Welcome to our twenty-fourth Monthly Dose of Space! In this monthly newsletter, we bring you major news from the past month. September continues a busy 2025 worldwide, so let's jump into the past month!

News of the Month

This past month has been up and down in the world of spaceflight. From plans in Europe to push on with reusable rockets, NASA continuing to shed directors, and Uranus' Moon Ariel likely had a massive subsurface ocean in the past.

Europe pushes ahead with reuse efforts

Themis stood on its launch pad (left) and Avio's concept of its reusable upper-stage demonstration mission (right). ©ArianeGroup/Swedish Space Corporation/Avio
Themis stood on its launch pad (left) and Avio's concept of its reusable upper-stage demonstration mission (right). ©ArianeGroup/Swedish Space Corporation/Avio

The European Space Agency and Arianespace have placed Europe's first reusable first-stage test vehicle on its launch pad in Sweden, on September 19th. The test vehicle, known as Themis, arrived at the Esrange Space Center several weeks ago ahead of its testing campaign.

In the coming weeks and months, Themis is set to demonstrate technologies for domestic reusable boosters by performing a series of hops using its Prometheus engine, a variant of Ariane 6's main engine for greater throttling and in-flight restarts. It's currently unclear when the 30-meter-tall, 3.5-meter-wide test vehicle will hop before touching down on three landing legs.

Meanwhile at the 76th International Astronautical Congress in Sydney, Australia, the European Space Agency and Avio have signed a 40 million Euro contract for performing a mission to demonstrate technologies needed for a reusable rocket's upper-stage. The contract is expected to refine the understanding of what systems will be needed for routinely flying a completely reusable launch vehicle. Toni Tolker-Nielsen, Director of Space Transportation at the European Space Agency, commented on the importance of the contract:

"I am glad to sign this contract since its importance is two-fold: on one side it addresses technological criticalities in the short-term, on the other side it paves the way for the preparation of Europe’s long-term future in space."

Marshall's Director leaves NASA

On September 25th, Joseph Pelfrey, Center Director of the Marshall Space Flight Center, announced via an email to employees that he is stepping down from his position, one he has held since February 2024. In his departure message, Pelfrey wrote:

"As the Agency continues to embark on a bold mission to return humans to the moon, it will take the full attention of its leaders and the people they serve. It will also be important for Agency leadership to move forward with a team they choose to execute the tasks at hand."
"With that in mind, it’s time for me to step out of the Center Director role. I will work with Agency leadership to pursue new ways I can serve our space program and our great Nation. Leading Marshall these last few years has been the honor of a lifetime and I couldn’t be prouder of how you have endeavored to persevere, delivered on the mission and created a bright future for years to come."

Pelfrey's departure comes as the Trump Administration threatens to remove anyone disagreeing with massive cuts to the space agency, the possible departure of thousands of employees, and after other directors leave NASA too.

Uranus Moon Ariel Likely Had a Massive Subsurface Ocean

Ariel, Uranus' second largest and brightest Moon has been a topic of interest for a while. It's unique geography and surface features, from new craters next to old ones, fractures, and ridges, all point to one thing—a subsurface ocean. While it is likely the Moon still has a subsurface ocean, scientists believe in the past it could have been up to 170km (100mi) deep. For comparison, the deepest (known) part of Earth's ocean, the Mariana trench is 11km (7mi).

To account for such surface features and such a deep subsurface ocean, Ariel would of needed to have an eccentricity of 0.40, which is 40x greater than it is now and 4x the eccentricity of Europa. This much higher eccentricity would of allowed for the necessary flexing and internal heating needed to create the features we see on Ariel today.

However, to truly uncover the mysteries of the Uranus system, another spacecraft would need to be sent to the ice giant. In the words of Tom Nordheim of Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory:

"We are finding evidence that the Uranus system may harbor twin ocean worlds. Unfortunately, we’ve only seen the southern hemispheres of Ariel and Miranda. But our results can give us predictions of what a future spacecraft might see on the moons’ unimaged northern hemispheres—such as the location of fractures and ridges there. Ultimately, we just need to go back to the Uranus system and see for ourselves."

