Tag

Spaceflight

All articles tagged with #spaceflight

industrials12 hours ago•4 min saved

SpaceX unveils $100B Louisiana launch hub to power Starship push

SpaceX plans a $100 billion launch site on the Gulf Coast near Pecan Island, Louisiana, spanning about 125,000 acres with five launch complexes and two pads each to accelerate Starship flights and enable orbital data centers and lunar/Mars missions. Construction could start next year with the first rockets from the base targeted for 2029, backed by a competitive state incentives package and Governor Jeff Landry’s backing. The project expands SpaceX’s footprint beyond Texas and aligns with Elon Musk’s broader ambitions, though it faces environmental concerns and some local opposition.

via Financial Times|

#industrials #louisiana #spaceflight

space3 days ago•4 min saved

DLR's RLV C5 Aims for 74% Payload to Orbit, Challenger to Starship

Germany's DLR proposes the RLV C5, a European next‑gen rocket that would use a SpaceLiner booster with built‑in wings and mid‑air capture, powered by liquid hydrogen and oxygen to deliver up to about 74% of its mass to low‑Earth orbit—far higher than SpaceX's Starship. The concept, outlined in a May 2025 paper and based on publicly logged telemetry, is still conceptual and would face development hurdles and Europe’s ability to outpace SpaceX's rapid iteration; Europe’s current players like Arianespace (Ariane 6), Isar Aerospace, and MaiaSpace are active but have not matched Starship’s performance.

via bgr.com|

#dlr #reusable #rlvc5

space3 days ago•159 min saved

Edge of Space Reached: Joe Walker’s Historic Dual X-15 Flight in 1963

On Aug. 22, 1963, U.S. Air Force Captain Joe Walker piloted the X-15 #3 to an altitude over 67 miles (108 km), about 5 miles above the edge of space, making him the first person to reach space twice. The second suborbital X-15 flight demonstrated reuse potential and informed NASA’s Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs, as well as later Shuttle design and today’s reusable boosters like SpaceX’s Falcon 9.

via Space|

#joe-walker #karman-line #reusability

science5 days ago•15 min saved

Water Bears in Orbit: Four Generations of Tardigrades Uncover Heritable Spaceflight Tricks

NASA sent hydrated tardigrades (Hypsibius exemplaris) to the International Space Station in 2021, cultured them for multiple generations in the Bioculture System, and tracked gene expression to see how spaceflight affects survival strategies and whether those traits are heritable, with implications for long-duration missions.

via The Times of India|

#bioculture-system #gene-expression #hypsibius-exemplaris

space7 days ago•160 min saved

China’s LandSpace nails first land-based booster recovery on Zhuque-3 in second orbital flight

Private Chinese firm LandSpace successfully recovered the first stage of its Zhuque-3 rocket on land during its second orbital flight, marking China’s first private company to achieve an orbital-stage booster landing on solid ground. The mission also delivered the Honghu 03 satellite to orbit, underscoring China’s push toward reusable launch technology and drawing a parallel to SpaceX’s landings, with Zhuque-3 using a methalox propulsion similar to Falcon 9's approach.

via Space|

#landspace #reusability #rocket

space8 days ago•160 min saved

Blue Origin expands Cape Canaveral with second pad as it rebuilds after explosion

Blue Origin plans to revive Cape Canaveral’s Launch Complex 36 as a dual-pad facility to support the larger New Glenn 9x4 rocket, with a new Vertical Integration Facility and Payload Processing Facility to be built nearby. The move follows May’s explosion that damaged LC-36, and the company says it will need up to about 2,500 tons of steel for a new launch tower; repairs to LC-36A are targeted to allow the 7x2 to return by year’s end, but there’s no announced timeline for LC-36B or the 9x4 debut.

via Space|

#blue-origin #cape-canaveral #launch-complex-36

technology8 days ago•8 min saved

US set for a rocket-launching decade as NASA, SpaceX push cadence higher

The FAA forecasts nearly 4,300 U.S. commercial rocket launches from 2026–2036, driven by NASA’s Artemis program, Starlink deployments and a growing private space industry. Florida and California posted record launch years, and officials are exploring regulatory easing and offshore platforms to handle rising demand. Major players like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Rocket Lab, Firefly Aerospace and ULA are expanding cadence, with Artemis III/IV targeting crewed lunar missions in coming years and plans for a moon base by 2032.

via USA Today|

#artemis #regulation #rocket-launches

space9 days ago•164 min saved

Artemis II Pilot Credits NASA’s Trust for Hand-Flying Orion

Artemis II pilot Victor Glover said the crew manually flew the Orion spacecraft during proximity operations around the unmanned upper stage, praising NASA for trusting them to control the vehicle by hand. The moment highlighted the mission’s success and led into post-flight celebrations at Red Rocks, with discussions of Artemis III docking and continued collaboration across industry partners and international teams.

