December 2023 – Page 3 – Spaceflight Now

SpaceX sends 23 Starlink satellites to orbit on 90th Falcon launch of 2023

December 6, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

A Falcon 9 carrying 23 Starlink satellites lifted off from Cape Canaveral at 12:07 p.m. EST (0507 UTC). This launch marked the 280th Falcon 9 launch to date.

Three robotic missions target Moon landings over one week in January

December 6, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

In a blend of interesting circumstances and happenstance, two private companies and Japan’s space agency are all poised to land on the Moon in the back half of January 2024.

SpaceX conducts static fire test ahead of fifth Falcon Heavy launch of 2023

December 3, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Following two Falcon 9 launches from both California and Florida, SpaceX closed out the first weekend of December with a Falcon Heavy static fire test. The ignition of the 27 Merlin engines comes a week ahead of the planned launch of the U.S. military’s secretive X-37B spaceplane.

SpaceX launches Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral on Starlink mission

December 2, 2023 Spaceflight Now

SpaceX continued a busy weekend with the launch of another batch of Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station late Saturday night. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 occurred at 11:00 p.m. EST (0400 UTC).

Amazon buys three launches from SpaceX for rival internet constellation

December 1, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Tech giant Amazon is adding a fifth rocket to launch its satellite internet constellation. In a surprise move on Friday afternoon, the company announced it purchased three flights aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets to send batched of its Project Kuiper satellites to low Earth orbit.

SpaceX launches ride share mission with South Korean spy satellite, first Irish satellite

December 1, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Kicking off the month of December for SpaceX is a Falcon 9 ride share mission with a payload of 25 spacecraft on board. Liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base with 25 spacecraft occurred at 10:19 a.m. PST (1:19 p.m. EST, 1819 UTC).

Russia launches space station cargo ship

December 1, 2023 William Harwood

A Russian Progress cargo ship loaded with more than 5,500 pounds of supplies and equipment bound for the International Space Station blasted off from Kazakhstan early Friday, kicking off a two-day orbital chase.