News Archive / Author: Nicholas D'Alessandro
Nicholas D'Alessandro was born and raised in Southwest Florida. The seeds of his interest in Space Exploration were planted when the Shuttle's sonic boom upon re-entry would reverberate through his childhood home even across the state; the knowledge that a real life spacecraft was passing overhead and could have that effect was fascinating to him. A middle school field trip to the Kennedy Space Center cemented that fascination, and with an additional interest in the bleeding edge of automotive technology and Teslas, it was the story of Elon Musk's path to Cape Canaveral with SpaceX that finally led Nicholas to move to the Space Coast and, after joining Spaceflight Insider in 2020, begin documenting the dawning era of commercial spaceflight.
Articles By Nicholas D'Alessandro
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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk offers details on Starship SN11 explosion
April 7th, 2021SpaceX Starship SN11 met a fiery demise last week, like the three iterations before it. Recently, Elon Musk tweeted details on why the prototype exploded.
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Starship SN11 launch delayed because FAA inspector not present
March 29th, 2021SpaceX's Starship SN11 appeared ready to fly March 29 as its flaps were unchained and tested with Highway 4 beginning to close down as well.
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SpaceX completes SN11 static fire, flight shifts to NET Monday
March 26th, 2021Starship SN11 was set to perform a same-day double header on Friday, March 26, combining a static fire and test flight in Boca Chica, Texas.
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Friday Flyday: Starship SN11 launch plans cancelled for March 24, 25
March 23rd, 2021The Starship SN11 high-altitude test flight window has shifted to the right by a day as of this writing with a launch now no earlier than March 25.
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Starship SN11 completes 2nd static fire ahead of launch attempt
March 22nd, 2021SpaceX was able to complete the second static firing of Starship SN11 early Monday morning, which appeared to be a healthy full-duration test in comparison to the first attempt last Monday.
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Starship SN11 takes a breather, Super Heavy BN1 takes shape
March 19th, 2021SN11 Friday update, for March 19, 2021: The test campaign for Starship appears to be taking a ‘Spring Break weekend’, with no additional static fire attempts following Monday’s partial test.
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Update on Starship SN11 as SpaceX marches toward a static fire
March 17th, 2021SpaceX Starship production continues right along with Starship SN11 now undergoing the Raptor engine static fire phase of testing.
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Starship SN10 sticks the landing, explodes minutes later
March 3rd, 2021SpaceX finally completed a key milestone in its Starship test program after three tries—successfully landing a Starship after a high-altitude flight and subsequent landing flip maneuver.
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Emergency Flight Termination System for SN10 is in place; Starship test flight imminent
March 3rd, 2021On Feb. 28, workers installed the flight termination system, or FTS, on Starship SN10 in what has proven to be the key event in the testing campaign that separates the preflight testing phase from the flight attempt phase.
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SpaceX’s Starship SN10 set to fly, aims to stick the landing
March 2nd, 2021SpaceX's Starship SN10 finally appears ready to fly after a several tumultuous weeks in Texas following the SN9 test flight.
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SpaceX Starship SN10 high-altitude test flight slips to March 3
March 1st, 2021The high-altitude test flight of Starship SN10 has slipped again, as is common with SpaceX's highly experimental test program.
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Starship SN9 lands hard following high-altitude test
February 2nd, 2021SpaceX was finally able to launch its Starship SN9 prototype in a much-anticipated sophomore outing for the high-altitude test flight program. However, an engine issue appeared to cause the vehicle to land explosively.
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Amid FAA delays, twin Starships stand tall in Boca Chica
January 29th, 2021While SpaceX and Starship SN9 continue to face regulatory holds from the Federal Aviation Administration for flight certification, Starship SN10 has been rolled out to the launch pad.
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SpaceX set for ambitious Starship SN9 high-altitude test
January 26th, 2021SpaceX's Starship SN9 continues the company's theme of ultra-rapid development, with the next high-altitude flight test coming as early as this week.
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Gallery: Preparations for Starship SN9 test flight continue
January 25th, 2021Preflight testing for Starship SN9 appears to be complete ahead of the follow-up to last-month's unprecedented SN8 high-altitude flight.
