Liftoff Videos

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273 videos

  1. Deep Space Updates: MMX to Phobos, Crew-12 Return, Neutron Delay

    Published: 23 Oct 2026

    A roundup of space news from early to late October, covering launches from Korea, China, the US and Japan, including Japan's H3 launch of the Martian Moons Explorer.

  2. Super Heavy’s 33 Raptors vs Saturn V’s Five F1 Engines Explained

    Published: 18 Jun 2024

    Compares the 33 Raptor engines on SpaceX's Super Heavy booster with the five F1 engines of the Saturn V.

  3. Starship 40 Reaches Christmas Island: Damage and the Trip Home

    Mission: 2026Published: 23 Aug 2026

    Scott Manley reports that Starship number 40 was towed to Christmas Island after about three weeks in the Indian Ocean following its flight.

    View mission: Starship Flight 13 (2026)
    Vehicle
    Starship

  4. Electron Launches Earth Observation Satellite From Mahia LC-1

    Mission: 2026Published: 6 Mar 2026

    Rocket Lab's Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand, carrying a single Earth observation satellite for a confidential commercial customer.

    View mission: Insight At Speed Is A Friend Indeed (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, Mahia, New Zealand

  5. Electron Launches the Eighth StriX Satellite for Synspective

    Mission: 2026Published: 20 Mar 2026

    Rocket Lab's live broadcast of the dedicated Electron launch "Eight Days A Week" from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand, which lifted off at 7:10 a.m.

    View mission: Eight Days A Week (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, Mahia, New Zealand
    Outcome
    Success

  6. Electron Launches ESA’s Celeste IOD Satellites to 510 km Orbit

    Mission: 2026Published: 28 Mar 2026

    Rocket Lab launched an Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand on 28 March 2026 NZT, carrying the two Celeste IOD demonstrator satellites for the European Space Agency.

    View mission: Daughter Of The Stars (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, Mahia, New Zealand
    Outcome
    Success

  7. Kakushin Rising: Electron Deploys Eight JAXA Satellites to Orbit

    Mission: 2026Published: 23 Apr 2026

    Rocket Lab's Electron launched the Kakushin Rising mission for JAXA on 23 April 2026 from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand, carrying eight small satellites to a 540 km circular orbit.

    View mission: Kakushin Rising (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, New Zealand
    Outcome
    Success

  8. Electron Delivers a StriX Radar Satellite to Orbit for Synspective

    Mission: 2026Published: 22 May 2026

    Rocket Lab's Electron launched the 'Viva La StriX' mission from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand on 22 May 2026 at 09:33 UTC, carrying one StriX radar satellite for Synspective.

    View mission: Viva La StriX (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, New Zealand
    Outcome
    Success

  9. Victus Haze: Electron Launches Pioneer on Under 17 Hours Notice

    Mission: 2026Published: 22 Jun 2026

    Rocket Lab's Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand for the US Space Force's Victus Haze responsive space mission, carrying Rocket Lab's own Pioneer spacecraft.

    View mission: Victus Haze (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, New Zealand

  10. Electron Launch 91: Rocket Lab Deploys Its 10th StriX Satellite

    Mission: 2026Published: 26 Jun 2026

    Rocket Lab's 91st Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 5:43 a.m. local time on 27 June 2026, carrying a single StriX radar satellite for Synspective.

    View mission: 10 Owl Of 10 (2026)
    Vehicle
    Electron
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 1, Mahia, New Zealand
    Outcome
    Success

  11. Why the Apollo Lunar Module Was Built So Light and Odd-Looking

    Published: 17 Sep 2024

    Explains why the Apollo Lunar Module looked the way it did: a two-stage design by Grumman built to save weight, with four legs, honeycomb shock absorbers, small windows and a thin hull wrapped in…

  12. Voyager, Pioneer and New Horizons: Where the Probes End Up

    Published: 30 Sep 2024

    Five spacecraft, Pioneer 10 and 11, Voyager 1 and 2 and New Horizons, are on one-way trajectories out of the solar system.

    Vehicle
    New Horizons, Voyager 1, Voyager 2

  13. Aerojet AJ260: The Giant Solid Motor Behind the Shuttle Boosters

    Published: 17 Nov 2024

    A look at the history of solid rocket motors and the Aerojet AJ260, a 260-inch motor built in the 1960s as a possible backup to the F-1 engine on the Saturn V.

  14. TIROS 1: The First Weather Satellite and Its Fuzzy First Images

    Published: 10 Sep 2026

    The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's On Air series looks at TIROS 1, the world's first weather satellite, launched in 1960.

    View mission: TIROS 1

  15. Why the ISS Will Be Deorbited at Point Nemo and What Comes Next

    Mission: 1998Published: 22 Jul 2024

    The video explains why the International Space Station is due to be deorbited by SpaceX around 2030 and sent into the sea at Point Nemo.

    View mission: International Space Station (1998)
    Outcome
    In progress

  16. Why Apollo’s Lunar Module Ascent Engine Was Never Live Fired

    Published: 16 Aug 2024

    The lunar module ascent engine was the one Apollo engine classed as so critical that even minor changes needed sign-off from NASA's highest management, because a failure on the Moon would leave no…

  17. New Glenn NG-2 Live: ESCAPADE to Mars and a Booster Landing Try

    Published: 9 Nov 2025

    Live coverage of Blue Origin's second New Glenn launch, NG-2, from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, carrying NASA's twin ESCAPADE spacecraft toward Mars along with a Viasat…

    View mission: New Glenn NG-2 ESCAPADE
    Vehicle
    New Glenn
    Launch site
    Launch Complex 36, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

  18. Starship Flight 14: Sun Transit, Booster Descent and FTS Blast

    Mission: 2026Published: 2 Oct 2026

    A narrated compilation of fan and team camera footage and audio from Starship Flight 14, including a sun transit, an updraft along the rocket's path, a single Raptor shutting down, stage separation,…

    View mission: Starship Flight 14 (2026)

  19. Would a Voyager 3 Still Carry a Golden Record? Storage Compared

    Mission: 1977Published: 31 May 2025

    The video looks at the golden records on Voyagers 1 and 2, launched in 1977, and asks whether a hypothetical Voyager 3 would carry one today.

    View mission: Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 (1977)

  20. Webb and Rubin Compared: Deep Fields Versus the Whole Southern Sky

    Published: 30 Jun 2025

    A comparison of the James Webb Space Telescope and the Vera Rubin Observatory, which released its first images the week the video was made.

    Vehicle
    James Webb Space Telescope

  21. Zhuque-3 Landing, Roman Telescope Launch and SpaceX’s Louisiana Plan

    Published: 1 Sep 2026

    A roundup of space news from the second half of August.

  22. Stoke Space Nova Block 2: Billion-Dollar Reusable Rocket Redesign

    Published: 9 Sep 2026

    Scott Manley explains Stoke Space's new funding round of another billion dollars, bringing its total to $2.3 billion, and the Block 2 version of its Nova fully reusable rocket.

    Vehicle
    Nova

  23. Starship Flight 14 Reaches Orbit and Three Falcons Fly in One Day

    Published: 7 Oct 2026

    A roundup of space news from roughly the last two weeks before October 6th.

  24. Four Satellites That Came Back: LES-1, AO-7, IMAGE and BeeSat 1

    Published: 31 Oct 2026

    Scott Manley tells the stories of four satellites that went silent and later transmitted again: LES-1, AMSAT-OSCAR 7, IMAGE and BeeSat 1.

    Vehicle
    PSLV