polar regions of Russia. Built by the Reshetnev Design Bureau and circling in a highly-inclined elliptical orbit, the Meridian satellites are replacements for Molniya communications. Satellites in this type of orbit cover polar regions, areas out of reach of many traditional communications spacecraft in equatorial orbits. The first Meridian launch took place in December 2006 and the second in May 2009.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 2 Nov 10 ; RNSF's 2 Nov 10 ;

.

FY-3 (01) B / Fengyun 3 (01) B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #95 ; 2010-59A ; 6,949th spacecraft. Type: Meteorology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 5 November 2010 at 18h37 UT, from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 4C. Orbit: Circular at 836 km x 98.75° Mission: Fengyun 3B is a meteorological satellite carrying 11 instruments capable of global, all-weather, multi-spectral, three-dimensional, quantitative Earth observations. It is the second of the Fengyun 3 experimental series which is able to make 3D atmospheric detection, which substantially increases the abilities of the satellite in global data acquisition as well as land feature and cloud field observation. Fengyun 3B has a design life of two years.The satellite was  developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology affiliated to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. (The craft is  satellite B in batch 01 of the FY-3 series.) Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; China Daily's 5 Nov 10 ;

.

COSMO-SkyMed 4 Spacecraft: COSMO stands for Constellation of Small Satellites for Mediterranean Basis Observation. Chronologies: 2010 payload #96 ; 2010-60A ; 6,950th spacecraft. Type: Surveillance (Radar) Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Italian Defense Ministry Launch: 6 November 2010 at 2h20 UT, from Vandenberg Air Force Base's SLC-2W, by a Delta 7420-10. Orbit: 620 km x 632 km x 97.8° Mission: Skymed 4, also known as COSMO 4, is a radar imaging satellite which is part of Italy's Earth Observing System, a constellation of radar satellites built for civil and military reconnaissance. It joins three other spacecraft deployed in 2007 and 2008. Each satellite is equipped with an X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar instrument for environmental monitoring, resource management and territorial security surveillance. They are capable of seeing the ground in daylight or darkness, under clear or cloudy skies. Skymed 4 has the capability to produce 450 images/day. The constellation enables any specific region of the planet to be observed every six hours, which allows authorities to assess and begin responding when a crisis strikes. Skymed 4 has a design life of five years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 5 Nov 10 ;

.

SkyTerra 1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #97 ; 2010-61A ; 6,951st spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: LightSquared Launch: 14 November 2010 at 17h29 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 101.3° West longitude. Mission: SkyTerra 1 is a 5.36-tonnes communications satellite that provides will be the first to provide cell-phone wireless coverage to 100% of the population of the United States. The satellite features a 22-meter L-band reflector-based antenna, the largest commercial antenna reflector to be put into service. The satellite also carries a 2 m Ku-band antenna. SkyTerra 1 has a design life of 15 years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 634 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 14 Nov 10, 14 Dec 10 ; ILS's 14 Nov 10 ;

.

STPSat-2 (USA 217) Spacecraft: STPSat stands for Space Test Program Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #98 ; 2010-62A ; 6,952nd spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: USAF Space Test Program Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: STPSat 2 is a 135-kg technology demonstration which carries two military investigations: the Space Phenomenology Experiment which evaluate sensor compatibility for the space environment, and the Ocean Data Telemetry MicroSatLink, which provides two-way data relay from terrestrial (ocean or land) sensors to users. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 18 Nov 10 ;

.

RAX (USA 218) Spacecraft: RAX stands for Radio Aurora Explorer Chronologies: 2010 payload #99 ; 2010-62B ; 6,953rd spacecraft. Type: Earth Sciences Families: Ranks: Sponsor: University of Michigan and SRI International Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: RAX is a 2.8-kg three-unit CubeSat that is used to conduct studies of the ionosphere, receiving radar signals from ground stations which can be used to measure activity in the ionosphere.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

O/OREOS (USA 219) Spacecraft: O/OREOS stands for Organism/Organic Exposure to Orbital Stresses Chronologies: 2010 payload #100 ; 2010-62C ; 6,954th spacecraft. Type: Biology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: O/OREOS is a 5.5-kg three-unit CubeSat that carries two biological experiments. One tests live microorganisms, while the other tests inanimate organic samples in order to see how they react to conditions in space such as radiation and extreme temperature. The craft also tests the use of deployable Mylar panels to increase its rate of orbital decay, and reduce the amount of time it remains in orbit as debris. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

