Astra’s Rocket 3.3, tail number LV0010, stands its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station before launch on NASA’s TROPICS-1 mission. Credit: Brady Kenniston / Astra
Astra is preparing to launch the first of three straight dedicated missions for NASA this weekend at Cape Canaveral to deploy six shoebox-size hurricane research satellites, helping pioneer a new paradigm of riskier but less expensive science missions.