Technology, 3D printer, models Starbase OLIT mechazilla, starship, photography and 3D model maker .
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Joined April 2014
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TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Neutron’s Stage 2 and Thrust Module have arrived to Virginia. After a short barge ride from the Neutron Factory, these major assemblies have now been offloaded on Wallops Island and are going through arrival checkouts.
Next up: integrated fluids testing and launch mount interface checkouts for the Thrust Module, with Stage 2 to follow on the test stand beside it soon after.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Spent time with our astronaut candidates and Artemis III crew at @NASA HQ today. Different stages of training, but a shared determination to take on some of the most demanding endeavors of their lives.
A lot will be asked of this group in the years ahead, and we’re looking forward to seeing what they accomplish!
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
In a comment to the FAA, SpaceX says it wants to launch 10,000 times per year.
The FAA asked for input on where to build new spaceports and how to give rocket launches priority in US airspace. They're preparing for 10,000 launches a year by 2035.
SpaceX replied that rockets aren't the bottleneck anymore, the FAA's outdated air traffic processes are. They created their own airspace tool (Cleared) that most major US airlines already get for free.
They also noted that Starbase Louisiana is designed for ~30 launches and reentries PER DAY (!!)
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
10k Starship launches/year is just from Starbase Louisiana
In a comment to the FAA, SpaceX says it wants to launch 10,000 times per year.
The FAA asked for input on where to build new spaceports and how to give rocket launches priority in US airspace. They're preparing for 10,000 launches a year by 2035.
SpaceX replied that rockets aren't the bottleneck anymore, the FAA's outdated air traffic processes are. They created their own airspace tool (Cleared) that most major US airlines already get for free.
They also noted that Starbase Louisiana is designed for ~30 launches and reentries PER DAY (!!)
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
JUST IN: The Pentagon has published a remarkable image of China's secretive Shenlong spaceplane in orbit, captured by a Maxar satellite and featured in its newly released 2026 space threat assessment.
The reusable, uncrewed spacecraft launches aboard a rocket and returns to Earth on a runway, similar to the U.S. military's X-37B.
China has conducted four orbital missions since 2020, demonstrating the ability to deploy and maneuver near other objects in space.
The DIA warns that technologies used for satellite inspection and proximity operations could also support anti-satellite capabilities.
China has disclosed few details about the spacecraft's missions or capabilities.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Space freighters.
Scenes from this morning at the Kennedy Space Center turn basin, where NASA’s Pegasus and SpaceX’s Marmac 31 "You’ll Thank Me Later" barges are docked.
This is the first occasion they've been seen together in such close proximity, offering a rare opportunity to witness two vessels purpose-built to transport large spaceflight hardware.
📸 - @NASASpaceflight
nsf.live/spacecoast
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
NASA is paying Elon Musk’s SpaceX $843 MILLION to bring the International Space Station crashing back to Earth.
But why SpaceX, and what happens if NASA does nothing?
The ISS has been orbiting Earth for over 25 years, but it’s ageing and NASA plans to retire it around 2030.
NASA selected SpaceX to develop a specially modified Dragon spacecraft capable of docking with the enormous station and using powerful thrusters to gradually lower its orbit.
SpaceX won the contract through a competitive procurement process, with its experience in spacecraft development, docking and propulsion helping it secure the job.
But here’s the interesting part.
NASA can’t simply abandon the ISS.
Without regular boosts to maintain its altitude, atmospheric drag would gradually pull the 400-tonne station towards Earth.
Eventually, it would re-enter the atmosphere uncontrollably, potentially scattering surviving debris across an unpredictable area of the planet.
That’s a risk NASA isn’t prepared to take.
Instead, SpaceX’s vehicle will guide the station into a controlled re-entry over a remote region of the Pacific Ocean, where any surviving debris can fall away from populated areas.
After decades of scientific discoveries and international cooperation, one of humanity’s greatest engineering achievements will deliberately be brought back to Earth.
