NASA

PARIS — The Federal Aviation Administration announced its intent to fine SpaceX more than $633,000 for violating its launch licenses on two occasions in 2023, a decision SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said he will fight in court. The FAA announced Sept. 17 that it notified SpaceX of $633,009 in proposed fines for violating terms of its launch licenses during the June 2023 Falcon 9 launch of the Satria-1, or PSN Satria, broadband satellite and the July 2023 Falcon Heavy launch of Jupiter-3, or EchoStar-24, broadband satellite. Both launches were successful. For the Satria-1 launch, the FAA said in its enforcement notice to the company that SpaceX had requested in May 2023 changes to its communications plan to allow the use of a new launch control center at the company’s “Hangar X” facility a...

We launched our Spitzer Space Telescope into orbit around the Sunday on Aug. 25, 2003. Since then, the observatory has been lifting the veil on the wonders of the cosmos, from our own solar system to faraway galaxies, using infrared light.Thanks to Spitzer, scientists were able to confirm the presence of seven rocky, Earth-size planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system. The telescope has also provided weather maps of hot, gaseous exoplanets and revealed a hidden ring around Saturn. It has illuminated hidden collections of dust in a wide variety of locations, including cosmic nebulas (clouds of gas and dust in space), where young stars form, and swirling galaxies. Spitzer has additionally investigated some of the universe’s oldest galaxies and stared at the black hole at the center of the Milky Way....

WASHINGTON — The Defense Department’s enthusiasm for commercial innovation isn’t backed by sufficient funding, space industry executives said Sept. 11. These executives from venture-backed companies argued that while the Pentagon has created several initiatives to collaborate with private companies — such as the Defense Innovation Unit, the Office of Strategic Capital and SpaceWERX — these organizations focus heavily on seed funding and research-and-development contracts. What is lacking, they say, is a clear pathway for companies to move beyond R&D and secure funding to scale up production and become key suppliers in national defense. John Serafini, CEO of the remote-sensing company HawkEye 360, said DoD has built mechanisms to engage with commercial enterprises but the...

We launched our Spitzer Space Telescope into orbit around the Sunday on Aug. 25, 2003. Since then, the observatory has been lifting the veil on the wonders of the cosmos, from our own solar system to faraway galaxies, using infrared light.Thanks to Spitzer, scientists were able to confirm the presence of seven rocky, Earth-size planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system. The telescope has also provided weather maps of hot, gaseous exoplanets and revealed a hidden ring around Saturn. It has illuminated hidden collections of dust in a wide variety of locations, including cosmic nebulas (clouds of gas and dust in space), where young stars form, and swirling galaxies. Spitzer has additionally investigated some of the universe’s oldest galaxies and stared at the black hole at the center of the Milky Way....

WASHINGTON — While preparations for the first launch of Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket are accelerating, the company acknowledges there is “lots to do” to get the vehicle ready to meet a narrow launch window next month. The company has highlighted several major milestones towards the inaugural launch of the vehicle from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, currently scheduled for no earlier than Oct. 13. That included the arrival Sept. 4 of Jacklyn, the European-built ship that will serve as the landing platform for New Glenn’s first stage, at Port Canaveral. A day earlier, the company rolled out the second stage of the rocket to the launch pad in preparations for a static-fire test. “We’re looking forward to firing up those two BE-3Us on New Glenn...