Space News & Blog Articles

STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION

Artist’s illustration of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in orbit. Credit: Boeing

NASA officials cleared Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule for launch next week in a flight readiness review Wednesday, moving a step closer toward a critical unpiloted demonstration flight to attempt docking at the International Space Station and check off other test objectives left unaccomplished on a problem-plagued mission two-and-a-half years ago.

File photo of two Russian-built RD-181 engines powering an Antares rocket off its launch pad in Virginia. Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

Northrop Grumman says it has a backup plan to fulfill the company’s contract to resupply to the International Space Station if the war in Ukraine continues to disrupt the supply of Russian engines and Ukrainian booster cores for the company’s Antares rocket.

The P120C first stage for the inaugural Vega C launch was transferred to the launch pad in French Guiana on April 15. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace

Europe’s new Vega C launcher is on track for its inaugural flight from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, during the second half of June, according to officials managing final phases of integration.

A Long March 2D rocket lifts off with eight Jilin 1 Earth-imaging satellites. Credit: CASC

China launched eight more microsatellites for the Jilin 1 high-resolution Earth observation constellation May 4, five days after a separate mission deployed five similar Jilin 1 payloads into orbit.

Artist’s concept of a crew member performing a spacewalk outside of a Crew Dragon spacecraft. Credit: SpaceX / Polaris Program

The four-person crew who will fly on the all-private Polaris Dawn mission — set to include the first commercial spacewalk and the debut of SpaceX’s extravehicular spacesuit — will begin training this month for their ride on a Dragon spacecraft to an altitude more than three times higher than the International Space Station.

STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION



A Falcon 9 rocket lifts off to begin the Starlink 4-17 mission. Credit: Stephen Clark / Spaceflight Now

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center at first light Friday with 53 Starlink internet satellites, completing an all-nighter of space operations just five hours after returning four astronauts to a splashdown off the west coast of Florida.

SpaceX’s recovery team prepares to lift the Dragon Endurance spacecraft from the Gulf of Mexico early Friday. Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

Four astronauts returned to Earth from the International Space Station early Friday with a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida, the sixth crew launch or landing in support of the station program in fewer than 50 days.

Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Starlink 4-17 mission will launch SpaceX’s next batch of 53 Starlink broadband satellites. Follow us on Twitter.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands on pad 39A Thursday. Credit: Spaceflight Now

SpaceX raised a Falcon 9 rocket vertical on pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center Thursday, ready for a pre-sunrise blastoff Friday with 53 more Starlink internet satellites, using a booster stage flying for a record-tying 12th time.

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: NASA/Isaac Watson

A U.S. military cargo plane delivered NASA’s Psyche spacecraft from California to the Kennedy Space Center last week, starting a three-month campaign to ready the asteroid explorer for liftoff on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in August.



ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer, pilot Tom Marshburn, commander Raja Chari, and mission specialist Kayla Barron try on their SpaceX pressure suits before departing the International Space Station after a six-month expedition. Credit: NASA

Three NASA astronauts and a European Space Agency mission specialist left the International Space Station early Thursday aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule, heading for splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida to wrap up a 176-day expedition in orbit.

Live coverage of the undocking, re-entry, and splashdown of NASA’s Crew-3 mission at the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter.

Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule moves toward ULA’s Vertical Integration Facility. Credit: Stephen Clark / Spaceflight Now

Ready for another try at launching on a test flight to the International Space Station, Boeing rolled a repaired Starliner crew capsule to United Launch Alliance’s seaside rocket hangar at Cape Canaveral Wednesday to prepare for a liftoff scheduled for May 19.

A Chinese Long March 11 rocket launches April 30 from a barge in the East China Sea. Credit: CASC

Two Chinese rockets, including one launched from an ocean-going platform in the East China Sea, deployed seven optical Earth-imaging satellites in a pair of successful missions last week.



A camera on Rocket Lab’s recovery helicopter shows the Electron booster under its parachute following launch Monday. Credit: Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab used a helicopter to capture a spent Electron first stage booster and its parachute after launching satellites from New Zealand Monday, a significant step forward for the company’s rocket recovery and reuse program. The helicopter dropped the rocket a few seconds later.

Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1A on Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand carrying 34 small picosatellites and CubeSats. Text updates will appear automatically below. Follow us on Twitter.