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Static fire complete in run-up to launch of SpaceX supply ship
SpaceX ran a Falcon 9 rocket through a customary preflight checkout Tuesday, filling it with super-cold propellants and firing its nine Merlin first stage engines in preparation for liftoff Friday on a resupply run to the International Space Station.
SpaceX hopes to raise launch tempo after space station flight
SpaceX is targeting April 8 for the launch of its first resupply run to the International Space Station in nearly a year, a mission that the company hopes will mark the start of a rapid-fire launch manifest full of payloads waiting to fly.
VideoDragon crew capsule’s propulsive landing system tested
SpaceX released a video Thursday showing a propulsive hover test of a prototype of the company's Dragon crew capsule conducted two months ago, a milestone in the development of the spaceship's rocket packs that will eventually guide the craft to helicopter-like landings.
NASA splits space station cargo deal three ways
An unpiloted space plane developed by Sierra Nevada Corp. will join cargo carriers built by SpaceX and Orbital ATK to resupply the International Space Station beginning in 2019, NASA announced Thursday.
Falcon 9’s near-term manifest coming into focus
SpaceX's launch of a cluster of communications satellites for Orbcomm, set for as soon as next weekend, holds the headlines, but the company's Falcon 9 rocket could fly at least four times in the next two months, assuming smooth launch campaigns and no glitches.
SpaceX receives firm order for its first crew flight
Fresh off a major design review, SpaceX's human-rated Dragon spaceship has received the first of up to six firm mission orders from NASA under the company's $2.6 billion commercial crew contract.
NASA delays cargo award again, eliminates Boeing from contention
NASA has delayed the award of new contracts for cargo transportation services between Earth and the International Space Station, and eliminated an uncrewed version of Boeing's human-rated CST-100 Starliner capsule from the competition, officials said Thursday.
VideoSupport strut probable cause of Falcon 9 failure
A faulty support strut inside the Falcon 9 rocket's second stage liquid oxygen tank likely broke free during a June 28 space station resupply launch, destroying the booster minutes after liftoff in a cloud of debris over the Atlantic Ocean, SpaceX chief Elon Musk said Monday.
NASA names cadre of commercial crew astronauts
Four veteran astronauts have been selected to train for launch aboard new commercial crew capsules being built by Boeing and SpaceX that are intended to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station starting in 2017, NASA announced Thursday.
SpaceX delays next Crew Dragon abort test
The next test of a critical safety system on SpaceX's human-rated Dragon spaceship will be delayed, likely until some time next year, as the company adjusts the development schedule for the new commercial crew capsule designed to take astronauts to the International Space Station.