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Super Heavy-Starship rocket chalks up mostly successful test flight
Powered by 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines, the 407-foot-tall two-stage rocket blasted off from SpaceX's "Starbase," Texas, launch site at 5:51 p.m. EDT, putting on a spectacular show for area residents and tourists as it climbed away atop some 16 million pounds of thrust.
VideoLaunch preview: SpaceX ready for 2nd attempt to launch Starship Flight 13 following post-abort engine work
The flight was delayed another day as Tropical Storm Bertha was expected to make landfall in Texas on Thursday. Liftoff of the Starship Flight 13 mission is scheduled during a 90-minute window that opens on Friday, July 24, at 5:45 p.m. CDT (6:45 p.m. EDT / 2245 UTC).
VideoPost-ignition anomaly causes abort of SpaceX’s Starship Flight 13
The mission will also test out a series of improvements to the launcher to help push it closer to full reusability. Liftoff from pad 2 at Starbase, Texas, was aborted at ignition due to an engine-related issue.
VideoPreview: NASA to unveil Artemis 3 crew, provide updates on mission
The mission will be a low Earth orbit rendezvous between the Orion spacecraft and one or both of the Human Landing System landers: Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 2 and SpaceX’s Starship.
VideoNASA Administrator teases further Artemis program updates in one-on-one interview
The conversation took place amid the flight readiness review for the Artemis 2 mission, which is currently set to launch no earlier than April 1, 2026, pending work being completed in the Vehicle Assembly Building.
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.
VideoLaunch preview: SpaceX to launch Starship Flight 6 test mission from Starbase in southern Texas
The mission is likely to be the fourth and final Starship flight before the end of 2024. Liftoff from Pad 1 at Starbase at Boca Chica Beach, Texas, is set for 4 p.m. CST (5 p.m. EST, 2200 UTC).
First astronaut missions to the Moon since 1972 delayed due to heat shield questions, hardware readiness
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson announced on Tuesday that Artemis 2 will be delayed until Sept. 2025 and Artemis 3 until Sept. 2026. The additional time is needed both from a hardware readiness perspective as well as to answer outstanding questions about the heat shield.
NASA concerned SpaceX’s Starship schedule could delay moon landing
A senior NASA official raised concerns Wednesday that "difficulties" with SpaceX's development of the huge new Starship rocket could delay the Artemis program's first moon landing with astronauts from late 2025, a mission that will use a derivative of the Starship vehicle to ferry a two-person crew to and from the lunar surface.
How SpaceX’s Starship stacks up to other rockets
SpaceX Starship is set to propel itself into the record books today on its maiden flight, becoming the tallest, heaviest and most powerful rocket ever launched by humankind into space, topping a role call of famous and history-making heavy-lift launch vehicles including the mighty Saturn 5 that first took humans to the moon.