Industry News
Headlines from space publications, linked back to the original articles
Industry / News
- SpaceX set to launch first Starlink mission of 2021 NASASpaceflight · 18 Jan 2021 As the second SpaceX launch of the year, and the first of many Starlink missions scheduled to launch in 2021, the company is set to launch the Starlink v1.0 L16 mission — the 16th launch of operational satellites and 17t...
- SpaceX drone ship heads to The Bahamas for Falcon 9’s next polar launch Teslarati · 18 Jan 2021 SpaceX is in the midst of preparing for back-to-back Falcon 9 launches from its two Florida pads, a feat that will also...
- Virgin Orbit just earned the orbit part of its name Ars Technica · 18 Jan 2021 "This magnificent flight is the culmination of many years of hard work."
- Boeing making progress on Starliner software for test flight in March Spaceflight Now · 18 Jan 2021 Boeing said Monday it has re-qualified software for the company’s Starliner crew capsule after programming errors cut short the spacecraft’s first orbital test flight in 2019, and technicians at the Kennedy Space Center...
- SpaceX’s first Starlink launch of 2021 slips to Tuesday [update] Teslarati · 18 Jan 2021 Update: SpaceX says it has delayed Falcon 9’s Starlink-16 launch to no earlier than (NET) 8:23 am (13:23 UTC), Tuesday, January 19th...
- SpaceX rolls out Falcon 9 rocket for another Starlink mission Spaceflight Now · 18 Jan 2021 SpaceX rolled out a Falcon 9 rocket Sunday night to pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for liftoff with the next 60 Starlink internet satellites, but officials pushed back the launch by 24 hours until Tues...
- Virgin’s satellite launcher reaches orbit for first time Spaceflight Now · 18 Jan 2021 An air-launched rocket built by Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit reached orbit Sunday for the first time, delivering 10 experimental CubeSats to orbit for NASA and positioning the company for the start of commercial operat...
- NASA studying cause of early end to moon rocket test-firing Spaceflight Now · 17 Jan 2021 A critical test-firing of NASA’s Space Launch System moon rocket in Mississippi ended just 67 seconds after it began Saturday, well short of a planned eight-minute burn that was supposed to clear the way for the space ag...
- Virgin Orbit reaches orbit on second LauncherOne mission SpaceNews · 17 Jan 2021 Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket reached orbit on its second flight Jan. 17, demonstrating the performance of the air-launch system.
- SpaceX Falcon 9 booster set to beat rocket turnaround record by a huge margin Teslarati · 17 Jan 2021 The Falcon 9 booster assigned to SpaceX’s first Starlink launch of the new year is on track to become the world’s most...
- LauncherOne reaches orbit on second attempt with NASA CubeSats NASASpaceflight · 17 Jan 2021 After an eight month stand down to resolve issues revealed during the first mission of Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket, the company made their second orbital launch attempt on Sunday, January 17. The air-launched rocke...
- After a decade, NASA’s big rocket fails its first real test Ars Technica · 17 Jan 2021 "It's not everything we hoped it would be."
- Green Run hotfire test ends early SpaceNews · 16 Jan 2021 NASA performed a hotfire test of the core stage of the Space Launch System Jan. 16, but the stage’s four main engines shut down a little more than a minute into a test designed to last eight minutes.
- Video: SLS core stage test-firing ends early Spaceflight Now · 16 Jan 2021 The four RS-25 engines at the bottom of NASA’s first Space Launch System core stage shut down about a minute into a ground test-firing Saturday that was supposed to last more than eight minutes.
- Policy directive on GPS issued in closing days of Trump administration SpaceNews · 16 Jan 2021 Space Policy Directive-7 highlights the United States’ ever growing dependence on space-based positioning, navigation and timing.
- NASA continues making rapid progress towards ever-closer Artemis I launch Space Scout · 16 Jan 2021 JAN. 16, 2020--NASA is currently targeting this fall for the launch of Artemis I, the uncrewed first test flight of the agency's Space Launch System rocket and the Orion Spacecraft together. With less than a year of time...
- NASA SLS Core Stage aborts high-stakes Green Run static fire NASASpaceflight · 16 Jan 2021 NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) program and Core Stage prime contractor Boeing were ready for the big moment of the rocket’s Green Run campaign and the biggest moment in the 10-year old program, a static firing of the s...
- NASA Conducts Test of SLS Rocket Core Stage for Artemis I Moon Mission NASA · 16 Jan 2021 NASA conducted a hot fire Saturday of the core stage for the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that will launch the Artemis I mission to the Moon. The hot fire is the final test of the Green Run series.
- NASA takes a chance on Virgin Orbit with company’s second test launch Spaceflight Now · 16 Jan 2021 On its second launch attempt after a propulsion problem prevented its light-class air-dropped rocket from reaching space last year, Virgin Orbit will try to deliver 10 experimental CubeSats into orbit as soon as Sunday o...
- As it turns out, the Biden administration will listen to scientists Ars Technica · 15 Jan 2021 “Science will always be at the forefront of my administration."
