Launch

United Launch Alliance (ULA) launched the first two prototype satellites for Project Kuiper on Friday, putting the first assets in space for Amazon’s Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation.  The Atlas V 501 rocket lifted off at 2:06 p.m. ET on Friday, launching from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The satellites...

Rocket Lab officially opened a new engine development center in Long Beach, California, in the facility acquired out of Virgin Orbit’s bankruptcy proceedings.  The new manufacturing complex is more than 144,000 square feet and will support high-rate production of Rocket Lab’s 3D printed Rutherford engine which powers the Electron rocket, as well development and production...

The Vega C rocket is not expected to return to flight until the fourth quarter of 2024, the European Space Agency announced Monday.  Vega C failed during its second mission in December 2022. An independent commission previously determined the failure dealt with the second stage Zefiro40 nozzle, but an updated Zefiro40 engine had significant damages...

United Launch Alliance (ULA) set an Oct. 6 launch date for Amazon’s Project Kuiper prototype satellites. The encapsulated payload arrived at ULA’s integration facility at Cape Canaveral on Thursday.  The two prototype satellites will launch on an Atlas 5 rocket. The launch window opens at 2 p.m. EDT on Oct. 6. Describing the mission, ULA...

Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck remembers the exact moment 17 years ago when he realized his launch business was going to be successful and stay successful in the long-term. He was boarding a plane back to New Zealand after a month-long tour of spacecraft manufacturers and startups in the United States, during which he expected...

El Segundo, California-based ABL Space Systems has received a $15 million contract from the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command’s Assured Access to Space (AATS) office for responsive launch, SSC said on Sept. 18. The small business innovation research award from AATS’ Small Launch and Targets Division at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, comes under the $60...

Rocket Lab’s launch for Capella Space on Tuesday failed, the company’s first Electron failure in more than two years. The mission lost one satellite for the customer.  The mission, called “We Will Never Desert You” took off from New Zealand at 6:55 p.m. local time, 2:55 a.m. ET.  The rocket successfully completed a first stage...

Sidus Space is switching up its launch plans, moving two LizzieSats to a new SpaceX rideshare mission called Bandwagon.  Sidus was previously planning to launch its first LizzieSat on the upcoming Transporter-9 in the fourth quarter. Sidus is moving the first LizzieSat to the Transporter-10 mission in the first quarter of 2024, followed by two...

Firefly Aerospace successfully launched the VICTUS NOX spacecraft in a special mission to demonstrate rapid launch capabilities to the U.S. Space Force.  Firefly Aerospace and spacecraft manufacturer Millennium Space Systems have been in a standby phase since late August, which was the start of a six-month launch window in which the Space Force could call...

After finalizing funding and switching manufacturers, Telesat is ramping up activities on its Lightspeed constellation. The operator announced a contract for 14 SpaceX Falcon 9 launches on Monday, and CEO Dan Goldberg teased a future laser terminal deal at World Satellite Business Week.  The launch campaign with SpaceX is scheduled to kick off in 2026,...