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 new White House policy calls for the Pentagon to craft plans for additional space launch facilities to support a projected increase in launch demand that could see the U.S. supporting as many as 1,000 launches by 2030, more than a fivefold increase from 2025.