News – Page 358 – Spaceflight Now

Falcon 9 launch scrubbed by problem on landing ship

May 3, 2019 Stephen Clark

An electrical problem on SpaceX’s drone ship parked just off the coast of Cape Canaveral prompted SpaceX to scrub a Falcon 9 launch attempt early Friday, delaying the start of a resupply mission to the International Space Station by 24 hours.

SpaceX clears cargo mission for launch, confirms destruction of crew capsule

May 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

While recovery teams continue combing through the test site at Cape Canaveral where SpaceX’s first space-worthy Crew Dragon capsule was destroyed in an explosive accident last month, engineers a few miles away are pressing ahead with the company’s 17th resupply mission to the International Space Station set for launch early Friday.

Live coverage: SpaceX cargo ship captured by space station’s robotic arm

May 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

Two days after launching from Cape Canaveral with nearly 5,500 pounds of supplies and experiments, an automated SpaceX Dragon cargo craft approached the International Space Station Monday. The Dragon supply ship was grappled by the station’s robotic arm at 7:01 a.m. EDT (1101 GMT).

Blue Origin ‘one step closer’ to human flights after successful suborbital launch

May 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

Taking another step toward flying space tourists to the edge of space, Jeff Bezos’s space company Blue Origin again flew its New Shepard suborbital booster Thursday with a package of microgravity research experiments.

Launch timeline for SpaceX’s 17th space station resupply mission

May 2, 2019 Stephen Clark

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will go from Cape Canaveral to low Earth orbit in less than 10 minutes Saturday with a Dragon capsule heading for the International Space Station carrying nearly 5,500 pounds of supplies and experiments.

Blue Origin readies reusable suborbital launcher for another flight

May 1, 2019 Stephen Clark

Blue Origin teams in West Texas are preparing for another launch of the company’s reusable New Shepard suborbital rocket Thursday to loft dozens of microgravity research payloads to the edge of space.

NASA begins outlining roadmap for 2024 moon landing

May 1, 2019 Stephen Clark

A senior NASA official said Tuesday that the Space Launch System, a huge heavy-lift rocket years behind schedule, could launch astronauts on a moon landing mission in 2024 on just its third flight to meet a goal announced last month by Vice President Mike Pence, while commercial companies will be entrusted with more responsibility to develop a lunar lander and a modest mini-space station, or Gateway, in lunar orbit.

FCC approves SpaceX’s plan to operate Starlink satellites at lower altitude

April 30, 2019 Stephen Clark

The Federal Communications Commission has granted a request by SpaceX to begin launching spacecraft for the company’s Starlink broadband network to a lower orbit than originally planned, overruling protests by competitors and clearing a major regulatory hurdle before the launch of the first batch of Internet satellites from Cape Canaveral in May.

China launches mapping satellites

April 30, 2019 Stephen Clark

A Chinese Long March 4B rocket successfully launched two Tianhui satellites Monday to conduct land surveys, mapping and scientific experiments in space, according to reports from state-run media.

SpaceX resupply launch delayed by malfunction on space station

April 30, 2019 Stephen Clark

A SpaceX Dragon supply ship packed with nearly three tons of experiments, crew provisions and supplies will remain on the ground until at least Friday morning to allow more time for NASA flight controllers to troubleshoot a problem with an electrical distribution unit on the International Space Station.