Unmanned Amateur Rocket Reaches Space

A team of amateur rocket builders accomplished a major feat this week; the first privately built rocket to reach the edge of space. The 6.5-metre (21 foot) unmanned rocket blasted off from its Nevada launch pad, and reached a speed of 6500 km/h (4000 m/h) in only 9 seconds. Based on this velocity, the Civilian Space Exploration Team (CSXT) calculated that it would have reached the official edge of space at 100 km (62.5 m). The CSXT team has detected the rocket’s landing telemetry information, but hasn’t been able to locate it on the ground yet.

Fraser Cain

Fraser Cain is the publisher of Universe Today. He's also the co-host of Astronomy Cast with Dr. Pamela Gay. Here's a link to my Mastodon account.

Recent Posts

James Webb’s Big Year for Cosmology

The James Webb Space Telescope was designed and built to study the early universe, and…

1 hour ago

A Mission to Dive Titan’s Lakes – and Soar Between Them

Titan is one of the solar system's most fascinating worlds for several reasons. It has…

8 hours ago

Top Astronomy Events for 2025

Catching the best sky watching events for the coming year 2025. Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS…

11 hours ago

Is the Universe a Fractal?

For decades cosmologists have wondered if the large-scale structure of the universe is a fractal:…

1 day ago

How Did Black Holes Grow So Quickly? The Jets

A current mystery in astronomy is how supermassive black holes gained so much heft so…

1 day ago

Quantum Correlations Could Solve the Black Hole Information Paradox

The black hole information paradox has puzzled physicists for decades. New research shows how quantum…

2 days ago