A fuel leak fire ended the space launch of the Air Force Academy’s FalconSat-2 satellite. Launch of the SpaceX aerospace firm’s Falcon1 rocket ended seconds into its flight from Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific last Friday. The launch—first for SpaceX founder Elon Musk—originally was slated for November, then December, then earlier this year. Musk told the BBC that he hoped to have another rocket ready to launch in less than six months.
A top Pentagon tech official called on industry this week to help the military develop “lighter, more efficient” directed energy weapons designed to go on aircraft and conduct special operations missions or down drones—areas where the Air Force’s directed energy efforts have been quiet as of late.