SPACEX LAUNCHES 25 STARLINK SATELLITES FROM THE WEST COAST - SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket early Sunday from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, carrying another batch of satellites for the company’s Starlink internet service. Liftoff of the Starlink 17-23 mission from Space Launch Complex 4 East occurred at 2:10:39 a.m. PST (5:10:39 a.m. EST / 1010:39 UTC). The rocket, carrying 25 Starlink V2 Mini satellites, took southerly trajectory on departure from the launch site in central California.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 2)

CHINA SET FOR ITS FIRST ONE-YEAR HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT MISSION, CONFIRMS PAKISTANI ASTRONAUT FLIGHT - China will begin its first one-year duration astronaut mission this year, while the first international astronaut will make a short visit to Tiangong space station. The country completed the three-module Tiangong space station in late 2022, with the orbital outpost hosting crews of three for six months at a time ever since. While NASA and Roscosmos have already conducted a number of year-long missions aboard the International Space Station, China is now set to select one astronaut to remain aboard Tiangong for a full year for the first time.    More
(Source: Space News - Mar 2)

FEBRUARY FINALE: SPACEX WRAPS UP MONTH WITH THREE STARLINK LAUNCHES THIS WEEK - In what has become hardly a leap for the company, SpaceX concluded its Starlink satellite launches for February 2026 with a trio of flights this week. On Tuesday (Feb. 24) at 6:04 p.m. EST (2304 GMT), a Falcon 9 lifted the first 29 satellites into low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The next day, 25 more Starlink units were sent spaceward by a different Falcon 9 flying at 9:17 a.m. EST (1417 GMT or 6:17 a.m. PST local time) from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.   More
(Source: Space.com - Mar 2)

SPACEX FALCON 9 LAUNCHES FROM CAPE CANAVERAL WITH 29 STARLINK SATELLITES - SpaceX launched another 29 satellites for its Starlink internet service just after sunrise on Friday at fog shrouded Cape Canaveral. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 40 occurred at 7:16:10 a.m. EST (1216:10 UTC), but views of the launch were obscured by a thick blanket of fog. SpaceX confirmed a successful deployment of the satellites about an hour after launch.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Feb 28)

NASA REVEALS THE ASTRONAUT WHO REQUIRED 1ST MEDICAL EVACUATION FROM THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - NASA has shed more light on last month's early end to SpaceX's Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), at the request of the astronaut who experienced the medical issue that caused their return. NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Crew-11 pilot and commander of the ISS' Expedition 74, has revealed that it was his medical issue that prompted the evacuation of the four Crew-11 astronauts from the space station in January.   More
(Source: 25544 - Feb 27)

CONGRESS TO WEIGH EXTENDING SPACE STATION LIFE, NASA MOON BASE - A U.S. Senate committee next week will consider extending the planned life of the International Space Station by two years to give companies more time to develop a replacement, one of a few changes to a NASA bill focused on rivaling China's growing footprint in space. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation plans to take up legislation on March 4 that would amend a NASA authorization bill with the ISS extension, and add a requirement that NASA build a base on the moon's surface as part of its Artemis program.   More
(Source: Reuters - Feb 27)

SCIENCE-PACKED DRAGON DEPARTS STATION, HEADS FOR SPLASHDOWN - At 12:05 p.m. EST, the unpiloted SpaceX Dragon spacecraft undocked from the forward-facing port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module following a command from ground controllers at SpaceX. After re-entering Earth’s atmosphere, the spacecraft is scheduled to splash down at approximately 11:44 p.m. PST (2:44 a.m. EST Friday, Feb. 27), off the coast of California. NASA will not stream splashdown but will post updates on its space station blog.   More
(Source: NASA - Feb 27)

FIRST METOP SECOND GENERATION-B SATELLITE SPREADS ITS WING - With launch planned for later this year, testing is well underway to ensure the MetOp Second Generation-B1 weather satellite is ready for its life in orbit around Earth. These checks include verifying that its spectacular four-panel, 11-metre-long, solar wing will deploy correctly. The MetOp Second Generation (MetOp-SG) mission relies on a duo of complementary satellites to strengthen Europe’s weather forecasting capabilities from polar orbit.   More
(Source: ESA - Feb 26)

SPACEX LAUNCHES 500TH STARLINK SATELLITE IN 2026 DURING WEDNESDAY FALCON 9 FLIGHT - SpaceX launched its 500th Starlink satellite of the year during a flight from Vandenberg Space Force Base Wednesday morning. The Starlink 17-26 mission added 25 broadband satellites to the growing constellation that’s nearing 10,000 spacecraft in low Earth orbit. SpaceX confirmed a successful payload deployment an hour after liftoff. With this launch, SpaceX has flown 512 Starlink satellites to orbit in 2026.   More
(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Feb 26)

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