Tag: Falcon launch
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Third time’s the charm as SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launches Intelsat 35e satellite
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket rises from its Florida launch pad, carrying the Intelsat 35e satellite into orbit. (SpaceX via YouTube) SpaceX finally launched the Intelsat 35e telecommunications satellite today atop a Falcon 9 rocket after two earlier attempts were aborted at T-minus-9 seconds. Those two attempts, on Sunday and Monday, were called off by SpaceX’s…
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SpaceX closes out a rocket doubleheader with Iridium launch and booster landing
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket blasts its way into orbit. (SpaceX via YouTube) Two days after launching a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida and landing it again, SpaceX accomplished the same feat in California, bringing 10 satellites to low Earth orbit for Iridium’s next-generation communications network. Liftoff came at 1:25 p.m. PT from Vandenberg Air Force Base…
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SpaceX leads off its rocket doubleheader with Falcon 9 re-launch and re-landing
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from its Florida launch pad, sending the BulgariaSat-1 satellite into space. (SpaceX via YouTube) For the second time ever, SpaceX has sent a telecommunications satellite into orbit on a previously flown Falcon 9 rocket – but today’s launch of BulgariaSat-1 is notable for other reasons as well. The first-stage booster…
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SpaceX launches its first refurbished Dragon cargo ship to the space station
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Florida. (NASA TV) SpaceX took one more step in its campaign for rocket reusability today by sending a previously flown Dragon cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station for the first time. If all goes well, it should mark the first space station rendezvous for a reused spaceship since…
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SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sends Inmarsat telecom satellite to high-flying orbit
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket rises from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, sending an Inmarsat satellite into space. (SpaceX via YouTube) SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket today launched the Inmarsat-5 F4 telecommunications satellite to a geostationary transfer orbit ranging beyond 22,000 miles in height – so high that there was no chance to…
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SpaceX reaches milestone with Falcon 9 launch of secret NROL-76 spy satellite – and booster landing
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket rises from its Florida launch pad. (NRO via Twitter) SpaceX launched a top-secret satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office today, then brought its Falcon 9 booster back for a spectacular touchdown at its Florida landing zone. The NROL-76 launch marks a milestone as the first SpaceX launch fully dedicated to a classified mission, and the…
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SpaceX’s Gwynne Shotwell says rockets should fly almost as often as airplanes
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell watches a video of a Falcon 9 rocket landing during her talk to the 33rd Space Symposium. (GeekWire Photo / Alan Boyle) COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell isn’t satisfied with last week’s history-making relaunch and landing of a previously flown Falcon 9 rocket. The way she sees it,…
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It’s another first for SpaceX! Previously launched Falcon 9 rocket lifts off and lands a second time
SpaceX’s first reflown Falcon 9 booster rises from its Florida launch pad. (SpaceX Photo) Today SpaceX did something it’s never done before: reusing a Falcon 9 rocket booster that’s already been launched and landed. The Falcon 9 mission to send the SES-10 communications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit lifted off at 6:27 p.m. ET (3:27…
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Launch a rocket every day? SpaceX’s Elon Musk kicks it up a notch for reusability
SpaceX founder Elon Musk talks about the significance of the first relaunch of a Falcon 9 rocket booster. (SpaceX via YouTube) SpaceX took nearly a year to relaunch its first “flight-proven” Falcon 9 booster, but within a year or two, company founder Elon Musk expects to be able to launch the same rocket day after…
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SpaceX postpones launch of EchoStar communications satellite due to high winds
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket stands on its pad at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A in preparation for sending the EchoStar 23 satellite into orbit. (SpaceX Photo) High winds have forced SpaceX to postpone its launch of the EchoStar 23 communications satellite, a mission requiring so much oomph that the company won’t even try landing…