Tag: Vandenberg
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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…
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SpaceX Falcon 9 completes rare 53 degree inclination launch from Vandenberg
In the company’s third-to-last launch of 2021, SpaceX deployed another group of Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit early on Saturday morning. The Starlink Group 4-4 mission launched 52 Starlink satellites into a 53.22° inclination orbit at 4:41 AM PST (12:41 UTC) Saturday morning. The mission lifted off from SLC-4E (Space Launch Complex 4 East)…
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NASA and CNES to begin SWOT testing as its launch date approaches
With less than one year to launch, France’s Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and NASA are completing the final spacecraft assembly of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) spacecraft. SWOT is a joint NASA and CNES mission with contributions by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and the United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA). The SWOT…
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NASA’s DART asteroid redirect mission launches aboard Falcon 9 from Vandenberg
SpaceX has launched NASA’s DART (Double Asteroid Redirect Test) mission onboard a Falcon 9 rocket. DART is a demonstration mission to determine the effects of an intentional impact on an asteroid. DART’s collision with the asteroid moon Dimorphos is set for October 2022. The launch of the small spacecraft from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force…
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DART in transit to Vandenberg Space Force Base ahead of November 2021 launch
After completing months of tests and assembly, NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is in transit to Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California ahead of its launch. DART is a first-of-its-kind NASA mission to demonstrate an asteroid deflection via a kinetic impact. The probe will launch on a flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket from Space…
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NASA’s Landsat 9 successfully launched aboard Atlas V from Vandenberg
United Launch Alliance has launched NASA’s most powerful Earth-imaging satellite, Landsat 9, on an Atlas V rocket. Liftoff occurred at 11:12 AM PDT (18:12 UTC) on Monday, September 27, from Space Launch Complex-3 East (SLC-3E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Atlas V placed the satellite into a near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude…
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SpaceX begins second Starlink shell with Vandenberg launch
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, carrying a total of 51 second-generation Starlink satellites into orbit. This was the first launch in support of deploying the second shell of Starlink satellites. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg’s Space Launch Complex 4-East (SLC-4E) at 8:55 PM Pacific time…
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Firefly Aerospace’s maiden flight of Alpha launch vehicle ends in failure
Firefly Aerospace suffered a failure during the first orbital flight of their small satellite launch vehicle, Alpha. The launch, designated as FLTA001, launched from Space Launch Complex 2 West at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California before blowing up during first stage flight. Firefly was aiming to become the fifth company to develop and fly…
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Pegasus XL rocket successfully launches Tactically Responsive Launch demo for Space Force
Northrop Grumman’s air-launched Pegasus XL rocket made a low-profile launch for the US Space Force Sunday, in a mission designed to demonstrate the ability to call up and conduct a launch at short notice. The launch occurred off the coast of California during a six-minute window that opened at 01:09 PDT (08:09 UTC). The mission…
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ULA completes Delta IV Heavy pad upgrades ahead of NROL-82 mission
United Launch Alliance (ULA) has recently made pad upgrades to Space Launch Complex-6 (SLC-6) at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, ahead of the upcoming Delta IV Heavy launch of the NROL-82 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office scheduled for April 26 at 15:39 EDT / 19:39 UTC. The previous Delta IV Heavy mission, NROL-44 from…