Firefly Aerospace's Alpha Rocket First Stage RUDs on Pad

On Monday, the first stage to be used for Alpha's seventh flight experienced an anomaly during normal pre-flight testing. This resulted in the loss of both the vehicle and likely substantial damage to the pad and other ground stage equipment. While little is currently known about why this rapid unscheduled disassembly occurred, Firefly released a statement saying the following:

"During testing at Firefly’s facility in Briggs, Texas, the first stage of Firefly’s Alpha Flight 7 rocket experienced an event that resulted in a loss of the stage. Proper safety protocols were followed, and all personnel are safe. The company is assessing the impact to its stage test stand, and no other facilities were impacted. Regular testing is part of Firefly’s philosophy – we test each critical component, engine, and vehicle stage to ensure it operates within our flight requirements before we ship to the launch pad. We learn from each test to improve our designs and build a more reliable system. We will share more information on the path forward at a later date."

Following news of this setback, Firefly's stock ($FLY) dropped 20% in one day, an extreme reaction from investors.

Launches of the Month

This month saw 32 launches worldwide, continuing a busy year. If you want to know what each launch was we have them all listed below!

September 2nd - Shavit-2 with Ofek-19

Israel's military launched a Shavit-2 rocket, based on the country's intercontinental ballistic missiles, into a retrograde low Earth orbit carrying the Ofek-19 satellite. Ofek-19 is believed to be a synthetic aperture radar reconnaissance satellite.

Twenty-four Starlink satellites were sent to low Earth orbit via a Falcon 9 flying from Space Launch Complex 4E, in California. Booster B1097 supported this mission for its first flight, landing on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You' downrange.

Another twenty-eight Starlink satellites were delivered to low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 via a Falcon 9. Supporting this launch was booster B1083, for its fourteenth flight with a downrange landing on the drone ship 'A Shortfall of Gravitas'.

September 5th - Long March 3C/E with Shiyan-29

A Long March 3C/E carried Shiyan-29, boosted by a Yuanzheng-1 upper-stage, directly into geostationary orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center for the rocket's second flight this year. Shiyan-29 is planning to conduct space environment monitoring the related technology tests.

September 5th - Ceres-1 with three satellites

Galactic Energy's Ceres-1 blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center carrying three customer satellites into sun-synchronous orbit, along with its Eros orbital test platform (based on the rocket's fourth-stage). The customer payloads were:

  • Kaiyun-1, for Earth observation and space awareness tasks
  • Yuxing-3-08, for remote sensing via a 5-meter resolution camera
  • Yunyao-1-27, for meteorological tasks as well as testing an electric hall-effect propulsion system, a fiber optic gyro, a high-performance computer, and a Compton telescope for gamma-ray particle detection.

Meanwhile, the Eros platform is set to carry out experiments related to studying atmospheric conditions along with optical and visible light imaging tests.

Yet another twenty-eight Starlink satellites were sent to low Earth orbit by Falcon 9 flying out of Launch Complex 39A, in Florida. Booster B1069 supported this mission for its twenty-seventh flight, landing on the drone ship 'Just Read The Instructions' downrange.

This was also the 500th landing of a Falcon 9 first-stage booster.

September 6th - Long March 6A with Yaogan-40 Group-03

Three Yaogan-40 satellites, for the third group overall, were sent into a polar orbit by a Long March 6A flying from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The three satellites are expected to perform electromagnetic environment detection over areas of Earth below, along with related technology tests.

Another Falcon 9 delivered twenty-four Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit, out of Space Launch Complex 4E. This mission was supported by booster B1075 for its twentieth flight, landing on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You' downrange.

September 8th - Jielong-3 with Geely Group 05

A Jielong-3 blasted off from a sea launch platform off the coast of Haiyang, Shandong province, heading into low Earth orbit with eleven satellites for Geespace's Geely Future Mobility Constellation. With this launch, the constellation now has fifty-two satellites for providing communication, connectivity, and positioning services.

