Commercial Space

SpaceX planning to scrap its successful Falcon rocket and Dragon capsule in high-stakes quest to expand humankind to Mars.

Development has taken longer than expected, but engine testing is an important milestone in realizing Paul Allen’s new space vision.

Deal would put Northrop Grumman back in the human spaceflight business.

SpaceX recovery teams retrieved the company’s 12th NASA-contracted Dragon resupply mission capsule from Pacific waters early Sept. 17.

Satellite manufacturers expect only 10-12 geosats to be ordered this year, solidifying a trend downward in the sector.

Japan’s first privately developed rocket has been scheduled for launch on July 29 by developer Interstellar Technologies (IST).

NanoRacks LLC has demonstrated that spacesuit-garbed astronauts working outside the International Space Station can successfully maneuver around the external surfaces of what is to be the first commercially provided airlock.

SpaceX is shelving plans for upcoming Dragon 2 crew and cargo retrorocket returns to Earth due to the difficulty of meeting certification requirements

Aviation Week technology writers Guy Norris and Graham Warwick discuss the thrusts of this year’s American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ annual Propulsion & Energy conference.

Casc’s Xian propulsion institute will lighten its P35 solid-propellant motor, then develop a larger derivative, presumably for a new space launcher

After an accident in September 2016, SpaceX is on pace to launch a record number of missions halfway before the year is through.

The European space launch company is eager to show it is still reliable despite facing a major roadblock (literally).

Sierra Nevada Corp.’s Dream Chaser uses guidance, navigation and control techniques first developed for astronaut flights in the 1960s.

How technical advances are enabling space-based challengers to take on terrestrial internet services.

With the biggest windows ever flown into space, Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin space tourism vehicle will provide an unprecedented view.

Industry is seeing a dramatic shift in launch hardware as the spacefaring nations of the world prepare new rockets for peaceful and not-so-peaceful access to orbit and beyond.

Elon Musk achieved a major step toward his goal of lowering the cost of space launch March 30 with the successful relaunch and recovery of a “used” Falcon 9 first stage on a commercial orbital mission.

Space is the only domain where platforms cannot be routinely serviced, repaired and upgraded to keep them operating and up to date with technology advances. Two planned demos, one by NASA and one by DARPA, could change that.

Rapid evolution of technology and a drop in data prices cause satellite operators to spend time pondering next moves

Blue Origin’s New Glenn is one among many launch companies that will lend a hand to companies eager to send spacecraft into orbit in a market where technological change can be faster than the pace of production. Listen in as our editors discuss the key takeaways from this week's Satellite 2017 conference in Washington, D.C.

A pilot program that has increased space awareness for the U.S. military and satellite operators should become a permanent part of the military’s Joint Space Operations Center.

NASA, other stakeholders still pursuing ideas for commercial enterprises in space, which have so far proven elusive.

Amazon founder and Blue Origin owner says the concept for reusable launch vehicles will grow the launch industry to a “new equilibrium.”

Jeff Bezos and others are focusing on bases on the Moon as jumping-off points for deeper-space exploration.

Eutelsat, Viasat explain how manufacturers should provide cheaper and more flexible capacity on commercial satellites.