Wallops Island – Page 10 – Spaceflight Now

Antares rocket’s return-to-flight slips to August

June 26, 2016 Stephen Clark

The first launch of Orbital ATK’s redesigned Antares rocket since an engine failure doomed a mission in 2014 will likely be delayed more than one month until August to complete analysis of data acquired during a first stage hotfire test, officials said.

Re-engined Antares rocket completes ground test firing

May 31, 2016 Stephen Clark

Orbital ATK’s upgraded Antares rocket, featuring newly-built RD-181 main engines, completed a 30-second test firing on a launch pad on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on Tuesday.

Upgraded Antares rolls out to launch pad for tests

May 12, 2016 Stephen Clark

An Antares booster emerged from its hangar on Virginia’s Eastern Shore and rolled out to its launch pad Thursday for the first time since a rocket failure grounded Orbital ATK’s cargo launcher in 2014.

Key return to flight milestone looms for Antares rocket

May 9, 2016 Stephen Clark

Targeting a resumption of Antares cargo launches to the International Space Station as soon as July, Orbital ATK plans to roll out an upgraded Antares rocket to a launch pad in Virginia this week for a 30-second firing of the booster’s new engines.

Q&A with Kurt Eberly, Orbital ATK’s Antares deputy program manager

February 29, 2016 Stephen Clark

Kurt Eberly, who helps lead the Antares rocket program at Orbital ATK, recently spoke with Spaceflight Now about the launcher’s return-to-flight with newly-built engines later this year.

NASA quietly posts images of explosive Antares failure

November 5, 2015 Stephen Clark

Less than a week after publishing the results of an independent investigation into last year’s Antares rocket failure, NASA has released new photos of the catastrophic crash just after liftoff from Wallops Island, Virginia.

Two Antares failure probes produce different results

November 1, 2015 Stephen Clark

An Orbital ATK investigation into last year’s Antares rocket crash in Virginia identified a decades-old manufacturing defect inside an AJ26 engine turbopump as the most likely cause of the failure, but a team of NASA engineers was not so sure in their report.

One year after Antares failure, Orbital ATK nears return to flight

October 29, 2015 Stephen Clark

A year after a launch mishap left Orbital ATK’s Cygnus supply ship without a ride to the International Space Station, company officials say the cargo delivery system is on the verge of a comeback, thanks to deals with United Launch Alliance and a decision to redesign its Antares booster with new rocket engines.

Workers complete $15 million in repairs to Antares launch pad

October 6, 2015 Stephen Clark

Repair crews in Virginia have restored the Antares booster’s launch pad — damaged in an explosive rocket crash nearly one year ago — to flight-ready status as the Orbital ATK launcher moves toward a return-to-flight in 2016.

New engines arrive at Antares rocket launch site

August 10, 2015 Stephen Clark

The first pair of new Russian main engines for Orbital ATK’s modernized Antares rocket has arrived at the company’s Virginia launch base as engineers prepare to return the commercial booster to flight after a catastrophic failure last year.