Starship

SpaceX is poised to conduct a wet dress rehearsal of the Starship launch system from its Starbase site in southeastern Texas, a major milestone in CEO Elon Musk’s quest to…

With Starship testing, SpaceX moves one step closer to making science fiction a reality

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The last mile

I don’t love devoting the first several paragraphs of this newsletter to Amazon every week, but no one is making waves — both good and bad — in the robotics space quite like the little mom-and-pop bookseller from Seattle, Washington. This is one of the bad weeks. It’s a story…

The last mile

SpaceX just got one step closer to the first orbital test flight of its launch system Starship with the successful static fire test of a prototype Super Heavy booster late…

SpaceX’s Starship hits another milestone with booster static fire test

SpaceX’s Starship program encountered a setback after a test ended in a fiery explosion at its Boca Chica development facility in Texas on Monday night. The test was being conducted…

SpaceX’s Starship booster engines explode in test gone wrong

SpaceX will no longer be making new Crew Dragons, the spacecraft that ferries astronauts to and from the International Space Station, and will instead focus on reusing the fleet of…

SpaceX will not be making any more new Crew Dragon capsules

Elon Musk delivered an update on the company’s progress and plans for Starship, its next-generation launch spacecraft, from the Starship development site in Boca Chica, Texas. Musk had an impressive…

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship event leaves a lot of questions around the company’s big rocket

Hello and welcome back to Max Q, your very favorite space news digest. A ton happened this week — launches, financing deals, contract awards, etc., etc. — so let’s dive…

Max Q: Elon Musk talks Starship, envisions first orbital launch in January 2022

SpaceX has been advancing the development of Starship, the largest ultra-super-heavy reusable launch system ever designed in history, at a jaw-dropping pace — and CEO Elon Musk is “comfortable” it…

SpaceX aims to conduct first orbital flight of Starship in January, Musk says

SpaceX’s Starship rocket is still in development in southeast Texas, with major progress being made on key elements like the launch tower construction, and installation of the vacuum-rated Raptor engines…

Elon Musk says Starship should be ready for first orbital launch next month, ‘pending regulatory approval’

Elon Musk’s Starlink project, which aims to provide global broadband connectivity via a constellation of satellites, has shipped 100,000 terminals to customers. 100k terminals shipped!https://t.co/Q1VvqVmJ2i — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August…

SpaceX ships 100,000 Starlink terminals to customers, eyes future launches using Starship

Blue Origin, the space company helmed by billionaire Jeff Bezos, is taking NASA to court. The company filed a complaint with a federal claims court on Monday over the agency’s…

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin goes toe-to-toe with NASA in federal court over award to SpaceX

SpaceX has achieved another major milestone in its Starship fully reusable launch system: It stacked the Starship spacecraft itself on top of a prototype of its Super Heavy booster, which…

SpaceX stacks the full Starship launch system for the first time, standing nearly 400 feet tall

It may be a little while longer until Starlink hits profitability. The SpaceX project, which aims to deliver global high-speed broadband via a satellite network, sells its beta kits to…

SpaceX is losing money on its Starlink terminals, but sees lower costs ahead

SpaceX’s upcoming Starship orbital test flight could end up being a veritable smorgasbord of its technological capabilities, as the company has filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to request…

SpaceX plans to use its Starlink internet on Starship orbital launch to demonstrate connection quality

SpaceX is hoping to attempt to fly its in-development spacecraft Starship to orbit for the first time in July, according to company president Gwynne Shotwell. Shotwell shared the timeline at…

SpaceX aiming for first orbital test launch of Starship in July

SpaceX is already underway on building its first floating spaceport platform, and the plan is for it to start hosting launches as early as next year. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk…

SpaceX’s first ocean spaceport is being built and will host launches next year

SpaceX flew the 15th prototype of its Starship fully reusable next-generation rocket today, with a test flight that included a successful climb to around 30,000 feet, as well as a…

SpaceX successfully launches and lands its Starship prototype rocket

The winner of NASA’s Human Landing System (HLS) contract award is SpaceX, which bid $2.9 billion for the privilege of developing the means by which NASA astronauts will return to…

SpaceX wins NASA contract to develop human landing system for returning to the moon

SpaceX conducted yet another high-altitude test flight of its Starship prototype spacecraft on Tuesday, the fourth of these so far. Like all the flight testing and construction of Starship prototypes,…

SpaceX flies 11th Starship prototype, but loses the spacecraft during the landing

SpaceX has completed what’s known as the “stacking” of its first Super Heavy prototype, the extremely large next-generation first-stage rocket booster that it will eventually use to propel its Starship…

SpaceX nears final assembly of its first massive testing rocket booster for Starship

SpaceX has launched another batch of its Starlink satellites — the usual complement of 60 of the low Earth orbit spacecraft, which will join the more than 1,000 already making…

SpaceX launches 60 new Starlink satellites, while Starship moves closer to being able to launch up to 400 at a time

SpaceX’s grand vision for Starship, the next-generation spacecraft it’s currently in the process of developing, includes not only trips to Mars, but also regular point-to-point flights right here on Earth.…

SpaceX’s floating oil rig spaceship launch pad could be operating later this year according to Elon Musk

SpaceX has raised a fresh round of funding, totalling $850 million, per a new report by CNBC, citing sources “familiar” with the matter. The new capital brings the total valuation…

SpaceX reportedly raises $850M in new funding

SpaceX will provide an update about what’s happening with their Starship spacecraft in roughly three weeks, according to CEO and founder Elon Musk. Starship is a next-generation, fully reusable spacecraft…

Elon Musk says an update for its Starship spacecraft development program is coming in 3 weeks

SpaceX achieved a big win in their Starship spacecraft development program on Tuesday evening, flying the SN5 prototype of that future vehicle to a height of around 500 feet, propelled…

Watch SpaceX’s stunning Starship prototype ‘hop’ test flight and landing

SpaceX has been developing Starship, its next-generation spacecraft, at its site in Boca Chica, Texas. The company has built a number of different Starship prototypes to date, include one prior…

SpaceX successfully flies its Starship prototype to a height of around 500 feet

SpaceX had just conducted yet another static fire test of the Raptor engine in its Starship SN4 prototype launch vehicle on Friday when the test vehicle exploded on the test…

SpaceX’s Starship SN4 launch vehicle prototype explodes after static engine fire test

SpaceX’s Starship prototype is on a streak of successes, at a key moment for the spacecraft’s development. The Starship SN4 (so-named because it’s the fourth full-size prototype) tester managed to…

SpaceX’s Starship prototype successfully completes key engine static fire test

SpaceX has released a first version of its spacecraft user manual for Starship, the next-generation launch vehicle that it’s currently developing in Boca Chica, Texas. The manual isn’t quite as…

SpaceX’s Starship user guide details how it could replace the Space Shuttle and offer comfy passenger flights

SpaceX is looking to raise around $250 million in new funding according to a new report from CNBC’s Michael Sheetz. The additional cash would bring SpaceX’s total valuation to around…

SpaceX said to be seeking around $250 million in funding, boosting valuation to roughly $36 billion