October 2021 – Page 3 – Spaceflight Now

Under watchful eye of NASA, teams prep for final Ariane 5 flight before Webb

October 23, 2021 Stephen Clark

Arianespace is counting down to the blastoff of an Ariane 5 rocket Saturday night from French Guiana, the final flight of Europe’s workhorse launcher before NASA and the European Space Agency entrust it to launch the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope.

Musk says Starship may be ready for orbital launch next month, but FAA review continues

October 22, 2021 Stephen Clark

Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of SpaceX, said Friday the company’s huge new Starship rocket may be ready for its first orbital test launch from South Texas as soon as November, but the schedule comes with two big uncertainties that could push the launch to next year.

NASA targets February launch for Artemis 1 moon mission

October 22, 2021 Stephen Clark

With NASA’s powerful new 322-foot-tall moon rocket fully stacked at Kennedy Space Center, managers said Friday that Feb. 12 is the soonest the unpiloted Artemis 1 mission could blast off toward lunar orbit, a date that hinges on the outcome of a critical fueling test on the launch pad in January.

Images: Atlas 5 blasts off with NASA’s Lucy asteroid mission

October 22, 2021 Stephen Clark

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket streaked into space from Cape Canaveral before dawn Oct. 16 with NASA’s Lucy asteroid mission, a robotic probe to explore a group of enigmatic asteroids leading and trailing Jupiter in its orbit around the sun.

Ariane 5 launch delayed for more ground systems checks

October 22, 2021 Stephen Clark

Arianespace delayed the launch from French Guiana of a European Ariane 5 rocket with two geostationary communications satellites Friday to conduct more checks of ground support equipment at the spaceport. The mission, set to loft payloads for SES and the French military, is the final Ariane 5 flight before a mission in December with the James Webb Space Telescope.

Progress cargo ship relocated to new module at International Space Station

October 22, 2021 Stephen Clark

A Russian Progress supply ship docked with the new Nauka lab module at the International Space Station Friday, completing a 29-hour free flight after detaching from a different port at the complex. The relocation positions the Progress spacecraft to assist with leak checks of the Nauka module’s propulsion system.

South Korean rocket fails to reach orbit on inaugural test flight

October 21, 2021 Stephen Clark

South Korea’s first domestically produced satellite launcher failed to reach orbit on its inaugural test flight Thursday. A preliminary review of data indicated the rocket’s third stage shut down early, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute said.

Rocket Lab’s next launch will include booster recovery experiment

October 21, 2021 Stephen Clark

Rocket Lab said this week that its next mission, set for launch Nov. 10 after delays caused by a coronavirus lockdown in New Zealand, will include the company’s third booster recovery experiment. For the first time, Rocket Lab plans to have a helicopter in the downrange recovery zone to observe the descending booster in preparation for future mid-air catch attempts.

Stacking of Orion spacecraft caps assembly of first Artemis moon rocket

October 21, 2021 Stephen Clark

Technicians at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center worked overnight Wednesday to tighten 360 bolts connecting the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 1 moon mission to the first Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket, hours after a crane hoisted the deep space capsule atop the booster inside the Vehicle Assembly Building.

South Korean satellite launcher set for first test flight

October 20, 2021 Stephen Clark

South Korea’s new three-stage, liquid-fueled Nuri launcher is scheduled to blast off Thursday on the country’s first attempt to place an object into orbit with an entirely homegrown rocket.