Q&A with Keith Gendreau, principal investigator of the first X-ray space communications experiment (members only)

Flying for the first time this year, a Proton rocket streaked into space Thursday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan with two Russian Express communications satellites that will beam television, radio and broadband signals across the country.

The Falcon 9 rocket that will launch a Dragon capsule packed with cargo destined for the International Space Station was raised into position at launch complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

The next test of a critical safety system on SpaceX’s human-rated Dragon spaceship will be delayed, likely until some time next year, as the company adjusts the development schedule for the new commercial crew capsule designed to take astronauts to the International Space Station.