Monthly Space News Recap - March 2024
Top 5 of the month's most interesting space updates
ISRO announces Gaganyaan astronauts
ISRO selected four Indian Air Force astronauts for its Gaganyaan mission, aiming for India's first manned spaceflight from its soil. The astronauts will participate in the 2025 mission following further tests this year. This marks India's return to human spaceflight after 40 years, since Rakesh Sharma's historic journey in 1984.
Japan’s first private satellite launch fails after explosion
Last month, Space One, a Japanese private space startup, attempted to launch Japan's first-ever private satellite into orbit, but their rocket 'Kairos' exploded moments after liftoff, destroying the satellite. This failure was a significant setback, as success would have marked Space One as the first private Japanese company to achieve satellite deployment.
SpaceX loses contact with Starship minutes before mission completion
In a recent test of SpaceX’s Starship rocket (the largest rocket ever built), the rocket aimed for a flight halfway around the world but experienced a breakup, causing the booster to fail to separate and leading to contact loss. Despite these challenges, SpaceX's progress is crucial for its role in the Artemis mission by 2026, aiming to establish humanity as a multiplanet species.
Russian manned rocket launch aborted seconds before launch
Last month, Russia attempted to launch its Soyuz spacecraft carrying three astronauts to the ISS. However, the rocket launch was aborted seconds before liftoff due to both rocket engines failing to ignite. The mission was postponed, and the crew members were safely evacuated. The launch was successfully conducted two days later.
Japanese lander survives 2nd lunar night
JAXA confirmed that its SLIM lunar lander survived its second night on the moon, a significant achievement given the harsh conditions. Lunar nights are prolonged and frigid, posing challenges without sunlight or atmosphere. This is a great success as missions like Chandrayaan-3, didn't survive a lunar night, highlighting the difficulty of lunar exploration.
