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Starship Flight 6: SpaceX launches a banana into space
What do you do when you build the world’s largest and most powerful rocket? Well, you strap a banana in its payload bay and launch it into space. Bananas seemed to be the theme for Starship Flight 6, while the mission was also a major success.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship Flight 6: How to watch today’s launch from Starbase
Later this afternoon, SpaceX is planning to launch its sixth Starship rocket from its facilities at Starbase, Texas. This will be a big moment for the rocket, repeating its awe-inspiring catch and restarting a Raptor engine in space. Here’s the best way to watch Starship Flight 6.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship Flight 6: SpaceX will still have a ‘human-in-the-loop’ decision before catching
Tomorrow afternoon, SpaceX is attempting to repeat the incredible and catch its second Starship booster using the two arms on the launch tower. This is a daring task, as the catch can go wrong if the booster is only a few inches off; also, no one really wants to be that close to what is basically a massive missile. But SpaceX is once again keeping a human-in-the-loop before a catch attempt is given the GO.
Expand Expanding CloseTerminal Count: SpaceX is ready for Starship Flight 6
Welcome to Terminal Count, the official weekly rundown of spaceflight news by Space Explored. This week, the story is once again about SpaceX and its Starship rocket. The company is gearing up for not just its sixth flight, but also for three other Falcon 9 launches this week.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship Flight 6: SpaceX shifts launch to Tuesday
SpaceX is now attempting to fly its Starship Flight 6 mission no earlier than Tuesday, November 18, at 4:00 P.M. CST. All of the vehicle’s rocket components are at the launch site and are stacked and ready for launch.
Expand Expanding CloseAST SpaceMobile to rely on Blue Origin to launch the bulk of its next-gen direct-to-cell satellites
One of the more successful Space SPACs of recent years, AST SpaceMobile announced it has secured a multi-launch contract with Blue Origin to use its New Glenn rocket to deploy the Block 2 Bluebird satellites in 2025 and 2026.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship Flight 6: Ship 31 moves out to the launch site, banana for scale
SpaceX has moved out its 31st Starship upper stage to the launch site ahead of Flight 6, expected on November 18. This ship has seen a few changes compared to what came before it but is only the tip of the iceberg for what is to come next.
Expand Expanding CloseElon Musk tapped to lead new ‘DOGE’ department—despite the government already having one for efficiency
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is to officially join Trump’s administration as the co-head of the new US Department of Government Efficiency – a second federal department with the goal of making government spending more efficient.
You can’t get more ironic than that.
Expand Expanding CloseThis Week In Space: Starship Flight 6 is likely one week away
SpaceX is making its quickest turnaround yet for the Starship rocket, hopefully launching some five weeks after Flight 5. This mission will have more big milestones for the company while other companies still work towards competing with its older Falcon 9 rocket.
Expand Expanding CloseWhat another Trump Presidency could mean for the US space program
Former President Trump came away Tuesday night with a decisive Electoral College victory to return to the White House next year. With this being his second term, how could these next four years look for NASA, the Space Force, and commercial companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin?
Expand Expanding CloseBoeing wants out of space… mostly
Boeing, the once esteemed aerospace contractor has had its hands in almost every national space program since Apollo. However, it seems likely that the company wants to divest itself of almost all of its space programs.
Expand Expanding CloseThis Week in Space: Starship operations could return to Florida
New photos and planning documents show potential Starship-sized expansions at SpaceX‘s Roberts Road facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The company is also planning four Falcon 9 launches this week. Meanwhile, its closest thing to a near-term competitor, Blue Origin, is gearing up to debut its New Glenn rocket.
Expand Expanding CloseVoyager 1 moved to backup comms it hasn’t used in over 40 years
NASA shared that the Voyager 1 team has moved the spacecraft to a lower-powered transmitter after something triggered its fault protection system. NASA and JPL are still evaluating what caused the loss of communication and the fault system to trigger.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship ship-to-ship propellent test coming March 2025
SpaceX is under pressure to keep its part of the bargain as close to the schedule as possible with providing its Starship rocket as NASA’s Artemis Human Landing System. A major component of both that mission and Starship’s Mars mission will be orbital refueling.
Expand Expanding CloseStarship Flight 6 might come faster than previous launches
Just a couple of weeks ago, SpaceX launched its fifth Starship rocket on its most successful and daring mission yet. It now has a regulatory open lane for a sixth mission, and if recent activity has anything to show for it, it could be sooner rather than later.
Expand Expanding CloseOrion’s heat shield issue is a public mystery, but NASA at least knows
NASA shared that it has finished an analysis on the cause of more than expected erosion on the Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft’s heat shield from two years ago. However, the agency hasn’t yet shared any details with the public as to what might have caused the issue.
Expand Expanding CloseThis Week In Launch: Elon Musk making NASA ‘concerned’
This week we discuss the political tension for NASA and the possible conflict of interest that is Elon Musk. A recent report yet again confirmed that the billionaire has talked with US adversaries and has been asked to do something that would either harm his business-wise or the US strategically with Starlink.
Expand Expanding CloseHow many rockets has SpaceX launched in 2024?
SpaceX is aiming for 148 launches in 2024, once again another increase over the 98 it completed the year before. This cadence would mean the company would have to launch once every two and a half days. Keep track below of all of SpaceX’s 2024 launches.
Expand Expanding CloseRocket Lab proposes $2B solution for faster Mars Sample Return as NASA reviews options
NASA is moving forward with critical decisions on its Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission, aiming to reduce costs and expedite the return of samples from the Red Planet. On October 15, NASA received the final reports from 12 studies commissioned to explore alternative architectures.
Expand Expanding CloseQatar Airways equips first Boeing 777 with Starlink internet
The national airline of Qatar, Qatar Airways, has equipped the first Boeing 777 long-range aircraft with Starlink service and is ready for service. The airline also plans to equip its entire fleet of 777s by the end of 2025.
Expand Expanding CloseThis Week in Launch: SpaceX hits 100+ launches in 2024
This week, SpaceX hit its first triple-digit launch year and continues to extend that number in the remaining months of 2024. Blue Origin might finally get its NS-27 mission off the ground to certify its new New Shepard rocket. Finally, NASA’s Artemis program is once again under fire for being behind schedule and so much… so much… over budget.
Expand Expanding CloseSpace architects focus on preparations for humanity’s return to the Moon
This week, a significant event is unfolding as leading figures in space architecture gather in Milan. The aim is to formally establish space architecture as a discipline. Interest in space-related architecture has been growing rapidly in recent years, as developments in off-Earth construction methods, zero-gravity design, and academic programs dedicated to this field have gained traction.
Expand Expanding CloseSpaceX is now moving into a new era of Starship development
Sunday, SpaceX successfully launched and caught its Starship booster down in Starbase, Texas. A feat that many didn’t think would come true when watching the renders. However, SpaceX once again defied the odds and made fiction a reality and can now move on with its much more ambitious Starship plans.
Expand Expanding CloseThe high stakes for SpaceX’s potential weekend Starship launch
Defying all belief in the previous timelines, SpaceX and what sounds like both local and federal agencies have begun preparations for Starship Flight 5 for no earlier than October 13. The mission will be full of high stakes both for SpaceX and NASA, which is hoping to keep the program on the right course ahead to meet Artemis Program deadlines.
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