Tag: Space
-
Spanish company’s success comes at a critical time for Europe’s launch industry
A Spanish launch company claimed success on Saturday after its suborbital Miura 1 rocket lifted off and achieved an altitude of 46 km before plummeting into the Atlantic Ocean. Saturday’s launch from Southern Spain is exciting for several reasons, but most notably because PLD Space is the first of Europe’s new space launch companies to…
-
Atlas V rocket launches prototype Amazon satellites to test Project Kuiper network
United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket launches Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites. (ULA via YouTube) Amazon’s first satellites were launched today on a mission aimed at testing out the hardware and software for the Seattle company’s worldwide Project Kuiper broadband internet constellation. Two prototype satellites — known as KuiperSat 1 and 2 — rode a United…
-
Russia talks a big future in space while its overall budget is quietly cut
The leader of Russia’s space corporation, Yuri Borisov, discussed his country’s future ambitions in space on Tuesday at the International Astronautical Congress. He spoke expansively about Russia’s plans to build a new space station in low-Earth orbit, the Russian Orbital Station, as well as other initiatives. “We are expecting to design, manufacture, and launch several…
-
Departing Amazon exec Dave Limp will become CEO at Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space venture
Blue Origin’s next CEO, Dave Limp, speaks at 2019’s GeekWire Summit. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota) Blue Origin has confirmed that Dave Limp, who is leaving his post as Amazon’s senior vice president of devices and services, will take over as the CEO of Jeff Bezos’ privately held space venture. The current CEO, longtime aerospace…
-
Independent reviewers find NASA Mars Sample Return plans are seriously flawed
An independent review of NASA’s ambitious mission to return about half a kilogram of rocks and soil from the surface of Mars has found that the program is unworkable in its current form. NASA had been planning to launch the critical elements of its Mars Sample Return mission, or MSR, as soon as 2028, with…
-
SpaceX breaks another booster reuse record, but did anyone see it?
SpaceX launched its 67th rocket of the year on Tuesday night, a staggering total for the company and its workhorse booster, the Falcon 9. At this pace, a clip of one launch every four days, the company is likely to launch 90 or more rockets during this calendar year. This Starlink satellite launch was notable…
-
Stoke Space hops its upper stage, leaping toward a fully reusable rocket
At an airfield in Eastern Washington on Sunday, the small launch company Stoke Space flew its upper stage for the first time. The flight was, admittedly, rather modest. The second-stage rocket only ascended to about 30 feet (9 meters) and traveled just several feet down range. The entire flight was over in 15 seconds. And…
-
The US military just proved it can get satellites into space super fast
As part of its efforts to be more nimble in space, the US military has been pushing satellite and launch companies to become more “responsive” in their ability to put spacecraft into space. Essentially, the military is concerned about other nations damaging or destroying its assets in orbit during a conflict. Military officials believe one…
-
Rocket Report: New Shepard may fly soon; ULA changes mind on DoD competition
Welcome to Edition 6.11 of the Rocket Report! There’s a lot going on this week, including the completion of pre-flight tests by two companies developing reusable small launch vehicles. On the larger end of the spectrum, NASA is installing engines onto its second Space Launch System rocket, and SpaceX appears to be on track to…
-
A NASA astronaut will finally spend a full year in space
Eleven days before Christmas last year, a micrometeoroid struck a Soyuz spacecraft docked to the International Space Station. This ruptured the vehicle’s cooling system, creating a dramatic spray of coolant for hours into space before there was none left. Prior to this accidental strike, NASA astronaut Frank Rubio had been planning to come home by…