By Ben Evans, on January 19th, 2019
ULA’s first flight of 2019 sets off from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at 11:10 a.m. PST Saturday, 19 January. Photo Credit: Brian Sandoval/AmericaSpace
Although relegated last February to second place on the list of the world’s most powerful operational rockets—sitting behind SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy—the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta IV Heavy roared to […]
By Ben Evans, on December 9th, 2018
Atlantis roars to orbit on the morning of 2 December 1988, 30 years ago today. Photo Credit: NASA
Thirty years ago, at 9:30 a.m. EST on 2 December 1988, Atlantis rocketed into crystal-blue Florida skies to begin the second shuttle mission in the wake of the Challenger tragedy. Two months earlier, her sister Discovery […]
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By Ben Evans, on November 25th, 2018
Boosted aloft atop a Saturn IB rocket, and utilizing a special “milk stool” to raise its umbilical connections to the proper levels on the Pad 39B gantry, the third and final Skylab crew takes flight on 16 November 1973. Photo Credit: NASA
Forty-five years ago, in May 1973, America launched its first space station—Skylab—into […]
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By Ben Evans, on November 18th, 2018
The Russian-built Zarya module (lower) and U.S.-built Unity node (upper), pictured during assembly operations on STS-88 in December 1998. Photo Credit: NASA
Twenty years ago, on 20 November 1998, Russia’s Zarya (“Dawn”) module—the first component of the International Space Station (ISS)—was launched from Site 81 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, atop a mighty […]
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By Ben Evans, on November 17th, 2018
Liftoff-off of Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station with about 7,400 pounds of cargo after launching at 4:01 a.m. EST Saturday from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. Photo: Cole Ippoliti / AmericaSpace
Susy Young was always convinced that her husband, legendary astronaut John Young, actually logged seven launches […]
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By Ben Evans, on November 15th, 2018
Liftoff of the Es’hail 2 satellite from KSC pad 39A in Florida. Photo Credit: John Kraus / AmericaSpace.com
Less than four months since it successfully lofted the Telstar 19V communications satellite to orbit, a Block 5 Upgraded Falcon 9 first stage roared skyward from historic Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in […]
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By Ben Evans, on November 6th, 2018
The Pegasus-XL booster sits beneath the fuselage of the L-1011 Stargazer on the Skid Strip, ahead of the ICON mission. Photo Credit: Jeff Seibert/AmericaSpace
Five months later than intended, a Pegasus-XL winged booster—flying, for the first time, under the auspices of Northrop Grumman Corp., following the latter’s recent acquisition of Orbital ATK—will deliver NASA’s […]
By Ben Evans, on November 4th, 2018
STS-95 launches on 29 October 1998. Photo Credit: NASA
Twenty years have now passed since John Glenn—who had found fame as the first American to orbit the Earth—became the oldest human being ever to break the shackles of the Home Planet and venture into space. Aged 77 at the time of his flight in […]
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By Ben Evans, on October 21st, 2018
The final stage of the Saturn IB, the S-IVB also formed the component of the Saturn V which would house the lunar module. On Apollo 7, astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn Eisele and Walt Cunningham performed several rendezvous activities with the spent stage. Photo Credit: NASA
Half a century ago, in October 1968, Project Apollo—the […]
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By Ben Evans, on October 17th, 2018
United Launch Alliance (ULA) launches its 50th mission for the U.S. Air Force and the 250th flight of a Centaur booster in the opening minutes of Wednesday, 17 October. Photo Credit: Alan Walters/AmericaSpace
The most powerful member of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Atlas V fleet—the mighty “551” variant, previously used on eight occasions, from […]
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