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SpaceX closed a major chapter in its Starship development program on Monday evening, launching what appeared to be a nearly flawless suborbital test flight with its upgraded Version 2 Starship-Super Heavy rocket. The mission, designated Integrated Flight Test-11 (IFT-11), marked the final flight of this iteration of the world’s tallest and most powerful rocket as the company transitions to the next generation — Starship Version 3.

SpaceX is preparing for the next chapter in its ambitious Starship test campaign, with the Flight 11 mission poised to launch Monday evening from the company’s Starbase facility in South Texas. The test, scheduled for 7:15 p.m. Eastern (2315 UTC), will mark another crucial step in refining the fully reusable heavy-lift vehicle designed to carry humans and cargo to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

The U.S. Space Force has selected Blue Origin to construct a new state-of-the-art payload processing facility (PPF) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, expanding America’s capacity to prepare spacecraft for launch. The project aims to strengthen the nation’s on-orbit capabilities and streamline the pre-launch process for military, commercial, and allied missions.

SpaceX has moved the Super Heavy booster, the first stage of its colossal Starship rocket, to the launch pad at the company’s Starbase facility in South Texas, signaling preparations for the next major test flight.

Oct. 9: SpaceX has postponed the planned launch of 24 Amazon Project Kuiper broadband satellites due to deteriorating weather conditions along Florida’s Space Coast. The mission, originally slated for Thursday night, is now scheduled to lift off no earlier than Sunday, Oct. 12, at 8:41 p.m. EDT (0041 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

In a bold step for spacecraft servicing, NASA has awarded Katalyst Space Technologies of Flagstaff, Arizona, a $30 million contract to raise the orbit of the agency’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory. The robotic servicing mission, planned for spring 2026, will be the first attempt by a commercial spacecraft to capture and reposition a government-owned satellite that was never designed for in-orbit servicing.

The joint NASA–ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite has returned its first striking images of Earth, offering a preview of the cutting-edge science the mission will deliver when it enters full operations later this year.

The long-awaited debut of Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser cargo spaceplane has been pushed back once again, with the vehicle no longer expected to dock at the International Space Station (ISS) on its first mission. Instead, NASA and Sierra Space have agreed to convert the inaugural flight into a free-flyer demonstration, now targeted for no earlier than late 2026.

On September 25, 2025, United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket thundered off the pad at Cape Canaveral, carrying Amazon’s third batch of broadband satellites for its ambitious Project Kuiper. Liftoff occurred at 8:09 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-41, with the powerful Atlas V 551 configuration placing 27 satellites into low-Earth orbit. The mission, designated KA-03, marked another milestone in Amazon’s effort to build a global internet constellation. 

Just after sunrise, United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Atlas 5 rocket thundered off the pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, carrying the latest batch of Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites into low Earth orbit. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 41 occurred at 8:09 a.m. EDT (1209 UTC).

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at 7:30 a.m. EDT (1130 UTC) Wednesday, carrying three major solar and space weather missions for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Payload deployment wrapped up successfully about 90 minutes after liftoff.

With ambitions to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon and prepare for crewed missions to Mars, NASA has announced the selection of its newest class of astronaut candidates.