And SpaceX has been given the job of making sure it happens safely.
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TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
🚨 SHIP 42 LIT AN ENGINE. FLIGHT 15 JUST GOT CLOSER
Last night at Massey's, Ship 42 ran a single-engine static fire. Here's another angle from our photographer Jordan.
📷 @Jordanguidry6 - WAI Media
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
This is a great angle showing the curved tiles that have been used in the upper tile sections of the nose cone on Starship for years now. Starting with S41, curved tiles are now being used along the center of the cylindrical body to better protect against plasma digging into the tile seams and causing tile erosion on the top corners of tiles.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
TESTE DE 6 MOTORES CONCLUÍDO NO SHIP 42!
A SpaceX ligou os 6 Raptors do Starship para uma queima de aproximadamente 1 minuto.
Com isso, o Ship deve voltar para a fábrica, receber uma carga de Starlinks, e ser preparado para um lançamento em meados de novembro!
Starship Flight 15: Ship 42 conducts a six-engine static fire test.
➡️youtube.com/watch?v=C0lC4tb1…
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
🚨EEUU ha cazado a la nave espacial secreta China.
La inteligencia estadounidense ha publicado esta imagen tomada por satélites de Maxar en 2024. Se distinguen los paneles solares y la bodega abierta.
El parecido con el X-37B de EEUU es evidente.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Man i cant believe the united states would leak anin orbit photo of the chinese military space plane... Surely it would only be right for china to leak a photo of the X37-B while in orbit too right?... Right??.... please.... 🥺
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
🇨🇳🐉 Shenlong : que sait-on de la mystérieuse navette spatiale chinoise robotisée ?
L’engin spatial réutilisable chinois, surnommé Shenlong (« Dragon divin »), a décollé début février 2026 pour sa quatrième mission orbitale. Un nouveau vol qui a relancé les interrogations sur les activités réellement menées par Pékin dans l’espace.
🔹 Comparable au X-37B américain de l’US Space Force, ce véhicule robotisé a été lancé depuis le centre spatial de Jiuquan, dans le désert de Gobi, par une fusée Longue Marche 2F. La Chine reste particulièrement discrète sur ses objectifs, évoquant uniquement des essais de technologies spatiales.
🔹 Ses trois premières missions ont duré respectivement 2 jours en 2020, 276 jours en 2023 et 266 jours en 2024. Au fil de ces vols, Shenlong a largué des objets en orbite et effectué des manœuvres de rendez-vous et de proximité, suivies notamment par des astronomes amateurs et les autorités militaires américaines.
🔹 Ces opérations témoignent de capacités avancées de manœuvre orbitale. Elles pourraient notamment servir à inspecter, entretenir ou ravitailler des satellites, mais on sait qu’elle peut aussi s’approcher d’engins spatiaux potentiellement adverses.
🔹 La navette a notamment réalisé une série complexe de manœuvres orbitales, consistant à larguer un petit satellite, le poursuivre puis le récupérer à plusieurs reprises. Ces opérations démontrent ses capacités avancées de rendez-vous et de proximité en orbite.
👉 Si ses dimensions réduites et sa capacité d’emport limitée semblent peu compatibles avec un rôle d’arme orbitale dirigée contre des cibles au sol, ses applications militaires potentielles suscitent des interrogations, notamment dans le domaine de la lutte antisatellite.
📷 : La navette américaine X-37 et la navette chinoise Shenlong photographiée en orbite par un satelitte Maxar.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Flipping the script: has any Chinese commercial satellite snapped on-orbit imagery of the US X-37B spaceplane? ChangGuang demonstrated their Non-Earth Imaging capability by releasing images of ISS and Maxar's Worldview Legion 2 last year.
TechKatystudt Mechazilla retweeted
Ship 43 passing by its ride to space.
📸nsf.live/starbase | @NASASpaceflight