Static Fire – Spaceflight Now

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

December 1, 2018

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.

Video: Falcon 9 fires engines at pad 39A ahead of Es’hail 2 launch (members only)

November 13, 2018

Watch a video replay of Monday night’s hotfire of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket is set for launch Thursday with Qatar’s Es’hail 2 communications satellite.

SpaceX fires Falcon 9 booster on pad 39A, aims for comsat launch Thursday

November 13, 2018

SpaceX test-fired a Falcon 9 rocket Monday night at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, clearing the way for a launch Thursday with Qatar’s Es’hail 2 communications satellite, the first daytime liftoff from Florida’s Space Coast in more than six months.

Live coverage: Falcon 9 rocket test-fired at Kennedy Space Center

November 12, 2018

SpaceX test-fired a previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket Monday evening on pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, setting the stage for a launch later this week carrying the Japanese-built, Qatari-owned Es’hail 2 communications satellite to orbit.

SpaceX conducts engine test fire for communications satellite launch (members only)

September 6, 2018

SpaceX test fires a Falcon 9 rocket in readiness for its planned 8 September 2018 launch carrying the Telstar 18 VANTAGE communications satellite.

Hotfire test keeps SpaceX on schedule for weekend launch

September 5, 2018

A brief test-firing of a Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday morning kept SpaceX on track for a launch Saturday night from Cape Canaveral with a communications satellite to be jointly used by Telesat and APT Satellite of Hong Kong.

SpaceX conducts hotfire test for another middle-of-the-night launch

August 2, 2018

Gearing up for the third Falcon 9 launch in less than two-and-a-half weeks, SpaceX fired up a rocket booster at Cape Canaveral on Thursday ahead of an early morning launch Tuesday with an Indonesian communications satellite.

Video: SpaceX rocket lights engines in pre-flight test

July 19, 2018

Passing a major pre-flight milestone ahead of a launch and landing planned early Sunday, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket ignited its main engines Wednesday for a hold-down firing at Cape Canaveral.

Falcon 9 rocket test-fired for weekend launch

July 18, 2018

Nine Merlin engines on the first stage of SpaceX’s next Falcon 9 rocket briefly fired up on a Cape Canaveral launch pad Wednesday, and the launcher cleared a customary pre-flight checkout in preparation for liftoff early Sunday with a Canadian-owned communications satellite.

Live coverage: SpaceX’s second upgraded “Block 5” booster test-fired in Florida

July 18, 2018

SpaceX is preparing this week for the second flight of the upgraded “Block 5” version of the company’s Falcon 9 rocket, and a hold-down firing of the booster was accomplished Wednesday at Cape Canaveral ahead of a middle-of-the-night launch this weekend with a Canadian-owned commercial communications satellite. The static fire test occurred at 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT) Wednesday.