If you’ve ever dreamed of flying on a rocket into space, this is literally your chance. In addition to providing this once in a lifetime opportunity, the proceeds from the sweepstakes will provide funding to an incredibly worthy charity – the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Jared Isaacman. founder of Shift4 Payments has committed $100 million as a donation to St. Jude’s and is providing 2 of the 4 seats on the SpaceX capsule for this fund raiser.

Isaacman and another billionaire will occupy seats one and two. Seat 3 will be awarded to a St. Jude mission ambassador, to be selected, who will exemplify the mission pillar of Hope.

The fourth seat will go to one lucky winner of the sweepstakes fundraiser drawing. To enter the drawing, simply go to this Prizeo web site (the company organizing the drawing), and make a donation to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The goal is to raise an additional $100 million for the noble charity.

As can be seen, there are a variety of donation levels, and each will provide you with about 10 sweepstakes tickets for every dollar donated – starting at 100 tickets for a $10 donation.

There is also a variety of merchandise, including mission patches, shirts, and even a ride in a Mig-29, which are given to those who donate at various levels.

St. Jude’s is celebrating its 59th anniversary. Over the years they have achieved a 94% survival rate for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a disease once considered incurable.

Recently they have launched St. Jude Global, a mission to dramatically improve pediatric cancer outcomes for all children, including those in low- and middle-income countries where survival rates lag far behind the U.S.

So, if you were planning to donate to charity this year, and every dreamed about going into space, now is the perfect time to donate to save children from cancer.

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For those not familiar, the Starship is the next evolution of SpaceX’s fleet of rockets and spacecraft. This one will eventually take us to Mars and beyond. Yesterday’s test flight was a high-altitude test of the Starship spacecraft (serial number 8 or SN8). The test did not include the booster rocket which will eventually be used when a Starship blasts off to leave the earth.

Watch the full Video replay of the SpaceX Starship test flight below in this article.

The Starship is 160ft tall and has the ability to carry over 100 tons of payload. During a mission launch, Starship will sit atop a SpaceX Super Heavy booster rocket capable of 16 million pounds of thrust. With the two stacked for launch, the complete Starship System stands 394 feet tall.

“SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket (collectively referred to as Starship) represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Starship will be the world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, with the ability to carry in excess of 100 metric tonnes to Earth orbit.” – SpaceX.com

The test flight yesterday was to see if the Starship spacecraft could complete a number of important functions for flight and re-entry. As you can see in the video replay below, it started with a launch of Starship and a high-altitude climb. Next the vehicle transitioned into a landing phase.

Part of the landing phase included a spectacular transition from vertical flight into horizontal flight, using its wing-like fins for maneuvering.

As it neared the ground, the Starship transitioned back to a vertical position and initiated its landing burn.

Although the engines fired to execute the landing, the final descent rate at touchdown was a little higher than planned. The result was the explosion of the SpaceX Starship which has been the focus of video streamed online and on news broadcasts.

On its YouTube page SpaceX talks about the test flight. “On Wednesday, December 9, Starship serial number 8 (SN8) lifted off from our Cameron County launch pad and successfully ascended, transitioned propellant, and performed its landing flip maneuver with precise flap control to reach its landing point.”

“Low pressure in the fuel header tank during the landing burn led to high touchdown velocity resulting in a hard (and exciting!) landing. Thank you to all the locals supporting our efforts in Cameron County and beyond. Congratulations to the entire Starship and SpaceX teams on today’s test! Serial number 9 (SN9) is up next – Mars, here we come!”

The company, and its founder Elon Musk, were very pleased with the test flight despite the explosion. All phases of the flight went extremely well, proving that the system works.

The pressure issue in the header tank has now been identified and will be corrected. As any engineer will tell you, you often learn a lot more from a system failure than from a success. That’s why the call them ‘test’ flights.

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The automated flight, 27 hours long, began with a dramatic night launch from Kennedy Space Center. The SpaceX capsule carrying 4 NASA astronauts then docked with the International Space Station late on Monday night.

Watch the SpaceX video replay of Crew Mission 1 Docking with the ISS below:

The connection occurred when the capsule was 262 miles above the Earth. Kate Rubins, on making the first radio contact to the dragon’s commander, remarked how pleasant it was to hear a human voice.

This is the second time that SpaceX has launched an astronaut crew to the ISS. The first mission in October was a test mission with 2 crew onboard. This mission, Crew Mission 1, was the first official crew delivery to the ISS and marks the beginning of a new future for American astronauts traveling into orbit and beyond.

The next replacement crew for ISS is planned in April. Until then, the astronauts, a Japanese and 3 Americans, will be staying in the orbit lab.

This new crew is now united the three already onboard the ISS, including 2 Russians and an American. One of the members of this week’s Hopkins crew, Glover, is the only African-American who went for such a long journey.

The 4 members of the crew have named the capsule ‘Resilience’, owed to the fact that times are really hard for the entire world due to pandemic, and this mission can serve as hope. There was a video broadcast on Monday displaying the storehouse, screen controls and the gravity indicator while touring their capsule.