Fastsat-HSV (USA 220) Spacecraft: FASTSAT stands for Fast, Affordable Science and Technology Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #101 ; 2010-62D ; 6,955th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: FASTSAT-HSV01 is a 140-kg microsatellite which is expected to operate for 180 days. It tests a Threat Detection System and a Miniature Star Tracker for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. FASTSAT carries several experiments and had deployed another satellite. NanoSail-D2. The spacecraft used an S-Band transponder to communicate with Earth, and also carries a beacon broadcasting device. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 16 Nov 10 ;

.

Falconsat-5 (USA 221) Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #102 ; 2010-62E ; 6,956th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. Air Force Academy Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: FalconSat 5 is a 161-kg craft, the fifth in a series of technology demonstration satellites built and operated by the US Air Force Academy. It carries four experiments: Space Plasma Characterization Source, that uses a cold gas ammonia thruster and a Hall Effect ion thruster to study their effects on the space environment, the Wafer-Integrated Spectrometer, used to compare its plume to theoretical data, the Smart Miniaturized Electrostatic Analyzer, which studied the temperature and ion density of the ionosphere. And the Receiver UHF/VHF Signal Strength), which studied the effects of the ionosphere on radio signals. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

Fastrac 1 / ST 1 (USA 222) Spacecraft: FASTRAC stands for Formation Autonomy Spacecraft with Thrust, Relnav, Attitude and Crosslink Chronologies: 2010 payload #103 ; 2010-62F ; 6,957th spacecraft. Type: Student Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Students at the University of Texas, Austin Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: ST 1, also called FAST 1 or FASTRAC, consists of two 30-kg satellites that were launched together. The first has been named "Sara-Lily", and the second "Emma", both after the children of engineers working on the program. Sara-Lily studied the use of a Micro-Discharge Plasma Thruster (MDPT) for formation flying with Emma. It also carries a GPS navigation experiment. Emma carries an Inertial Measurement Unit which is used to determine the distance between the two satellites. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

Fastrac 2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #104 ; 2010-62 ; 6,958th spacecraft. Type: Student Families: Ranks: Sponsor: University of Texas at Austin Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: FASTRAC 2 is the second ST1 satellite named "Emma", both after the children of engineers working on the program. Sara-Lily studied the use of a Micro-Discharge Plasma Thruster (MDPT) for formation flying with Emma. It also carries a GPS navigation experiment. Emma carries an Inertial Measurement Unit which is used to determine the distance between the two satellites. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

Nanosail-D2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #105 ; 2010-62 ; 6,959th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: NASA Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. (Ejected from Fastsat-HSV on 18 January 2011 at 3h00 UT.) Orbit: 637 km x 661 km x 72° Mission: Nanosail-D2 is a 3.8-kg technological microsatellite carryint a solar sail which measures 9-meter-square and is made of a membrane about 3 microns thick, tens of times thinner than a human hair. Replacing the failed NanoSail-D, it is a three-unit CubeSat, measuring 30 cm x 10 cm x 10 cm. An attempt to eject the satellite from Fastsat was made on 6 December 2010, but failed. The mini-satellite has belatedly ejected itself on 18 January 2011 at 3h00 UT and its solar sail was deployed on 21 January 2011 at around  4h00 UT. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635, 636, 637 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; National Space Science Data Center's 2010-0 ; Spaceflight Now's 16 Nov 10, 11 Dec 10,  22 Jan 11 ;  ;

.

S26 Ballast A Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #106 ; 2010-62J ; 6,960th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: ~1200 km x 72° Mission: Balast A and Ballast B are mass simulators used to test the Minotaur's ability to deploy multiple spacecraft into different orbits. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

S26 Ballast B Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #107 ; 2010-62K ; 6,961st spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Launch: 20 November 2010 at 1h25 UT, from Kodiak, by a Minotaur IV. Orbit: ~1200 km x 72° Mission: Balast A and Ballast B are mass simulators used to test the Minotaur's ability to deploy multiple spacecraft into different orbits. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ;

.

