Space Explored

By far the most commonly asked question on SpaceX’s Starlink service seems to be “when can I get it!” There are many locations around the US that are currently waitlisted, but some have Starlink currently available. Now, Starlink’s website has gained a map that shows where Starlink can accept new customers and where you must wait.

SpaceX’s long in-progress mesh Wi-Fi router is here at last, allowing select Starlink customers to easily extend their Wi-Fi internet reach without excess cables or setup. For now, however, it seems to be a more limited beta test.

Early this morning up in orbit, three crew members departed the Russian side of the International Space Station. In that spacecraft was NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, the new record holder for the longest time spent in space by a US astronaut.

SpaceX’s reflight of Falcon 9 boosters has allowed the company to become the unchallenged victor in terms of launch cadence. The company had 31 launches in 2021 and is aiming to nearly double that this year.

Sierra Space has hired Troy Lahr, a former Boeing executive, to be the company’s Chief Financial Officer. He joins the company in what will be a year of massive growth as Sierra Space prepares for the launch of its Dream Chaser spaceplane early next year.

Per a quote given to Reuters by SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX will stop producing Crew Dragon spacecrafts and releasing resources that could be used for Starship development.

The FAA has now officially delayed the issuing of its Programmatic Environmental Assessment until April 29, 2022 – the previous date was March 28. This is yet another delay in the environmental process necessary for Starship to take its orbital flight – though this environmental process is not what is holding SpaceX’s launch back.

As part of its Artemis program, NASA announced plans to fund a second lunar lander alongside SpaceX’s Starship HLS.

The commander of SpaceX’s next crewed flight to the International Space Station shared on Twitter the name of the SpaceX Dragon his crew will fly in this spring. Named “Freedom,” it obviously points towards Russia’s attack on Ukraine and calls back to NASA’s first-ever crewed spacecraft.

Firefly will attempt to launch its second Alpha rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base as soon as May. This comes after securing funding after one of its investors was forced to sell his stake.

SpaceX just increased the cost of its Starlink internet service. The already pricey service has had its hardware and software costs raised. The service will increase from $100 per month to $110 per month starting in May. This coincides with the company increasing the minimum cost to fly on one of its rideshare mission.

NASA is set to launch a technology demonstrator payload that could have greater implications for quantum computing. Scheduled to launch in August, this technology demonstration will test two communications technologies that can pave the way for quantum computers to communicate with each other no matter where they’re located.

SpaceX has had a long-time partner in Spaceflight Inc. While SpaceX is the actual launch provider, providing rockets and launching payloads into space, Spaceflight Inc. organizes and integrates rideshare missions so multiple payloads can launch on individual rockets. Now, according to SpaceNews.com, SpaceX has cut ties with Spaceflight Inc.

Last week, Russia launched the newest three crew members to the ISS on top of its Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. While it probably wasn’t planned to be this way, the flight suit colors of yellow and blue were perfectly timed.

After months and months of delays, and numerous rumors regarding the fate of SpaceX’s first Starship/Booster pair to be fully stacked, Elon Musk tweeted a wealth of new information about the company’s first orbital Starship flight.

NS-20, Blue Origin’s fourth human flight, is set to launch in just over a week. We’ve been waiting for the announcement of the sixth crew member after Pete Davidson left the crew. Now, that sixth crew member has been announced: Gary Lai, the senior director and chief architect of New Shepard, will be riding the vehicle he’s spent so long designing into space.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the world’s sanctions to the country, led the country to refuse to launch OneWeb satellites on a Soyuz rocket unless OneWeb agreed to almost unreachable terms. Thankfully, the company has now found a somewhat unlikely ally in SpaceX, which has its own Starlink satellites that compete with OneWeb.

As progress continues to move at a rapid pace, a fully stacked Starship underwent its first cryogenic proof test this week followed by the first propellant loading test for the vehicle.

Hardware continues to be spotted in Florida with the construction of the tower segments as foundations are poured at Starship’s Florida launch site.

In only their second show of the season, the US Navy Blue Angels were forced to make some changes on the first day of the 2022 New Orleans Air Show. No official word has been given as to why the swap was needed but speculation abounds because not one but two planes remained grounded for today’s performance.

Early Saturday morning, SpaceX launched yet another set of Starlink satellites. For Starlink Group 4-12, 53 more Starlink satellites were carried into low Earth orbit by B1051 on its record-breaking 12th flight.

Starlink Business is SpaceX’s high-performance tier for the company’s Starlink satellite constellation internet service. Starlink Premium was first announced on February 1, 2022, with deliveries expected to begin in Q2, 2022. The company renamed Starlink Premium to the much more fitting Starlink Business on March 19, 2022.