Launch – Page 72 – Spaceflight Now

SpaceX test-fires rocket, preps for final flight of first-generation Dragon capsule

March 2, 2020 Stephen Clark

The Falcon 9 booster for SpaceX’s next mission fired up briefly on a Cape Canaveral launch pad Sunday in a routine pre-flight test before a scheduled launch Friday night to kick off the final flight of the first version of the company’s Dragon cargo capsule to the International Space Station.

SpaceX swaps upper stage for next Falcon 9 launch

February 26, 2020 Stephen Clark

SpaceX is targeting launches March 6 and March 11 for its next two missions after swapping an upper stage for its next Falcon 9 rocket with another stage already being readied for liftoff at Cape Canaveral.

Soyuz rocket launches Russian military satellite after one-month delay

February 20, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Russian military communications satellite rode a Soyuz rocket and Fregat upper stage Thursday into an orbit stretching nearly 25,000 miles (40,000 kilometers) above Earth, successfully launching after a one-month delay to replace a suspect third stage on the Soyuz booster.

China launches four ‘technology experiment satellites’

February 19, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Chinese Long March 2D rocket carried four “technology experiment satellites” into orbit Wednesday from the Xichang space center in southwestern China, according to the country’s state-run media.

Russian space agency replaces cosmonauts on next space station crew

February 19, 2020 Stephen Clark

Citing medical reasons, Russia’s space agency announced Wednesday that it is replacing two cosmonauts who were scheduled to fly on the next Soyuz mission to the International Space Station in April with backup crew members.

Photos: Antares rocket lifts off with station-bound Cygnus supply ship

February 19, 2020 Stephen Clark

Powered by two Russian-made RD-181 main engines, a Northrop Grumman Antares rocket fired into a mostly sunny sky Saturday afternoon over Virginia’s Eastern Shore carrying nearly 7,500 pounds of equipment to the International Space Station.

Ariane 5 deploys communications and environmental monitoring satellites

February 18, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Japanese-owned communications satellite built in Colorado and a South Korean environmental monitoring observatory shared an Ariane 5 rocket ride into orbit Tuesday from the South American jungle.

Live coverage: Japanese and South Korean satellites launch on Ariane 5 rocket

February 18, 2020 Stephen Clark

A European-built Ariane 5 rocket launched Tuesday with a U.S.-made communications satellite for Tokyo-based Sky Perfect JSAT and a South Korean environmental observatory. The heavy-lift Ariane 5 launcher took off from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, at 5:18 p.m. EST (2218 GMT; 7:18 p.m. French Guiana time).

SpaceX delivers more Starlink satellites to orbit, booster misses drone ship landing

February 17, 2020 Stephen Clark

Sixty more satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network launched Monday on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, bringing the total number of Starlink platforms deployed in orbit since last May to 300.

Timeline for Falcon 9 launch of Starlink satellites

February 17, 2020 Stephen Clark

Follow the key events of the Falcon 9 rocket’s ascent to orbit with 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network.