Space News & Blog Articles

The 400th Falcon 9 rocket soars to space on November 23, 2024, from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Image: SpaceX

Update 12:56 a.m. EST (0556 UTC): SpaceX landed its Falcon 9 first stage booster following liftoff.

A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands at the pad at Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) ahead of the planned hot fire test schedule before its first launch. Image: Spaceflight Now

Blue Origin took another step towards the inaugural launch of its New Glenn rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. For the first time, the company placed a fully integrated, flight-capable rocket on the launch pad Thursday evening.

File photo: A Falcon 9 rocket stands in the launch position at Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of the planned liftoff of the Starlink 6-61 mission on Oct. 22, 2024. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now

SpaceX is preparing to launch its fourth Falcon 9 rocket since Sunday with a mission carrying the company’s latest batch of Starlink internet satellites.

Ship 31 and Super Heavy Booster 13 climb away from Starbase on the sixth test flight of SpaceX’s Starship vehicle. Image: Chuck Briggs/Spaceflight Now.

With President-elect Donald Trump and newly-minted efficiency czar Elon Musk looking on, SpaceX launched the world’s most powerful rocket on its sixth test flight Tuesday, an up-and-down trip to space by a gargantuan Super Heavy-Starship to evaluate a variety of safety and performance upgrades.

SpaceX fueled its fully integrated Starship rocket at its Starbase facilities on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, in preparation for the Flight 6 suborbital test mission. Image: SpaceX

After launching three Falcon 9 rockets in less than 20 hours, SpaceX is preparing to use its fourth and final active launchpad in the United States to launch its massive Starship rocket.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) on the GSAT-N2 / GSAT-20 mission on Nov. 18, 2024. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now

SpaceX launched its third Falcon 9 rocket in less than 24 hours, bringing all three of its launch pads into play. 

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to launch a Starlink mission. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket with another 20 Starlink satellites from California Sunday night.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands in launch position at Launch Complex 39A ahead of the launch of the Optus-X mission, referred to as the ‘TD7’ by SpaceX. Image: Spaceflight Now.

SpaceX is preparing to launch a Falcon 9 rocket with a payload that has been shrouded in secrecy to the point of not disclosing any specifics of the mission, and not using its original name.

An artist’s rendering of AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird satellites in low Earth orbit. Graphic: AST SpaceMobile

A company aiming to bring cell service to unmodified smartphones using a satellite network announced Thursday it had secured its ability to reach low Earth orbit.

Updated: New T-0 of 5:45 a.m. EST (1045 UTC)

File: A stack of SpaceX Starlink satellites, which included the first six featuring Direct to Cell capabilities. The batch launched on the Starlink 7-9 mission, which lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Jan. 2, 2024. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX is set to launch a Falcon 9 rocket with another 20 Starlink satellites from California Wednesday night.

A rendering of the Koreasat-6A satellite in geostationary Earth orbit. Graphic: Thales Alenia Space

SpaceX is preparing to launch the latest communications satellite for KT SAT Corporation Ltd., a satellite service provider in South Korea. The Falcon 9 rocket is set to be the first of a potential double launch day on Monday.

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands in the launch position at Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of the planned liftoff of the Starlink 6-61 mission on Oct. 22, 2024. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now

SpaceX will continue to test the limits of its Falcon 9 rocket with its next launch of Starlink satellites. The Starlink 6-69 mission features 24 of the V2 Mini variety of the satellite, which appears to be the maximum that can flown on a single Falcon 9 launch to this particular shell.

A merging of multiple photographs of SpaceX’s Super Heavy booster as it made its way down to be caught my the ‘Mechazilla’ launch tower during the Starlink Flight 5 mission on Oct. 13, 2024. Image: SpaceX

Less than a month after launching its Starship rocket and catching its booster, SpaceX is targeting a sixth test flight of its gleaming stainless steel rocket which towers almost 400 feet tall (121 meters).

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to launch a Starlink mission. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX has delayed a Falcon 9 rocket launch from California on Wednesday, just hours after it scrubbed a Falcon 9 launch from Florida.

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands in the launch position at Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of the planned liftoff of the Starlink 6-61 mission on Oct. 22, 2024. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now

Update Nov. 6, 2:56 p.m. EST: SpaceX pushed the planned T-0 liftoff time to the end of the launch window.

Gilmour Space Technology’s Eris Block 1 rocket pictured at the launchpad at the Bowen Orbital Spaceport in Australia. Image: Gilmour Space

Spaceflight is gearing up to introduce commercial, orbital spaceflight to Australia in the coming months. On Tuesday, Gilmour Space Technologies announced it received a launch permit from the Australian Space Agency and the Minister for Industry and Science for the inaugural launch of its three-stage Eris rocket.

Watch the @SpaceX #Dragon cargo spacecraft approach the station and dock at 9:55am ET today to deliver over 6,000 pounds of science, supplies, and hardware to the Exp 72 crew live on @NASA+ now. https://t.co/z5EioO2GTf

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with the company’s Dragon spacecraft atop, stands in a vertical position at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024, in preparation for the 31st commercial resupply services launch to the International Space Station. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX is preparing to launch its 31st resupply mission to the International Space Station on Monday night, weather permitting.

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands in the launch position at Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of the planned liftoff of the Starlink 6-61 mission on Oct. 22, 2024. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now

Update Nov. 3, 1:42 p.m. EST: Added information about the booster flying this mission.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) hoists its Centaur V upper stage atop the Vulcan first stage booster into the Vertical Integration Facility-G (VIF-G) adjacent to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. Image: United Launch Alliance

United Launch Alliance continues to make strides towards launching its first national security mission with its Vulcan rocket, but the exact timing of that launch remains uncertain.