Tag: SpaceX
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SpaceX Launches First 21 Northrop Grumman Satellites for SDA Tranche 1 Transport Layer
On Saturday, October 10, 2026, a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 3:39 a.m. Eastern, successfully deploying 21 Northrop Grumman satellites into low Earth orbit. Designated as the Tranche 1 Transport Layer A (T1TL-A) mission, the launch marks the initial orbital deployment of Northrop Grumman spacecraft…
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Two Paths to Reliable Space Computing
One approach relies on BAE Systems’ RAD750 family: expensive radiation-hardened processors with a long record of service on deep-space missions. The other uses commercial processors backed by redundant computers and fault-tolerant software, as demonstrated by SpaceX. The question is not simply which technology is more advanced. These approaches reflect two different ways of paying for…
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SpaceX Acquires Grain Management’s 800 MHz Spectrum Portfolio to Launch Standalone Starlink Mobile Carrier
On October 8, 2026, satellite network operator SpaceX announced a definitive agreement to acquire the nationwide 800 MHz low-band spectrum portfolio held by digital infrastructure investment firm Grain Management. The acquisition equips SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile division with up to 14 MHz of paired terrestrial low-band airwaves across the United States. By securing proprietary low-band spectrum…
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SpaceX Patents Satellite Beam Timing System for Direct-to-Phone Service
The system addresses a core problem in satellite-to-phone links. When a Starlink satellite forms concurrent radio connections across multiple terrestrial cell footprints, individual devices experience varying signal propagation delays depending on their position relative to the spacecraft’s orbital slant angle. A phone near the center of a spot beam sits closer to the satellite than…
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Starship Engine Failure Raises Schedule Risk for NASA’s 2028 Moon Landing
Starship is one of two vehicles competing to become the first craft NASA uses to land humans on the Moon, an objective the agency has targeted for as early as 2028. Blue Origin is developing the competing lander. The engine failure was tied to a Starship test campaign, and it reads directly through to the…
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Starship Reaches Orbit for First Time, Deploys 26 Starlink V3 Satellites
Earlier Starship missions reached space and demonstrated satellite deployment, but Flight 14 placed a working payload into Earth orbit. The flight showed how SpaceX intends to use Starship to expand Starlink far faster than it can with Falcon 9. The Super Heavy booster splashed down in the Gulf following stage separation. Starship remained in orbit,…
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From Recovery Milestones to Routine Reuse: What Falcon 9 Can Teach China’s Reusable Rocket Industry
As the launch industry demands lower costs, higher flight rates and greater scale, reusability is making rockets function more like transportation systems. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 was the first reusable orbital rocket to enter commercial service. Its combination of relatively low costs, frequent launches, large scale and strong reliability has made it a mainstay of the…
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SpaceX Sets Starship’s First Orbital Flight for Sept. 28 With Starlink V3 Deployment
Starship Flight 14, also designated Starlink Group 31-1, is scheduled to lift off at 7:15 am CDT with a 75-minute launch window. Backup opportunities run from Sept. 29 through Oct. 4. The flight follows a suborbital test program that SpaceX pursued specifically to avoid stranding an uncontrolled 52-meter-long, nine-meter-wide, 160-metric-ton vehicle in orbit. Those missions…
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Elon Musk Says Starlink Could Carry Most Global Internet Traffic Within a Decade
SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk said on September 23, 2026, that Starlink could carry the majority of global internet traffic within ten years, an ambitious forecast tied to the deployment of higher-capacity Starlink V3 satellites and proposed Starmind spacecraft combining broadband connectivity with orbital computing. The projection would represent a fundamental change in internet infrastructure.…
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Exolaunch Books First SpaceX Starfall Earth-Return Mission for 2029
Exolaunch has signed a contract with SpaceX to serve as payload integrator for a Starfall mission targeted to launch aboard Starship no earlier than 2029, marking the German company’s first commitment to Starship and its first mission involving the return of customer payloads from orbit. Announced on September 21, the agreement expands Exolaunch beyond conventional…