Tag: Falcon launch
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Get a drone’s-eye view of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket landing – and much, much more
The Falcon 9 rocket’s first-stage booster descends through the clouds. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX’s first-ever commercial rocket launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center was picture-perfect, but the landing was arguably even more photogenic – or should we say “dronogenic”? The company’s Falcon 9 rocket quickly rose into the clouds over Launch Pad 39A, the Florida takeoff point…
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SpaceX makes its first liftoff from NASA’s historic moon pad – and then lands Falcon 9 booster
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket rises from Launch Complex 39A. (NASA via YouTube) SpaceX sent a rocket rising from NASA’s historic Launch Complex 39A today for the first time since the space shuttle fleet retired, marking a new chapter for a pad that served as the springboard for Apollo moon missions. The Falcon 9 rocket sent…
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Technical issue forces SpaceX to put its first liftoff from historic Pad 39A on hold
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 sits on Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A. (NASA via YouTube) SpaceX postponed the first launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center since the last shuttle flight in 2011, due to concerns about a control system on the Falcon 9 rocket’s second stage. The Falcon 9 had been due to loft a robotic Dragon…
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GAO reportedly faults SpaceX’s rocket engines and predicts delay in crew flights
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Iridium telecommunication satellites from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Jan. 14. (SpaceX Photo) Investigators are raising concerns about persistent cracking in the turbine blades in SpaceX’s rocket engines, and adding to doubts about the schedule for flying NASA astronauts to the International Space Station. The concerns are contained in…
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SpaceX returns to flight with Iridium satellite launch – and rocket landing!
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off for the first time in five months to put 10 advanced Iridium Next telecommunication sateliites in orbit – and demonstrate that the company’s innovative launch-and-landing system was back in stride. Cheers went up from a crowd of…
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SpaceX delays launch due to weather
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands at Vandenberg Air Force Base before its launch in January 2016 to put NASA’s Jason-3 satellite into orbit. (SpaceX / NASA Photo) SpaceX has postponed the return to flight for its Falcon 9 rocket until Jan. 14 at the earliest, due to a gloomy weather forecast for the next…
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SpaceX traces Falcon 9 blast to failed helium tank; return to flight set for Jan. 8
SpaceX’s return to flight is due to take place Jan. 8 at its launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX says an investigation has concluded that the Sept. 1 explosion of its Falcon 9 rocket occurred due to the failure of a helium pressure vessel, and it’s taking steps to avoid the…
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SpaceX launches JCSAT-16 satellite, then lands Falcon 9 rocket at sea
A webcast view shows SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on the oceangoing drone ship known as “Of Course I Still Love You.” (Credit: SpaceX) SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched a satellite for a Japanese communication company tonight, and then made a bull’s-eye landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean. The two-stage Falcon 9 carried the JCSAT-16 satellite…
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SpaceX rocket sends cargo ship to space station, then returns to land
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket rises from its Florida launch pad. (Credit: NASA) SpaceX launched a Dragon cargo capsule to the International Space Station tonight with a couple of precedent-setting payloads on opposite ends of the size spectrum: a 5-foot-wide docking adapter, which was built by Boeing to accommodate future commercial space taxis; and the first…
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SpaceX Falcon 9 booster leans in for a landing at sea after launching satellite
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 booster stands on a drone ship after landing. (Credit: SpaceX) For the third time in a row, a SpaceX Falcon 9 booster sent a payload into space and then came back for a landing on an oceangoing platform. But this time, the booster was a little shaken up. Today’s launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force…