Stage Zero Studio with Wil Waldon

2024 promises to be a historic one for space missions, with numerous commercial companies and NASA gearing up for a series of ambitious launches. The spotlight is on the moon, as NASA plans to send humans there for the first time since 1972 with the Artemis II mission, while a host of commercial lunar landers are also poised for launch.

SpaceX is pushing forward with its ambitious Starship project, having just completed a significant round of testing in Boca Chica, Texas. The company, renowned for its innovative space ventures, achieved a new milestone by conducting static fire tests for both stages of its Starship rocket system on the same day. This development comes as SpaceX ends the year with a remarkable record of 96 space m...

As the year draws to a close, the company has impressively surpassed its previous annual record of 60 launches, having completed 90 Falcon 9 and 4 Falcon Heavy missions. With plans for three more launches before year-end, including a Falcon Heavy and two Falcon 9s, SpaceX is poised to end the year with 97 Falcon missions. Including its Starship endeavors, which faced challenges post-launch, the to...

United Launch Alliance (ULA) has completed the assembly of its first Vulcan rocket at Cape Canaveral, Florida. This preparation sets the stage for its initial launch next month, marking a crucial milestone in the field of aerospace. The Vulcan rocket, a new addition to ULA's fleet, aims to eventually replace the company's current Atlas V and Delta IV rockets.

Vice President Kamala Harris has announced that the United States, as part of NASA's Artemis program, will include an international astronaut in its upcoming moon landing mission by the end of the decade. This decision, revealed during a National Space Council meeting, marks a new chapter in space diplomacy and international collaboration.

China's Shenlong ("Divine Dragon") space plane, a robotic spacecraft, has caught global attention by releasing six unknown objects into Earth's orbit. This event occurred just four days after the space plane embarked on its third mission.

During the second test flight of SpaceX's Starship, which took place on November 18, the mission faced a significant setback. The launch initially seemed successful, with the Starship lifting off without damaging its launch pad – a notable improvement from the previous test. However, the flight ended dramatically with both the Super Heavy booster and the Starship upper stage experiencing catas...

Recent discoveries have intensified interest in Saturn's moon Enceladus as a potential habitat for life. Scientists have detected hydrogen cyanide, a vital molecule in the origin of life, in Enceladus' plumes, alongside a rich array of organic compounds. These findings, derived from data collected by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, suggest that Enceladus harbors more chemical energy than pr...

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently confirmed its previous decision from 2022, denying SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service $885.5 million in rural broadband subsidies. This decision came after SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, contested the initial ruling, claiming that Starlink was capable of fulfilling the requirements of the subsidy program.

The Starship system is a fully reusable, two‑stage‑to‑orbit super heavy‑lift launch vehicle under development by SpaceX. The system is composed of a booster stage named Super Heavy and a second stage, also called "Starship" ►► https://spacenewspod.com ►► https://starshipshirts.com ►► https://open.spotify.com/show/0jW7nOHQNi1Xlr3v7UMi2p ►► https://discord.gg/dMXghpX ►► https://twitch.tv/s...

In a significant update to the space exploration calendar, the inaugural flight of the Polaris program, an ambitious private astronaut mission, has been rescheduled. Initially planned for late 2022, the mission, known as Polaris Dawn, is now slated for April 2024. This announcement marks a considerable delay, extending the wait for this groundbreaking venture by nearly a year and a half.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) is now targeting early January for the inaugural launch of its Vulcan Centaur rocket. This shift from the previously scheduled December 24th launch date follows a recent wet dress rehearsal (WDR) that didn't go as planned, according to ULA CEO Tory Bruno.

The latest news about SpaceX, NASA and Spaceflight.

A giant coronal hole, over five times larger than Jupiter, has recently been observed in the Sun's atmosphere. This event is causing a powerful solar wind to surge through the Solar System. A coronal hole is essentially a vast region in the Sun's atmosphere where the solar magnetic field is open, allowing solar winds to escape more freely. Unlike sunspots or solar flares, coronal holes are...

SpaceX is preparing for the launch of its powerful Falcon Heavy rocket, carrying the U.S. Space Force's X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle. This mission, set for liftoff from Kennedy Space Center, marks another significant stride in SpaceX's busy year, which has seen a record number of launches.

Enceladus, with its mysterious ice plumes and a suspected subsurface ocean, has long intrigued astronomers. The discovery of these plumes by NASA's Cassini spacecraft in 2005 marked a significant milestone, suggesting the presence of a vast saltwater ocean beneath its icy crust. This revelation has spurred interests in sending probes to fly through these plumes, capture ice grains, and return...

The Starship system is a fully reusable, two‑stage‑to‑orbit super heavy‑lift launch vehicle under development by SpaceX. The system is composed of a booster stage named Super Heavy and a second stage, also called "Starship" ►► https://spacenewspod.com ►► https://starshipshirts.com ►► https://open.spotify.com/show/0jW7nOHQNi1Xlr3v7UMi2p ►► https://discord.gg/dMXghpX ►► https://twitch.tv/s...

The latest news about SpaceX, NASA and Spaceflight.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has released a report indicating that NASA's highly anticipated Artemis III moon landing, originally scheduled for late 2025, is likely to be postponed until at least 2027. This delay is attributed to slower-than-expected progress in the development of both the Human Landing System (HLS) by SpaceX and new lunar spacesuits by Axiom Space. The report, r...

SpaceX, the innovative aerospace company led by CEO Elon Musk, is preparing to transition to the second version of the Starship upper stage, following two explosive tests of the current version. In a recent update, Musk revealed the last four Version 1 Starships at the company's Boca Chica, Texas facility, signaling the end of this developmental phase and the beginning of an upgraded version....

In the vast expanse of the universe, there lies a peculiar anomaly within the realm of exoplanetary science. Despite the discovery and cataloging of over 5,000 exoplanets by various space agencies, a noticeable absence of exoplanets with diameters between 1.5 and two times that of Earth has puzzled scientists. A recent study utilizing data from the retired Kepler Space Telescope offers an intrigui...

Today, we're delving into a fascinating lunar mystery from March 2022, involving a piece of Chinese space junk that collided with the Moon, leaving a mysterious double crater. Researchers from the University of Arizona have shed light on this incident, revealing the object to be a Chinese Long March 3C rocket booster, possibly carrying an undisclosed payload. The story began in 2015 when astro...

The Starship system is a fully reusable, two‑stage‑to‑orbit super heavy‑lift launch vehicle under development by SpaceX. The system is composed of a booster stage named Super Heavy and a second stage, also called "Starship"

The latest news about SpaceX, NASA and Spaceflight.

In today's episode, we focus on two significant developments in the space industry. On one hand, Virgin Galactic is moving forward with its next-generation Delta class spaceplane, following the successful commercial voyages of its VSS Unity spaceplane. On the other, NASA is addressing vital concerns with the Orion spacecraft's heat shield following the Artemis 1 mission, critical for the s...