Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reaches space on 2nd try
Sunday, 17 January 2021 08:26
Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reached space on Sunday, eight months after the first demonstration flight of its air-launched rocket system failed, the company said.
A 70-foot-long (21.34-meter-long) LauncherOne rocket was released from beneath the wing of a Boeing 747 carrier aircraft off the coast of Southern California, ignited moments later and soared toward space.
The two-stage rocket carried a cluster of very small satellites known as CubeSats developed and built as part of a NASA educational program involving U.S.
Virgin Orbit reaches orbit on second LauncherOne mission
Saturday, 16 January 2021 22:21
Updated 7:20 p.m. Eastern with post-launch comments from Virgin Orbit.
COVINGTON, La. — Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket reached orbit on its second flight Jan. 17, demonstrating the performance of the air-launch system after years of development.
NASA test of mega Moon rocket engines cut short
Saturday, 16 January 2021 18:40
NASA conducted a test firing of the engines for its giant Space Launch System (SLS) lunar rocket on Saturday but they shut down earlier than planned, the space agency said.
The "hot-fire" test at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi was supposed to last a little over eight minutes—the time the engines would burn in flight—but they shut down just over a minute into the burn.
"Teams are assessing the data to determine what caused the early shutdown, and will determine a path forward," NASA said in a statement.
The SLS rocket is intended to launch the Artemis missions that will take US astronauts back to the Moon.
Despite being cut short, NASA said the test of the RS-25 engines had provided valuable information for the planned missions.
NASA's moon rocket roars to life during shortened test-firing
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Virgin Orbit targets Sunday for LauncherOne mission from California
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Earth Observation data could represent a billion-dollar opportunity for Africa
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Could we harness energy from black holes
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Teams crack code, qualify for final stage of NASA Space Robotics
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
OneWeb secures investment from Softbank and Hughes Network Systems
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Leaf Space reaches 10 million euro funding
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
Major space station components cleared for operations
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
New research highlights image improvements using charge-injection devices
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
SecAF selects Huntsville, Alabama, as preferred location to host USSPACECOM
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
North Korea shows off new submarine-launched missile
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41
The climate events of 2020 show how excess heat is expressed on Earth
Saturday, 16 January 2021 05:41