NROL-32 (USA 223) Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #108 ; 2010-63A ; 6,962nd spacecraft. Type: Surveillance Families: Ranks: Sponsor: U.S. National Reconnaissance Office Launch: 21 November 2010 at 22h58 UT, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's SLC-37B, by a Delta IVH. Orbit: Gelstarionary? Mission: NROL-32 was described as a “high-priority mission to boost a National Reconnaissance Office.” The payload is believed to be an electronic eavesdropping satellite with a huge collecting antenna. In a September 2010 address to the Air Force Association, NRO Director Bruce Carlson said the Delta 4 was carrying "the largest satellite in the world." It could be the fifth in the series of Mentor spacecraft, a.k.a. Advanced Orion, which gather signals intelligence from inclined geosynchronous orbits. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now, 21 Nov 10 ; NRO's 22 Nov 10 ;

.

Zhongxing 20A / Chinasat 20A Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #109 ; 2010-64A ; 6,963rd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 24 November 2010 at 16h09 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3A. Orbit: Geostationary Mission: Zhongxing 20A is a military communications satellite. According to Chinese sources, it “would help improve the country's radio and television broadcasts.” The satellite likely provides secure communications coverage for Chinese ground forces. It is based on the DFH-3 satellite bus from the China Academy of Space Technology and likely weighed about 2,300 kg fully fueled at liftoff.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Nov 10  ; China Daily's 25 Nov 10

.

Intelsat 17 / IS-17 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #110 ; 2010-65A ; 6,964th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Intelsat Launch: 26 November 2010 at 18h39 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostatinary at 66° East longitude. Mission: Intelsat 17 is a 5,540-kg communications satellite which carries 24 C-band and 25 Ku-band transponders to provides a range of telecommunications services to Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Russia and Asia. It is part of a nine-satellite investment program that is expected to provide enhanced high-powered capacity to Intelsat's global fleet. The craft will replace the Intelsat 702 satellite and is designed to provide service for the next 16 years. Built by Space Systems/Loral, using an LS 1300 Omega Bus platform, it has a design life exceeding 15 years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Nov 10 ; Arianespace's 26 Nov 10 ; Intelsat's 26 Nov 11 ;

.

HYLAS 1 Spacecraft: HYLAS stands for Highly Adaptable Satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #111 ; 2010-65B ; 6,965th spacecraft. Type: Communiations Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Avanti Communications Launch: 26 November 2010 at 18h39 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 33.5° West longigude Mission: HYLAS 1 is a 2,570-kg communications satellite fitted with 8 Ka-band transponders and 2 Ku-band transponders to bring high-speed broadband services to remote rural areas across Europe. It uses the new innovative concept of 'Generic Flexible Payload', which has been developed by Astrium within ESA’s ARTES Programme, which allows adapting the frequency plan to the market’s needs. It is the first multi-beam European satellite to offer high-speed broadband services across Europe. The flexibility of the payload enables it to change the bandwidth of its 8 Ka-band beams while in orbit, maximizing the satellite's efficiency. HYLAS 1 is Avanti Communications’ first satellite, a new European satellite operator. It was built by an industrial consortium formed by EADS Astrium and the Indian Space Research Organisation, using a I-2K platform. The satellite has a mission lifetime of around 15 years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 635 ; Spacewarn No. 685 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Nov 10 ; Arianespace's 26 Nov 10 ; ISRO's 30 Nov 10 ;

.

Glonass-M Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #112 ; 2010 3rd failure ; 6,966th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 6 December 2010 at 10h25 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrom's LC-81, by a Proton-M/DM-3. Orbit: n/a Mission: A Proton-M, carrying three Glonass-M navigation satellites, failed to place the satellites into the orbit. Glonass satellites broadcast navigation signals to military and civilian users. Each satellite weighs about 1,350 kg at launch. Live video from the launch showed a normal ascent into a clear early afternoon sky. The failure occurred some time around separation of the Proton third stage and ignition of the Block DM engine. The Proton’s payload re-entered the atmosphere over the Pacific and crashed into the ocean about 1,500 kilometers northwest of Honolulu.    The launch failure was traced as a blunder during fueling of the rocket's Block DM upper stage. This launch was the first flight of a new version of the Block DM-03, featuring larger propellant tanks. Operating on outdated procedures, the fueling team unknowingly loaded more propellant than necessary into the Block DM, making the rocket stage heavier than anticipated.  The third stage went off course because an extra 1,500 kg of propellant. The Proton's third stage was unable to place the more massive Block DM on the proper trajectory, causing it to crash into the Pacific Ocean. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spaceflight Now's 3 Dec 10 ; RSNF's 3 Dec 10 ; ILS' 5 Dec 10, 5 Dec 10 ;

.

