Russian Soyuz rocket successfully launches 38 commercial satellites
A Russian Soyuz rocket tonight successfully launched 38 commercial satellites, most of which were smallsats.
The 2021 launch race:
8 SpaceX
6 China
4 Russia
1 Rocket Lab
1 Virgin Orbit
1 Northrop Grumman
1 India
The U.S. still leads China 11 to 6 in the national rankings.
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A Russian Soyuz rocket tonight successfully launched 38 commercial satellites, most of which were smallsats.
The 2021 launch race:
8 SpaceX
6 China
4 Russia
1 Rocket Lab
1 Virgin Orbit
1 Northrop Grumman
1 India
The U.S. still leads China 11 to 6 in the national rankings.
Readers!
Every February I run a fund-raising drive during my birthday month. This year I celebrate my 72nd birthday, and hope and plan to continue writing and posting on Behind the Black for as long as I am able.
I hope my readers will support this effort. As I did in my November fund-raising drive, I am offering autographed copies of my books for large donations. Donate $250 and you can have a choice of the hardback of either Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8 or Conscious Choice: The origins of slavery in America and why it matters today and for our future in outer space. Donate $200 and you can get an autographed paperback copy of either.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
I like the number of launches, but would a better metric be a total weight amount lifted into space? Individual rocket launches are good, but it is the amount of good done per launch that really impacts the science and benefits of space.
If Space X and NASA just reached an agreement, where are the Russians and Chines in space agreements?
Phill O: The issues covered by this NASA/SpaceX agreement are covered by the Outer Space Treaty.
Isn’t it fascinating (and sad, from my POV) how Western Europe plays no longer a role? Look at their underwhelming attempts to “become competitive” again:
“A little more than a week ago, the European Space Agency announced an initiative to study “future space transportation solutions.” Basically, the agency provided about $600,000, each, to three companies—ArianeGroup, Avio, and Rocket Factory Augsburg—to study competitive launch systems from 2030 onward.”
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/european-leaders-say-an-immediate-response-needed-to-the-rise-of-spacex/
2030 might be a little too ambitious for Europe though.
Pete observed: “I like the number of launches, but would a better metric be a total weight amount lifted into space?”
Have at it.