Weekly Space Report: 2025 Wrap and 2026 Speculation

[pturmel]

Starship’s Fastest Booster Ever: What Comes Next

Highlights:

• Booster 19 assembly complete, ready for its test campaign

• Blue Origin poaches CEO Tony from United Launch Alliance

• V3 Starship features simplified and souped up Raptor3 throughout

• Key milestone–Ship tower catch–expected in 2026

• Rendezvous and propellant transfer also expected in 2026. Setting the stage for HLS and Mars missions.

• Extended discussion of propellant transfer tech and opportunities.

• Scheduling Moon versus Mars in regards to 2026 transfer window constraints.

• HLS Landing Legs speculation

• Florida Infrastructure and launch/catch cadence discussion

• Current filings show a total of five launch/catch towers and three catch-only towers (including TX).

• Quick review of all the activity in 2025, with replay of highlights from Starship TF11.

[CTLaw]

@pturmel

• Florida Infrastructure and launch/catch cadence discussion
• Current filings show a total of five launch/catch towers and three catch-only towers (including TX)

Includes LC-49 Starship-Super Heavy discussion. Also See:

Weekly Space Report: SpaceX Super Heavy 31 Engine Static Fire, Water Deluge System, ULA Vulcan Integration, Starship Florida Launch Site at LC-49?

[SpaceX Breaks New Ground with Epic Static Fire: But how powerful was it really?]

SpaceX Plans for THREE Times Larger Starship Starbase in Florida!

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/12/starship-lc-49-ksc/

LC-49 is roughly at the site of unbuilt LC-39C.

Also:

Starship in Florida

The Eastern Range is working with NASA to be able to host SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy flights from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in early- to mid-2026, the range director and commander of Space Launch Delta 45 said Nov. 21.

[Gavin]

@pturmel

Blue Origin poaches CEO Tony from United Launch Alliance

Because ULA has such an impressive record of innovation and success ???