June 5, 2017

India's GSLV Mark 3 Goes Operational (Source: The Hindu)
India launched the first GSLV Mark 3 rocket this morning. The rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on schedule at 7:59 a.m. Eastern and initial reports indicated that the rocket was performing as planned though satellite separation. The launch is the first for this new, and more powerful, variant of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, roughly doubling its payload performance. The rocket's payload was the GSAT-19 communications satellite. (6/5)

Blue Origin Factory Worker Injured (Source: Florida Today)
A worker helping build Blue Origin's Florida factory was injured in a fall last month. The electrician, an employee of a construction subcontractor and not Blue Origin, fell from a height of more than six meters and was airlifted to an Orlando hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. The accident, just before the Memorial Day weekend, briefly halted work on the factory, but activities resumed after the long weekend except where the accident took place. Blue Origin is building the factory to manufacture its New Glenn launch vehicle. (6/5)

Turkish Company Entering Launch Business with New Rocket (Source: SpaceWatch Middle East)
A Turkish company said it plans to develop its own launch vehicle. Roketsan said last month it is pursuing development of the Satellite Launch System, a rocket designed to place payloads of unspecified mass into low Earth orbits. The rocket would be "independently funded" but offered to the Turkish government for use launching its own satellites. The company did not disclose a schedule for the rocket's development. (6/5)

A Coming Communications Crunch at Mars (Source: Space Review)
A new wave of missions is bound for the Red Planet in the next several years. Cody Knipfer describes how those missions could face challenges returning their data due to limited infrastructure, notably aging relays in Mars orbit. Click here. (6/5)
 
Is it Time to Update the Outer Space Treaty? (Source: Space Review)
One key US senator has said it’s time to examine revising the 50-year-old Outer Space Treaty to reflect modern space activities. Jeff Foust reports that many legal experts and company executives are not eager to go down that path. Click here. (6/5)
 
Considering Next-Generation Commercial Spacesuits (Source: Space Review)
Current spacesuits used for space station spacewalks may be inadequate for future applications, particularly in the commercial sector. Steve Hoeser examines a past approach for developing an alternative spacesuit that could provide a model for future efforts. Click here. (6/5)
 
Summer is Coming: Albedo Modification and the Global Temperature Auction (Source: Space Review)
One approach to combatting climate change is “albedo modification” through the use of a sunscreen at the Earth-Sun L-1 Lagrange point. John Hickman writes how spacefaring powers could win support for it from other nations in an approach like an auction. Click here. (6/5)