For the launch, guests were kept to minimum due to coronavirus. Even the founder of SpaceX, Elon Musk didn’t join as he tweeted that he probably has an infection.

Instead, Elon Musk’s SpaceX was represented by Gwynne Shotwell, the president of SpaceX. While Elon Musk assured that he was quite involved, just a little remotely.

Dragon crew channeled the live streams showing views of New Zealand and the pacific almost 250 miles below when they were nearing the altitude to link-up. The SpaceX headquarters radioed saying that the view looks beautiful. 

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Just hours ago, at 6:24pm EST, SpaceX launched a Satellite for the United States Space Force. The Falcon 9 launch was a second attempt from a previously postponed launch attempt on October 2.

Watch the video replay of the launch further down in the article.

During that launch attempt, automated systems aborted the launch with just seconds to go in the count. The issue was with 2 of the 9 merlin engines on Falcon 9.

There were some clogged vents in valves in the two engines which. This was from lacquer that was used to protect some sensitive engine parts while they were receiving an anti-corrosion treatment.  

SpaceX has since identified the issue and made corrections to prevent it from occurring in the future.

With 2 replacement engines, tonight’s Falcon 9 blasted off from Pad 40 into the clear night sky on Florida’s Space Coast. With the clear air, the view of the launch was easily visible from 50 miles away in the Orlando area.

Watch a replay of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch GPS III-SV04 mission:

AS can be seen in the video replay, the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch was spectacular. All systems performed perfectly through all phases, including the landing of stage one on the recovery drone ship.

The SpaceX GPS III-SV04 mission carried an advanced GPS satellite into orbit for the U.S. Space Force. It is the third such satellite launched by SpaceX.

When complete, there will be 10 of these advanced GPS satellites in place high above the Earth. These have been designed to replace the older constellation of satellites in use by the military.

Onboard, these satellites have upgraded hardware and software which allows them to transmit higher-power signals. This makes it less likely that foreign agencies can jam the signals.

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Everything was looking good Friday night leading up to the latest Falcon 9 rocket launch. SpaceX reported all systems go and the weather at the Space Center was good.

The launch countdown proceeded without incident until just 2 seconds before liftoff. At the t-2 second mark, the engine pumps started to spool up in anticipation of ignition. But, as quickly as they spooled up, the computers commanded an abort.

As of yet there has been no official word as to the issue that caused the abort.

Watch the video replay of tonight’s launch attempt from SpaceX below:

If the issue can be resolved, the next launch window for the mission opens on Saturday evening at 9:39pm eastern time.

The same video link above should carry the SpaceX Falcon 9 live stream of the next launch attempt as well.

This launch will carry an advanced GPS satellite into orbit for the newly formed U.S. Space Force. It is dubbed, the GPS III Space Vehicle. The satellite is the fourth of its kind for the Space Force.

Ninety minutes after a successful launch, the satellite will separate from the SpaceX upper stage and move into orbit.     

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The first launch is a Delta IV-Heavy scheduled for 12:14am eastern on Sept 26, 2020. That’s a night launch in the very early hours of Saturday morning – or just after midnight on Friday night, depending on how you look at it.

While that’s technically a launch on Saturday, anyone going out to see the launch in person will certainly be driving out there Friday night.

The United Launch Alliance Delta IV-Heavy rocket will launch from pad 37B at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This launch had been attempted earlier on August 29. But the flight was halted just 3 seconds prior to lift-off due to a technical issue.

Onboard the Delta 4 is a classified spy satellite for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.

For anyone who can make it out to see the launch in person, it will be well worth the drive. A night launch of a rocket of this size will be something you will never forget.

The Delta IV-Heavy is the largest of the Delta IV family. It is the closest thing to what a night launch of the Space Shuttle was like.

With its 3 booster rockets mounted together, the launch will light up the midnight sky as if the Sun were rising out of the ground. Even from miles away, the Delta 4 will turn night into day all around you. It’s truly something that has to be experienced.

Second Rocket Launch of the Weekend

The second launch from the Space Center is also a rescheduled event.

On September 17, SpaceX scrubbed its latest launch attempt for a Falcon 9. Bad weather in the recovery zone for the Falcon 9 booster’s landing was to blame.

Instead, the Falcon 9 Starlink 12 rocket launch is now scheduled for 10:43am eastern on Sunday, Sept. 27.

Falcon 9 will blast off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. On this mission, it will put into orbit another 60 of the SpaceX Starlink Satellites.

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Unlike most of the launches in which the Falcon 9 lands on a drone ship in the ocean, yesterday’s landing took place back on solid ground at Florida’s space coast.

The spectacle of launch and landing happen in just the first 8 minutes of the mission. As you can see in the video replay of Falcon 9 launch & landing and deployment of a SAOCOM 1B satellite below.

With so many camera angles, each SpaceX launch is spectacular to watch both in person and online. In this video, at the 8-minute mark, SpaceX’s cameras provide an incredible split-screen view of the rocket booster as it descends and lands at the space center landing pad.

The satellite deployment is much earlier on this flight than usual, occurring just 14 minutes after launch.

