Space Brief 11 Feb 2025
Today's highlights include the debut of a new Chinese rocket, a successful Starlink launch, and concerns about Artemis 3. We also cover DoD developments and a notable SpaceX milestone.
Launch Date
April 8, 1970
Launch Site
AFWTR
Launch Pad
SLC2E
Launch Vehicle
Thorad SLV-2G Agena D
NORAD ID
04753
International Designator
1970-025DB
Epoch
Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:49:38 GMT
Apogee
Calculating...
Perigee
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Inclination
100.00°
Right Ascension
317.33°
Eccentricity
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Argument of Perigee
252.65°
Period
103.97 min
Mean Motion
13.85 rev/day
Latitude
Calculating...
Longitude
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Altitude
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Velocity
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Name
THORAD AGENA D DEB
Alternative Name
deb Agena D
Type
Status
Owner
GSFC
Country
United States
Constellation
N/A
Related Satellites
Major Events
N/A
1 04753U 70025DB 26185.07614221 .00001161 00000-0 10713-2 0 9991
2 04753 99.9952 317.3288 0005818 252.6529 107.3988 13.84965423805182
Source: Celestrak
Length
0
Diameter
0
Span
0
Dry Mass
0
Launch Mass
0
Shape
N/A
Radar Cross Section
0.0778
Visual Magnitude
Unknown
Color
Unknown
Material Composition
Unknown
Payload
Unknown
Purpose
Unknown
Mission
Unknown
Manufacturer
Unknown
Life Expectancy
Unknown
Bus
Unknown
Configuration
Unknown
Motor
Unknown
Equipment
Unknown
Power System
Unknown
ADCS
Unknown
Transmitter Frequency
Unknown
Learn more about satellites and other related topics.
Today's highlights include the debut of a new Chinese rocket, a successful Starlink launch, and concerns about Artemis 3. We also cover DoD developments and a notable SpaceX milestone.
Today's briefing covers a DARPA award for Redwire's innovative satellite project, Ursa Major's expansion in defense engines, a Rocket Lab military test flight, and more.
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SpaceX achieves significant milestones with the launch of 28 Starlink satellites and the final landing of the LZ-1 pad, marking key moments in their ongoing mission to expand satellite connectivity.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 launches 119 payloads on Transporter-16, the 21st smallsat rideshare mission, from Vandenberg SFB at 1102 UTC.
AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird constellation is a bet that raw aperture size wins. Each satellite unfolds a 64-square-meter phased-array antenna in orbit, the largest commercial antenna ever deployed. The company claims a stock smartphone on the ground can connect directly to it. The competition says the physics doesn't support that. Seventeen satellites in and a contract with AT&T, Verizon, and Vodafone, somebody's math is wrong.
SpaceX officially merged with Elon Musk's xAI under the SpaceXAI brand, while a Falcon 9 lofted 81 rideshare payloads from Vandenberg on July 7.