Launch
Stories about the companies building a ride to space.
Starship Hired To Fly Two Lunar Rovers
The first Lunar Terrain Vehicle is expected to touch down in 2029.
An Interview with Sir Peter Beck, Rocket Lab CEO
A transcript of our Pathfinder episode with Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck.
SpaceX Leadership Map Out the Future of the Starship Program
Over the past few weeks—with growing confidence in the Starship program—SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and Starbase General Manager Kathy Lueders have been publicly mapping out what to expect from SpaceX and Starship in the coming years.
SpaceX Launches Starship Flight 6, Forgoes a Booster Catch Attempt
SpaceX launched Starship on its sixth flight test yesterday but called off its Super Heavy booster catch attempt back at the pad, instead diverting the 233-ft-tall vehicle to a controlled water splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.
SEOPS Enters EU Market with Axient Systems Partnership
The partnership’s first launch will be an ISR satellite for the Dutch military, which is expected to lift off as early as 2027.
ABL Pivots To Missile Defense
“We see considerable opportunity to leverage RS1 … to enable a new type of research effort around missile defense technologies.”
Firefly Raises $175M Series D, Aims For 2025 Launch
The news comes as competing small satellite launchers Astra and Relativity are also seeking new funding for their launch vehicle development programs.
Rocket Lab Signs First Neutron Customer
The rocket is expected to complete a test launch in 2025, and fly three commercial launches in 2026.
Skyrora Completes Test of Telemetry Relay System
The solution—a telemetry relay system called InRange—uses Viasat’s geostationary satellites as the middleman to receive telemetry data from the rocket and beam it back to Earth.
Inside Astra’s Rocket Reinvention
Astra is raising a $50M capital round to support the development of its launch vehicle.
bluShift Aerospace Completes Full Throttle Engine Test
“We didn’t punch it as far as we could, but what we saw was a much more stable, cleaner burn,” CEO Sascha Deri told Payload.
True Anomaly Catches Firefly For Space Force RPO Launch
True Anomaly is building a spacecraft for VICTUS HAZE.