- NASA proceeds with SLS booster stacking in Florida before core stage arrives Spaceflight Now · 15 Jan 2021 NASA ground crews at the Kennedy Space Center are continuing to stack segments of the Space Launch System’s side-mounted solid rocket boosters on a mobile launch platform inside the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building.
- After further review, Space Force confirms selection of NSTXL to manage industry consortium SpaceNews · 15 Jan 2021 National Security Technology Accelerator (NSTXL) on Jan. 15 received a contract to manage the U.S. Space Force’s Space Enterprise Consortium for the next 10 years.
- NASA to Host Virtual Briefing on February Perseverance Mars Rover Landing NASA · 15 Jan 2021 NASA is hosting a media briefing on Wednesday, Jan. 27, at 4:30 p.m. EST to discuss the upcoming landing of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover.
- OneWeb raises $400 million SpaceNews · 15 Jan 2021 Broadband satellite company OneWeb announced Jan. 15 it has raised $400 million from SoftBank and Hughes Network Systems, allowing the company to continue deployment of its constellation.
- Rocket Report: NASA dishes on small rockets, Jeff buys a ride on a Falcon 9 Ars Technica · 15 Jan 2021 "AR1 is the ideal engine for many possible solutions."
- SLS core stage ready for Green Run test firing SpaceNews · 15 Jan 2021 NASA officials expressed confidence that a key test of the Space Launch System scheduled for Jan. 16 will go well, keeping open the chances that the vehicle will make its long-delayed debut before the end of the year.
- SpaceX returns to Starship program roots with new ‘test tank’ prototype Teslarati · 15 Jan 2021 It’s now clear that SpaceX is preparing to return to the roots of its Starship program with the latest in a series...
- NASA’s huge moon rocket faces critical test-firing before first launch Spaceflight Now · 15 Jan 2021 A critical test firing Saturday of the four main engines powering the first stage of NASA’s gargantuan Space Launch System moon rocket is the final major hurdle before the fully assembled booster’s costly, oft-delayed la...
- Rocket Lab set to launch super-secret satellite for German company Spaceflight Now · 15 Jan 2021 A small communications satellite built by the German company OHB — a payload so secret that no one has officially disclosed its name or end user — is set to ride a Rocket Lab Electron launcher into orbit Saturday from Ne...
- Officials forecast than 50 launches from Florida’s Space Coast this year Spaceflight Now · 15 Jan 2021 Military officials in charge of the Eastern Range at Cape Canaveral project more than 50 launches from Florida’s Space Coast this year, with SpaceX responsible for most of the launch activity, the vice commander of the 4...
- FCC C-band auction raised nearly $81 billion so far SpaceNews · 15 Jan 2021 The U.S. Federal Communication Commission’s C-band auction of 280-megahertz of C-band has raised nearly $81 billion and it’s not quite over.
- NASA ceases efforts to deploy Mars InSight heat flow probe SpaceNews · 15 Jan 2021 After nearly two years of struggles, NASA has abandoned efforts to deploy a heat flow probe on its InSight lander into the surface of Mars.
- Report: U.S. military space programs at risk of losing domestic sources of key components SpaceNews · 14 Jan 2021 DoD space programs need to invest in new technology and qualify new suppliers to ensure they have access to domestic sources, the Pentagon said in a report released Jan. 14.
- Blue Origin launches New Shepard vehicle intended for crewed flights SpaceNews · 14 Jan 2021 Blue Origin flew a new model of its New Shepard suborbital vehicle Jan. 14, a flight the company says brings it “really close” to finally flying people.
- Hanwha Aerospace claims 30% stake in Satrec Initiative SpaceNews · 14 Jan 2021 Hanwha Aerospace, South Korea’s largest defense company, announced plans Jan. 14 to invest approximately $100 million to purchase 30% of the shares of satellite manufacturer Satrec Initiative.
- Blue Origin tests passenger accommodations on suborbital launch Spaceflight Now · 14 Jan 2021 Blue Origin tested an upgraded capsule on a suborbital spaceflight Thursday over West Texas, demonstrating new environmental control systems, in-cabin displays, and passenger communication systems before Jeff Bezos’s spa...
- NASA Science to Host Community Town Hall NASA · 14 Jan 2021 NASA’s Science Mission Directorate will hold a community town hall meeting with Thomas Zurbuchen, the agency’s associate administrator for science, at 2 p.m. EST Monday, Jan. 25.
- 2020 Tied for Warmest Year on Record, NASA Analysis Shows NASA · 14 Jan 2021 Earth’s global average surface temperature in 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record, according to an analysis by NASA.
- NASA InSight's ‘Mole' Ends Its Journey on Mars NASA · 14 Jan 2021 The heat probe hasn’t been able to gain the friction it needs to dig, but the mission has been granted an extension to carry on with its other science.
- China moves to next stage of super heavy rocket development SpaceNews · 14 Jan 2021 China’s space contractor has announced progress on rocket engines designed for major space missions, including a new engine for future lunar missions.