Blue Origin launched its New Glenn rocket and SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on Jan. 16, as Space Force leaders watched with interest at two vehicles that may redefine how the service accesses orbit in the future.
President-elect Donald Trump has picked Dr. Troy E. Meink to become the next Secretary of the Air Force, he announced Jan. 16. Meink is currently the principal deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office, a Department of Defense intelligence agency that works closely with the ...
The Space Force successfully launched its seventh GPS III satellite into orbit Dec. 16—shaving more than a year and a half off the typical timeline for launching the highest priority national security spacecraft and switching rocket providers to do it.
SpaceX secured orders for Phase 3 launches under the National Security Space Launch program, the first provider to do so, even as the Space Force continues its push to increase its launch options.
The Space Force is preparing to award billions of dollars in launch contracts by the end of this year—provided Congress passes a budget. By the end of 2024, Space Systems Command wants to award a contract for the next phase of its National Security Space ...
The failure of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will be investigated and resolved promptly, the head of U.S. Space Command suggested July 17.
As SpaceX works to “deorbit” 100 of its oldest Starlink satellites from low-Earth orbit, the Space Force is watching closely—a collaboration that will provide crucial data and real-world experience for Guardians.
The Space Force is moving to up competition for its most important launches, selecting Blue Origin, SpaceX, and United Launch Alliance (ULA) to take part in the next phase of its National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program. ULA and SpaceX were already part of NSSL ...
News last fall that SpaceX owner and CEO Elon Musk restricted the Ukrainian military’s use of his Starlink satellite broadband service to stymie an attack on Russian forces highlighted the extraordinary power wielded in that war by a single business owner with some outlandish ideas. But ...
The Space Development Agency plans to finish two major demonstrations of its low-Earth orbit satellites—and get started on a rapid series of launches—before the end of 2024, its director said March 6. The series of milestones outlined by SDA boss Derek M. Tournear represent the ...
After multiple scrubbed launches, the Space Force’s X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle returned to orbit Dec. 28, riding a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The launch of the secretive reusable space plane came two weeks after China launched its own mysterious spacecraft, “Shenlong,” ...
Multiple delays and scrubbed launches have kept the Space Force’s X-37B from returning to orbit this week. But after suggesting several years ago the secretive space plane may be on its way out, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman indicated its future is brighter ...