Rocket launches this week
On Monday, Nov. 2, Rocket Lab launched The Sea God Surveys on an Electron rocket from its Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Māhia Peninsula at 11:41 a.m. EST. Aboard was a QPS-SAR satellite for private Japanese company iQPS It marked Electron’s 10th flight for iQPS. The company is building out a fleet of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites with the goal of handing customers worldwide radar views in close to real time.
On Monday, Nov. 2, CAS Space — the commercial launch company founded by the Chinese Academy of Sciences — is targeting 7:10 p.m. EST for a Kinetica 2 launch from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China, according to Next Spaceflight. The payload has not been disclosed, but the only prior Kinetica 2 launch carried a batch of SpaceSail satellites. SpaceSail, also known as Qianfan or “Thousand Sails,” is a Chinese broadband megaconstellation designed to beam internet service from low Earth orbit (LEO).
On Wednesday, Nov. 4, SpaceX will launch the classified USSF-432 mission for the U.S. Space Force from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 8:28 p.m. EST. After stage separation, the Falcon 9 first stage will aim for a landing on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You, stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
On Wednesday, Nov. 4, South Korea’s Agency for Defense Development (ADD) may attempt a demonstration flight of its Mir rocket from Jeju Island, off the country’s southern coast. That date comes from Next Spaceflight’s tracking; South Korean officials have said only that the launch will happen before the end of the year. ADD, the military research arm of South Korea’s defense ministry, has been developing the solid-fueled rocket since 2021. The military plans to use it to launch small military reconnaissance satellites into orbit. The demo was originally set for June 30 but slipped over safety concerns.
On Thursday, Nov. 5, China’s state-owned launch provider, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), has two launches scheduled, according to Next Spaceflight. First, a Long March 2C is slated to lift off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China at 11:00 a.m. EST with an undisclosed payload. Then at 4:15 p.m. EST, a Long March 12 will launch from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on Hainan Island, also with an undisclosed payload.
On Friday, Nov. 6, Chinese commercial company Galactic Energy will launch a Ceres 2 rocket from Jiuquan at 6:35 p.m. EST, according to tracking from Next Spaceflight. The payload has not been disclosed. This will be the second test flight for the Ceres 2 after the rocket suffered a first-stage failure and fell short of orbit on its first flight in January.
Rocket launches last week
On Tuesday, Oct. 27, SpaceX launched Starlink Group 15-16 from Vandenberg at 3:25 a.m. EDT, with the booster landing on Of Course I Still Love You.
On Friday, Oct. 30, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched the NVS-03 navigation satellite, also known as IRNSS-1L, aboard a GSLV Mk II rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The satellite joins NavIC, India’s regional satellite navigation system — the country’s homegrown counterpart to GPS.
SpaceX followed early Saturday, Oct. 31, with Starlink Group 15-18, lifting off from Vandenberg at 12:04 a.m. EDT. Its booster also touched down on Of Course I Still Love You.
Upcoming rocket launches
No earlier than Friday, Nov. 13, United Launch Alliance (ULA) is targeting the launch of Amazon Leo (LV-01) on a Vulcan rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The flight will loft a batch of satellites for Amazon Leo, Amazon’s broadband constellation formerly known as Project Kuiper.
No earlier than Saturday, Nov. 14, Rocket Lab plans to fly The Mountain God Rises from Māhia — Electron’s 100th launch. The milestone flight goes to a familiar customer: another QPS-SAR radar satellite for iQPS, bound for a low Earth orbit.
Brooks Mendenhall is a staff writer at Astronomy, based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, fueled by an unending curiosity about the universe. A former classroom teacher, he has a knack for breaking down complex concepts for a wide audience.
