News Archive
Browse every article published on Spaceflight Now, from launch reports and mission previews to spacecraft development coverage. Use the filters to narrow by topic or search by keyword.
Matching Articles
60 articles
NASA inspector general assesses agency’s management of moon lander risk
NASA's Office of Inspector General said that while NASA is working to "mitigate and prevent hazards" associated with lunar landers being built by SpaceX and Blue Origin, "there are currently gaps in the agency's approach, including in its testing posture and crew survival analyses," including what might happen after a catastrophic but non-fatal event.
NASA announces major overhaul of Artemis moon program: “We’ve got to get back to basics”
New NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced a major overhaul of the agency's Artemis moon program Friday, acknowledging that the agency's plan to land astronauts on the moon in 2028 was not realistic without another preparatory mission first to lay the groundwork.
SLS rocket hauled back to VAB for repairs
A 6.6-million-pound Apollo-era crawler-transporter rolled up the ramp to pad 38B on Tuesday and was positioned directly under the 3.5-million-pound Space Launch System rocket and its 11.3-million-pound mobile launch platform.
NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket hit by new problem expected to bump moonshot into early April
Engineers ran into problems repressurizing the Artemis 2 moon rocket’s upper stage helium tanks overnight Friday, a problem that will require rolling the huge rocket off the launch pad and back to its processing hangar for troubleshooting. The work will push the already delayed mission from March to at least early April, officials said Saturday.
Moon mission fueling test concludes with no major problems
The practice countdown began Tuesday night, kicking off a carefully choreographed series of steps to ready the world's most powerful operational rocket for what amounted to a simulated launch Thursday at 8:42 p.m. EST. Controllers then carried out additional tests to make sure the team can recycle, hold and restart an actual launch countdown as needed to handle unexpected problems.
SpaceX successfully launches Super Heavy-Starship on critical test flight
While re-entry heating damaged a protective "skirt" around the the engine bay of the upper stage Starship, along with partially melting a control flap near its hinge, the vehicle remained under control throughout and made it all the way to a powered splashdown in the Indian Ocean as planned.
Starship upper stage lost in second mishap in a row
SpaceX launched its huge Starship rocket on the program's eighth test flight Thursday, but a malfunction of some sort triggered multiple upper stage engine shutdowns and for the second flight in a row, the vehicle failed to reach its planned sub-orbital altitude and broke apart in a shower of debris.
Trump nominates Jared Isaacman to serve as next NASA administrator
If confirmed, Isaacman, 41, would be the fifth NASA administrator with spaceflight experience, replacing former Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, who flew into orbit aboard the space shuttle Columbia in early 1986.
VideoSuper Heavy-Starship climbs high but falls short on second test flight
SpaceX's gargantuan Super Heavy-Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, blasted off on its second test flight Saturday and while the initial stages of the mission went smoothly, the first stage broke apart moments after separation from the Starship upper stage, which then blew itself up as it neared space.
VideoFAA clears SpaceX for second Super Heavy-Starship test flight
SpaceX's huge Super Heavy-Starship rocket has been cleared for a second test flight in an attempt to boost the unpiloted Starship upper stage into space for the first time, the company announced Wednesday. On Thursday Elon Musk announced the launch has slipped to Saturday to replace a grid fin actuator.