SpaceX

The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas 5 rocket sits on Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral at sunset. The Atlas V will launch the ViaSat-3 F2 ultra-high-capacity broadband satellite. Image: United Launch Alliance Update Nov. 5, 11:30 p.m. EST (0430 UTC): ULA scrubbed the mission due to a valve issue. United Launch Alliance scrubbed the planned launch an Atlas 5 rocket Wednesday night due to the valve issue that was unable to be resolved in the launch window. The rocket is carrying a communications satellite for California-based communications company, Viasat. Following the scrub, the company said that “an issue encountered while cycling the booster liquid oxygen tank valve during final checkouts” forced them to stand down from a launch attempt and target a day later. Liftof...

Polaris Dawn Commander Jared Isaacman sits down with Matt Anderson, the chief growth officer for the Space Force Association, during the second annual Spacepower Conference to discuss human spaceflight. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now Update Nov. 5, 8:10 a.m. EST (1310 UTC): Added comments from Sean Duffy. In a move that will feel like déja vu, President Donald Trump nominated commercial astronaut and entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to be the next NASA Administrator, less than six months after he had pulled Isaacman’s initial nomination for largely political reasons. The President made the announcement on his social media site, Truth Social, on Tuesday evening. “Jared’s passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteri...

Astrobotic staff examine a propulsion tank sitting in front of Griffin-1’s structure. Image: Astrobotic Astrobotic is now eyeing the summer of 2026 for the launch of its second mission with the goal of landing on the surface of the Moon. On Friday, the company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, said it was targeting a launch window in July 2026 for the flight of its medium-sized class Griffin lander, notably larger compared to the Peregrine lander flown in January 2024. Both missions are part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, which is designed to get the agency’s science instruments and technology demonstrations to the surface of the Moon. These missions are meant to help further the understanding of the Moon as NASA and its international partners prepare for huma...

Technicians with the European Space Agency and Airbus/Airbus Netherlands are shown performing an illumination test on one of the solar array wing panels during installation on the Orion spacecraft for Artemis I inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 30, 2020. The solar arrays were extended, inspected, and then retracted, before installation on the spacecraft. Each solar array panel will generate 11 kilowatts of power and span about 63 feet. Image: NASA/Frank Michaux Legacy names in European spaceflight and defense, Airbus, Leonardo and Thales, announced a memorandum of understanding on Thursday to combine forces in a new entity designed to rival other aerospace juggernauts in this arena, like Boeing, Lockheed M...

The two SpainSat Next Generation satellites from Hisdesat are pictured in a cleanroom. Image: Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities of the Government of Spain A SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage will fly Thursday for the 21st and final time — a rare expendable mission for the company’s reusable rocket, which will deploy a communications satellite for Spain. The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday night, but was delayed 24 hours for reasons not disclosed by SpaceX. The rocket was sighted at the launch pad Wednesday morning, but it returned to its assembly hangar before rolling out again. SpaceX said the Falcon 9 first-stage booster will not be recovered on this mission “due to the additional performance required to deliver this payload to orbit”. The rocket will not be fitted...