Tag: SpaceX
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The Space Force is changing the way it thinks about spaceports
A lot goes into a successful rocket launch. It’s not just reliable engines, computers, and sophisticated guidance algorithms. There’s also the launch pad and, perhaps even more of an afterthought to casual observers, the roads, bridges, pipelines, and electrical infrastructure required to keep a spaceport humming. Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen, commander of the Space Force’s…
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SpaceX launches 22 Starlink satellites on West Coast Falcon 9 flight
A Falcon 9 lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on SpaceX’s fourth mission of 2024. Image: SpaceX. Update 4:20 a.m. EST: Successful launch and landing of the Falcon 9. SpaceX was finally able to launch its Falcon 9 rocket from California early Sunday morning after a delay caused by high upper-level winds. The launch,…
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Astronauts ready for first, all-European mission to the International Space Station
(Left to right) Ax-3 Mission Specialist Marcus Wandt, Pilot Walter Villadei, Commander Michael López-Alegría, Mission Specialist Alper Gezeravcı. Image: Axiom Space For the third time, Axiom Space is preparing a charter mission to the International Space Station. The Ax-3 mission carries the distinction of featuring an all-European crew, with Commander Michael López-Alegría being a dual…
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First astronaut missions to the Moon since 1972 delayed due to heat shield questions, hardware readiness
The Artemis 2 crew, standing in from of their Artemis spacecraft, discusses their planned around-the-moon flight with reporters at the Kennedy Space Center. Left to right: commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now. A quartet of astronauts will have to wait until next year before their…
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Launch Roundup: Axiom-3 crew and Tianzhou 7 cargo space station missions this week
A pair of missions to space stations headline the launches for the week of Jan. 10 to Jan. 17. Axiom-3 will be flying four private astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), becoming the first crew launch of 2024. Crew Dragon Freedom will fly from Florida, with a multinational crew, for a mission to the…
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Launch Roundup: Axiom-3 crew and Tianzhou 7 cargo space station missions this week
A pair of missions to space stations headline the launches for the week of Jan. 10 to Jan. 17. Axiom-3 will be flying four private astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), becoming the first crew launch of 2024. Crew Dragon Freedom will fly from Florida, with a multinational crew, for a mission to the…
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SpaceX launches Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral with 23 Starlink satellites
A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 23 Starlink satellites lifts off from Cape Canaveral on Jan. 7, 2024. Photo: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now. The next batch of 23 Starlink satellites for SpaceX’s space-based internet service roard into orbit atop a Falcon 9 rocket launched Sunday from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 5:35 p.m.…
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Rocket Report: SpaceX’s record year; Firefly’s Alpha rocket falls short
Welcome to Edition 6.25 of the Rocket Report! We hope all our readers had a peaceful holiday break. While many of us were enjoying time off work, launch companies like SpaceX kept up the pace until the final days of 2023. Last year saw a record level of global launch activity, with 223 orbital launch…
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Elon Musk: SpaceX needs to build Starships as often as Boeing builds 737s
It’s no secret that Elon Musk has big ambitions for SpaceX’s Starship mega-rocket. This is the vehicle that, with plenty of permutations and upgrades, Musk says will ferry cargo and people across the Solar System to build a settlement on Mars, making humanity a multi-planetary species and achieving the billionaire’s long-standing dream. Of course, that…
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National Labor Relations Board Pursues Complaint Against SpaceX Over Employee Firings
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is advancing with a formal complaint against SpaceX, filed by eight former employees who allege they were wrongfully terminated for circulating an open letter within the company. The complaint, issued on January 3, consolidates eight individual cases brought forth by employees who claim their dismissal was in violation of…