Main Engine Cut Off

A special preview of the MECO Headlines shows: Elon Musk kinda-sorta-maybe announces the Falcon Heavy demo payload, Russia and China carry out successful military launches, NASA announces some very interesting NextSTEP-2 contracts, OA-8E Cygnus departs ISS, and SpaceX’s SLC-40 is back, baby! This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, and five anonymous—and 107 other supporters on Patreon. Elon Musk on Twitter: “Falcon Heavy to launch next month from Apollo 11 pad at the Cape. Will have double thrust of next largest rocket.” Elon Musk on Twitter: “Payload will be my midnight cherry Tesla Roadster playing Space Oddity. Destination is Mars orbit. Will be in deep space for a billion years…” Intelligence-gathering satellite deployed in orbit for Russian military - Spaceflight Now Russia launches Lotos mission via Soyuz 2-1B rocket | NASASpaceFlight.com Long

I was in Houston last week and I visited NanoRacks for a bit. And Virgin Orbit piqued the interest of the Department of Defense, which has some interesting implications. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 22 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, Brian, and five anonymous—and 104 other supporters on Patreon. Virgin Orbit wins first Defense Department launch contract - SpaceNews.com STRATCOM chief Hyten: ‘I will not support buying big satellites that make juicy targets’ - SpaceNews.com Revival of Cape Canaveral’s LC-46 begins with Minotaur Pathfinder Assembly - Spaceflight101 Orbital ATK’s Next-Generation Composite Case Passes Structural Acceptance Test - Main Engine Cut Off Orbital ATK Successfully Tests First Motor Case for Next Generation Launch Vehicle | Orbital ATK News Room Orbital ATK on Twitter: “Our Next Generation Launch Vehicle achieves critical milestone with completion of structural acc

SES gives us a preview of their new GEO strategy (which may be a harbinger of the future), Orbital ATK tests a new composite case to be used for their Next-Generation Launcher and future SLS boosters, NASA approves the use of previously-flown Falcon 9 first stages, and SpaceX sets off some LOX fireworks down in McGregor, Texas. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, Brian, and five anonymous—and 96 other supporters on Patreon. SES Rethinks GEO Model - Main Engine Cut Off SES tells satellite builders to prepare for a total rethink of their business - Space Intel Report Orbital ATK’s Next-Generation Composite Case Passes Structural Acceptance Test - Main Engine Cut Off Orbital ATK Successfully Tests First Motor Case for Next Generation Launch Vehicle | Orbital ATK News Room Orbital ATK on Twitter: “Our Next Generation Launch Vehicle achieves critical m

Blue Origin fired up their BE-4 engine for the first time, which is a big moment. And I share some meandering thoughts on the future of commercial and military launch. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 22 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, and five anonymous—and 95 other supporters on Patreon. Blue Origin on Twitter: “First hotfire of our BE-4 engine is a success #GradatimFerociter” Blue Origin just sent a jolt through the aerospace industry | Ars Technica Tory Bruno on Twitter: “@WeHaveMECO CDR in December. Tooling is the factory. First hardware in fab. pad mods underway” Tory Bruno on Twitter: “@IanPineapple @WeHaveMECO Cape pad will be backwards compatible. VAFB may not need that” Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Listen to MECO Headlines Join the MECO Discord Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Google Play, Stitc

Tory Bruno wrote an op-ed in SpaceNews regarding Vulcan and its future, and he announced that ULA will be upgrading Centaur. Elon Musk spent some time on reddit talking about BFR and updating us on some of the details. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 21 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 92 other supporters on Patreon. Off-Nominal Off-Nominal - Main Engine Cut Off FA8811-17-9-0001; Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) Launch Service Agreements (LSA) Request for Proposals (RFP) - Federal Business Opportunities: Opportunities Op-ed | Building on a successful record in space to meet the challenges ahead - SpaceNews.com Op-ed by Tory Bruno | Building on a successful record in space to meet the challenges ahead : ula /u/ToryBruno on reddit T+45: 2018 Air Force Launch Vehicle Contracts, and the Dim Future of Antares - Main Engine Cut Off House Members Ask Air Force to Fund Ve

Chris Gebhardt of NASASpaceflight joins me to discuss Elon Musk’s presentation last week, in which he provided an update to the BFR. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 20 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 82 other supporters on Patreon. Chris Gebhardt on Twitter Making Life Multiplanetary The Moon, Mars, & around the Earth – Musk updates BFR architecture, plans | NASASpaceFlight.com SES-10 Press Conference in which Chris grills Elon until he says “Wow, you’re really in the details there.” Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Listen to MECO Headlines Join the MECO Discord Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon

Northrop Grumman is acquiring Orbital ATK in a $9.2 billion deal. Lockheed Martin unveiled a new family of satellite busses, positioning themselves for the next era of satellite bus production. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 20 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 77 other supporters on Patreon. Northrop Grumman to acquire Orbital ATK - SpaceNews.com Analysts see red flags in Northrop’s acquisition of Orbital ATK - SpaceNews.com Lockheed won’t protest now two-way race to refresh U.S. nuclear arsenal - SpaceNews.com All in the Family: Lockheed Martin Introduces New Satellite Lineup - Sep 19, 2017 Lockheed Martin unveils new satellite bus lineup - SpaceNews.com Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Listen to MECO Headlines Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere Subscribe to the Main Engine

