Rockets

Northrop Grumman has confirmed a successful launch on June 13, 2021, placing the Tactically Responsive Launch-2 (TacRL-2) payload into orbit for the USSF (United States Space Force). The payload launched using the Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket from Vanderburgh Space Force Base. The space force's tactically responsive launch concept aims to introduce speed, agility, and flexibility into the Lodge enterprise to respond to dynamic changes in the space domain or an operational theater.

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In the last few years, anyone who purchased a vehicle probably got a free subscription to Sirius-XM satellite radio with it. Satellite radio is very convenient for people who drive all the time or don't have any radio stations in their area that play the type of music they like. The best thing about satellite radio is that you can drive coast-to-coast listening to the same station.

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Roscosmos and Arianespace have announced they have successfully launched the OneWeb Launch 7 mission after a delay of one day. The delay in the launch was to replace the electrical part of the Soyuz rocket that was to push the satellites in orbit. The mission lifted off on May 28 at 1:38 PM EDT.

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Most people think of astronauts as humans dressed in bulky suits flying onboard rockets hurtling into the vast expanse of outer space. Virgin Galactic, however, wants to change that conception and make every human a potential astronaut. At least, every human who can afford one of its super-expensive space flights. First, however, it needs to actually prove to everyone, especially authorities, that it can safely carry humans above a certain altitude. Its third-ever test flight last Saturday took it one step closer to that goal while also achieving a first for space science and travel.

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ULA (United Launch Alliance) is aiming over the next couple of weeks to begin loading cryogenic fuels aboard its massive Vulcan rocket. The rocket uses cryogenic methane and liquid oxygen as propellants. The test is critical for developing the next-generation rocket between flights of Atlas 5 rockets that will share the same launch complex in the coming years. Currently, ULA is using pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

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NASA was set to launch a rocket from the Wallops Island facility in Virginia yesterday, Saturday, May 15. However, NASA was forced to scrub that launch due to cloudy skies over Bermuda. The cancellation of the launch on Saturday marks about a week straight that NASA has been forced to cancel the launch due to weather and a launch support issue.

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SpaceX conducted a successful rocket launch on Saturday that put 52 new Starlink satellites in orbit along with a pair of rideshare payloads. SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:56 PM EDT. The Falcon 9 rocket used for the launch flew for its eighth time and successfully landed on a drone ship at sea to be refurbished and reused again in the future.

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A new report has been published that suggests the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope will be delayed. The delay has nothing to do with the telescope itself, which is apparently 100 percent ready to go. However, an anomaly has been identified in the Ariane 5 launch vehicle that will push the telescope into orbit. Launch for the telescope is currently set for October 31, 2021.

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One of the companies that is performing commercial space operations is Rocket Lab. Saturday morning, Rocket Lab launched its 20th mission using its Electron rocket and ran into a significant issue. Not long into the flight, the second stage engine failed shortly after ignition.

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SpaceX has detailed its first Starship orbital test launch, the latest step on the huge rocket's path to eventually taking astronauts to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. It'll be the first orbital test for the design, and understandably there won't be any human passengers onboard as it undertakes the 90 minute challenge.

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SpaceX has been placing satellites in orbit to grow its constellation of Starlink satellites for a while now, and the service is available in beta for users in many areas. Early Sunday morning, May 9, 2021, SpaceX launched another Falcon 9 rocket into orbit packed with 60 Starlink satellites. The launch went off without a hitch, and SpaceX successfully recovered the first stage rocket on its drone ship at sea.

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A couple of days ago, SpaceX hit a milestone with its Starship SN15 prototype rocket that had a test flight that ended in a successful landing without an explosion. It appears SpaceX is very pleased with itself, and CEO Elon Musk recently stated that the prototype might fly again very soon. That statement came less than 48 hours after the prototype successfully landed without exploding for the first time.

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