Commercial Space – Page 118

Live coverage: Rocket Lab’s commercial launcher reaches orbit for the first time

January 19, 2018 Stephen Clark

Rocket Lab’s second Electron booster lifted off from New Zealand’s North Island on Saturday, U.S. time, and reached orbit after an eight-minute climb over the Pacific Ocean. Liftoff with three commercial CubeSats occurred at 8:43 p.m. EST Saturday (0143 GMT; 2:43 p.m. New Zealand time Sunday).

Lawmakers question safety, schedule for Boeing/SpaceX commercial crew ships

January 17, 2018 William Harwood

Boeing and SpaceX hope to launch commercial crew ferry ships on long-awaited test flights later this year, but both companies face major challenges getting the spacecraft certified before late 2019 when seats aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft will no longer be easily available for NASA space station crews, officials told lawmakers Wednesday.

Electron test launch from New Zealand could happen this weekend

January 16, 2018 Stephen Clark

The second test flight of Rocket Lab’s privately-developed Electron satellite booster could take off from New Zealand as soon as Friday night, U.S. time, after technical problems and high winds kept the rocket grounded during a series of launch attempts in December.

Video: Dragon cargo craft released from International Space Station

January 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

Ground controllers sent commands Saturday for the International Space Station’s Canadian-built robotic arm to release a SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule, ending the ship’s nearly four-week stay at the orbiting research complex.

Commercial cargo craft splashes down in Pacific Ocean after station resupply run

January 13, 2018 Stephen Clark

A commercial cargo capsule owned by SpaceX concluded a month-long resupply trip to the International Space Station on Saturday, wrapping up the 13th round-trip flight to the station by a Dragon spacecraft with an on-target splashdown in the Pacific Ocean west of Baja California.

Live coverage: SpaceX’s Dragon cargo capsule returns to Earth

January 13, 2018 Stephen Clark

Nearly four weeks after its arrival at the International Space Station, a SpaceX Dragon supply ship departed the research lab Saturday and dropped out of orbit for a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean southwest of Los Angeles. The Dragon capsule was released from the station’s robotic arm at 4:58 a.m. EST (0958 GMT), and splashdown occurred at approximately 10:36 a.m. EST (1536 GMT).

Time-lapse video: The Falcon Heavy goes vertical again

January 13, 2018 Spaceflight Now

Watch a time-lapse video as the Falcon Heavy is moved into position for prelaunch testing at the Kennedy Space Center’s pad 39A on January 12, 2018.

India’s PSLV lifts off on first flight since fairing failure

January 12, 2018 Stephen Clark

A Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle lifted off Friday with 31 satellites on the first flight for India’s workhorse rocket since an August mishap that left an Indian navigation satellite unusable after reaching orbit.

After Zuma, SpaceX keeps pace in preps for next Falcon 9 launch

January 11, 2018 Stephen Clark

Ground crews took steps this week to prepare for the next Falcon 9 launch, set for no earlier than Jan. 30 with a telecom satellite for SES and the Luxembourg government, as SpaceX officials stressed their rocket was not to blame for the rumored loss of a mysterious U.S. government payload after liftoff Sunday.

Time lapse: Watch the Falcon Heavy placed on pad 39A

January 9, 2018 Spaceflight Now

Watch a time-lapse video as the Falcon Heavy is lifted into position at launch pad 39A on January 8, 2018. The video runs at 50 times normal speed.