Glonass-M Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #113 ; 2010 4th failure ; 6,967th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 6 December 2010 at 10h25 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrom's LC-81, by a Proton-M/DM-3. Orbit: n/a Mission: A Proton-M, carrying three Glonass-M navigation satellites, failed to place the satellites into the orbit. Glonass satellites broadcast navigation signals to military and civilian users. Each satellite weighs about 1,350 kg at launch. Live video from the launch showed a normal ascent into a clear early afternoon sky. The failure occurred some time around separation of the Proton third stage and ignition of the Block DM engine. The Proton’s payload re-entered the atmosphere over the Pacific and crashed into the ocean about 1,500 kilometers northwest of Honolulu.    The launch failure was traced as a blunder during fueling of the rocket's Block DM upper stage. This launch was the first flight of a new version of the Block DM-03, featuring larger propellant tanks. Operating on outdated procedures, the fueling team unknowingly loaded more propellant than necessary into the Block DM, making the rocket stage heavier than anticipated.  The third stage went off course because an extra 1,500 kg of propellant. The Proton's third stage was unable to place the more massive Block DM on the proper trajectory, causing it to crash into the Pacific Ocean. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spaceflight Now's 3 Dec 10, 10 Dec 10 ; RSNF's 3 Dec 10 ; ILS' 5 Dec 10, 5 Dec 10, 10 Dec 10 ;

.

Glonass-M Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #114 ; 2010 5th failure ; 6,968th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Russian Defense Ministry Launch: 6 December 2010 at 10h25 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrom's LC-81, by a Proton-M/DM-3. Orbit: n/a Mission: A Proton-M, carrying three Glonass-M navigation satellites, failed to place the satellites into the orbit. Glonass satellites broadcast navigation signals to military and civilian users. Each satellite weighs about 1,350 kg at launch. Live video from the launch showed a normal ascent into a clear early afternoon sky. The failure occurred some time around separation of the Proton third stage and ignition of the Block DM engine. The Proton’s payload re-entered the atmosphere over the Pacific and crashed into the ocean about 1,500 kilometers northwest of Honolulu.    The launch failure was traced as a blunder during fueling of the rocket's Block DM upper stage. This launch was the first flight of a new version of the Block DM-03, featuring larger propellant tanks. Operating on outdated procedures, the fueling team unknowingly loaded more propellant than necessary into the Block DM, making the rocket stage heavier than anticipated.  The third stage went off course because an extra 1,500 kg of propellant. The Proton's third stage was unable to place the more massive Block DM on the proper trajectory, causing it to crash into the Pacific Ocean. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spaceflight Now's 3 Dec 10 ; RSNF's 3 Dec 10 ; ILS' 5 Dec 10, 5 Dec 10 ;

.

Dragon C1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #115 ; 2010-66A ; 6,969th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: SpaceX Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Recovered: 8 December 2010 at 19h03 UT. Mission: Dragon C1 is a SpaceX boiler-place capsule launched by the second testflight of the Falcon 9 rocket. The spacecraft conducted a series of demonstrations in orbit as part of NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program in support of the International Space Station. After three orbit, the capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of the United States. This was the first time a commercial organization has recovered a spacecraft from orbit. (The actual splashdown location and the mass of the Dragon spacecraft have not been reported.) Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; Spaceflight Now's 7 Dec 10, 9 Dec 10 ;

.

QbX-1 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #116 ; 2010-66B ; 6,970th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Pumpkin Inc./ U.S. National Reconnaissance Office Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: QBX1 is a triple unit CubeSat nanosatellite for the National Reconnaissance Office's Colony-1 program. It tested technologies in orbit.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

SMDC-One Spacecraft: SMDC ONE stands for Space Missile Defense Command - Operational Nanosatellite Effect Chronologies: 2010 payload #117 ; 2010-66C ; 6,971st spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: O.S. Space Missile Defense Command Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: SMDC ONE was used to develop a small experimental communications satellite constellation for the US Army.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