Another very unusual aspect of yesterday’s launch is the initial launch and subsequent orbital flight path of the spacecraft.

Typically, rockets launching from the Kennedy Space Center head out east over the Atlantic for a standard west-to-east orbit around the earth, or sometimes departing to the north-east along the east coast of the United States for an orbit that syncs up with the International Space Station (ISS).

But Sunday’s launch of Falcon 9 and SAOCOM 1B headed south-west across the southern part of Florida, then over Cuba, and Central America eventually entering and releasing its payload into a polar orbit.

The SAOCOM 1B is the second of a pair of satellites which will monitor and report on soil moisture content and other data for scientists.

Launch Video Replay of SpaceX Falcon 9 SAOCOM 1B Mission

About an hour into its flight, the spacecraft also deployed two other satellites, GNOMES-1 and Tyvak-0172, as rideshare payloads.   There had been another Falcon 9 launch scheduled for Sunday morning. As of this writing, because of weather delays, that flight has been rescheduled for Thursday 8:26am Eastern time.

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For those who lived in or visited the area around the Kennedy Space Center, referred to as Florida’s Space Coast, during the Space Shuttle era, they will remember that opportunities to see a rocket launch came only a few times a year.

With the entrance of private space launch companies like SpaceX in recent years, that situation has changed dramatically. This week, in fact, will likely see a record for rocket launches from the Space Center.

In the span of just a few days, there will in be 3 rocket launches – beginning on Thursday.

Launch 1

In a matter of hours, the first of these launches will be a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket at 2:04 AM ET on August 29, 2020.

The Delta IV Heavy, the largest of its kind, will lift off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station launch complex 37 – just south of the Kennedy Space Center.

Carried aloft by three large booster rockets, the launch of the Delta IV Heavy should be easy to see from Eastern and Central Florida against the dark night sky.

The rocket will carry a classified spy satellite into orbit for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.

Launch 2

In what will be a record setting week, the second rocket launch in just three days is scheduled to take place around 10:08 am on Sunday morning, August 30.

Like the Falcon 9 from a couple weeks ago, Saturday’s Falcon 9 will carry another of the company’s 60 Starlink satellites into orbit. This is part of SpaceX’s mission to build a constellation of satellites which will provide affordable broadband internet to even the most remote parts of the planet.

But if you miss either one of these launches, don’t worry – there’s yet another one coming up.

Launch 3

On Sunday, August 30th, SpaceX will be launching two of its Falcon 9 Rockets on the same day! The second of these will be Sunday evening, at 7:19 pm eastern time.

On this mission, Falcon 9 will lift-off carrying a SAOCOM 1B Earth observation satellite for Argentina. This launch for Elon Musk’s company is the third SpaceX Falcon 9 to fly in just the last few weeks.

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While most people only think about the launch companies in this sector, there is an interdependence between a number of companies in the expanding commercial space industry.

One other such company, BlackSky, recently announced that it has selected ATLAS to fulfill a need for support of its space related services. BlackSky uses a constellation of satellites which use imaging and other sensors to gather data which they in turn use to help other companies and organizations interpret and monitor global data and trends.

“ATLAS Space Operations is a key partner in our promise to make our customers the first to know about areas and events important to them,” said Nick Merski, VP Space Operations.

“Our companies share similar DNA which includes great people creatively solving important problems.”

Under the terms of the deal, ATLAS will support two of BlackSky’s imaging satellites from its ground stations in Japan and Guam. ATLAS will handle the telemetry and other data relays between Earth and the satellites.

BlackSky is currently building a constellation that will eventually consist of 60 satellites.

Most recently, the company sent up two of its most advances imaging satellites. Each of which is capable of providing color images with a resolution of up to 1-meter.

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This morning’s launch from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral on Florida’s Space Coast went off without a hitch as clear skies and light winds prevailed.

As with every SpaceX launch, the event was streamed live via multiple vantage points thanks to cameras on the ground, the recovery ships at sea, and several mounted on various components of the rocket and stages.

Watch a video replay of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch below:

Today’s launch was the 6^th time that this Falcon 9 booster has carried a payload aloft and then safely landed on the drone recovery ship in the Atlantic Ocean. It’s last flight before today was in June 2020.

This unique ability to reuse both the rockets and the fairings repeatedly is allowing SpaceX to ‘crush the competition’ in terms of the cost of putting payloads into orbit.

Many liken it to the difference we would pay for an airline ticket if the airplane had to be thrown away after each flight.

In the video replay of today’s launch, you can see the launch and separation of the rocket from the second stage carrying the Starlink satellites (about 18 minutes after liftoff). Cameras on the rocket and the drone ship also provide great views of the re-entry and landing of Falcon 9.

Today’s launch put 58 more SpaceX’s Starlink satellites into orbit, and also carried 3 SkySat satellites for a customer.

About 12 minutes after lift-off, a rear facing camera provides a great view of deployment of the 3 SkySats, and then Starlinks about another 34 minutes later.

The next scheduled launch for SpaceX is later this month on the evening August 27 at 7:19pm Eastern.

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