Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation News

SpaceNews.com • Emma Gatti

ESA taps Thales Alenia Space‑led, all‑European consortium to build €600M Argonaut lunar cargo lander

The European Space Agency has named a Thales Alenia Space‑led, all‑European consortium to build Argonaut, a €600 million uncrewed lunar cargo lander designed to secure autonomous European access to the Moon. Contracts cover system integration, propulsion, data handling and lunar descent GNC for a roughly 10‑tonne, six‑metre vehicle.

2025-11-21T09:09:12.318971-08:00

Ars Technica

Starship v3 booster B18 heavily damaged in ground-proof test, jeopardising rollout

2025-11-21T04:25:09.639866-08:00

Spaceflight Now

SpaceX completes 100th Space Coast orbital launch of 2025 as Falcon 9 logs 149th flight

2025-11-20T14:45:43.342523-08:00

Reuters

Blue Origin unveils New Glenn upgrades, including '9x4' super‑heavy variant to lift ~50% more to LEO

2025-11-20T09:00:43.070535-08:00

Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation News Timeline

SpaceNews.com

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ESA taps Thales Alenia Space‑led, all‑European consortium to build €600M Argonaut lunar cargo lander The European Space Agency has named a Thales Alenia Space‑led, all‑European consortium to build Argonaut, a €600 million uncrewed lunar cargo lander designed to secure autonomous European access to the Moon. Contracts cover system integration, propulsion, data handling and lunar descent GNC for a roughly 10‑tonne, six‑metre vehicle.

2025-11-21T09:09:12.318971-08:00

ESA taps Thales Alenia Space‑led, all‑European consortium to build €600M Argonaut lunar cargo lander

Ars Technica

FAA lifts daytime launch curfew as SpaceX next‑gen booster fails; Pegasus to resume flights With the government shutdown over, the FAA has lifted its temporary daytime launch curfew, restoring daylight launch windows for commercial providers. The change comes as SpaceX’s next‑generation booster failed in a recent test and the Pegasus rocket is set to resume flights.

2025-11-21T05:45:56.858165-08:00

FAA lifts daytime launch curfew as SpaceX next‑gen booster fails; Pegasus to resume flights

Ars Technica

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Starship v3 booster B18 heavily damaged in ground-proof test, jeopardising rollout SpaceX's new Super Heavy booster B18 suffered a major anomaly and apparent explosion at its base during a ground-proof test at Starbase, leaving the booster heavily damaged. The failure threatens the scheduled rollout and testing of Starship v3, imperilling near-term upgrade milestones.

2025-11-21T04:25:09.639866-08:00

Starship v3 booster B18 heavily damaged in ground-proof test, jeopardising rollout

Space.com

Why Blue Origin’s New Glenn booster returned “lightly used” — it all comes down to the fuel Blue Origin says the New Glenn booster that landed after its recent flight came back “lightly used” because fuel management — tank pressurization, residual propellant and burn profiles — kept thermal and aerodynamic loads low. That condition reduces refurbishment scope and informs the company’s reuse and cadence planning.

2025-11-20T15:09:28.873398-08:00

Why Blue Origin’s New Glenn booster returned “lightly used” — it all comes down to the fuel

Spaceflight Now

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SpaceX completes 100th Space Coast orbital launch of 2025 as Falcon 9 logs 149th flight On Nov. 20, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 from Florida's Space Coast — the vehicle's 149th flight of 2025 — marking the 100th orbital launch from Cape Canaveral/Kennedy this year. The mission, Starlink 6‑78, continues the company's high‑cadence Starlink constellation buildout and underscores sustained operational tempo.

2025-11-20T14:45:43.342523-08:00

SpaceX completes 100th Space Coast orbital launch of 2025 as Falcon 9 logs 149th flight

SpaceQ

T‑Minus Engineering launches Barracuda hypersonic suborbital rocket from Spaceport Nova Scotia T‑Minus Engineering's Barracuda hypersonic suborbital rocket lifted off from Spaceport Nova Scotia at 10:54 a.m. this morning, conducting a dedicated hypersonic suborbital flight test from the eastern Canadian launch site. The mission advances flight‑test activity for the Barracuda program and the nascent Nova Scotia spaceport.

2025-11-20T10:07:43.424815-08:00

T‑Minus Engineering launches Barracuda hypersonic suborbital rocket from Spaceport Nova Scotia

NASA

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Orion stacked on SLS as NASA completes key Artemis II integration step NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems team has lifted and secured the Orion crew module onto the Space Launch System core at Kennedy, completing a major spacecraft–rocket integration milestone ahead of Artemis II. The mission remains targeted for an early‑2026 launch window (no later than April 2026).

2025-11-20T09:32:06.016805-08:00

Orion stacked on SLS as NASA completes key Artemis II integration step

Reuters

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Blue Origin unveils New Glenn upgrades, including '9x4' super‑heavy variant to lift ~50% more to LEO Blue Origin announced upgrades to its New Glenn launcher that include a super‑heavy "New Glenn 9x4" variant expected to boost low‑Earth‑orbit payload capacity by about 50%. The company says an iterative 7×72‑based design and rapid‑build plan will accelerate production as it prepares for Flight 3.

2025-11-20T09:00:43.070535-08:00

Blue Origin unveils New Glenn upgrades, including '9x4' super‑heavy variant to lift ~50% more to LEO

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