SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy Booster Successfully Returned to Starbase on Its First Landing Attempt!

SpaceX

Early this morning, SpaceX began a new era of rocket reusability when its Starship Super Heavy vehicle—launching on Integrated Flight Test 5 (IFT-5)—successfully lifted off from Starbase in Texas...with Booster 12 flawlessly returning to Starbase's first Orbital Launch Tower and being grappled by the structure's mechazilla arms seven minutes later.

IFT-5 completely went off without a hitch following liftoff at 7:25 AM, Central Time (12:25 PM, UTC), with Booster 12 ready to be examined on the ground by engineers to see how its systems fared during the flight (and most likely get prepped for a second launch in the future). Ship 30 successfully reached its target landing zone in the Indian Ocean and splashed down over an hour after liftoff...before exploding minutes after impact. Ship 30 was never intended to be recovered by SpaceX after IFT-5.

With this fifth flight test triumphantly in the books, it remains to be seen when IFT-6 will occur. The Federal Aviation Administration granted SpaceX approval to conduct a sixth test whenever it wanted assuming that Ship 30 and Booster 12 performed as expected today. And performed as expected they did!


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Splashdown confirmed! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on an exciting fifth flight test of Starship! pic.twitter.com/FhCGznq9RO

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 13, 2024

Nation #44 Has Joined NASA's Moon Exploration Initiative...

NASA

NASA Welcomes Dominican Republic as 44th Artemis Accords Signatory (News Release)

The Dominican Republic is the latest nation to sign the Artemis Accords and joins 43 other countries in a commitment to advancing principles for the safe, transparent and responsible exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond with NASA.

“NASA is proud to welcome the Dominican Republic signing of the Artemis Accords as we expand the peaceful exploration of space to all nations,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “The Dominican Republic has made important strides toward a shared future in space and is now helping guide space exploration for the Artemis Generation.”

Sonia Guzmán, ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the United States, signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the country on October 4. The country will also confirm its participation in a high-level meeting of Artemis Accords signatories taking place next Monday, October 14, during the International Astronautical Congress in Milan, where furthering implementation of the principles will be discussed.

“This marks a historic step in our commitment to international collaboration in space exploration,” said Guzmán. “This is not just a scientific or technological milestone – it represents a future where the Dominican Republic contributes to the shared goals of peace, sustainability and innovation beyond our planet. By joining the global effort to explore the Moon, Mars and beyond, we are also expanding the opportunities particularly for our young Dominicans in science, education and economic development.”

In 2020, the United States and seven other nations were the first to sign the Artemis Accords, which identified an early set of principles promoting the beneficial use of space for humanity. The accords are grounded in the Outer Space Treaty and other agreements including the Registration Convention, the Rescue and Return Agreement, as well as best practices and norms of responsible behavior that NASA and its partners have supported, including the public release of scientific data.

The commitments of the Artemis Accords and efforts by the signatories to advance implementation of these principles support the safe and sustainable exploration of space. More countries are expected to sign in the coming weeks and months.

Source: NASA.Gov

SLS Update: ML-1 Is Back at the Barn to Begin Artemis 2 Launch Preps...

NASA / Kim Shiflett

NASA’s Mobile Launcher Back at Vehicle Assembly Building (News Release - October 4)

After spending several months undergoing integrated testing and upgrades at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the agency’s Mobile Launcher 1 is now inside the Vehicle Assembly Building in preparation for integration of the Artemis II Moon rocket.

The 4.2-mile trek from Launch Complex 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building along the crawlerway normally takes eight to 12 hours atop NASA’s Crawler-Transporter 2, though teams paused the roll operations several times as planned to ensure that the operation teams had scheduled breaks and rest. The operation resumed at 1:41 a.m. EDT on Friday, October 4.

Standing 380 feet tall, the mobile launcher – which will be used to assemble, process and launch the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft – contains all the connection lines – known as umbilicals – and ground support equipment that will provide the rocket and spacecraft with the power, communications, fuel and coolant necessary for launch. This will be the mobile launcher’s last solo trek out to the launch pad ahead of integration of the Artemis Moon rocket, and it will remain inside the Vehicle Assembly Building until it is ready to return to the pad with the rocket for a tanking test.

