Last Thursday and Friday, we asked readers: “Now that Starship is moving forward in South Texas, we want to hear your predictions. When will Starship make its first orbital flight attempt?” We received 145 votes in total.
The results:
The State of Launch 2026
“You look at things like Golden Dome. There were a couple of capability gates there where you had to demonstrate capability by deadlines in order to be eligible to continue to compete,” Brian Rogers, Rocket Lab’s VP of launch, told Payload. “The constraints around launch can pick winners and losers there if you don’t have a way to get to space by a deadline.”
Transporter-16 Sends 119 Payloads to Orbit
The latest cargo train to orbit has left the station.
HyImpulse Signs Launch Agreement with SaxaVord
The second suborbital flight of HyImpulse’s SR75 is expected to lift off from SaxaVord no earlier than Q3 2026.
Modified Vulcan Expected to Launch This Summer
“There were some changes that we actually had in the works before the anomaly, just to improve margins in the nozzle and solid rocket booster,” Elbon said. “So we’re accelerating those, and focusing on getting those into place sooner.”
There’s a new intelligence unit in town.
On Friday, the US Space Force announced the establishment of Space Delta 18 and the National Space Intelligence Center, which will begin supplying US lawmakers with intelligence about the space domain.
Space Delta 18, so named because USSF is the 18th US entity to join the intelligence community, will employ 345 personnel in two former Air Force units:
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