Satellite that uses magnets to clean up space junk will launch tomorrow

The world’s first satellite that uses magnets to gather up space junk will launch tomorrow morning.  The craft, called ELSA-d and made by Japanese firm Astroscale, will blast off from Kazakhstan aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket at 6.07am GMT on Saturday (March 20). The 200kg craft consists of two components that will perform a series of tests in … Read more

New GPS satellite tags will be used to monitor burglars for 12 months after they are freed

New GPS tags will be used to monitor 250 burglars, thieves and robbers round-the-clock for up to a year after they are freed from jail in a £6million trial. Six police forces in England will pilot the use of electronic tags with satellite-tracking capability on offenders when they are released from prison so officers can … Read more

UK residents test Elon Musk’s ‘amazing’ satellite broadband service

People in rural parts of the UK who are testing SpaceX‘s Starlink satellite broadband network have responded positively, with one user calling the service ‘amazing’.  UK users have reported huge jumps in speed after switching to Starlink, which is operated by SpaceX – the firm owned by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk – and powered by … Read more

SpaceX opens pre-orders for Starlink satellite internet allowing the public to place a $99 deposit

SpaceX is accepting pre-orders from the public for its Starlink satellite internet. The Elon Musk-owned firm announced potential customers can enter their service address on its website and place a $99 deposit, which covers the first month of usage. Users opting in have received messages saying SpaceX is ‘targeting coverage in your area in mid to … Read more

Elon Musk’s SpaceX reveals Starlink satellite internet network has ‘over 10,000 users’ worldwide

SpaceX began its public beta program for its Starlink satellite internet last October and according to a public filing, the service now has ‘over 10,000 users in the US and abroad.’ ‘Starlink’s performance is not theoretical or experiment… [and] is rapidly accelerating in real time as part of its public beta program,’ SpaceX wrote in … Read more

Images taken by US satellite that spied on Russia during the Cold War are being used to study Earth

The Corona Project was a classified US military mission comprised of a satellite tasked with spying on Russia during the Cold War and decades later, it is producing vital environmental data. Although inadvertently, the satellite captured nearly one million images of Earth’s landscape during the 1960s and 1970s, which scientists can use to see how … Read more

Satellite images reveal one-third of US rivers have changed in color from blue to green and yellow

Thousands of rivers across the US have significantly changed color over the last 36 years, a new study reveals. A team from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill analyzed 235,000 satellite images taken from 1984 through 2018 and found one-third of rivers have transitioned from blue to green and yellow. More than half … Read more

Satellite images capture North Korean soldiers standing in formation

A North Korean parade has spelled out the message ‘defend with your life’ in a Pyongyang square in an apparent rehearsal ahead of a party congress in January.   Satellite imagery showed the propaganda phrase being spelled out in Korean by people standing in formation and holding up red placards in Kim Il-sung Square.  The think-tank … Read more

Space: Japan to launch first WOODEN satellite by 2023 that will burn up completely on re-entry 

Japan to launch first WOODEN satellite by 2023 that will burn up completely on re-entry without releasing harmful particles into the atmosphere Lightweight and durable, aluminium is the major component of today’s satellites However, when disintegrated during re-entry it releases particles of alumina These stay in the air for years and can react with and … Read more

Surveillance: US spy satellite launched into orbit atop Delta IV Heavy rocket after delays 

Following months of delays, a mysterious and classified US spy satellite has been launched into orbit around the Earth on top of a massive Delta IV Heavy rocket. Blast off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, took place shortly after 8pm EST yesterday evening, carrying its payload for the US National Reconnaissance Office. Experts have speculated — based on … Read more