.NET Rocks! Space Geek Out 2025
Dec 25, 2025
In a thrilling recap of the year in space, the hosts dive into the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS and its non-alien origins. They celebrate SpaceX's record-breaking Falcon 9 launches while discussing United Launch Alliance's struggles. The International Space Station marks 25 years, yet faces a watery end soon. Excitingly, new space stations and lunar missions are on the horizon, including Blue Ghost's success. Plus, the impact of James Webb's discoveries on our understanding of the universe heats up the conversation!
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Record Launch Year Driven By Reuse
- 2025 was a record year with 318 launches worldwide and SpaceX responsible for roughly half of them. Falcon 9 cadence and reusability drove dramatic launch efficiency gains and growing Starlink deployment.
- SpaceX reached ~8 million Starlink subscribers and a single booster achieved 32 landings, showing reuse scales impact network and launch economics.
Starship Progress: Mixed Tests, Big Ambitions
- Starship continues iterative Block upgrades with mixed test outcomes in 2025 and clear progress by late flights. Block 2 showed successful booster recoveries and Block 3 development aims for full orbital capability and moon-lander variants.
- Starship's scale and 100% reuse goal reshape heavy-lift expectations but bring complex development and infrastructure trade-offs.
Plan For Launch Schedule Uncertainty
- Expect public launch cadence forecasts to change; plan margins and backups accordingly. Don't rely on a single supplier for critical national or commercial launch needs.