Tag: SpaceX
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Ten flights in, the Starship Program has had successes and failures
SpaceX has had a long journey through 10 flight tests of Starship. Teams have endured explosions and failures, but also achieved triumphs through amazing reentries, catches of Boosters, and even the reuse of a Booster. After 10 flights of Starship, the Program stands on the doorstep of a new generation of vehicles and possible ship…
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SpaceX aces 500th Falcon booster landing amid sunrise Starlink mission
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on the Starlink 10-57 mission. Image: Adam Bernstein / Spaceflight Now Update Sept. 5, 9:40 a.m. EDT: SpaceX confirms deployment of the 28 Starlink satellites. SpaceX completed its 500th recovery of a Falcon booster during a Friday morning flight…
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Former NASA Boss Bridenstine: US “Highly Unlikely” to Land on Moon Before China
In a pointed testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine expressed deep concerns about the complexity and feasibility of NASA’s Artemis program, warning that the United States is “highly unlikely” to land astronauts on the Moon before China due to challenges with orbital refueling and an…
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SpaceX launches 28 Starlink satellites on Wednesday sunrise Falcon 9 flight
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on the Starlink 10-22 mission on Sept. 3, 2025. Image: Adam Bernstein / Spaceflight Now Update Sept. 3, 9 a.m. EDT: SpaceX confirmed deployment of its Starlink satellites. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket soared from Florida’s Space Coast…
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SpaceX’s Tuesday night Starlink features rare debut of a Falcon booster
SpaceX launches the Starlink 17-8 mission using a new Falcon 9 rocket booster. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base occurred on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. Image: SpaceX Update Sept. 1 a.m. EDT: SpaceX confirms deployment of its Starlink satellites. SpaceX completed its first Falcon 9 launch of the month,…
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SpaceX McGregor looks to the future, from Raptor 3 to potential HLS testing
SpaceX’s engine development and testing site in McGregor—the world’s most active rocket engine test facility—continues to be a hive of activity. Recent updates reveal intensified Raptor engine trials and the construction of a large-scale rig, the latter having ignited speculation about its potential ties to Starship’s Human Landing System (HLS) for NASA’s Artemis program. Since…
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Starship’s heat shield appears to have performed quite well in test
One of the more curious aspects of the 10th flight of SpaceX’s Starship rocket on Tuesday was the striking orange discoloration of the second stage. This could be observed on video taken from a buoy near the landing site as the vehicle made a soft landing in the Indian Ocean. This color—so different from the…
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SpaceX’s Sunday morning Falcon 9 launch sends 1,900th Starlink to orbit in 2025
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars past the American flag at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center as it began the Starlink 10-14 mission on Aug. 31, 2025. Image: Michael Cain / Spaceflight Now Update Aug. 31, 10 a.m. EDT: SpaceX confirmed deployment of the 28 Starlink satellites. SpaceX capped off the month of August with a…
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NASA, NOAA prep spacecraft trio to study the Sun and its impacts
A group of technicians works to complete final inspections and checkouts of NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) spacecraft inside a cleanroom at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida. Image: John Pisani / Spaceflight Now Technicians inside a pair of clean rooms at the Astrotech facility in Titusville, Florida, are busily readying a trio…
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SpaceX launches 24 Starlink satellites into polar orbit
File: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands in the vertical position at sunset at Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Image: SpaceX Update Aug. 30, 1:15 a.m. EDT: SpaceX landed the booster on the drone ship. SpaceX launched 24 Starlink broadband satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base Friday evening on…