SpaceX performs a Christmas themed roll out of the next Starship to fly and relativity fires up its most powerful engine, while Amazon tests a spacecraft inters satellite laser link communication system and Rocket Lab achieves a successful launch of the QPS SAR 5 satellite
Questions to inspire discussion
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What milestone did Relativity achieve at NASA's Stennis Space Center?
—Relativity successfully tested their fullscale Eon R methalox engine at NASA's Stennis Space Center, marking a significant milestone in the development of the Tran R rocket.
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What did Amazon test for their spacecraft inters satellite communication system?
—Amazon has performed testing of a spacecraft inters satellite laser link communication system, which will enable signals to hop from one spacecraft to another without needing ground stations, with successful confirmation of pointing and acquisition of the link at a data transfer rate of 100 gbits per second.
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What is the status of SpaceX's launches?
—SpaceX launches have been delayed due to weather and rocket issues, potentially impacting their goal of 100 launches by the end of the year.
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What is the current status of ULA's Vulcan rocket?
—ULA's Vulcan rocket is ready for its debut launch after completing pre-launch testing, including a wet dress rehearsal and engine test, with a small redesign of the Centaur 5 test article prompting a change of the upper stage for the first flight.
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What is the latest update on Axiom Space's space station module?
—Axiom Space is making progress on the first habitat module of its space station, with the launch delayed from 2025 to 2026.
Key Insights
- 🎄 SpaceX performs a Christmas themed roll out of the next Starship to fly and relativity fires up its most powerful engine.
- 🛰️ Amazon's testing of the spacecraft inters satellite laser link communication system will enable coverage over places where the nearest ground station is several thousands of kilometers away.
- 🚀 The booster for the falcon 9 flight successfully landed on spacex's drone ship, setting a new record turnaround time for SpaceX's West Coast Launchpad.
- 🛰️ The rocket was carrying three satellites into a sun synchronous orbit, testing a variety of Technologies for upcoming satellites such as new thermal Control Systems, new Power Systems, and new software.
- 🚀 Rocket Lab's successful launch of the QPS SAR 5 satellite marks a significant milestone after a previous failure in September.
- 🚀 The gravity 1 rocket is set to be the most powerful commercial rocket in China, capable of launching more than 6 tons into low earth orbit.
- 🎅 SpaceX rolled ship 28 down to the launch site at Starbase in a Christmas themed manner, with snowmen, a reindeer, a Christmas tree, and even a Santa.
- 🚀 Ship 28 is set to be the next Starship vehicle to fly alongside super heavy booster 10 and it will now start its engine test campaign.
#SpaceX #Starship
Clips
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00:00 🚀 China's space plane launches, US One delays, SpaceX rolls out next Starship, and relativity tests powerful engine, marking a significant milestone in rocket development.
- China's space plane launches, US One delays, SpaceX rolls out next Starship, and relativity tests powerful engine.
- Relativity successfully tested their fullscale Eon R methalox engine at NASA's Stennis Space Center, marking a significant milestone in the development of the Tran R rocket.
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01:56 🚀 Amazon's Kyper satellites revealed their box-shaped design with deployable solar panels, and successful testing of a spacecraft inters satellite laser link communication system was performed with a data transfer rate of 100 gbits per second.
- Amazon's Kyper satellites were finally seen in an in-space view, revealing their box-shaped design with deployable solar panels.
- Amazon has performed testing of a spacecraft inters satellite laser link communication system, which will enable signals to hop from one spacecraft to another without needing ground stations, with successful confirmation of pointing and acquisition of the link at a data transfer rate of 100 gbits per second.
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03:46 🚀 Ula preparing for potential launches, SpaceX successfully launched Starlink V2 mini satellites, Isuka 2 rocket launched for third time, Chong Jong 2D rocket carried three yaoon 39 satellites, and China launched secretive military space plane into low earth orbit.
- Ula is preparing for potential launches of Atlas 5 and Centaur 3 stages, while SpaceX successfully launched another batch of Starlink V2 mini satellites into low earth orbit.
- Isuka 2 rocket launched for its third time, making it the first methalox rocket to fly into orbit twice, carrying three satellites into a sun synchronous orbit.
- Two satellites were launched with technology demonstrations for future satellite constellations, followed by the launch of a Chong Jong 2D rocket carrying three yaoon 39 satellites, and a classified launch of China's secretive military space plane into low earth orbit.
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06:44 🚀 SpaceX launches delayed, Rocket Lab successfully launches satellite, space plane launched from Xiquan satellite launch Center.
- The launch of a space plane on December 14th from the xiquan satellite launch Center using a modified Chong Jong 2f rocket, with the spacecraft currently on an approximate 340 km orbit around the Earth.
- Rocket Lab successfully launched the QPS SAR 5 satellite, which will take synthetic aperture radar images in all weather conditions, marking the electron's first flight after a previous failure.
- SpaceX launches have been delayed due to weather and rocket issues, potentially impacting their goal of 100 launches by the end of the year.
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09:34 🚀 Ula's Vulcan rocket is ready for its debut launch after completing pre-launch testing, with a small redesign prompting a change of the upper stage, and the flight debut delayed to January 8th but now on track for launch in a few weeks.
- Ula's Vulcan rocket is ready for its debut launch after completing pre-launch testing, including a wet dress rehearsal and engine test, with a small redesign of the Centaur 5 test article prompting a change of the upper stage for the first flight.
- The Vulcan flight debut has been delayed to January 8th due to routine issues, but after a successful wet dress rehearsal, the path is clear for the payload to be placed on top and for launch to occur in a few weeks.
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11:06 🚀 Axiom Space delays launch of first habitat module to 2026, Orion Space prepares for gravity 1 rocket launch, iSpace conducts second hop of hyperbola 2 test vehicle and plans hop tests of scale version of zuk 3 rocket first stage.
- Axiom Space is making progress on the first habitat module of its space station, with the launch delayed from 2025 to 2026.
- Orion Space is preparing to launch its gravity 1 rocket, while iSpace conducted the second hop of its hyperbola 2 test vehicle and plans to perform hop tests of a scale version of the first stage of the zuk 3 rocket.
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13:24 🚀 Stoke space and SpaceX are both making progress with their rocket development and testing, with Stoke's novva rocket first stage tank being shipped for testing and SpaceX rolling ship 28 to the launch site at Starbase.
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14:29 🚀 SpaceX's Ship 28 to start engine test campaign, rare launch of Chong Jong 5 rocket, New Shephard rocket to return to flight, and Soyuz 2.1b rocket launch pending good weather in Florida.
- Ship 28 is set to start its engine test campaign on December 16th, and there will be a rare launch of a Chong Jong 5 rocket with an unknown payload.
- A hyperbola 1 rocket is set to launch with an unknown payload, along with the launch of a Soyuz 2.1b rocket and the rescheduled departure of the SpaceX CRS 29 dragon from the International Space Station, all pending good weather in Florida.
- New Shephard rocket is set to return to flight next week on December 18th with the launch of the company's ns24 Mission, and the departure of the signis Ng19 spacecraft from the ISS is scheduled for December 21st.
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