The Artemis II test flight will be NASA’s first mission with crew under the Artemis campaign, sending NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Reid Wiseman, as well as CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Kim Shiflett


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NASA / Kim Shiflett

Photos of the Day: The Latest Update on Endeavour's Permanent Home...

Earlier today, I drove down to the California Science Center near downtown Los Angeles to check out the latest construction status on the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center...and needless to say, the permanent home of the orbiter Endeavour is lookin' good!

Endeavour's Space Shuttle Stack is no longer visible from outdoors—as the vehicle is completely covered up by scaffolding and white tarps for temporary protection while the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery's rooftop, known as a diagrid structure, continues to take shape above NASA's youngest retired orbiter. When finished, the diagrid will rise nearly 200 feet into the sky...making it almost as tall as the Coit Tower in San Francisco!

Construction on the Air and Space Center looks to be completed by early next year. After that, scores of aerospace artifacts (such as this Cassini replica that was donated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory 19 miles from the California Science Center) will commence being installed inside the new museum wing.

But of course, it's Endeavour—inside the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery—that I'm most excited to see once this latest addition to the Science Center opens within the next year or so. Happy Birthday to me! Yes, it was today.


Richard T. Par


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The Latest Update on Humanity's First Lunar Space Station...

Thales Alenia Space

Gateway Stands Tall for Stress Test (News Release)

The Gateway space station’s Habitation and Logistics Outpost has successfully completed static load testing in Turin, Italy. With this phase of stress testing complete, the module is one step closer to final outfitting ahead of launch to lunar orbit.

Major Gateway hardware recently crossed an important testing milestone on its path to launch to the Moon, where it will support new science and house astronauts in lunar orbit.

Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) successfully completed static load testing, a rigorous stress test of how well the structure responds to the forces encountered in deep space. Thales Alenia Space, a subcontractor to Northrop Grumman, conducted the testing in Turin, Italy. Static load testing is one of the major environmental stress tests that HALO will undergo, and once all phases of testing are complete, the module will be ready to move from Italy to Gilbert, Arizona, where Northrop Grumman will complete final outfitting.

HALO is one of four pressurized Gateway modules where astronauts will live, conduct science and prepare for missions to the lunar South Pole region. It will launch with Gateway’s Power and Propulsion Element on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket to lunar orbit.

Gateway is humanity’s first lunar space station supporting a new era of exploration and scientific discovery as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign that will establish a sustained presence on and around the Moon, paving the way for the first crewed mission to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Maxar Technologies

On NASA's 66th Birthday, a Milestone Will Be Achieved on the Path to the Second Flight of SLS...

NASA / Kim Shiflett

Artemis II ML Rollback to VAB (Photo Release)

Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida prepare to move Mobile Launcher 1 atop the agency’s Crawler-Transporter 2 from Launch Complex 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Tuesday, October 1, 2024.

The crawler recently reached 2,500 miles traveling to the launch pad since its construction in 1965. The mobile launcher has been at the launch pad since August 2023 undergoing upgrades and tests in preparation for NASA’s Artemis II mission.

The mobile launcher will be used to assemble, process and launch NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft to the Moon and beyond.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Kim Shiflett


NASA / Kim Shiflett


NASA / Kim Shiflett

Get hip to this cosmic tip:
Join our birthday trip.
Get your kicks on Orbit 66!

We've been exploring since Oct. 1, 1958. What's in store next orbit? Launches to the Moon and Jupiter, quiet supersonic flight, and sharing it all with you live. Stay tuned to https://t.co/EuPGk4Yfo6 pic.twitter.com/KjqEwYCW3T

— NASA (@NASA) October 1, 2024

The Dragon Freedom Capsule Has Arrived at the ISS...

NASA TV

Expedition 72 Welcomes Crew-9 Duo Aboard Station (News Release)

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov entered the International Space Station after opening the hatch between the space station and its pressurized mating adapter at 7:04 p.m. EDT before opening the hatch to Dragon.

Hague and Gorbunov were welcomed by the space station’s Expedition 72 crew, including NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, Don Pettit, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner.

NASA’s live coverage continues through crew welcome remarks aboard the station on NASA+, YouTube and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Source: NASA.Gov

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Butch and Suni's Ride Home Is Now on Its Way to the ISS...

NASA / Keegan Barber

Liftoff! NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Launches to International Space Station (Press Release)

The two crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission launched at 1:17 p.m. EDT on Saturday, for a science expedition aboard the International Space Station. This is the first human spaceflight mission launched from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, and the agency’s ninth commercial crew rotation mission to the space station.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket propelled the Dragon spacecraft into orbit carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. The spacecraft will dock autonomously to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module at approximately 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 29, where Hague and Gorbunov will join Expedition 72 for a five-month stay aboard the orbiting laboratory.

“This mission required a lot of operational and planning flexibility. I congratulate the entire team on a successful launch today, and godspeed to Nick and Aleksandr as they make their way to the space station,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “Our NASA wizards and our commercial and international partners have shown once again the success that comes from working together and adapting to changing circumstances without sacrificing the safe and professional operations of the International Space Station.”

During Dragon’s flight, SpaceX will monitor a series of automatic spacecraft maneuvers from its mission control center in Hawthorne, California. NASA will monitor space station operations throughout the flight from the Mission Control Center at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

NASA will provide live coverage of rendezvous, docking and hatch opening, beginning at 3:30 p.m., September 29, on NASA+ and the agency’s website. NASA will also broadcast the crew welcome ceremony once Hague and Gorbunov are aboard the orbital outpost. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

The duo will join the space station’s Expedition 72 crew of NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Don Pettit, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner. The number of crew aboard the space station will increase to 11 for a short time until Crew-8 members Barratt, Dominick, Epps and Grebenkin depart the space station in early October.

The crewmates will conduct more than 200 scientific investigations, including blood clotting studies, moisture effects on plants grown in space, and vision changes in astronauts during their mission. Following their stay aboard the space station, Hague and Gorbunov will be joined by Williams and Wilmore to return to Earth in February 2025.

With this mission, NASA continues to maximize the use of the orbiting laboratory, where people have lived and worked continuously for more than 23 years, testing technologies, performing science and developing the skills needed to operate future commercial destinations in low-Earth orbit and explore farther from Earth. Research conducted at the space station benefits people on Earth and paves the way for future long-duration missions to the Moon under NASA’s Artemis campaign, and beyond.

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A Processing Milestone Is Achieved at KSC for the First Crewed Lunar Landing Mission Since 1972...

NASA / Kim Shiflett

Orion’s Artemis III European Service Module Joined with Crew Module Adapter (News Release)

Teams have joined the Artemis III European Service Module and crew module adapter for NASA’s Orion spacecraft inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, following the completion of the Integration Readiness Review on September 17.

The ESA (European Space Agency)-provided European Service Module is assembled by Airbus in Bremen, Germany, from parts made in 10 European countries and the United States. It acts as the driving force behind the Orion spacecraft for deep space exploration, providing essential propulsion, thermal control and electrical power. The module will also supply astronauts with vital resources like water and oxygen, ensuring that they’re well-supported during their journey to the Moon.

The crew module adapter bridges electrical, data and fluid systems between Orion’s crew and service modules with an umbilical connector, and also houses electronic equipment for communications, power and control.

The integrated European Service Module and crew module adapter, which together make the service module, will undergo final inspections before engineers move it to the clean room inside the spaceport’s O&C high bay for welding operations. Later in the production flow, the Artemis III crew module will be connected to the service module via the crew module adapter.

The European Service Module is managed by the Orion team at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. The arrival of the Artemis III hardware to Kennedy marks the first time that two Orion service modules have been inside the O&C facility at the same time during the agency’s Artemis campaign. The Artemis II service module is already mated to the crew module, and engineers continue to process the integrated modules inside the facility ahead of the test flight.

Source: NASA.Gov

Photos of the Day: Starship Super Heavy Stands Ready for Its Fifth Flight in Mid-Autumn...

SpaceX

Just thought I'd share these four images that SpaceX released today showing Starship Super Heavy standing tall at Starbase in Texas.

Ship 30 and Booster 12 are set to embark on Integrated Flight Test 5 no earlier than November...pending approval, as usual, by the Federal Aviation Administration.


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