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
437 articles
SpaceX’s brisk Starlink launch cadence to continue next week
SpaceX plans to launch its next group of Starlink broadband satellites aboard a Falcon 9 rocket as soon as Tuesday, Jan. 21, from Cape Canaveral, two days after the company is scheduled to launch a modified Falcon 9 booster from a separate facility at the Florida spaceport to test the Crew Dragon spaceship's emergency escape system.
AEHF satellite arrives in Florida for first of nearly 20 Space Force launches this year
The sixth and final satellite in the U.S. military’s network of ultra-secure, nuclear-hardened AEHF communications relay stations has arrived in Florida for final preparations for liftoff in March on a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, the first of nearly 20 U.S. Space Force missions planned for launch in the first year of operations for the new military service.
4K Video: Watch the Falcon 9 test fire its 1st stage engines (members only)
Watch in 4K video was SpaceX test-fires a Falcon 9 rocket ahead of an upcoming in-flight test of the Crew Dragon's emergency escape rockets.
SpaceX test-fires rocket ahead of Crew Dragon in-flight abort test
SpaceX fired up nine Merlin main engines at the bottom of a previously-flown Falcon 9 booster Saturday at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, running the rocket through a practice countdown before a scheduled liftoff Jan. 18 with a Crew Dragon capsule to test the human-rated ship's high-altitude abort capability.
Live coverage: SpaceX prepares for Crew Dragon in-flight abort test
SpaceX is gearing up for launch of an unpiloted Crew Dragon spacecraft from the Kennedy Space Center for a crucial test of the crew capsule's launch abort system. A modified Falcon 9 rocket performed a test-firing at launch pad 39A Saturday before carrying the Crew Dragon spacecraft into the upper atmosphere for an in-flight abort test scheduled for Jan. 18.
SpaceX reschedules crew capsule in-flight abort test for Jan. 18
The final major test of the high-power launch abort engines on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft before astronauts climb aboard for a flight to the International Space Station is scheduled for Jan. 18 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA announced Monday.
SpaceX drawing up plans for mobile gantry at launch pad 39A
With construction already underway at Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A on facilities for SpaceX's next-generation Starship vehicle, another new fixture could soon rise at the seaside launch complex to satisfy U.S. military requirements to vertically integrate sensitive top secret spy satellites with Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets.
Long March, Soyuz and Falcon rockets topped 2019’s launch leaderboard
China led the world with 34 orbital launch attempts in 2019 — including two failures — followed by 22 flights from Russian-operated launch pads and 21 satellite delivery missions originating from U.S. spaceports, all of which were successful.
SpaceX poised to accelerate launch cadence with series of Starlink missions
SpaceX teams across the United States are readying for what the company's chief operating officer predicts will be a record number of launches in 2020. Before the end of January, SpaceX aims to perform four Falcon 9 launches from Florida's Space Coast -- three for the company's Starlink broadband network, and a crucial in-flight abort test for the Crew Dragon spacecraft no earlier than Jan. 11.
After redesigns, the finish line is in sight for SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spaceship
Five-and-a-half years ago, SpaceX founder Elon Musk revealed SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, a sleek-looking human-rated spaceship with 3D-printed engines, a roomy stylized interior and touchscreen controls. Now SpaceX's first ship to ferry astronauts -- with numerous design changes introduced since 2014 -- is about to leave the company's factory for final testing before launching early next year.