via Space|

#artemis-ii #nasa #orion-spacecraft

space10 days ago•10 min saved

Starship’s Moonshot Thrust Tops Saturn V, but Orbital Refueling Remains Unproven

SpaceX’s Starship V3 delivers about 18 million pounds of liftoff thrust—over 2x Saturn V’s 7.6 million—yet after 13 integrated flights it has not demonstrated ship-to-ship refueling in orbit, a critical capability for Mars missions. Previous tests moved cryogenic oxygen within a single vehicle, but true orbital refueling requires two ships to rendezvous, dock, and transfer propellant with reliable, reusable interfaces and turnaround. The thrust advantage reflects scale, not readiness; many other challenges remain before Mars becomes feasible, with refueling seen as the bridge from a reusable launcher to an interplanetary transport system.

via spacedaily.com|

#propulsion #refueling #space

space12 days ago•4 min saved

Fincke retires as NASA astronaut after 549 days in space

NASA veteran Mike Fincke retires after a 30-year career, totaling 549 days in space across four missions to the ISS and ranking fourth in NASA’s cumulative time in space. His final ISS flight was cut short by an undisclosed medical issue, marking the first medical evacuation from the station. Though retiring from NASA, he may still pursue spaceflight through the expanding commercial sector, a path similar to peers who have transitioned to private missions.

via USA Today|

#international-space-station #mike-fincke #nasa

space-and-spaceflight13 days ago•16 min saved

China's Long March 7A Explodes After Launch, Marking a Rare Setback

About 85 seconds after liftoff from Wenchang, China's Long March 7A exploded in a massive fireball, destroying the ChinaSat 4B payload; investigators say an unidentified anomaly is under review, marking the rocket's first failure since its 2020 debut after a long streak of successful missions.

via Gizmodo|

#china #launch-site-wenchang #long-march-7a

science15 days ago•52 min saved

Death in Space: How Crews Would Handle Remains on Orbit, Moon, and Mars

A space-medicine expert explains that handling a crew member’s death varies by mission: on the ISS remains could be returned to Earth within hours, on the Moon within a few days, and on a Mars mission likely only at the end of the mission with the body preserved aboard in a dedicated chamber. Death in vacuum outside a suit is instantaneous, and cremation or burial on other worlds presents energy and contamination challenges, so preservation and eventual return are prioritized. The piece also notes the need for grieving support for families and thorough planning for future space colonization.

via Yahoo|

#death #mars #optional-protocols

space15 days ago•10 min saved

From a Summer Internship to a Solar System Tour: The Gravity-Assist Breakthrough

In 1961, UCLA graduate student Michael Minovitch, working at JPL, used an IBM 7090 to simulate thousands of trajectories and, by analyzing the encounter from the planet’s frame, discovered gravity assist: a spacecraft can gain speed by borrowing a planet’s orbital motion without using fuel. This insight, demonstrated on a room-sized computer, enabled outer‑solar‑system missions like Pioneer 10/11 and later Voyager to reach distant planets with far less propellant. Although Minovitch fought for proper credit, gravity assist became a cornerstone of spaceflight, illustrating how a planet’s motion can transfer energy to a passing spacecraft during a flyby.

via Space Daily|

#gravity-assist #nasajpl #note-top5tags-requested-are-five-extra-tag-included-only-if-needed

science-space-exploration16 days ago•6 min saved

Eating in Zero-G: Microgravity’s Impact on Taste, Chewing, and Hydration

Spaceflight shifts body fluids toward the head and dulls taste/smell, making eating and drinking in orbit less satisfying and potentially reducing food intake. Swallowing itself doesn’t require gravity, but microgravity alters saliva production and oral conditions, contributing to dry mouth and swallowing difficulties. These changes can affect nutrition and hydration on long missions, such as a Mars voyage, prompting research into texture-modified foods and 3D-printed meals to tailor nutrition and ease swallowing for astronauts.

via Scientific American|

#astronauts #microgravity #nutrition

spaceflight17 days ago•51 min saved

Starship upper stage recovery faces grim odds after 13th flight

SpaceX's Starship upper stage from Flight 13 survived splashdown and is being towed toward shore off Western Australia, but Elon Musk says the recovery is not looking good despite close-up photos of critical heat-shield and engine areas; the mission deployed 20 Starlink V3 satellites, underscoring SpaceX's broader plan for a massive satellite constellation.

via Yahoo|

#elon-musk #heat-shield #spaceflight