Tag: SpaceX
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SpaceX inserts Starlink into higher orbit on Group 4-8 mission
SpaceX has launched 46 Starlink internet satellites to low Earth orbit on the Starlink Group 4-8 mission. Launching from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Falcon 9 took to the skies at 9:44 AM EST (14:44 UTC) on Monday, February 21. This mission marked SpaceX’s seventh launch of 2022,…
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Polaris program to demo spacewalk and Starship in preparation for Moon and Mars
Led by Inspiration4 commander Jared Isaacman, the newly announced Polaris program aims to demonstrate multiple capabilities needed for upcoming Moon and Mars exploration. This rapid advancement of human spaceflight technology is a partnership with SpaceX for up to three crewed missions and will include both the first commercial spacewalk and the first flight of Starship…
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Billionaire kicks off new orbital missions with SpaceX, featuring spacewalk and Starlink tests
An artist’s conception shows a Polaris Project crew member heading out for a spacewalk from SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spaceship. (Polaris Project Illustration) Five months after billionaire tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman led a crew for a privately funded philanthropic space mission, he’s doing it again. And maybe again, and again. The Shift4 CEO announced today that…
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Musk outlines Starship progress towards self-sustaining Mars city
SpaceX Chief Designer Elon Musk has provided the first overview for the Starship Program since 2019, announcing a roadmap towards building a self-sustaining city on Mars. With Starship, a rapid and completely reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle, as the focal point, Musk hopes to achieve the goal of an orbital test launch this year, followed…
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SpaceX’s falling Starlink satellites highlight concerns about the future of orbital traffic
A rocket’s-eye view shows a stack of SpaceX Starlink satellites just before orbital deployment. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX says that most of the satellites it launched last week for its Starlink broadband internet constellation are doomed to fall from orbit due to a solar storm. Based on the company’s analysis, as many as 40 of the…
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Booster 4 and Ship 20 pair up for Starship update
Providing a backdrop to Elon Musk’s long-awaited Starship update, Booster 4 and Ship 20 have been fully stacked at the Orbital Launch Site. Booster 4 was lifted onto the Mount on Sunday, ahead of the use of the Mechazilla chopsticks to stack Ship 20 on Wednesday night. Musk is set to present the latest updates…
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Expedition 66 begins 2022 aboard the International Space Station
The start of 2022 saw no let-up for the Expedition 66 crew aboard the International Space Station, who are continuing their busy schedule of maintenance, science, and operations aboard their outpost in low Earth orbit. January saw the installation of new external experiments, a spacewalk by the two Russian crewmembers, the departure of a Cargo…
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Astronomers set up a new center to address issues raised by SpaceX and Amazon satellite networks
This time-lapse image of Venus and the Pleiades shows the tracks of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites. (Torsten Hansen / IAU OAE / Creative Commons Attribution) The International Astronomical Union is heading up the creation of a new center to deal with the complications created by broadband satellite constellations like SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon’s Project Kuiper. The…
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SpaceX sets new fairing reuse record with Starlink mission
Continuing with their high launch cadence, SpaceX has successfully launched another Falcon 9, this time carrying 49 Starlink satellites to a 339-kilometer orbit, with a 53.22-degree inclination. The launch occurred at 1:13 PM EST (18:13 UTC) on Thursday, February 3, from the historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In addition…
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SpaceX launches second Falcon 9 of the week with NROL-87
SpaceX has launched the National Reconnaissance Office Launch (NROL)-87 mission on their third dedicated mission for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). NROL-87 launched on top of a brand-new SpaceX Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex-4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California. Liftoff occurred on February 2 at 12:27 PM PST (20:27…