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The article focuses on space transport company Space Exploration Technologies' (SpaceX) mission to send a space cargo vessel to the International Space Station. It states the test flight of the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule was initiated under the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program and launched on May 22, 2012. It mentions that SpaceX has also submitted a proposal to certify the Falcon 9 for U.S. Air Force launches.

News briefs on aeronautics and astronautics research are presented. Aerospace industries firm Boeing Co. has conducted research on the use of the plants halophytes to produce biofuels for aviation fuel. The Morpheus planetary landing space vehicle was successfully tests in flight by the U.S. National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA). Aerospace industries firm Virgin Galactic will test its NewtonTwo rocket engine.

The article reports on the plan of low-cost launcher Firefly Space Systems to conduct the first development test of its Alpha vehicle's pressure-fed FRE-2 aerospike rocket engine in 2016. Topics covered include the comment of Firefly co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Tom Markusic on the aerospike concept, the design of the engine, and refinement of the FRE-2 configuration and extension of the spike with the help of Texas Advanced Computing Center at the University of Texas at Austin.

The article informs that Airbus Safran Launchers (ASL) is nearing the final stage in development of Ariane 6, a next-generation rocket designed to compete against SpaceX, which is the biggest threat to long-standing lead in the commercial launch market by Europe. It is noted that the European Space Agency (ESA) is scheduled to wrap up a program to implement review of ASL's Ariane 6 contract proposal.

The article reports on data collected during the rocket-boosted flight of HIFiRE 5B, a test conducted under the joint Australian-U.S. Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation program in Australia on May 18, 2016. It discusses the implications of the data for future hypersonic vehicle and weapon development, the objective of the HIFiRE program, and HIFiRE flights to be conducted in future.

The article reports that aerospace company Blue Origin has completed flight tests of its cryogenic BE-3 deep-throttle engine which the company would use in its New Shepard reusable human spacecraft later in 2015. Topics discussed include testing of New Shepard to be made at the company's facility in West Texas facility, change required in New Shepherd from BE-3 into a BE-3U for upper stage use and views of Rob Meyerson, president of the secretive company that will sell tickets on New Shepard.

The article reports on the completion of Aerojet Rocketdyne's testing of the J-2X rocket engine for the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Space Launch System which will not be able to use the engine in the foreseeable future due to its power and weight.

The article discusses Australia's Scramspace hypersonic rocket program as of November 4, 2013. The project's failure due to a flaw in the rocket booster is mentioned. The author says that despite the failed test, the project has highlighted several engineering successes. Scramspace project director Russell Boyce's account of the failed test is presented.

The article reports the completion of the flight tests of a low-cost missile which was developed by U.S. defense contractor and industrial corporation Raytheon to shoot down mortars, rockets and unmanned aircraft, under the U.S. Army's Accelerated Improved Intercept Initiative (AI3) program.

The article reports that the aerospace industries firm Virgin Galactic announced it has begun final testing of the RM2 hybrid rocket of its SpaceShipTwo sub-orbital space passenger vehicle.

The article focuses on testing of a gas generator built from parts for the F-1 first-stage rocket engine of the Saturn V rocket. It states that the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) is investigating the possibility of modernizing the F-1 engine for advanced kerosene-fueled booster rockets. It mentions NASA is developing digital images of old hardware to convert into computer-aided design files which could be used in additive manufacturing equipment and selective laser sintering.

The article discusses the development of rocket engine combustion-chamber technology that would lessen the cost of rocket engines through the elimination of regenerative cooling by Orbital Technologies Corp (Orbitec). The company utilized vortex engine technology that was proven successful in an October 2012 rocket test in Mojave, California.

The article discusses a backlog of orders in 2012 for a modified Falcon 9 medium-lift rocket developed by California company Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) that has not yet been flight tested. The rocket should deliver unmanned payloads to low Earth orbit (LEO) satelittes, and commercial space launch operators such as SES are mentioned. The European Space Agency's Ariane 5 rocket and the European rocket consortium Arianespace are discussed.

Several letters to the editor are presented that praise the F1 rocket engine on the 50th anniversary of its test flight, respond to the article "Commercial Cooperation," by Frank Morring Jr., from the May 7, 2012 issue, about the Liberty launch system from aircraft manufacturer ATK, and correct an error in the April 9, 2012 issue about the AL-31 turbofan engine.

The article focuses on the development of of the launch abort engine (LAE) rocket engine by the aerospace industry firm Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. Testing of the engine which began on March 8, 2012 is discussed as part of the planned use of the engine in the CST-100 space vehicle for manned flight being created by Boeing Co for the U.S. National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA). It is noted that the LAE had originally been created for space vehicle programs which were canceled.

The article focuses on the aerospace industries firm Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX). Lengthy delays in the company's development of a rocket engine for its Falcon 9 launch vehicle are examined in terms of their impact on Space X's ability to fulfill contracts for launching of artificial satellites by 2014.