Tag: SpaceX
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NASA and CNES to begin SWOT testing as its launch date approaches
With less than one year to launch, France’s Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and NASA are completing the final spacecraft assembly of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) spacecraft. SWOT is a joint NASA and CNES mission with contributions by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and the United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA). The SWOT…
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NASA’s DART asteroid redirect mission launches aboard Falcon 9 from Vandenberg
SpaceX has launched NASA’s DART (Double Asteroid Redirect Test) mission onboard a Falcon 9 rocket. DART is a demonstration mission to determine the effects of an intentional impact on an asteroid. DART’s collision with the asteroid moon Dimorphos is set for October 2022. The launch of the small spacecraft from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force…
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Amid Ship 20 test success, Starbase prepares future Starships
With a significant milestone under its belt, Ship 20 awaits the next steps in preparing for an orbital velocity flight test, likely watching on as Super Heavy Booster 4 undergoes a more ambitious ground test campaign. The continued preparations with Ship 20 and Booster 4 continue amid a traffic jam of vehicles back at the…
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Crew Dragon Endurance delivers Crew-3 to International Space Station
Crew Dragon Endurance docked to the International Space Station (ISS) at 6:32 PM EST (23:32 UTC) following 22 hours of free flight after launching from the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday, delivering the Crew-3 contingent to the station. The astronauts of Crew-3 consist of Raja Chari (Commander), Thomas Marshburn (Pilot), and Kayla Barron (Mission Specialist 2) from…
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SpaceX conducts Saturday Starlink launch from Cape Canaveral
SpaceX has resumed Starlink launches from the East coast on Saturday, as the company delivered 53 second-generation satellites aboard to orbit. Following Friday’s weather-related scrub, the launch took place on Saturday, at 7:19 AM EST, from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Named Starlink 4-1, this is the…
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SpaceX launches mostly-rookie Crew-3 mission to ISS
SpaceX and NASA have successfully launched four astronauts to the International Space Station on the Crew-3 mission. The crew took flight onboard a Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon Endurance from Kennedy Space Center’s Pad 39A Wednesday evening, November 10, at 9:03 PM EST (02:03 UTC on November 11). At the station, the four will spend…
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What to expect from the next round of Starship testing
SpaceX is preparing for the third static firing of the Raptors on board Ship 20 later this week. This is underlined by a series of road closures and a Notices to Mariners (NOTMAR) in place. This test series might be the first of the Starship program to involve up to six engines, including three Raptor…
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Crew-2 returns to Earth after six-month stay on the ISS
NASA and SpaceX teams has completed the safe return of the Crew-2 mission from the International Space Station (ISS) with four astronauts on board. Crew Dragon Endeavour undocked from the ISS at 2:05 p.m. EST (19:05 UTC) Monday, with a splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean at 10:33 p.m. EST. Crew-2’s mission began with a launch…
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Blue Origin loses lunar lander lawsuit; NASA says SpaceX work will resume ASAP
An artist’s conception shows SpaceX’s Starship rocket ship on the moon. (SpaceX Illustration) A federal judge today rejected Blue Origin’s challenge to a $2.9 billion contract that NASA awarded to SpaceX for building the lunar lander destined to carry astronauts to the moon. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ space venture had argued that NASA gave overly…
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Major elements of Starship Orbital Launch Pad in place as launch readiness draws nearer
With the maiden orbital flight of Starship approaching, Orbital Launch Pad A in Starbase, Texas, is being built up to launch readiness. Over a year of construction has brought the complex’s various elements to the verge of launching the most powerful rocket in history. Assembly Timeline SpaceX started construction of the orbital launch pad on June…