The FAA has made a new rule that any spacecraft that plans to reenter after launch must obtain its reentry license from the administration prior to launch. This was created out of safety concerns and experiences learned during granting Varda Space the first ever Part 450 reentry license.
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This week Varda Space received the nations first ever Part 450 reentry license from the FAA, green lighting its W-1 mission for touchdown in the Utah desert. After eight months in space the Varda Space built capsule and Rocket Lab built spacecraft bus will finally get its chance to return its crystal experiment to Earth.
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Early last night, those in the Pacific North West were treated to a shocking display of lights across the sky. At about 9pm PT (12am ET) the Falcon 9 second stage from March 4th’s Starlink mission reentered in a fiery cascade of lights.
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