Space Almanac

Aug. 1, 2003
Facts, figures, agency and system profiles, budget data, and other information about US and foreign space programs.

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Air Force Global Strike Command Test-Launches Minuteman III

Aug. 16, 2022
Air Force Global Strike Command test-launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile Aug. 16, several days after delaying the test to avoid stoking tensions with China. The launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., took place at 12:49 a.m. Pacific time. The ICBM reentry vehicle traveled approximately 4,200 miles…

Troubled Sri Lanka Seeks to Strengthen Relationship With PACAF and Quad

Aug. 16, 2022
The tiny Indian Ocean island of Sri Lanka has an outsize geostrategic importance, and its military seeks deeper ties with Pacific Air Forces for maritime security and disaster relief while not roiling China, a senior Sri Lankan Air Force official told Air Force Magazine. Rocked by political unrest and financial…

Air Force Official: We‘re ‘Starting to Lose Our Lead’ on Propulsion

Aug. 16, 2022
Reduced competition, over-reliance on legacy systems, and declining funding are all contributing to a “critical inflection point” in propulsion for the Pentagon and industry members—and things are headed in the wrong direction, the director of the Air Force’s propulsion directorate warned. Speaking with reporters at the Life Cycle Industry Days…

Brown Tours Pacific as U.S. and China Hold Dueling Exercises

Aug. 15, 2022
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. had hardly left the Indo-Pacific theater before China flew a joint bomber and fighter mission with U.S. partner Thailand. In nearby Indonesia, the U.S. concluded exercise Garuda Shield alongside Australia, Japan, and Singapore. At each stop, Brown held an all-call…

Air Force F-35 Stand Down Ends After Ejection Seat Inspections

Aug. 15, 2022
Two weeks after standing down its fleet of F-35s to check for potentially faulty parts in the fighters’ ejection seats, the Air Force has mostly completed its inspections and the aircraft has been cleared to resume normal operations, Air Combat Command announced.

Austin Tests Positive for COVID-19 Again—Second Time in Eight Months

Aug. 15, 2022
Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has COVID-19 for the second time in 2022. Austin said in a statement Aug. 15 that he’d tested positive that morning. He was “experiencing mild symptoms” and planned to quarantine at home for five days in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Austin…

F-35 Lot 15 Will Include Up to 129 Fighters, Cost $7.6 Billion

Aug. 15, 2022
Lot 15 of the F-35 fighter will include up to 129 aircraft, including 49 F-35As for the Air Force, and cost up to $7.6 billion. The final contract award came less than a month after the F-35 Joint Program Office and Lockheed Martin announced a “handshake” deal for Lots 15-17…