SpaceX Second Stage

SpaceX Has Another Second Stage Issue With Falcon 9

February 7, 2025Posted inAviation and Space News, Space News, SpaceX, Starlink
Starlink 11-4 at liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base
Photo: from SpaceX livestream

Third Stage-2 Problem In The Last Six Months

SpaceX seems to have experienced an issue with the second stage of the Falcon 9 used for the recent Starlink 11-4 launch. After lifting off on February 1st with no problems, Falcon 9 delivered its payload of Starlink satellites into their intended orbit after a brief circularization burn of the second stage, as planned. What apparently has not gone to plan is the de-orbit burn of the second stage, as it is still in orbit five days after the active part of the mission was completed.

The company has not commented on the matter.

FCC Filing Hints At Possible Starship Flight 8 Launch Date

FCC Filing Hints At Possible Starship Flight 8 Launch Date

February 5, 2025Posted inAviation and Space News, Space News, SpaceX, Starship
Flight 7 lifted off from Orbital Launch Pad A (OLP-A) on January 16, 2025, at 22:37:00 UTC (4:37 pm CST, local time) at the Starbase launch site in Texas. Photo: Richard Gallagher/FMN
Starship Flight 7 lifted off from Orbital Launch Pad A (OLP-A) on January 16, 2025, at 22:37:00 UTC (4:37 pm CST, local time) at the Starbase launch site in Texas. Photo: Richard Gallagher/FMN

Figuring out Starship’s next launch date is never easy, but the are early indicators you can watch, One of them came in the form of an FCC filing late last week.

Butch Wilmore ans Suni Williams head to the launch pad

Trump Calls For Quick Return of Astronauts “Abandoned In Space”

January 29, 2025Posted inBoeing, National News, Politics, SpaceX
Boeing's Starliner heads to the ISS on June 5, 2024 for what was supposed to have been an eight day mission. The two astronauts on board are still on the ISS today, awaiting a ride home. Photo: Chris Leymarie/FMN
Boeing’s Starliner heads to the ISS on June 5, 2024 for what was supposed to have been an eight day mission. The two astronauts on board are still on the ISS today, awaiting a ride home. Photo: Chris Leymarie/FMN

President Donald Trump has called upon SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to expedite the return of NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams from the International Space Station (ISS). The astronauts have been aboard the ISS since June 2024, following an extended mission due to technical issues with their original Boeing Starliner spacecraft.

SpaceX Starship Flight Test 6 lifts off from Boca Chica, Texas on November 19, 2024. Photo: Richard Gallagher / FMN

You Can Buy Pieces Of SpaceX’s Flight 7 Starship…For a Price

January 27, 2025Posted inAviation and Space News, Space News, SpaceX, Starship
Remote camera image taken of Starship clearing the tower. Image by Richard P Gallagher

Spaceflight aficionados, like many sports fans, love memorabilia. Space-related apparel, books, mission patches, stickers and other items sell at a brisk pace, and that’s just the bottom end of the market. The most valuable pieces are “flown” — meaning that they were either a part of or aboard a given mission. Many of those pieces are well out of reach for the common man – they are relatively rare and often quite expensive, at least for artifacts with certain authenticity. Others are affordable, at least to a dedicated collector, and can be bought for a few hundred dollars or less.

The maiden underwater flight test of the Trident II D-5

Where Does The Term “Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly” Come From?

January 24, 2025Posted inSpace News, SpaceX
The maiden underwater flight test of the Trident II D-5, was an utter fiasco that very nearly resulted in serious damage to the launching submarine, the USS Tennessee, which is just below the surface in this photograph. The timing of the failure could not have been worse: Congress, skeptical that the program could get back on schedule, was prepared to shift its production funds to another project.
Credit: U.S. Navy

In the world of aerospace engineering, even the smallest miscalculation can lead to catastrophic failure. And in the past few years, a phrase has emerged as a humorous way to describe those unfortunate events: “rapid unscheduled disassembly,” often shortened to RUD. This technical-sounding euphemism, often deployed in the aftermath of rocket explosions, has become a staple in modern spaceflight jargon, is widely used when a rocket fails and has entered into common vernacular. But where did the phrase come from?

Trial and Triumph – An Emotional Day For Two Competing Launch Companies

Trial and Triumph – An Emotional Day For Two Competing Launch Companies

January 16, 2025Posted inBlue Origin, Space News, SpaceX, Starship
Space X's Starship (L) and Blue Origin's New Glenn (R) both had success ful launches but faced challenges during Thursday's flight tests. Images: SpaceX / Blue Origin

Space X’s Starship (L) and Blue Origin’s New Glenn (R) both had success full launches but faced challenges during Thursday’s flight tests. Images: Richard P Gallagher-FMN / Blue Origin

January 16th proved to be an emotional roller coaster for private space exploration. Both Blue Origin and SpaceX achieved notable successes tempered by huge challenges during their respective rocket launches from Florida and Texas. 

Latest CLPS Mission “Ghost Riders in the Sky” Headed for the Moon

Latest CLPS Mission “Ghost Riders in the Sky” Headed for the Moon

January 15, 2025Posted inNASA, SpaceX
Ghost Riders in the Sky logo. Photo credit: Firefly Aerospace
Ghost Riders in the Sky logo.  Photo credit:  Firefly Aerospace

NASA’s latest Commercial Lunar Payload Program (CLPS) mission, “Ghost Riders in the Sky,”   developed by Firefly Aerospace (Cedar Park, TX), was successfully launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Centers’s Launch Complex 39A in the early morning hours of January 15, 2025. This spacecraft, named Blue Ghost, is the first of three planned  Ghost Riders spacecraft destined for lunar landings.

Blue Ghost, New Glenn, and Starship: Charting the Future of Space Travel

Blue Ghost, New Glenn, and Starship: Charting the Future of Space Travel

January 14, 2025Posted inBlue Origin, KSC, NASA, Space News, SpaceX, Starlink, Starship
The countdown clock outside of the KSC's media center displays the next launch. Image by Richard P Gallagher/FMN
The countdown clock outside of the KSC’s media center displays the next launch. Image by Richard P Gallagher/FMN

Cocoa, FL – January 14, 2025 

Looking for something to see or do while in Florida this week? You’re in luck! This week is witnessing a flurry of space exploration activities at Cape Canaveral and KSC, with multiple launches and historic feats by private aerospace giants. The excitement began with SpaceX’s ongoing efforts to complete their Starlink constellation and will culminate in the much-anticipated launches of the Blue Ghost lunar lander, Blue Origin’s first New Glenn Heavy booster launch, and hopefully SpaceX’s Starship IFT-7. 

FBI Investigates Bomb Threats Against SpaceX Starbase Facility in Texas

January 10, 2025Posted inSpace News, SpaceX
SpaceX's Starship stands against a Texas sky in Boca Chica, TX . Photo- Richard Gallagher/FMN
SpaceX’s Starship stands against a Texas sky in Boca Chica, TX . Photo- Richard Gallagher/FMN


The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is actively investigating threats made against SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica Beach near Brownsville, Texas, according to a report by the San Antonio Express-News. on January 3rd, 2025. The threats reportedly involve plans by several individuals to target the Starship rocket planned to be launched from at the facility.