Tag: launch

AIAA Statement on Fourth SpaceX Starship Test Flight

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 6, 2024 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) issued the following statement from AIAA CEO Dan Dumbacher:

“Congratulations to the SpaceX team on today’s test flight of Starship from Starbase, Texas. The live images from onboard the vehicle give everyone a breathtaking view of these test flights.

We are excited to witness this new launch vehicle continuing its development toward commercial operation. The art and science of engineering requires testing. From today’s flight, we know the team is gaining valuable data they will learn from as they keep improving Starship’s design.

It is important to see commercial space launch companies advancing technology to extend the human neighborhood from low Earth orbit to the moon, and on to Mars. Expanding these boundaries takes innovation and hard work.

AIAA recognizes the countless industry professionals who have helped design, build, and test Starship. We applaud AIAA Corporate Member SpaceX for taking this step forward in shaping the future of aerospace.”

Media contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram.

 

Video

SpaceX Starship launches on 4th test flight
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube; Launch occurs at 33:22)

AIAA Statement on Successful Starliner Launch

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 5, 2024 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) issued the following statement from AIAA CEO Dan Dumbacher:

“Congratulations to the entire Starliner team and NASA Astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams on their launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. We are excited to witness this new capability coming online. The entire team has worked diligently to address the challenges in reaching this day. We will be eagerly following the crew’s journey.

This mission demonstrates the powerful collaboration that is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, including the launch of Boeing’s Starliner capsule on an Atlas V rocket provided by United Launch Alliance (ULA). This program is important to open up access to space for more human activities. The Starliner mission is helping extend the human neighborhood beyond planet Earth.

On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, congratulations to the entire Starliner team on their accomplishment. AIAA recognizes the countless industry professionals who have helped design, build, test, and operate Starliner. We applaud NASA and AIAA Corporate Partner Boeing and AIAA Corporate Member ULA, along with the entire Starliner team, for taking this step forward in shaping the future of aerospace.”

Media contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram.

 

Video

ULA Atlas V Launch with Boeing’s Starliner Capsule
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube; Launch occurs at 4:09:32)

SpaceX’s Starship Rocket Receives FAA Go-Ahead for Launch

Reuters reports the FAA “on Tuesday said it issued a license for SpaceX’s fourth flight of its Starship rocket system, another test mission along the company’s path to building a reusable satellite launcher and moon lander. SpaceX is aiming to launch its nearly 400-foot-tall (122-meter), two-stage Starship as early as Thursday at 7 a.m. CDT (1200 GMT) from its rocket facilities in south Texas, from which past flights in the company’s test-to-failure development campaign have launched.”
Full Story (Reuters)

SpaceX Launches ESA’s EarthCARE Mission on Falcon 9

Space News reports, “A Falcon 9 successfully launched an Earth science mission for Europe and Japan May 28 as part of the European Space Agency’s ongoing, if temporary, reliance on SpaceX for space access … EarthCARE is an 800-million-euro ($870 million) ESA-led mission to study clouds and aerosols in the atmosphere. The spacecraft carries four instruments, including a cloud profiling radar provided by the Japanese space agency JAXA at a cost of 8.3 billion yen ($53 million). JAXA dubbed the spacecraft Hakuryu or ‘White Dragon’ because of the spacecraft’s appearance.”
Full Story (Space News)

 

Video

SpaceX EarthCARE Launch
(The Launch Pad; YouTube)

SpaceX Launches 23 Starlink Satellites Marking 5th Anniversary of First Dedicated Starlink Flight

Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX completed its third Falcon 9 launch in less than 48 hours with a mission from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. As with its launch Wednesday night, SpaceX sent another 23 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit. Either serendipitously or intentionally, the Starlink 6-63 mission fell on the fifth anniversary of the first dedicated Starlink launch, Starlink v0.9 on May 23, 2019.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

 

 

 

Video

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 23 Starlink satellites from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)

SpaceX Has Nearly 6,000 Starlink Satellites on Orbit Following Sunday’s Falcon 9 Launch

Spaceflght Now reports that the milestone comes as a result of the 34th dedicated Starlink launch of the year for SpaceX. “Liftoff of the Starlink 6-58 mission from Space Launch Complex 40 happened at 8:53 p.m. EDT (0053 UTC). This was SpaceX’s 34th dedicated Starlink launch of 2024,” which placed another 23 Starlink satellites into orbit, bringing the total number in orbit to 5,999.
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 23 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Galileo Satellites from KSC

Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX hit some notable milestones with the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on Saturday. Most notably, the weekend flight marked the first time that the European Commission’s Galileo satellites (similar to the United State’s Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites) launched onboard an American-made rocket and from U.S. soil.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

 

 

 

 

Video

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches from Florida with navigation satellites for Europe
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)

NASA and Rocket Lab Launch Solar Sail

The New Zealand Herald reports, “NASA has launched its new solar sail mission from Mahia Peninsula. Once at a Sun-synchronous orbit, about 1000 km above Earth, the spacecraft will deploy its sails and use the pressure of sunlight for propulsion, instead of rocket fuel. If the microwave oven-sized CubeSat is successfully deployed, the operation would be a precursor to larger-scale missions to the Moon and Mars, NASA said.”
Full Story (New Zealand Herald)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches on Next Starlink Mission

Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX completed its latest Falcon 9 launch from pad 39A NASA’s Kennedy Space Center early Wednesday evening. The Starlink 6-51 mission came about a week-and-a-half after the launch of its first Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission from that same launch pad.” Liftoff occurred at 5:26 p.m. EDT.
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 with 23 Starlink satellites from pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)