Author: Ken Kremer

Watch for Ken’s continuing onsite coverage of NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and more space and mission reports direct from Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida and Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Stay tuned here for Ken's continuing Earth and Planetary science and human spaceflight news. Dr. Kremer is a research scientist and journalist based in the KSC area, active in outreach and interviewed regularly on TV and radio about space topics. Ken’s photos are for sale and he is available for lectures and outreach events.

In the Cleanroom with Game Changing GOES-S Next Gen Weather Satellite for Western US – Launching March 1

The NASA/NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S) is being processed in the clean room at Astrotech Space Operations, in Titusville, FL, on Jan. 16, in advance of nose cone encapsulation for planned launch on a ULA Atlas V slated for Mar. 1, 2018.  GOES-S belongs to new constellation of America’s most advanced weather satellites. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com KENNEDY SPACE CENTER,

VP Mike Pence Chairs Space Summit at Kennedy Space Center Fostering Space Commerce

Vice President Mike Pence addresses a meeting of the National Space Council in the high bay of the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Feb. 21, 2018. Chaired by the Vice President, the council heard testimony from representatives from civil space, commercial space and national security space industry representatives, backdropped by the NASA Orion,

Trump Administration Redirects NASA to Lunar Exploration Focus with $19.9 Billion Budget Proposal for FY 2019, Cancels WFIRST Astronomy Satellite

Artists concept of NASA’s proposed Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway for human crewed missions to deep space, targeting the first element launch in 2022. Credit: NASA Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   13 Feb 2018 KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL- The Trump Administration is charting a new course for NASA that redirects the space agency to focus on Lunar exploration as a near

Space Fan Red Alert! Scorched and Sooty SpaceX Falcon Heavy Side Booster Briefly Displayed at KSC Visitor Complex – Gallery

Scorched and sooty SpaceX Falcon Heavy landed side booster after two trips to space and back is briefly on display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, FL, outside the Space Shuttle Atlantis pavilion. Photos taken 19 Feb. 2018 following maiden blastoff and landing on 6 Feb. 2018. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   19 Feb 2018

Trump Administration Tells NASA to Stop Funding ISS After 2024

The International Space Station (ISS) operates in Low Earth Orbit as a platform for science and a peaceful cooperative effort of five space agencies comprising 17 countries worldwide. Construction stated in 1998 and it has been continuously occupied since 2000 – as seen in 2011 after undocking of visiting Space Shuttle during STS-132 mission. Credit: NASA Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com 

Starman Departs Earth Driving Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster Sports Car on Interplanetary Journey to Mars Orbit and Beyond: Gallery

Last photo of space suited Starman mannequin driving SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster on Feb. 8, 2018 on its journey to Mars orbit and then the Asteroid Belt after launch atop Falcon Heavy rocket on Feb. 6 2018 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.   Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   8 Feb 2018 KENNEDY SPACE

More Photos of SpaceX Falcon Heavy Maiden Launch and Landings

Maiden SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket blasts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Feb. 6, 2017.  Nose cone housing Starman seated in Tesla Roadster is stenciled with Falcon Heavy logo. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   8 Feb 2018 KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL –  The maiden blastoff of the SpaceX Falcon

New Falcon Species Born: With ‘Fire & Fury’ SpaceX ‘Falcon Heavy’ Emerges from Massive Exhaust Cloud at Florida Spaceport; Next Stop – The Asteroid Belt: Gallery

New species of ‘Falcon’ born.  With ‘Fire & Fury’ the SpaceX ‘Falcon Heavy’ emerges from the massive exhaust cloud of the ‘birth canal’ at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida following Feb. 6, 2018 debut test flight launch.  The payload was the spacesuited ‘Starman’ mannequin buckled into the driver’s seat of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s red Tesla

1st SpaceX Falcon Heavy Blasts off with Massive Power and Crowds Watching ‘Starman’ Soar to Mars: Photos

Maiden SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket blasts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Feb. 6, 2017.  Nose cone housing Starman seated in Tesla Roadster is stenciled with Falcon Heavy logo. Credit: Ken Kremer/SpaceUpClose.com/kenkremer.com Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   6 Feb 2018 KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL – The first ever triple core Falcon Heavy rocket

Elon Musk Releases New ‘Falcon Heavy sends a car to Mars’ Animation – Set to ‘Starman’ on Eve of Maiden Launch

Starman in a Red Roadster buckled up is the payload housed in the nosecone for the first test flight of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy targeting blastoff on Feb 6, 2018. Credit: SpaceX Ken Kremer  —   SpaceUpClose.com  —   5 Feb 2018 KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL – On the eve on the maiden launch of the triple barreled SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket,