[ad_1] The company had been gearing up for a mission abort test that would have fired all eight of Crew Dragon’s SuperDraco engines in mid-launch, showing that the capsule could get away from its host rocket in an emergency. That test was supposed to take place in June, but it’s not certain this will happen […]
Category: Spacex
Eat your heart out, Soundgarden
[ad_1] Self-healing space suits among 18 ideas to receive NASA funding If the recent cancellation of what would have been the first all-women space walk showed us anything, it’s that we desperately need spacesuits designed for (and in) the 21st century. NASA agrees and announced this week that it is awarding funding to universities to […]
SpaceX will assist NASA’s first-ever mission to redirect an asteroid
[ad_1] This is batting practice. But the stakes are still high: Failure could derail NASA’s so-called “kinectic impactor technique,” success will provide the crucial data that will inform its deployment against an actual asteroid on a collision course with Earth. NASA plans to intercept Didymos when it’s within 11 million kilometres (7 million miles) of […]
Watch SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy launch and triple booster landing at 8PM
[ad_1] Last year SpaceX finally launched its massive Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time. While the plan to return all three of its boosters fell just short of success, today the company will try again, and as usual you can watch a live stream of the attempt right here. This is also the first […]
Get an up-close look at SpaceX’s latest Starhopper test
[ad_1] Now that SpaceX started test firings and short “hop” tests on the launch pad at its Boca Chica, Texas site, it’s apparently comfortable enough to show off the results. Tonight Elon Musk — apparently unbothered by an internal investigation or ongoing wrangling with the SEC — tweeted this two second clip of the snub-nosed […]
SpaceX’s ‘Starhopper’ test vehicle takes a short Raptor-powered trip
[ad_1] As SpaceX proceeds with development of its Starship vehicle, it’s first testing out the spacecraft’s Raptor engines. Today a stubby Starhopper test vehicle mounted with a single engine — as opposed to the more advanced Phase 2 version shown above — completed its first tethered hop of just a few inches at the Texas […]
Japan’s moon rover will be made by Toyota
[ad_1] Toyota is going to the moon. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has teamed up with the carmaker to build a pressurized self-driving rover that will land on the lunar surface in 2029. The six-wheeled transporter will be able to carry two humans for a distance of 10,000 kilometers using solar power and Toyota‘s […]
Elon Musk’s toke could cost him his Pentagon security clearance
[ad_1] Recreational marijuana use may be legal in ten states, but those in the corridors of power aren’t keen on top-level CEOs lighting up in public. After getting heat from NASA, Elon Musk — who took a drag on Joe Rogan’s podcast in September — could now be in hot water with the Pentagon, too. […]
Watch SpaceX’s Crew Dragon return to Earth starting at 2 AM ET
[ad_1] Just about a week after launching on its inaugural voyage, the SpaceX Crew Dragon has one more step to complete: returning to Earth. First, the uncrewed spacecraft will undock from the International Docking Adapter on the ISS that it has called home for the last few days, which is scheduled to occur at about […]