Tag: SpaceX
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Goodbye, BFR … hello, Starship: Elon Musk gives a classic name to his Mars spaceship
An artist’s conception shows SpaceX’s Starship in flight. (SpaceX Illustration) First it was the Mars Colonial Transporter, or MCT … then it was the Interplanetary Transport System, or ITS … then it was the Big Falcon Rocket, or BFR. Now it’s Starship. Tonight SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced the latest name for the spaceship that…
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SpaceX launches Qatar’s Es’hail-2 telecom satellite, and then lands Falcon 9 booster
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, sending the Es’hail-2 satellite into space. (SpaceX via YouTube) SpaceX sent the Es’hail-2 telecommunications satellite into orbit today, then brought the Falcon 9 rocket’s first-stage booster back down for an at-sea landing. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex…
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FCC OKs SpaceX’s plan for 7,500 satellites in very low Earth orbit (and its rivals’ plans)
An artist’s conception shows a constellation of satellites in orbit. (OneWeb Illustration) The Federal Communications Commission today gave the go-ahead for SpaceX to operate a constellation of more than 7,500 broadband access satellites in very low Earth orbit — and also gave the go-ahead for other satellite constellations chasing similar markets. SpaceX’s plan to put 7,518…
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SpaceX Falcon 9 launches Es’Hail-2 from 39A
SpaceX launched Qatar’s Es’hail-2 spacecraft Thursday, using a Falcon 9 rocket to place the communications satellite into orbit. Falcon lifted off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center at the start of a 101-minute window that opened at 15:46 Eastern Time (20:46 UTC). Thursday’s mission used a flight-proven Falcon 9 booster, making its second mission. Thursday’s launch…
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Elon Musk and Mars take the spotlight in National Geographic TV doubleheader
SpaceX founder Elon Musk watches February’s ascent of the Falcon Heavy rocket in a scene from National Geographic’s “Mars: Inside SpaceX.” (National Geographic / RadicalMedia via YouTube) Science fiction blends with fact in tonight’s double dose of Mars from National Geographic’s TV channel. Truth to tell, there’s more fact than fiction: The first show in…
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SpaceX sets its sights on a lower orbit for Starlink broadband network’s first satellites
SpaceX’s satellite plan suggests that Starlink spacecraft would be placed in two different sets of orbits, with an intial wave of satellites at an altitude of 550 kilometers. (PatentYogi via YouTube) SpaceX wants to lower the bar for its first batch of Starlink broadband satellites, with the aim of beginning deployment by the end of…
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In Recode Q&A, Elon Musk talks up ‘Blade Runner’ truck, Space Force and Jeff Bezos
Elon Musk speaks at a space conference in 2016. (SpaceX Photo) Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is really psyched about the electric pickup truck he’s got on the drawing board — and he’s also cool with the Space Force and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space effort. Those are just a…
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SpaceX reorganizes Starlink satellite operation, reportedly with high-level firings
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, sending the first two Starlink demonstration satellites into orbit. (SpaceX via YouTube) SpaceX says it has reorganized its satellite development operation in Redmond, Wash., to accelerate design and testing of the elements for its planned satellite broadband constellation — and high-level departures…
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Commercial Crew completes training and prepares flight hardware
Teams from NASA, SpaceX, and the Department of Defense recently completed medical emergency training at Cape Canaveral. Launch pads are receiving final upgrades, and flight hardware is beginning to arrive, as both Commercial Crew providers progress towards returning crew launch capability to American soil. On October 25, an emergency simulation was conducted at the Kennedy…
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Who will get to Mars first? Oddsmakers favor SpaceX and Blue Origin over NASA
An artist’s conception shows SpaceX’s BFR rocket landing on Mars. (SpaceX via YouTube) If sending humans to Mars is a race, which team is favored to win? Bookies give the nod to Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin venture, but it’ll be years before any bet pays off. David Strauss, an…