The final Ariane 5 roars away from the Guiana Space Centre on July 5, 2023. Photo: ESA – S. Corvaja. Europe is facing months without its own independent access to space for large satellites following the retirement of its heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket this week after notching up its 117th and final mission over 27 …
Ariane 5 retirement leaves Europe facing an ‘acute launch crisis’ Read More »
Booster 1058 is a distinctive member of the SpaceX’s Falcon 9 fleet because it was emblazoned with a red NASA ‘worm’ logo prior to the May 2020 flight of Demo-2, the first Cred Dragon mission to carry astronauts. This photo of the soot-covered booster was captured in December 2020 after the CRS-21 space station cargo …
SpaceX to push the envelope with record-breaking 16th flight for a Falcon 9 booster Read More »
SpaceX lofted another batch of Starlink internet satellites into orbit on Friday from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. A Falcon 9, carrying 48 satellites inside its payload fairing, lifted off at 12:29:50 p.m. PDT (3:29:50 p.m. EDT; 1929:50 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 4-East. A Falcon 9 rocket launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base …
West Coast launch puts 48 more Starlink internet satellites in orbit Read More »
Europe’s venerable Ariane 5 rocket blasted off on its 117th and final flight Wednesday, successfully boosting two communications satellites into orbit but leaving the European space program without a large satellite launcher of its own until a delayed successor comes on line. The final Ariane 5 climbs away from its launch pad at the European …
Ending an era, Europe launches its final Ariane 5 rocket Read More »
Aerial view of the launch of Ariane 5 V198 on November 26, 2010, from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. Image: ESA/CNES/ARIANESPACE – Optique Video CSG – L. Mira. Europe’s iconic Ariane 5 rocket, with its liquid hydrogen-fueled core stage and solid rocket boosters, has guaranteed Europe’s access to space, providing a unique capacity for launching …
Europe’s workhorse Ariane 5 rocket to retire after 27 years service Read More »
The last Ariane 5 rocket arrives at the launch pad for its last satellite delivery mission. Image: Arianespace. The last Ariane 5 rocket was hauled to the launch pad on Monday at the Guiana Space Centre, Europe’s South American spaceport. Ariane 5, which for years was the world’s leading commercial satellite launcher, is scheduled to …
The last European Ariane 5 rocket arrives at the launch pad for its final countdown Read More »
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket thunders away from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, boosting the European Space Agency’s Euclid space telescope on a trajectory to deep space where it will probe the nature of dark energy and dark matter. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now. The European Space Agency launched its $1.5 billion Euclid space telescope …
An artist’s impression of the Euclid space telescope. Image: ESA. The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid space telescope will blast off from Cape Canaveral on 1 July on a mission to shed light on the ‘dark universe’ dominated by dark matter and dark energy. Only 4.9 per cent of the universe is made from visible …
Euclid prepares to blast off on a mission to discover the fate of the Universe Read More »
VSS Unity ignites its engine after being released from its carrier aircraft. Image: Virgin Galactic. Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic launched its first commercial space flight Thursday, sending three Italian researchers, two company pilots and an astronaut trainer on a high-speed thrill ride to the edge of space aboard a winged rocketplane. “Che volo fantastico [what …
Virgin Galactic launches it’s first commercial flight to space Read More »
Virgin Galactic’s Eve carrier jet carries the VSS Unity on a test flight in April 2023. Image: Virgin Galactic. Four-and-a-half years after an initial sub-orbital test flight, Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic is finally ready to begin commercial operations with the launch Thursday of a six-man crew, including three Italian researchers, on an up-and-down flight to …
Virgin Galactic readies spaceplane for first commercial flight on Thursday Read More »
