Category: space
Astra targets first commercial orbital launch for August 27
Astra’s last test launch went better than expected, nearly achieving orbit — kind of a stretch goal for that specific mission. The company at the time said that it would only need to tweak software to reach an orbital destination, and now we know when it’s going to get the…
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Japanese startup ispace raises $46M to support planned moon missions
Japanese startup ispace has raised $46 million in a fresh round of Series C funding as it looks to complete three lunar lander missions in three years. The funding will go toward the second and third of the planned missions, scheduled for 2023 and 2024. The first mission, which ispace…
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Watch Boeing try its pivotal crew spacecraft orbital demonstration launch for the second time
[embedded content] Boeing is all set to make a second attempt at flying its Starliner CST-100 commercial crew spacecraft to the International Space Station, performing a key demonstration ahead of actually putting astronauts on board for the final big launch before it can claim the spacecraft is certified for regular…
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US government watchdog rejects Blue Origin’s protest over lunar lander contract
Blue Origin’s protest to a U.S. governmental watchdog over NASA’s decision to award SpaceX a multi-billion dollar contract to develop a lunar lander was rejected. The Government Accountability Office said Friday that it was denying both Blue Origin’s protest and a separate challenge filed by Dynetics, a defense contractor that…
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Varda Space Industries closes $42M Series A for off-planet manufacturing
Varda Space Industries has raised a $42 million Series A to bring to manufacturing a key capability that can only be found off-world: microgravity. The eight-month-old startup is looking to establish its first manufacturing facility in space as early as 2023, and by doing so, bring back to Earth advanced…
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Rocket Lab returns to flight after failed May mission with successful launch for U.S. Space Force
Rocket Lab is back in business launching rockets, after an issue during its last launch in May caused a total loss of the payloads on board. The company was quick to investigate the issue, and announced just over a week ago that it had completed that work, identified the problem…
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