Launch – Page 53 – Spaceflight Now

Three U.S.-built satellites in French Guiana for Ariane 5 launch

July 7, 2020 Stephen Clark

The next flight of Europe’s heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket, set for July 28 from French Guiana, will carry a record payload of three multi-ton satellites toward geostationary orbit, including a pair of U.S.-built commercial communications payloads and Northrop Grumman’s second robotic satellite servicing spacecraft.

Chinese launches loft satellites to study space environment and observe Earth

July 6, 2020 Stephen Clark

China launched a Long March 2D rocket Saturday with a satellite Chinese officials claimed will study the space environment and conduct technology demonstrations, less than two days after a Long March 4B rocket took off from a different launch site with an Earth-imaging payload.

Israel successfully places surveillance satellite into orbit

July 6, 2020 Stephen Clark

For the first time in nearly four years, a rocket successfully shot into orbit from Israel on Monday with a military reconnaissance satellite to shore up the country’s space-based capability to surveil Iran and other adversaries.

Rocket Lab satellite launch fails before reaching orbit

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

A failure during the second stage burn of a Rocket Lab Electron rocket caused seven small commercial satellites to crash back to Earth Saturday following liftoff from New Zealand.

Top secret NRO payload installed on Minotaur rocket for launch from Virginia

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

Crews working on Virginia’s Eastern Shore this week raised a top secret payload for the National Reconnaissance Office — the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency — atop a solid-fueled Minotaur 4 rocket for liftoff July 15 on the first Minotaur launch in nearly three years.

Photos: Falcon 9 rocket launches from Florida with GPS navigation satellite

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

The first launch by SpaceX for the U.S. Space Force on June 30 carried the third in a new line of modernized GPS navigation satellites into orbit from Cape Canaveral.

Live coverage: Rocket Lab confirms launch failure after liftoff with seven satellites

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

Seven small satellites from Canon Electronics, Planet and In-Space Missions launched from New Zealand on Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket Saturday at 5:19:36 p.m. EDT (2119:36 GMT), but the payloads and launch vehicle were lost after a problem during the second stage burn.

Rocket Lab plans next launch Saturday, closes in on first mission from Virginia

July 3, 2020 Stephen Clark

Rocket Lab is readying for a launch from its New Zealand spaceport Saturday (U.S. time) with seven commercial satellites from Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom, while teams at Wallops Island, Virginia, move closer to Rocket Lab’s first launch there as soon as August.

SpaceX launches its first mission for the U.S. Space Force

June 30, 2020 Stephen Clark

A new GPS satellite rocketed into orbit from Cape Canaveral on top of a SpaceX Falcon 9 launcher Tuesday on the way to replace one of the more than 30 other spacecraft helping guide everything from military munitions to motorists.

NASA delays Mars rover launch to no earlier than July 30

June 30, 2020 Stephen Clark

A technical issue with the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket that will send NASA’s $2.4 billion Perseverance rover toward Mars has pushed the mission’s launch date back to no earlier than July 30, nearly two weeks into a month-long window for the rover to head to the Red Planet, or else face a two-year delay.