Category: Spaceflight

Virgin Galactic Rocket Plane Carried Aloft for Commercial Launch to Space

TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, New Mexico—A twin-fuselage jet took off carrying Virgin Galactic’s rocket plane with a three-man crew from Italy into the New Mexico sky on Thursday for a high-altitude launch of the company’s first flight of paying customers to the edge of space. The two Italian air force colonels and an aerospace engineer from…


Boeing Astronaut Flight Off Until Next Year for More Fixes

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—Boeing’s first spaceflight with astronauts has been delayed until next year because of repairs that need to be made to the capsule following its last test flight. Liftoff of the Starliner capsule with a pair of NASA test pilots is now scheduled for February, officials announced Thursday. They had hoped to launch it…


FAA Clears Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo to Fly Again After Investigation Into July Flight Mishap

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has cleared Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo to fly again following an inquiry into a incident during its July spaceflight, the company announced Wednesday. The FAA announced in August that it was investigating the mishap in which a rocket ship carrying Virgin Group founder Richard Branson and five Virgin Galactic employees veered off course during its…


18-Year-Old Joining Blue Origin’s First Passenger Spaceflight

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—An 18-year-old is about to become the youngest person in space, rocketing away with an aviation pioneer who will become the oldest at age 82. Blue Origin announced Thursday that instead of an auction winner launching with founder Jeff Bezos on Tuesday, Oliver Daemen will be on board. The company said he’ll be…