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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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.
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NASA adds New Glenn to Launch Services Program
January 14th, 2021Last month, the U.S. space agency awarded a NASA Launch Services contract to Blue Origin and its New Glenn rocket.
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Starship makes successful first, high altitude test flight
December 11th, 2020At 4:45 p.m. CDT Dec. 9, 2020, the SpaceX Starship prototype SN8 finally launched in an unprecedented and long-awaited flight test of the vehicle.
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15-kilometer test flight approaching for Starship SN8
December 2nd, 2020The most complex test yet for SpaceX's Starship design, prototype SN8, is fast approaching, according to road closure notices from Cameron County, Texas.
