News – Page 90 – Spaceflight Now

Euclid prepares to blast off on a mission to discover the fate of the Universe

July 1, 2023 Keith Cooper

The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid space telescope will blast off from Cape Canaveral on Saturday on a mission to shed light on the ‘dark universe’ dominated by dark matter and dark energy. Liftoff atop a Falcon 9 rocket from pad 40 is set for 11:12 a.m. EDT (1512 UTC).

Virgin Galactic launches its first commercial flight to space

June 29, 2023 William Harwood

Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic launched its first commercial space flight Thursday, sending three Italian researchers, two company pilots and an astronaut trainer on a high-speed thrill ride to the edge of space aboard a winged rocketplane. The crew experienced about three minutes of weightlessness. Total time between air launch and landing: just under 14 minutes.

Virgin Galactic readies spaceplane for first commercial flight on Thursday

June 29, 2023 William Harwood

Four-and-a-half years after an initial sub-orbital test flight, Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic is finally ready to begin commercial operations with the launch Thursday of a six-man crew, including three Italian researchers, on an up-and-down flight to the edge of space aboard the company’s winged spaceplane.

First hot-fire test of Europe’s reusable methane-fueled Prometheus rocket engine

June 28, 2023 Clive Simpson

Europe successfully completed the first hot-fire test of its reusable Prometheus rocket on June 22, a 12-second burn while integrated to the Themis first-stage demonstrator at the ArianeGroup site in Vernon, France. Prometheus and Themis are components of the new ‘Ariane Next’ European launch program, which is focused on developing a fleet of reusable rockets to enter service in the 2030s.

SpaceX conducts six-engine test fire as it gears up for second Starship flight

June 27, 2023 Spaceflight Now

SpaceX conducted a six-engine static test fire on Monday of the Starship vehicle that will eventually be paired with a Super Heavy booster for the second test flight of the company’s fully-reusable launch system. The firing took place at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in south Texas.

Final Ariane 5 launch scheduled for July 4 after fixes to booster separation system

June 26, 2023 Spaceflight Now

Europe’s last Ariane 5 rocket is now scheduled to lift off July 4 after being grounded for more than two weeks due to a problem with the pyrotechnic systems required to jettison the launcher’s strap-on solid rocket boosters. Europe’s workhorse rocket is being retired after 27 years of service.

Musk outlines major upgrades for Starship rocket

June 25, 2023 William Harwood

SpaceX will need another six weeks or so to finish implementing hundreds of changes to its Super Heavy-Starship rocket and the gargantuan booster’s Texas launch pad before it will be ready for a second attempt to reach orbit, company founder Elon Musk said Saturday.

SpaceX closes out first half of 2023 with another Starlink launch

June 23, 2023 Stephen Clark

A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Friday with another batch of Starlink internet satellites, wrapping up SpaceX’s action-packed first half of the year with the company’s 44th mission of 2023.

Live coverage: SpaceX launches 47 more Starlink satellites from California

June 22, 2023 Stephen Clark

Another batch of 47 Starlink internet satellites rode a SpaceX rocket into orbit early Thursday from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, continuing the company’s record flight rate with another Falcon 9 launch and landing. Liftoff occurred at 12:19 a.m. PDT (3:19 a.m. EDT; 0719 UTC).

Delta 4-Heavy rocket lifts off with NRO spy satellite

June 22, 2023 Stephen Clark

The second-to-last flight of United Launch Alliance’s Delta rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral early Thursday and delivered a top secret spy satellite into orbit for the U.S. government, snapping the longest lull in launches in ULA’s history.