Space Brief 17 Nov 2025
Today's highlights include key advancements for the Dream Chaser, SpaceX's record launches, Moon mission crowding concerns, and updates in European space policy.
Launch Date
September 21, 2000
Launch Site
AFWTR
Launch Pad
SLC4W
Launch Vehicle
Titan II SLV
NORAD ID
41250
International Designator
2000-055FA
Decay Date
2/19/2026
Name
NOAA 16 DEB
Alternative Name
deb NOAA 16
Type
Status
Owner
NOAA
Country
United States
Constellation
N/A
Related Satellites
Major Events
N/A
Length
0
Diameter
0
Span
0
Dry Mass
0
Launch Mass
0
Shape
N/A
Radar Cross Section
0.0018
Visual Magnitude
Unknown
Color
Unknown
Material Composition
Unknown
Payload
Unknown
Purpose
Unknown
Mission
Unknown
Manufacturer
Unknown
Life Expectancy
Unknown
Bus
Unknown
Configuration
Unknown
Motor
Unknown
Equipment
Unknown
Power System
Unknown
ADCS
Unknown
Transmitter Frequency
Unknown
Learn more about satellites and other related topics.
Today's highlights include key advancements for the Dream Chaser, SpaceX's record launches, Moon mission crowding concerns, and updates in European space policy.
On 21 June 2004, a 63-year-old test pilot rode a homebuilt rocket plane to 100,124 meters above the Mojave Desert, clearing the edge of space by about the length of a city block. He came down the first private astronaut in history, holding a sign that read 'SpaceShipOne, GovernmentZero.'
On April 18, 2014, a Falcon 9 first stage did something no orbital rocket had ever done before. It fired its engines on the way down, steered itself through the atmosphere using grid fins that did not yet exist, and touched the Atlantic Ocean softly enough to survive the impact. Nobody recovered it. The data was the whole point.
SpaceX's Crew-10 astronauts are set to return to Earth after a five-month mission, while the company prepares for the launch of 24 new Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Europe's bid to break free from the US launch monopoly. How Sweden's Esrange Space Center is transforming access to space, enabling orbital launches, and strengthening strategic independence for the continent.
SpaceX progresses with Starship developments and sets sights on NASA's upcoming 3D sky-mapping satellite launch.
Today's key topics include the halting of the U.S. Air Force's rocket landing pad plans, the Space Force's shift to a flexible satellite strategy, delays in Australia's Eris 1 rocket launch, and the controversial cut of satellite sea-ice data to climate scientists.
NASA delays first 2026 spacewalk due to ISS crew medical issue. Sierra Space completes SDA Tranche 2 satellite structures ahead of schedule. Space Force advances Handle 2.0 standardization.