June 5, 2025 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Rocket Lab’s touts its new Gauss electric propulsion system for satellites
Developed in-house, once again demonstrating the company’s successful diversification beyond rockets.
- Satellite-data-center startup Starcloud’s value just reached $1 billion
The valuation is part of a funding round bringing in $170 million in new investment capital.
- Axiom signs a partnership deal with German aerospace company OHB
The deal appears aimed at providing OHB and German scientists access to Axiom’s space station for research.
- On June 5, 1989, the Soviet’s showed off their Buran space shuttle, flown on top of an Antonov An-225 Mriya airplane, at the Paris Air Show
Total take-off weight was 1,234,600 pounds, a record at that time.
- A Boeing video touting the June 5, 2024 Atlas-5 launch of the company’s first manned Starliner mission
The epic music and editing have certainly not aged well.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Some Amazon Leo news today:
1) Arianespace has announced the date for their next Ariane 6 launch: 17 June. This launch will be LE-03 and carry 36 satellites for Amazon Leo. It will also be the first flight of the P160 solid rocket booster, four of which will fly on this mission.
2) ULA has begun stacking the Atlas V for flight LA-08, which will carry another 29 satellites for Amazon Leo. It is currently scheduled for early July.
3) Perhaps most importantly, Amazon has been granted a waiver to continue launching Leo satellites beyond the July deadline. This should allow them to start Leo service late this year or early next.