International launches… China, which attempted 92 orbital launches in 2025, ranks second, followed by Russia, with 17 launches last year, and Europe with eight. The 2025 orbital launch manifesto was completed with five orbital launch attempts from India, four from Japan, two from South Korea and one each from Israel, Iran and Australia, the analysis showed. The number of global launches has been on an upward trend since 2019, but this year the numbers may stagnate. SpaceX expects to launch about the same number of Falcon 9 rockets this year as last year as the company prepares to pick up the pace of Starship flights.
South Korean startup struggles with a failed launch. The first-ever commercial rocket launched from Brazil's Alcantara Space Center crashed shortly after launch on December 22, dealing a blow to Brazilian aerospace ambitions and South Korean satellite launch company Innospace, Reuters reports. The rocket began its vertical trajectory as planned after launch, but fell to the ground after something went wrong 30 seconds into flight, according to Innospace, the South Korean startup that developed the launch vehicle. The plane crashed within a pre-designated safety zone and caused no harm to anyone, officials said.
An unsurprising result... This was the first flight of Innospace's nano launcher, called Hanbit-Nano. The rocket was loaded with eight small payloads, including five deployable satellites, bound for low Earth orbit. But rocket debuts don't have a good track record, and Innospace's rocket has made it a little further than some new launch vehicles. The rocket is designed to deliver up to 90 kilograms of payload into a sun-synchronous orbit. It has a unique design, where hybrid engines use a mixture of paraffin as fuel and liquid oxygen as an oxidant. Innospace said it plans to launch a second test flight in 2026. (submitted by EllPeaTea)
Take two for the German Isar Aerospace. Isar Aerospace is gearing up for a second launch attempt of its Spectrum light rocket after completing 30-second integrated static test firings for both stages late last year, Aviation Week & Space Technology reports. It would be the first orbital launch for Spectrum and an attempt at a clean mission after a March 30 flight ended in failure when a purge valve accidentally opened shortly after takeoff, causing a loss of control. “Fast iteration is how you win in this space. Being back on track less than nine months after our first test flight is proof that we can operate at the speed the world now demands,” said Daniel Metzler, co-founder and CEO of Isar Aerospace.
