SpaceX – Page 60 – Spaceflight Now

SpaceX completes launch doubleheader with sunset liftoff from Cape Canaveral

March 17, 2023 Stephen Clark

SpaceX launched two Falcon 9 rockets in a span of a little more than four hours Friday, a record-setting day that began with the launch of 52 Starlink internet satellites from California and ended with the sunset liftoff of two SES television broadcast payloads from Florida.

Live coverage: SpaceX launches 52 Starlink satellites from California

March 17, 2023 Stephen Clark

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 12:26 p.m. PDT (3:26 p.m. EDT; 1926 GMT) Friday with another batch of 52 Starlink internet satellites. The mission is the first of two SpaceX launches scheduled Friday, with another Falcon 9 poised for liftoff from Florida a little more than four hours later.

SES to complete C-band clearing program with SpaceX dual-satellite launch

March 16, 2023 Stephen Clark

SES, the international communications satellite operator, plans to send two more C-band television broadcasting spacecraft into orbit from Cape Canaveral Friday night atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on a mission that will help clear spectrum for transition to 5G network services.

SpaceX test-fires 31 engines on Starship’s gigantic Super Heavy booster

February 9, 2023 Stephen Clark

In a significant milestone preparing for liftoff of the world’s most powerful rocket, SpaceX test-fired 31 of the booster’s 33 methane-fueled engines Thursday in South Texas as the company eyes a launch attempt as soon as March.

SpaceX ready for 33-engine test of Starship’s Super Heavy booster

February 8, 2023 Stephen Clark

SpaceX is gearing up for the first full-up test-firing Thursday of all 33 engines on the booster for the company’s Starship mega-rocket in Texas, a critical milestone on the path to launching the giant vehicle on its first orbital test flight, which could happen as soon as March if this week’s test goes well.

4K Video: The launch of Crew 4 as seen from the press site

May 2, 2022 Spaceflight Now

The launch of the Crew 4 mission as seen by Spaceflight Now’s camera at the Kennedy Space Center Press Site.

Falcon Heavy’s first national security launch slips to October

May 23, 2021 Stephen Clark

The next launch of a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket has been delayed from July to October to await the readiness of its U.S. military payload, and the following Falcon Heavy flight has been rescheduled from late this year to some time in 2022, military officials said.

Nelson cites China’s growing space prowess, calls for sustained NASA funding

May 19, 2021 William Harwood

Holding up a photo taken by China’s new Mars lander, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson warned Congress Wednesday that his agency faces increasingly stiff competition on the high frontier and that sustained funding for a new moon lander, infrastructure upgrades and other critical programs is vital for America’s space program.

Tyvak smallsat launched by SpaceX to validate miniature space debris telescope

May 18, 2021 Stephen Clark

Tyvak, a manufacturer of small satellites, disclosed new details Monday about an experimental spacecraft launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Saturday, revealing plans to validate compact optical telescopes that could offer a new way to monitor space traffic and orbital debris.

SpaceX ramps up launch rate with fifth Falcon 9 mission in three weeks

May 16, 2021 Stephen Clark

SpaceX’s fifth Falcon 9 launch in a little more than three weeks delivered 52 more Starlink internet satellites and two small hitchhiker payloads to orbit after a booming blastoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday evening.