Tag: Launches & Spacecraft

An uncrewed Russian cargo ship successfully docked at the International Space Station early Saturday (Aug. 17) to deliver tons of fresh gear, food and other vital supplies.  The automated Progress 89 spacecraft linked up with the International Space Station (ISS) at 1:53 a.m. EDT (0553 GMT) at the station’s Russian-built Zvezda service module as both spacecraft sailed 260 miles (418 km) over the South Pacific Ocean.  “Contact confirmed, docking confirmed,” NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said during live commentary as the Progress spacecraft arrived. “Progress has reached the International Space Station.” …

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SpaceX launched an epic rideshare mission to space today (Aug. 16). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 116 different satellites launched on the company’s Transporter 11 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 2:56 p.m. EDT (1856 GMT; 11:56 a.m. local time.) The first stage of Falcon 9 landed nearby the launch site roughly eight minutes after liftoff, as seen in the broadcast on X, formerly Twitter. It was the 12th successful flight for the veteran booster. SpaceX is expected to confirm the payload deployments later today. SpaceX Transporter 11 lifts…

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SpaceX sent another group of Starlink satellites to space today (Aug. 10) as the company continues to assemble its giant internet constellation. A Falcon 9 rocket launched 21 Starlink spacecraft to orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida today at 8:50 a.m. EDT (1250 GMT), after a one-day weather delay. As is typical for these missions, the first stage of Falcon 9 made a soft landing back on Earth roughly eight minutes after launch, touching down on the SpaceX droneship Just Read the…

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SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink satellites to orbit early Sunday (Aug. 4), continuing a busy stretch for the company. A Falcon 9 rocket topped with 23 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base on Sunday at 3:24 a.m. EDT (0724 GMT; 12:24 a.m. local California time). The Falcon 9’s first stage returned to Earth about eight minutes after launch as planned, landing on the SpaceX droneship Of Course I Still Love You, which was stationed in the Pacific Ocean.  A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches…

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July 30 LIVE Broadcast: Atlas V USSF-51 – YouTube Watch On United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) venerable Atlas V rocket will fly its final national security mission on Tuesday morning (July 30), and you can watch the action live. The Atlas V is is scheduled to launch from Florida’s Canaveral Space Force Station on Tuesday at 6:45 a.m. EDT (1045 GMT), on a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force called USSF-51.  You can watch it live here at Space.com, courtesy of ULA, or directly via the company. Coverage will begin…

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SpaceX has regained its stride after a failure earlier this month. The company launched two missions on Sunday morning (July 28), lofting batches of its Starlink internet satellites from both coasts atop Falcon 9 rockets less than five hours apart.  The two liftoffs came about 24 hours after a Saturday morning (July 27) Falcon 9 launch, which was the vehicle’s return-to-flight mission after a July 11 failure. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 23 Starlink satellites from Florida on July 28, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX) Sunday’s first launch occurred at…

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The Chinese company iSpace’s launch-success rate has dipped below 50% once again.  iSpace’s seventh Hyperbola-1 rocket lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert on Wednesday (July 10) at 7:40 p.m. EDT (2340 GMT; 7:40 a.m. on July 11 Beijing time), carrying an undisclosed payload toward Earth orbit. But the solid-fueled launcher didn’t make it. “The first, second and third stages of the rocket flew normally, but the fourth stage worked abnormally, and the launch mission failed,” iSpace wrote in an update on Wednesday night. (Translation…

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A highly anticipated NASA astrobiology mission is troubleshooting a serious issue just months before its planned liftoff. The Europa Clipper spacecraft is scheduled to launch this October atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. The robotic explorer will embark upon a $5 billion mission to assess the potential of Europa, an ice-covered ocean moon of Jupiter, to support life as we know it. But that launch date, and the probe’s ability to carry out its ambitious mission, may now be in peril: Mission team members have discovered a problem with Clipper’s…

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The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is requiring an investigation into the recent anomaly suffered by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The issue occurred on Thursday night (July 11), during the launch of 20 Starlink internet satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Falcon 9‘s upper-stage engine failed to complete its second burn as planned, and the spacecraft were deployed into a lower-than-intended orbit as a result, according to SpaceX. SpaceX is looking into the nature and cause of the anomaly, under the supervision of the FAA. “The…

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SpaceX plans to launch 20 more of its Starlink satellites tonight (July 10), including 13 with direct-to-cell capabilities. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Starlink spacecraft is scheduled to lift off tonight from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base, during a four-hour window that opens at 10 p.m. EDT (7 p.m. local California time; 0200 GMT on July 11). SpaceX will livestream the action via its X account; coverage will begin about 15 minutes before launch. The Falcon 9’s first stage will return to Earth tonight, if all goes according to…

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