"SpaceX's upgraded Starship is set to launch on its first test flight as soon as Tuesday, May 19. Welcome to Edition 8.41 of the Rocket Report! The stories of the world's two most powerful rockets are now intertwined. Hardware for NASA's third Space Launch System rocket is coming together at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, while SpaceX is readying its first upgraded Starship Version 3 rocket for liftoff from Starbase, Texas."
"The readiness of each vehicle, along with Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket and Blue Moon lander, will go a long way toward determining the schedule and content of NASA's Artemis III mission in low-Earth orbit. We discuss those plans in this week's Rocket Report."
"After the Indian government opened a pathway in 2020 for private industry to build and launch its own rockets, one Indian startup is nearing the pad with its first orbital rocket, Ars reports. The most promising Indian launch company, Skyroot Aerospace, says its Vikram-1 launch vehicle could take flight within the next couple of months. And with a recent $60 million fundraising round valuing the firm at $1.1 billion, the company is poised to accelerate its commercial launch efforts."
"Skyroot's co-founder and CEO, Pawan Kumar Chandana, worked for the Indian space agency before splitting off in 2018 to establish Skyroot Aerospace in Hyderabad. Although India lacked a purely commercial space industry, Chandana believed that the rising country had the right ingredients in place: great engineers, a supplier base, government spaceports, and an advantageous location near the equator."
SpaceX is preparing the first test flight of an upgraded Starship Version 3 rocket from Starbase, Texas, with liftoff planned as soon as May 19. NASA’s third Space Launch System rocket hardware is being assembled at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The readiness of these vehicles, along with Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket and Blue Moon lander, is expected to affect the schedule and mission content for Artemis III in low-Earth orbit. Separately, an Indian startup, Skyroot Aerospace, is nearing its first orbital launch with the Vikram-1 rocket. Skyroot says the launch could occur within the next couple of months, supported by a $60 million fundraising round valuing the company at $1.1 billion.
Read at Ars Technica
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