Astra Prepares for a Historic Launch

Hello fellow space enthusiasts! I am starting school, so my posting schedule might not be as consistent as it is now (to be fair, my schedule was not that consistent to start with). In today's blog, we will go through some upcoming launches.

First things first, let's talk about Astra. Astra is a space company that makes a rocket called... Rocket. Rocket is a small launcher that can launch small payloads. The name for its rocket comes from, well, the thing that goes into space. The name for the company, Astra, comes from the latin word stars. A famous thing to say to an astronaut before launch is "ad astra," meaning to the stars. Rocket has launched three times before, all of which were unsuccessful. During the first launch, the whole rocket wobbled on ascent, which you do not want if you ask me. The second launch went off course, and subsequently shut off its engines and crashed. The third launch was so close to success, but the ratio between fuel and oxidizer was messed up, and the engine shut down seconds early. It was painfully close to orbit, but not close enough. Also, one thing to note, Astra has hired an amazing photographer to take pictures of the launch, and all of the photos are beautiful, especially against the Alaskan background. This launch will carry the STP-27AD1 satellite, made by the DOD (Department of Defense). Because the DOD is a government agency, the information about the payload is classified.

Next up, Blue Origin is preparing to launch experiments on a suborbital trajectory into space. Some of these payloads are very important, including a LIDAR scanner NASA made to study the moon. They will be testing the scanner on the earth during the flight. This scanner is very precise and is made to determine the speed and altitude of a lander landing on the Moon. Several other universities have made experiments like a fuel gauge that works in microgravity, a plant experiment to study plant growth, a fluid dynamics simulator, and some art. To learn more about this and any upcoming launches, please go to the upcoming section.

That's it for today! Have fun spacing, and as always, keep sharing the passion of space with everyone!