Space Calendar April 2023: Happenings in Space

These dates are subject to change. Launch dates are taken from Space.com.

April 6: The full moon of April, known as the Pink Moon, will arrive at 12:34 a.m. EDT (0534 GMT).

April 7: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Intelsat 40e communications satellite for Intelsat from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.

April 8: A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket will launch a new-generation Boeing-built broadband satellite ViaSat 3 Americas. The launch is scheduled for 6:25 p.m. EDT (2225 GMT) from Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

April 9: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Transporter 7 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The rideshare mission will take several small microsatellites and nanosatellites into sun-synchronous orbit.

April 13: Arianespace will use an Ariane 5 ECA rocket to launch the European Space Agency's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer mission, known as JUICE. The mission will observe Jupiter along with its three large moons Ganymede, Callisto and Europa. The spacecraft will enter the orbit of the Jovian system in July 2031. The launch is scheduled for 8:25 a.m. EDT (1215 GMT) from Kourou, French Guiana. You can watch the launch live on Space.com.

April 20: The new moon will arrive at 12:12 a.m. EDT (0512 GMT).

April 20: A rare hybrid solar eclipse will occur today. The solar eclipse will be visible to observers across southeast Asia and Australia.

April 20: A United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket will launch a classified spy satellite cargo for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.

April 21: A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket will launch a Cygnus cargo freighter on a flight to the International Space Station.

April 22: The Lyrid meteor shower peaks tonight! The shower is active between April 16 and April 25 each year.

Source: SPACE.com