FAA Adds New Licensing Requirement for Spacecraft Reentry

FAA Adds New Licensing Requirement for Spacecraft Reentry

April 20, 2024Posted inSpace News
Starship reenters the atmosphere following a test flight.
SpaceX’s IFT-3 reenters the atmosphere following a March 2024 test flight. Photo: SpaceX

WASHINGTON, April 19 — The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced a change in its licensing regulations aimed at enhancing the safety of space missions involving reentry vehicles. In an April 17th publication in the Federal Register, the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation declared that it will no longer approve the launch of spacecraft designed to reenter Earth’s atmosphere unless they already possess a reentry license.

Falcon 9 launching in 2022

SpaceX Planning Starlink 6-51 Launch Today – How and where to watch

April 17, 2024Posted inSpace News, SpaceX, Starlink
A recent Starlink launch as viewed from Playa Linda Beach. Photo: Charles Boyer/FMN
A recent Starlink launch as viewed from Playa Linda Beach. Photo: Charles Boyer/FMN

SpaceX is planning to launch the first of three Falcon 9 missions over the next five days today. There’s another launch scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, April 18, and a final one set for Monday, April 22nd. All three will be ferrying a tranche of Starlink Group 6 satellites to orbit. Today’s launch is from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center.

Starliner Crew Capsule on the Move 

April 16, 2024Posted inAtlas V, KSC, NASA
Starliner Crew Capsule being moved to the vertical integration facility. Image by: Richard P Gallagher

As the aerospace community looks toward the future of crewed space travel, Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner is poised to become a pivotal player in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. This morning’s rollout of the crew capsule ahead of the first crewed launch marks a significant milestone for Boeing.  The Starliner spacecraft was moved from the Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility (C3PF) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center this morning at 4am to the Vertical Integration Facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in order to be attached to the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.  

Kennedy Space Center Looks Toward The New Space Economy

Kennedy Space Center Looks Toward The New Space Economy

April 15, 2024Posted inSpace News
Tom Engler, the Director of Center Planning and Development at KSC addressed Florida Tax Watch at their 2024 meeting last week, envisioning up to 300 launches per year from KSC in the near future. Photo: Florida Tax Watch
Tom Engler, the Director of Center Planning and Development at KSC addressed Florida Tax Watch at their 2024 meeting last week, envisioning up to 300 launches per year from KSC in the near future. Photo: Florida Tax Watch

In the new era of both public and private spaceflight, Florida’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) continues to serve as a major launchpad for America’s ambitions in space. Tom Engler, the Director of Center Planning and Development at KSC, recently highlighted the growing synergy between the federal government, private space ventures, and military advancements in space travel during a speech at the 2024 Florida TaxWatch Spring Meeting held last week in in Winter Park.

SpaceX Launches Starlink 6-49, Booster B1062 Completes 20th Mission

SpaceX Launches Starlink 6-49, Booster B1062 Completes 20th Mission

April 13, 2024Posted inFalcon 9, Space News, SpaceX, Starlink
For a time, Falcon 9’s plume illuminated the whole rocket body as it ascended to space, powered by nine Merlin engines.
Photo: Ed Cordero / Florida Media Now

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 tonight from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and sent another twenty-three Starlink satellites to orbit. Liftoff occurred at 09:22 PM EDT on a crisp, clear spring evening on the Space Coast.

Note: Originally published by Charles Boyer at Talk of Titusville

Astranis Omega – Next Year’s Challenger to Starlink?

Astranis Omega – Next Year’s Challenger to Starlink?

April 11, 2024Posted inSpace News
Astranis today announced their next-gen satellite OMEGA. Graphic: Astranis
Astranis today announced their next-gen satellite OMEGA. Graphic: Astranis

Based in the United States, Astranis says they have made a significant breakthrough in delivering satellite internet with Omega, dubbing it the “pound-for-pound the most powerful communications satellite”. Omega is destined for higher geostationary orbits approximately 22,000 miles above the planet. This positioning is notably different from the lower Earth orbits utilized by Starlink satellites, which orbit sixty times closer.

