SpaceX Successfully Completes Starship’s 6th Test Flight

SpaceX Successfully Completes Starship’s 6th Test Flight

SpaceX's IFT-6 Test Flight launches from Starbase in Boca Chica, TX on November 19, 2024. Photo: Richard Gallagher/FMN
SpaceX’s IFT-6 Test Flight launches from Starbase in Boca Chica, TX on November 19, 2024. Photo: Richard Gallagher/FMN

SpaceX conducted its sixth test flight of the Starship rocket yesterday, successfully completing another flight in the company’s efforts to develop a fully reusable spacecraft for missions to the Moon and Mars. The launch came on time at 4:00 p.m. CST from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas after a flawless countdown.

WWII Comes To Central Florida

WWII Comes To Central Florida

A company of German Infantry attempts to slow an Allied artillery advance at the Zephyrhills Military History Museum’s “Battle For Veterans”. Photo: Mark Stone

On Sunday, November 10, 2024, the Zephyrhills Museum of Military History concluded its annual “Battle for Veterans” WWII reenactment event, offering attendees an immersive experience into World War II history. The three-day event, running from November 8 to 10, featured authentic battle reenactments, living history displays, and a showcase of military vehicles, drawing history enthusiasts and families alike.

Flugtag!

Flugtag!

A fFugtag contestant falls 25 feet to the river below.
Photo: Charles Boyer / FMN

TAMPA, FL (Nov. 9, 2024) – Anyone who has ever flown into Tampa or visited there knows that the airspace there can be a pretty busy place. On Saturday, the “airspace” was even busier than usual at just 25 feet over Tampa’s Hillsborough River. The air was filled with creativity and daring as the Red Bull Flugtag event returned to the city for the first time since 2011.

Red Bull Flugtag Soars into Tampa Bay: A Sky-High Adventure of Wild Designs and Wacky Wings!

Red Bull Flugtag Soars into Tampa Bay: A Sky-High Adventure of Wild Designs and Wacky Wings!

A stork soars from the runway in a recent Flugtag event. Credit: Redbull Flugtag Media Pool
A stork soars from the runway in a recent Flugtag event. Credit: Redbull Flugtag Media Pool

Get ready, Tampa Bay, because on November 9, the Red Bull Flugtag is taking off at the Tampa Convention Center, bringing with it a spectacle of wild, human-powered flying contraptions and a whole lot of creativity. If you’ve ever wanted to see someone’s dream of flight take off—albeit briefly—then make sure to head down to the water’s edge for a day of outrageous fun, bold leaps, and some unforgettable plunges.

Boeing Reportedly Exploring Sale of Space Division Amid Financial Troubles

Boeing Reportedly Exploring Sale of Space Division Amid Financial Troubles

Boeing's Space Operations have been plagued by delays, cost overruns, and technical challenges such as those experienced by the Starliner program. Photo by Charles Boyer/FMN
Boeing’s Space Operations have been plagued by delays, cost overruns, and technical challenges such as those experienced by the Starliner program. Photo by Charles Boyer/FMN

Oct. 25, 2024 – Boeing, once a cornerstone of U.S. space exploration, is reportedly considering selling parts of its space business, including its NASA operations and the troubled Starliner spacecraft, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The move is seen as part of a broader restructuring effort by new CEO Kelly Ortberg to stabilize the company’s finances and refocus its operations.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Mission Returns Safely After Record 235 Days in Space

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Mission Returns Safely After Record 235 Days in Space

Official SpaceX Crew-8 portrait with (L-R) Roscosmos cosmonaut and Mission Specialist Aleksandr Grebenkin, and Pilot Michael Barratt, Commander Matthew Dominick, and Mission Specialist Jeanette Epps, all three NASA astronauts.

Bill Stafford/NASA
Official SpaceX Crew-8 portrait with (L-R) Roscosmos cosmonaut and Mission Specialist Aleksandr Grebenkin, and Pilot Michael Barratt, Commander Matthew Dominick, and Mission Specialist Jeanette Epps, all three NASA astronauts.
Bill Stafford/NASA

Pensacola, Fla. – The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, Endeavour, returned to Earth early Friday, October 25, safely splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico near Pensacola at 3:29 a.m. EDT. The landing marked the conclusion of NASA’s Crew-8 mission. The Crew-8 team spent a record 235 days in space, setting a record for American crewed space missions.

Weather Delays Continue for Crew-8 As NASA and SpaceX Target New Return Date

Weather Delays Continue for Crew-8 As NASA and SpaceX Target New Return Date

The four crew members that make up the SpaceX Crew-8 mission aboard the International Space Station are pictured in the vestibule in between the Harmony module’s space-facing port and the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. From top to bottom are, NASA astronauts Jeanette Epps, Mike Barratt, and Matthew Dominick, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin. Photo credit: NASA
The four crew members that make up the SpaceX Crew-8 mission aboard the International Space Station are pictured in the vestibule in between the Harmony module’s space-facing port and the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. From top to bottom are, NASA astronauts Jeanette Epps, Mike Barratt, and Matthew Dominick, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin. Photo credit: NASA

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. – Sometimes it seems like you can’t catch a break…or at least it must seem that way to a space station full of astronauts who find themselves away from home a lot longer than planned.

SS United States Bound for Florida: It’s a “Done Deal”

SS United States Bound for Florida: It’s a “Done Deal”

Workers prepare the iconic SS United States for its final journey from Pennsylvania to Florida. Photo: SSUSC
Workers prepare the iconic SS United States for its final journey from Pennsylvania to Florida. Photo: SSUSC

Iconic Ocean Liner to Become World’s Largest Artificial Reef

In September, FMN reported on an ambitious plan to bring the SS United States to Florida as an artificial reef. At the time, the move seemed almost a certainty, and after one final legal challenge, it has become a reality. The SS United States, a symbol of maritime innovation and American excellence since its 1951 launch, is set to begin its final journey—not across the Atlantic, but toward an extraordinary new life beneath the waves. In a quiet ceremony on October 12, 2024, the SS United States Conservancy transferred ownership of the ship to Okaloosa County, Florida, marking the end of a long and contentious legal battle over the vessel’s future.

ULA Vulcan Cert 2 Flight Encounters “Off Nominal” SRB During Launch

ULA Vulcan Cert 2 Flight Encounters “Off Nominal” SRB During Launch

Debris from the left SRB nozzle is visible in this "engine shot" by Chris Leymarie / FMN
Debris from the left SRB nozzle is visible in this “engine shot” by Chris Leymarie / FMN

United Launch Alliances’s CERT-2 flight launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:25 AM EDT this morning. Almost immediately from the point of launch, observers noticed that something didn’t look quite right as Vulcan booster rose from the pad.

Helene Approaches Florida with Potential to Become Major Storm

Helene Approaches Florida with Potential to Become Major Storm

Infrared Satellite view of Helene as it passes over Cozumel, Mexico Wednesday morning. Photo: National Hurricane Center
Infrared Satellite view of Helene as it passes over Cozumel, Mexico Wednesday morning. Photo: National Hurricane Center

Tropical Storm Helene, currently a powerful tropical system, is forecast to rapidly intensify into a major hurricane as it moves toward the Gulf Coast of Florida. As of 6AM EDT this morning, the storm was located near Cozumel, Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph.