SpaceX

October 25, 2024 3:14 PM

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 astronauts return safely to Earth

Space X's Crew-8 astronauts returned to Earth on the Dragon spacecraft from the International Space Station on Friday (October 25). The spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Matt Dominick, Mike Barratt, Jeanette Epps and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin splashed down off the Florida coast at approximately 3:29 a.m. ET (07:29 GMT). According to NASA, the astronauts conducted new scientific research to advance human exploration beyond low Earth orbit and benefit human life on Earth. (Reute...

October 14, 2024 10:03 AM

Moon race, private competition in focus as space powers gather in Milan

The world's space agencies are meeting in Milan this week as geopolitical rivalry fuels a new global race in Earth's orbit and on the moon, with heavy involvement from a private sector toiling to keep pace with Elon Musk's dominant SpaceX. The International Astronautical Congress (IAC) since 1950 has been a venue for the scientists, engineers, companies and political leaders of spacefaring nations to discuss cooperation, even in times of heightened tensions among world powers. This year's conf...

September 29, 2024 2:34 PM

SpaceX crew blasts off to bring back stranded astronauts after Hurricane delay

A SpaceX crew bound for the International Space Station (ISS) to shuttle back two stranded astronauts took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Saturday (September 28) after the launch was delayed by Hurricane Helene. The Dragon capsule carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov has two of its four available seats empty so that NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams can return in February 2025. Williams and Wilmore became the first crew to fly Boeing...

September 23, 2024 3:02 AM

SpaceX plans to send five uncrewed Starships to Mars in two years, Musk says

SpaceX plans to launch about five uncrewed Starship missions to Mars in two years, CEO Elon Musk said on Sunday in a post on social media platform X. Earlier this month, Musk had said that the first Starships to Mars would launch in two years "when the next Earth-Mars transfer window opens." The CEO on Sunday said that the first crewed mission timeline will depend upon the success of the uncrewed flights. If the uncrewed missions land safely, crewed missions will be launched in four years. How...

September 12, 2024 9:37 PM

Billionaire and engineer conduct first private spacewalk in SpaceX mission

Two astronauts - a billionaire and an engineer - completed the world's first private spacewalk in orbit on Thursday outside a SpaceX capsule, wearing a new line of spacesuits in a risky feat previously exclusive to astronauts from national space programs. The astronauts on the Polaris Dawn mission went one at a time, each spending about 10 minutes outside the gumdrop-shaped Crew Dragon capsule on a tether, as Elon Musk's company again succeeded in pushing the boundaries of commercial spacefligh...

September 12, 2024 5:31 PM

SpaceX-Polaris crew exits capsule for first private spacewalk

A crew of four aboard a SpaceX capsule embarked on the world's first private spacewalk on Thursday, as an astronaut eased out of the Crew Dragon spacecraft on a tether into the vacuum of space, hundreds of miles from Earth. Billionaire Jared Isaacman, 41, exited first about 6:52 a.m. ET (1052 GMT). After he returned a few minutes later, SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis, 30, was scheduled to take her turn in space, all their maneuvers streaming live on the company's website. "Back at home we al...

September 10, 2024 12:14 PM

SpaceX set to launch billionaire’s private crew on breakthrough spacewalk mission

A crew of four private astronauts on Tuesday were in the final stages of preparation for a risky SpaceX mission to attempt the first-ever private spacewalk using the company's new spacesuits and a redesigned spacecraft. A billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees are poised to launch at 3:38 a.m. ET (0738 GMT) from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule, the spacecraft's fifth - and riskiest - private space mission so...

August 25, 2024 6:38 PM

Astronauts Butch Wilmore, Sunita Williams to remain in space till February 2025: NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has said that it is "too risky" to bring astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams back to Earth at this time, leading to the decision that Boeing's Starliner capsule will return without them. Wilmore and Williams will continue their work as part of the Expedition 71/72 crew and are now scheduled to return in February 2025. This means that what was initially intended to be a week-long test flight will extend to around eight months. "W...

August 23, 2024 4:20 PM

Musk’s SpaceX testing breakthrough tech in risky spacewalk

SpaceX's attempt at the first ever private spacewalk next week will be a test of trailblazing equipment, including slim spacesuits and a cabin with no airlock, in one of the riskiest missions yet for Elon Musk's space company. A billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees are poised to launch on Tuesday aboard a modified Crew Dragon craft, before embarking on a 20-minute spacewalk 434 miles (700 km) into space two days later. Until now, walking into the ...

September 16, 2024 6:36 PM

Reliance’s Jio Platforms clears hurdle in bid to launch satellite internet in India

A joint venture between Reliance Industries' Jio Platforms and Luxembourg-based SES to provide gigabit fibre internet has won approval from the Indian space regulator to operate satellites there, a government executive said. The three approvals issued to Orbit Connect India - which aims to provide satellite-based high-speed internet access - come as companies from Amazon to Elon Musk's Starlink have been vying for the go-ahead to launch satellite communication services in the world's most popul...