QbX-2 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #118 ; 2010-66B ; 6,972nd spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Pumpkin Inc. / U.S. National Reconnaissance Office Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: QBX2 is a triple unit CubeSat nanosatellite for the National Reconnaissance Office’s Colony-1 program. It is used to test technologies in orbit.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Perseus 000 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #119 ; 2010-66H ; 6,973rd spacecraft. Type: Science & Technology? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Alamos National Laboratory Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: Not much information is available about the four Perseus cubesats; they may be monitoring the ionosphere. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Perseus 001 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #120 ; 2010-66E ; 6,874th spacecraft. Type: Science & Technology? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Alamos National Laboratory Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: Not much information is available about the four Perseus cubesats; they may be monitoring the ionosphere. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Perseus 002 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #121 ; 2010-66G ; 6,975th spacecraft. Type: Science & Technology? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Alamos National Laboratory Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: Not much information is available about the four Perseus cubesats; they may be monitoring the ionosphere. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Perseus 003 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #122 ; 2010-66D ; 6,976th spacecraft. Type: Science & Technology? Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Alamos National Laboratory Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: Not much information is available about the four Perseus cubesats; they may be monitoring the ionosphere. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Caerus/Mayflower Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #123 ; 2010-66J ; 6,977th spacecraft. Type: Technology Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Novaworks and the University of Southern California Launch: 8 December 2010 at 15h43 UT, from Cape Canaveral's SLC-40, by a Falcon 9. Orbit: 279 km x 308 km x 34.5° Mission: Mayflower, also known as Mayflower-Caerus, is a triple unit CubeSat built as a joint mission by Novaworks of Northrop Grumman and the University of Southern California as a technology mission. Mayflower is a 2U CubeSat-sized module built by Novaworks as a next-generation CubeSat Flight Testbed. Caerus is a 1U CubeSat structure used as the payload module of the spacecraft. USC built the module based on a Pumpkin 1U CubeSat kit. It transmits beacon data in the amateur band. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

Soyuz TMA-20 / ISS 25S Spacecraft: Soyuz 11F732 (7K-STMA) No. 230 Chronologies: 2010 payload #124 ; 2010-67A ; 6,978th spacecraft. Type: Piloted Spaceship Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Roscosmos Russian Space Agency Credit: NASA Launch: 15 December 2010 at 19h09 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-1, by a Soyuz-FG. Orbit: Initial: 200.67 km x 253.30 km x 51.64° x 88.75 min. At docking: 343.8 km x 354.7 km x 51.65° x 91.52 min. Recovery: 24 May 2011 at 2h27 UT. Mission: Soyuz-TMA 20 is a Russian transport ship carrying Russian cosmonaut Dmitry Kondratyev, Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli, and NASA astronaut Catherine Coleman. It is one of the older Soyuz versions, without the digital technology used in the new TMA-M generation. On 17 December, it docked successfully at 21h11 UT at the MRM1 Rassvet module, 1 minute ahead of schedule, The three crew members join three colleagues on-board ISS to conduct Expedition 26-27.      On 23 May 2011, Soyuz TMA-20 undocked from Rassvet port at 21h35 UT. About 24 minutes later, it performed station keeping at 200 meters, while ISS rotated through 180 deg, to a position for hiscotic photography by Paolo Nespoli.  Historic images: shortly after its undocking from ISS, on 23 May 2011, the Soyuz TMA-20 docking camera transmited the first pictures showing an Orbiter docked to the station. While we saw live these pictures, one of the Soyuz crewmember took high-definition pictures and films of the scene.      The Soyuz landed successfully on 24 May at 2h27 UT (local time: 8h27) in central Kazakhstan. The capsule remained upright and the crew, which was in excellent condition, was quickly extracted by the tescue personnel. The crew was flown by helicopters to Karaganda where Cady Colman and Paolo Nespoli boarded a waiting NASA Gulfstream-III airplane to fly back to Houston - the 5th direct return for U.S. crewmembers. Dima Kondratyev meanwhile was flown on a Tu-134 back to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center at Zvezdniy Gorodok (Star City).  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636, 642 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; 2010-0 ; Spaceflight Now's 15 Dec 10, 23 May 11, 23 May 10 ; RSC Energia's 15 Dec 10, 17 Dec 10 & 24 May 11, 9 Jun 11 ; ISS On-orbit 16 Dec 10, 17 Dec 10, 24 May 11 ;

.

