Spectrum Astro has completed the preliminary design review of the next primary mission satellite in NASA's Small Explorer (SMEX) programme. The High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (HESSI) will be launched in July 2000. Orbital Sciences will launch HESSI aboard a Pegasus in 2000. NASA has launched four SMEX craft.
Source: Flight International
Orbital launch pioneer SpaceX is being contracted by the American space agency NASA to develop a so-called “US Deorbit Vehicle” that can safely return the International Space Station to Earth via controlled re-entry.
BAE Systems has completed its acquisition of Ball Aerospace, with the move further strengthening its US business presence.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has retired its Mars helicopter Ingenuity after the craft suffered damage upon landing.
