Tag: commercial-space
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Virgin’s satellite launcher reaches orbit for first time
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket fires its NewtonThree main engine moments after release from the Boeing 747 carrier jet, named “Cosmic Girl.” Credit: Virgin Orbit An air-launched rocket built by Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit reached orbit Sunday for the first time, delivering 10 experimental CubeSats for NASA and positioning the company for the start of commercial…
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Boeing making progress on Starliner software for test flight in March
The crew module Boeing’s second Starliner spacecraft is lifted Jan. 13 inside the Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: Boeing/John Proferes Boeing said Monday it has re-qualified software for the company’s Starliner crew capsule after programming errors cut short the spacecraft’s first orbital test flight in 2019,…
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Live coverage: Rocket Lab launches from New Zealand on its first mission of 2021
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 on Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand carrying a clandestine payload for the German company OHB. Text updates will appear automatically below. Follow us on Twitter. Rocket Lab’s live video webcast begins approximately 15 minutes prior to launch, and will be available…
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NASA takes a chance on Virgin Orbit with company’s second test launch
The LauncherOne rocket’s payload fairing is emblazoned with the NASA “meatball” logo for Virgin Orbit’s second orbital test flight. Credit: Virgin Orbit On its second launch attempt after a propulsion problem prevented its light-class air-dropped rocket from reaching space last year, Virgin Orbit will try to deliver 10 experimental CubeSats into orbit as soon as…
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Rocket Lab set to launch super-secret satellite for German company
An Electron rocket stands on Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1A for the company’s first mission of 2021. Credit: Rocket Lab A small communications satellite built by the German company OHB — a payload so secret that no one has officially disclosed its name or end user — is set to ride a Rocket Lab Electron…
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Officials forecast than 50 launches from Florida’s Space Coast this year
A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off Jan. 7 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with the the Turksat 5A communications satellite, the first launch from Florida’s Space Coast in 2021. Credit: SpaceX Military officials in charge of the Eastern Range at Cape Canaveral project more than 50 launches from Florida’s Space Coast this year, with…
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French wine, live rodents among 2 tons of cargo returned from space station
SpaceX’s Cargo Dragon spacecraft departs the International Space Station Tuesday. Credit: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now A SpaceX Cargo Dragon capsule parachuted to an on-target splashdown Wednesday night west of Tampa, returning more than two tons of experiment specimens from the International Space Station, including live rodents and a dozen bottles of space-aged French wine. The commercial…
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Blue Origin tests passenger accommodations on suborbital launch
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated after launch. Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket lifts off from West Texas on Thursday. Credit: Blue Origin Blue Origin says it is “very, very close” to flying humans on suborbital launches to the edge of space after a successful test flight of a human-capable rocket and capsule Thursday. The company’s New Shepard rocket…
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Cargo Dragon heads for splashdown off Florida’s west coast
SpaceX’s Cargo Dragon spacecraft departs the International Space Station Tuesday. Credit: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now SpaceX’s first upgraded Cargo Dragon spaceship departed the International Space Station Tuesday morning with more than 4,400 pounds of research specimens and other equipment, heading for splashdown Wednesday night in the Gulf of Mexico off the west coast of Florida. Poor…
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Cargo Dragon return delayed by poor weather
Live coverage of the undocking and return to Earth of SpaceX’s 21st operational Dragon resupply flight to the International Space Station. This is the first flight of SpaceX’s upgraded Cargo Dragon vehicle. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter. [tabby title=”NASA TV”] NASA TV’s live coverage…