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
1,653 articles
SpaceX ready to put rocket reuse vision to the test
A Falcon 9 booster that flew into space last year is set to launch again Thursday from Florida's Space Coast with an SES communications satellite on a historic mission that could make major strides in validating SpaceX's audacious goal of recovering and reusing launchers, an achievement the company says will revolutionize the rocket business. Liftoff is set for 6:27 p.m. EDT (2227 GMT).
Hotfire test completed ahead of milestone Falcon 9 launch Thursday
SpaceX has set the first launch of a "flight-proven" Falcon 9 rocket for Thursday evening after running the booster through a hold-down engine firing Monday at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Watch a replay of the Falcon 9 engine test
The Falcon 9 rocket's main engines briefly ignited at launch pad 39A in a standard pre-launch test. This is the second time this booster has test fired its engines on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral.
Watch Falcon 9 go upright on the launch pad in time lapse video
A Falcon 9 rocket is moved into the position for a static test firing of its nine Merlin 1D engines. This time lapse video runs at 20 times normal speed.
Live coverage: Reused Falcon 9 rocket prepared for launch
Liftoff of a previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket is set for 6:27 p.m. EDT (2227 GMT) Thursday from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the first time SpaceX has reused one of its first stage boosters on a second mission. Ground crews face a tight timeline to ready the rocket and the SES 10 communications satellite in time for a Thursday launch attempt.
Q&A with Claire Leon, director of launch enterprise directorate at SMC
The head of the launch enterprise directorate at the U.S. Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center, Claire Leon, spoke with reporters March 15 about the military's award of a GPS launch contract to SpaceX, and she discussed plans for more head-to-head launch contract competitions in the coming months.
Photos: EchoStar 23 takes flight on Falcon 9 rocket
The EchoStar 23 communications satellite, on the way to a 15-year service life broadcasting television signals, launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Thursday from pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
SES 10 telecom satellite fueled and readied for launch on reused rocket
Launch preparations for the SES 10 communications satellite, the first spacecraft to ride a reused Falcon 9 booster to space, are on track for a late March blastoff from Florida, officials said.
SpaceX nabs GPS launch contract as Air Force opens more missions for bidding
The U.S. Air Force this week awarded SpaceX a contract to launch a Global Positioning System satellite in early 2019, concluding the second of as many as 15 competitions the military plans to run over the next year to pit SpaceX against United Launch Alliance for rights to lift defense and intelligence-gathering payloads into orbit.
Photos: Falcon 9 flies off pad 39A
Climbing into a clear night sky, a Falcon 9 rocket soared into space early Thursday with the EchoStar 23 commercial communications satellite from launch pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.