SpaceX set for back-to-back weekend launches: Crew Dragon abort test, 60 more Starlink satellites

Two SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets are currently on track to launch back-to-back missions just a handful of days from now, potentially supporting Crew Dragon’s second flight test ever and yet another Starlink satellite launch a little over two days from now. Known as Crew Dragon’s In-Flight Abort (IFA) test, the first mission is scheduled to […]

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SpaceX Falcon 9 greeted by iconic Florida sunset after first rocket landing of the decade

After completing its fourth flawless orbital-class launch and landing in 16 months, SpaceX’s latest reusable Falcon 9 rocket has successfully returned to dry land and was greeted by a spectacular Florida sunset during its port arrival. Safely secured aboard drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) by SpaceX’s famous Octagrabber robot, which uses […]

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Elon Musk says a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is about to be “destroyed in Dragon fire”

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has officially confirmed that the company’s next Falcon 9 launch will destroy the flight-proven booster and upper stage “in Dragon fire”, a cryptic reference to the ultimate purpose of the sacrifice. Known as SpaceX’s In-Flight Abort (IFA) test, the mission is designed not to place any particular payload in orbit but […]

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SpaceX just blew up a Starship tank on purpose and Elon Musk says the results are in

Before dawn on January 10th, SpaceX technicians and engineers intentionally blew up a miniature Starship tank in order to test recently-upgraded manufacturing and assembly methods, likely to be used to build the first Starships bound for flight tests and orbit. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk quickly weighed in on Twitter later the same day, revealing some […]

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SpaceX prepares new Starship tank for explosive test after rapid construction

Over the last few weeks, SpaceX’s South Texas Starship team has been making progress at a pace unprecedented even for the famously agile rocket company and is moving full speed ahead to kick off a new series of explosive tests as early as this morning. Ever since SpaceX’s original Starship Mk1 prototype spectacularly failed during […]

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SpaceX’s Elon Musk says Starlink user antennas will be like “UFOs on a stick”

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has teased the first detailed description of the Starlink antennas (“user terminals”) customers will need to connect to the massive satellite internet constellation, revealing a few new and unexpected details about the critical hardware. Although nearly all public focus is currently (and understandably) on the production and launch of Starlink satellites […]

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SpaceX puts 60 Starlink satellites in orbit with first rocket launch of the year [photos]

SpaceX has kicked off a record-breaking 2020 launch manifest with a spectacular combination of Starlink satellites and a Falcon 9 rocket, the first of perhaps two dozen such launches planned this year alone. Falcon 9 booster B1049 supported the mission, becoming the second SpaceX rocket ever to complete four launches and landings after B1048 did […]

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SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft shown off in photo ahead of next launch

NASA has published a new SpaceX photo of the next Crew Dragon spacecraft scheduled for launch and confirmed that the mission is now scheduled to lift off on a Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than (NET) January 18th. Known as an In-Flight Abort (IFA) test, the exceptionally challenging mission will represent a major milestone for […]

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SpaceX rocket launch kicks off a potentially record-smashing year for Falcon 9

A SpaceX Falcon 9 has kicked off what could be a record-smashing year, potentially making SpaceX the world’s most prolific launch company thanks in large part to the game-changing reusability of its Falcon rockets. At 9:19 pm ET on January 6th (02:19 UTC, Jan 7), Falcon 9 booster B1049’s nine Merlin 1D engines came to […]

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Watch SpaceX’s first Starlink internet satellite launch of the 2020s

SpaceX is less than five hours away from kicking off a jam-packed year of rocket launches and landings, a Starlink internet satellite launch that will be both SpaceX and the world’s first orbital launch of the new decade. The company’s second operational Starlink mission – Starlink V1 L2 – is scheduled to launch no earlier […]

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