SpaceX – Page 111 – Spaceflight Now

All-new Falcon 9 rocket tested in Florida as SpaceX preps for back-to-back launches

December 1, 2018 Stephen Clark

An all-new SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket fired its engines Friday night on launch pad 40 at Cape Canaveral, the opening act in a busy weekend of SpaceX launch preps leading up to a pair of blastoffs Sunday and Tuesday from California’s Central Coast and Florida’s Space Coast, respectively.

SpaceX postpones California launch to wait for better weather

November 27, 2018 Stephen Clark

SpaceX has postponed Wednesday’s scheduled launch from California’s Central Coast with 64 smallsats, electing to keep the Falcon 9 rocket on the ground until at least Sunday to wait for improved weather conditions.

NASA announces target date for first SpaceX Crew Dragon flight

November 21, 2018 William Harwood

SpaceX is targeting Jan. 7 for launch of its first Crew Dragon commercial ferry ship on an unpiloted test flight to the International Space Station, NASA announced Wednesday, a major milestone in the agency’s drive to end its sole reliance on Russian Soyuz crew ships for carrying astronauts to orbit.

Photos: Falcon 9 takes off from launch pad 39A with Es’hail 2 comsat

November 19, 2018 Stephen Clark

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket boosted by a recycled first stage fired into the skies over the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 15, and these photos show the start of the 229-foot-tall launcher’s journey into orbit.

SpaceX postpones rideshare launch from California

November 17, 2018 Stephen Clark

SpaceX has ordered additional inspections on a Falcon 9 rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a decision that is expected to keep the launcher grounded for several days until after the Thanksgiving holiday, officials said Saturday.

SpaceX launches Qatar’s Es’hail 2 communications satellite

November 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket darted into a partly cloudy sky over Florida’s Space Coast with a roar Thursday afternoon, carrying the Japanese-built Es’hail 2 communications satellite into space to beam commercial video and data services across the Middle East and expand connectivity for Qatar’s military.

Video: Press site view of Falcon 9’s launch with the Es’hail 2 satellite (members only)

November 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

Watch a video replay of Thursday’s liftoff of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying the Es’hail 2 communications satellite into orbit.

Falcon 9 launch timeline with Es’hail 2

November 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket is set for liftoff from Cape Canaveral on Thursday, heading due east over the Atlantic Ocean to deliver the Es’hail 2 communications satellite into orbit around 32 minutes later.

Photos: Previously-flown Falcon 9 booster ready for another launch

November 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

A Falcon 9 rocket powered by a first stage booster recovered after a launch in July is being readied for another flight Thursday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Live coverage: SpaceX launches communications satellite for Qatar

November 15, 2018 Stephen Clark

SpaceX conducted its first launch from Florida in more than two months Thursday, when a Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center with the Qatari Es’hail 2 communications satellite at 3:46 p.m. EST (2046 GMT). The Falcon 9’s reused first stage landed on SpaceX’s drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.