Launches & Spacecraft – Page 16

SpaceX to launch 23 Starlink satellites from California tonight in 2nd leg of spaceflight doubleheader

March 10, 2024 NeRD

SpaceX will launch 23 more of its Starlink internet satellites from California tonight (March 10), in the second leg of a planned spaceflight doubleheader. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Starlink spacecraft is scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base during a 3.5-hour window that opens tonight at 10:13 p.m. EDT (0213 GMT on March 11). It will be the second Starlink mission in a little over three hours, if all goes according to plan; the company earlier launched 23 of the broadband craft from Florida’s Space Coast…

SpaceX launches 23 Starlink satellites from Florida

March 10, 2024 NeRD

SpaceX launched 23 of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida on Sunday (March 10). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:05 p.m. EDT (2305 GMT). Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night sky The first stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lands on the droneship “Just Read the Instructions” stationed in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday, March 10, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX via X) The Falcon 9’s first stage came back to…

SpaceX fuels up massive Starship megarocket in test for 3rd launch (photos)

March 4, 2024 NeRD

SpaceX’s next Starship to fly has passed a critical fueling test, setting the stage for a highly anticipated third launch attempt of the world’s biggest rocket. The gleaming, stainless-steel Starship rocket and its Super Heavy booster, which together stand 400 feet tall (122 meters), were filled with more than 10 million pounds of liquid methane and liquid oxygen propellant during the recent launch dress rehearsal, which was performed at SpaceX’s Starbase facility near Boca Chica Beach in southern Texas. “Starship Flight 3 preparing for launch,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote…

NASA’s ice-hunting VIPER moon rover getting ready to slither to the launch pad

March 3, 2024 NeRD

NASA’s next moon rover is one step closer to starting its lunar mission. The rolling robot, known as VIPER (“Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover”), is set to launch toward the moon later this year. And it just notched a milestone along that path. “All of VIPER’s flight instruments are installed, and the rover is more than 80% built!” VIPER Project Manager Dan Andrews wrote in a NASA blog post on Wednesday (Feb. 28). “This is a major accomplishment and shows the great progress being made by the dedicated VIPER…

SpaceX to launch Crew-8 astronauts to the space station March 1: Watch live

February 28, 2024 NeRD

What time is the Crew-8 launch? SpaceX is poised to launch three astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut to the International Space Station (ISS) this week on the company’s Crew-8 mission for NASA. The crew members’ spacecraft, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endeavor, will ride atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the historic Launch Complex-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Liftoff is currently scheduled for no earlier than Friday, March 1 at 12:04 a.m. EST (0504 GMT). Crew-8 includes NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick (mission commander), Michael Barratt (mission pilot), Jeanette Epps…

SpaceX to launch 24 Starlink satellites from Florida today

February 24, 2024 NeRD

SpaceX plans to launch 24 of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida today (Feb. 24), on the company’s 18th mission of 2024 already. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 24 Starlink spacecraft is scheduled to lift off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida today during a four-hour window that opens at 4:59 p.m. EST (2159 GMT). You can watch the action live via SpaceX’s X account. Coverage will begin about five minutes before the window opens. Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night…

Watch India launch powerful weather satellite to orbit on Feb. 17

February 16, 2024 NeRD

India plans to launch a powerful weather satellite to orbit on Saturday morning (Feb. 17), and you can watch the action live. The INSAT-3DS satellite is scheduled to lift off atop a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) on Saturday at 7:00 a.m. EST (1200 GMT; 5:30 p.m. local India time) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre on India’s southeast coast. You can watch it live here at Space.com courtesy of the Indian Space Research Organisation, or directly via ISRO. Related: The latest news about India’s space program India’s INSAT-3DS weather and…

SpaceX to launch Intuitive Machines lander Feb. 14 on 2nd try for NASA’s commercial moon program

February 13, 2024 NeRD

Early Wednesday morning (Feb. 14), Intuitive Machines will kick off its quest to become the first private company to make a soft landing on the lunar surface. The Houston-based company is launching its Nova-C lander, named “Odysseus,” to the moon atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Liftoff is currently scheduled for 12:57 a.m. EST (0557 GMT) on Wednesday, Valentine’s Day. The mission was originally slated to launch in January, but bad weather pushed it to this month. SpaceX has a three-day window in…

How to watch SpaceX launch the private Intuitive Machines moon lander IM-1 on Feb. 14 live online

February 11, 2024 NeRD

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a new private lunar lander to the moon for the company Intuitive Machines and NASA this week, and you can watch it live online in a series of free webcasts. Intuitive Machines‘ first Nova-C lander mission, called IM-1, will to launch to the moon on a Falcon 9 rocket Feb. 14 with payloads for NASA and other customers. Liftoff is scheduled for 12:57 a.m. EST (0557 GMT) from NASA’s Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. If all goes well, IM-1…

See SpaceX’s breathtaking launch of NASA’s PACE satellite (photos)

February 9, 2024 NeRD

The SpaceX launch of NASA’s newest Earth observation satellite put on a stunning show for photographers. NASA’s PACE mission (short for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) lifted off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Feb. 8, 2024 at 1:33 a.m. EST (0633 GMT). The nighttime launch provided a perfect opportunity for some gorgeous launch photography, as the following snapshots show. Related: SpaceX launches NASA’s PACE satellite to study Earth’s oceans, air and climate (video) Once operational, PACE will…