Blue Origin announced a size increase to New Glenn’s fairing, and OneWeb has decided to keep their Toulouse factory open for other customers after their initial 10-satellite production run is over. Both decisions bring about some interesting implications for the market at large. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 19 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, and five anonymous—and 69 other supporters on Patreon. Blue Origin | New Glenn Blue Origin on Twitter: “Given customer response, we’re going straight to the 7m fairing and skipping 5.4m. Customers liking options the 2X volume provides.” New Glenn Gets Larger Fairing - Main Engine Cut Off OneWeb Satellites to keep Toulouse factory open for other customers - SpaceNews.com OneWeb Satellites to keep Toulouse factory open for other customers - Main Engine Cut Off Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Listen to MECO Hea

Jake Robins of the WeMartians Podcast joins me to discuss the state and future of the Mars exploration program, lean sample return, and more. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 18 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, and four anonymous—and 69 other supporters on Patreon. WeMartians Podcast - WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter WeMartians 029 - A Teenage Rover (feat. Mike Seibert) Mars Exploration Program, Thomas H. Zurbuchen, NASA SMD Associate Administrator, Presentation to National Academies (PDF, 1.9MB) NASA proposes rapid Mars sample return architecture - SpaceNews.com NASA considers kicking Mars sample return into high gear | The Planetary Society A future comes into focus for the Mars Exploration Program | The Planetary Society Space Policy Edition #16: NASA's Flagship Missions: Are They Worth It? | The Planetary Society Powering Science: N

I spent 2 minutes and 40 seconds in the shadow of the Moon in Gallatin, TN. Totality was an incredibly powerful experience, and I wanted to share what it was like to be there as best I could. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 66 other supporters on Patreon. Exploring Nashville My exact location in Gallatin, TN for totality My 8" Dobsonian telescope setup My photo of totality on Flickr Path of April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse in North America Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon

Caleb Henry of SpaceNews joins me to discuss the slowdown in GEO satellite orders, the latest on the big LEO constellations, and what’s up with the sky falling. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 65 other supporters on Patreon. Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) | Twitter Caleb Henry, Author at SpaceNews.com Lack of satellite orders triggers layoffs at Space Systems Loral - SpaceNews.com MDA slashes GEO order expectations - SpaceNews.com NGA director supports commercial remote sensing regulatory reform - SpaceNews.com Smallsat developers propose self-regulation to address orbital debris concerns - SpaceNews.com Three Orbcomm OG2 satellites malfunctioning, fate to be determined - SpaceNews.com SES loses 12 transponders on NSS-806 satellite, says impact is temporary - SpaceNews.com Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO S

Rocket Lab completed their investigation into what went wrong on their first launch, Virgin Orbit’s carrier 747 arrived in Long Beach, and I discuss a few NASA-backed advanced propulsion projects. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 66 other supporters on Patreon. Main Engine Cut Off | Listen OnDemand Free | TuneIn Rocket Lab Completes Post-Flight Analysis | Rocket Lab Rocket Lab Addresses Vehicle Roll on Twitter Telemetry glitch kept first Electron rocket from reaching orbit - SpaceNews.com Rocket Lab clear on why first launch failed and confident to go again - NZ Herald Virgin Orbit plans 2018 first launch - SpaceNews.com Virgin Orbit Tweet Shows Launch Vehicle Hardware Virgin Orbit - NewtonThree Hotfire (5 June 2017) - YouTube Virgin Orbit - NewtonFour Hotfire (29 June 2017) - YouTube LauncherOne Service Guide (PDF, 2.5MB) Vector raises $21 million for

I spend some time thinking through what the future of the ISS holds, and what may come after it. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 65 other supporters on Patreon. The Space Review: Pondering the future of the International Space Station T+20: Mike Johnson, Chief Designer at NanoRacks on NanoRacks’ History, NextSTEP, and Wet Workshops - Main Engine Cut Off NanoRacks | The Operating System of Space NanoRacks To Catalyze Concepts for Deep Space Habitats Bigelow Aerospace Axiom Space The Space Show, 01/06/2017, Michael Suffredini, Amir Blachman, Axiom Space Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, or elsewhere Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patre

Eric Berger returns to the show to talk about Elon Musk and SpaceX’s crusade against cost-plus contracting, the end of Red Dragon, where NASA policy is heading, and what SpaceX may have in store for the Air Force’s next round of development contracts. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 63 other supporters on Patreon. Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) | Twitter Elon Musk knows what’s ailing NASA—costly contracting | Ars Technica Elon Musk’s Mars rocket may be about to lose half of its engines | Ars Technica SpaceX appears to have pulled the plug on its Red Dragon plans | Ars Technica Farewell, Red Dragon - Main Engine Cut Off SpaceX goes there—seeks government funds for deep space | Ars Technica NASA finally admits it doesn’t have the funding to land humans on Mars | Ars Technica Op-ed: We love you SpaceX, and hope you reach Mars. But we need you to focus. | Ars Tech

