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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.
Former ULA president and CEO Tory Bruno joins Blue Origin
Bruno’s resignation from United Launch Alliance was announced just four days ago on Dec. 22. He led that company for nearly 12 years.
VideoNASA chief: Russian cosmonauts unlikely fly on U.S. crew capsules until next year
NASA’s acting administrator said Tuesday he does not expect Russian cosmonauts to start launching to the International Space Station on U.S. commercial crew vehicles until next year. A proposed agreement with Russia to ensure the space station is always staffed with an international crew is awaiting U.S. government approval.
Launch of Starliner test flight slips to no earlier April 2
The launch of the next test flight of Boeing's Starliner crew capsule has been delayed to no earlier than April 2 after workers replaced spacecraft avionics units damaged in a power surge during testing.
Starliner test flight next on ULA’s launch schedule after military mission delay
The U.S. Space Force has decided to delay the planned late February launch of two military satellites aboard a ULA Atlas 5 rocket to "evaluate readiness" of one of the payloads, giving officials a window to move forward the liftoff of an unpiloted test flight of Boeing's Starliner crew capsule to no earlier than March 25.
Boeing making progress on Starliner software for test flight in March
Boeing said Monday it has re-qualified software for the company's Starliner crew capsule after programming errors cut short the spacecraft's first orbital test flight in 2019, and technicians at the Kennedy Space Center have connected the crew and service modules for the next unpiloted Starliner test flight to the International Space Station in March.
Lockheed Martin to buy rocket engine-builder Aerojet Rocketdyne
Lockheed Martin, the largest U.S. defense contractor, announced late Sunday that it has reached a deal valued at $4.4 billion to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne, a supplier of engines to NASA's Space Launch System moon rocket and United Launch Alliance's Atlas, Delta, and Vulcan rockets.
NASA selects proposals to demonstrate in-space refueling and propellant depot tech
NASA has selected 14 companies for contracts of more than $370 million to advance technology for human missions to the moon and Mars. Most of the money will support flight demonstrations by SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, and other companies that could lead to in-space refueling and propellant depots for reusable lunar landers and deep space transportation vehicles.
ULA, SpaceX win landmark multibillion-dollar launch agreements with Pentagon
United Launch Alliance and SpaceX beat out Northrop Grumman and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin for billions of dollars in U.S. military rocket contracts, and will share the load in launching the Pentagon's highest-priority national security space missions through 2027, officials announced Friday.
NASA outlines recommendations to clear path for Boeing to resume Starliner flights
NASA has completed an exhaustive review of software problems and procedural oversights that prevented an unpiloted Boeing Starliner capsule from docking with the space station last year. The agency is implementing 80 recommendations to clear the way for a second test flight later this year and, if all goes well, Boeing's first piloted flight next spring, officials said Tuesday.