Latest news with #JoeyRoulette
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
FAA allows SpaceX Starship's next flight, expands debris hazard zones
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday said it approved SpaceX's Starship to return to flight after its explosive test failure in March, allowing Elon Musk's space company to launch from Texas as soon as next week after redrawing hazard zones along the rocket's flight path. SpaceX's Starship, a 400-foot-tall (122 meter) rocket poised to play a central role in the U.S. space program, had a rare spate of back-to-back testing failures this year, diverting dozens of commercial flights and prompting complaints from other countries affected by Starship debris. The FAA said in a statement approving Starship's next flight that it was in "close contact and collaboration" with the United Kingdom, Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, Mexico and Cuba - where Starship flies over or near on its path to space - as it monitors SpaceX's regulatory compliance in future flights. Debris from Starship's last two testing explosions - one in January and another in March - rained over Turks and Caicos, a British overseas territory, and portions of the Caribbean, rankling residents and triggering cleanup efforts by SpaceX staff and local authorities. The FAA expanded a predetermined keep-out zone, or Aircraft Hazard Area, on Starship's flight path from 885 nautical miles to 1,600 nautical miles, extending eastward from SpaceX's launch site on the southern Texas coast and through the Straits of Florida, including the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands. "With the Starship vehicle return to flight determination, Starship Flight 9 is authorized for launch," the FAA, which oversees commercial rocket launch safety, said. "The FAA finds SpaceX meets all of the rigorous safety, environmental and other licensing requirements." The FAA said it expanded the size of hazard areas over the U.S. and other countries along Starship's trajectory to space based on an updated flight safety analysis, a complex mathematical calculation that heavily factors probabilities of vehicle failure and expected public casualties. The hazard zones were also expanded, the FAA said, because SpaceX plans to reuse a Starship booster for the first time during its ninth test flight, a key demonstration in the company's goal to make Starship rapidly reusable. The next flight could occur on Tuesday, May 27, according to government airspace notices, though that date could change based on weather and SpaceX's technical readiness.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Analysis-Trump's Golden Dome plan could launch new era of weapons in space
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's Golden Dome missile defense concept revives a controversial, decades-old initiative whose ambitious construction could upend norms in outer space and reshape relations between the world's top space powers. The announcement of Golden Dome, a vast network of satellites and weapons in Earth's orbit set to cost $175 billion, could sharply escalate the militarization of space, a trend that has intensified over the last decade, space analysts say. While the world's biggest space powers - the U.S., Russia and China - have put military and intelligence assets in orbit since the 1960s, they have done so mostly in secrecy. Under former President Joe Biden, U.S. Space Force officials had grown vocal about a need for greater offensive space capabilities due to space-based threats from Russia and China. When Trump announced his Golden Dome plan in January, it was a clear shift in strategy, one that emphasizes a bold move into space with expensive, untested technology that could be a financial boon to U.S. defense contractors. The concept includes space-based missiles that would launch from satellites in orbit to intercept conventional and nuclear missiles launched from Earth. "I think it's opening a Pandora's box," said Victoria Samson, director of space security and stability at the Secure World Foundation think tank in Washington, referring to deploying missiles in space. "We haven't truly thought about the long-term consequences for doing so," she added. Samson and other experts said Golden Dome could provoke other states to place similar systems in space or to develop more advanced weapons to evade the missile shield, escalating an arms race in space. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Russia and China reacted differently to the latest news from Trump. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said it was "seriously concerned" about the project and urged Washington to abandon its development, adding that it carried "strong offensive implications" and heightened the risks of the militarization of outer space and an arms race. A Kremlin spokesperson said Golden Dome could force talks between Moscow and Washington about nuclear arms control in the foreseeable future. Primarily seeking to defend against a growing arsenal of conventional and nuclear missiles from U.S. adversaries Russia, China and smaller states such as North Korea and Iran, the Golden Dome plan is a revival of a Cold War-era effort by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), better known as the "Star Wars" program. SDI envisioned stationing a constellation of missiles and powerful laser weapons in low-Earth orbit that could intercept a ballistic nuclear missile launched anywhere on Earth below, either in its boost phase moments after launch or in its blazing-fast cruise phase in space. But the idea never came to fruition mainly because of technological hurdles, as well as the high cost and concerns it would violate an anti-ballistic missile treaty that has since been abandoned. 