Meer dan 50 jaar geleden zocht Europa onafhankelijkheid op het vlak van lanceerders. Die onafhanklijkheid begon in december 1979 met de eerste lancering van een Ariane-raket. Met Ariane IV en Ariane V werd de raket ook een commercieel succes. Tot SpaceX en Falcon 9 op kruissnelheid kwamen. Vega C en Ariane VI moeten het antwoord zijn maar beide programma’s zitten in de problemen. En het Europese ruimtevaartagentschap moet nu aan SpaceX vragen om zijn satellieten te  lanceren. En dat allemaal in 2023 waar de eerste jaarhelft een record aantal lanceringen kent. Dat en nog veel meer in het Nieuws Uit De Ruimtevaart.

Bij de foto: De laatste lancering van een Ariane V, het einde van een tijdperk. ESA - S. Corvaja

04.07.2023 – Laatste Ariane V lanceert twee Europese satellieten.
Arianespace: Flight 261: Postponement of the launch.
ESA: Ariane 5 bows out in style: dual payloads, perfect delivery.
Thales Group: Syracuse 4B military communication satellite successfully launched.
DLR: Final Ariane 5 flight will carry German communications satellite into space.

Spaceflight Now: The last European Ariane 5 rocket arrives at the launch pad for its final countdown.
Spaceflight Now: Europe’s workhorse Ariane 5 rocket to retire after 27 years service.
NSF: Goodbye to the Ariane 5, the ‘Swiss Knife’ of Europe’s launch industry.
Collect Space: Ariane 5, Europe's 'workhorse' rocket, launches for the last time.
Space News: Ariane 5 launches for the final time.

Spaceflight Now: Ending an era, Europe launches its final Ariane 5 rocket.
SpaceCom: The top 10 Ariane 5 rocket launches of all time.
SpaceRef: Ariane 5’s Final Flight – A Look Back as Ariane 6’s Costly Succession Looms.
SpaceCom: When will Ariane 6 fly? Europe's new heavy-lift rocket battles delays as Ariane 5 era ends.
Space News: Europe leans on SpaceX to bridge launcher gap.

De Standaard: Europees paradepaardje Ariane 5 met succes gelanceerd voor laatste vlucht.*
De Morgen: Europa nam vannacht niet alleen afscheid van Ariane 5, maar ook van een glansrijk ruimtevaarttijdperk.

European Spaceflight: What does the future hold for the Guiana Space Center?

Filmpjes:
Arianespace: VIP Pass – Ariane 5 VA261 | Final steps before launch I Arianespace (het buitenrollen van de raket naar het lanceerpad).
Arianespace: Flight VA261 | Heinrich-Hertz-Satellit & SYRACUSE 4B | Ariane 5 | Arianespace.
SciNews: The last Ariane 5 is ready for launch.
SciNews: The last Ariane 5 launch.

ESA start onderzoek naar mislukte Vega C Zafiro 40 test.
European Spaceflight: ESA Launch Independent Enquiry Commission to Investigate Vega C Z40 Test Failure.

07.07.2023 – SpaceX lanceert Starlink-satellieten.
Spaceflight Now: West Coast launch puts 48 more Starlink internet satellites in orbit.
Tesmanian: Twelve-times-flown Falcon 9 launches 48 SpaceX Starlink satellites from California’s Coast.

Filmpjes:
SpaceX: Starlink Mission.
SciNews: SpaceX Starlink 90 launch and Falcon 9 first stage landing, 7 July 2023.

Wordt  – bij tweede poging – Zhuque 2 de eerste methalox die een baan om de Aarde haalt?
Space News: China’s Landspace set for second methalox rocket launch.
ECNS: LandSpace to launch methane-propelled rocket.

Chandrayaan-3 – Lancering van India’s nieuwste maansonde met dagje uitgesteld.
WeatherCom: Chandrayaan-3 Launch: ISRO Integrates Lunar Spacecraft With LVM3 Rocket at Sriharikota.
The Economic Times: ISRO moon mission: Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft integrated with launch vehicle.
The Times of India: With days left for Chandrayaan-3 mission launch, spacecraft mated with rocket.
SpaceCom: India to launch Chandrayaan 3 moon lander and rover on July 13 (video, photos).The Times of India: Chandrayaan 3 launch on July 14; August 23-24 prefereed landing sites.

Blue Origin wil ook buiten de USA lanceren
Payload: Blue Origin Plans to Build an International Launch Site.
TechCrunch: Blue Origin eyes international expansion.

NSF: Blue Update: New Glenn testing hardware at the cape as New Shepard closes in on return to flight.

Noordkoreaanse spionagesatelliet beantwoordde niet aan zijn opdracht.
Interesting Engineering: Failed DPRK satellite was not fit for purpose, investigators find.
The Rising Nepal: NKorean satellite wasn’t advanced enough to conduct reconnaissance from space, Seoul says.

ISS – De blogentries, Daily Summary Reports en Science Highlights.
NASA ISS Blog: Crew Starts Week With Experiment Preps, Daily Exercise and System Maintenance.
NASA ISS Blog:  Station Reboost, Food Physiology, and Hearing Assessments for Crew Mid-Week.
NASA ISS Blog: Food Physiology Science, Station Upgrades Continue and CubeSats Deployed.
NASA ISS Blog: Crew Ends Week Continuing Station Upgrades.

