Boeing Starliner Wednesday, and Starship 4 Thursday

Happy Tuesday, everyone! This week’s newsletter is 752 words, a 5-minute read.

Table of Contents

• 1 Big Thing: Starship 4 is Launching This Week

• 2. Cool Stuff You Might Have Missed

• 3. Boeing’s Starliner

• 4. A Brand-New Space Book

• 5. Upcoming Launches & Missions

1 Big Thing: Starship 4 is Launching This Week

SpaceX’s Starship is now ready to embark on its 4th-ever test flight.

Regulatory Approval: Starship is on the launchpad and ready to go - it’s just waiting for clearance to launch from the FAA. Barring any unexpected hiccups, SpaceX is looking to launch the rocket this Thursday, June 6th.

What’s Worked So Far: In Starship’s most recent test flight on March 14th, the behemoth rocket achieved a few key objectives, including:

• The first Starship reentry from space (although the rocket lost control and burned up in the atmosphere upon reentry).

• The first ever opening and closing of Starship’s massive payload door in space.

• A successful transfer of rocket propellant between tanks inside the ship.

What to Expect: SpaceX’s main goal with this 4th test flight is to fly into space, re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere, and make a soft, powered landing in the Indian Ocean.

• In the future, Starship will make its soft, powered landings on floating barges and/or on land in order to be rapidly re-used for more flights.

When and How to Watch: You can see more information on Starship’s 4th test flight here on SpaceX’s website. The flight’s window of opportunity opens at 7 AM Central (8 AM Eastern) this Thursday, June 6th.

• Be on the lookout for updates from SpaceX in the coming hours and days, since the need for official FAA clearance may push the launch back a few days.

2. Cool Stuff You Might Have Missed

1. Iridium Communications secured a $94 million contract with the U.S. Space Force for satellite communications support. (SpaceNews)

2. On this day in 2010, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket successfully reached orbit for the first time. (Space)

3. China landed a lunar probe called Chang’e-6 on the far side of the moon, planted a Chinese flag, and collected samples to be returned to Earth. (CBS)

3. Boeing’s Starliner

I Seriously Sound Like a broken record, but Boeing’s first crewed test of its Starliner capsule was cancelled, pushed back, and re-scheduled for this week.

Boeing Will Attempt yet again to launch its long-awaited crew-rated capsule to the International Space Station tomorrow, June 5th, at 10:52 AM Eastern.

Last Week, 4 minutes before liftoff, Boeing had to call of the launch due to a computer issue which has since been fixed.

Why You Should Care: After the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011, America had no way of transporting its own astronauts to or from the International Space Station.

• For a while, American taxpayers were dishing out $70 million a ticket to Russia’s space agency Roscosmos in order to ferry Americans to and from the ISS.

• NASA put out Commercial Crew contracts to SpaceX and Boeing to build replacements for the Space Shuttle.

• In 2020, SpaceX began fulfilling its contract and

• Boeing is yet to do the same, with this Starliner launch hopefully marking the first time the company successfully sends astronauts to the ISS.

How and When to Watch: The event will stream live on NASA’s website starting at 6:45 AM Eastern.

• Hopefully the launch goes as planned, in which case it’ll take off at approximately 10:52 AM Eastern.

4. A Brand-New Space Book

Just Last Week, Adam Higginbotham Released his new book, “Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space.”

The Book Tells the fascinating and heartbreaking story of the Space Shuttle Challenger, which broke apart on January 28th, 1986 73 seconds after launch, killing all seven astronauts on board.

I Picked This Up on Kindle last week and started reading it. It’s great. You can check it out here:

5. Upcoming Launches & Missions

SPECIAL EXCITING NEWS: If you refer just 3 friends (used to be 5, now it’s 3) to this newsletter, I’ll send you a free copy of Neil deGrasse Tyson’s A Brief Welcome to the Universe. Use the link below to share and get credit for your referrals!

Thanks as always,

-Michael