Weekly Update - April 4 - 11th
Here’s your Spaceflight Weekly Update!
The past 8 days have been filled with excitement! Here’s a Summary of those events.
ULA | Amazon LEO (LA-05)
On April 4th at 1:46 AM EST, ULA launched Amazon LEO (LA-05) aboard an Atlas V from SLC-41 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Our photographers, Asher B., Kyle H., and Tyler R., were there to capture this Mission.
Image Credit: Kyle H.
SpaceX | Starlink Group 17-35
On Monday, April 6th, SpaceX successfully launched Starlink Group 17-35 into orbit, adding 25 more Starlink satellites to the mega-constellation from SLC-4E at Vandenberg SFB, California.
The First stage Booster B1103 launched and landed for it’s 1st time on this mission.
The booster landed on the drone ship, Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY), which was stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
Image Credit: SpaceX
Northrop | STP-S29A
On April 7th, 7:33 AM EST, Northrop launched Minotaur IV carrying STP-S29A from SLC-8 at Vandenberg SFB, California. This Mission launched 5 CubeSat Rideshare Satellites, Rawhide, CANVAS, MISR-C, AggieSat6, and ASTRA-HyRAX. This was the 7th Minotaur IV launch.
Image Credit: Northrop Grumman
CASC | SpaceSail Polar Group- 07
On Tuesday, April 7th, 9:32 AM EST, CASC Launched SpaceSail Polar Group 07 aboard the Long March 8 rocket,
This mission carried 18 payloads into a Polar Orbit.
The payloads aboard were 18 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites with Ku, Q, and V band payloads for the G60 constellation operated by Shanghai Spacesail Technologies, with funding backed by the Shanghai local government.
The Initial Satellite constellation will consist of 1296 satellites by 2027. They also have long-term plans to expand to 12000 satellites.
CASC | SatNet LEO Group 21
On Thursday, April 9th, 3:38 AM Local time, CASC launched SatNet LEO Group 21 aboard the Long March 6A from LC-9A in Taiyuan Launch Center, China.
The rocket carried a batch of 5 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites into a Low Polar Orbit.
NASA | Artemis II Return’s
On Friday, April 10th, 5:07 PM PDT, NASA successfully returned the Astronauts Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Christina Koch (Mission Specialist), and Jeremy Hansen (CSA Mission Specialist) to Earth safely, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the Coast of San Diego, California.
Image Credit: NASA - James Blair
SpaceX | Starlink Group 17-21
On Saturday, April 11th, 1:04 AM EST, SpaceX successfully launched Starlink Group 17-21 into orbit, adding 25 more Starlink satellites to the mega-constellation from SLC-4E at Vandenberg SFB, California.
The First stage Booster B1063 landed for its 32nd time on this mission and previously supported Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, DART, Transporter-7, Iridium OneWeb, SDA-0B, NROL-113, NROL-167, NROL-149, NAOS, and now 23 Starlink missions. The booster landed on the drone ship, Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY), which was stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
Image Credit: SpaceX
NASA | CRS NG-24 Mission
On Saturday, April 11th, 7:41 AM EST, SpaceX successfully launched Falcon 9 carrying NG-24 to the ISS,
This mission carried the Cygnus resupply payload to the International Space Station
The First stage Booster B1094 landed for its 7th time on this mission and previously supported Ax-4, Crew-11, NG-23, and three Starlink missions. Following stage separation, Falcon 9 landed on Landing Zone 40 (LZ-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
The booster landed on the Landing Zone LZ-40 back at the SLC-40 Launch site. This is the second time SpaceX has landed a Booster back at Landing Zone-40. SpaceX previously landed B1101 at LZ-40 for the first time during the Crew-12 Mission on Friday, February 13th 2026
Image Credit: Asher B.
More Image’s from CRS NG-24 Mission
SpaceX | Booster 19 Rolls out to Launch Site
On Saturday, April 11th, SpaceX rolled Starship Booster 19 out to the Launch site ahead of the test campaign.
This Campaign will consist of an Engine Spin Prime test and a Booster Static Fire Test.
Credit: SpaceX
SpaceX | Ship 39 Rolls out to Massey's test stand
On Saturday, April 11th, SpaceX rolled Starship out to the Massey’s test site ahead of the test campaign.
This Campaign will consist of an Engine Spin Prime test and a Ship Static Fire Test.
Credit: SpaceX
