Space Industry News: Headlines from Across the Industry

36,862 headlines. We show the headline and the publisher's own teaser; the full story is at the source.

Elon Musk says SpaceX making good progress on Starship’s upgraded Raptor 2 engines Teslarati · 4 Jan 2022 As is routine, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has taken to Twitter to offer a few details about the status of Starship, its...
‘We nailed it!’ Webb clears major hurdle with full sunshade deployment Spaceflight Now · 4 Jan 2022 The final layers of the James Webb Space Telescope’s sunshade were robotically pulled taut with a system of motors, cables, and pulleys Tuesday, clearing a major milestone before unfolding mirrors to collect light from t...
SpaceX Starship ‘launch tower’ spreads its rocket-catching arms Teslarati · 4 Jan 2022 Update: Shortly after publishing, SpaceX began a much more ambitious series of tests with the Starship launch tower’s two main arms, which...
JWST sunshield fully deployed SpaceNews · 4 Jan 2022 Controllers completed the deployment of the sunshield of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Jan. 4, allowing the mission to move ahead to setting up the telescope itself.
From Hops to Belly Flops, Starship prepares for a leap into space NASASpaceflight · 3 Jan 2022 SpaceX’s Starship program is set to take its next leap in the coming year, following a 2021 that included numerous test flights and widescale groundwork at its launch and production facilities.
NASA resumes Webb deployments after pausing for weekend Spaceflight Now · 3 Jan 2022 Mission controllers started the delicate work of tightening the five razor-thin layers of the James Webb Space Telescope’s sunshade Monday. Managers said the nearly $10 billion observatory is “hunky-dory” after pausing d...
NASA might just pull off the James Webb Space Telescope deployment Ars Technica · 3 Jan 2022 "I don't expect any drama."
Design flaw blamed for failed debut of South Korea’s new satellite launcher SpaceNews · 3 Jan 2022 The failed October debut of South Korea’s KSLV-2 rocket is being blamed on improperly anchored helium tanks inside the three-stage rocket’s upper stage.
The world just set a record for sending the most rockets into orbit Ars Technica · 3 Jan 2022 The total number of global launch attempts has doubled during the last decade.
Space SPACs look to rebound in 2022 SpaceNews · 3 Jan 2022 Space companies used mergers with special purpose acquisition corporations, or SPACs, to grow their businesses in 2021, but many shareholders were left underwater at the end of the year.
China aims to complete space station in another huge year in space SpaceNews · 3 Jan 2022 China’s main space contractor will target more than 40 orbital launches this year, including completion of the Tiangong space station, following 48 successful launches in 2021.
SpaceX Starship prototype completes fourth static fire Teslarati · 3 Jan 2022 In its true last act of the year, SpaceX successfully fired up its first orbital-class Starship for the fourth time in approximately...
After a year filled with new missions and discoveries, Mars and its robots look ahead to 2022 NASASpaceflight · 3 Jan 2022 After the successful launch of three new Mars missions in the summer of 2020, Mars exploration was looking to have a groundbreaking year in 2021. Astonishingly, all three missions — NASA’s Mars 2020, China’s Tianwen-1, a...
SpaceX’s first launch of 2022 will deploy more Starlink internet satellites Spaceflight Now · 2 Jan 2022 SpaceX plans to kick off its 2022 launch schedule with a Falcon 9 rocket flight Thursday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center with the company’s next group of Starlink internet satellites. In a change from previous Starlink...
Engineers taking more time to assess Webb’s behavior in space before continuing deployments Spaceflight Now · 2 Jan 2022 Engineers activating the James Webb Space Telescope decided Sunday to hold off tightening up the observatory’s critical sunshade to allow more time to check out the performance of its power systems and overall behavior n...
SpaceX drone ship heads to sea for first 2022 Falcon launch Teslarati · 2 Jan 2022 SpaceX drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) departed Port Canaveral on January 1st, heading to sea on the first...
NASA takes break in JWST deployment after extending sunshield SpaceNews · 1 Jan 2022 NASA is taking a one-day break in the deployment of the James Webb Space Telescope after successfully extending booms for the spacecraft’s sunshield.
Webb telescope unfurls diamond-shaped sunshield Spaceflight Now · 1 Jan 2022 Flying outbound from Earth at a distance of more than 400,000 miles, the James Webb Space Telescope extended two booms Friday and unfurled the mission’s five-layer sunshield to the size of a tennis court, notching a majo...
White House commits to ISS extension SpaceNews · 31 Dec 2021 The Biden administration formally supports extending operations of the International Space Station through the end of the decade, an announcement that is neither surprising nor addresses how to get all the station’s part...
NASA funds thermal control solutions for harsh lunar environments SpaceNews · 31 Dec 2021 Advanced Cooling Technologies (ACT) has won NASA funding for thermal control solutions that enable vehicles and other equipment to survive harsh lunar environments without an active power source.
The International Space Station Wraps Up a Busy 2021 NASASpaceflight · 31 Dec 2021 The ISS, now in its twenty-first year of continuous human occupation, has had a busy year of operations. Two new modules were added and 18 visiting vehicles were at the Station throughout the year. In total, 23 humans ca...