September 9th - Long March 7A with Yaogan-45

Out of Launch Complex 201 at the Wenchang Space Launch Site, a Long March 7A flew into a medium Earth orbit carrying the Yaogan-45 remote sensing satellite. Yaogan-45 will reportedly be used for scientific experiments, land resource surveys, crop yield estimation, as well as disaster prevention and relief efforts.

September 10th - Falcon 9 for Tranche 1

For the U.S. Space Development Agency, a Falcon 9 launched from Space Launch Complex 4E, in California, for the Tranche 1 Transport Layer B mission carrying twenty-one satellites into polar orbit. Supporting this mission was booster B1093 for its sixth flight, landing downrange on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You'.

September 11th - Soyuz 2.1a with MS-32

A Soyuz 2.1a launched the Progress MS-32 cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Onboard the resupply spacecraft were consumables for the crew as well as scientific experiments.

September 12th - Falcon 9 with Nusantara Lima

SpaceX launched Indonesia's Nusantara Lima telecommunications satellite to a geostationary transfer orbit from Space Launch Complex 40, in Florida, atop of a Falcon 9. Booster B1078 supported this mission for its twenty-third flight, landing on the drone ship 'A Shortfall Of Gravitas'.

September 13th - Soyuz 2.1b with Cosmos 2595 & 2596

Two Cosmos satellites were launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome atop of a Soyuz 2.1b. One satellite is said to be a Glonass-K satellite while the other is an experimental spacecraft.

Twenty-four Starlink satellites were sent into low Earth orbit by a Falcon 9 flying from Space Launch Complex 4E. Supporting this mission was booster B1071 for its twenty-eighth flight, with a landing downrange on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You'.

September 14th - Falcon 9 with NG-23

Northrop Grumman's twenty-third Cygnus resupply mission was launched atop of a Falcon 9, flying out of Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida, to head to the International Space Station. Supporting this launch was booster B1094 for its fourth flight, landing at Landing Zone 2 back in Cape Canaveral.

September 16th - Long March 2C with four internet test satellites

A Long March 2C, with a Yuanzheng-1S upper-stage, flying from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center sent four satellites for internet technology testing into low Earth orbit. Three spacecraft manufacturers contributed the satellites onboard, two commercial ventures and one state-owned enterprise, which may improve the GuoWang and Qianfan constellations.

Twenty-eight Starlink satellites were sent to low Earth orbit atop of a Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40. Booster B1092 supported this mission for its seventh flight, landing downrange on the drone ship 'Just Read The Instructions'.

September 18th - New Shepard for NS-35

Blue Origin launched its New Shepard rocket on a suborbital flight from its West Texas site for a research and commercial payload-carrying mission. Capsule RSS H.G. Wells flew for the twelfth time on this mission while booster NS-5 flew for the fifth time.

Another Falcon 9 sent twenty-four Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4E, in California. Supporting this mission was B1088, flying for the tenth time and landing on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You' downrange.

SpaceX's Falcon 9 launched twenty-eight Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40, in Florida. Supporting this mission was booster B1085 for its eleventh flight, with a landing downrange on the drone ship 'A Shortfall Of Gravitas'.

September 22nd - Falcon 9 with NROL-48

A batch of military reconnaissance satellites was launched from Space Launch Complex 4E, in California, atop of a Falcon 9. Booster B1081 supported this launch, flying for the eighteenth time and landing back at Landing Zone 4 at the Vandenberg Space Force Base.

September 23rd - Electron for 'Jenna'

Rocket Lab flew its Electron rocket in its HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron) configuration for a suborbital military test flight out of Wallops Island, in Virginia.

September 24th - Jielong 3 with Geely Group 06

A Jielong-3 flew from a sea-launch platform off the coast of China's Shandong province, carrying twelve satellites to low Earth orbit for automaker Geely's Future Mobility Constellation, bringing the total satellite count to sixty-four. The constellation is set to provide communication, connectivity, and positioning services worldwide, with an accuracy at a centimeter level.

