On Tuesday, the FAA and Department of Transportation published a proposal that greases the wheels for the commercial space industry, long bound by outdated regulations that were not created with a modern vision of private spaceflight in mind. Last May, the Trump administration signaled its intention to ease commercial spaceflight regulations with Space Policy Directive […]
View More FAA proposal aims to ‘streamline’ regulations for future space launchesCategory: commercial spaceflight
Ripley, the SpaceX test dummy, is buckled in and ready for launch
Space travel is set to take a pivotal step forward this weekend.
SpaceX, in the first test demonstration of a commercial crew capsule designed to eventually send astronauts to the International Space Station, plans to launch its Crew Dragon spacecraft on Saturday, March 2, at 2:49 a.m. ET, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
The commercial spaceflight company has worked closely with NASA engineers to design a capsule that meets the agency’s rigorous safety standards. This six-day mission — which carries along a test dummy covered in sensors, nicknamed Ripley — endeavors to blast into space, attach to the space station, and then parachute back down to Earth. Read more…
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China wants to keep its spot as a leader in the space race with plans to launch 30 missions
Keeping its spot among the top countries who are competing in the space race, China is planning to launch 30 missions this year, according to information from the state-run China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp., reported by the Xinhua news agency. Last year, China outpaced the United States in the number of national launches it […]
View More China wants to keep its spot as a leader in the space race with plans to launch 30 missionsBlue Origin could charge $200k-$300k for a trip to space
How much would you pay to leave our dumpster fire of a world for just a few minutes? Blue Origin is considering charging $200,000 to $300,000 according to a Reuters report. For that price, passengers would get a seat on Blue Origin’s New Shepard, the commercial space vehicle from Jeff Bezos’ rocket company. The rocket […]
View More Blue Origin could charge $200k-$300k for a trip to spaceVirgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo hits Mach 1.9 in second successful test flight
Virgin Galactic is celebrating a successful second test flight of SpaceShipTwo, the rocket-powered passenger spacecraft that may someday take tourists to the edge of space. Today’s test took the VSS Unity, the second craft built in this class, up to 114,500 feet and Mach 1.9, or nearly 1,300 miles per hour.
View More Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo hits Mach 1.9 in second successful test flightRocket Lab’s next launch vaults it into full commercial operation
Rocket launch startup Rocket Lab is moving from its initial testing phase into proper commercial operations with its next mission. The company’s past two launches, “It’s a Test” and “Still Testing” were (you guessed it) primarily tests of its Electron launch craft vehicle and launch process, but its next mission, dubbed “It’s Business Time” (kudos […]
Trump wants NASA astronauts back on the moon, but it won’t happen while he’s in office
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The Trump administration is serious about sending robots and spacecraft back to the moon — although no NASA astronaut will set foot on the chalky lunar surface until after President Trump leaves office.
The White House released its Fiscal Year 2019 NASA budget proposal on Monday, and it confirmed the administration’s plans to prioritize space exploration while stepping away from supporting the International Space Station, which houses astronauts and science experiments in low-Earth orbit.
“It reflects the administration’s confidence that America will lead the way back to the moon,” said NASA’s acting administrator, Robert Lightfoot, while detailing the budget proposal Monday afternoon from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. Read more…
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Rocket Lab successfully launches second Electron booster test flight
Rocket Lab is hoping to fill a niche for small payload orbital launches with its house-built Electron rocket and private launch facility – and now it’s one step closer to full commercial operations. The startup managed its second test flight (via Space) for its Electron booster – this time making it all the way to orbit, where it deployed some of its first ever customer… Read More
Blue Origin flies its Crew Capsule 2.0 for the first time
Jef Bezos’ space company Blue Origin recorded a new milestone today – an inaugural flight for Crew Capsule 2.0, the latest version of the vehicle it’s creating to bring astronauts into space for its first passenger flights. The Crew Capsule 2.0 craft flew atop a New Shepard reusable booster, traveling up to an altitude of over 322,000 feet. The New Shepard rocket, which… Read More