'WE'RE READY' Golden Dome has strong and powerful allies in the defense contracting community and the growing defense technology arena, many of whom have been preparing for Trump's big move into space weaponry. "We knew that this day was likely going to come. You know, we're ready for it," L3Harris Chief Financial Officer Ken Bedingfield said in an interview with Reuters last month. "L3 Harris has an early start of building the sensor network that will become the foundational sensor network for the Golden Dome architecture." Trump ally Elon Musk's rocket and satellite company SpaceX has emerged as a frontrunner alongside software firm Palantir and drone maker Anduril to build key components of the system, Reuters reported last month. Many of the early systems are expected to come from existing production lines. Attendees at the White House press conference with Trump on Tuesday named L3Harris, Lockheed Martin and RTX Corp as potential contractors for the massive project. But Golden Dome's funding remains uncertain. Republican lawmakers have proposed a $25 billion initial investment for it as part of a broader $150 billion defense package, but this funding is tied to a contentious reconciliation bill that faces significant hurdles in Congress.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX gets FAA approval to ramp up Starship launches from Texas
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) - SpaceX on Tuesday received key U.S. regulatory approval to increase the annual rate of Starship rocket launches from Texas and booster landings in various bodies of water, allowing Elon Musk's company to significantly expand development of its giant Mars rocket. The Federal Aviation Administration, capping a years-long review, said SpaceX's proposal to increase the number of Texas Starship launches from five to 25 will not have a major impact on the surrounding environment, nor would associated booster landings or potential rocket explosions over the Gulf of Mexico and some international waters. (Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Chris Reese)
The Star
29-04-2025
- Science
- The Star
Firefly's Alpha rocket, Lockheed satellite fall into ocean after failed launch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket suffered a technical issue on Tuesday as it ascended into space on its sixth flight, causing a Lockheed Martin satellite it was supposed to place into orbit to crash into the Pacific Ocean. About two minutes following liftoff from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the engine nozzle on Alpha's upper portion broke off in space moments after it attempted to separate from the rocket's core booster as designed, "substantially reducing the engine's thrust," Firefly said. While typical rocket mishaps trigger explosions or on-board shutdown commands, Alpha's upper rocket body fired for several minutes and ascended to 320 km (200 miles) in altitude. But it failed to reach its intended orbit and was pulled back into the atmosphere by Earth's gravity. "The stage and payload have now safely impacted the Pacific Ocean in a cleared zone north of Antarctica," Firefly said. During Alpha's ascent, a company livestream of the flight showed several pieces of debris flying off the rocket. On-screen altitude and speed data disappeared moments before, earlier than usual. With Tuesday's events, four of six Alpha flights since 2021 have failed. Firefly, which was able to achieve a breakthrough moon landing in March, is vying with a handful of similar upstarts seeking to build a launch business in a market dominated by Elon Musk's SpaceX. The Alpha mission was the first under an agreement between Firefly and Lockheed for up to 25 flights through 2029. The satellite was self-funded by Lockheed and called LM 400 Technology Demonstrator, an effort to test technologies that Lockheed plans to sell to other customers, such as the Pentagon. "Navigating risk and going fast are part of these self-funded demonstrations," a Lockheed spokesman said, adding that the satellite's production yielded insights that will benefit future customers. About an hour after the launch, Firefly posted on X that a mishap put "the vehicle in a lower than planned orbit," then deleted that statement. The company said it was working with Lockheed, the U.S. Space Force and Federal Aviation Administration to determine the root cause of the failure. With Alpha, Firefly hopes to fulfill demand from the U.S. Defense Department for launching national security payloads into space, particularly under tight timelines. The company had a successful launch in 2023 in a Space Force mission to demonstrate rapid-launch capabilities. Founded in 2014, Austin-based Firefly went bankrupt in 2017, changed ownership amid U.S. national security concerns in 2022, ousted its CEO over an inappropriate relationship in 2024 then landed on the moon on its first try in March. (Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Mark Porter, Alexandra Hudson and Cynthia Osterman)
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Problem with Firefly's Alpha rocket puts Lockheed satellite in shallow orbit
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Firefly Aerospace said the sixth mission of its Alpha rocket suffered a mishap in space after launching from California on Tuesday, putting a satellite owned by Lockheed Martin in a "lower than planned orbit," suggesting a potential mission failure. Firefly said the mishap occurred during separation of Alpha's core stage booster with its second stage roughly two and a half minutes after liftoff, which "impacted the Stage 2 Lightning engine nozzle, putting the vehicle in a lower than planned orbit." The company said it was working with Lockheed to determine the root cause of the failure. Lockheed did not immediately respond to a question on whether it believes its satellite could raise its orbit or otherwise survive the mishap. The mission was the first in a multi-mission agreement between Firefly and Lockheed, which had on board the rocket a self-funded satellite called LM 400 Technology Demonstrator, meant to advance space technologies and lower risk for Lockheed customers.
