A Brand New Rocket Makes History

Happy Tuesday, everyone! This week’s newsletter is a short one at 476 words, a 4-minute read.

Table of Contents

• 1 Big Thing: A Brand-New Rocket Makes History Toda …

• 2. Cool Stuff You Might Have Missed

• 3. I’m Writing on Medium Again - Check it Out 😊

• 4. Upcoming Launches & Missions

1 Big Thing: A Brand-New Rocket Makes History Today

Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket, the Ariane 6, is making its debut today at 2PM Eastern Time.

The Ariane 6’s predecessor, the Ariane 5, was retired last year after making 117 flights over three decades.

Ariane 6 was originally slated to make its debut in 2020, but development delays pushed it back to 2024.

What’s the Big Deal?: This isn’t just any new rocket. The Ariane 6 is a heavy-lift launch vehicle on par with SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy and China’s Long March 5.

Serious Payload: The Ariane 6 is capable of sending up to 19,000 lbs to the moon, and up to 48,000 lbs to Low Earth Orbit (where most satellites are).

Future Plans: The European Space Agency hopes that Ariane 6 will make between 9 and 12 flights per year, sending large payloads into orbit monthly on behalf of customers across the globe.

How to Watch: You can watch the live broadcast on YouTube in a few hours. Here’s the link.

2. Cool Stuff You Might Have Missed

1. SpaceX launched Turkey’s first communications satellite. (SpaceNews)

2. The Pentagon gave the green light to its $140 billion ICBM program. (SpaceNews)

3. SpaceX is going to try to catch its Super Heavy booster with chopsticks in upcoming Starship test flight. (Space)

3. I’m Writing on Medium Again - Check it Out 😊

When I started this newsletter in January, I was also writing articles on Medium.

Medium is an awesome blogging platform that cuts out all the unnecessary BS of designing and running a website, and just allows writers to write.

I used to love writing articles on the site, but fell out of the habit of it. It was a great place to write fun, longer-form stuff like space hypotheticals and deeper dives into how rockets work.

Starting this weekend, I’ll be writing 1-2 articles a week on my Medium page again. Please check out my article (above) and follow me so you’re notified when I publish an article!

4. Upcoming Launches & Missions

SPECIAL EXCITING NEWS: If you refer just 3 friends (used to be 5, now it’s 3) to my 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