Mass Value Report for April 2026

Giant rockets and changes in the launch industry

The biggest space news this month, for most people, was the launch of Artemis II. But there is plenty of progress going on in other areas. For instance, Blue Origin successfully reused a booster for the first time, and it we saw the first Falcon Heavy launch in 2 years.

Three giant rockets that flew this month. Credit: NASA, Blue Origin, SpaceX

While only one of these rockets sent a crew to the Moon, the other two will be indirectly involved in the Artemis program - both are due to fly robotic landers to the Moon this year.

I’ve covered the Artemis mission extensively this month so won’t say much more about it here, and focus on commercial matters. The launch industry is in something of a transition at the moment - we are seeing more signs pointing towards the end of Falcon, and new competitors coming along, two of which I’ll highlight today.