Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Vega rocket with the European Space Agency’s Intermediate Experimental Vehicle. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter.
Falcon 9
SpaceX sets Dec. 16 for first flight since launch pad explosion
The first 10 satellites in Iridium’s next-generation mobile voice and data network could head into orbit from California as soon as Dec. 16 on SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 flight since a booster exploded on its launch pad at Cape Canaveral in September, grounding the commercial launcher more than three months.
Mission Reports
Galileo launch failure blamed on frozen Fregat fuel line
A design flaw in a Russian Fregat upper stage was responsible for the botched orbital injection of two European Galileo navigation satellites in August, causing hydrazine fuel to freeze inside the rocket’s maneuvering system and rendering it unable to point in the right direction during a critical engine burn.