“With Omega, our customers simply get more throughput at lower prices” 

Astranis CEO John Gedmark
Final Flight: United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy

Final Flight: United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy

April 10, 2024Posted inDelta IV Heavy, Space News, United Launch Alliance
Storied Booster Concludes Its Service with Classified Mission
NROL-70, the final Delta IV mission, launches from CCSFS on Tuesday, April 9, 2024. Photo: Mark Stone/FMN
NROL-70, the final Delta IV mission, launches from CCSFS on Tuesday, April 9, 2024. Photo: Mark Stone/FMN

On a bittersweet day in in the annals of spaceflight, the United Launch Alliance (ULA) said goodbye to one of its most powerful and storied rockets. With an ontime launch at 12:53 PM EDT on April 9, the Delta IV Heavy rocket soared into the skies for its final mission, carrying a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), designated NROL-70.

Space-X Launches First Rideshare to a Mid-Inclination Orbit

Space-X Launches First Rideshare to a Mid-Inclination Orbit

April 8, 2024Posted inSpace News, SpaceX, Uncategorized
Bandwagon - 1 launches from KSC's Pad 39A on 4/7/24.
Bandwagon-1 launches from KSC’s Pad 39A on 4/7/24., marking SpaceX’s entry into Mid-Inclination Orbit ridesharing. Photo: Ed Cordero/FMN

Sunday night saw an on-time launch for SpaceX’s latest Falcon 9 mission known as Bandwagon-1. The rideshare mission, SpaceX’s 35th of 2024, carried 11 satellites to a mid-inclination orbit (45 degrees) for six different companies. A mid-inclination orbit places satellites over populated areas rather than providing global coverage seen with standard polar orbits.

NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara and International Crew Return to Earth

NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara and International Crew Return to Earth

April 7, 2024Posted inISS, NASA, Space News
The MS-24 Soyuz capsule returns to Earth on April 6, 2024. Astronaut Loral O'Hara and two cosmonauts were in good health.
The MS-24 Soyuz capsule returns to Earth on April 6, 2024. The three crew members were all reported as being in good health (Image credit: NASA/Roscosmos)

In the quiet, expansive steppe of Kazakhstan, southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan, Expedition 70 to the ISS officially ended. NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy and spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya from Belarus, concluded their space mission with a parachute-assisted landing in the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft at 3:17 a.m. EDT on Saturday, April 6 (12:17 p.m. Kazakhstan time).

Biden Administration Proposes Taxing Space Launches to Support FAA Operations

Biden Administration Proposes Taxing Space Launches to Support FAA Operations

April 6, 2024Posted inSpace News
A SpaceX Falcon 9 carries a crew to the ISS in this 2023 photo. SpaceX may become subject to commercial spaceflight taxes. Photo: Mark Stone/FMN
A SpaceX Falcon 9 carries a crew to the ISS in this 2023 photo. SpaceX made almost 100 launches in 2023 and is targeting 150 in 2024. Photo: Mark Stone/FMN

In a push that could adversely impact private space companies, President Joe Biden is advocating for the inclusion of space launch operations within the scope of U.S. airspace taxes. This proposal, part of the president’s budget released last month, aims to revise the longstanding aviation excise tax framework to incorporate contributions from private space entities like Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, as reported by The New York Times.

NASA Rent-a-Car May Greet Lunar Astronauts

NASA Rent-a-Car May Greet Lunar Astronauts

April 4, 2024Posted inNASA, Space News
An initial rendering from the team led by Intuitive Machines. Photo Credit: Intuitive Machines.
An initial rendering from the team led by Intuitive Machines.  Photo Credit: Intuitive Machines.

At an April 3, 2024, news conference, NASA announced its approach for the development, construction, and fielding of one (or potentially more) lunar terrain vehicle (LTV) as one more element of the Artemis Program.  As opposed to selecting one company to produce an LTV, three “awardees” were selected to compete in a rather complicated process for the final project award.