SpaceX awarded a $178M contract for NASA’s mission to Jupiter’s moon

Elon Musk’s aerospace firm SpaceX has been awarded a $178 million (£129 million) contract for NASA’s first mission to Europa, Jupiter’s fourth largest moon.  SpaceX will provide ‘launch services’ for the Europa Clipper mission, which is due to blast off in October 2024 to study Europa through a series of fly-bys, NASA said.  The spacecraft will … Read more

SpaceX could send its Starship into orbit as early as August

The next SpaceX 160ft Starship prototype, known as SN20, will be launched into orbit as early as next month strapped to the massive Super Heavy booster. Starship requires the booster stage to reach orbit and combined the two reach a whopping 394ft tall, much larger than the Statue of Liberty with its full plinth. SN20 … Read more

Elon Musk says SpaceX’s Starlink is on track to have more than 500,000 users within 12 months

Elon Musk says SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service is on track to have more than 500,000 users within 12 months – and the company could invest up to $30 BILLION into the project Elon Musk spoke via Zoom during Mobile World Congress 2021 in Barcelona Musk announced Starlink is likely to hit 500,000 users within … Read more

SpaceX plans to launch a Starship rocket to MARS from an ‘ocean spaceport’ in 2022 

SpaceX founder Elon Musk has confirmed ambitious plans to build an ‘ocean spaceport’ that will be used to launch a Starship rocket to Mars in 2022.  It was reported in July 2020 that the firm had acquired a pair of former oil drilling rigs for $3.5 million (£2.47 million) each that they planned to convert … Read more

SpaceX satellite plans ‘unsustainable’ warns competitor Arianespace

SpaceX is close to a ‘de-factor monopolisation’ of space due to its thousands of satellites, claims the head of European space launch firm Arianespace. The Elon Musk-owned firm has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for permission to launch up to 42,000 satellites into space. They are building the ‘Starlink’ constellation that will deliver ‘reliable … Read more

First-time astronaut Kaya Barron named final member crew SpaceX NASA crew who will fly to ISS

NASA has officially named first-astronaut Kayla Barron to be the fourth and final member of its upcoming SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), slated to launch in mid-October. Barron, 33, who entered astronaut candidate school in 2017, will join fellow NASA astronauts Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn on the flight.  The three NASA astronauts … Read more