All articles tagged with #space launch
China has abruptly postponed the Chang’a-7 lunar mission launch, which was set to lift off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan aboard a Long March-5 rocket; no new date has been announced, signaling a pause in Beijing’s lunar exploration program.
The U.S. Space Force added Relativity Space and Impulse Space to the National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1 pool, expanding pre-qualified options for lower-risk national-security missions; Relativity Space’s Terran R is a mid-lift candidate, while Impulse Space provides orbital transfer vehicles and the Helios upper stage to complement a partner launcher, signaling a shift to integrated transport services and greater commercial competition; Lane 2 remains for the military’s most demanding, fully certified missions.
An Arianespace Ariane 64 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana, lifted off with the LE-03 Amazon Leo mission, carrying 36 broadband satellites—the heaviest payload yet for an Ariane launcher—using the new four-P160C boosters. All satellites were deployed about 1 hour 51 minutes after liftoff, marking the third of 18 Ariane 6 missions for Amazon Leo and underscoring the rapid growth of Amazon's constellation as it pursues a diversified launch portfolio with additional missions on Atlas V, Vulcan, and New Glenn later this year.
Japan successfully launched the H3 rocket from Tanegashima Space Center, marking the first flight of the H3’s 30 configuration, a booster-free, lower-cost variant powered by three LE-9 engines; the liftoff resumed flights after a December failure, with the rocket reaching its target orbit about 16 minutes later.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V 551 rocket launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on May 29, lifting 29 Amazon Leo internet satellites into orbit. It was the seventh Amazon Leo mission on Atlas V and tied the rocket's record for heaviest payload (~18 tons). The 29 new satellites join Amazon's network of 300 spacecraft already in orbit, bringing the total to about 329. Deployment occurred in groups of three over roughly 10 minutes, with the final two satellites released about 38 minutes after liftoff. The flight underscores Amazon's push to scale its Leo constellation to compete with SpaceX's Starlink.
An Atlas V rocket launched from Cape Canaveral at 8:52 p.m., carrying 29 Amazon Leo satellites for United Launch Alliance, and was visible across the Philadelphia region thanks to clear skies.
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket failed to place an AST SpaceMobile satellite into a stable orbit, turning the payload into space junk and triggering an FAA investigation that could delay NASA's Artemis Moon program, potentially pushing the first Moon landing from 2024 to 2028 and complicating Artemis 3's planned docking tests as NASA pursues multiple concurrent launches with SLS/Orion and SpaceX's Starship.
A veteran AP photographer explains using a sound-triggered remote camera setup (with a MIOPS device) and multiple angles around Cape Canaveral to capture Artemis II’s liftoff, including cameras inside the perimeter and wildlife reacting to the launch, in a scene that underscores the mission’s historical significance as NASA looks toward Artemis III.
NASA released infrared imagery and Nikon DSLR photos of the Artemis II liftoff, showing the SLS rocket and Orion against a darkened sky and capturing details like booster separation. The 10-day lunar flyby mission lifted off at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1, 2026 from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center, carrying crew Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. The launch used a large water-deluge system to manage heat, with exhaust temperatures around 6,000°F.
Firefly Aerospace successfully launched Alpha Flight 7 from Vandenberg, completed orbital insertion, and validated Alpha Block II upgrades—including a new in‑house avionics suite and enhanced thermal protection—with a stage‑two engine relight and delivery of a Lockheed Martin demonstrator payload, setting the stage for Flight 8’s full Block II upgrade (longer airframe, consolidated avionics, and stronger carbon-composite structures).
Europe's heavy-lift Ariane 64 launched from Kourou, delivering 32 Amazon Leo satellites to a ~465 km orbit, marking a milestone for Europe’s launch capabilities and accelerating Amazon's plan to deploy a ~3,200-satellite constellation to compete with SpaceX's Starlink.
Space Launch Delta 30 at Vandenberg SFB has issued an RFI to attract US launch providers interested in developing heavy and super-heavy launch capabilities at SLC-14, aiming to support larger military satellites and enhance space resilience.
Iran launched three Earth-observation satellites into space using a Russian Soyuz rocket as part of a larger rideshare mission from Siberia, which included Russian, UAE, and other international satellites, totaling 52 satellites launched.
Tory Bruno, former ULA CEO, has joined Blue Origin as president of its newly formed National Security Group, bringing extensive experience in space launch and defense systems to help Blue Origin compete for national security satellite launches and expand its role in space defense.
China's second attempt to recover and reuse the Long March 12A rocket failed at the first stage during its maiden flight, highlighting ongoing efforts to develop domestic reusable rocket technology to compete with SpaceX and lower launch costs.