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Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) Mission

On Thursday, December 9 at 1:00 a.m. EST, Falcon 9 launched NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) to low Earth orbit from historic Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center...

Watch NASA's IXPE Observatory Launch Into Space — Official Live Broadcast

We're sending a new pair of X-ray eyes into the universe! NASA's Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is our first satellite dedicated to measuring the polarization of X-rays. Polarized light is...

IXPE

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Astrophysics

Low Earth Orbit Launch Complex 39A Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA Probability: 90%
B1061 - Just Read the Instructions

Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a space observatory tasked with measuring the polarization of cosmic X-rays. This data will help to learn more about objects that emit these X-rays, such as black holes and neutron stars.

Updates

Cosmic_Penguin • Dec. 9, 2021, 6:41 a.m.

Launch success



Nosu • Dec. 4, 2021, 5:13 p.m.

T-0 confirmed by NASA



Nosu • Oct. 19, 2021, 6:16 a.m.

Moving forward to December 9 and adding launch time.


Falcon 9

Family:
Configuration: Block 5

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. The Block 5 variant is the fifth major interval aimed at improving upon the ability for rapid reusability.

See Details
Specifications
  • Stages
    2
  • Length
    70.0 m
  • Diameter
    3.65 m
  • Fairing Diameter
    5.2 m
  • Launch Mass
    549.0 T
  • Thrust
    7607.0 kN
Family
  • Name
    Falcon 9
  • Family
  • Variant
    Block 5
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Falcon 9 Block 5
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
    $52000000
  • Low Earth Orbit
    22800.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
    8300.0 kg
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Booster Info


B1061

Status: Expended


Type: Core
Flight Proven: Yes
First Flight: November 16, 2020
Last Flight: October 7, 2024
Flights: 23
Landings Attempted: 22
Landings Successful: 22
Previous B1061 Flights

Landing Information

B1061 has landed on ASDS JRTI after its fifth flight.

Result: Successful Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship landing at Just Read the Instructions.

SpaceX

SpaceX

(SpX)

CEO: Elon Musk Founded: 2002 Successes: 607 Failures: 15 Pending: 122

Agency Type:

Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by entrepreneur Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonization of Mars. SpaceX operates from many pads, on the East Coast of the US they operate from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and historic LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. They also operate from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, usually for polar launches. Another launch site is being developed at Boca Chica, Texas.

INFO WIKI

Related News

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NASA's IXPE Measures White Dwarf Star for First Time

Huntsville AL (SPX) Jan 05, 2026 For the first time, scientists have used NASA's IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarization Explorer) to study a white dwarf star. Using IXPE's unique X-ray polarization capability, astronomers examined a star ca…

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NASA’s IXPE Measures White Dwarf Star for First Time

By Michael Allen  For the first time, scientists have used NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarization Explorer) to study a white dwarf star. Using IXPE’s unique X-ray polarization capability, astronomers examined a star called the intermediat…

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NASA IXPE’s Longest Observation Solves Black Hole Jets Mystery

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NASA IXPE’s ‘Heartbeat Black Hole’ Measurements Challenge Current Theories

Written by Michael Allen An international team of astronomers using NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer), has challenged our understanding of what happens to matter in the direct vicinity of a black hole. With IXPE, astronomers…

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NASA’s IXPE Imager Reveals Mysteries of Rare Pulsar

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Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Launch Complex 39A


Falcon 9
Success
1 week ago
Starlink Group 6-88
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 29 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
CSG-3
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

CSG-3 is an Earth observation satellite for the Italian Space Agency, part of a reconnaissance constellation using synthetic aperture radars operatin…


Long March 7A
Success
1 week, 4 days ago
Shijian 29 A-B
201 - Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

2 satellites officially described as for "demonstration of new technologies for spatial targets detection" purposes.


Long March 4B
Success
1 week, 5 days ago
Tianhui 7
Launch Area 94 (SLS-2 / 603) - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

A satellite officially described as for cartography purposes, details TBD.


Soyuz 2.1b/Fregat-M
Success
1 week, 6 days ago
AIST-2T 01 & 02
Cosmodrome Site 1S - Vostochny Cosmodrome, Siberia, Russian Federation

A pair of Russian optical Earth observation satellites built by the Progress Rocket Space Centre for obtaining stereo images of the Earth's surface, …


Long March 3B/E
Success
2 weeks, 1 day ago
Fengyun-4C
Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

China's geostationary meteorological satellite program FY-4 (Feng Yun 4) is the second generation of chinese geostationary meteorological satellites.


Long March 8A
Success
2 weeks, 2 days ago
SatNet LEO Group 17
Commercial LC-1 - Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

A batch of 9 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites for the Chinese state owned SatNet constellation operated by the China Satellite Network Group.…


Soyuz 2.1a
Success
2 weeks, 2 days ago
Obzor-R No.1
43/4 (43R) - Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation

Note: Assignment of payloads to this launch is uncertain. The Russian Obzor-R satellite is a planned X-band radar earth observation satellite desi…


LVM-3 (GSLV Mk III)
Success
2 weeks, 4 days ago
BlueBird Block 2 #1
Satish Dhawan Space Centre Second Launch Pad - Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India

AST SpaceMobile’s Block 2 BlueBird satellites are designed to deliver up to 10 times the bandwidth capacity of the BlueBird Block 1 satellites, requi…


Long March 12A
Success
2 weeks, 5 days ago
Demo Flight
Long March 12A Pad - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

First test launch of CASC/SAST’s Long March 12A rocket, with a dummy payload. The rocket’s 1st stage attempted to land on a landing pad about 300 km …