SpaceX launched a 16-story prototype of its Starship Mars rocket system 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) above Boca Chica, Texas on Tuesday. The prototype was supposed to attempt a soft landing, but the spaceship slammed into the ground sideways and exploded. This is the second time a Starship flight has seenRead More →
Each year I try hand out light-hearted Oscar awards for the best and worst actors and performances in aviation over the past year. But for 2020, humour is in short supply, as most of the year was one protracted disaster movie, and so this column is more of a battleRead More →
Elon Musk revealed new details about his plan to build a city of 1 million people on Mars by 2050. Musk said he hoped to build 1,000 Starships – the towering and ostensibly fully reusable spaceship that SpaceX is developing in South Texas – over 10 years. Eventually, Musk added, theRead More →
A SpaceX cargo ship carrying roast turkey, cranberry sauce, and cornbread dressing, cranberry sauce, shortbread biscuits, and tubes of icing is set to arrive at the International Space Station on Monday afternoon. This marks the first flight of SpaceX’s updated Dragon Cargo Ship. The new design can carry more cargoRead More →
Around 11pm ET Monday (6am Tuesday South Africa) the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft docked safely with the International Space Station (ISS). Travelling at more than 17,000miles per hour (27 360 km/h), the spacecraft edged toward ISS, closing the gap before latching onto a port on the ISS’s centre module. ThisRead More →
NASA has picked 17 US companies to develop new tech for space missions. In a statement, NASA said it had signed 20 Space Act Agreements with the 17 companies. No money will be exchanged, but the chosen firms will get access to NASA’s testing facilities and expertise, which it valuedRead More →
Buran meaning “Snowstorm” or “Blizzard” was the first soviet shuttle to be produced as part of the Soviet/Russian Buran programme. Looking very much like the American Space Shuttle, thirty two years ago, on 15 November 1988, the first Soviet reusable spacecraft ‘Buran’ made its debut. It was lifted into space by theRead More →
This was the third time this year that ISS had to manoeuvre to avoid debris. The International Space Station (ISS) made an emergency course correction to move it out of the path of an unidentified piece of space debris earlier this week. The Russian Progress 75 cargo ship fired its thrustersRead More →
“Several Starship prototypes were destroyed during testing” In April, SpaceX successfully pulled off the first ‘hop’ test for its Starship prototype, the SN5. Last week, the company has once again repeated that feat with the SN6, a rocket which Elon Musk has previously referred to as a flying water tower, dueRead More →
Crew spent an extra night in Russian segment as NASA says there was nothing to worry about. Aug. 25, 9:45 a.m.: The trio of astronauts currently living and working on the International Space Station re-opened the hatch between the Russian and American sides of the station on Tuesday morning, accordingRead More →
