News – Page 247 – Spaceflight Now

February 19, 2026

Breaking News

[ February 17, 2026 ] NASA to attempt second full fueling test of its Space Launch System rocket Artemis
[ February 15, 2026 ] SpaceX launches predawn Starlink mission on President’s Day Falcon 9
[ February 15, 2026 ] Replacement crew docks at space station, boosts crew back to seven Mission Reports
[ February 14, 2026 ] SpaceX launches 600th Falcon 9 rocket to date with Starlink flight from Vandenberg Falcon 9
[ February 14, 2026 ] ‘Very lucky day’: NASA, SpaceX ace astronaut launch to the space station on Friday the 13th Falcon 9

Scientists release new view from OSIRIS-REx’s asteroid smash and grab

November 2, 2020 Stephen Clark

Scientists say the touch and go landing by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft on an asteroid last month revealed fresh insights into the structure of loose rocks that may cover the surfaces of many small planetary bodies — material that is more akin to a playground ball pit than solid bedrock.

Live coverage: Atlas 5 launch delayed to Nov. 13

November 2, 2020 Stephen Clark

The Atlas 5 was rolled off launch pad 41 to take shelter in the Vertical Integration Facility because of the threat from Tropical Depression Eta. United Launch Alliance has said it is delaying the launch until Nov. 13 at 5:13 p.m. EST (2213 GMT).

Good weather expected for twilight Atlas 5 launch Tuesday

November 1, 2020 Stephen Clark

Forecasters predict a 90% chance of good weather for liftoff of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral just after sunset Tuesday with a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency.

International Space Station offers ‘blueprint’ for exploration, first crew says

November 1, 2020 Stephen Clark

Bill Shepherd, a former Navy SEAL-turned astronaut who arrived at the International Space Station 20 years ago Monday to begin the continuous occupancy of the orbiting research outpost, says the experience gained by NASA and its global partners over the last two decades provides a blueprint for missions to the moon, Mars, and beyond.

SpaceX test-fires Falcon 9 rocket before GPS launch

October 31, 2020 Stephen Clark

SpaceX test-fired a Falcon 9 rocket at Cape Canaveral on Saturday in a pre-flight checkout designed to verify the launcher’s engines are ready to loft a U.S. military GPS navigation satellite into orbit Nov. 5. An engine problem forced SpaceX to abort a launch attempt in early October.

Asteroid samples sealed in OSIRIS-REx return capsule

October 29, 2020 Stephen Clark

A collection chamber that could contain more than 2 pounds of samples gathered from an asteroid in deep space last week has been sealed inside of a return capsule on NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to bring the extraterrestrial specimens back to Earth in 2023, officials announced Thursday.

Rocket Lab successfully launches satellites for Planet and Canon

October 28, 2020 Stephen Clark

An experimental satellite for Canon Electronics and nine Earth-imaging CubeSats for Planet fired into orbit from New Zealand on Wednesday on top of a Rocket Lab Electron booster, taking the place of similar spacecraft destroyed in a Rocket Lab launch failure in July.

OSIRIS-REx begins stowing asteroid sample into return capsule

October 28, 2020 Stephen Clark

Working under close supervision from ground controllers more than 200 million miles away, the robotic arm on NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has begun placing specimens collected from an asteroid last week into a return capsule to bring the material back to Earth in 2023, officials said Wednesday.

SpaceX traces engine problem to blocked valve ahead of November crew launch

October 28, 2020 Stephen Clark

SpaceX is replacing two engines on the Falcon 9 booster set to launch four astronauts next month on the company’s first operational Crew Dragon flight to the International Space Station, following an investigation that revealed a subcontractor failed to adequately clean out narrow vent ports on multiple engines across the company’s fleet, officials said Wednesday.

Live coverage: Rocket Lab launches 10 small satellites

October 28, 2020 Stephen Clark

A week after scrubbing a launch attempt to evaluate an issue with an oxygen sensor, Rocket Lab launched a mission Wednesday to deliver 10 small commercial Earth observation satellites to orbit. Liftoff of the Electron booster from Rocket Lab’s spaceport in New Zealand occurred at 5:21 p.m. EDT (2121 GMT).