Launch

United Launch Alliance (ULA) launched the USSF-51 national security mission for the U.S. Space Force on Tuesday — marking the final national security mission on an Atlas V rocket as ULA transitions to the Vulcan rocket.  The Atlas V rocket first launched in March of 2007 and has launched 53 National Security Space (NSS) missions....

Global launch services company Rocket Lab USA confirmed Monday that it completed integration and testing of two spacecraft it built for The University of California Berkeley’s Space Science Laboratory and NASA. The “Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE)” mission spacecraft will be shipped to Cape Canaveral in August, where they will be integrated...

Scottish rocket manufacturer Orbex is opening a new office in London as it looks to tap into London’s financial communities. It hopes the move will also grow the U.K.’s reputation as a hub for the European space sector. Orbex announced the establishment of the new office on July 22. In tandem with this, Orbex is...

NASA has selected SpaceX to launch the JPSS-4 mission in 2027 for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The contract announced Monday is a firm fixed-price contract valued at $112.7 million.  The JPSS-4 mission is currently targeted to launch in 2027, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg...

As U.S. Space Force looks for new entrants beside Blue Origin for Phase 3 of National Security Space Launch (NSSL), the service on July 19 awarded more than $1.7 billion in Phase 2 contract modifications to the Space Force’s established rocket providers — United Launch Services, LLC – a subsidiary of United Launch Alliance (ULA) —...

The founders of smallsat launcher Astra Space completed a deal to take the company private on July 18. Astra Space was one of the companies to go public in the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) boom of 2021 but ran into financial trouble.  Co-founders CEO Chris Kemp and CTO Dr. Adam London acquired all shares...

A group of Spanish banks have backed PLD Space with a 31.2 million euro ($34 million) loan to fund the company’s Miura 5 space launch program. Banco Santander and EBN Banco are co-lead banks for the syndicated loan, which includes participation from the Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO).  This financing is earmarked for the Miura...

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket suffered an engine failure during a Starlink mission on July 11, losing 20 Starlink satellites and triggering a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) investigation. This is a rare incident for the rocket which hasn’t had a major failure since 2015.  The mission took off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 7:36 p.m....

The Ariane 6, Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket, made its long-awaited debut in a successful launch on Tuesday, restoring Europe’s sovereign access to space launch.  Ariane 6 lifted off at 16:00 local time on July 9 from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. The full mission lasted 2 hours and 40 minutes. The mission successfully deployed all...

SpaceX launched Turksat 6A on July 8, Turkey’s first communications satellite built by the country. The telecommunications satellite will expand national satellite operator Turksat’s area of coverage with four new countries.  Turksat operates a number of other satellites, but this is the country’s first indigenously developed satellite. According to Turksat, 90 percent of the satellite...