The Star Trek Report chronicles the history of mankind's attempt to reach the stars, from the fiction that gave birth to the dreams, to the real-life heroes who have turned those dreams into reality.



Friday, December 3, 2010

LIVE from SpaceX: Falcon 9 Rocket to Test Fire Engines

Space.com: LIVE from SpaceX: Falcon 9 Rocket to Test Fire Engines

SpaceX, a private spaceflight company that could become the first commercial firm to launch a spaceship to low-Earth orbit, will perform a full dress rehearsal today (Dec. 3) of the capsule's planned first launch next week.

The California-based SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies) will webcast the static fire test of the Falcon 9 rocket engines at www.spacex.com. The webcast is set to begin at 11:00 a.m. EST (1600 GMT).

The company plans to launch its Dragon spacecraft into low-Earth orbit atop a Falcon 9 rocket for the first time on Dec. 7. The launch is also the first flight under NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program to develop commercial supply services to the International Space Station. [Illustration of Dragon re-entering Earth's atmosphere.]

After NASA's space shuttles retire, SpaceX plans to fly at least 12 missions to carry supplies to and from the orbital outpost.
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