Launch Roundup: Delta IV Heavy swan song, Falcon 9 and Soyuz launches on tap for last week of March
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Justin Davenport
2d ago
A trio of Falcon 9 Starlink launches, a Falcon 9 non-Starlink launch involving an Eutelsat communications satellite, a Chinese launch, and a Russian Soyuz launch with a Resurs Earth observation satellite are scheduled for this week. However, the launch that will likely get the most attention is the final launch ever of a Delta family rocket, a family that dates back to near the beginning of the space age. Starlink 6-46 started the launch week off on Monday, from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). A launch from China, which had been thought to be a Chang Zheng 6C, but was in fact ..read more
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Following IFT-3 milestones, SpaceX prepares for fourth Starship flight
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Ryan Weber
6d ago
SpaceX is preparing to follow up its third flight of Starship – one that achieved another leap forward with the world’s largest rocket in history – with the IFT-4 mission. Potentially as early as May, the fourth flight is expected to pair Booster 11 with Ship 29, with the latter already back at the launch site for its Static Fire test campaign. Flight 3 Excels Ship 28 and Booster 10 lifted off from Orbital Launch Pad A in Boca Chica, Texas, at 8:25 a.m. CDT. Right away, Booster 10 had all 33 engines running, just like Flight 2, and the booster kept all engines running during ascent once agai ..read more
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SpaceX’s 30th resupply mission uses new access tower at SLC-40 for the first time
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Martin Smith
1w ago
SpaceX has debuted a new capability on their 30th cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. For the first time, a Dragon 2 capsule lifted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This was possible thanks to the newly constructed crew and cargo access tower at the pad, assembled throughout 2023 in between the onslaught of Falcon 9 launches. CRS-30 lifted off as scheduled on Thursday, March 21 at 4:55 PM EDT (20:55 UTC). SLC-40 now joins Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) as the second crew-capable launch pad in ..read more
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Launch Roundup: two missions to the ISS, including first Dragon 2 from SLC-40
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by John Sharp
1w ago
SpaceX is preparing to launch three Falcon 9s, including two Starlink missions. Additionally, launching this week are two Chinese rockets, an Electron, and a crewed Soyuz. SpaceX will continue to strive for a record-breaking year by launching from all three of its Falcon 9 launch pads this week, which will take its launch total to 10 for March, with several days remaining. This week will also see the first launch of a SpaceX Dragon 2 spacecraft from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This launch will be the first to make use of the newly added crew access ..read more
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After Months of Preparations Starship is Ready for Flight 3
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Ryan Weber
2w ago
Starship Flight 3 is set and ready to fly after months of preparations and SpaceX learning from the issues encountered during Flight 2. Booster 10 and Ship 28 are the most advanced pair of vehicles yet to be slated for an integrated test flight of Starship. The launch of the world’s most powerful rocket is set for 7 a.m. local time from Starbase in Texas. Flight 1 SpaceX will be aiming to continue its impressive improvements over the past two flights, which opened with Starship Flight 1. Booster 7 and Ship 24, which at the time weren’t the best vehicles available, were mainly tasked with sim ..read more
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SpaceX launches Transporter-10 rideshare from Vandenberg
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Danny Lentz
3w ago
On Monday, March 4, 2024, SpaceX launched the Transporter-10 rideshare mission from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB). Liftoff occurred at 2:05 PM PST (22:05 UTC). Deployment of payloads from the second stage to two Sun-synchronous orbits (SSO) at altitudes of approximately 520 kilometers and 600 kilometers began almost an hour after launch and lasted until two hours and 33 minutes after launch, including moving to the second orbit. There were 48 deployment events from Falcon 9, releasing 51 spacecraft, some of which are orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs) carrying ot ..read more
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ISS Roundup: Cygnus NG-20, Axiom Mission 3, and Progress MS-26
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Aaron McCrea
3w ago
This month, the International Space Station (ISS) has seen a flurry of activity, from experiments to vehicle arrivals and departures. Multiple resupply missions by Cygnus and Progress have kept the crew of Expedition 70 healthy onboard the Station. Meanwhile, a private mission from Axiom headed back to Earth with the first-ever all-European commercial crew, and SpaceX Crew-8 prepares to launch to the ISS in the coming days. Northrop Grumman’s 20th Cygnus mission (NG-20) was berthed to the Station’s Unity module on Feb. 1, beginning the month off with a strong start. NG-20 was launched on a Sp ..read more
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NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-8 mission to ISS
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Tyler Gray
3w ago
For the second time in 2024, a collection of four humans will fly on a SpaceX rocket and capsule to the International Space Station (ISS). The crew of the Crew-8 mission is set to launch atop Falcon 9 and Dragon Endeavour from the historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center no earlier than Sunday, March 3 at 10:53 PM EST (03:53 UTC Monday, March 4). Upon their arrival at the ISS, the crew will begin their approximately six-month stay whilst taking over duties from the Crew-7 astronauts, who will make their return to Earth aboard the Dragon Endurance spacecraft no earlier than M ..read more
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Launch Roundup: SpaceX launching three Falcon 9 rockets including Crew-8; new launcher to debut from Japan
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Justin Davenport
3w ago
This week now has four flights scheduled, starting with Crew-8, which is to send a new crew to the International Space Station for a six-month tour of duty after launching from Florida. Starlink 6-41 from Cape Canaveral and Transporter 10 from Vandenberg Space Force Base are also on the docket along with the debut of a new small satellite launcher from Japan. Crew-8 is due to fly three NASA astronauts and one Roscosmos cosmonaut to the Station on March 2, while the Starlink 6-41 flight and Transporter 10 are now due to fly on March 4. The new KAIROS small satellite launcher developed by the J ..read more
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Flight 2 Mishap Investigation closed as SpaceX preps for another WDR
NASASpaceFlight.com » SpaceX
by Ryan Weber
1M ago
After the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officially closed the mishap investigation into the second flight of Starship, which occurred on Nov 18, 2023. SpaceX is preparing to restack Booster 10 and Ship 28 onto the OLM before another Wet Dress Reheral WDR attempt that would set the stage for a March launch attempt. Next Up, Another WDR Attempt Ship 28 has now been removed from Suborbital Pad B, where it completed a spin prime test to verify the connections on the engines that were swapped or removed for better access. That same day Booster 10 was rolled out to the OLM and then lifted ..read more
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