Spaceflight Inc.
Spaceflight’s chemically powered space tug heads for launch
Spaceflight shipped its Sherpa-LTC2 orbital transfer vehicle Aug. 10 to Cape Canaveral in Florida, where it will make a second attempt to debut the chemically powered space tug on a SpaceX launch.
Second commercial Lynk Global satellite still looking for launch
Lynk Global said it is still waiting for Spaceflight to rebook a flight for the second commercial satellite in its cellphone-compatible broadband network, four months after the launch services provider’s space tug was kicked off a SpaceX mission.
SpaceX launches Transporter-5 dedicated smallsat rideshare mission
SpaceX launched several dozen payloads on its fifth dedicated rideshare mission May 25, illustrating the continued demand for such missions even as dedicated small launch vehicles emerge.
Astra’s Rocket 3.3 returns to flight with successful launch
Astra successfully returned its Rocket 3.3 vehicle to flight March 15, placing several payloads into low Earth orbit.
Astra gears up for next launch, signs Spaceflight contract
Astra Space says it will attempt its next Rocket 3.3 launch as soon as March 14 as the first flight in a multi-launch contract with Spaceflight.
NASA selects a dozen companies for smallsat launch services
NASA awarded contracts Jan. 26 to a dozen companies, ranging from industry stalwarts to startups yet to launch their first rocket, to provide low-cost launches of agency smallsats.
SpaceX launches third dedicated smallsat rideshare mission
A SpaceX Falcon 9 placed more than 100 smallsats into orbit Jan. 13 as the company accelerates the pace of its dedicated rideshare missions.
Propellant leak forces Sherpa tug off SpaceX rideshare mission
A Sherpa tug has been removed from an upcoming SpaceX rideshare mission after its propulsion system developed a leak, forcing Spaceflight to find new rides for 10 cubesats.
Benchmark green propellant thrusters installed on Sherpa tug
The first set of green bipropellant thrusters developed by in-space propulsion company Benchmark Space Systems has been installed on a Sherpa tug by Spaceflight for launch in January.
Rocket Lab launches two BlackSky satellites, wins Synspective contract
Rocket Lab launched another pair of BlackSky satellites Dec. 8, a day after the company won a contract from a Japanese firm for three launches of radar imaging satellites.
Rocket Lab launches BlackSky satellites
Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket placed two BlackSky imaging satellites into orbit Nov. 17 on the rocket’s first launch in three and a half months.
Spaceflight to launch 13 payloads on first multi-orbit space tug mission
Launch services provider Spaceflight announced plans Nov. 9 to deliver 13 customer payloads across two distinct orbits for the first time next year with its new space tug.
Spaceflight offers lunar flyby rideshare mission
Launch services provider Spaceflight sees a lunar flyby mission opportunity next year as a pathfinder for future opportunities to support customers going to both geostationary orbit and the moon.
Rocket Lab to launch three sets of BlackSky satellites
Rocket Lab will conduct three launches of satellites for Earth observation company BlackSky in about one month, the fastest launch cadence the company had demonstrated to date.
Op-ed | Assessing new launch vehicles on the market
Launch service providers and integrators exist at the intersection of two highly specialized fields: launch vehicle development and satellite development. These fields overlap, but generally contain different specialties, with both groups speaking fundamentally different languages.
SpaceX launches record-setting cluster of smallsats
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched 143 small satellites for a wide range of customers Jan. 24 on the company's first dedicated rideshare mission, a service that poses a competitive threat to emerging small launch vehicles.
Spaceflight announces Sherpa tug with electric propulsion
Rideshare launch service provider Spaceflight Inc. announced a new version of its Sherpa tug Nov. 12 equipped with electric propulsion that can send smallsats to high orbits or cislunar space.
Astranis prototype completes testing • Viasat kicks off debt raise • Spaceflight signs SpaceX multi-launch agreement
Astranis, a startup specializing in small geostationary satellites, has completed thermal vacuum testing for a practice satellite.
