Tag: SpaceX
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Falcon 9 scrubs Static Fire – SpaceX delay launch
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 v1.1 – tasked lofting six ORBCOMM OG2 satellites into orbit – scrubbed her second attempt at a Static Fire test on Friday. Thursday’s Static Fire was postponed following problems with umbilical connections between the SLC-40 pad and the rocket. Friday’s issue is unspecified but it has resulted in SpaceX delaying the launch…
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Canada’s Dextre completes payload removals from CRS-3 Dragon
Canada’s SPDM (Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator), or Dextre as it’s commonly known, has completed the removal of payloads from the Trunk of the SpaceX CRS-3 Dragon spacecraft, which recently arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) with an array of supplies and equipment. Two major payloads rode uphill in the unpressurized aft of the Dragon,…
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Russian Progress M-21M re-tests new Kurs-NA system
A Russian Progress went on a short excursion this week, resulting in a redocking to the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday. The two day free-flying trip for Progress M-21M was used to re-test the Kurs-NA system that misbehaved when the vehicle first docked to the orbital outpost last November, resulting in Oleg Kotov having to grapple…
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Rockets that return home – SpaceX pushing the boundaries
SpaceX is continuing to advance the technology that is aimed at creating a fully – and rapidly – reusable launch system, with the recent addition of two key milestones towards that goal. While the F9-R Dev-1 rocket enjoyed a debut hop at the McGregor Test Facility in Texas, the first stage of the Falcon 9…
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SpaceX CRS-3 Dragon completes Easter arrival at the ISS
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft was captured by the International Space Station (ISS) and successfully berthed, following her Easter Sunday arrival. After only a slight hiccup with her quad thrusters, the spacecraft has enjoyed a smooth passage towards the orbital outpost, ahead of a complex set of requirements that culminated in her capture and berthing. Dragon Arrival:…
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SpaceX Falcon 9 successfully launches CRS-3 Dragon
SpaceX successfully launched the latest Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday. Following repairs to a a helium valve in the stage separation pneumatic system – which was responsible for Monday’s scrub, the Falcon 9 v1.1 was readied for its next attempt, with the launch of the CRS-3 Dragon from…
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SpaceX, NASA realign launch and EVA scenarios
SpaceX managers have confirmed a second attempt to launch their Falcon 9 v1.1 with the CRS-3 Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) will take place on Friday, with Saturday as a back-up opportunity. Meanwhile, Station managers have created an EVA schedule to work around when Dragon finally sets sail. Currently, EVA-26 – which…
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Spacewalk set to fix external MDM failure on ISS
The International Space Station (ISS) suffered a failure of an external computer known as a Multiplexer/Demultiplexer (MDM) on Friday night (11 April), which will require a spacewalk on April 22 to replace in order to restore vital redundancy to the station. Despite the challenges, SpaceX’s Dragon CRS-3 mission – which could have been impacted by…
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Range Realigns – SpaceX CRS-3 mission targets April 14
Thanks in part to the successful launch – at the first attempt – of the Atlas V with the DMSP-5D3 F-19 satellite on Thursday, teams have re-planned the next two launches from Cape Canaveral. The next Atlas V – with the NROL-67 satellite – is targeting April 10, while SpaceX’s Falcon 9 v1.1 launch with the…
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Eastern Range Radar issue delays upcoming Cape launches
A fire that impacted a radar asset on Florida’s Eastern Range has resulted in the postponement of two launches from Cape Canaveral. United Launch Alliance’s upcoming Atlas V mission has already been pushed back to at least April 10, while SpaceX later confirmed its Falcon 9 mission – that was set to loft the CRS-3…