NASA has cancelled the planned Mars landing mission set for launch in 2001. Instead, a replacement for the Mars Climate Orbiter, which was lost in September, will lift off. A replacement Mars Polar Lander (MPL) will be launched in 2002 instead, aiming for the same site as the MPL 1, lost in December.
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.
