The conversation took place amid the flight readiness review for the Artemis 2 mission, which is currently set to launch no earlier than April 1, 2026, pending work being completed in the Vehicle Assembly Building.
At the conclusion of a two-day flight readiness review, “all the teams polled ‘go’ to launch and fly Artemis 2 around the moon, pending completion of some of the work before we roll out to the launch pad,” said Lori Glaze, associate administrator of Exploration Systems Development at NASA Headquarters.
The Starlink 10-48 mission added another 29 broadband internet satellites to the company’s constellation in low Earth orbit. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 8:37:10 a.m. EDT (1237:10 UTC).
The Starlink 17-31 mission was SpaceX’s 25th mission supporting its broadband internet satellite constellation so far in 2026. Liftoff from pad 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base happened at 7:57:59 a.m. PDT (10:57:59 a.m. EDT / 1457:59 UTC).
NASA’s Office of Inspector General said that while NASA is working to “mitigate and prevent hazards” associated with lunar landers being built by SpaceX and Blue Origin, “there are currently gaps in the agency’s approach, including in its testing posture and crew survival analyses,” including what might happen after a catastrophic but non-fatal event.
The launch of the EchoStar 25 satellite was SpaceX’s first launch to a geosynchronous transfer orbit so far this year. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 12:19 a.m. EDT (0419 UTC)).
The upper stage of United launch Alliance’s Vulcan rockets performed successfully across the first four flights of the rocket since 2024. The first launch of a Centaur 5 as part of a Space Launch System rocket would be on the Artemis 4 mission.
The Starlink 17-18 mission added 25 more satellites to SpaceX’s low Earth orbit megaconstellation. Liftoff from pad 4E happened at 4:00:19 a.m. PDT (7:00:19 a.m. EDT / 1100:19 UTC).
This Series C funding was led by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, which invested €50 million ($58 million). To date, PLD Space raised more than €350 million ($407 million).
The Starlink 10-40 mission included the 600th Starlink satellite launched so far in 2026. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 5:52:20 a.m. EST (1052:20 UTC).
The Starlink 10-41 mission saw the Falcon 9 rocket head out on a north-easterly trajectory upon leaving pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff happened on March 1 at 9:56:40 p.m. EST (0256:40 UTC).
Liftoff of the Starlink 17-23 mission occurred at 2:10:39 a.m. PST (5:10:39 a.m. EST / 1010:39 UTC). The rocket, carrying 25 Starlink V2 Mini satellites, took southerly trajectory on departure from Vandenberg Space Force Base.
New NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced a major overhaul of the agency’s Artemis moon program Friday, acknowledging that the agency’s plan to land astronauts on the moon in 2028 was not realistic without another preparatory mission first to lay the groundwork.