Tag: reusable rockets
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SpaceX Expands Starbase as Flight 14 Vehicles Complete Testing
SpaceX is expanding assembly, testing and launch infrastructure across Starbase, Texas, as Ship 41 and Booster 21 move through final checkout for Starship Flight 14. Recent aerial imagery shows simultaneous work at Massey’s test site, the Gigabay assembly building and both orbital launch pads, while hardware for Flight 15 and later vehicles is already entering…
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China Commercial Space Industry Monthly Report — August 2026
In August 2026, China and the United States continued to dominate the global launch market. The United States maintained its lead through the high-cadence reuse and launch operations of Falcon 9, while China saw parallel advances by both its state-owned space sector and commercial space companies. A total of 26 orbital launches were conducted worldwide…
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SpaceX launches 27 Starlink satellites on 103rd Falcon 9 mission of 2026 (Video)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched 27 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Sept. 6, 2026. It was the 80th Starlink satellite mission of the 2026. Credit: SpaceX SpaceX launched 27 Starlink broadband satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on September 6, 2026,…
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PALLAS-1 Completes Successful Maiden Flight: Why Did Galactic Energy Stick With LOX/Kerosene?
On the morning of September 1, PALLAS-1 Y1 lifted off from Jiuquan and successfully entered its planned orbit. For Galactic Energy, the mission marked not only the debut of a new launch vehicle, but also the company’s transition from small solid-fuel rockets to a medium-lift liquid-fuel rocket. The rocket also embodies a choice that is…
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SpaceX FCC Filing Outlines First Full Orbital Attempt for Starship Flight 14
SpaceX has submitted communications applications to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for Starship Flight 14, formally identifying the mission as the program’s first attempt to place the vehicle into a sustained Earth orbit. The paperwork requests authority to operate launch-vehicle communications during a window beginning September 15, 2026, and extending through March 15, 2027. The…
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SpaceX Launches 27 Starlink Satellites as Falcon 9 Booster Completes 35th Flight (Video)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched 27 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Sept. 2, 2026 at 1:42 a.m. PT (4:42 a.m. ET). Credit: SpaceX SpaceX launched 27 Starlink broadband satellites from California on September 2, extending the company’s low Earth orbit communications network while…
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Hainan Could Become the Hub of China’s Commercial Space Future
The global launch industry is entering a new phase, one defined less by whether rockets can reach orbit and more by how quickly launch capacity can scale. Firefly Aerospace CEO Jason Kim recently pointed to a widening imbalance between the number of satellites waiting to fly and the amount of launch capacity available to carry…
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Pallas-1 Y1: Another New Rocket from a Chinese Private Launch Company Reaches Orbit
At 10:00 a.m. on September 1, 2026, Pallas-1 Y1, a medium-to-large reusable liquid-propellant launch vehicle developed by Galactic Energy, lifted off from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Test Zone. The rocket successfully entered its designated orbit as planned, performed normally throughout the flight, and achieved all test objectives, marking the successful completion of the mission.…
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Six Key Metrics for Assessing China’s Reusable Rockets
China’s reusable-rocket race has reached a turning point. With the Long March-10B completing an offshore net-capture recovery and Zhuque-3 Y2 landing its first stage on deployable legs, the country has demonstrated that it can recover intact boosters from orbital-class missions. But landing a rocket is not the same as reusing it—and reuse does not automatically…
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Decoding the Six Reusable Rockets Successfully Recovered Worldwide
Rocket recovery has evolved from an experimental concept into one of the defining capabilities of modern launch vehicles. By returning and potentially reusing major rocket stages, launch providers aim to reduce costs, shorten turnaround times and support a higher launch cadence. To date, six orbital-class launch vehicles worldwide—Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, Starship, New Glenn, Long…