Falcon 9 – Page 128 – Spaceflight Now

First two Iridium Next satellites shipped to Vandenberg

August 3, 2016 Stephen Clark

The first two next-generation Iridium satellites, designed to connect global subscribers with data and voice traffic, arrived at Vandenberg Air Force Base on Tuesday, where they will join eight more message relay craft for launch in September on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

NASA orders second SpaceX crew ferry ship

July 29, 2016 William Harwood

NASA has ordered a second commercial crew ferry ship from SpaceX, NASA announced Friday, as the agency continues its on-going push to develop U.S.-built spacecraft to carry astronauts to and from the International Space Station, ending sole reliance on Russian Soyuz vehicles.

SpaceX fires previously-flown rocket in major stride toward reusability

July 29, 2016 Stephen Clark

Throttling up to more than a million pounds of thrust at SpaceX’s Central Texas test facility, a Falcon 9 rocket booster recovered after a commercial satellite launch in May passed a key milestone Thursday as the company sets its sights on re-flying a used first stage on a mission this fall.

Gallery of photos from Monday’s Falcon 9 flight

July 18, 2016 Stephen Clark

Taking off and landing in the middle of the night at Cape Canaveral, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully delivered a Dragon supply ship to orbit for the International Space Station as the launcher’s first stage booster swooped to a spectacular touchdown.

SpaceX sends supplies to space station, lands another Falcon rocket

July 18, 2016 Stephen Clark

Rising into a midnight sky lit by the full moon, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral early Monday with a commercial cargo craft on the way to the International Space Station, then returned to Florida’s Space Coast for a dramatic nighttime landing.

Photos: Falcon 9 rocket lifted vertical for cargo launch

July 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

SpaceX hoisted its Falcon 9 rocket upright Sunday evening, hours before launching on a commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station. Technicians installed time-sensitive supplies into the Dragon cargo capsule earlier in the day.

Timeline for SpaceX’s ninth station resupply launch

July 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

Track the major milestones of Monday’s launch of a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral with a Dragon cargo craft heading for the International Space Station.

Live coverage: Commercial cargo craft completes space station rendezvous

July 17, 2016 Stephen Clark

SpaceX’s Dragon supply ship reached the International Space Station on Wednesday, with astronaut Jeff Williams grappling the unpiloted spacecraft with the research lab’s robotic arm at 6:56 a.m. EDT (1056 GMT) after an automated rendezvous.

Weather looks favorable for Falcon 9 launch and landing

July 15, 2016 Stephen Clark

Forecasters predict mostly clear skies and light winds at the surface and aloft for Monday’s launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on a resupply mission to the International Space Station, favorable conditions for the booster’s liftoff and landing at Cape Canaveral.

Iridium satellites rolling off assembly line in Arizona

July 13, 2016 Stephen Clark

Construction is complete on the first batch of 81 new satellites to overhaul Iridium’s mobile communications network, and the data relay stations will soon head from their factory near Phoenix to California’s hilly Central Coast for launch Sept. 11 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.