Beidou 11 (IGSO 2) Spacecraft: Beidou DW7 (“Seventh orbiter”),  Compass I2 IGSO stands for the 4th Inclined Geo Synchronous Orbit satellite Chronologies: 2010 payload #125 ; 2010-68A ; 6,979th spacecraft. Type: Navigation Families: Ranks: Sponsor: China Launch: 17 December 2010 at 20h20 UT, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center, by a Chang Zheng 3A. Orbit: Geosynchronous inclined at 55.2° Mission: Beidou DW7 is a navigation satellite, the second Beidou putted in inclined geosynchronous orbit, following Beiiou DW5. This is the seventh craft to join China's fleet of positioning satellites.  The fleet will provide Chinese military and citizens an indigenous source of precise navigation information. The Beidou network is expected to provide positioning and navigation services with a positioning accuracy of about 10 m for China and neighboring countries by 2012. More precise navigation data will be provided to Chinese government and military users. Global service is expected to be available from up to 35 Beidou satellites by 2020. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; Spaceflight Now's 17 Dec 10 ; China Daily's 15 Dec 10 ;

.

GSAT-5P Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #126 ; 2010 6th failure ; 6,980th spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: ISRO / Indian Space Research Organization Launch: 25 December 2010 at 10h34 UT, from Sriharikota SLP, by a GSLV. Orbit: n/a Mission: GSAT 5P was designed to extend television and telephone services across India. It was the largest spacecraft ever launched by an Indian booster. But the craft was lost during the second failed launch this year for the GSLV rocket. Trouble struck the rocket less than a minute after liftoff, when video footage showed it veering from its flight path, tumbling out of control and being engulfed in a fireball. “Controllability of the vehicle was lost after about 47 seconds because we found the control command did not reach the actuators (of the strap-on boosters),” said K. Radhakrishnan, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization. Radhakrishnan said the rocket “developed large amplitude errors relating to higher angle of attack” when the steering system failed. The anomaly induced severe structural loads leading to the breaking up of the vehicle. Rocket debris were seen fallen into the Bay of Bengal just offshore the launch site. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; Spaceflight Now's 25 Dec 10 ;

.

KA-SAT Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #127 ; 2010-69A ; 6,981st spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Eutelsat Launch: 26 December 2010 at 21h51 UT, from Baykonur Cosmodrome's LC-200/39, by a Proton-M/Briz-M. Orbit: Geostationary at 9° East longitude. Mission: KA-SAT is a 6,150-kg communications satellite which carries 82 Ka-band spot beams to provide 70 Gbit/s of capacity across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. With its total capacity of 70 Gbps, the craft is ranked as the world’s most powerful satellite and is Europe's first spacecraft with an exclusively Ka-band communications payload. Built on the Eurostar E3000 platform by Astrium, the satellite has a 15 year life expectancy. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; Spaceflight Now's 26 Dec 10 :

.

Hispasat 1E Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #128 ; 2010-70A ; 6,982nd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: Spain's Hispasat Launch: 29 December 2010 at 21h27 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 30° West longitude. Mission: Hispasat 1E is a 5,320-kg communications satellite which carries 53 Ku-band transponders and a Ka-band capability for European and pan-American coverage. The satellite is parked alongside Hispasat 1C and 1D. Built by Space Systems/Loral using an LS 1300 platform, it has a design life of 18 years.  Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ; Spaceflight Now's 29 Dec 10 ; Arianespace's 29 Dec 10 ;

.

Koreasat 6 Spacecraft: Chronologies: 2010 payload #129 ; 2010-70B ; 6,983rd spacecraft. Type: Communications Families: Ranks: Sponsor: South Korea's KT Corp.  Launch: 29 December 2010 at 21h27 UT, from Kourou Space Center's ELA-3, by an Ariane 5 ECA. Orbit: Geostationary at 116° East longitude. Mission: Koreasat 6 is a 2,845-kg communications satellite which has 30 Ku-band transponders for telecommunications and direct-to-home TV transmissions. It takes over the Koreasat 3 mission with enhanced capability and provide broadcasting and communications services across all of Korean peninsular. Built by Thales Alenia Space using a Star-2 platform, the satellite has a design life exceeding 15 years. Source: Jonathan Space Report No. 636 ; Spacewarn No. 686 ;

.

© Claude Lafleur, 2004-10 Mes sites web: claudelafleur.qc.ca