planet4589 (Jonathan McDowell)

@planet4589
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Astronomer at (but not speaking for) the Center for Astrophysics - Harvard and Smithsonian, working on Chandra, commenting on space launches. Somerville, MA. Orbital Police. All plots/images CC-BY
https://planet4589.org/jcm/index.htmlhttps://planet4589.org/jcm/index.html
CRISIS - The DISH is not open Tuesday evenings!
Looks like it will have to be the Royal Oak in Didcot?
Hey UK space fans! I'll be doing a pub meetup next Tuesday:
The DISH, Harwell
5.30- 6.30pm GMT Tues Nov 21
during my lightning flyby of the UK. (Apologies to all my friends that I don't have time to visit on this trip).
Let me know if you are planning to make it.
Daniel Parrott at Siding Spring observatory, Australia managed to observe the separation of the sample return capsule from OSIRIS-REX: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjoWdUX8jHY
OSIRIS-REx Separation Event

YouTube
OSIRIS-REX sample return capsule (SRC) target landing site is in Utah at about 113 25W 40 20 N
I estimate the OSIRIS REX reentry path passes over San Fran at about 0742 PDT (1442 UTC) at an altitude of around 120 km
OSIRIS-REX was launched in Sep 2016 on an Atlas V rocket from Canaveral to a 0.78 x 1.17 AU solar orbit; it arrived at asteroid (101955) Bennu in Oct 2018, collected samples in Oct 2020, and departed Bennu for the return trip to Earth in Apr 2021. Welcome home O-REX!
Russia's Luna-25 probe fired its engine a bit too long and ended up with negative perilune; it impacted the lunar surfact on Aug 19 near the crater Pontecoulant G.
The Russian Luna-25 probe carried out its lunar insertion burn at 0857 UTC Aug 16 and is now in lunar orbit, according to Izvestiya: Meanwhile, the Fregat stage from the Luna-25 launch has passed a few thousand km from the Moon and is now heading either for deep Earth orbit or solar orbit; unfortunately, its trajectory is not known.
Recent space launches summarized in Jonathan's Space Report at https://planet4589.org/jsr.html
Jonathan's Space Report - Latest Issue

Jonathan's Space Report | Current Issue

I'm trying to make sense of the various Chinese LEO communications satellite systems, particularly some of the recent test sats. Draft table at https://planet4589.org/space/misc/cncon.html
Any comments/corrections from experts?