NASA: ISS Daily Summary Report – 30/06/2023.
NASA: ISS Daily Summary Report – 03/07/2023.
NASA: ISS Daily Summary Report – 05/07/2023.
NASA: ISS Daily Summary Report – 06/07/2023.

Space Station Science Highlights: - Deze week geen aflevering.

ISS – Crew 7.
SpaceCom: SpaceX, NASA targeting Aug. 15 for launch of Crew-7 astronaut mission.

ISS – Meer nieuws uit het ruimtestation.
ESA: Commanding role for Andreas in space.
ESA: Chocolate heaven.

CNN: Astronaut’s history-making mission is the latest step for a nation with grand space ambitions.
TASS: ISS to see shake-up after 2030 — Roscosmos CEO.

Filmpjes:
NASA: Space to Ground: At the Half: July 7, 2023.
NASA: Expedition 69 Astronaut Woody Hoburg Talks with Robot Brains Podcast - July 5, 2023.

CSS – Nieuws uit het Chinese ruimtestation.
Inside Outer Space: China Space Station: New Configurations in Coming Months.

Artemis 2.
Executive Gov: Artemis II SLS Mission Flight Software Passes 1st Phase of Qualification Testing.
America Space: Return to the Moon: NASA Prepares for Artemis 2.
SpaceCom: Artemis 2 astronaut Jeremy Hansen says a Canadian will walk on the moon one day.

Filmpje
CSA: CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen’s journey to the Moon.

Artemis – Naar de Maan en Mars.
Florida Today: Artemis astronauts spending summer in the classroom training for mission to the moon.
SpaceCom: Robotic 'Light Bender' on the moon could help Artemis astronauts keep the lights on.

Starship – In afwachting van de tweede testvlucht (met B9 en S25).
Space Ref: SpaceX Plans Hot Staging on Next Starship Flight.
NSF: FAA, SpaceX Seek to Have Starbase Lawsuit Dismissed.
NSF: SpaceX focuses on launch site readiness ahead of Starship Flight 2.
The Register: SpaceX says, sure, Starship blew up but you can forget about the rest of that lawsuit.
Parabolic Arc: FAA, SpaceX Seek to Have Starbase Lawsuit Dismissed.

Filmpjes:
Marcus House: SpaceX Drops Bombshell Upgrade Announcement: Can it really be that good?
Engineering Today: SpaceX's much-awaited "WATER DELUGE" hardware has arrived at the Starship Launch Complex.
Lab Padre: SpaceX Continues Rapid Starship Development and Testing Ahead of Launch - Starbase Weekly Update #69.
NSF: Starbase Update: SpaceX's Incredible Progress Toward Starship's 2nd Integrated Launch.
NSF: OLM Deluge Plate Rolled Out for Installation | SpaceX Boca Chica.
NSF: Is Raptor Reliable? - SpaceX's Starship Rocket Engine.

Maan – De toekomst van LRO.
SpaceCom: This NASA probe has been revealing stunning moon views for 14 years. How long will it last?

Nieuws uit de (inter)planetaire ruimte.

Ruimteweer:
TASS: Arctic Floating University studies how space weather affects satellites.

Zon: 
VRT NWS: "Stormseizoen" op de zon is volop aan de gang: moeten we ongerust zijn?

Aarde:
ESA: Inslaande bliksem vastgelegd door Europa's eerste Lightning Imager.
ESA: European satellite strikes lightning.
ESA (filmpje): Striking lightning from 36 000 km away.
NASA (filmpje): How Did Life Begin on Earth? We Asked a NASA Expert.
Space Capital (filmpje): Bridging the Gap: Synthetic Data's Role in Advancing AI.
Space News: HawkEye 360 satellites to monitor illegal fishing in Pacific Islands.

Maan:
Universe Today: NASA's VIPER Rover's First Moments on the Moon Might Be its Most Terrifying.

Mars:
NASA Curiosity Status Report: Sols 3876-3879: Bumpy Road Ahead.
NASA Curiosity Status Report: Sols 3880-3881: Heading Toward a Cluster of Craters.
Inside Outer Space: Mars Helicopter: Flight 52 Photos.
Ars Technica: Mars has liquid guts and strange insides, InSight suggests.
Inside Outer Space: Japan’s Martian Moons Explorer, Rover Progress.
Universe Today: Amazing Video Takes Flight Across the Dunes of Mars.

Jupiter:
ESA: Solving the RIME deployment mystery

Bennu:
NASA: NASA Hosts OSIRIS-REx Sample Lab Media Day in Houston.

Nog dit – Lanceerrecords voor SpaceX en China. Ook Rusland doet gewoon voort.
Tesmanian: Record-Breaking Pace: SpaceX closes 2nd Quarter of 2023 with 43 Launches, Averaging One Every 4.2 Days.

CCTV (filmpje): China Completes Record-Breaking 25 Space Launches in H1 2023.

TASS: Russia’s 2023 space launch program proceeds as planned without disruptions — Roscosmos CEO.
TASS: Launch program for 2023 on schedule, undisrupted — Russian space chief.

Om af te ronden – Een standbeeld voor Sally Ride.
Collect Space: Reagan Library unveils statue and debuts song to honor Sally Ride.

Veel lees- en kijkplezier,

Koen