International Launch Services (ILS) have launched the SIRIUS FM-5 communication satellite on its way to a geostationary transfer orbit via their Proton-M launch vehicle, following lift off from Launch Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. Launch occurred on time at 20:10 UTC, starting a launch phase that lasted a total of nine hours.
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June 27th, 2009
The launch of an United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket, carrying the GOES-O weather satellite for the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has launched on Saturday, following Friday’s scrub due to unacceptable weather. Launch from LC-37B at Cape Canaveral was confirmed at 6:51pm local time.
Tags: Delta IV
Published in Unmanned
June 21st, 2009
Sea Launch have successfully launched their Zenit-3SLB launch vehicle, carrying the MEASAT-3a telecommunication satellite. The Land Launch branch of the multi-national company lofted the Orbital Sciences built satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Tags: Orbital, Zenit
Published in Russian, Unmanned
June 18th, 2009
An Atlas V rocket carrying NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and sister payload Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) has launched from complex 41 at Cape Canaveral on Thursday evening. Both its payload passengers were successfully sent on their journey to the moon.
Tags: Atlas V, LRO
Published in Featured, Unmanned
May 19th, 2009
An Orbital Minotaur 1 has finally launched from the Wallops Island Flight Facility with the Tactical Satellite-3 (TacSat-3) satellite. The launch was heavily postponed, with several scrubs relating from the weather to the launch vehicle and facility.
Tags: Add new tag, Minotaur, Orbital
Published in Unmanned
April 16th, 2009
Canada’s Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) robot “Dextre” has reported himself as fit for duty, as the clock ticks down to his debut tasks on the International Space Station (ISS). Meanwhile, preparations are building up for the arrival of the first Japanese HTV (H-II Transfer Vehicle) - which may involve spare robotic work station hardware being [...]
Tags: Dextre, HTV, ISS, SSRMS
Published in Featured, Unmanned
April 3rd, 2009
United Launch Alliance (ULA) has launched the WGS-2 satellite on an Atlas V rocket, with lift-off from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral at 21:33 EDT, Friday. The launch was realigned following an issue with the Centaur LOX pump led to the termination of tanking and put pay to the March 17 launch attempt.
Tags: Atlas V, Proton-M, ULA
Published in Unmanned
March 24th, 2009
A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II rocket has launched this morning, carrying GPS-IIR-20, the penultimate spacecraft of the current block of GPS satellites. Lift-off from Launch Complex 17A at Cape Canaveral was on time, at the start of a window running from 08:34 to 08:49 GMT (04:34-04:49 EDT).
Tags: Delta II, GPS, ULA
Published in Unmanned
March 6th, 2009
The Delta II launch team at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station have launched NASA’s new Kepler observatory, a telescope designed to search for Earth-like terrestrial planets in the Cygnus and Lyra constellations. The initial three and half year mission launched at 10:49pm. EST from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
Tags: Delta II, Kepler
Published in Unmanned
February 23rd, 2009
Orbital Science’s Taurus XL rocket lifted-off from Space Launch Complex 576-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, carrying the Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) this morning. However, the mission was deemed as a failure during or slightly after third stage flight, after it was noted the fairing failed to separate as required.
Tags: Orbital, Taurus
Published in Featured, Unmanned
February 4th, 2009
A United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket has launched with the NASA NOAA-N Prime spacecraft at the third attempt to launch from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California - at 2:22am PST - following two scrubs due to technical issues.
Tags: Delta II
Published in Unmanned
January 22nd, 2009
Japan has launched a satellite that will be used to observe the concentration distribution of greenhouse gases from space. The launch of the Ibuki satellite (also known by GOSAT - Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite) took place on January 23 at 03:54 UTC from the LP1 launch platform of the Yoshinubo launch complex on Tanegashima.
Tags: JAXA
Published in Unmanned
January 17th, 2009
After three years of delays, United Launch Alliance have launched the third Delta IV Heavy, carrying the classified NRO L-26 satellite for the US National Reconnaissance Office. The rocket finally launched liftoff from Launch Complex 37B at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, at 02:47 GMT (21:47 local time), following the resolution of a number of [...]
Tags: Delta IV, NRO
Published in Unmanned
October 24th, 2008
A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II launch vehicle has launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) with COSMO-3, the third satellite of the COSMO-SkyMed (Constellation of Small Satellites for Mediterranean basin Observation) constellation. Launch was on schedule at 10:28 pm EDT.
Tags: Boeing, Delta II, ULA
Published in Unmanned
September 19th, 2008
International Launch Services (ILS) have launched their Proton M launch vehicle from Pad 39 (Area 200) at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, carrying the Nimiq 4 satellite for Canada. Lift-off was recorded at 5:48 pm EDT.
NASASpaceflight.com is covering the launch as a live event, with background, live updates, images and a free launch video all [...]
Published in Unmanned
August 18th, 2008
International Launch Services (ILS) have returned their Proton M back into service for the multi-national company, with the launch of the Inmarsat-4 F3 satellite from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.
NASASpaceflight.com covered the launch as a live event, with background, live updates, and a free launch video - all available on the links below (read [...]
Published in Unmanned
July 15th, 2008
Sea Launch have returned to action tonight with the launch of the EchoStar 11 telecommunications satellite via their Zenit-3SL launch vehicle from their Odyssey Launch Platform. The launch was on time at 10:21pm PDT.
Meanwhile, one of the EchoStar’s older birds failed earlier this week, with an official announcement confirming the loss of EchoStar [...]
Published in Unmanned
June 20th, 2008
A United Launch Alliance Delta II (7320-10) launch vehicle has launched with Jason-2 - a European/American Ocean Surface Topography satellite - from SLC-2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), California. Liftoff was confirmed at the opening of the window at 00:46 PDT.
NASASpaceflight.com covered the launch as a live event, with background, images, live [...]
Published in Unmanned
June 11th, 2008
A United Launch Alliance Delta II Heavy launch vehicle has lifted-off with NASA’s next major space observatory, the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST). The launch from Cape Canaveral’s SLC 17-B was slightly delayed to 12:05pm EDT.
NASASpaceflight.com covered the launch as a live event, with background, up to the second live updates, images, [...]
Published in Unmanned
May 25th, 2008
Following its opening journey on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II launch vehicle, NASA’s Phoenix mission bridged the gap between Earth and Mars and - from all current indications - landed successfully. Controllers at JPL are now awaiting the first images from the newest spacecraft to land on the Red Planet.
The event [...]
Published in Unmanned