Tag: commercial-space
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Video and photo highlights of Virgin Galactic’s historic SpaceShipTwo test flight
Check out video highlights released by Virgin Galactic of Thursday’s test flight by the company’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane to an altitude of 271,000 feet (82.7 kilometers), above a boundary recognized by the U.S. government as the edge of space. The air-dropped rocket plane took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California under a…
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Virgin Galactic accomplishes milestone test flight to the edge of space
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) after confirmation of a successful test flight. Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane fires toward space Thursday. Credit: MarsScientific.com & Trumbull Studios / Virgin Galactic With two veteran test pilots at the controls, Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane climbed to the edge of space for the first time…
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Mission timeline for Rocket Lab’s launch of NASA’s ELaNa-19 CubeSats
Rocket Lab’s light-class Electron launcher is set to take off on its fourth flight from New Zealand, aiming to deliver 13 CubeSats to orbit on the company’s first mission for NASA. The two-stage, 55-foot-tall (17-meter) rocket could take off as soon as 11 p.m. EST on Dec. 15 (0400 GMT on Dec. 16) from Rocket…
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Live coverage: Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket launches on NASA mission
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 on Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand carrying 10 NASA-funded CubeSat missions into orbit. Text updates will appear automatically below. Follow us on Twitter. Rocket Lab’s live video webcast begins around 20 minutes prior to launch, and will be available on this…
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Rocket Lab preps to launch flock of NASA-funded CubeSats
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated Dec. 14 with new launch date and correcting number of CubeSats. The Electron rocket’s nose cone is emblazoned with the NASA “meatball” patch for the mission launching Wednesday night (U.S. time). Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is set to launch 13 CubeSats Saturday night (U.S. time) under contract to NASA…
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Virgin Galactic gets set for SpaceShipTwo flights that aim for space — but how high?
Virgin Galactic is getting VSS Unity ready for a crucial series of test flights. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic says it’s beginning a series of SpaceShipTwo test flights that could cross the edge of the space frontier as early as Thursday — amid a debate over where exactly that edge kicks in. The company has…
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Virgin Galactic gets set for SpaceShipTwo flights that aim for space — but how high?
Virgin Galactic is getting VSS Unity ready for a crucial series of test flights. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic says it’s beginning a series of SpaceShipTwo test flights that could cross the edge of the space frontier as early as Thursday — amid a debate over where exactly that edge kicks in. The company has…
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SpaceX makes another space station cargo delivery
SpaceX’s Dragon supply ship approaches the International Space Station on Saturday. Credit: Alexander Gerst/ESA/NASA A commercial supply ship owned and operated by SpaceX arrived at the International Space Station on Saturday, delivering a pair of NASA experiments to demonstrate satellite refueling techniques and monitor changes in Earth’s forests, along with a special holiday menu of…
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Photos: Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Vandenberg on SSO-A rideshare mission
The first of two launches by SpaceX this week lifted off Monday, Dec. 3, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California carrying 64 microsatellites and CubeSats to an orbit more than 350 miles (575 kilometers) above Earth. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 10:34:05 a.m. PST (1:34:05 p.m. EST; 1834:05 GMT) Monday from Space…
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Video: Pre-launch briefings for SpaceX’s next space station resupply mission
Two panels of managers and scientists presented details of SpaceX’s 16th operational resupply flight to the International Space Station on the eve of its launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral. The first video clip is the pre-launch press conference with senior NASA, SpaceX and U.S. Air Force officials. The second video includes…