Commercial spaceflight has often been overlooked by exhibits and museums. Typically, you might get one small section of floor space dedicated to the booming industry, yet this is now changing. At the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, a new expansion to the park brings an unparalleled experience. Upon entering the park, the Gateway exhibit can be seen sitting behind the … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: Transporter-3 Mission
Up until recently, there had been very few RTLS (Return To Launch Site) SpaceX missions. This is where a Falcon 9 first stage boosts back toward the coast after separating from the second stage and then lands at Cape Canaveral. The first month of 2022 brought an end to this RTLS drought! In January, there were two such missions: Transporter-3 on Jan. 13 and CSG-2 on Jan. 31. In … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: Türksat 5B Launch From Lake Nona
On Dec. 18 at 10:58 p.m., SpaceX’s Türksat 5B mission took to the skies. On board the Falcon 9 rocket was a 4,500-kg. (~9,900-lb.) communication satellite manufactured by Airbus Defense & Space. The satellite’s purpose is to provide telecommunication and broadcasting services to various countries in Afro-Eurasia. The mission was ultimately a success. The first stage, … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: Inspiration4
On the calm and clear evening of Sept. 15, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the Inspiration4 mission into history. It represented the first all-civilian orbital mission, with the crew spending approximately three days in low Earth orbit (LEO).The mission served a dual purpose; blazing a trail for civilian space travel and raising funds for St. Jude Children’s Research … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: The CRS-23 Mission
On the peaceful early morning of Aug. 29, we gazed east to watch SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket illuminate the sky. Approximately eight minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9 first stage B1061-4 successfully landed on an autonomous barge out in the Atlantic Ocean. The next day, CRS-23’s Cargo Dragon capsule reached the International Space Station – delivering 4,800 pounds of science … [Read more...]