October 2025 – Page 2 – Spaceflight Now

SpaceX launches 28 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg

October 18, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The Starlink 11-19 mission was SpaceX’s 50th launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in 2025. Liftoff from pad Space Launch Complex 4 East happened at 12:24 p.m. PDT (3:24 p.m. EDT / 1924 UTC).

SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 rocket on record-breaking 31st flight

October 18, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The Starlink 10-17 mission added another 28 broadband satellites into low Earth orbit. SpaceX achieved liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 1:39 p.m. EDT (1739 UTC) towards the end of Sunday’s four-hour launch window.

Orion spacecraft arrives at VAB ahead of stacking for Artemis 2

October 17, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

This is the first spacecraft that will carry humans on a mission to the Moon since 1972. The Artemis 2 mission is scheduled for no earlier than Feb. 5, 2026.

SpaceX sends 28 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit in predawn launch

October 15, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The Starlink 10-52 mission was SpaceX’s 130th Falcon 9 launch of the year. The rocket’s liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened Thursday, Oct. 16, at 5:27 a.m. EDT (0927 UTC).

SpaceX launches 2nd batch of satellites for Space Development Agency following weather scrub

October 14, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The mission, dubbed Tranche 1 Transporter Layer C, will add another 21 satellites into the burgeoning constellation for the Space Development Agency. Liftoff from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base happened Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 4:06 p.m. PDT (7:06 p.m. EDT / 2306 UTC).

Rocket Lab launches 7th StriX Earth observation satellites for Japan-based Synspective

October 14, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The ‘Owl New World’ mission was the 13th orbital Electron launch of 2025. The synthetic aperture radar satellite was deployed into a circular low Earth orbit roughly 50 minutes after liftoff from Mahia, New Zealand.

SpaceX launches final Version 2 Starship-Super Heavy rocket

October 14, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

This was the fifth and final flight of this iteration of the rocket, which has been marred by a number of setbacks. The first Starship Version 3 is expected to debut in 2026.

SpaceX launches 24 Amazon Kuiper satellites following days of weather delays

October 13, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The launch came following several stormy days across Florida’s Space Coast. Liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force happened at 9:58 p.m. EDT (0158 UTC).

Launch preview: SpaceX to launch final Version 2 Starship-Super Heavy from Starbase

October 12, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The mission is also projected to be the final launch of the Starship program for the year. Liftoff is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. CDT (7:15 p.m. EDT / 2315 UTC).

U.S. Space Force picks Blue Origin bid for expanding satellite processing at Cape Canaveral

October 9, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

This is the second award from the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Space Vehicle (SV) Processing Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) contract. Blue Origin will receive $78.25 million for the work.