Exploring The Frontier Of Space
Unmanned Spaceflight
Following a one-day delay to fix a balky water valve on its launch pad, the Delta II launch vehicle returned to service early Wednesday morning with a fiery nighttime ascent from California on a mission to deploy NASA’s first spacecraft dedicated to studying atmospheric carbon dioxide. The Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 (OCO-2) will join a […]
With just six months until its first trip to space, NASA’s Orion spacecraft continues taking shape at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Engineers began stacking the crew module on top of the completed service module Monday, the first step in moving the three primary Orion elements – crew module, service module and launch […]
Orbital Sciences Corporation announced that it has updated its Antares launch schedule for the Orb-2 mission to a date no earlier than (NET) July 1, 2014. Orb-2 is the second of eight cargo resupply missions to the International Space Station under the company’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The new launch schedule reflects […]
With two companies now providing commercial cargo launch services for the International Space Station, NASA is issuing its final report on the now-complete Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program that laid the groundwork for those flights. The report, titled “Commercial Orbital Transportation Services, A New Era in Spaceflight” (NASA/SP-2014-617), documents the work of NASA’s Commercial […]
Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers attach the heat shield to the Orion crew module inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper NASA and Lockheed Martin engineers have installed the largest heat shield ever constructed on the crew module of the agency’s Orion spacecraft. […]
UPDATE: Due to weather conditions, there will be no launch of the LDSD test vehicle June 4 or 5. Other potential launch dates include June 7, 9, 11 and 14. The decision to move forward with another launch attempt of the LDSD test is made the day before each launch opportunity date. NASA’s flying saucer-shaped […]
While the battle between SpaceX and United Launch Alliance continues over the future of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle program, ULA extended its streak ofi successful missions with the launch today of an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral. Carrying a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, the Atlas blasted off from Space Launch Complex-41 […]
America’s newest Global Positioning System satellite is now in space following its successful launch Friday evening onboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral A.F.S. Following a one-day delay due to storms associated with a passing cold front, blastoff of the 205 foot tall Delta IV Medium+ rocket, featuring twin solid rocket […]
A GoPro Captures Launch Of A SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Carrying Dragon CRS-3 Dodging a gloomy weather forecast, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket roared into space this afternoon to begin a critical resupply mission to the International Space Station and test a revolutionary booster stage recovery system that could change the economics of the […]
. United Launch Alliance successfully launched the second mission in just seven days with the lift off of an Atlas V rocket carrying the NROL-67 payload for the National Reconnaissance Office. The mission lifted off from Space Launch Complex-41 on schedule on April 10 at 1:45 p.m. EDT. On April 3, ULA launched an Air […]