Launch
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SpaceX aborts Starhopper test flight, could try again Tuesday
SpaceX aborted an attempted flight Monday of the company's Starhopper test rocket, a prototype for the company's next-generation Starship vehicle. The hop test was to fly to a height of around 500 feet (150 meters) over SpaceX's launch site at Boca Chica, Texas.
Boeing, SpaceX aim for more commercial crew test flights this fall
Boeing's Starliner crew capsule could take off in October on its first unpiloted test flight to the International Space Station, a company official said recently, while SpaceX finishes up the investigation into the explosion of its Crew Dragon spacecraft during a ground test earlier this year.
Robot-carrying capsule launches on test flight to space station
With a robot rather than a cosmonaut in the commander's seat, a Russian Soyuz spacecraft rocketed into orbit from Kazakhstan late Wednesday (U.S. time) en route to the International Space Station on a critical test flight before crews begin riding an upgraded Soyuz booster next year.
VideoLive coverage: Soyuz MS-14 docks at space station
The unpiloted Russian Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft docked with the International Space Station on its second try at 11:08 p.m. EDT Monday (0308 GMT Tuesday), three days after aborting an approach due to a problem with the Kurs automated rendezvous system.
VideoRussians ready unpiloted Soyuz capsule for launch
An unpiloted Russian Soyuz spacecraft, with a humanoid robot in the commander's seat instead of a cosmonaut, is scheduled for liftoff late Wednesday (U.S. time) from Kazakhstan on a test flight to verify the spaceship's compatibility with the new-generation Soyuz-2.1a rocket set to begin launching crews to the International Space Station next year.
Astrobotic lunar lander to launch on ULA’s first Vulcan rocket
Astrobotic, a Pittsburgh-based company developing a robotic lunar lander, will launch its first moon mission under contract to NASA on the debut flight of United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur rocket in 2021, officials announced Monday.
Chinasat 18 communications satellite encounters problem after launch
A communications satellite designed to deliver broadband services to rural China, airline passengers and maritime vessels suffered "abnormalities" after separating from its Long March 3B launcher Monday, Chinese state media confirmed Tuesday.
Rocket Lab launch fulfills initial block of BlackSky Earth-imaging satellites
The fourth and last spacecraft in BlackSky's initial flock of commercial Earth-imaging microsatellites successfully launched Monday aboard a Rocket Lab Electron rocket with three other payloads, setting the stage for the final assembly and launch of at least 20 more BlackSky orbiting surveillance platforms starting later this year.
Launch providers announce rideshare missions large and small
SpaceX and Arianespace recently announced plans to launch rideshare missions to sun-synchronous and geostationary orbit, dedicating big rocket capacity for small satellites as the U.S.-based launch broker Spaceflight committed to using a new Indian microsatellite launcher set to debut later this year.
VideoChina’s Jielong 1 smallsat launcher successful on first flight
A solid-fueled small satellite launcher named Jielong 1 fired into orbit Saturday on its first flight from northwestern China, debuting a new rocket developed by a spinoff of China’s state-owned launch vehicle manufacturer using a “commercial business model.”