September 24th - Falcon 9 with three satellites

From Launch Complex 39A, in Florida, a Falcon 9 flew toward the Sun-Earth L1 point carrying NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) and Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, as well as NOAA's Space Weather Follow On-Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1). This launch was supported by booster B1096, performing its second flight and landing on the drone ship 'Just Read The Instructions' downrange.

Another twenty-eight Starlink satellites were delivered to low Earth orbit by a Falcon 9 out of Space Launch Complex 40. Supporting this mission was booster B1080 for its twenty-second flight, landing downrange on the drone ship 'A Shortfall Of Gravitas'.

September 25th - Atlas V with KA-03

Out of Space Launch Complex 41 atop of United Launch Alliance's Atlas V, twenty-seven Kuiper satellites, for the constellation's fifth group, were sent into low Earth orbit. This launch brought Amazon's constellation up to 129 satellites.

Falcon 9 delivered twenty-four more Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4E. This launch was supported by booster B1082 for its sixteenth flight, landing downrange on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You'.

September 26th - Long March 4C with Fengyun-3H

A Long March 4C flew to sun-synchronous orbit out of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center carrying the Fengyun-3H satellite. Fengyun-3H is set to monitor and research activities in weather forecasting, atmospheric chemistry, and climate change.

September 27th - Long March 6A with GuoWang Group 11

Five satellites for the GuoWang internet mega-constellation were launched atop of a Long March 6A flying from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. This launch brought the constellation up to eighty-six spacecraft.

Twenty-eight more Starlink satellites were sent into low Earth orbit by a Falcon 9 flying from Space Launch Complex 4E. Supporting this mission was Booster 1063 for its twenty-eighth flight, with a landing downrange on the drone ship 'Of Course I Still Love You'.

September 29th - Long March 2D with Shiyan-30 01 & 02

China's 100th overall Long March 2D mission carried two Shiyan-30 test satellites into low Earth orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The satellite's tasks are reported to be for Earth observation tasks and related technology verification tests.

Launches to look out for in October!

October will continue a busy year for worldwide launches. Listed below are all of the launches expected or likely to happen next month, launches on the 1st of October may have already occurred due to when this newsletter is published.

A batch of Starlink satellites is expected to head to low Earth orbit via a Falcon 9 flying from Space Launch Complex 40.

Falcon 9 is set to launch from Space Launch Complex 4E carrying more Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit.

Another group of Starlink satellites are planned to launch atop of a Falcon 9 flying from Space Launch Complex 40.

October 7th - Falcon 9 for KF-03

SpaceX is preparing to launch twenty-four Kuiper satellites into low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 to expand Amazon's internet constellation.

October 8th - New Shepard for NS-36

Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket may perform a suborbital mission carrying either research payloads or tourists above the Kármán line.

More Starlink satellites are set to head into low Earth orbit atop of a Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 4E.

Yet another group of Starlink satellites will launch via a Falcon 9 to be deployed in low Earth orbit, flying out of Space Launch Complex 40.

October 13th - Starship-Super Heavy for its eleventh flight test

SpaceX is planning to launch Starship-Super Heavy's eleventh flight test using Booster 15, for its second flight, and Ship 38, flying for the first time.

October 16th - LVM-3 with GSAT-7R

India's LVM-3 rocket is set to launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre carrying the GSAT-7R communication satellite to geostationary transfer orbit on behalf of the Indian Navy.

October 21st - H3 with HTV-X

Japan is planning to launch its H3 rocket, with four solid rocket boosters for the first time, into low Earth orbit from the Tanegashima Space Center for the HTV-X's first resupply mission to the International Space Station.

October 22nd - Falcon 9 with SpainSat-NG II

A Falcon 9 is set to launch SpainSat-NG II into geostationary transfer orbit from Space Launch Complex 40.