SpaceX closes out 2021 with $1.85 billion in new funding Teslarati · 31 Dec 2021 On the eve of the last day of 2021, SEC filings show that SpaceX has secured another $337 million, bringing the total...
Test launch of Russia’s heavy-lift Angara rocket marred by upper stage failure Spaceflight Now · 31 Dec 2021 The third test launch of Russia’s heavy-lift Angara A5 rocket Dec. 27 was marred by an upper stage failure that stranded a dummy payload in a low orbit.
Update: NASA Plans Coverage of Webb Space Telescope Deployments NASA · 30 Dec 2021 Over about the next two weeks, NASA will provide broadcast coverage, media briefings, and other updates on major deployment milestones for the James Webb Space Telescope, the world’s largest and most powerful space scien...
Iran’s Simorgh rocket falls short of orbit with three payloads aboard NASASpaceflight · 30 Dec 2021 Iran’s Simorgh rocket appears to have suffered another failure during a previously-unexpected launch Thursday. Iranian media has reported that the rocket lifted off from the Imam Khomeini Space Centre at 03:30 UTC (07:00...
After milestone 2021, China’s space program to continue at pace in 2022 NASASpaceflight · 30 Dec 2021 The year 2021 has been a historic one for China’s space program. The country achieved a successful landing on Mars, started on-orbit assembly of the modular Chinese Space Station, and has a wide range of orbital-class la...
NASA Plans Coverage of Webb Space Telescope Deployments NASA · 30 Dec 2021 Over about the next two weeks, NASA will provide broadcast coverage, a media briefing, and other updates on major deployment milestones for the James Webb Space Telescope, the world’s largest and most powerful space scie...
Webb ready for critical work to open sunshield Spaceflight Now · 30 Dec 2021 The James Webb Space Telescope opened covers that protected the mission’s folded sunshield Thursday, and deployed a momentum flap to help the observatory balance against the unending light pressure from the sun.
Firefly halts launch preparations after federal government seeks divestment of foreign ownership SpaceNews · 30 Dec 2021 Firefly Aerospace is pausing preparations for its next Alpha launch, originally scheduled for early 2022, after the government asked its largest shareholder to divest its stake for national security reasons.
China closes record-breaking year with orbital launches from Jiuquan and Xichang SpaceNews · 30 Dec 2021 China successfully conducted its 54th and 55th orbital launches of 2021 Dec. 29, launching satellites from the Jiuquan and Xichang spaceports within hours of each other.
SpaceX almost loses Falcon 9 booster at sea Teslarati · 30 Dec 2021 After more than a week at sea, the SpaceX Falcon 9 booster responsible for the company’s 100th successful landing finally returned to...
China completes 2021 with military TJSW-9 satellite launch NASASpaceflight · 29 Dec 2021 China concluded its busy 2021 launch manifest Wednesday with the successful launch of a Chang Zheng 3B, which lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 16:43 UTC. Wednesday’s launch, which carried the Tongxi...
China launches Chang Zheng 2D with Tianhui 4 payload NASASpaceflight · 29 Dec 2021 China has launched the Tianhui 4 cartography satellite onboard a Chang Zheng 2D today. Liftoff occurred at 11:13 UTC from the Jiuquan launch site in China. The target orbit for the payload was a polar orbit. The satellit...
First ViaSat-3 pushing through pandemic challenges for 2022 launch SpaceNews · 29 Dec 2021 The first ViaSat-3 broadband satellite is on track to launch in the first half of 2022 despite ongoing pandemic-related challenges, according to Viasat’s recently appointed chief operating officer Kevin Harkenrider.
Japan wants a JAXA astronaut to be first “non-American” to join a NASA lunar landing SpaceNews · 29 Dec 2021 Japan’s recently elected prime minister set an end-of-the-decade goal for sending Japanese astronauts to the moon as part of the U.S.-led Artemis program.
Blue Origin joins U.S. military ‘rocket cargo’ program SpaceNews · 29 Dec 2021 Blue Origin has signed a cooperative agreement with the U.S. military to explore the possibility of using its rockets to transport cargo and people around the world.
JWST begins sunshield deployment SpaceNews · 29 Dec 2021 NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has started the process of deploying the sunshield required to keep the spacecraft cold enough to operate, a process that is one of the riskiest aspects of the mission.
Virgin Orbit raises far less than expected from SPAC merger SpaceNews · 29 Dec 2021 Virgin Orbit will get less than half the money it originally expected from its merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) as that deal wins shareholder approval.
SpaceX’s packed 2022 launch manifest ready to blow 2021 out of the water Teslarati · 29 Dec 2021 On the heels of SpaceX’s last launch of 2021, which rounded out a record-breaking year and marked the 100th successful Falcon booster...
Telescope tower extends on Webb observatory Spaceflight Now · 29 Dec 2021 The James Webb Space Telescope extended a four-foot tower Wednesday to give the observatory’s mirrors and instruments, designed to function at cryogenic temperatures, enough separation from the hot side of the spacecraft...

Launch and satellite data: Jonathan McDowell's GCAT (CC BY 4.0) and CelesTrak. Rockets, spacecraft and agencies: Launch Library 2 by The Space Devs and Wikidata. News headlines link to their publishers via the Spaceflight News API and RSS feeds. Records come from several sources and are matched automatically, so treat the directory as a research aid, not an authority. How the data is built and checked.