Mission Reports – Page 501

August 31, 2025

Breaking News

[ August 30, 2025 ] Live coverage: SpaceX’s Sunday morning Falcon 9 launch will send 1,900th Starlink to orbit in 2025 Falcon 9
[ August 29, 2025 ] SpaceX launches 24 Starlink satellites into polar orbit Falcon 9
[ August 29, 2025 ] NASA, NOAA prep spacecraft trio to study the Sun and its impacts Mission Reports
[ August 27, 2025 ] SpaceX launches record-breaking 30th flight of a Falcon 9 booster Falcon 9
[ August 27, 2025 ] SpaceX completes 400th Falcon booster landing on a drone ship Mission Reports

Engine turbopump eyed in Antares launch failure

November 5, 2014 Stephen Clark

With investigators zeroing in on a decades-old rocket engine as the cause of a catastrophic launch mishap, Orbital Sciences officials said the company plans to use other launchers to send cargo to the International Space Station while modifying its Antares rocket with a new propulsion system.

Station astronaut calls private spaceflight ‘next breakthrough’

November 3, 2014 William Harwood

Space station astronaut Reid Wiseman, preparing to return to Earth this weekend after 165 days in orbit, said commercial spaceflight represents the “next breakthrough” in aerospace technology, and that he hopes Virgin Galactic can ultimately turn that dream into reality despite the fatal crash of the company’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane.

Photos: Atlas 5 soars into space with GPS satellite

November 2, 2014 Justin Ray

It was a beautiful blue sky day for the 50th Atlas 5 rocket launch, which successfully blasted off Wednesday from Cape Canaveral to deploy the GPS 2F-8 navigation satellite.

First stage propulsion system is early focus of Antares investigation

October 31, 2014 Stephen Clark

The first sign of failure during the doomed launch of an Orbital Sciences Corp. Antares rocket from Virginia came from the rocket’s first stage about 15 seconds after liftoff.

Initial damage assessment shows Antares pad intact

October 31, 2014 Stephen Clark

Initial inspections of the Antares rocket’s launch pad in Virginia revealed the facility escape major damage after sustaining nearly a direct hit from the booster as it fell to the ground in flames seconds after liftoff.

Orbital Sciences hopes to quickly find cause of rocket failure

October 30, 2014 William Harwood

A day after an explosion that destroyed an Orbital Sciences Antares rocket carrying a space station cargo ship, officials said Wednesday they hope to zero in on the likely cause of the mishap within a week or so, based on a detailed review of telemetry, analysis of video and inspection of debris.

An eyewitness account: Wallops Island is burning

October 30, 2014 Stephen Clark

First, you see the rocket sputter, then pause suspended in mid-air and crash back to Earth in a blinding ball of flame. If you still have your wits, you brace for the blast wave.

Rocket cameras dazzle on 50th Atlas 5 rocket launch

October 30, 2014 Justin Ray

Onboard video cameras captured critical events during the 50th Atlas 5 rocket launch, beaming back views in stunning clarity of staging and spacecraft separation.

50th Atlas 5 rocket puts up new GPS satellite

October 29, 2014 Justin Ray

Launching for the 50th time, an Atlas 5 rocket flew a milestone mission Wednesday in deploying a Global Positioning System satellite for the worldwide utility.

Russians launch Progress supply ship to space station

October 29, 2014 William Harwood

Nine hours after a spectacular launch failure that destroyed a U.S. supply ship bound for the International Space Station, the Russians successfully launched a Progress cargo craft from snowy Kazakhstan carrying 5,793 pounds of rocket fuel, water, air, crew supplies and other equipment needed aboard the lab complex.