Loren Grush of The Verge joins me to talk about Falcon Heavy, SpaceX cancelling Dragon 2 propulsive landings, Red Dragon riding off into the sunset, Moon Express, US space policy, and a whole lot more. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 62 other supporters on Patreon. Loren Grush (@lorengrush) | Twitter Elon Musk suggests SpaceX is scrapping its plans to land Dragon capsules on Mars - The Verge Farewell, Red Dragon - Main Engine Cut Off Larry Lemke - Red Dragon: Low Cost Access to the Surface of Mars (SETI Talks) - YouTube Meet Scott Pace, the National Space Council's new executive secretary | The Planetary Society JAXA Interested in NASA’s Deep Space Gateway - Main Engine Cut Off To mine the Moon, private company Moon Express plans to build a fleet of robotic landers - The Verge How Moon Express could use robots to mine the Moon - YouTube Email your thoughts

XCOR laid off the rest of its staff and is closing up shop after losing a contract with ULA, which leaves ULA in an interesting spot for Vulcan-ACES. On the ULA side, they won their first Phase 1A contract from the Air Force, and the contract price sheds some light on just how much they’re cutting their costs. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 56 other supporters on Patreon. XCOR Aerospace Lays Off Entire Staff But Intends To Keep Going XCOR Loses XS-1 and ULA ACES Contract, Announces Lay Offs - Main Engine Cut Off ULA wins competition for $191 million Air Force launch - SpaceNews.com United Launch Alliance Wins Competitive Contract Award to Launch the United States Air Force STP-3 M - United Launch Alliance Very interesting comments on STP-3 from Tory Bruno on the ULA subreddit NASA - NASA Selects Launch Services Provider for Juno Jupiter Mission Air Forc

SpaceX launched two missions last weekend, flew new titanium grid fins on Falcon 9, and are really picking up the pace. And Blue Origin got cozy with the Alabama Launch Alliance by announcing that they’ll build the BE-4 production facility in Huntsville—if the engine is chosen for Vulcan. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 15 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 55 other supporters on Patreon. SpaceX Doubleheader — Main Engine Cut Off NASASpaceflight on Twitter United Launch Alliance Issues Layoff Notices at Vandenberg AFB | Business - Noozhawk.com Blue Origin retains engine lead as House considers limitations on launch system funding - SpaceNews.com What just happened between Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Alabama? | AL.com Aerojet Rocketdyne bringing 800 rocket jobs to Alabama | AL.com The Alabama Launch Alliance - Main Engine Cut Off Thornberry Walks Back Vulcan Intervention - Main Engine Cut Off Email

Boeing’s proposal won Phases 2 and 3 of DARPA’s XS-1 program, and I’m pretty bummed about it. And the Air Force announced that SpaceX will launch the fifth X-37B mission in August. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 14 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, and four anonymous—and 52 other supporters on Patreon. Thoughts on XS-1 - Main Engine Cut Off DARPA selects Boeing for spaceplane project - SpaceNews.com Bulgariasat launch realigns; SpaceX secures X-37B launch contract | NASASpaceFlight.com SpaceX will launch next secret X-37 Air Force mission - SpaceNews.com Tory Bruno says ULA didn’t get to compete for Air Force X-37B launch that went to SpaceX - SpaceNews.com Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Follow @WeHaveMECO Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, or elsewhere Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop Suppo

Dr. Thomas Lang, Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at the UCSF School of Medicine, joins the show to discuss human health and physiology in space. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 13 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, and four anonymous—and 51 other supporters on Patreon. Thomas Lang | UCSF Profiles NASA Honors Two UCSF Scientists for Top Discoveries in Microgravity | UC San Francisco Browse Articles | npj Microgravity Towards human exploration of space: the THESEUS review series on muscle and bone research priorities | npj Microgravity The Space Show - March 7, 2017 - Dr. Francis Cucinotta on space radiation Study Reveals Immune System is Dazed and Confused During Spaceflight | NASA For an Immune Cell, Microgravity Mimics Aging | NASA Spaceflight alters expression of microRNA during T-cell activation. - PubMed - NCBI Spaceflight and simulated microgravity cause a significant reduction of key gene expression in early T-cell

Rand Simberg joins me to talk about his recent trip to the Space Tech Expo, the dawning of the age of in-space manufacturing, the future of SLS and Orion, the National Space Council, and a lot more. This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 12 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, and four anonymous—and 50 other supporters on Patreon. Rand Simberg Transterrestrial Musings Safe Is Not An Option: Overcoming The Futile Obsession With Getting Everyone Back Alive That Is Killing Our Expansion Into Space Safe Is Not An Option on Amazon Space Tech Expo USA Loser of  ULA’s Vulcan engine downselect will likely lose Air Force funding - SpaceNews.com NASA inspector questions why agency built rocket test stands in Alabama | Ars Technica Virgin Orbit on Twitter The Long Space Age, by Alexander MacDonald DARPA selects Boeing for spaceplane project - SpaceNews.com Thoughts on XS-1 - Main Engine Cut Off Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com Fo