据国有媒体报道，配备类似章鱼触手的柔性机械臂的 Hukeda-2 商用卫星于周一发射，旨在进行低轨加油测试。该卫星由湖南科技大学和苏州三元航天科技有限公司联合开发，将模拟从接近到模拟转移的完整加油过程。
周一，中国发射了 Hukeda-2 商用卫星，该卫星配备了一种新型柔性机械臂，用于测试低轨加油技术。国有媒体报道，这种机械臂“不像空间站上常用的刚性机械臂，而是设计得更像大象鼻子或章鱼触手。它能沿长度平滑弯曲，更灵活，更能适应接近目标的过程。”该卫星由湖南科技大学和苏州三元航天科技有限公司联合开发，将进行一系列模拟加油测试，包括接近、识别、对接和模拟转移的全过程。此外，Hukeda-2 还将测试一种轨道碎片解决方案，机载装置可膨胀成直径约 2.5 米（8 英尺）的超轻球体。通过大幅增加大气阻力，研究人员希望那些原本需数十年才能返回大气层并烧毁的卫星能在一年内再入大气层。随着 SpaceX 的 Starlink 等巨型星座数量增加，此类技术将有助于延长卫星寿命、更高效管理轨道空间并降低太空运营成本。三元航天研发负责人程磊表示，在轨加油技术“能够改变太空经济”。
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South Korea's Compact Advanced Satellite (CAS) 500-2 successfully launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The satellite entered low-Earth orbit and made first contact with a ground station in Norway. The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) confirmed it is operating normally.
China launched a satellite group on Tuesday to form part of a commercial low-orbit network called the Spacesail Constellation.
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China has completed a metal 3D printing test in orbit aboard its Qingzhou prototype spacecraft, the Chinese Academy of Sciences said Monday, marking progress in space-based manufacturing. Researchers remotely activated the system from the ground, with the payload meeting its objectives as planned. The technology is seen as key for future missions, enabling astronauts to produce and repair parts in space.
NASA has delayed the Artemis II mission to April 1 following a helium flow problem that rolled the rocket back from the pad, building on prior fixes for hydrogen leaks during fueling tests. This first crewed lunar orbit since 1972 faces ongoing maintenance before returning to the launch site.
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NASA's Van Allen Probe A satellite, launched in 2012 to study Earth's radiation belts, is set to reenter the atmosphere early this week after running out of fuel in 2019. The agency has approved a safety waiver due to the reentry's risk exceeding government standards, though the chance of harm remains low at 1 in 4,200. Most of the 1,323-pound spacecraft will burn up, with some debris potentially reaching the surface.