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NASA clears next SpaceX crew mission for launch, pending review of toilet system

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SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft moved over the weekend to the hangar near pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, where ground teams will mate it to a Falcon 9 rocket for liftoff Oct. 31. Credit: SpaceX NASA managers at Kennedy Space Center gave the go-ahead Monday to continue preparations for a Halloween launch of …

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Blue Origin and Sierra Space team up for commercial space station

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Artist’s illustration of the Orbital Reef space station. Credit: Blue Origin/Sierra Space Blue Origin and Sierra Space announced Monday they are leading development of a commercial space complex named Orbital Reef that officials said will be operational by the time NASA and its partners retire International Space Station. The two privately-owned aerospace companies said they …

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Japanese H-2A rocket ready for launch with navigation satellite

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A Japanese H-2A rocket rolls out to its launch pad at the Tanegashima Space Center with the QZS 1R satellite. Credit: MHI Japan is set to launch a replacement satellite Monday for a navigation spacecraft that has been in space since 2010, augmenting the U.S. military’s GPS network to provide more precise positioning and timing …

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Arianespace breaks payload mass record on final Ariane 5 launch before Webb

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An Ariane 5 rocket lifts off from the Guiana Space Center with the SES 17 and Syracuse 4A communications satellites. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace/S. Martin A European Ariane 5 rocket fired into space Saturday night from French Guiana with a commercial broadband satellite for SES and a French military telecom craft, setting a new payload mass record …

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Under watchful eye of NASA, teams prep for final Ariane 5 flight before Webb

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An Ariane 5 rocket on its launch pad Thursday in Kourou, French Guiana. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace/JM Guillon Arianespace is counting down to the blastoff of an Ariane 5 rocket Saturday night from French Guiana, the final flight of Europe’s workhorse launcher before NASA and the European Space Agency entrust it to launch the $10 billion James …

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NASA targets February launch for Artemis 1 moon mission

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The 74,000-pound Orion spacecraft was lifted inside the Vehicle Assembly Building this week, and mounted to the top of the Space Launch System. Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux With NASA’s powerful new 322-foot-tall moon rocket fully stacked at Kennedy Space Center, managers said Friday that Feb. 12 is the soonest the unpiloted Artemis 1 mission could blast …

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Ariane 5 launch delayed for more ground systems checks

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An Ariane 5 rocket on its launch pad Thursday night in Kourou, French Guiana. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace/JM Guillon Arianespace delayed the launch from French Guiana of a European Ariane 5 rocket with two geostationary communications satellites Friday to conduct more checks of ground support equipment at the spaceport. The mission, set to loft payloads for SES …

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Progress cargo ship relocated to new module at International Space Station

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The Progress MS-17 spacecraft approaches the International space Station for docking Friday. Credit: Roscosmos A Russian Progress supply ship docked with the new Nauka lab module at the International Space Station Friday, completing a 29-hour free flight after detaching from a different port at the complex. The relocation positions the Progress spacecraft to assist with …

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South Korean rocket fails to reach orbit on inaugural test flight

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South Korea’s first domestically produced satellite launcher failed to reach orbit on its inaugural test flight Thursday. A preliminary review of data indicated the rocket’s third stage shut down early, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute said. The Nuri rocket lifted off from the Naro Space Center, built on an island nearly 300 miles (500 kilometers) …

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Stacking of Orion spacecraft caps assembly of first Artemis moon rocket

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The Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 1 mission is lowered on top of its Space Launch System rocket Oct. 20 inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building. Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux Technicians at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center worked overnight Wednesday to tighten 360 bolts connecting the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 1 moon mission …

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