Tag: CCSFS
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Launch Roundup: SpaceX returns to launching Starlink following Starship launch
With the dust settling following the launches of Blue Origin’s New Glenn and SpaceX’s Starship last week and two consequential mishap investigations underway, business returns to usual this week. SpaceX missions dominated the week, with four SpaceX Starlink launches. SpaceX continues its drive to launch approximately 7,500 v2 Mini Starlink satellites into orbit. At the…
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Starship preparations to return to the Roberts Road facility
SpaceX is laying the groundwork for expansion at its Roberts Road facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Driven by a commitment to future advancements, SpaceX continuously enhances its infrastructure along the Space Coast. These developments include new buildings, property expansions, and Starship’s production in Florida. Starship’s History in Florida SpaceX has already made…
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New Glenn second stage completes hot fire test
Blue Origin has hot-fired the second stage of New Glenn for the first time, continuing to work toward its inaugural launch. Over the last year, the company has continued to lead New Glenn to its first flight and has confidently and rapidly pushed for a successful mission. The launch date is coming up in only…
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Polaris Dawn on hold; SpaceX booster fails on landing
Another busy week of spaceflight activities contained a landing failure of a Falcon 9 booster for the first time in over three years. Looking forward, Falcon 9 could launch up to three times this week, including three Starlink flights. Polaris Dawn’s launch date has been delayed due to an unacceptable weather forecast at the time…
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Falcon 9’s return to flight reminds spaceflight industry of past anomalies
Nearly every rocket that has flown has had an anomaly. With thousands of components that all need to work in perfect harmony to have a successful mission, there is likely to be one component that is unable to perform every once in a while. While witnessing an anomaly in spaceflight is not as improbable as…
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SpaceX successfully launches NASA’s PACE mission on polar orbit flight
The Falcon 9 with NASA’s PACE mission atop stands ready for launch at pad 40. Image: SpaceX. Update 2:30 a.m. EST: SpaceX and NASA confirm a successful launch. SpaceX launched its second NASA mission of the year on Thursday morning. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Earth-observing spacecraft PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) lifted…
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Launch Roundup: SpaceX to launch three Starlink missions; India to test crew abort system
Another busy period in spaceflight is underway with three Falcon 9 rockets with Starlink payloads and the first test flight of India’s Gaganyaan crew-capable spacecraft. Starlink 6-23 flew – ahead of 6-24 – from Space Launch Complex (SLC) 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida, while Starlink 7-5 flew out of SLC-4E…
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Starlink 5-11 launches from Florida as astronomy impacts in focus
SpaceX conducted its third orbital launch this month, as well as the 37th Falcon 9 and the company’s 39th overall orbital launch for 2023, with Falcon 9 B1073-9 launching on Monday, June 12 at 3:10 AM EDT (07:10 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The flight took a…
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SpaceX launches Intelsat 40e with NASA’s TEMPO instrument
SpaceX has launched its 23rd mission of 2023 with the company’s Falcon 9 rocket lofting the Intelsat-40e/TEMPO payload to a geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). Liftoff of the Intelsat-40e/TEMPO mission occurred at the opening of a 119-minute window at 12:30 AM EDT (04:30 UTC) on April 7 from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape…
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Falcon 9 launches for eigth time in March carrying Starlink 5-10
Falcon 9 B1077-4 launched 56 Starlink v1.5 satellites into low Earth orbit on Wednesday, March 29 at 4:01 PM EDT (20:01 UTC), from SLC-40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The Falcon 9 flew on a southeast trajectory, as is usual during winter months to avoid recovery operations in rough seas to the northeast.…